Stats time!
High Score 292100
Coins 97
It’s time to look at an old political film that shows one man’s fight against endless corruption. It can be a lost cause at times but if nobody takes a stand then the situation will never get better will it? It’s a pretty interesting movie even if the ending starts to stretch disbelief a bit. Still, the concept certainly isn’t hard to believe and sometimes things just work out this way.
The film starts off with the local mayor/governor worrying about which new senator to elect as the old one died. He gets pressure from his higher ups to bring in people who are corrupt or have skeletons in the closet so they can be blackmailed. The mayor is close to doing this until his kids guilt trip him into appointing a local ranger leader named Mr. Jeff Smith. Smith is a very down to earth guy who wants to uphold the original ideals of the US, but Mr. Taylor doesn’t like this. Taylor is the kingpin in the shadows who has been controlling the state for years. He decides to do whatever he can to stop this Mr. Smith.
I’m always up for a political film like this, especially when it’s in a court type setting. The senate meetings here are close enough. I remember hearing about how you could hold the floor indefinitely provided the circumstances were right so it was nice to see Smith use such a technique here. I’m sure there is probably a little more to it than this but it’s definitely fun to see. Smith has to talk for essentially an entire day which is pretty impressive for sure. That’s a lot of stamina.
Of course, the corruption was quite deep here so the effects weren’t as powerful as he would have liked. I can buy into Taylor blocking all of the radio channels and newspapers but where it starts to get a little fishy is when he hires a mob to go around and start beating up on the kids. That part’s definitely a little hard to believe. They ran into the kid’s car and actually knocked one to the ground. By the end even the grownups on Smith’s side are telling him to stop because too many kids are being injured.
Even if we are to assume that Taylor’s influence is so strong that all of these guys would be willing to fight kids, what about their parents or other resisters? We see in one scene a large group of adults running around with signs and such until the cops spray them, but then there should have been some adults to protect the kids as well. So while this part was dramatic I think it ends up getting a bit unrealistic by the end.
During the film, Smith’s mentor (Paine) talks to him about the rampant corruption. Paine explains that it isn’t everyone who is corrupt, just most of them. I thought this was foreshadowing for some senators agreeing with Smith by the end and the film would have ended with the Senate in full disagreement. In the end, it appears even he underestimated how corrupt the place was as everyone was involved. He’s definitely the worst character in the film but at least you do know that he’s a traitor from the start so it’s not like you were surprised at this turn of events.
While the writing is pretty solid and the film has good pacing, there is one plot that doesn’t work out well. It’s the comic relief one sided romance plot between Clarissa and a reporter. Their scenes don’t really add to the plot and the drunk bar one goes on for quite a while. I suppose it’s to show how she felt bad for Smith but you could already glean that information early on. Clarissa is a pretty reasonable character even if she does keep flipping from one side to the other. At first she thinks the situation is hopeless for Jeff so she just pretends to be on his side. Finally she does end up going to his side and to her credit she is indispensable by the end. Without her Jeff would have certainly been tricked or have lost the will to fight earlier.
Jeff’s a good character, but pretty gullible. While he ended up sticking to his core values and beliefs despite the overwhelming pressure he wouldn’t have gone far without help. If Clarissa hadn’t tipped him off he would have kept falling for that other girl’s tricks. The instant he let romance get above his duty I had to admit that this senator business may have been a little too much for him. He’s earnest, but to that end I’d figure that he would have done more reading up on what it means to be a senator. Sure, it was harder to get information back in the day but I’d like to have seen him be a bit more pro-active. These are more in-depth critiques of his character though, on the whole he was still pretty solid. It’s just that he could have been even better.
One character who stole the show quite a bit was the chairman for the senate. I like how the whole thing was basically one big joke to him. He’s a fair judge who doesn’t bend to the others. He knows his importance. Whether the right choice is made or not isn’t something he cares about so long as they follow the rules. It may not be heroic, but it is pretty enjoyable to see.
Overall, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is a pretty solid film. It definitely shows how hard it is to get your point across when you’re up against corruption. Smith could have stood there all day without the senators reacting and that’s just what he did. Honestly I would have done more whistles to wake them up like he did in one scene, but I suppose he also didn’t want to be held in contempt of court or anything like that. That probably would have backfired. I’d definitely recommend checking this film out. It’s pretty original.
Overall 7/10
I’ve been nominated for the Sunshine Blogger Award by Jiraiyan of Otaku Orbit, ! Thanks for the nomination! This is the first actual Award challenge I’ve done as I usually didn’t have time in the past. While life is as busy as always this time I definitely wanted to give it a shot and I felt like I knew the answer to most of the questions right away. As per award rules I will be answering the 11 questions posed by Jiraiyan and then at the end I’ll come up with 11 questions of my own and nominate 11 other blogs. (Apologies in advance if you’ve already done this award challenge and I sent you a challenge! Feel free to disregard as of course there is no pressure on doing these. Look at me, I’ve missed quite a few already)
Let’s go!
What’s your favorite anime genre. Why?
Definitely Card game anime. It’s a tough call between that and classic Shonen, but there’s just nothing quite like the exhillaration of a good card fight. That may sound satrical, but most of the card shows I’ve seen are easy 9/10 material. For example, Yu-Gi-Oh GX and Cardfight Vanguard both reached my top 5 greatest anime of all time list. Most of the other card shows are very close behind.
What’s your favorite series in that genre?
My all time favorite card show is Yu-Gi-Oh GX. After that I greatly enjoy Cardfight Vanguard and then we have all of the other Yu-Gi-Oh spinoffs and Cardfight sequels. There’s also the Buddyfight franchise which is quite excellent as well.
How often do you blog?
I blog everyday in some capacity as I work on reviews and upcoming fights, but I don’t always get to publish something everyday. It’s something that I’m trying to work on to make the site more consistent, but I probably won’t have anything concrete until maybe around June. Mainly I tend to publish whatever I worked on during the week on Saturday and Sunday.
What aspect of your blog do you love the most?
Definitely the fight aspect. I used to enjoy going on debating sites to see what people thought about certain matchups, but I always wished they had some kind of record system implemented so you could see how many times they won and lost. It’s why I added such a records page to this blog.
What advice would you give a new blogger?
Definitely be consistent. (Even though I’m bad at that) Even if it’s a very small post, it’s good to have something up every day to build up your content and it also keeps viewers around as they know to keep checking for new content. Also, deactivate your full post from showing up in email notifications. You want it to just be an excerpt or people will read your entire post without needing to click on your site. You end up losing quite a few views.
What anime/manga series are you looking forward to?
I’m definitely looking forward to the upcoming Dragon Ball Super sequel, but I suppose that isn’t 100% confirmed so I’ll pick a different title. There’s a new Cardfight Vanguard prequel coming out that will focus on the early adventures of Kai which will be awesome since he’s one of the best characters. Astra: Lost in Space should also be pretty fun since I just read the manga.
Which is worst, anime video games or movies?
So to make sure, I think this question is saying which is worse, video games based on anime or movies based on anime. If so, then definitely movies as they tend to not really understand how to do a proper adaption. If it’s just between the 3 mediums as a whole, then I’ll have to go with movies. Nothing beats a good video game and anime is a close second as far as hobbies go.
Which video game universe would you like to visit?
Definitely the Metroid verse. It’d be cool to have a sci-fi armor like that and I love futuristic places. Hopefully Ridley doesn’t show up to eat me though. Unless I’m really high up the food chain my armor will probably be pretty weak.
Which manga series would you like to see become an anime?
Definitely Gamaran and Liar Game. Gamaran had some of the best fight scenes I’ve ever read. The choreography was absolutely amazing. Meanwhile Liar Game is probably the most intricate title I’ve read with the games being very well done. I think it could become the next Death Note if animated well.
What’s your most popular post? Why do you think that is?
My most popular post of all time is Mario vs Luigi which barely beats out Bass vs Minnie Mouse. If the latter had won I don’t know how I’d explain that. Mario vs Luigi makes sense I’d say since it’s a classic fight and the image I used was pretty high on the Google Search so a lot of people would click it and find me. Definitely a fun one to have at the top.
If you could transform into a mythological creature, which one would it be?
I’d say a Griffon. Having wings is always something I’d like and I think they can shoot fireballs in some mythos so that covers my long range options. Then I can just soar around having a blast!
Here are my 11 questions
1. What’s the best meal you’ve ever eaten?
2. What are you most looking forward to in 2019?
3. Favorite Video Game Company?
4. Favorite Movie Genre?
5. How different could your blog have been? (Did you ever consider writing about something different from what you are blogging about now)
6. Which video game had a ton of potential, but messed it up?
7. Who do you consider to be the strongest character of all time?
8. What’s the last TV show you saw an episode of?
9. If you had a chance of winning 10 million dollars or losing your current assets by defeating someone at a video game of your choice would you take the gamble?
10. What’s an invention that isn’t currently available that would make your life easier?
11. Are you going to buy Pokemon Sword/Pokemon Shield?
Nominated blogs!
https://destroyer14.com/
https://mrpanda2002.wordpress.com/
https://scifijubilee.wordpress.com/
https://mechanicalanimereviews.com/
https://daiyamanga.com/
https://animegirlsnyc.com/
https://iplayedthegame.wordpress.com/
https://matt-in-the-hat.com/
https://lividlightning.com/
Believe it or not, I actually had not played all the way through this game before. I almost feel like I need to turn in my Nintendo fan card at this point since the game is so iconic. In my defense, I’ve played bits and pieces of the game on a variety of different systems and equipment so maybe I should cut myself some slack. It’s definitely a fun game that holds up well. Naturally it’s nowhere near the level of the modern Mario games for many reasons, but it’s definitely a title that you can go back to at any time.
You’re thrown right into the thick of the action when you start the game. The basic plot is that Princess Peach has been kidnapped and you have to destroy Bowser 8 times in order to free her. There isn’t much of a story beyond that though as the game didn’t really have cutscenes except for brief text at the end of each world. You must now journey through all of the levels to get to the end. Each of the 8 worlds has 4 levels and they’re all a few minutes long so you can get through the game very quickly. There are also some shortcuts which allow you to skip whole worlds.
I’ve seen some speed runs where a guy beats it in a matter of minutes so the shortcuts in this game are certainly quite legit. I found one by chance during my playthrough which I did use. It’s definitely cool and a nice little Easter Egg for fans who play through the game. The gameplay is pretty straightforward as you run through the level and try to make it to the flag at the end. (Or you touch the axe at the end if it’s a boss level) The controls may feel a bit slippery if you haven’t played it in a while. Mario tends to keep his momentum during the jumps so you can very quickly find yourself flying away.
The graphics are fairly basic, but look nice. The game has a solid aesthetic. There is a good variety in the levels and there was clearly a good amount of effort put into the game. The soundtrack is also pretty nice. There isn’t a whole lot of replay value here though as once you beat the game I don’t see why you’d go through it a second time. At the very least, you probably wouldn’t do that right away. So this game will probably provide you with about an hour or two of entertainment. Of course, you can play this game for free almost anywhere so that’s not bad.
Naturally there isn’t much more to be said about the game since there isn’t a lot of content. I will say that I’m glad for the NES access points as they do come in handy for the retro games like this. My gameplay style is all about running in first and jumping later so I tend to get hit by the enemies quite a lot. Usually I die in cheesy ways, but in my defense I just can’t wait for the enemies to move. I got to go go go!
Overall, Super Mario Bros is definitely good. It reminds you of how much quality Nintendo always puts into their products. It’s easy to see why Mario did so well. I’m sure the game probably amazed everyone back in the day. If you’re a big Nintendo fan then I’d certainly urge you to play this at least once. You’ve really got to experience Super Mario Bros to see why it’s such a big deal for everyone. It’s a good moment for gaming history in general.
Overall 7/10
It’s time to look at a pretty well known film here. The Lion King is a movie that almost everyone has heard of and deservedly so. It’s a solid movie with good characters and it manages to be centered around animals while avoiding the animal violence angle pretty well. I’m definitely expecting a big remake of this film soon and we’ll see how that goes. It’ll be difficult to beat the original here.
The film starts off with Mufasa having a son. His name is Simba and he is destined to one day lead the Lions. Naturally, Mufasa’s brother Scar is not happy with this since it means that he will never get the throne. This inspires him to hatch a plan to destroy Mufasa once and for all while also tricking Simba into abandoning his village. The plan succeeds and Scar becomes king. Nothing can get in his way now or so he thinks. Simba grows up in the wild, but eventually heads back to his land to make things right. Can he stop Scar and his diabolical plans or is it all over?
Mufasa is definitely a fun character even if you know that he’s doomed from the start. He’s a very capable leader and one who clearly helped the lions quite a bit during his tenure. The sheer size of his kingdom is evidence of this. Everyone has a lot of food to eat and whenever there is trouble he is quick to resolve it. He’s basically the perfect leader. His bird sidekick also does a good job of always keeping an ear close to the ground. If anything I don’t think he gets enough respect as the bird does do his job well. He may not be too subtle at times, but he gets the job done.
Simba isn’t quite as good a lead. Of course he makes a lot of mistakes when he is a cub so we can’t be too harsh on him but even when he grows up he doesn’t always make the right calls. It takes a considerable amount of convincing to get him back into the village including a conversation with Mufasa. He was very close to just letting the rest of the lions die out so it’s hard to respect Simba as a leader. I just don’t think he has the same level of leadership that Mufasa had.
Nala is a solid heroine. She’s definitely a very proactive character who takes it upon herself to find some help for the village while the others simply become resigned to their fate. She was always a good fighter even in her youth so it makes sense that she would be pretty tough. Then we’ve got Scar who is effectively her polar opposite. He’s not all that tough in a fight but he’s all about being crafty in the background. He certainly knows how to manipulate everyone pretty well. Everyone leaves him alone so that leaves Scar free to really do whatever he wants tbh.
Timon and Pumbaa are more fun than I remember. Timon is your classic wisecracking character who always knows just what to say. He’s a good guy for Simba to have at his side. Pumbaa brings in the muscle and he is certainly a lot more heroic than Timon. They’re fun supporting characters who never get annoying and are pretty entertaining the whole time. They help round out the cast pretty well I’d say.
It’s definitely a pretty fast paced movie so you won’t get bored at any point during it. There really aren’t any big negatives to speak of. The scene of the main characters eating the insects can certainly be a little gross, but fortunately it’s a very quick moment and the film doesn’t choose to drag it out which is a good move. Solid films know when to breeze through a scene rather than extend it and it’s definitely a crucial skill to have.
The animation holds up really well here. The animation is as sharp as ever and the characters are very detailed. There was clearly a lot of care put into the movie and I suspect 20 years from now it’ll still look good. While the songs aren’t quite Frozen level they aren’t bad. I think they aren’t quite as good as the average Disney film, but so long as they are catchy and still solid then they’re good enough for me. As expected the writing is also pretty solid. Even if not all of the characters are super likable it’s not as if any of them are super annoying or unrealistic. Scar is nice and sarcastic without being super obvious for example.
Overall, The Lion King is definitely pretty good. I have to admit that I was a little worried that the film would step in some holes along the way, but it actually rode between the line of action and animal violence pretty well. I don’t remember the sequel being nearly as good, but maybe it’ll be better than I remember. If you haven’t seen the Lion King yet then I’d recommend changing that. it’s definitely a classic that really lives up to its reputation and that can be quite rare at times.
Overall 7/10
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