Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Powewr Rangers Survey 28: Favorite Under a Spell.
I actually feel a little guilty. On the one hand I am kind of neglecting updating this thing, but on the other, I said I was trying to move away from Mighty Morphin' for these answers. Well I'm sorry, but I grew up with Mighty Morphin' so the majority of my answers are gonna come from there. As such, I nominate the immortal Green with Evil Saga, one of the most famous and popular PR stories of all time and the introduction for Tommy Oliver. Yeah, his personality was kind of bland, but for a show like this, that means very little. In the early years, anyway.
This was the first time we saw the Rangers really get their asses kicked, so you knew this was big from the start. I'm not quite sure if there were any hypnotised character eps before this one, but if not, this is the father of the whole PR trope.
Labels:
Green Ranger,
Green with Evil,
hypnotised,
Power Rangers,
Tommy Oliver
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 27: Favorite Morpher.
I can honestly say I have never really cared for the Morphers, so I'm gonna go with Mighty Morphin'.
Labels:
Mighty Morphin',
morpher,
Power Rangers
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Mental Covers 13: The Split.
It's a sad and strange day when not even the same person can get along with each other any more. Even stranger when the person gets up and leaves while remaining in the building.
Back in the early days of development, Mental was actually two minds trapped in one body. While originally they would alternate on who was controlling the body, I eventually gave the sane personality the boot by having him mentally killed off via origin story. After rebooting it AGAIN, I decided to drop that idea altogethor.
You will notice that this is quite possibly where the quality in the covers begins to dramatically slip. There are still many covers to go, mind you.
Labels:
Captain Mental,
cover,
split personality
Power Rangers Survey 26: Favorite Morph Call/Sequence.
One of the few I remember apart from the MM was the Lightspeed Rescue morph. Most people have complained that the LR suits look terrible and you know what? I disagree completely. Yeah, they look a little weird, but I think it works for them pretty well. But even moreso complained about is the Morph sequence, inwhich the Rangers are smothered by giant shields of goo which cover them in their suits.
Yes, it's weird, but it's a bit different to the oh so many flashing lights and the suits appearing on them. I have no problem with that, mind you.
Yes, it's weird, but it's a bit different to the oh so many flashing lights and the suits appearing on them. I have no problem with that, mind you.
Labels:
Lightspeed Rescue,
Morph,
Power Rangers
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 25: Favorire Uniforms.
Of course I'm going to instantly think back to the Mighty Morphing suits. Even without the fact that they were the first, they just have a sort of simplicity to them which states "We came first, bitches!"
However, if I had to choose something that wasn't out of nostalgia, I'm going to choose the Wild Force uniforms. Keep in mind that this is off the top of my head and chances are that there is probably another uniform I like a little more. And ironically, because they remind me a little of the Mighty Morphing days.
But the real reason? The shark suit. I love this suit and think it is awesome. Maybe it's because Sharks are cool, but this suit just sort of speaks to me. It heavily reminds me of Shark-Man, a comic series by Image.
In my opinion, it was actually pretty good, being based in what I think was the future where most of the world was covered in water, meaning that our titular hero was not stuck with the same reputation as Aquaman.
However, it used an extremely Uncanny Valley artstyle, in no way helped by the often disturbing images, and only seemed to last three issues. Don't ask me why, in fact by what I understand the series had at least one year between issue one and two. Strange.
Anyway, Sharks are cool.
However, if I had to choose something that wasn't out of nostalgia, I'm going to choose the Wild Force uniforms. Keep in mind that this is off the top of my head and chances are that there is probably another uniform I like a little more. And ironically, because they remind me a little of the Mighty Morphing days.
But the real reason? The shark suit. I love this suit and think it is awesome. Maybe it's because Sharks are cool, but this suit just sort of speaks to me. It heavily reminds me of Shark-Man, a comic series by Image.
In my opinion, it was actually pretty good, being based in what I think was the future where most of the world was covered in water, meaning that our titular hero was not stuck with the same reputation as Aquaman.
However, it used an extremely Uncanny Valley artstyle, in no way helped by the often disturbing images, and only seemed to last three issues. Don't ask me why, in fact by what I understand the series had at least one year between issue one and two. Strange.
Anyway, Sharks are cool.
Labels:
Mighty Morphin',
Power Rangers,
Shark-Man,
uniforms,
Wild Force
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 24: Favorite Zord.
Nothing will ever beat the classic Mighty Morphing Megazord. Maybe it's nostalgia, but this was one of few to actually do anything for me. For some reason, the multitude of following Zords seemed more like 'generic giant robots' and hardly interested me. Maybe this is because there were too many that didn't actually look like it was made from giant robot animals.
BTW, I saw an ep of Jungle Fury featuring a giant yellow Penguin Zord. Upon explaining my confusion for such a strange idea, random_fan gave an interesting rebuttle. Let me make this clear to you all, giant yellow penguin robots on skateboards are cool, but are in now way comparable to giant robot tyrannosaurus rex's emerging triumphantly from a volcano. This is science fact.
Labels:
Megazord,
Penguin,
Power Rangers,
Tyrannozord
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 23: Favorite Non-Earth Location.
Sorry for the wait, I've been busy and lazy.
The Moon. The Moon houses one of the most iconic moments of the series, namely, Rita emerging from her Dumpster alongside her gang of miscreant space monsters. As we all know, this scene was infamously shot in broad daylight so that it did as little as possible to resemble the moon, especially considering that later on in the series, nay, later on in the EPISODE, we see the moon surrounded by the pitch black darkness.
But of course we can't forget that the moon also housed Lord Zed's palace, and the Machine Empire's place. I'm sure there's more, but I can't remember.
The Moon. The Moon houses one of the most iconic moments of the series, namely, Rita emerging from her Dumpster alongside her gang of miscreant space monsters. As we all know, this scene was infamously shot in broad daylight so that it did as little as possible to resemble the moon, especially considering that later on in the series, nay, later on in the EPISODE, we see the moon surrounded by the pitch black darkness.
But of course we can't forget that the moon also housed Lord Zed's palace, and the Machine Empire's place. I'm sure there's more, but I can't remember.
Labels:
Lord Zedd,
Machine Empire,
moon,
Power Rangers,
Rita Repulsa
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 22: Favorite Earth Location.
Why none other than that glorious quarry where all those monster fights take place in so many seasons. Forget Angel Grove, the Command Centre, or The Moon, Power Rangers defining location is this Quarry. With all the monster fights, it can honestly be claimed to have brought any Ranger fan more happiness than any other.
Labels:
monster of the week,
Power Rangers,
quarry
Friday, December 3, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 21: Favorite HQ
I'm going with the Command Centre. Obviously because of nostalgia and all the usual stuff, but also because technically, it's two different HQs in one! Well, starting from Zeo anyway. It also has the honor of giving children nightmares after being destroyed twice by the villains, the second time being permenantly.
Labels:
Command Centre,
Power Rangers,
Zeo
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 20: Favorite Teamup.
Forever Red. Even with a hundred restrictions placed upon it by Disney and a few plotholes, FR still manages to be complete and utter proof that Power Rangers is badass. In one of the least popular seasons, no less. In fact, I find it ironic that Forever Red is so disliked and has two of the best team ups. Weird, eh?
Monday, November 29, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 19: Favorite Friendship.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 18: Favorite Couple (Fanon)
I had a good think about this and decided that the answer was obvious. Carter Grayson and the Megazord. Yes, I bet you didn't know the original Megazord was actually a woman.
Though we never really got to see it, behind the scenes it was a love to rival the power the Rangers used to battle evil everyday. Some saw it as scandelous for a badass, if somewhat bland Ranger to actually be romantically involved with a one hundred foot combat mech, but truly it was an inspiration to many with similar ambition, such as Divatox and Alpha, The Animairium and the Green Rangers helmet, and of course Skull and Terror Toad.
And of course we all remember the beautiful day Carter proposed, and the beautiful wedding held on Eltar by Good!Lord Zedd. But even after six years of blissful marriage, it all came to a crashing end with the Megazords' drunked one night stand with the planet Acquitar. Though it has been reported that while their relationship is over, they have started talking to each other again. Let's hope for teh best, guys.
Labels:
Alpha 5,
Bulk and Skull,
Carter Grayson,
Divatox,
fanon,
Lightspeed Rescue,
Megazord,
Power Rangers,
Terror Toad
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 17: Favorite Couple (Canon)
Um...okay...I...um. I'm gonna go with Kim and Tommy. That's right isn't it? I honestly never paid much attention to the romance aspect of these things, which is a shame considering that I seem to get annoyed when people tell me that 'Oh that part never appealed to me.' And yes Robert, I am referring to you and the Zord Fights, though at least that's justified in that almost all Zord fights lack the stuntwork seen in the regular ones.
Labels:
Kimberly,
Power Rangers,
Tommy Oliver
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 16: Favorite Supporting Character.
It would be blasphemy for me not to select Bulk and Skull. I know it's two characters, but it's Bulk and Skull!
When I was a little kid, bullies were a problem for me, so seeing Bulk and Skull get tortured constantly on the show was fun. But even then I liked them as characters.
Also, let's take a minute to talk about me and bullying. Bullies have been a problem numerous times for me, but even though they did get under my skin for being dicks, over time I've come to realise...I had the worst bullies ever! Do you know how they teased me? They ran around me making motorbike noises. Yes it's annoying, yes I wanted them to leave me alone, but is that in any way tough? F*ck no!
And over time, it's just gotten worse and worse. Last year, or early this year, I got the Crowning Moment of Half Assed Bullying of my time. This bunch of guys, all acting top shit and that stood behind me and read out my Uno Cards to my friend. Wow. I mean, really? That is your attempt at being tough? In hindsight, I was probably more of a bully for ignoring them instead of acting as if that actually bothered me. But it doesn't end there! Oh no, because later on in the day they walked by and pinched me on the arm. I mean...really? I'm sorry, that is just so sad.
"Oh yeah, we took turns pinching some kid on the arm! We're f*ckin' top shit!" No, you are sad, very, very sad.
Labels:
Bulk and Skull,
Power Rangers,
Survey
Monday, November 22, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 15: Favorite Support Staff.
We're halfway there folks. Wow, I'm doing thirty days of Power Rangers in like trhee months. Heh.
Yes, I know I am trying to branch out, but Alpha 5 is my favorite, full stop. He was silly, speaking in a funny voice and frequently shouted Aiyiyiyiyiyiyi, much to the annoyance of some fans. But other the years, you just get attached to the little guy, with his chrome dome head, his weird little visor and even his saying aiyiyiyiyiyiyi.
And most people don't like to point it out, but did you notice how he didn't make an appearance after the war on Eltar. Most people don't like to focus on thiis, but there is a good chance that the nifty little robot friend that we grew up with actually died! However, for purposes of keeping my sanity, I'm going to agree with Linkara and assume that it was him on the Astromegaship in Forever Red. That was a fun episode.
Yes, I know I am trying to branch out, but Alpha 5 is my favorite, full stop. He was silly, speaking in a funny voice and frequently shouted Aiyiyiyiyiyiyi, much to the annoyance of some fans. But other the years, you just get attached to the little guy, with his chrome dome head, his weird little visor and even his saying aiyiyiyiyiyiyi.
And most people don't like to point it out, but did you notice how he didn't make an appearance after the war on Eltar. Most people don't like to focus on thiis, but there is a good chance that the nifty little robot friend that we grew up with actually died! However, for purposes of keeping my sanity, I'm going to agree with Linkara and assume that it was him on the Astromegaship in Forever Red. That was a fun episode.
Labels:
Alpha 5,
dead,
In Space,
Power Rangers
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 14: Favorite Mentor.
Of course I am going to select Zordon. When it comes to Power Rangers, you just can't beat the iconography of a giant, ghostlike head in an interdimensional tube asking for five teenagers with attitude. Admittedly, as we eventually learn as we get older, he wasn't actually as good of a mentor as he was chalked up to be, what with one time actually waiting until four of the Rangers had been EATEN before telling the two recently unbrainwashed Rangers how to defeat the monster.
But he did do a good job of keeping things togethor and even performed an epic Heroic Sacrifice at the end of In Space, that also served as a bit of a Tear Jerker considering that as someone who until recently (As in last year) was not even aware that there was an ongoing plot, I didn't know he died! However, if my Wild Mass Guessing is correct, there is still hope:
Willy Wonka is, or thinks he's Zordon.
He believes that he is, or actually is Zordon revived by some force. However, since he made some poor choices back in his era, he's approaching things differently. He has none of Zordon's magic items, but knows how to make some crazy ass candy, so he decides to create his Rangers a different way. For example, the Factory is the new Command Centre, with the business giving him a way to set things up. He's having trouble building the Zords so he's instead trying to create alternative means for the Rangers to combat giant monsters, such as the Shrink Ray. The Oompa-Loompa's are actually a massive group of Alpha's ranging from 7 to over a hundred, each with a faulty version of Alpha's friendly personality, resulting in the musical numbers. The kids are obviously intended to be his Rangers, and he's trying out giving them new abilities. His fondness for his Rangers makes his anger at their disobedience into what appears to be Wonka's submissive attitude to the children's fates. He just keeps thinking they're going to do the right thing. Then they don't.
Veruca: Wonka tries to give his new Pink Ranger control over animals, starting with Squirrels, but she's too impulsive and ends up with his failed Repellent Pheramone experiment.
Augustus: The Yellow Ranger (because even though he wears Red, he isn't really leader material) is given shapeshifting abilities after being turned to chocolate. Or at least becomes covered in it, which impedes the progress somewhat.
Mike: The Black Ranger was going to get size changing powers after helping Wonka reverse the Shrink Ray, after which he'd help work on the Zords.
Violet: The gum was a failed attempt to make a giant Ranger, but it worked excellently in giving his new Blue Ranger super human reflexes. Her chipper attitude once she's drained suggests that if approached again, she may accept the role of Ranger.
Charlie: The Red Ranger. Charlie was supposed to be granted flight by the Fizzy Lifting Drinks, but the other potential Rangers accidents derail the tour and he never gets to that room.
However, there is hope with Charlie not getting incapacitated and Violet's attitude
Yes, I am insane with no time on my hands.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 13: Favorite Monster of the Week.
Oh, ask a rhetorical question then why don't you? The monster of the week was always my favorite part of the show as a child, and since the series has started, there have been literally hundreds of them. How can I possibly choose one out of so many? I could always choose the one that impacted me more than any other, but I can hardly say that Terror Toad and Shellshock are very good candidates, afterall they only really did much for me because they were on both on the same video that I kept renting from the video store.
No, I don't think it's fair to play favorites with the Monsters of the Week. These are the brave men, women and other that have done their part for almost two decades to make the show the legend it is today. Without them, there would have been no reason to adapt the Sentai, and thus there would be no Mighty Morphin', there would be no Time Firce, there would be no Overdrive (Not that most would complain ), and there would be no RPM. So I say to you, who is my favorite monster of the week? All of them. Because without any monsters, there would be no Power Rangers.
Labels:
monster of the week,
monsters,
Power Rangers,
Shellshock,
Terror Toad
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 12: Favorite Villain Sidekick.
I'm of course going to go with the original sidekick, Goldar. The first enemy ever fought on the show (aside from the Putties), Goldar is one of the most recogniseable character from the shows history. Even if he later was reduced to Comic Relief, he was still a prominent character, acting as The Dragon to both Rita and Zedd. Also, he was a flying gorilla covered in gold armour, what's not to love?
Monday, November 15, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 11: Favorite Villain Henchmen.
Strange...My first choice was of course Putties. While they are actually good henchmen, giving you the idea that they are mindless alien clay footsoldiers (Though not necessarily good ones), I've decided that they are surpassed by The menacing Quantrons, if only for the fact that they have very big knives.
Labels:
In Space,
Power Rangers,
Putty Patrol,
Quantron
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 10: Favorite Reformed Villain.
Rita and Zedd. I picked two, what're you gonna do about it?
Rita is the villain I grew up with, and Zedd is much more intimidating. In recent times I'm actually a little sad to know that they were turned good, and indeed, Rita became the Big Good of Mystic Force. However, they're two of my favorite villains and they're reformed, so they work pretty well for this answer.
Before I go, I actually was only going to talk about Rita, but picked up this Zedd picture.
Also, at the end to Countdown to Destruction, how long were reformed Rita and Zedd dancing?
Labels:
Lord Zedd,
Power Rangers,
Rita Repulsa
Friday, November 12, 2010
Crowning Moment of Awesome: Amazing Spider-Man #644
Never before have I ever even considered a Crowning Moment of Awesome and a dead baby to be part of the same situation, but life if full of surprises.
In the latest storyline, Origin of the Species, Doc Ock, being a mad scientist, has discovered a genetic gold mine in a newborn baby, who was born of Menace, Harry Osborne's former lover who was forcefully mutated into a Goblin, and Norman Osborne, Harry's Complete Monster father and Green Goblin. After the child is born, Spidey has to keep it safe from almost every villain in his Rogues Gallery, all hired by Ock to capture it, from big names like Sandman, to small timers like Freak.
Spidey is also mistaken for a kidnapper and is hunted by the police as he desperately tries to find a hospital. As Vulture and Freak close in, Spidey sees Harry, who offers to take the child to the hospital while Spider-Man flees with a decoy. It works, but Harry doesn't move during the fight. Why? Because the child is dead. He couldn't handle the excitement of the chaos around him, and despite his best efforts, Spider-Man has yet again lost something. He vows to stop Ock and swings off into the distance, leaving Harry to mourn his illigitimate brother.
Once the Spider is out of sight, Harry removes his face, revealing himself to be Chameleon, cradling the perfectly fine baby in his arm.
This is a genuine CmoA for the book because my jaw literally dropped when Chameleon revealed himself. The series has recently been kind of shocking, having had the Lizard devour Dr. Connor's son, and the brutal rampage of the Kravinoff family. I was very upset to hear that the child didn't make it. Not that being in the hands of the Chameleon is much better, but I genuinely did not see it coming.
And when you consider that this is the story continuing from One Moment in Time (One Moment in Stupid, more like it ), this is especially impressive, and shows us that Spider-Man is a real superhero. Even with the titanic might of oppression that is Joe Quesada hammering down on the series, Spider-Man remains one of the best books I've read.
Labels:
Chameleon,
Doc Ock,
Doctor Octopus,
Joe Quesada,
Origin of the Species,
Spider-Man
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 9: Who is your favorite Villain?/Villain Spotlight.
Hehehehe, bet you're not expecting this.
That's right's it's Divatox. Why is she my choice? Well there's a number of reasons. For one she's kinda hot. But more importantly, she also gives off massive Rita vibes, and Rita is the villain I grew up with. While she didn't have quite the same sort of appeal as Rita, they were both fond of yelling and hamming it up, and in the end, nothing makes a good villain like a good slice of ham.
While many find her to be annoying or lame due to the way she was portrayed, her Ritaness served as the perfect bridge for me into interseason fandom (I saw Turbo before Zeo).
Did I mention she's kind of hot?
That's right's it's Divatox. Why is she my choice? Well there's a number of reasons. For one she's kinda hot. But more importantly, she also gives off massive Rita vibes, and Rita is the villain I grew up with. While she didn't have quite the same sort of appeal as Rita, they were both fond of yelling and hamming it up, and in the end, nothing makes a good villain like a good slice of ham.
While many find her to be annoying or lame due to the way she was portrayed, her Ritaness served as the perfect bridge for me into interseason fandom (I saw Turbo before Zeo).
Did I mention she's kind of hot?
Labels:
Divatox,
Power Rangers,
Villain Spotlight
Power Rangers Survey 7 and 8: Favorite Color Ranger and Favorite Fomerly Evil Ranger.
Honestly? I never thought about it. I don't see it as that big of a thing. However, I'm gonna say...Blue. No, Red. Aaargh! Green! Yes, Green, Green has impacted me the most, and I have said numeroustimes durBLACK! Black is one of the least used colors and must be given a mention, no!
Okay...Blue. I'm going with blue. Billy is my favorite Ranger, and he was blue, so that is why.
I don't want to waste space, so let me also just answer number 8, Tommy is my favorite formerly evil ranger.
And yes, I know I'm supposed to do this daily, but it's a bit late for that now.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 6: Favorite Sixth Ranger.
Tommy bitches!
As I have said, he left a big impression on me by being evil at first. I honestly cannot see a Green Ranger and not understand why it isn't a big deal. He was the only original Ranger to become giant (Twice in fact if you count the last episode of Zeo), and he had a f*cking Dragonzord! Normally I wouldn't think too much of a dragon, but a show can often make something more cool by adding limitations. Here, we had giant robot dinosaurs, those are kickass! So how do you do one better? A dragon, bitch! Also he had a cool flute.
However, since I am trying to branch out from MMPR with my answers, my second choice would be The Blue Senturian.
Technically the first Sixth Ranger I saw aside from Tommy, the Blue Senturian was notable for me mostly for filling the Sixth Ranger slot, but also because he was clearly a policeman, and he helped my favorite superheroes fight monsters. That is what all policemen should do. Fight monsters. That is how you will regain the respect of the public.
He also uses his stoplights for combat, which brings me to the Wild Mass Guess that a prototype Senturian was used by Finster to create that Turtle thing with the stoplight on it's back. I just thought of that just now.
As I have said, he left a big impression on me by being evil at first. I honestly cannot see a Green Ranger and not understand why it isn't a big deal. He was the only original Ranger to become giant (Twice in fact if you count the last episode of Zeo), and he had a f*cking Dragonzord! Normally I wouldn't think too much of a dragon, but a show can often make something more cool by adding limitations. Here, we had giant robot dinosaurs, those are kickass! So how do you do one better? A dragon, bitch! Also he had a cool flute.
However, since I am trying to branch out from MMPR with my answers, my second choice would be The Blue Senturian.
Technically the first Sixth Ranger I saw aside from Tommy, the Blue Senturian was notable for me mostly for filling the Sixth Ranger slot, but also because he was clearly a policeman, and he helped my favorite superheroes fight monsters. That is what all policemen should do. Fight monsters. That is how you will regain the respect of the public.
He also uses his stoplights for combat, which brings me to the Wild Mass Guess that a prototype Senturian was used by Finster to create that Turtle thing with the stoplight on it's back. I just thought of that just now.
Labels:
Blue Senturian,
Dragonzord,
Green Ranger,
Power Rangers,
Tommy,
White Ranger
Friday, November 5, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 5: Favourite Female Ranger.
It has recently occured to me that I'm not actually that knowledgable about any seasons beyond MMPR. I feel awfully embarrassed and have decided that I will try to remedy this in the near future, but for now, I will tell you that Kim was of course my favorite (Don't worry, I'm sure there's at least one non Mighty Morphin' answer).
Kimberly, because as far as I'm concerned, she is the only Pink Ranger. However, I was originally going to go with Trini, who I always found to be more interesting (Ironic as her personality was being Kim's best friend). Why did I choose Kimberly? The answer is simple. Her Zord is a giant robotic ptereodactyl which is summoned from a volcano and is the only original Zord with the capability to fly, making it only equalled in awesome by the TyrannoZord and DragonZord, who can't fly, but certainly look cool.
Labels:
Kimberly,
Lord Zedd,
Master Vile,
Power Rangers,
random_fan,
Rita Repulsa,
Zordon
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Power Rangers Survey 4: Favorite Male Ranger.
Billy. Not the best Ranger in the world, and definately not the most badass, but I identified with Billy more than any of the other Rangers. Mainly because he was a geek. I was never as smart as him, but Billy was the closest thing I had to a counterpart on the show.
If I had to pic a second I would probably go to Jason, but thinking about it, I'm gonna go with Tommy because as the Green Ranger he had a subtle impact on me. In Mighty Morphin' the Rangers lineup was Red, Blue, Pink, Yellow and Black, but in the wide majority of the others Black is instead Green, and no matter how many times I see it, I will always think this is weird because I instantly think back to the Green Ranger pwning all the other Rangers. Admittedly he wasn't evil for long, but my cousin had the Green With Evil saga on VHS, so we watched it a lot. And he was a Dragon! When you're a kid dealing with giant robot dinosaurs, a giant robot dragon is the only way that could possibly be cooler.
But ultimately, Tommy just dosn't hold a place in my fandom like long running Ranger Billy.
And also, my favorite color was blue at the time.
Labels:
Billy,
Dragonzord,
Green with Evil,
Power Rangers,
Tommy Oliver,
Triceratops
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Power Rangers Survey: 3Favorite Team
Again, I have to go with the original lineup of Mighty Morphin'. Again, it was incredibly basic, but despite this (or maybe thanks to) they are also incredibly memorable, if only because they were Power Rangers. Of course, I'm not going to yak on about how each character is interesting (That would be very difficult), but Jason, Zack, Billy, Kimberly, Trini and Tommy are beloved by thousands of PR fans for what they are, and I'm no different.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Power Rangers Servey: 2 what of your favorite season?
My favorite season of Power Rangers is and forever will be Season One. Obviously the first season I saw, there were enough episodes to make me think there were a whole bunch of seasons.
While not the best season, the original was basic and fairly simple. It had my favorite Megazord and most of all this was before Power Rangers became the multi season franchise it is today, meaning that this was the first time around and did not rely on ideas established in previous series. This is where they were set up.
Besides, it had the best theme song ever!
Power Rangers Survey 1: How did you get into PR?
My friend random_fan is well known by me for not updating his blog very much. How ironic that now that he has, I'm going to copy him? This is a Power Rangers survey, I will be posting each of my thirty responses seperately to avoid too much over use of space.
1-How did you get into PR?
I was really born into it I guess. I was born two years after the show started, so it was already established as a media phenomanon. As a young superhero and monster fanatic, the show appealed to me right away.
Oddly, I don't think we were ever shown much of any season past 1 here in Oz. I don't remember any episodes with Lord Zedd or Master Vile, just Rita and the gang. These episodes will always be known to me as the true Power Rangers, but we'll get into that more next time.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Sorry for the Wait.
I am still working on the second part of my Positively Dreadful Batman and Robin review. I apologise for not finishing it yet, but I'm not feeling all that motivated. In fact I feel that I've sort of been skimping out on this blog in general. I apologise and will try to tell you about this month's haul of comics soon enough.
Oh, and why did I use a picture of Mr. Freeze? I told you, I like the suit.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Awesome Covers: Guarding the Globe #2
A monstrous and menacing octopus monster recieves a continual series of I AM A MAN punches from an entire team of superheroes. What's not to love?
In any other case, this cover looks great. All the heroes diving after Octoboss looks badass, and it's drawn brilliantly. This is the sort of thing that will make me pic up a comic book.
The Guarding the Globe miniseries is a spin-off from Invincible. Since the titular hero has recently left Earth to fight the Viltrumite Empire, the guys working behind the famous team Guardians of the Globe decide they need to start recruiting and expand the team into a Global operation (it ironically has focussed on America the past few years).
The series is cool, with Kirkman's trademark awesomeness and great artwork. I have to give him a hand, an Invincible film or cartoon is well deserved.
Though of course the series would be oddly violent for a superhero cartoon. Even though the Invincible series is mostly light hearted, the violence is pretty strong.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Big Daddy vs. Bid Daddy.
Reasons why Kick-Ass's Batman cosplayer, AKA Damien Macready is a hundred times more badass than BioShock's homicidal Scuba Divers?
1) Unlike Rapture's contender's Damien dosn't need to protect his little girl. Under his influence, she can take care of herself.
2) Damien dresses like Batman, and Batman could beat up anything.
3) In Rapture, Big Daddy's are clunky and slow, meaning you will have time to run away. In New York, Big Daddy will snack your neck before you even figured out he was there.
4) You can't wear Damien Macready.
5) In Rapture, Big Daddy is not played by Nicholas Cage.
6) Damien Macready is also Ghost Rider.
7) If Damien Macready had Plasmids, he could kill Rapture. Not destroy, not kill everyone inside, he could KILL THE CITY.
8) If you kill a Big Daddy in Rapture, it's little girl is up for the taking. If you kill Damien Macready, his little girl will kill you and everyone involved.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
One Moment in Time: My Thoughts.
I've already been on a tangent in regards to Quesada, so I'll focus on the actual book this time (and by extension, Quesada).
One Moment in Time is an unusual thing. You know how you may play a video game, when suddenly it glitches, causing something that shouldn't happen or exist, like getting stuck in a wall or an enemy turning inside out? Imagine four issues of a comic book like that.
Reading it, I didn't actually have a problem with what I was reading that much. However, there was not one second that I was unaware of what this abomination was.
One aspect of the comic is that the writers 'cleverly' mixed in pages from the issues from the actual Spider-Man wedding issues. This is actually a clever idea, but then it just becomes depressing when you realise that this moment in comic book history is being twisted into the incorrect and warped stage we have now. That seems downright antagonistic towards the fans! It's like "Here's that Teddy Bear you loved when you were little. Now here's a pipe bomb. Guess what happens next!"
Mary Jane comes across as subtley antagonistic considering that she's the one to break off the relationship after Peter goes missing on the wedding night. That's understandable, but Quesada's intention is clearly to paint the image that she's the bad guy and we should stop wanting her and Peter to get back togethor. Well sorry Joe, this is one Mary Jane fan you can't just buff off.
There's also some intense irony in that the story is displayed as a series of flashbacks between Mary Jane and Peter. Almost the whole time Peter is requesting that they stop, but MJ keeps saying that it'll clear things up. There is no way this wasn't intentional.
Of course the absolute worst thing about this story is that Mr. Q actually thought it would be a good idea to continue the infamous One More Day storyline (Considering how much it flopped, it's just mind boggling), but it is seconded by the fact that it could have easily been a mere two issues, but he somehow in his head felt that we needed twice that!
The second issue's flashback ends with Peter and Mary Jane deciding that they won't get married, but they will go out. Really. I have a lot of trouble believing that it was necessary to use up four issues to say 'It was exactly the same except there was no marriage.' But what really grates me is how they handle erasing Spider-Man's secret identity. Here's my opinion: You didn't need to.
Mephisto changed history, you could have easily said that by doing that, he never chose to reveal his identity and avoid this whole thing. But no, you wanted us to read four issues of your crap!
Okay, but I will admit there were some okay things involved. They do not help the comic in any way, but I honestly don't think anything could.
1 Quesada has proven that even though he has the brain of a single celled organism (A dumb on) his art is surprisingly bearable. I say bearable and not good because in a few panels you'll notice him getting sloppy.
2 Issue 3 has a funny moment where Peter uses his secret identity to get a nurse to keep an eye on Aunt May.
3 Issue has one of the awesomest letters column I have ever seen in the series, if only it suggests that Stan Lee viciously attacked the editor and took over. That was hilarious.
4 Every issue had a part of Stan Lee's two page spread Amazing Spider-Man issue. Having read a few issues of Stan Lee's run, I can say that the artwork really helps evoke that feeling, so if you were a fan of that era, you might want to check this out. My favorite thing about the series are the two main antagonists, a mad genius named Brain, and his stupid henchmen named Bull. They aren't very interesting characters, but they instantly become hilarious if you start reading their dialogue with Pinky and the Brain in mind.
So, just to recap, Quesada should get a new job, Spider-Man is a good character, and I like Stan Lee...ONE MOMENT IN TIME SUCKS! 1/10 stars!
Labels:
Joe Quesada,
One Moment in Time,
One More Day,
Spider-Man
Friday, October 15, 2010
Top 15 Doctor Who Quotes.
As my two fans may know, I am an avid Dr. Who fan. Both new series and old, and almost every Doctor, I love the series. A combination of entertaining acting, clever (If cheap) special effects, and excellent writing made the show legendaary for thousands of people all over the world. Something great that came from the writing was also a great number of memorable quites, so here's my top favorite ones.
-15 "Ooh, that’ll never work out. He’s gay and she’s an alien" -The Ninth Doctor examining a celebrity marriage.
-14 "Nothing, said the Ice -Berg to the Titanic. Bloop, bloop"-The Fourth Doctor explaining why he dosn't like the word 'Unsinkable.'
-13 "I just gave away ten years of my life, worth every second"-The Doctor after blowing on a lightbulb.
-12 "Reverse the Polarity of the Neutron Flow."- The most famous line spoken by the Third Doctor.
-11 "Doctor who?"-Numerous.
-10 "Television! In the Stomach! Now that’s evolution"-The Master, most evil man in the universe, watching Teletubbies.
-9 "Hey, you’ve got a shop, I like a little shop."-The Doctor during an alien attack on a hospital.
-8 "THIS IS NOT WAR! THIS IS PEST CONTROL!"-A Dalek talking to a Cyberman.
-7 "EXTERMINATE!"-Every Dalek ever.
-6 "The image of an Angel IS an Angel..."-The last thing you'll remember before passing out from fear.
-5 "Let me guess, my theories outrage you, my hyraces anger you, I don’t answer letters, and you don’t like the look of my tie."-The Seventh Doctor replying to an angry reverand.
-4 "If you Daleks are supposed to be the superior race of the universe, why don’t you try climbing after me?" -The Fourth Doctor making fun of a Dalek.
-3 "This time, everybody lives."-The Ninth Doctor after saving the world from a zombie plague without anyone dying.
-2 "It’s like a great big ball of wibbly wobbly, timey whimey stuff."-The Doctor explaining the power of the Weeping Angels.
-1 "What do Monsters have nightmares about? ‘Me’" The Doctor telling a little girl the absolute truth.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Epic Fail!
Monday, October 11, 2010
Mental Covers: Joining The Team.
As evil begins to strike in stronger force, Mental is forced to join the only superhero team around, The Team!
This is just a basic idea back from what I know as the Second Stage of Mental. Back then there was a team called The Team (appropriately enough). They were comprised of 'Soda Mutants,' people who had been mutated thanks to a special chemical added into soda by Captain Mental's arch enemy, Dr. Mask (Nowadays, Mental dosn't really have an arch enemy). They formed a team, and after a while of serving as allies, Mental finally became a member.
The Team was comprised of...
Sparkplug: Teenager who can turn his body into a bolt of lightning.
Soundwave: Egotistical teenager who can change the sound of his voice.
Dr. Stone: Skilled surgeon mutated into a large rock monster.
Stabenslash: School teacher with Wolverine style abilities.
Spiderette: Sarcastic and angry girl who has spider powers.
Mystic: Psychic sarcastic, dry and droll teenager mutated into a floating blob.
Miya the Ogress: Unofficial member. A large green girl with enormous eating habits.
Labels:
Captain Mental,
Comic book,
mystic,
ogress,
spiderette,
superhero,
The Team
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Villain Spotlight: Cobra Commander.
The leader of the ruthless terrorist organisation known as Cobra. Cobra Commander is known for disguisng his deformed appearance behind a hood or metal faceplate, and spouting his commands through his shrill, high pitched voice. His position of power showcases his quite possible insanity, tosssing around billions of dollars to draw a picture of his face on the moon at one stage even!
Cobra Command has been at odds with GI JOE for decades now, and throughout them little has been discovered about him, and even what we do know varies from adaptation to adaptation. Is he secretly a reptillian humanoid sent by a secret race of snake people? Is he a used car salesman gone mad? Or is he the brother of the Baroness, driven mad with betrayal (No, he isn't )?
Whatever the origin, Cobra Commander will stop at nothing until he is the supreme overlord of Earth, and has the Joes destroyed.
In a side note, he seems very similar to Coyle Commander
But the difference is that Coyle Commander is real and trying to recruit people into his army via Facebook (Here, in facthttp://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=152900714729615 ), and Cobra Commander is a fictional character (Cooler, though ).
COBRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Positively Dreadful: Batman and Robin. Part 1
I have considered writing a review up for the infamous Batman and Robin film for a while, but I don't think we could get much better than the Nostalgia Critic's review. Well maybe, but being as big a fan as I am, I'd probably end up just ripping him off. However, I was watching it the other day and I thought to myself, "My god, this is even worse than the last time I watched it. God help me I love it."
Unlike One More Day, Batman Robin is an Epic Fail which can be enjoyed. The film is bad for sure, but it's also endlessly entertaining. I realised that although many people find it so bad it's good, I don't think anyone has actually reviewed the film in a positive light (with admittedly, VERY good reason) So that's why I invite your to my first Positively Dreadful Review.
The film starts out with the Warner Bros logo morphing into the Bat signal, then freezing. This continues the element of the series of obscuring the signal in some way. The first film, it was normal, second, it had a dash of snow, third it was part of a Question Mark, and now it's fully frozen over.
The actual movie begins with the Dynamic Duo (George Clooney and Chris O'Donnel) suiting up for their latest act of heroics.
Most (including me) will be put of by the extreme close up shots of their asses, bat nipples and over stuffed crotches, but infamous director Joel Schumacher had an admittedly good reason for this. The suits were inspired by greek sculptures of their greatest heroes. By doing this, they give the duo a more 'powerful' presence. I may also mention that a factor in the decision is that Schumacher is openly gay, but the greek god thing sounds more dignified.
After this we see the team's awesome vehicles, the new Batmobile and the Redbird. In Tim Burton's Batman, these would have been silly, in this film, they become cool.
I may mention however that the fact that it has no roof is stupid on a few levels.
After they leave, we get the first glimpse of Alfred's ailment. Michael Gough is widely agreed to supply us with an excellent performance in an otherwise awful picture.
We then see Gotham in all it's glory. I theorise that Gotham City was built by a team of mad architects (considering it's GOTHAM City, this is actually quite likely) because it looks bizarre! And I love it! In this film, Gotham City is an abract painting, with impossibly high skyscrapers, large statues of bare chested men (Greek Gods are dignified!) and generally insane architecture. This helps to paint the film an unusual, but enjoyable atmosphere.
Mr. Freeze (AAAAAHHHHNOOOOOOLD!) is stealing a diamond from the mueseum with his gang of irate hockey players. Freeze is dressed in a heavy suit of body armour that increased his strength, endurance, and keeps him alive due to his genetics need for intense cold. Admit it, if this wasn't a Batman film, you'd think this suit looks cool. Campy yes. Cool, definately.
Arnold also technically dosn't give a bad performance. The problem? Bad writing. The moments when he isn't hurling ice puns show that this could have potentially been a great performance. However, the puns may be extremely cheesy, but chances are, if you were shooting at people with an ice gun, you'd do the same. I can imagine that Arnie had a blast in those scenes, I know I would have.
Since this is a positive review of a bad movie, I am going to over analyse on as much as possible. Freeze has been mutated in his attempts to save his wife from MacGregor's Syndrome, into a being that needs cold to survive. If we assume that he turned to crime due to unseen or unexplained events before the film, he has gone a little mad. He knows that even if he cures his wife, things will never be the same. He knows she will not recognise this psychotic blue criminal as her husband, but continues out of his undying love. To avoid a major breakdown, he embraces what he has become, hurling puns of every kind left and right, fooling himself into believing this is what he wants to be.
Wow. I need to go outside at some stage.
So then the group battles it out for a while, eventually forcing Freeze to launch him and Batman into the sky using a rocket inside his Freezemobile (Which is also fairly cool). Freeze escapes with a glider, and trusts that Batman can escape the nuclear bomb before it hits the ground. With Robin's help, he's right, and they blow it up before it comes anywhere close to the ground.
Then we get one of the awesomest things you will see in a Batman movie: Batman and Robin surfing through the sky on doors of an exploding nuclear rocket. In Burton's films, this would be stupid. In the comics, this would be awesome. It is as such here.
They chase Freeze into a building where Robin's eagerness works against him and gets him frozen solid. Freeze gives Batman a choice between chasing after him and defrosting his partner. Obviously, he chooses Robin, and Freeze gets away. Some find this a Wallbanger, considering that he could have killed Batman right there and then. Let's take a moment to overanalyse that too.
Freeze recognises Batman as a worthy opponent, and a hero. Not being a complete monster, Freeze allows Batman to live on and save more lives.
Also, people complain that Robin is fine when he's unthawed despite only having eleven minutes to live. He was frozen for one minute at best, and just because he instantly asks "Did we get him?" does not mean he's fine. It means he's focussed on catching Freeze.
I also like this scene because it is one of few pure 'Superhero Fights' in cinema. This is what I think of when I think of a campy superhero vs. a campy supervillain. The next closest thing I can think of is Spider-Man vs. Green Goblin, and technically that dosn't count because that film was good and actually made it work.
Meanwhile, at the Hall of...African Research? I seriously don't know what the place is actually supposed to be, but it's funded by Wayne Enterprises, Pamela Isley, Uma Thurman, is a nerdy scientsit who is determined to grant plantlife the ability to fend for itself.
Thurman is probably the most unwatchable thing in the film. As a geeky nerd, she plays the character way too over the top to take seriously. For this film that's par the course, but somehow she dosn't possess the same sort of fun Arnold brings.
She complains that her latest experiment has failed, but she still has hope. She has also become annoyed that her fellow scientist, Jason Woodrue (The Floronic Man, as he is known in the comics) repeatedly steals away her secret chemical Venom. Upon investigation, we meet Woodrue, who is an over the top mad scientist who is non the less much more enjoyable than Pamela.
He is using Venom to create a super soldier to sell to the highest bidder, including a mysterious mystery bidder who has no significance to the plot at all.
The super soldier he creates, is Bane. Ah, Bane. One of Batman's most infamous enemies, Bane gained his reputation by doing this:
My personal favorite pic of him though? Would be this:
But, this being a live action movie before CGI was perfected, we get this:
Woodrue soon discovers Pamela and offers her partnership if she keeps her mouth shut after explaining that Wayne cut his funding once he discovered how their money was being spent. But she'll have none of it! Woodrue dared to turn her research for the safety of plants into some madcap scheme for World Domination! As opposed to the completely sane and reasonable plan for world domination she will soon be planning. He dosn't take rejection well, so he kills her, crushing her under the weight of her own bubbling lab experiments. Let us give Dr. Woodrue some credit for doing what we've been wanting to do since she was introduced.
Back at the Batcave, the Caped Crusaders appear out of costume with Alfred by their side, doing their research on Freeze. We learn about his tragic backstory, of how his wife contracted MacGregor's syndrome and how he recieved his mutation. This hilariously falls into narm territory when Arnie falls into the chemical bath. To paraphrase him, "Naaargh! Aaargh! Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Bat's decides to use the Wayne Diamonds to lure out Freeze, and grows tension between himself and Robin after showing that he disapproves of his reckless behaviour on the field.
One thing you'll notice is that the story with the people is much more watchable for fans than of the one with the heroes. It's still not done that well, but watching that fight with Mr. Freeze, and then watching most of this seen here, I'm seeing two completing different films.
Back with the delightful Dr. Jason Woodrue, he has successfully sold Bane to the mystery bidder and is planning to have him shipped out. However, much to his surprise, Pamela rises from the ground covered in vines. Dammit, and it was just getting good, too! She has been changed by the chemicals and Venom. Her genetic structure has been entirely changed, essentially turning her into a human plant. That, and her clothes and hair have been torn up, making her hot, and into a true Large Ham. In true Poison Ivy fashion, she kisses Woodrue on the lips, giving him a dose of natural poison and killing him.
Pamela then destroys the lab, monologuing about her new lease on life. I know this is supposed to a Positive Review, and I know this is one of the oldest Villain Conventions of all time, but when watching this seen I really just have to ask...who is she talking to? Before the lab is completely wrecked, she remembers about Wayne Enterprises and decides to pay him a visit with a scheme. For the hell of of, she brings Bane along. Apparently Woodrue just lets him walk around the lab now.
Next we return to Freeze, who is in his secret lair of an abandoned Ice Cream factory. The one with the most disturbing head they could find. Inside he forces his minions to sing 'I'm Mister White Christmas,' and quite narmfully wears polar bear slippers and a bathrobe. He is hit on by his beautiful female lacky, Miss...Big Lipped Alligator Moment, as he smokes a cigar. Why is he smoking a cigar? Poor choice on the Director's part. After expositing his plan to his minion Frosty, we get more evidence that the part could have actually been well played had the script been written better as Freeze looks upon his frozen wife, promising that he will soon find a cure. Oh, and he has this plan to freeze Gotham and hold it ransom. I might mention that.
Speaking of ransom...well actually no, not speaking of it at all. I'm terrible at segues, Pamela hears that Bruce is presenting Gotham's new Ultra Telescope, specially designed to view all around the globe, to the public. Using a stolen limo, she has Bane drive her to the observatory. So he can barely talk, but driving a car without crashing is no problem? Must be an effect of the Venom. I may mention that the facility is held up by a statue of a man that could squish Godzilla, more bizarrchitecture! :D After being asked whether or not he plans on proposing to his girlfriend, the first time in a Batfilm where the Girl of the Film wasn't a main character, Pamela shows up. In a surprising twist, her big plan involves no crime at all, merely producing a document listing down all the productions Wayne Enterprises could cancel, almost instantly saving the worlds ecosystem (Which would be even more surprising if we didn't learn that she killed someone to get that limo) Since cancelling them would kill millions of people, he declines. She then goes on a rant about how mammals are inferior creatures and that a reckoning is coming, making her seem completely insane considering they don't know she isn't a mammal anymore.
But here's what I think. The way she acts seems like she understands everything that is going on. But she dosn't. Since she was revived, aside from the obvious mutations and lust for world domination (Told you ) she's been experiencing severe Sanity Slippage. She thinks she is intimidating these people with this speech, but it just recieves laughter. She is unable to see what is so funny about the concept of flowers attacking a city protected by the Goddamn Batman and Goshdarned Robin. This would also explain her hammy acting, and who she was talking to earlier.
Bruce gives her an invitation to the Charity Ball, where they will be presenting the Wayne Diamonds in an attempt to draw out Freeze. Batman and Robin will be appearing as the Special Guests. This allows her to bake a new, sinister tactic. She will rid herself of the heroes using her new seductive abilities (Apparentlt plants turn people into living aphrodisiacs). One has to wonder what would have happened if it turned out Batman and Robin was actually the last names of two women. Probably a lot of fan fiction.
After a touching scene of Freeze watching his old Wedding videos, learning of the Charity Ball, we move onto the ball itself. For some bizarre reason, we have a massive Jungle theme. Why? Because it's outrageously weird, and really, that's what this film is all about. There is bidding for a date with one of three beautiful models dressed as flowers.
Batman and Robin are there and await Freeze's arrival. Isley arrives disguised as large pink gorilla (Great disguise, Pam) and unveils herself as Poison Ivy. She joins the bidding and starts racking in the bids by using her powers. This is actually a pretty good idea. She is going to try and break Batman and Robin apart, and she is also raising thousands upon thousands of dollars for a charity working to restore the rainforest. Unfortunately the fact that she is willing to kill the entire population of the world sort of takes away from this moment of subtle genius.
And yes, the Dynamic Duo begin bidding. To show Robin he can pay for it, Batman unveils...this:
Moving on, the party is suddenly cr
Yes! We get it! Sheesh. Anyway, the party is crashed by Mr. Freeze and his goons, who proceed to freeze almost everyone at the party. Wow. Great plan, Bats.
After the Duo kick the goons asses, including an awesome scene of Batman punching right through a wooden drum, Freeze steals the diamonds and high tails it out of there. Ivy is impressed, and Commissioner Gordon is put in charge of thawing the citizens as the heroes give chase.
Join us next time because this is going to take two parts!
TO BE CONTINUED...
Unlike One More Day, Batman Robin is an Epic Fail which can be enjoyed. The film is bad for sure, but it's also endlessly entertaining. I realised that although many people find it so bad it's good, I don't think anyone has actually reviewed the film in a positive light (with admittedly, VERY good reason) So that's why I invite your to my first Positively Dreadful Review.
The film starts out with the Warner Bros logo morphing into the Bat signal, then freezing. This continues the element of the series of obscuring the signal in some way. The first film, it was normal, second, it had a dash of snow, third it was part of a Question Mark, and now it's fully frozen over.
The actual movie begins with the Dynamic Duo (George Clooney and Chris O'Donnel) suiting up for their latest act of heroics.
Most (including me) will be put of by the extreme close up shots of their asses, bat nipples and over stuffed crotches, but infamous director Joel Schumacher had an admittedly good reason for this. The suits were inspired by greek sculptures of their greatest heroes. By doing this, they give the duo a more 'powerful' presence. I may also mention that a factor in the decision is that Schumacher is openly gay, but the greek god thing sounds more dignified.
After this we see the team's awesome vehicles, the new Batmobile and the Redbird. In Tim Burton's Batman, these would have been silly, in this film, they become cool.
I may mention however that the fact that it has no roof is stupid on a few levels.
After they leave, we get the first glimpse of Alfred's ailment. Michael Gough is widely agreed to supply us with an excellent performance in an otherwise awful picture.
We then see Gotham in all it's glory. I theorise that Gotham City was built by a team of mad architects (considering it's GOTHAM City, this is actually quite likely) because it looks bizarre! And I love it! In this film, Gotham City is an abract painting, with impossibly high skyscrapers, large statues of bare chested men (Greek Gods are dignified!) and generally insane architecture. This helps to paint the film an unusual, but enjoyable atmosphere.
Mr. Freeze (AAAAAHHHHNOOOOOOLD!) is stealing a diamond from the mueseum with his gang of irate hockey players. Freeze is dressed in a heavy suit of body armour that increased his strength, endurance, and keeps him alive due to his genetics need for intense cold. Admit it, if this wasn't a Batman film, you'd think this suit looks cool. Campy yes. Cool, definately.
Arnold also technically dosn't give a bad performance. The problem? Bad writing. The moments when he isn't hurling ice puns show that this could have potentially been a great performance. However, the puns may be extremely cheesy, but chances are, if you were shooting at people with an ice gun, you'd do the same. I can imagine that Arnie had a blast in those scenes, I know I would have.
Since this is a positive review of a bad movie, I am going to over analyse on as much as possible. Freeze has been mutated in his attempts to save his wife from MacGregor's Syndrome, into a being that needs cold to survive. If we assume that he turned to crime due to unseen or unexplained events before the film, he has gone a little mad. He knows that even if he cures his wife, things will never be the same. He knows she will not recognise this psychotic blue criminal as her husband, but continues out of his undying love. To avoid a major breakdown, he embraces what he has become, hurling puns of every kind left and right, fooling himself into believing this is what he wants to be.
Wow. I need to go outside at some stage.
So then the group battles it out for a while, eventually forcing Freeze to launch him and Batman into the sky using a rocket inside his Freezemobile (Which is also fairly cool). Freeze escapes with a glider, and trusts that Batman can escape the nuclear bomb before it hits the ground. With Robin's help, he's right, and they blow it up before it comes anywhere close to the ground.
Then we get one of the awesomest things you will see in a Batman movie: Batman and Robin surfing through the sky on doors of an exploding nuclear rocket. In Burton's films, this would be stupid. In the comics, this would be awesome. It is as such here.
They chase Freeze into a building where Robin's eagerness works against him and gets him frozen solid. Freeze gives Batman a choice between chasing after him and defrosting his partner. Obviously, he chooses Robin, and Freeze gets away. Some find this a Wallbanger, considering that he could have killed Batman right there and then. Let's take a moment to overanalyse that too.
Freeze recognises Batman as a worthy opponent, and a hero. Not being a complete monster, Freeze allows Batman to live on and save more lives.
Also, people complain that Robin is fine when he's unthawed despite only having eleven minutes to live. He was frozen for one minute at best, and just because he instantly asks "Did we get him?" does not mean he's fine. It means he's focussed on catching Freeze.
I also like this scene because it is one of few pure 'Superhero Fights' in cinema. This is what I think of when I think of a campy superhero vs. a campy supervillain. The next closest thing I can think of is Spider-Man vs. Green Goblin, and technically that dosn't count because that film was good and actually made it work.
Meanwhile, at the Hall of...African Research? I seriously don't know what the place is actually supposed to be, but it's funded by Wayne Enterprises, Pamela Isley, Uma Thurman, is a nerdy scientsit who is determined to grant plantlife the ability to fend for itself.
Thurman is probably the most unwatchable thing in the film. As a geeky nerd, she plays the character way too over the top to take seriously. For this film that's par the course, but somehow she dosn't possess the same sort of fun Arnold brings.
She complains that her latest experiment has failed, but she still has hope. She has also become annoyed that her fellow scientist, Jason Woodrue (The Floronic Man, as he is known in the comics) repeatedly steals away her secret chemical Venom. Upon investigation, we meet Woodrue, who is an over the top mad scientist who is non the less much more enjoyable than Pamela.
He is using Venom to create a super soldier to sell to the highest bidder, including a mysterious mystery bidder who has no significance to the plot at all.
The super soldier he creates, is Bane. Ah, Bane. One of Batman's most infamous enemies, Bane gained his reputation by doing this:
My personal favorite pic of him though? Would be this:
But, this being a live action movie before CGI was perfected, we get this:
Woodrue soon discovers Pamela and offers her partnership if she keeps her mouth shut after explaining that Wayne cut his funding once he discovered how their money was being spent. But she'll have none of it! Woodrue dared to turn her research for the safety of plants into some madcap scheme for World Domination! As opposed to the completely sane and reasonable plan for world domination she will soon be planning. He dosn't take rejection well, so he kills her, crushing her under the weight of her own bubbling lab experiments. Let us give Dr. Woodrue some credit for doing what we've been wanting to do since she was introduced.
Back at the Batcave, the Caped Crusaders appear out of costume with Alfred by their side, doing their research on Freeze. We learn about his tragic backstory, of how his wife contracted MacGregor's syndrome and how he recieved his mutation. This hilariously falls into narm territory when Arnie falls into the chemical bath. To paraphrase him, "Naaargh! Aaargh! Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Bat's decides to use the Wayne Diamonds to lure out Freeze, and grows tension between himself and Robin after showing that he disapproves of his reckless behaviour on the field.
One thing you'll notice is that the story with the people is much more watchable for fans than of the one with the heroes. It's still not done that well, but watching that fight with Mr. Freeze, and then watching most of this seen here, I'm seeing two completing different films.
Back with the delightful Dr. Jason Woodrue, he has successfully sold Bane to the mystery bidder and is planning to have him shipped out. However, much to his surprise, Pamela rises from the ground covered in vines. Dammit, and it was just getting good, too! She has been changed by the chemicals and Venom. Her genetic structure has been entirely changed, essentially turning her into a human plant. That, and her clothes and hair have been torn up, making her hot, and into a true Large Ham. In true Poison Ivy fashion, she kisses Woodrue on the lips, giving him a dose of natural poison and killing him.
Pamela then destroys the lab, monologuing about her new lease on life. I know this is supposed to a Positive Review, and I know this is one of the oldest Villain Conventions of all time, but when watching this seen I really just have to ask...who is she talking to? Before the lab is completely wrecked, she remembers about Wayne Enterprises and decides to pay him a visit with a scheme. For the hell of of, she brings Bane along. Apparently Woodrue just lets him walk around the lab now.
Next we return to Freeze, who is in his secret lair of an abandoned Ice Cream factory. The one with the most disturbing head they could find. Inside he forces his minions to sing 'I'm Mister White Christmas,' and quite narmfully wears polar bear slippers and a bathrobe. He is hit on by his beautiful female lacky, Miss...Big Lipped Alligator Moment, as he smokes a cigar. Why is he smoking a cigar? Poor choice on the Director's part. After expositing his plan to his minion Frosty, we get more evidence that the part could have actually been well played had the script been written better as Freeze looks upon his frozen wife, promising that he will soon find a cure. Oh, and he has this plan to freeze Gotham and hold it ransom. I might mention that.
Speaking of ransom...well actually no, not speaking of it at all. I'm terrible at segues, Pamela hears that Bruce is presenting Gotham's new Ultra Telescope, specially designed to view all around the globe, to the public. Using a stolen limo, she has Bane drive her to the observatory. So he can barely talk, but driving a car without crashing is no problem? Must be an effect of the Venom. I may mention that the facility is held up by a statue of a man that could squish Godzilla, more bizarrchitecture! :D After being asked whether or not he plans on proposing to his girlfriend, the first time in a Batfilm where the Girl of the Film wasn't a main character, Pamela shows up. In a surprising twist, her big plan involves no crime at all, merely producing a document listing down all the productions Wayne Enterprises could cancel, almost instantly saving the worlds ecosystem (Which would be even more surprising if we didn't learn that she killed someone to get that limo) Since cancelling them would kill millions of people, he declines. She then goes on a rant about how mammals are inferior creatures and that a reckoning is coming, making her seem completely insane considering they don't know she isn't a mammal anymore.
But here's what I think. The way she acts seems like she understands everything that is going on. But she dosn't. Since she was revived, aside from the obvious mutations and lust for world domination (Told you ) she's been experiencing severe Sanity Slippage. She thinks she is intimidating these people with this speech, but it just recieves laughter. She is unable to see what is so funny about the concept of flowers attacking a city protected by the Goddamn Batman and Goshdarned Robin. This would also explain her hammy acting, and who she was talking to earlier.
Bruce gives her an invitation to the Charity Ball, where they will be presenting the Wayne Diamonds in an attempt to draw out Freeze. Batman and Robin will be appearing as the Special Guests. This allows her to bake a new, sinister tactic. She will rid herself of the heroes using her new seductive abilities (Apparentlt plants turn people into living aphrodisiacs). One has to wonder what would have happened if it turned out Batman and Robin was actually the last names of two women. Probably a lot of fan fiction.
After a touching scene of Freeze watching his old Wedding videos, learning of the Charity Ball, we move onto the ball itself. For some bizarre reason, we have a massive Jungle theme. Why? Because it's outrageously weird, and really, that's what this film is all about. There is bidding for a date with one of three beautiful models dressed as flowers.
Batman and Robin are there and await Freeze's arrival. Isley arrives disguised as large pink gorilla (Great disguise, Pam) and unveils herself as Poison Ivy. She joins the bidding and starts racking in the bids by using her powers. This is actually a pretty good idea. She is going to try and break Batman and Robin apart, and she is also raising thousands upon thousands of dollars for a charity working to restore the rainforest. Unfortunately the fact that she is willing to kill the entire population of the world sort of takes away from this moment of subtle genius.
And yes, the Dynamic Duo begin bidding. To show Robin he can pay for it, Batman unveils...this:
Moving on, the party is suddenly cr
Yes! We get it! Sheesh. Anyway, the party is crashed by Mr. Freeze and his goons, who proceed to freeze almost everyone at the party. Wow. Great plan, Bats.
After the Duo kick the goons asses, including an awesome scene of Batman punching right through a wooden drum, Freeze steals the diamonds and high tails it out of there. Ivy is impressed, and Commissioner Gordon is put in charge of thawing the citizens as the heroes give chase.
Join us next time because this is going to take two parts!
TO BE CONTINUED...
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