Finding Dory

"I forget things almost instantly. It runs in my family...at least, I think it does...where are they?"

Recalling this line from Finding Nemo, and then learning the title of the sequel, I was able to accurately predict the plot of this film. One year later, Dory has stayed close to Marlin and his son Nemo, even helping Mr. Ray out during school. Then during one field trip, the class is being taught about the undertow, and Dory has a sudden flash of memory that she had a mom and dad. One day when she was a tiny, adorable child, she got pulled away into the current and lost. In her forgetfulness, she doesn't stay still very long, asking fish after fish if they've seen her parents. This goes well into her adulthood until she can't remember who she was looking for. Then a boat passes above her, Marlin bumps into her, and the rest was history.

With this memory returned, Dory decides to set off to California and find them. Marlin, after failing to talk her out of it, decides to go with her, and Nemo tags along as well. It doesn't take long for Marlin to lose patience with her, tho, as a run in with a giant squid nearly gets Nemo eaten. Suddenly, Dory is netted by some marine workers, tagged and taken to quarantine, and it's revealed she and her parents lived in an aquarium.

As the two clownfish try to get her back, Dory continues to retrace her memories to find her old home. A cranky 7-tentacled octopus named Hank agrees to help her in exchange for her tag (he doesn't want to go back to the ocean). She also meets a beluga whale named Bailey, and is reunited with her old friend Destiny, a friendly but nearsighted whale shark. Both provide some insight in how to get around the aquarium.

Animation is standard for Pixar, which is to say it looks astonishing. You really get swept in by the vibrant colors of the ocean, aquarium, and various marine life our characters come across. As predictable as the premise was, the story and humor are still pretty great. It was endearing to see Nemo have a more active role in this one, interacting a lot more with Dory and Marlin than in the first film. Marlin still worries about him, but he gives his son a bit more room to grow, and learns to have that same faith in Dory, who overcomes her own memory issues to great effect here.

If there's a downside, it's a bit repetitive. While going through the aquarium, the characters go back and forth to a few locations. However, the frequent change in scenery is also welcome, since in contrast, Nemo spent a good portion of his own movie stuck in a dentist's fishtank.

The flashbacks to Dory's childhood will melt your heart. We get an idea of what is was like for her growing up with a bad memory, but also how caring and patient her parents were, which gives their reunion an additional impact.

The title and idea seem so simple, and yet has so many meanings to it. While Marlin and Nemo are trying to find her, Dory's trying to find her family, and manages to find herself too. It turns into a great lesson in appreciating others, overcoming personal handicaps, and giving people a chance. If you like the first film, this is a perfect follow-up for people of all ages.

TV Animation In 2015

This posts includes televised animation. This post will continue to be updated as I remember stuff.


Gravity Falls
Most of the second (and sadly, final) season aired in the past year. Always retaining a great mixture of mystery, humor, and characterization, the Pines twins' summer reaches a turning point when Grunkle Stan(ley) opens a portal to another dimension to save his twin brother (Stan)Ford, the six-fingered author of the journals that kicked off the start of the series. They were once inseparable, like Dipper and Mabel, but Stan's accidental sabotage of Ford's science project blew his chance at a scholarship, causing Stan to get kicked out of the house by their parents' house and having to fend for himself as a con artist. Ford continued investigating the paranormal, working with "Old Man" Fiddleford McGuckett and becoming an unwitting pawn of Bill Cipher. Upon discovering Bill's plans, he stopped his research and called Stan to get rid of one of his journals. Stan would have destroyed it, but Ford tried to stop him. The two had a fight and accidentally turned on the portal, sucking Ford in, where he remained for at least 30 years. Since then, Stan faked his death, assumed Ford's identity, and turned his house into a tourist trap as the Murder Hut (later renamed the Mystery Shack) in order to pay bills and continuing to try to get his brother home. Ford was not happy about his rescue, since it put Bill one step closer to Weirdmageddon. The portal left a dimensional rift behind that Ford has tried to contain. At the same time, Dipper and Mabel have been growing further apart, whether it's by their own decisions, or just growing up. Mabel doesn't take this well, especially once Dipper agrees to stay in Gravity Falls as Ford's apprentice. She runs off, inadvertently taking Dipper's backpack with her, and encounters time traveler Blendin Blandon, who offers her a way to make summer last forever using the rift. She hands it over, and Bill reveals himself to be possessing Blandon. He breaks the rift out of its container, tearing open the sky and letting his demon friends in. This kicks off the Weirdmageddon; which takes up the following two episodes, and will finish up in the one-hour finale. I haven't watched any of these episodes yet, but will cover the whole thing when the final episode airs. Suffice it to say, I'm really sad to see this show end. I always assumed the plan was to make 3 seasons. Nonetheless, it received a solid 40-episode run over the span of 3 to 4 years. Pretty good shelf life, all things considered.

Rick & Morty
A mad scientist and his grandson have crazy adventures all over the multiverse, while Morty's family also deals with their own domestic dysfunctions. The show is incredibly good at mood whiplash, fluctuating between laugh out loud comedy, tense character moments, and horrifying traumatic incidents all over the course of a half hour, and often at the same time. Something I liked about this second season is that Morty's sister summer starts getting more involved in the pair's weekly adventures. It became less Rick dragging Morty along on dangerous interdimensional exploits, and more about him spending time with his grandchildren, but there's always plenty of danger. At the end of the season, one of Rick's oldest friends, Birdperson, is getting married to one of Summer's best friends (they hooked up at a wild party at the end of the first season), but she turns out to be a spy with the Galactic Federation, bent on bringing Rick and his fugitive friends to justice. Things go to squanch from there, but Rick and Morty manage to escape with their family to a miniature Earth-like planet. They seem to survive there for a little while, but Rick ultimately turns himself in (making it sound like his son-in-law Jerry sold him out) so everyone else can return to Earth safely, which is now part of the Galactic Federation. I have no idea where the show is headed next.

Kill La Kill
This one of the strangest anime I've ever seen. The main character, Ryuko Matoi, is searching for answers about the person who killed her father, and her search leads her to Honouji Academy, a high school with a totalitarian student government headed by student council president Satsuki Kiriyuin. The school's uniforms contain life fibers which, when worn by humans, and can sometimes give unique abilities as well. Ryuko comes across one such uniform, a kamui (100% life fibers) which she names Senketsu that transforms into a very revealing outfit but also grants her a great amount of power. Armed with a scissor blade that can cut life fibers, she fights her way through the school's heirarchy and runs into a large resistance movement and tons of wacky characters along the way. This is one show that has to be seen to be believed,  hence the lack of spoilers. Suffice it to say, despite its obvious fanservice appeal, it actually is a very well-written and incredibly animated show. It embraces its ridiculous premise and can take itself seriously and be absolutely ridiculous depending on the episode. By the end, it's completely awesome.

Gurren Lagann
This may be the greatest anime I've ever seen. It begins with a boy named Simon finding a robot head buried deep underground, where most humans have spent generations living. His hot-blooded best friend, Kamina, dreams of life above the surface and knows they can get there one day. Then, a monster breaks through from above ground, while a girl named Yoko was fighting it. Using his core drill necklace, Simon activates the robot head, which Kamina has dubbed Lagann, and the trio embarks on an adventure in the surface world, meeting more humans and creating a resistance along the way. Kamina eventually gets his own robot which he names Gurren. The two can combine into Gurren Lagann, and together they fight against the Beastmen and their leader Lord Genome who have kept humanity underground for so long. The early episodes are pretty light-hearted action-adventures, then the eighth episode happens and the series changes forever. After that, there's a slightly more serious tone and a heavy focus on Simon's character development. The series changes again after Lord Genome is defeated, which probably would have been considered an endpoint if not for what happens next. The rest of the series takes place some time in the future, where humanity has flourished above the ground and Simon is more or less in charge of humanity. It turns out Lord Genome had a reason for keeping humanity underground and there's an even bigger threat to the Earth coming for them. This is another show that has to be seen to be believed, but it keeps getting bigger and bigger until it takes up the entire universe. It seems to pay homage at the entire giant robot anime genre spanning all the way back to the 70s, and working its way up to the modern era. And it is awesome.

Akame Ga Kill
Still watching this series as it airs on Toonami, but I like what I've seen. A young man arrives at his country's capitol to join the royal guard and seek his fortune, and is instantly exposed to the Empire's rampant corruption. He is rescued by Night Raid, a team of assassins working as part of the resistance movement, and quickly joins their ranks. The team is an eclectic group, each wielding a special weapon called an Imperial Arms. The weapons are said to be so powerful, that a duel between two of them is said to guarantee that at least one fighter will die. For example, the titular Akame wields a sword that guarantees a one-hit kill thanks to being laced with a deadly poison. Tatsumi eventually gets a sword and suit of armor that can turn invisible. The series fluctuates between comedic moments and very serious drama, but it's very well paced so neither element truly overpowers the other. Unfortunately, characters do die. Within the first eight episodes, Night Raid already loses two of its own. Another interesting aspect is that most of the Jaegers, the Empire's foil to Night Raid, aren't necessarily evil (except for the sadistic General Esdeath). Either they're blind to the corruption of the Empire and see themselves as lawful good, or are simply following orders and just trying to provide for their family The series excels at shades of gray, and I like that. There's also plenty of great action scenes and fun fleshed out characters, even though some of them might not make it to the end.

Parasyte ~The Maxim~
John Carpenter's The Thing meets Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. A seemingly alien race of worms is embedding itself into the heads of humans (and at least one dog) and are now living among them and eating them too. One parasite fails in its attempt to assimilate into Shinichi Izumi's head, and instead merges itself into his right hand. Shinichi and his hand Migi develop a more symbiotic relationship as they try to keep themselves alive while fighting against the other creatures. Over time, Shinichi becomes stronger and less emotional, the young man and others around him wonder just how much of himself is still there. The plot and premise is intriguing, as the parasites actually see humanity as a curiosity as well as a food source. The human characters are wonderfully designed and the monstrous transformations are nothing short of frightening. If you enjoyed Akira, or one of the classic movies mentioned above, this is a series you'll enjoy. Still watching it as it airs on Toonami.

Friendship Is Magic
The fifth season was all about change, as well as the hanging plot thread of cutie mark magic. After the season began, we saw Twilight Sparkle adapt to no longer living in Ponyville's Golden Oak Library while the others go out of their way to make her new castle feel like a home. It was actually really nice to see this addressed and not simply shrugged off. On a similar note, she had the chance to return to Canterlot and patch things up with her old school friends, who she hasn't seen or talked to since the series began. One particular friend, Moondancer, had taken her departure incredibly personal and shut herself off from everypony else. It's another issue I'm glad was brought up, and Moondancer aside, it was sweet to see that Twilight's other friends had already forgiven her. Rainbow Dash dealt with the five stages of grief and accepted that Tank, her pet tortoise, had to go into hibernation for the winter. She also patched things up with her old griffon friend Gilda. Princess Luna let go of her guilt for past actions as Nightmare Moon. Rarity got her own boutique in Canterlot. Princess Cadance and Shining Armor are having a baby. But the biggest change of all involves the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo have been trying to earn their cutie marks for five seasons, and this year...it finally happened. And in doing so, they also reformed Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, the two fillies who have bullied them for having blank flanks the whole time. This season cemented the idea that earning your cutie mark isn't the destiny defining event we all thought it would be. Sure, it's important to your development and it does say something about you, but it can still be a conundrum or be misinterpreted to the pony who gets it. The episode in which this is foreshadowed isn't one of the best in the seasons, but it does present the idea. As for the finale, The Cutie ReMark, we got the return of Starlight Glimmer, who was ready to get revenge on Twilight for bringing down her communist society at the beginning of the season. Starlight uses a time travel spell, takes herself and Twilight back in time to Rainbow Dash's Sonic Rainboom and then stops it from happening. Twilight tries to use the same spell to set everything right, but always ends up taking Starlight back with her, so she fails each time. Every time Twilight returns to the present, it's an alternate doomsday scenario based on the various two-part adventures we've had over the years. First, we see what would happen if King Sombra returned to power, waging an all-out war with Equestria. Then we see a world where Queen Chrysalis and the Changelings rule, Zecora leading everypony in the refuge of the Everfree Forest. After that, a world where Nightmare Moon was never vanquished. The other timelines aren't given as much focus, but we see one where Discord is in charge and another where the Flim Flam Brothers own Ponyville. How does Twilight stop Starlight and set everything right again? She shows her the future she created and straight up talks her out of it. By the end of the episode, she's reformed, and the mane six are helping to integrate her into a friendly member of society, and even get forgiveness from her old village. What does this mean for her in the future? I hope she hasn't become a member of the mane cast, and has just become a recurring character, somepony we can revisit when the need arises.

Dragons: Race To The Edge
While there has been a time skip between this series and the first two (Riders/Defenders Of Berk), it's a shame that it still takes place before the second movie. It doesn't make the show less enjoyable, but I was hoping to see the characters having adventures after those events rather than before. The season kicks off when Dagur the Deranged escapes from prison, amasses a new army of Outcasts/Berzerkers), and has been feuding with Hiccup and the Dragon Riders who are all after a strange artifact: the Dragon Eye. It resembles a flashlight or kaleidoscope, and when its lenses are illuminated by dragon fire, it reveals maps of outlying islands and information about new dragons. Alvin the Treacherous, the past series (reformed) villain, is nowhere to be seen, but we still get other recurring characters like Gustav and Trader Johan, and we learn how Stoick got his new dragon. Heather also returns with a heavily armored dragon of her own, and is revealed to be Dagur's sister. The animation is a step up from the previous seasons, which aired on Cartoon Network rather than Netflix. The character designs are an interesting halfway between the two movies. Some look physically older while retaining most of their more familiar outfits, while others are dressed more closely to their older selves from the second film. The first season of Race To The Edge is 13 episodes, and the finale of which is unfortunately filler. Snotlout's dragon Hookfang meeting a female dragon of its own species, and decides to protect her and her eggs from an even larger male dragon trying to assert its dominance. It's an improvement over the past seasons for sure, but still has a few hiccups (no pun intended) to work out.

Star vs. The Forces Of Evil

Star Butterfly is a magical princess from another dimension called Mewni. Having reached a certain age, she inherits the royal magic wand from her mother, but her rambunctious attitude and lack of discipline show that she's not quite ready to use it responsibly. As such, her parents send her to Earth and enroll her in a normal high school as an exchange student, placing her in the home of Marco Diaz. Marco serves as a grounded foil to Star. He plays it safe whenever possible, and the hijinks Star often pulls him into is sometimes overwhelming. Nonetheless, he's perfectly capable of using karate to defend himself and is very protective of Star when he has to be. After Star's best friend (a floating unicorn head) leaves her with a pair of dimensional scissors, the show alternates between slice of life stories, visiting strange and exotic places, and fighting off monsters. Leading the monsters is Ludo, a diminutive sorcerer trying to steal the wand for himself. He's mostly ineffectual until a lizard man named Toffee comes along.

The animation is bright, colorful, and often goes off-model to great effect, as the character designs are incredibly fluid. Star's design itself is a good indicator of what you can expect from the show. On one hand, she's blonde and adorable with hearts on her cheeks, and would not seem out of place in the magical girl anime genre (a definite source of inspiration). On the other, her devil horns headband indicate her chaotic nature. Eden Sherr delivers a fantastic vocal performance that you can't help but enjoy. (It's clear the cast is enjoying htemselves.) One of the first bits of magic she is seen using is putting a rainbow over her head, which promptly bursts into flames. At other points, she creates a litter of puppies with laser vision, accidentally replaces Marco's arm with a monstrous tentacle, and nearly anything you could possibly think of.

While mostly bizarre magical misadventures, the series does take a more serious tone on a few occasions. When Star's demon ex-boyfriend takes her to what is essentially demon prom, Marco braves the underworld to keep an eye on her and ensure her safety, despite Star's own insistence that she can take care of herself. Later, she and Marco try to bust out her Pony Head friend from St. Olga's Reform School for Wayward Princesses, which uses methods straight out of A Clockwork Orange to mold its wild individualist inmates into stereotypical uptight royalty. The season finale raises the stakes significantly (as can be expected with just about any show) as Marco gets abducted by Toffee and Star sets out on her own to rescue him.

The real treat of the series is Star and Marco's interaction. As stated before, Marco is a good foil for Star without being a complete opposite. It's easy to see these two developing into a more romantic relationship, despite having separate love interests at the moment (and even trying to help each other make progress in those relationships). I look forward to seeing where the next season takes these two. One thing's for sure, things are going to get a little weird and a little wild.

Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero

This series is really enjoyable. The idea is that Penn and his two friends, Boone and Sashi, are sent to other dimensions to complete a mission, defeat the bad guy, and save the world. The characters undergo different transformations depending on whoever they're taking the place of. Sometimes it's as simple as a costume change, other times it's something a bit more different (superheroes, stuffed animals, kaiju monsters, cereal mascots or even sports equipment.)

Standing in their way is Rippen, the art teacher at Penn's school whose reasoning isn't entirely clear, but it seems out of a desire to be a full-time villain. He wants to take over the world, and it doesn't matter which world it is. Assisting him is Larry, the school principal. Despite his loyalty and "friendship" toward Rippen, he's really not very evil himself. He's happy and talks a lot, and sometimes is the cause of Rippen's failure.



Supposedly there will be an origin story later in the season. I don't really mind that we didn't get t hat first, since the premise makes the show easily accessible, no matter what episode you begin with. Even so, we can see that heroism is something of a family business. Penn's own parents do it too, but are trapped in the Most Horrible Dimension Ever. Penn sometimes communicates with them through a holo-screen, and it's clear he misses them. However, they're always in good spirits no matter what sort of trouble they're in during the conversation.

 Phyllis, who might be a relative of Penn's (it's a bit unclear) is responsible for keeping the inter-dimensional portal working and sending the trio on their missions. Their base of operations is a movie theatre, which I guess allows her to monitor the missions so they can be retrieved when they're done.

Penn's likeability is his real strength as a protagonist. He gets really excited when he arrives in most dimensions, and has some great geek-outs when he gets to be a superhero or starship admiral. And despite only being a part-time hero, he's definitely a full-time hero at heart and always looks out for his friends.

Sashi is the girl on the team. Her character design is adorable, and her normal appearance has a bit of a harajuku/cosplay motif going for it. She's the most serious/competent of the trio, which is often ironic as she sometimes gets the short end of the transformation stick. (A monstrous creature in the James Cameron Avatar parody, a skunk-themed superhero, and a monkey in the Arabian Nights world.) Her seriousness became a detriment when they're sent to clown world, which was guided by the laws of cartoon physics, and she had to learn to channel that humor to save the others.

Rounding them out is Boone, who while at first glance is the laid-back comic relief, does have some good moments in the spotlight. In a world full of merpeople, he had to overcome his fear of water, and when the fate of the world rested on the result of an alien game show, he overcame stage fright with a bit of interpretive dance. He's simple, but smarter than he looks.

The flash animation is fluid and colorful, and the different dimensions visited in each episode are all unique. One of my favorites so far is the superhero world, where every man, woman, child, and animal has some sort of superpower. Adam West even came along for the ride as Captain Super Captain. There was also a G-rated zombie apocalypse caused by tainted hamburgers (the title card a direct homage to Romero's Dawn Of The Dead), and a Star Trek-type mission where the transporter accidentally fused Penn with an adorable alien animal. We also got an episode focusing on Rippen as he attempts to replace Larry as his right-hand man and win for once, which despite ending in their usual failure does give them some nice character moments. On top of all this there's also stuffed animals trying to save themselves from babies, cowboys riding dinosaurs, cereal mascots fighting the milkman, and anything else a wide-eyed imagination could think of.

All of this has made Penn Zero a new favorite of mine, right up there with Disney XD's other great shows like Gravity Falls and Star vs. The Forces Of Evil.

Ultimate Spider-Man: Web Warriors- The Spider-Verse

When the third season was in production, it was heavily publicized that it would involve inter-dimensional travel and meeting other Spider-Men. In truth, most of the season was pretty standard adventures that we'd seen in the first two: your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man fighting evil on a regular basis, sometimes by himself, and sometimes alongside other Marvel heroes (and even Disney's Jessie). There were some new angles involving new youth heroes popping up like Squirrel Girl or Cloak and Dagger, but most of it wasn't that different. These four episodes finally give us what was promised.

In the wreckage of the old SHIELD helicarrier, the Green Goblin uses Electro to open up an inter-dimensional portal so that he can gather the DNA from the Spider-Man in each universe, and Spidey-Prime has to go after him in hopes of protecting his counterparts. In contrast to the show's usual format, each episode shows us two of these alternate dimensions.

Part 1
Spider-Man 2099: This part's done in 3D computer animation. It looks cool, and it's great to see 2099 animated and teaming up with the regular Spider-Man.
Spider-Girl: A gender-flipped universe where all the male characters are female. In an interesting twist, this female Green Goblin hadn't mutated like the show's usual Goblin had. After getting what he needs, Norman gives his formula to Norma, allowing her to mutate like him, and both Peter and Petra have to take him down.

Part 2
Spider-Man Noir: The entire universe is in black and white, Spider-Man talks like a Sin City narrator while other characters like J Jonah Jameson and Mary Jane have that fast-talking lingo befitting news reporters of the era. Goblin and Spidey are the only characters with any hint of color, being from another dimension.
Spider-Ham: In complete contrast to the previous world, this one is bright and colorful in a cartoony style. You even get to see the other animal Avengers briefly, which is fun.

Part 3
Spider-Knight: A sepia-toned medieval world. The Spyder's armor looks really cool, and I think he and Thor would get along nicely. Turns out he was voiced by Christopher Daniel Barnes, from the 90s cartoon, which is awesome. Spidey fights alongside him against both the Goblin and the Alchemist (Doctor Octopus of this world). When the fight against Ock's Kraken takes too long, the Spyder finds the universe's Stephen Strange to send him back through the dimensions.
Miles Morales: This is the universe I think people were most eager to see. Peter Parker died in this one and the costume was taken up by a new kid, and he's voiced by Donald Glover from Community. It's a perfect fit. Goblin's able to learn Spider-Man's identity after seeing Peter Parker's gravestone.

Part 4
We're back to standard episode format and back in Spidey's home dimension. He tracks Goblin down back to the helicarrier, and he has injected himself with the DNA of the other Spider-Men, enhancing his own abilities and mutating further into Spider-Goblin. Fortunately, Electro's fed up of being used all this time, and opens the portal to bring the other Spider-Men here, finally bringing together the titular Web Warriors. It's a cool fight, but even the other Spider-Men don't have enough power to defeat Spider-Goblin. However, they manage to hold him down long enough for Electro to reverse the charge of Goblin's serum, and turn him back into Norman Osborn. Then Electro gets free, and with the power of the Siege Perilous, takes control of the helicarrier, and transformers it into a robot mech. Things look hopeless, but just as he pepped up and helped the other Spider-Men, they return the favor. The Web Warriors work together in a fight through New York City until Electro sets the helicarrier to self destruct. While the others continue to fight Electro, Spider-Girl and Spider-Ham get inside it to deactivate it. Failing to do so, they regain control of it and set it flying into the sky where it blows up out of harm's way. Spidey finally manages to take down Electro with some gold old Peter Parker ingenuity. The remaining power of the Siege Perilous is enough to send the others home, who bid a fond farewell to our Spider-Man. It turns out Norman Osborn has no memories of his Green Goblin persona or Spider-Man's identity (or does he?). The episode ends on the new SHIELD helicarrier, as Spidey tells his story to Nick Fury, who again congratulates him on a job well done before he swings off.

These episodes are a lot of fun, and should be satisfying even if you're not a fan of the show. I'm partially reminded of the last two episodes of the 90s Spider-Man series, which also involved universe-hopping and alternate Spider-Men. A big difference is that each Spider-Man in these universes has a different design and voice. Probably a smart move to keep the story arc limited to these four episodes rather than all season. Giving each episode its own universe probably would have been good too, but keeping these to half an episode does prevent them from getting too padded, and I'm ultimately satisfied. The only thing that could have made it better is if Josh Keaton was voicing one of the alternate Spider-Men. Drake Bell does a great job, and as stated before, so does Donald Glover. I'd be perfectly content if the show ended here, since it is definitely a high note on what I consider an underrated series.

Star Wars Rebels- Idiot's Array

The episode begins with Kanan, Zeb, and Chopper in a bar, hoping to find some kind of job to replenish their credits and fuel supply. Zeb is playing cards with a stranger, bets Chopper when he runs out of credits, and loses. The man turns out to be yet another familiar face and voice from the films: Lando Calrissian.

Lando hires the crew of the Ghost to help him in a business transaction, promising to pay them and return Chopper to them once the job is complete. His attitude and habit of not telling them anything puts him at odds with the other Rebels, except for Sabine, who's flattered when he shows interest in her artwork (making Ezra jealous). The Ghost docks with a ship commanded by a portly alien named Azmorigan, who gives Lando a crate as part of a trade. Lando gives him Hera in exchange. Once the Ghost separates from the ship, Hera knocks out Azmorigan and a guard before making her way to an escape pod (Lando had dropped a hint about them before the transaction) and escapes back to the Ghost.

Ezra and Zeb foolishly open Lando's crate, letting out a puffer-pig, which blows up when it gets scared, and can sniff out precious minerals. Lando calls it "specialized mining equipment", and since it's not made with metal it's not detectable by Imperial sensors. Nonetheless, the Ghost need to make it past the Empire's blockade. Zeb scared the pig, unfortunately, blocking Hera from getting to the cockpit.

The Ghost's signature was cloaked successfully for a while, but then Ezra startles the pig again, it puffs up more, throws the ship's balance off, and Zeb accidentally uncloaks their rebel signature, causing the Empire to recognize them as Rebels. A chase ensues. Sabine blasts some, while Kanan manages to lose others in cloud cover.

When they arrive at Lando's farm, Azmorigan is waiting for them, intent on getting his Twi'lek back and killing Lando. A fire fight ensues, and it's confirmed that Ezra's lightsaber does in fact function as a blaster. Chopper takes advantage of the struggle to sneak a fuel canister aboard the Ghost. He then blasts Azmorigan causing him to lose his footing and Hera convinces him to back down and retreat.

The conflict over, Lando promises to pay them once the pig has sniffed out the precious minerals its capable of finding, and releases Chopper back to the crew. While it seems like the droid took the fuel out from under Lando's nose, he reveals after they leave that he was aware of it, which is why he didn't pay them. It seems to indicate that they'll cross paths again.

This is another fun episode, much like Droids In Distress was, in that it features the new characters interacting with a more familiar one. Billy Dee Williams' return is a real treat, and you're never sure just how much of this adventure was planned, and how much was made up as they went. Star Wars Rebels has continued to surprise me with just how much I enjoy it, and should hopefully alleviate a lot of the concerns about the direction the franchise has taken.

Star Wars Rebels- Path Of The Jedi

Previously on Star Wars Rebels...

When we last left the crew of the Ghost, they had rescued an Imperial defector and helped him into hiding. Kanan and Ezra aided in their escape by diverting the Empire's attention to an abandoned Clone base on an asteroid, where a large batch of feral creatures could take on the Stormtroopers. This worked pretty well until the Inquisitor showed up, fighting his way through the creatures and taking on Kanan. Ezra managed to save him, angrily using the Force to control one of the larger creatures and sic him on the Inquisitor, which would seem to indicate prowess in the Dark Side. This has significantly spooked both Kanan and Ezra...

Concerned after what happened on the asteroid, Kanan decides to give Ezra a test to determine not only what kind of Jedi he'll be, but also if he can be a Jedi at all. There's an abandoned temple already on Lothal, which Kanan has Ezra locate using the Force. (The autopilot was already on its way there.) The entrance is sealed and can only be opened with a Force lift, something Ezra and Kanan do together. Once their inside, Ezra's spooked by the remains of two dead Jedi, and the exit closes behind them. While Kanan stays behind in the main room to meditate, Ezra continues through the temple on his own. However, Kanan seems to catch up with him later, and both encounter the Inquisitor. Kanan is seemingly killed and dropped off a cliff. Ezra attempts to use Kanan's lightsaber against the Inquisitor and it fails. With no other options, Ezra jumps off the cliff himself.

Ezra suddenly finds himself back aboard the Ghost, overhearing the crew talk rather unfavorably about him. It occurs to him that something isn't right, further elaborated when the Inquisitor shows up again and seems to kill everyone out of sight of the viewer. Ezra runs and finds himself back at the temple, and is able to figure out for himself that this is all an illusion, and yet the Inquisitor remains. He overcomes his own fear, and the Inquisitor's lightsaber passes through him.

And now for the most noteworthy aspect of this episode: Yoda. Rather than whoever portrayed him in The Clone Wars, he is once again voiced by Frank Oz. He doesn't appear, but his voice echoes throughout the temple. He's likely projecting himself from his home on Degobah. He talks to Kanan, who talks about his own insecurities over whether he's training Ezra correctly or if he's even capable of doing so. He guides Ezra through the temple, who explains how despite wanting revenge against the Empire for everything they've done to him and his parents, he wants to become a Jedi out of a genuine desire to help people. He's spent his whole life looking out for himself and only himself, but meeting the other Rebels and seeing how they help others selflessly rubbed off on him and made him want to do the same. Yoda seems to approve and Ezra is given a Khyber Crystal.

The episode ends back on the Ghost, the crew has given Ezra as many spare parts as they could, allowing him to construct his own lightsaber. It's a traditional blue crystal, but the handle is unique with an extra feature on the hilt that might allow it to be used as a blaster, although this remains to be seen.

The music is a nice step up too, with familiar New Hope cues perfectly complementing the mysterious and spiritual atmosphere of the Jedi Temple, and the uplifting moment when Ezra first ignites his own brand new lightsaber. Put all of this with some good character development for our protagonist and his Jedi Master, and this definitely an episode worth watching.

Big Hero 6

There's been a mixture of concern and excitement ever since Marvel Comics was bought out by Walt Disney. While the Marvel Cinematic Universe has alleviated most concerns, there have still been very few full-on collaborations between the two companies. Sure, Disney XD airs animated series based on Marvel characters, which in turn have crossed over with Disney Channel shows like Phineas & Ferb and Jessie (I have yet to see the latter). Big Hero 6 marks the first time Disney has made a movie on its own based on Marvel characters, who are obscure enough that they could be passed off as original Disney creations.

The film takes place in San Fransokyo, a unique blend of the two cities it's named after. It centers around Hiro Hamada, a teenage genius who graduated high school early, but hasn't found a constructive outlet for his abilities. He's into underground robot fighting, but this gets him in trouble. Hoping to straighten him out, his older brother Tadashi takes him to his school and shows him around. It's here in the robotics lab, which looks like something straight out of Disney's own Imagineer Laboratories, that we meet the rest of the main characters- GoGo Tomago, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, and Fred. All of them are geniuses in their own way, each with their own unique inventions (except Fred, who's just the school mascot). Tadashi also introduces Hiro to his own project, a health care robot named Baymax. After seeing all of this and a chance meeting with their Professor Callaghan, Hiro is amazed and wants to apply.

The opportunity presents itself in the form of an annual exhibition held to gain admission. Hiro recreates his fighting robot in mass quantities on a smaller scale, resulting in microbots--tiny modules controlled by a headband that can link up together and create anything the wearer imagines. The display wows the audience and Callaghan, as well as attracting the attention of local businessman Alistair Krei. When offered the choice between the school and a job at Krei Tech, Hiro chooses the former.

Just as Aunt Cass (Tadashi and Hiro's guardian) is about to take everyone out to celebrate, a fire breaks out at the exhibition. Callaghan is still inside, so Tadashi runs in to save him. The building promptly explodes, resulting in Tadashi's death. The loss shakes Hiro to his core, and he no longer seems interested in the school. Then one day, he stubs his toe, triggering Baymax's activation. While struggling to avoid Baymax's nurturing, Hiro discovers that one of his microbots is still active and seems to be trying to go somewhere. Hoping finding the location will help Hiro's mental state, Baymax sets off with it, forcing Hiro to follow him.

The microbot leads them to a seemingly abandoned warehouse. The two look inside and find an assembly line where the microbots are being kept, and maybe even replicated. They run into a masked man (who is apparently called Yokai despite being unnamed in the film), who then attacks them using the microbots. They run, and just barely escape.

Hiro tries to go to the police, but the officer isn't really convinced. Baymax's battery is running low, so the two leave the station and head home. Back in his charging station, Baymax notices Tadashi's absense, and Hiro has to explain that he's dead. While Baymax makes attempts to comfort him, Hiro figures out Yokai must have been responsible for the fire so he could cover his tracks and steal the microbots.

Hiro upgrades Baymax with some karate skills and body armor, and they make another attempt to use the microbots to find Yokai. They arrive at a pier, and the microbot is lost. Suddenly Tadashi's friends all drive up. Baymax had called them, out of concern for Hiro. Yokai suddenly appears and attacks them, leading to a car chase as the six escape. At first their slowed by Wasabi's insistence on obeying traffic laws, but they finally get away when GoGo takes the wheel. Baymax managed to make record of Yokai's vital signs, so he would be easier to find later.

They end up at Fred's house, who is revealed to be a millionaire who's parents are away on business a lot. His house contains a lot of geek memorabilia, and contain a few nods to other Marvel characters if you look closely enough. As the characters interact, Fred reaches the same conclusion that the rest of the audience would have by this point; Yokai must be Alistair Krei. I was glad to see him make that realization, since the other characters are all genius science prodigies, while he was just the school's mascot.

Hiro then goes about creating super suits for himself and the others while upgrading Baymax's armor and capabilities, all based around their own inventions from their introductory scenes. Honey Lemon gets multi-colored balls that she can throw/shoot that provide smokescreens, adhesives, and other uses. GoGo Tomago's armor lets her skate on magnetic wheels, which she can also use as a weapon. Wasabi gets laser knives attached to his wrists, and Fred wears a fire-breathing dragon suit.

Baymax's own upgrades give him flight and rocket fists. Hiro can fasten himself aboard Baymax to fly around with him. The first flight is rough, but soon becomes a breathtaking bird's eye view of San Fransokyo. Baymax notices that Hiro's biochemistry indicates that Hiro's emotional state is improving during the flight. They take a rest on one of the several floating propellers over the city. (I'm assuming they're windmills for the city's power grid.) Because Baymax sees Hiro's getting better, he thinks he might be ready to deactivate. Before this could follow through, Baymax picks up Yokai's signature on an abandoned island. The six regroup and investigate.

They discover an abandoned Krei Tech facility, where a teleportation experiment went awry, resulting in the machine's destruction and the loss of a test pilot. Yokai has been using the microbots to salvage the gateways and attacks the six when he discover them. All of them aim for the mask to break his connection with the microbots. Hiro finally gets him down, but when the mask is off, it's not Krei. It's Professor Callaghan. He'd used the microbots to shield himself from the fire, and shows no signs of remorse that Tadashi lost his life going back for him. This revelation shatters Hiro, who removes Baymax's health care protocol chip and orders him to destroy Callaghan. Baymax's eyes turn red and he launches his entire arsenal against Callaghan. He retrieves his mask and escape, while the other heroes restrain Baymax long enough to put the health care chip back in. Hiro is furious, and takes off back home, abandoning his friends on the island. These and the scenes that follow are some of the most emotional to watch.

Baymax realizes that he had been tampered with. Despite not changing his friendly tone of voice, he just sounds like his feelings are hurt. Hiro makes another attempt to remove the chip, but is locked out this time. His fury breaks down into sadness, and everything he kept bottled up about his brother's death comes to the surface. Baymax then shows Hiro some recorded footage of Tadashi, which documented his own creation and the setbacks along the way. By the time he was complete, Tadashi was overjoyed at his creation and the difference he'll make in people's lives. This brings Hiro back down to earth, and he apologizes to Baymax.

The others find Hiro at his home, Fred's butler having picked them up. They found some additional footage from the accident, revealing that the pilot lost was Callaghan's daughter, and all of Yokai's actions are motivated by revenge for what happened to her. The six regroup and head to the opening of  a new Krei Tech facility, where Callaghan is set to use Krei's own gateway to destroy his new building and take him out. Attempts to talk him down fail, and the fighting resumes.

Realizing Yokai's supply of microbots is finite, the team then focuses on attacking them instead of going for the mask, each one figuring out a unique way to use their weapons. The microbots get sucked into the portal with everything else, until Yokai has run out of ammunition. Baymax picks up a life sign inside the portal, and they realize Callaghan's daughter must still be alive inside, albeit in stasis. Hiro hops on Baymax and they blast inside to retrieve her.

Inside what I can only assume is the Negative Zone, they find the shuttle and steer it towards the gateway. However, Baymax's armor is damaged and they seem trapped. Baymax attaches his rocket fist to the shuttle, and again requests deactivation. Hiro is, of course, resistant, but Baymax affirms that he is a health care companion, and Hiro is his patient, so his survival is his responsibility. Reluctantly, Hiro says he's satisfied with his care. Baymax begins to deflate as his armored fist propels Hiro and the shuttle to the portal. Callaghan's daughter is taken away in an ambulance while he is taken away in a police car. I thought he would smile at the sight of his daughter, but he never did, perhaps at the realization that because she's alive, his drive for revenge was meaningless.

Hiro returns home with Baymax's gauntlet, and discovers his health care chip inside the fist, giving him what he needs to rebuild his friend. In the wake of everything that happened, Hiro officially enrolls into the school (where Tadashi is given a memorial building), and the six continue their lives as superheroes.

After the credits, Fred is looking at his family portrait and discovers a secret room. His dad (portrayed by Stan Lee) then comes in behind him, revealing himself as a former superhero. They hug and seem to have a lot to talk about.

This movie really is the perfect blend of Marvel and Disney. The animation looks amazing, and the story has a lot of heart. It can really hit close to home if you've experienced the loss of a close friend or family member, and it handles that grief very realistically. Baymax is an adorable, wonderful character. It was really cool to see that each member of the team was smart in their own way. It was also great that there was very little conflict between them, aside from Hiro's own baggage about losing his brother. Honey Lemon and GoGo Tomago seem like characters who wouldn't like each other (or at least that GoGo would find Honey irritating). Their designs are complete opposites of one another. Honey's a tall blonde who loves bright colors, and GoGo's a shorter, black-haired girl with a bit more attitude. Nonetheless, they're still friends and it was a pleasant surprise they never argued once. Wasabi got the least exposure out of the group, but at least he has a distinct personality. Fred was another pleasant surprise, as he seemed like the one normal guy on a superhero team full of tech experts. But over time, he displays his own resourcefulness and is more than just the mascot.

I can definitely recommend this movie.

Feast

This cute little short precedes Big Hero 6. It's shown from the perspective of an adorable little dog named Winston after a man takes him in off the street. He loves food, as any dog would, and most of the short is a montage of him eating. Meal times, table scraps, and other things that happen to get spilled. Then suddenly his owner gets a girlfriend, and all of his meat, cheese and snacks are replaced by leafy greens, and Winston is none too happy about that. When she walks out on the man, the feasting resumes. However, one day, Winston notices how sad his owner has become, then runs out of the house with a piece of parsley to find the girl. What would seem like a chance encounter for these two gets them back together, and they get married. By the end, Winston is not only feasting on their table scraps, but the scraps dropped by their children as well.

Like Paperman, Feast uses 2.5D animation. It's made with a computer, but the cel-shading and character models mimic hand-drawn features. A few sounds aside, there's no dialogue, commonplace for this type of short, letting the visuals and actions tell the story, and does a wonderful job on all counts.

Star Wars Rebels- Droids In Distress

This is the first regular half-hour episode of the series. The crew of the Ghost are running a bit behind on money and resources, so they agree to pull another arms "redistribution" job for Vizago. They board a transport at a waystation where an alien Amda Wabo is accompanied by an Imperial Minister Maketh Tua. She doesn't speak Basic (English), so everyone's favorite translator C-3PO and his counterpart R2-D2 are along for the ride. Chopper, however, causes a disturbance to get all three droids sent to the cargo area. Sabine apparently speaks Angulish and provides the docking bay where Wabo's shipment is being kept. As she escorts the alien there, the Rebels head to the actual docking bay. Ezra goes via rooftop, practicing his Force jumps. It's stated during this episode that Kanan hasn't given him any proper Jedi training yet, despite an unknown amount of time having past between this episode and the pilot film.

The Imperials quickly figure out that they're in the wrong place and head toward the correct docking bay, Chopper unsuccessfully providing a distraction. The Rebels find out what kind of weapons they're smuggling: D-17 Disruptors, which Zeb is visibly distressed by. Stormtroopers arrive at their docking bay and a scuffle ensues. The Ghost crew escape with the blasters, as well as R2 and 3PO. Zeb is thinking they shouldn't go through with the job, clearly having some issues with this type of weapon. Translating for R2, 3PO informs Kanan that they were actually on a mission to make sure the disruptors don't reach the Empire, and would be willing to pay for them. Kanan decides to consider it, but follow through on their word to Vizago anyway. 3PO then sends a distress signal to Imperial Agent Kallus, who tracks their position.

On the way to Lothal, Hera tells Ezra about the history of Zeb and those blasters, which were used against by the Empire against the Lasat people nearly to the point of wiping them out. They still deliver as planned, but Vizago spots the Imperials coming their way and leaves with half the shipment, skipping on payment. As a fight ensues, Kanan decides the remaining blasters need to be destroyed. At R2's suggestion, Sabine overloads the crates and sends them towards the Imperials, taking out several Stormtroopers and a couple walkers. Zeb ends up face to face with Kallus, wielding the same kind of weapon Zeb carries, an apparent staple of Lasat warriors. Kallus reveals himself as the one who ordered the D-17s used against Lasan and having killed a Lasat to get the weapon. Kallus overpowers Zeb, but before he can deliver a finishing strike, Ezra uses the Force to push Kallus against the wall. The Rebels escape, Kanan agreeing to formally start Ezra's training.

Kanan safely returns R2-D2 and C-3PO to Senator Bail Organa, who gratefully pays for their return but doesn't mention who he is. After Kanan is gone and 3PO has moved off-screen, Organa asks R2 to tell him about the Rebels.

This episode was a lot of fun, and the presence of R2 and 3PO certainly helps. Anthony Daniels is back, and it's hard to imagine anyone else voicing the character. There's some nice homages in this one. Zeb and Chopper are supposedly based on initial concept designs for Chewbacca and R2-D2 respectively. A further nod to this is seen when Chopper is in the cargo hold with 3PO and R2, and there's another more humanoid droid there, who some might recognize as the old concept design for C-3PO. Also, the droid piloting the transport appears to be based off the pilot for the Star Tours ride at Disney World. The episode does a good job subtly developing Ezra and more obviously developing Zeb. It also confirms Bail Organa's connection the the Rebellion. Its shorter run time and faster pace will probably make this episode an easier starter for Disney XD's target audience, and the fact that it's enjoyable on its own certainly doesn't hurt.

Star Wars Rebels: Spark Of Rebellion

And so begins the new Star Wars animated series. No title crawl or opening theme music; the movie immediately opens on the planet Lothal, home of the show's protagonist, Ezra Bridger. He's an orphan and a pickpocket; not above helping others, but looking out for himself first. This is established shortly after his introduction. He stumbles through some Imperials who were shaking down a street vendor, and grabs a comlink off one of them. As the vendor is about to be arrested, they're called away by an emergency, which turns out to have been Ezra. The vendor thanks him, and Ezra promptly stuffs his backpack with the vendor's fruit. "A kid's gotta eat."

The Troopers he diverted lead him to a shipment of crates filled with Imperial blasters, who are then ambushed by the titular Rebels-- their leader Kanan Jarrus, tough guy alien Zeb Orellios, and Mandalorian demolition girl Sabine Wren. Not knowing what's in the crates other than that they're valuable, Ezra uses the situation to take some for himself. A chase ensues with the Rebels pursuing Ezra and the Imperials pursuing them all, which comes to a head when TIE Fighters zoom in. Given the choice between Kanan and the TIEs, Ezra jumps on board their ship, the Ghost, and they all escape. The remaining members of this Rebel crew are aboard- Twi'lek pilot Hera Syndulla and ornery astromech droid 'Chopper'. Ezra's not too happy with his situation (Sabine aside) and wants to go back to Lothal, but the crew of the Ghost has a mission to complete first.

Our heroes arrive in Hooverville-esque settlement called Tarkintown where they drop off the weapons shipment and take a moment to ration food to the settlers, all people who were forced from their homes by the Empire. Ezra is thanked by one of these settlers and has a twinge of guilt because he didn't actually do anything to help. The Ghost crew receive their payment from their contact Cikatro Vizago, and are tipped off to an Imperial shipment of Wookiee slaves, part of their mission all along. They make way for the transport to perform a rescue. Meanwhile, Ezra snoops around the Ghost and something draws him to Kanan's cabin, where he finds a holocron and a lightsaber. He's caught rather quickly, hands over the lightsaber and is shoved out, the holocron still on his person. Kanan, Zeb and Sabine board the transport looking for the Wookiees, but Hera realizes It's A Trap when a Star Destroyer appears. She sends a reluctant but willing Ezra to warn the others, and the four fight off a boarding party of Stormtroopers and make their way back to the Ghost. However, before they can board Ezra's grabbed by an Imperial leader named Kallus, who's been following them since the blaster heist. Zeb leaves him behind, "I'm sorry, kid. You did good."

Now imprisoned aboard the Star Destroyer, Ezra is told by Kallus that he'll be used to lure the Rebels back for him. Ezra has his doubts that'll hold up. Kallus just brushes it off and has the guards search him. With nothing left but the holocron, Ezra sits in his cell and somehow manages to open it, revealing a message from Obi-Wan Kenobi, the one warning surviving Jedi to stay away from the Temple during the fall of the Republic. Back on the Ghost, the others chastize Zeb for leaving Ezra behind and Kanan inevitably decides to go back for him.

Ezra manages to escape his cell on his own, feigning illness to get the guards to open it up then trapping them inside. Making his way into a storage room, he grabs a Trooper helmet, allowing him to listen to communications channels in the ship. Not only does he learn that the Rebels came back for him, but also that the Wookiees were being sent to Kessel to work in the spice mines. He goes through the airducts to the hangar where the Ghost crew had begun their rescue. They promptly escape and head for Kessel. Ezra's helmet left behind, the Imperials realize he was listening in; so by the time they arrive, Kallus was ready for them. With our heroes cornered, and Hera needing time to pull the ship around, Kanan draws his lightsaber to keep the blaster fire concentrated on him, while Ezra goes to rescue a Wookiee child separated from his parent during the struggle. The Stormtroopers are dealt with, Kallus is knocked away (but survives), and the Wookiees are rescued. Ezra is returned to Lothal, but grabs Kanan's lightsaber before returning the holocron and making his way back to his home. Hera notices that it was opened and she and Kanan both realize the boy's potential connection with the Force. Kanan meets Ezra at his home and asks him to join them, offering his training. Ezra agrees, and the full crew takes off, Kanan listening to the rest of Obi-Wan's message. Meanwhile, on a Star Destroyer, Kallus communicates with one who appears to be a Sith called the Inquisitor, informing him that there is still a Jedi that needs to be dealt with.

Not a bad start to the series overall. The characters might not be completely original, but they're still unique enough to be interesting and fun to watch. Ezra himself closely resembles Aladdin, both in personality and appearance. This is further backed up early on when Kanan calls him a "street rat". He's a pretty good representation of the potential this series has, and someone the target audience will likely grow to love. Kanan's a nice departure from the Jedi Knights of the past, similar to the Anakin we saw in The Clone Wars with a bit of Han Solo thrown in. It's supposedly been 14 years since Revenge of the Sith, leading me to believe he may have still been a Padawan when those events occurred, and might not be as bound by the rules of the Jedi Order as others might have been. Sabine has a really cool character design; bright pink Mandalorian armor with some dyed streaks in her hair. It's a common design trait for cool female characters, but I still like it. Zeb's a tough guy with a chip on his shoulder appropriately voiced by Steve Blum. Hera's pretty modestly dressed for a Twi'lek, which is honestly a nice change from the usual portrayal of the species. She and Kanan seem to be romantically involved, although they don't have any real romantic scenes in this pilot film. Some people like to think that R2-D2's beeps and whirls were actually filled with profanities. With Chopper, you just know that's the case. The little droid does a lot around the Ghost, and doesn't seem particularly happy with his job. He's also unique among R2 units in that he has a couple of small arms, it's a nice feature. Obi-Wan's message at the end was a really nice touch. I'm reminded of how in the series premiere for each Star Trek spin-off, there's a guest appearance from one character from the previous series to help get the ball rolling. With James Arnold Taylor reprising his vocal role as Obi-Wan, I think it serves the same purpose here, passing the torch from Clone Wars to Rebels.

The animation's good too. The characters have much smoother features when compared to Clone Wars. Then we have the music. Plenty of familiar cues from the movies, although nothing that really stands out. I still would have liked to see an opening text crawl, at least for this first outing. It just doesn't feel like Star Wars without that. The Clone Wars had their own variation of the theme music along with a newsreel style recap at the beginning of each episode, which worked for the series timeframe of a galaxy at war. Here, we just get an establishment scene and a title card.

Nitpicks aside, I'm optimistic for what the series has in store. I hope that the Force is strong with this one.