I never wanted the A-Team movie to be made, you could not better the TV series cast, each and everyone one of them nailed their character to perfection. With that said, this may suprise you, I really enjoyed the new A-Team movie. It was a fun no-brainer popcorn film, and even with my love of the original clouding my opinion, I was still able to enjoy it and want to give some credit where it’s due. Of course there are plenty of things I disagree with and I’ll get to those later but the film gets a fair amount of things right too and everyone should give it a watch.
Big Giant Robots
Games, Anime & Geeks.
Tagged with review …
Saber Rider & the Star Sheriffs
Back on the crusade to bring more giant robots to the site and my choice this time is another blast from the past. Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs was along with Macron-1 and Robotech, a staple of my early morning viewing when I was a child.
The show is your basic futuristic western. The Star Sheriffs protect the New Frontier from Outriders, vapour beings from another dimension. Because they turn into a puddle of vapour when shot, there’s a lot of killing of bad guys which wasn’t something you’d see in many other shows of the time. Their boss Nemesis even goes as far as getting his forces to kidnap all the Wilderbeasts (think buffalo) just because he thought it would amuse him. How can you not love a bad guy with so much power he invades another dimension and kidnaps an entire species just for fun (oh and he’s voice by Peter G1 Optimus Prime Cullen).
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Iron Man 2
After what seems like a very long wait Iron Man 2 is finally out. I was very surprised with the first film. If there are two things I have never really got they are Robert Downey Jr and Iron Man.
I don’t know what it is that has never really worked for Downey, but is has certainly re-established himself since Iron Man came out. He can carry off the narcissistic Tony Stark like no one else, and is definitely fun to watch.
The concept of Iron Man itself is one of those comics that passed me by. Of course I know of Iron Man, and a basic understanding of the story but beyond that I really don’t know how Iron Man fits into the Marvel universe. Some of that history is coming out in this film, along with references to other films in production. I counted three, but I might have missed something.
So how does this one stand-up? In short it has its moments, but overall it does not have the same feel or impact of the first.
Kick-Ass kicks ass
Finally got the chance to see Kick-Ass and I was not disappointed. I have had my eye on this for a long time, ever since it was initially announced and was uncertain who would actually pick it up and run with it.
There is no doubt it would take a brave producer to pick up this film. It could go either way, and if it did go bad it would go very bad. Fortunatly this film does not go bad, it actually brings something new to the ‘Superhero’ genre that I really enjoyed.
This is a bleak film, and the middle is actually very hard to watch. It deals with how hard it would be to just be an average person who stands up and says they will not take it any more.
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Dragon Age: Origins
It’s funny how some things work out. I was battered into buying Dragon Age Origins by multiple friends telling me I’d love it. Turns out my friends know me too well. I’ve spent longer playing it than most of them and only Disgaea 3 has cost me more of my life (well apart from when I was young and games didn’t track how long you played them).
Anyway, the first thing about Dragon age: Origins is the choices available. You have the usual choice between 3 races, humans, elves and Dwarves and 3 classes, Warriors, Rogues and Mages (unless you’re a Dwarf) and there’s plenty of customization to be done once you pick.
Initially you play through one of 6 different origins stories depending on your race and class. From here on the real choices that affect the whole Dragon Age world begin.
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Cloudy with a chance of meatballs review
Computer animation must be a very hard field to be in. There is one company that dominates it and everything you do will be held up in comparison and rejected as not being good enough. Not because your work is bad, it is probably amazing. But compared to what Pixar do, it’s worthless.
Out now is “Cloudy with a chance of meatballs”, the latest home release from Dreamworks Sony/Columbia. Their work keeps getting better and better, the last film (Monsters vs Aliens) is probably the best they have done. But there very best just does not compare to the standard set. Gaff-tastic: My fault! I even laughed out loud when they showed the classic Columbia title screen that has brought me so much joy over the years, should have remembered that.
Cloudy is a great film, we all laughed out loud at various bits. The voice acting is top notch, the story is a lot of fun, the animation is excellent. But somehow its missing something… Continue reading
My game of the year 2009
Up until two weeks ago my favourite game of 2009 was definitely, and without doubt Batman: Arkham Asylum. This is the Batman game I have been waiting twenty years to play. It has absolutely everything you can want in a Batman game and the best production of a game you can hope for. All of the artistic elements are there that make Batman a thoughtful super hero, as well as some of the best voice acting I have ever heard in a game. All that before we even get onto the game play and story.
All of these things should make this the best games? Until two weeks ago you were right and I was ready to fight to preserve it as the best game I played all year. But all that has changed. While it is still the high point for me in terms of stealth/action/super hero games there is now one game that does all of that, but only much better. Continue reading
Avatar – big, blue, and cabon fiber bones
I see you
This film can really only be described as a master piece of film making that it seems only a few directors are able to pull off.
Lets not mince words here, Avatar is a brilliant film! There, it is said! This is an epic film in every way, from the grand story to the amazing vistas, right through to the stunning technology they have used to create this marvel. The majority of this film is computer generated but in such a life like and detailed way it is hard to see where the computer generation ends and the real people begin. I was very impressed with the similarity between the real actors and their avatars. It just leant a little more to the life like quality of the animation work.
This is a long film (3 hours) but not only does it not feel that long, there isn’t really any fluff that can be trimmed away. Every scene has something it needs to get across to you and where there was a chance to remove a scene it was taken. As a result the film is long but moves at a good pace all the way through. In fact there were a number of scenes where I wanted it to slow a little so I could take in the stunning backgrounds and the details of the world. This will be a very rewarding film to watch at home, not only will you get to hear James Cameron’s take on it, but you will get to really take in the details. I get the feeling the directors cut (if there is one) will be longer.
A lot has been made about this films eco ethics, to be honest I did not feel it. I can see why people would say it has an eco message to tell you, but I never felt it was rammed down my throat. It was more realistic than that. A planet has a mineral people want, they turn up and want to destroy the planet and its people because they don’t give a toss. Any corporation would do that, especially if that planet is six years into deep space.
Confession
I did not see this film in 3D, I wish I had. Even though it has been out for two weeks the 3D showing was completely full (I have never seen that before). There is a very good chance I will be going back just so I can see it in 3D. There are various parts of the film that will really reward you for it, and there was only one moment where I thought it was gratuitously used but you have to forgive every 3D film at least one cheap shot.
Conclusion
Go and see this film, it is as amazing as you have been lead to believe!
Macron-1
One of the first robot anime I ever saw was Macron 1, shown rediculously early (5am) on the Super Channel back in the 80s. Of course I didn’t know it was an anime then.
To me it was a cartoon with fighter jets that combined into a robot or more often, just docked into the legs and chest of an even larger super robot MacStar (GoShogun) that fired beams from its eyes, had a Photon Battle Axe, and Sword and a gigantic Bazooka that fired a huge energy beam, not to mention it’s trademark lazer bombardment (GoFlasher).
Accompanying the awesomeness of being one of the first super robot shows I saw, it was given a soundtrack comprised of covers of then contemporary music. To this day I still hear the voices of Kathy and Jason as they shoot robotic skeleton warriors whenever I hear “Hit me with your best shot”. Other 80s songs covered included Beat It, The Reflex, Electric Avenue and more.
Click to view Macron 1 European Intro
A Bit of History
At this point I will admit that Goshogun isn’t particularly well loved in Japan but they had had Mazinger Z and countless other super robot shows. Us UK cable TV viewers had Transformers, Voltron, Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs, Macron-1 and Robotech and I’m not sure that some of those weren’t after Macron-1 (my memory sucked when I was 7 too). Anyway, I loved and still love robot shows and being one of so few I saw in my highly impressionable youth definitely helped make this all the more memorable.
Modern Warfare 2
Tried out Modern Warfare 2 on the XBox
I entirely missed the first installment of this series. I have never been a great fan of the “Call of Duty” games, I always preferred the “Battlefield” series. I have always preferred the more open aspect of that series over the tightly scripted world of COD. I have also never been a huge fan of WWII games, they are interesting but I get the feeling they are unnecessarily limited (hence my enjoyment of jumping into a tank in Battlefield).
But I was in a supermarket, there was the last copy of the game in the shop and it was cheap, so I picked it up. Nikobe is always telling me what a great game it is. I liked the idea of the various perks in the game, not only the ones like the gunship but the ones that beef-up the useless players in the game seeing as that is the area I live in.
I know this is not going to win me any friends (and maybe the ire of the fan boys) but I can’t say I am impressed. Continue reading