Dragon Ball Z is an incredible franchise that has spawned many video games and movies in the past. This is the 7th film in the series (I’m not counting Dragon Ball at all in this review. I’m only talking about the Dragon Ball Z days) and it definitely defeated the previous six films.
The film opens up with Goku and his family shopping and then settling down to eat some good looking food. It’s a pretty happy way to start the film and seeing the city was definitely unexpected. The Z fighters are usually on the go or fighting in the mountains. Trunks, Krillin, and Roshi are waiting in line to make it to a show (in a very awful subplot) but as per usual they didn’t think ahead. After a lot of crushing realizations, they join up with Goku and pals. At a very top secret base, the androids wake up and immediately head for Goku. Due to their scanners, they find him pretty fast and commence their attack by blowing up the building.
Dragon Ball Z never disappoints when it comes to a fight and that was the perfect way to start the film off. The Androids don’t take time to act mysterious or talk tough in the shadows. They just barge in and blow up the place. It’s definitely a very efficient way to get Goku’s attention. The rest of the film is a huge fight against the three androids and that’s a very good thing! The fight scenes in this film would put just about any other big franchise to shame. (Marvel, DC, Nintendo, Sega, etc) The villains are immensely powerful and they actually manage to give Goku an impressive fight. Granted that he was being attacked 2-1 for his first battle, but it’s still a feat.
As I mentioned earlier, there are three androids. Android 15 has a pretty large hat and “cool” sunglasses to remind us that he’s the most stylish of the three androids. His rival in this film is the (vastly superior) Vegeta. I’d personally go ahead and say that Android 15 is the weakest of the three, but considering that he’s still a faster than light, planet buster, he’s still strong enough. As for Android 14, he seems to have a lot of raw strength, plus he’s definitely the quietest of the bunch. His rival in this film is Trunks and he makes sure to give him a good fight. He’s immensely powerful and a pretty decent villain. I much preferred him to Android 15.
The film was named after the final Android and that’s definitely for a good reason. He’s much more skilled than the other two androids and he is able to fight on par with Super Saiyan Goku. He’s incredibly good at martial arts and he has a large array of energy attacks. I liked his character and he was definitely to the point. He attacks Goku and is possibly winning, but then he pulls the ultimate Dragon Ball Z villain technique…He transforms! After merging with the parts from the other androids, he is able to become the Super Android 13. In this form, the combined might of the Z fighters seems to be no match for him. I’d easily say that he’s an S rank fighter in this form and he could easily annihilate the planet with a single blast. He made for an extremely awesome final boss and the fight scene is intense.
Goku is pretty awesome in this film and he shows us what a true hero is. He stands up for all that is right and he’s someone that everyone can look up too. He takes a huge beating for the majority of the film, but he always gets up. He fights pretty well and even though he was outnumbered for a while, he managed to hold his own.
This is one of the only films where (Future) Trunks gets to appear. He does pretty well for the most part and while he’s significantly weaker than his fellow Saiyans, he gives it his all. For a while it is just him and Goku against the three androids and he made for a good ally. Piccolo appears very briefly, but he manages to have a critical moment where he saves the life of one of the Saiyans. Unfortunately, he is no match for the villains so he doesn’t look particularly great in the fight scenes.
Krillin and Gohan try to lend some moral support, but that’s about all of the support that they can give in this kind of fight. Once Vegeta shows up (Apparently he was inside a glacier or in the ocean…) things definitely look up for the heroes. He has a spectacular entrance and it should remind everyone why he’s the greatest Saiyan. (He’s my favorite anyway)
This film has everything that you could have hoped for as a DBZ fan. There were spectacular fighting scenes, the Saiyans all got some pretty good screen time, and they actually got to fight in the city for a little bit. The only negative in the film would be the Roshi and Oolong subplot, but that couldn’t bring down the rest of the film. It was just far too good. This is one film that I strongly recommend as it’s one of the greatest films of all time.
Overall 9/10
Xmen is definitely a pretty big franchise and there are a lot of different series currently being written. This series is about Storm’s group of Xmen who stop threats that could endanger the other groups. So, big shots like Cyclops and Wolverine aren’t really present, but a comic should be able to succeed even without them.
A mad scientist finds the bodies of many ancient mutants that he uses to create mutant monsters of immense power. There was a flaw in the design so they aren’t very stable, but they are pretty dangerous nonetheless. The Xmen find out about this danger and they head out to find all of the samples and secure them before the government or other unwanted parties have a chance to do so.
The team of Xmen that Storm has assembled are Pixie, Psylocke, Domino, and Colossus. Definitely not the strongest team of fighters out there, but they can still tackle this threat with ease. Storm makes some pretty risky calls and even tries to keep Cyclops out of the loop. Cyclops didn’t get the role of leadership by staying on the sidelines and he takes steps to find out what has been going on. Aside from some decisions, Storm was still pretty good, but it was a little uncharacteristic when she threatened Colossus. Could she back up her brave words? It would be close, but I think that Colossus would be able to win that battle.
Domino is all right in this comic, but she just looks a little weak. Likewise with Colossus and Psylocke. They just feel like they’re all talk in this comic, but there wasn’t a real enemy to battle in this story. That could be why they didn’t look so impressive. Pixie isn’t a fighter, but at least she continues to master her teleportation and is quickly becoming the team’s greatest asset. As I said earlier, there are no real villains to discuss in this comic.
The art is all right for the most part, but it takes a dip during the 2nd half. The scene with Cyclops telling Storm about how tricky the situation is, was probably the worst part of the comic for the art. The art also had other scenes where it dipped and it’s certainly not going to be a selling point in this comic.
Overall I’d say that it was an all right Xmen comic. Probably a little more boring than an Xmen title tends to be, but it can’t always live up to its name. Considering that there was no real fight scenes or any sense of danger, the comic was decently good. I’d recommend this comic if you want to know more about the mutants of the past, or you just want a break from the usual mutants like Cyclops and Wolverine.
Overall 6/10
The Incredible Hulk is definitely one of the more popular Marvel characters out there and he’s been through a lot. This particular graphic novel features the Crossroads arc, but that one was hardly my favorite. Still, it’s the Hulk so you can’t go wrong….right!?
After Nightmare messed with Hulk’s mind, Dr Strange was “forced” to banish him from earth and into the Crossroads. (Even though it was Nightmare’s fault) The Crossroads is a place between dimensions. It contains countless portals that lead into different worlds, all of which were specifically picked so that the Hulk wouldn’t be able to harm anyone. He also placed a spell on the Hulk, so that he would be warped back to the Crossroads if he became discontent. The plan was foolproof right? There is also a comic that retells Hulk’s origin, but makes sure to add a lot of tragic and sad scenes to make his life even more miserable. I have to say that it’s a bit unneeded (Since he’s one of the most tragic heroes of all time as it is!) but I guess it may help you to sympathize with him even more. The origin feels like something out of Xmen.
Well, the problem with making sure that the worlds wouldn’t be hurt by Hulk was…that they were all massively stronger than the Hulk. Personally, I thought that the comics didn’t do a good job on showing us that. Instead the Hulk appeared to be much weaker than usual. Of course, that’s usually the case without Bruce Banner inside of him (Did I mention that Bruce Banner died psychically?) Things definitely got dicey for the Hulk and if you don’t like the Crossroads; I’m afraid that you’ll be spending a long time there.
The Hulk is the main character of course and he gets a lot of screen time. For the most part he doesn’t have that much of a mind and he’s a rampaging monster. Later on, he starts to grow smarter and smarter, but he does tend to regress back to his savage state. The Hulk is a decent protagonist, but he’s definitely not the greatest one. I prefer when the Hulk can think, but preferably when he doesn’t have to talk that much. (Unless he’s World War Hulk!)
The Puffball Collective is another major character. He/She/It is stuck on the Crossroads and it unable to get out. They try to go after the Hulk whenever he visits a planet, but to no avail. Eventually the Hulk gets a space crew to help him save the Puffballs. Then, there is a big plot twist about the Puffballs. It was definitely in line with what usually happens to the Hulk.
The Hulk created 3 monsters based off of his emotions and personalities. (If they’re who I think they are, then they lead into a pretty epic arc for the Hulk later on) One symbolizes his rage, The 2nd symbolizes his reason, and the 3rd is his intelligence and survival instincts. They help the Hulk comprehend what is happening and guide him through the tough parts. I can’t say that I really cared for them, but they at least added some dialogue to the comics.
The Hulk meets the Alpha Flight over time and they were the protagonists of that comic. They did all right, but they were definitely outmatched from the beginning. “The Hulk is the strongest there is” is what the catchphrase is after all and it may ring true in this particular comic. Dr Strange makes many cameos, but mostly to wonder if he did the right thing. The Hulk also tackles the U Foes and they definitely gave him a good fight. Their abilities are pretty lethal.
The Hulk went through many planets and I wouldn’t be able to name them all, but some examples include: A Desert Planet, A planet ruled by dead skeletons, A planet where the green civilization was taken over, A planet filled with explosive fruit, A planet filled with giant monsters, A planet where a human landed and quickly became king, etc.
Overall, this was definitely one of my least favorite Hulk arcs. The premise was interesting, but I didn’t care for many of the planets that he visited. Also, I’m used to the Hulk smashing anyone who gets in his way. I’m afraid that things rarely go that way. Still, the comic was good overall and I’d recommend it to Hulk fans mostly. Some of the comics can be good popcorn fun and it’s always cool to see the Hulk have his moments of glory.
Overall 6/10
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