There is no denying that this movie is awesome. It's certainly on par with the first film, but I can't be sure if it's better or not.
Acting on intel unknowingly provided by Team Coulson (a little bonus for anyone who's been watching Agents Of SHIELD), the Avengers raid a HYDRA outpost and retrieve Loki's staff. This not only puts them up against twin adversaries Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, but Tony Stark finds the makings of an artificial intelligence that he and Bruce Banner could work into a peacekeeping program they'd been brainstorming for a while. Unfortunately for them and the rest of the team, the moment Ultron comes online, he sets events in motion that would either bring about humanity's evolution, or their extinction, and it doesn't matter which.
The team takes some pretty big hits along the way, thanks in no small part to Scarlet Witch's ability to mess with people's minds, which among other things sends the Hulk into a rampage. Luckily, Iron Man was ready with a Hulkbuster exo-suit. This fight was amazing. Tony also has to deal with the fallout from all of this as the one responsible for Ultron's creation.
Eventually Pietro and Wanda realize the error of their ways and join the Avengers to fight Ultron. Also joining them is the Vision, a techno-organic robot of Ultron's own creation. It turns out Loki's staff housed another Infinity Stone, which has now been infused into Vision along with the Jarvis program. To exemplify this, he's played by the same man who has been voicing Jarvis since the first Iron Man. (Plus he can lift Thor's hammer Mjolnir, which in and of itself is awesome.)
A definite plus is that we get some more character development to the two normal humans on the team, Black Widow and Hawkeye. Oddly enough, the film puts the kibosh on the idea that these two might have a thing going on (maybe they did in the past, but they certainly don't now). Natasha seems to have a thing going with Bruce Banner, and we learn that the Soviet program that trained her sterlized her when her training was complete. She can't have a family, in comparison to Banner who can't get close to people out of fear of Hulking out and hurting them. Speaking of which, Pepper Potts and Jane Foster are both given reasons for not being in this one, but Betty Ross hasn't been seen since The Incredible Hulk, and it wasn't until after seeing this movie that I started wondering why.
Clint is actually married with two (later three) children. He set up an arrangement with Nick Fury to keep them living off the grid, well away from any dangers of SHIELD, HYDRA, etc. The scenes with them are are really quite sweet and down to earth. All of that pathos gave me the impression that Hawkeye was going to get killed before the end of the movie. However, when the time came, Quicksilver took the bullets instead.
Ultron is a really interesting villain. He's far more human than I expected him to be, since he's a robot. He has a lot of Tony's snark and casual attitude, but he's still cold and efficient. From Iron Man to Ultron to Vision, it's like each one is a reflection of their sire. Iron Man wants to bring peace and keep humanity safe. Ultron sees that humanity can't be peaceful and so so the only way to achieve peace is to destroy it. Vision sees the destruction of humanity as inevitable, but that's all the reason he needs to defend it.
The final battle is nothing short of spectacular. Ultron raises a city into the air with the intent to send it crashing down back to the earth like a meteor. The Avengers are outnumbered by Ultron's robot legion, and need to not only fight them off, but evacuate the city's population before it either crashes down or gets destroyed before impact. Luckily, SHIELD is back with a brand new helicarrier (Theta Protocol - another Agents Of SHIELD bonus), and even War Machine gets in on the action.
I'm glad that supporting characters from the other characters' solo movies got a bit to do here. Heimdal appears in Thor's nightmare, Peggy Carter appears in Captain America's, and as stated before, Rhodey returns and is wearing his War Machine armor again. For whatever reason, Falcon doesn't take part in the final battle, even though he appears at the Avengers Tower party and again in the last scene. Why he didn't get to fight Ultron is anyone's guess. I was a bit upset that Quicksilver got killed, but at the same time relieved Hawkeye survived and made it home to his family. Also, I have a real bone to pick with Joss Whedon choosing to pull a Soprano with the last scene. Why cut to the credits in the middle of a battle cry? Just to leave us wanting more? Well, it worked, but that doesn't mean it didn't make people mad.
Any nitpicks I had with the movie were minor. It's still an excellent entry in Marvel's Cinematic Universe, setting up for bigger things to come and an ever expanding roster of superheroes.
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Monday, April 27, 2015
Lupin The 3rd: Jigen's Gravestone
This brief film is not only the first appearance of Lupin's new blue jacket (soon to be the staple of a new series), but it's also the first release licensed by Discotek Media to have an original English dub. The art style closely resembles the previous TV outing (The Woman Called Fujiko Mine), so it's beautifully colored and heavily inked, but not quite as many sketch lines all over the place. Some of the bizarre surreal elements from that series are present as well, which while confusing, doesn't detract from enjoyment for long.
The plot is pretty straightforward. Master thief Arsene Lupin III and his right-hand gunman Daisuke Jigen "have their sights set on a treasure worth stealing called the Little Comet which is located in the country of East Doroa, but Yael Okuzaki, a skilled assassin is after Jigen". Meanwhile, femme fatale Fujiko Mine is attempting a heist of her own and ends up in a big mess of trouble with some creepy secret society. The two plots come together after Lupin bails her out and discovers why this society hired the assassin in the first place.
The story is presented in two parts, each about the average length of a TV episode with an opening and closing title sequence. The closing theme is great and would fit right into a James Bond movie (complete with a gunbarrel graphic).
The dub is fortunately good, although if you're familiar with other voices for the characters, it does take a moment to sink in. I warmed up to Kevin Silverstein's Lupin pretty quickly, mostly due to his laid back approach and that he reminded me of Mark Hamill. Jigen's voice is serviceable. It's not bad, but I think Richard Epcar or Christopher Sabat had a certain gruffness that the new actor hasn't quite figured out yet, but does show some promise. If Discotek decides to put our more dubs (and I honestly hope they do), this guy might be able to grow his beard and become just as memorable as the other two. Speaking of Epcar, he reprises his role as Inspector Zenigata from the Fujiko series in a brief cameo. While he put in a great performance there thanks to these projects' portrayal of Zenigata as competent and dead serious, I still wonder how he'd fare in a lighter Lupin feature, which portrays the inspector in a more comical (but usually still competent) manner. Christina Vee's Fujiko voice is thankfully perfect. I couldn't tell if it was Michelle Ruff returning to the role or a dead-on impersonation. Either way, she fits the character to a T.
This one is certainly worth it if you're a Lupin fan, and I'll definitely be getting it when the DVD comes out. Until then, we can watch the film on Hulu. Viewer discretion advised.
The plot is pretty straightforward. Master thief Arsene Lupin III and his right-hand gunman Daisuke Jigen "have their sights set on a treasure worth stealing called the Little Comet which is located in the country of East Doroa, but Yael Okuzaki, a skilled assassin is after Jigen". Meanwhile, femme fatale Fujiko Mine is attempting a heist of her own and ends up in a big mess of trouble with some creepy secret society. The two plots come together after Lupin bails her out and discovers why this society hired the assassin in the first place.
The story is presented in two parts, each about the average length of a TV episode with an opening and closing title sequence. The closing theme is great and would fit right into a James Bond movie (complete with a gunbarrel graphic).
The dub is fortunately good, although if you're familiar with other voices for the characters, it does take a moment to sink in. I warmed up to Kevin Silverstein's Lupin pretty quickly, mostly due to his laid back approach and that he reminded me of Mark Hamill. Jigen's voice is serviceable. It's not bad, but I think Richard Epcar or Christopher Sabat had a certain gruffness that the new actor hasn't quite figured out yet, but does show some promise. If Discotek decides to put our more dubs (and I honestly hope they do), this guy might be able to grow his beard and become just as memorable as the other two. Speaking of Epcar, he reprises his role as Inspector Zenigata from the Fujiko series in a brief cameo. While he put in a great performance there thanks to these projects' portrayal of Zenigata as competent and dead serious, I still wonder how he'd fare in a lighter Lupin feature, which portrays the inspector in a more comical (but usually still competent) manner. Christina Vee's Fujiko voice is thankfully perfect. I couldn't tell if it was Michelle Ruff returning to the role or a dead-on impersonation. Either way, she fits the character to a T.
This one is certainly worth it if you're a Lupin fan, and I'll definitely be getting it when the DVD comes out. Until then, we can watch the film on Hulu. Viewer discretion advised.
Sunday, April 19, 2015
Daredevil
On the darker, edgier side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a boy named Matt Murdock saved an old man from a truck and ended up with radioactive waste dumped into his eyes. He was blinded for the rest of his life, but found that the rest of his senses enhanced. Years later, all grown up, he's a defense attorney by day and a crimefighter by night. His law partner Foggy Nelson and their secretary Karen Page are working tirelessly to bring down crime boss Wilson Fisk, who has some big plans for Hell's Kitchen.
His backstory is told in similar fashion to Arrow, but the flashbacks aren't present in every episode. His father was a boxer who could take punches and dish them out, but he'd throw the fights when he was paid to in order to provide for his son. All that changed when he got a fight with the champ, Crusher Creel (who I think is the Absorbing Man we saw on Agents Of SHIELD). He was supposed to go down in the fifth round, but changes his mind for Matt, both for himself and for his son. Knowing full well this is going to get him killed, he places a huge bet on himself and makes sure the winnings go into an account for Matt. Sure enough, he wins and is murdered shortly after.
After that, he's taken under wing by a blind man called Stick, who teaches him how to used his enhanced senses and how to fight. But when Matt starts to feel a paternal bond with him, Stick abruptly leaves him.
Releasing the series on Netflix makes the show a lot easier to watch than it might have been on network TV. You don't have to wait weeks on end to find out what happens next. Also, despite being a superhero action show with some real kick-ass fight scenes, there's a lot of quiet drama as well. It takes a lot of time to develop its characters, even the Kingpin (Fisk). Murdock doesn't even put on the red suit until the season finale. He spends most of the series wearing a tight black outfit with a matching mask/blindfold. When you finally do see the suit, it looks great.
There's a few continuity nods to the rest of the MCU. The first episode makes a mention to how New York's been rebuilding after the events of Avengers (or possibly SHIELD's fall in The Winter Soldier), and reporter Ben Urich has a framed article about the Battle for New York. I wish there was a clear timeframe as to when the episodes take place. Agents Of SHIELD ties in with whatever movies are being released around the same time as their episode airdates, but there's no clear way to determine that with Daredevil.
There's a lot of stuff I was not expecting from this series. For starters, there's the Kingpin. He's a fully fleshed-out bad guy. Despite being a horrible person, he's still capable of compassion. His first ever victim was his abusive father when he was just a boy protecting his mother. He begins seeing a woman named Vanessa, and against all odds, is completely honest with her.about who he is. No part of their relationship is forced or abusive, and he is willing to do everything he can to keep her safe, even if it meant he couldn't be with her. He also places a great value on his friendship with his right-hand henchman, Wesley. The actor also brings a towering presence to the role befitting such a large muscular man.
Matt Murdock has his own unique charisma as well, both as himself and as Daredevil. He manages to get serious in his alter ego without using a gravelly Batman voice, and it's hard to be certain if he can really see or not.
Foggy Nelson seems like he'd be the comic relief of the show, but despite some snark, he's a pretty ordinary guy. He's got a backbone I didn't expect him to have and when things get tough he stands his ground, even if he's not a hero.
Karen Page was a character I hadn't heard of. She was Matt and Foggy's first client when one of Kingpin's corporations framed her for a murder, and the whole series is set in motion. She also surprised me in how tough she is despite needing a rescue every now and then. I guess it comes with growing up in New York.
Then we have Ben Urich, an investigative reporter seemingly past his prime. He did a lot of hard-hitting stories in the past, which unfortunately don't sell papers the way they used to. He wants to bring Fisk's deeds out into the open. The actor does a great job, and it's great how he never seems to lose his cool, even with the Kingpin sitting a few feet away.
Anyone who has Netflix and loves the Marvel movies should check this one out. However, the violence in this series is more akin to Blade than Avengers (no vampires, but there are several nasty kills), so viewer discretion is advised.
His backstory is told in similar fashion to Arrow, but the flashbacks aren't present in every episode. His father was a boxer who could take punches and dish them out, but he'd throw the fights when he was paid to in order to provide for his son. All that changed when he got a fight with the champ, Crusher Creel (who I think is the Absorbing Man we saw on Agents Of SHIELD). He was supposed to go down in the fifth round, but changes his mind for Matt, both for himself and for his son. Knowing full well this is going to get him killed, he places a huge bet on himself and makes sure the winnings go into an account for Matt. Sure enough, he wins and is murdered shortly after.
After that, he's taken under wing by a blind man called Stick, who teaches him how to used his enhanced senses and how to fight. But when Matt starts to feel a paternal bond with him, Stick abruptly leaves him.
Releasing the series on Netflix makes the show a lot easier to watch than it might have been on network TV. You don't have to wait weeks on end to find out what happens next. Also, despite being a superhero action show with some real kick-ass fight scenes, there's a lot of quiet drama as well. It takes a lot of time to develop its characters, even the Kingpin (Fisk). Murdock doesn't even put on the red suit until the season finale. He spends most of the series wearing a tight black outfit with a matching mask/blindfold. When you finally do see the suit, it looks great.
There's a few continuity nods to the rest of the MCU. The first episode makes a mention to how New York's been rebuilding after the events of Avengers (or possibly SHIELD's fall in The Winter Soldier), and reporter Ben Urich has a framed article about the Battle for New York. I wish there was a clear timeframe as to when the episodes take place. Agents Of SHIELD ties in with whatever movies are being released around the same time as their episode airdates, but there's no clear way to determine that with Daredevil.
There's a lot of stuff I was not expecting from this series. For starters, there's the Kingpin. He's a fully fleshed-out bad guy. Despite being a horrible person, he's still capable of compassion. His first ever victim was his abusive father when he was just a boy protecting his mother. He begins seeing a woman named Vanessa, and against all odds, is completely honest with her.about who he is. No part of their relationship is forced or abusive, and he is willing to do everything he can to keep her safe, even if it meant he couldn't be with her. He also places a great value on his friendship with his right-hand henchman, Wesley. The actor also brings a towering presence to the role befitting such a large muscular man.
Matt Murdock has his own unique charisma as well, both as himself and as Daredevil. He manages to get serious in his alter ego without using a gravelly Batman voice, and it's hard to be certain if he can really see or not.
Foggy Nelson seems like he'd be the comic relief of the show, but despite some snark, he's a pretty ordinary guy. He's got a backbone I didn't expect him to have and when things get tough he stands his ground, even if he's not a hero.
Karen Page was a character I hadn't heard of. She was Matt and Foggy's first client when one of Kingpin's corporations framed her for a murder, and the whole series is set in motion. She also surprised me in how tough she is despite needing a rescue every now and then. I guess it comes with growing up in New York.
Then we have Ben Urich, an investigative reporter seemingly past his prime. He did a lot of hard-hitting stories in the past, which unfortunately don't sell papers the way they used to. He wants to bring Fisk's deeds out into the open. The actor does a great job, and it's great how he never seems to lose his cool, even with the Kingpin sitting a few feet away.
Anyone who has Netflix and loves the Marvel movies should check this one out. However, the violence in this series is more akin to Blade than Avengers (no vampires, but there are several nasty kills), so viewer discretion is advised.
The Flash- All Star Team Up
Felicity Smoak pays another visit to Central City, this time bringing her boyfriend the Atom with her. Ray Palmer needs to upgrade his suit's power source and thinks Harrison Wells can help. At the same time, people are being poisoned by excessive bee stings. These bees are actually miniature robots controlled by a woman who Ray and Cisco dub the Bug-Eyed Bandit (played by The Walking Dead's Emily Kinney, rocking a honeycomb dress and a pair of glasses).
Barry's a bit on edge after the previous episode's epiphany about Wells being the Reverse-Flash, and confides in Felicity about this, whose dealing with her own issues about what's going on in Starling City. Further complicating thing's is now that Eddie knows Barry's the Flash, Iris can tell that he's keeping something from her, and this is putting them on the rocks. I'm sure she'd take it pretty well if Barry told her himself, but as established in the show's first episode, Joe doesn't want her to know the secret. Not sure where this will go. A common theme I've seen in both this show and Arrow is just how much damage a big secret can do between friends and family. It's understandable, since people don't like being lied to. Even so, Eddie's a cop. I'm sure there's other things he can't tell Iris about for good reason.
We learn here that the Flash suit comes equipped with a defibrilator (which shorts out after it's needed to save Barry's life when he gets stung too much early on), and Cisco has a phobia of bees (which he overcomes to keep one of the bots from stinging Felicity or Ray).
The climax is pretty cool. The Atom saves Trina McGee from the bee bots and gets them to follow him into the water while the Flash takes on the Bug-Eyed Bandit directly. Felicity hacks into her network to take control of the remaining bots and bring her down. It's a great use both of our main hero and guest stars. The bees also inspire Ray to begin working smaller, which means he could be developing his signature shrinking technology after this.
Towards the end of the episode, Barry and Joe decide to bring Cisco and Caitlin in on their suspicions about Wells after Trina tells him how much Harrison has changed since his fiancee died. Cisco's been having nightmares about Wells revealing he's the Reverse-Flash and then killing him (the same thing that happened before Barry accidentally ran back in time and changed things), so he's on their side almost immediately. Now that the main cast (sans Iris) are all in on the truth, it remains to be seen how long Eobard Thawne can keep up his charade.
Barry's a bit on edge after the previous episode's epiphany about Wells being the Reverse-Flash, and confides in Felicity about this, whose dealing with her own issues about what's going on in Starling City. Further complicating thing's is now that Eddie knows Barry's the Flash, Iris can tell that he's keeping something from her, and this is putting them on the rocks. I'm sure she'd take it pretty well if Barry told her himself, but as established in the show's first episode, Joe doesn't want her to know the secret. Not sure where this will go. A common theme I've seen in both this show and Arrow is just how much damage a big secret can do between friends and family. It's understandable, since people don't like being lied to. Even so, Eddie's a cop. I'm sure there's other things he can't tell Iris about for good reason.
We learn here that the Flash suit comes equipped with a defibrilator (which shorts out after it's needed to save Barry's life when he gets stung too much early on), and Cisco has a phobia of bees (which he overcomes to keep one of the bots from stinging Felicity or Ray).
The climax is pretty cool. The Atom saves Trina McGee from the bee bots and gets them to follow him into the water while the Flash takes on the Bug-Eyed Bandit directly. Felicity hacks into her network to take control of the remaining bots and bring her down. It's a great use both of our main hero and guest stars. The bees also inspire Ray to begin working smaller, which means he could be developing his signature shrinking technology after this.
Towards the end of the episode, Barry and Joe decide to bring Cisco and Caitlin in on their suspicions about Wells after Trina tells him how much Harrison has changed since his fiancee died. Cisco's been having nightmares about Wells revealing he's the Reverse-Flash and then killing him (the same thing that happened before Barry accidentally ran back in time and changed things), so he's on their side almost immediately. Now that the main cast (sans Iris) are all in on the truth, it remains to be seen how long Eobard Thawne can keep up his charade.
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Friendship Is Magic- The Cutie Map
The season begins in Twilight's Crystal Tree Palace playset as the mane cast ponder what's next for them. As they're trying to figure out just how to spread the magic of friendship through Equestria, a full-scale table map emerges from the floor. Their cutie marks start flashing, and the map seems to indicate a destination for them.
They arrive at a quaint little village full of friendly townspeople, but there's something very off about it: every pony has the same equals-sign cutie mark. Fluttershy seems to find it nice, but Pinkie Pie knows there's something very wrong with their smiles. The mare in charge is a unicorn named Starlight Glimmer, who sings praises for sameness and equality, and that without your cutie mark and the talent it represents, you can be that much happier. The atmosphere is incredibly creepy and Orwellian, and it's great to see this kind of subject matter taken up on what some would decry as a children's show (or specifically, a girl's show).
The mane six are not convinced, but still take some time to look around the village and have a bite to eat. The baker unicorn, Sugar Belle, invites them discreetly into her shop, so that she and some other ponies (a unicorn named Party Favor and a pegasus named Night Glider) can admire their cutie marks and reminisce about their own. It's here we learn that the cutie marks are kept safely in a cave, and the townspeople can visit it whenever they want. Starlight is more than happy to show it to the mane six, but shortly after their arrival, it's clearly revealed to be a trap. Now that she has them surrounded, she picks up a staff which she claims to be a lost relic of a powerful unicorn named Meadowbrook. Twilight Sparkle attempts to fight back, but is the first to get her cutie mark taken off and replaced with the equals sign. The others are quickly dealt with as well, and the first part ends as overhead shot fades into the forboding equals sign...and the credits role with the happy theme tune.
When the second part picks up, the mane six are trapped in a cabin, equalistic propaganda playing through a loudspeaker, rather similar to Big Brother's "ignorance is strength" dogma in 1984. Rainbow Dash and Applejack both make attempts to break out, but fail to do so without their athleticism. Fluttershy can't communicate with birds to signal for help, and Pinkie Pie begins to sound more and more monotone, while Rarity's own fashion sense begins to fade. Twilight theorizes something's off about that staff as Meadowbrook was supposed to only have eight relics, whereas Starlight's staff is seemingly the ninth. As time goes on, they come up with a plan. Since Fluttershy seemed the most comfortable in the village, she would feign conversion and break them all out later.
As a test of loyalty, Starlight asks who the ponies were who met with the mane six earlier. Before she can answer, Party Favor steps forward, taking the fall so the others wouldn't. Fluttershy is let out while he gets thrown in with the rest of the mane six. Later that night, Fluttershy tries to sneak out to the cave, but notices Starlight take their cutie marks back to her cabin. Once her henchpony Double Diamond has left, she accidentaly spills some water on herself, and when wiping it away revealing that she's still had her cutie mark the whole time.
The next morning, Party Favor is let out while Fluttershy speaks to the others. It seems Twilight is ready to join the community too, but it's a ploy so that Starlight can be doused with water, revealing her deception to the whole town. It turns out the staff really was just a stick and Starlight kept her cutie mark because her magic was needed to take everyone else's away, so that they could all be equal, except for her. She's run back into her cabin while the villagers run to the cave.
As she escapes through an underground passageway, the glass in the cave is shattered and everypony's cutie mark is restored. The mane six, however, are still powerless as Starlight held onto theirs. Unable to keep up with her without their own talents, it rests on the villagers to get them back. Night Glider breaks down the cabin door allowing for the chase. Party Favor seemingly can make anything out of balloons, from binoculars to a bridge. During the chase, Double Diamond finds his old skis abandoned in the mountains, and then he and Night Glider catch up to Starlight. She finally drops the jars, which break and restore the mane six's cutie marks.
After a lecture from Twilight about why our own unique attributes and abilities are what make friendships special, Starlight Glimmer manages to escape into a dark cavern, likely to return. Even so, the villagers are all the happier that she's gone and their talents restored. The mane six look on in satisfaction, as their cutie marks flash again, indicating the map has another job for them to do, and we end with a group hug.
A very strong start to the season. Even though the show has had a pretty good track record with episodes dealing with complex issues (learning disabilities, physical handicaps, etc.), the social commentary in this episode is really appreciated. It shows why talents should be both praised and encouraged, and why keeping everybody on the same level isn't always a good thing, no matter how appealing others might make it sound.
Even so, the episode does have its flaws. Twilight was equalized by Starlight a little too easily, but I mostly chalk that up to being taken by surprise. Even so, she could have simply put up a forcefield instead of teleporting away from the blast before trying to counter. Spike could have been very useful in this episode, but was left behind in the castle after some funny bits at the beginning of the episode. He's a dragon and doesn't have a cutie mark, so would not have been susceptible to Starlight's magic. Additionally, he can breathe fire and would have been able to help the mane six escape from the cabin, and if all else fails could have sent a message to Princess Celestia and brought in backup. However, that might have been excessive. Unlike previous antagoniss like Nightmare Moon, Discord, Sombra, or Tirek, Starlight Glimmer is just an ordinary unicorn. It's a bit of a mixed bag seeing the mane characters having to take the backseat during the final confrontation. It's somewhat disappointing to see the characters de-powered, but at the same time, letting others have a moment in the limelight is cool.
The Cutie Map indicates that we'll be seeing more of Equestria outside of Ponyville, Canterlot, and Manehattan, and that's probably for the best. Even though the series is strongest with its slice of life stories, additional world building is always welcome. W If we can expect more like this one all season, then I am proud to still be a brony.
They arrive at a quaint little village full of friendly townspeople, but there's something very off about it: every pony has the same equals-sign cutie mark. Fluttershy seems to find it nice, but Pinkie Pie knows there's something very wrong with their smiles. The mare in charge is a unicorn named Starlight Glimmer, who sings praises for sameness and equality, and that without your cutie mark and the talent it represents, you can be that much happier. The atmosphere is incredibly creepy and Orwellian, and it's great to see this kind of subject matter taken up on what some would decry as a children's show (or specifically, a girl's show).
The mane six are not convinced, but still take some time to look around the village and have a bite to eat. The baker unicorn, Sugar Belle, invites them discreetly into her shop, so that she and some other ponies (a unicorn named Party Favor and a pegasus named Night Glider) can admire their cutie marks and reminisce about their own. It's here we learn that the cutie marks are kept safely in a cave, and the townspeople can visit it whenever they want. Starlight is more than happy to show it to the mane six, but shortly after their arrival, it's clearly revealed to be a trap. Now that she has them surrounded, she picks up a staff which she claims to be a lost relic of a powerful unicorn named Meadowbrook. Twilight Sparkle attempts to fight back, but is the first to get her cutie mark taken off and replaced with the equals sign. The others are quickly dealt with as well, and the first part ends as overhead shot fades into the forboding equals sign...and the credits role with the happy theme tune.
When the second part picks up, the mane six are trapped in a cabin, equalistic propaganda playing through a loudspeaker, rather similar to Big Brother's "ignorance is strength" dogma in 1984. Rainbow Dash and Applejack both make attempts to break out, but fail to do so without their athleticism. Fluttershy can't communicate with birds to signal for help, and Pinkie Pie begins to sound more and more monotone, while Rarity's own fashion sense begins to fade. Twilight theorizes something's off about that staff as Meadowbrook was supposed to only have eight relics, whereas Starlight's staff is seemingly the ninth. As time goes on, they come up with a plan. Since Fluttershy seemed the most comfortable in the village, she would feign conversion and break them all out later.
As a test of loyalty, Starlight asks who the ponies were who met with the mane six earlier. Before she can answer, Party Favor steps forward, taking the fall so the others wouldn't. Fluttershy is let out while he gets thrown in with the rest of the mane six. Later that night, Fluttershy tries to sneak out to the cave, but notices Starlight take their cutie marks back to her cabin. Once her henchpony Double Diamond has left, she accidentaly spills some water on herself, and when wiping it away revealing that she's still had her cutie mark the whole time.
The next morning, Party Favor is let out while Fluttershy speaks to the others. It seems Twilight is ready to join the community too, but it's a ploy so that Starlight can be doused with water, revealing her deception to the whole town. It turns out the staff really was just a stick and Starlight kept her cutie mark because her magic was needed to take everyone else's away, so that they could all be equal, except for her. She's run back into her cabin while the villagers run to the cave.
As she escapes through an underground passageway, the glass in the cave is shattered and everypony's cutie mark is restored. The mane six, however, are still powerless as Starlight held onto theirs. Unable to keep up with her without their own talents, it rests on the villagers to get them back. Night Glider breaks down the cabin door allowing for the chase. Party Favor seemingly can make anything out of balloons, from binoculars to a bridge. During the chase, Double Diamond finds his old skis abandoned in the mountains, and then he and Night Glider catch up to Starlight. She finally drops the jars, which break and restore the mane six's cutie marks.
After a lecture from Twilight about why our own unique attributes and abilities are what make friendships special, Starlight Glimmer manages to escape into a dark cavern, likely to return. Even so, the villagers are all the happier that she's gone and their talents restored. The mane six look on in satisfaction, as their cutie marks flash again, indicating the map has another job for them to do, and we end with a group hug.
A very strong start to the season. Even though the show has had a pretty good track record with episodes dealing with complex issues (learning disabilities, physical handicaps, etc.), the social commentary in this episode is really appreciated. It shows why talents should be both praised and encouraged, and why keeping everybody on the same level isn't always a good thing, no matter how appealing others might make it sound.
Even so, the episode does have its flaws. Twilight was equalized by Starlight a little too easily, but I mostly chalk that up to being taken by surprise. Even so, she could have simply put up a forcefield instead of teleporting away from the blast before trying to counter. Spike could have been very useful in this episode, but was left behind in the castle after some funny bits at the beginning of the episode. He's a dragon and doesn't have a cutie mark, so would not have been susceptible to Starlight's magic. Additionally, he can breathe fire and would have been able to help the mane six escape from the cabin, and if all else fails could have sent a message to Princess Celestia and brought in backup. However, that might have been excessive. Unlike previous antagoniss like Nightmare Moon, Discord, Sombra, or Tirek, Starlight Glimmer is just an ordinary unicorn. It's a bit of a mixed bag seeing the mane characters having to take the backseat during the final confrontation. It's somewhat disappointing to see the characters de-powered, but at the same time, letting others have a moment in the limelight is cool.
The Cutie Map indicates that we'll be seeing more of Equestria outside of Ponyville, Canterlot, and Manehattan, and that's probably for the best. Even though the series is strongest with its slice of life stories, additional world building is always welcome. W If we can expect more like this one all season, then I am proud to still be a brony.
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.
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.
Monday, April 6, 2015
Teen Titans Go!- Let's Get Serious
Teen Titans Go! is a comedic revival/parody of the Teen Titans animated series from nearly a decade ago. While it does have a few good jokes, a lot of the humor falls short since it often comes at the expense/flanderization of characters we already got to know and love. To its credit, the simplified art style is eye-catching, and all of the returning voice actors do a great job and likely have fun recording. The more serious Young Justice lasted two seasons and spent a good amount of time building not only on the core team, but on the DC Universe they existed in. While the original Teen Titans wonderfully juggled drama and comedy, putting the Young Justice characters into Teen Titans Go! couldn't be more jarring.
The Young Justice roster seen here is limited to Aqualad, Superboy, and Miss Martian. Out of all of them, only Aqualad seems to do any talking, probably since he shares a voice actor with Cyborg. Their simplified designs honestly look great, and I wish we could have seen more of them. The best part of this is when he calls the Titans out on their childish antics. This convinces Robin that the Titans need to become more serious, and their character designs change accordingly. Again, I have to give props to the animators once the Titans hit the uncanny valley. While their appearance and movements were often unsettling, the motion is incredibly fluid. Their seriousness lets them take down the HIVE successfully, and when Aqualad congratulates them on a job well done, he also warns them against becoming too serious.
Sure enough, back at the Tower, Beast Boy and Cyborg get into a petty argument which exacerbates into a full blown fight between all of them. Titans Tower is destroyed and the team goes their separate ways. The final shot in the episode, however, indicates they go right back to being silly, since the series has little to no continuity.
It's odd to have low expectations for something, and still be disappointed. Not just in this episode, but in most of the series. They've got a great team of animators and voices, but the writing is never consistent. It's barely even a crossover, since the Young Justice heroes only appear in two scenes. And while it was good seeing certain characters again and hearing this show take notice of its flaws, nothing comes of it and we just keep getting more of the same dumb and sparingly funny jokes.
The Young Justice roster seen here is limited to Aqualad, Superboy, and Miss Martian. Out of all of them, only Aqualad seems to do any talking, probably since he shares a voice actor with Cyborg. Their simplified designs honestly look great, and I wish we could have seen more of them. The best part of this is when he calls the Titans out on their childish antics. This convinces Robin that the Titans need to become more serious, and their character designs change accordingly. Again, I have to give props to the animators once the Titans hit the uncanny valley. While their appearance and movements were often unsettling, the motion is incredibly fluid. Their seriousness lets them take down the HIVE successfully, and when Aqualad congratulates them on a job well done, he also warns them against becoming too serious.
Sure enough, back at the Tower, Beast Boy and Cyborg get into a petty argument which exacerbates into a full blown fight between all of them. Titans Tower is destroyed and the team goes their separate ways. The final shot in the episode, however, indicates they go right back to being silly, since the series has little to no continuity.
It's odd to have low expectations for something, and still be disappointed. Not just in this episode, but in most of the series. They've got a great team of animators and voices, but the writing is never consistent. It's barely even a crossover, since the Young Justice heroes only appear in two scenes. And while it was good seeing certain characters again and hearing this show take notice of its flaws, nothing comes of it and we just keep getting more of the same dumb and sparingly funny jokes.
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