The Prince of Egypt

Posted on September 23, 2023 by dreager1

The Prince of Egypt is a classic animated film from a while back. It’s always great to see a Bible adaption like this actually come out as a mainstream film for everyone to watch. They did a great job with this one as well. There are definitely quite a number of creative liberties but the film still gets the core messages across which is the important thing. So long as the adaption doesn’t lose the spirit of the original, I’m definitely fine with some changes in order to deliver the adventure. The animation budget and everything feels really high here as well. No expense was spared.

The movie starts off with establishing that Moses was placed in a cradle and sent out at sea so that he might live through the tragedy of every baby being hunted down by order of the king. He ends up being raised as royalty, one of the princes to the kingdom. Ramses will be the one to become king but in the meantime Moses still enjoys every benefit of being at the top. He is a bit of a rebel figure who is always having fun and getting Ramses into trouble but the two are very close and have a good dynamic. One day Moses finds out that he is actually Hebrew and can no longer turn a blind eye to the suffering they are going through. He escapes the country and then God appears to him and instructs Moses to free them. To do this he will have to endure a lot of emotional hardships as the Hebrews doubt him and he has to completely severe his bond with Ramses. Still Moses is willing to do what he must here.

One thing I did appreciate here is the extra time given to developing Moses and Ramses when the two were together at the kingdom. These two were brothers who really got along exceptionally well. There were a few moments where I was waiting for Ramses to suddenly turn super evil or something but the movie never went down that route. Ultimately he is a villain and the film doesn’t hide that but he’s very much the same guy we met in the first half of the film. Moses is just now seeing the side of him that he wouldn’t have noticed or card about back in the day.

Even once Moses returns, Ramses is initially ready to forget everything that happened between them and make him a prince again. The movie plays up the tragic angle of how they are on completely different sides now. It’s definitely not an easy spot to be in. Moses meanwhile does well to not falter or let these feelings get the best of him. He’s got a job to do and so he does it. The movie is fairly short so we have to fast blast through some of the different trials and plagues that Egypt is put through but the final one destroying all of the kids is definitely depicted in a really frightening way.

The silence of the scene outside of the heavy breeze is definitely intense. It’s a true moment of helplessness for those on the Egyptian side who can only watch as these things occur. The animation here is excellent and so you are really able to convey all of the wonders really well like the river parting and the cane turning into a serpent. Even the villains get a whole lot of fanfare as they make their copycat snakes and use shadow magic on their end. I can see some thinking the scene is a little too fantastical as it’s dragged out quite a bit to show all of the magic off but ultimately I would say that it worked pretty well. It was the most memorable song in the film to be sure and again the animation was really super. It’s rare to see an American animated film that looks so smooth even nowadays.

Naturally I would give the soundtrack a big thumbs up as well. It all looked really good and of course the writing was on point as well. This is a film that is balanced extremely well and the pacing is great as well. This is the kind of title that I feel can definitely help to spread the gospel well. People just have to look past the spectacle and then hopefully read the Bible to read on and really join the faith. If the movie could reach even just a few people then of course it would have all been worth it.

It’s definitely about time that I check this one out. I forgot about this one for a while there but it’s the kind of title where are soon as you hear the title then you remember that this was a really big film. It would be nice to see more adaptions in the future since the Bible is full of tons of moments that could be turned into really great films and each one can always be used as a learning opportunity in addition to just being great viewing.

Overall, this is a movie I would definitely recommend. It’s got enough action and thrilling moments to get casual fans interested and still touches on enough of the important themes for biblical scholars to appreciate as well. I do think the movie was careful about the changes and so the whole thing was a really good faith effort. For any adaption you want to make sure that it can stand on its own as well and this one certainly does. It just hits all of the right notes and has a good amount of replay value. The film is even able to get a little dark which is fairly necessary in this adventure due to the background of what was going on. The dramatic shading, the sound effects, yeah the movie held nothing back.

The Land Before Time Review

Posted on August 14, 2023 by dreager1

Time for a fairly old film that most people have heard of. The Land Before Time was a really big deal back in the day and I’d say it’s definitely had a lasting effect on the world. People still haven’t forgotten the films after all. This one works pretty well to kick things off and you’ll have a wholesome time with the dinosaurs. One of them is definitely pretty annoying for most of the experience but there is a character arc involved.

The film starts off by showing us the world of the dinosaurs and how each species mostly keeps to themselves. Littlefoot doesn’t understand this since he wants to be friends with everyone but the grownups are adamant that the dinos keep to themselves. Well eventually a giant earthquake happens which splits all of the dinosaurs up. Littlefoot must now go on a great adventure to get back to his tribe but it will be a long journey. Fortunately he meets up with a few other kids along the way. Together they can show the world that dinosaurs of different species can get along!

I’d say one of the more emotional moments here is definitely when Littlefoot’s mother passes away. It’s pretty much a rite of passage in every animated film involving an animal that the parent dies early on and Littlefoot was not spared this tragedy. He still tries to put his best foot forward at all times which is admirable though. Throughout the movie I would say he is consistently the best character. Even when the other dinosaurs are being jerks or traitors he will do his best to save them. A key moment in this is when they all ditch him for Cera despite the latter not being dependable or a team player at any point. Littlefoot could have just took off and forgotten about the lot of them but he still ventures into the magma zone to save them all.

Littlefoot can definitely end up being the chief of the dinosaurs at some point with his courage and dedication. On the other hand Cera spends most of the film trying to prove herself to be a tough dinosaur while often having the opposite effect of that. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to present yourself as a tough fighter. It’s good to have courage and determination but at the same time she needs to realize her limits a bit sooner. I expected Cera to learn how to be humble a lot sooner than when it actually happened.

It’s really over 90% of the movie where she is doing her own thing and getting everyone into trouble. The worst of it has to be towards the magma zone when she decides to ditch Littlefoot and the others all follow her. Of course that translates really badly on them as well though. Seriously throughout the film Cera never lifted a foot to help any of them and that’s true here as well. Two of them get separated and Cera doesn’t care. One of them falls into the ocean and is about to drown and Cera doesn’t even notice. Yeah I’m going to need Cera to work really hard to be a likable character in the sequel because right now things are not going well for her at all.

Ducky is a nice character, she’s very outgoing and always doing her best. So in a lot of ways she has all of the right traits here but I do deduct some points for her going with Cera instead of Littlefoot. It’s the only error she made but it was a pretty big one. When all of your screentime is so positive though it’s hard for one moment to stop you so I still give her a lot of credit. Meanwhile Petrie also made that error but was decent otherwise. A little timid since he had a lot of trouble flying at first but gradually he is able to get past that. I suppose I’ll cut him a little slack since he was so young as they’re all kids here.

As a villain Sharptooth works pretty well. There is a bit of plot armor on the heroes to deal with him since a grown T Rex isn’t about to be stopped by a bunch of kids so easily. You almost feel bad for him in the sense that it’s more instinct to go after the prey rather than him being evil or anything like that. Of course you want the heroes to get away but you still hope Sharptooth will be okay as opposed to getting taken down by the kids. They can’t all be winners in the end but at least a truce can happen in some films. I can tell you right now that this doesn’t happen.

I was half expecting a little more of a reaction from the grown up dinosaurs at the end though. Like they see everyone getting along so well and decide that maybe dinosaurs can all get along. Some kind of coming of age moment where they realize the error of their ways. Perhaps the film writers felt that would be too cheesy or just too rushed to put in the last minutes though. I mean you could say it’s pretty much implied I guess, everyone is hanging out at the same area after all and at this point the kids have been through enough where they’re probably old enough to hang out with whoever they want. One of these days I’ll probably watch the sequels so we’ll see how they go.

Overall, The Land Before Time is a pretty fun film. It has a reasonable cast of characters and I was glad that Littlefoot got the win in the end since Cera really wasn’t being helpful or grateful at all the whole time. It is fairly short so the movie ends really fast but I’d say it got a good amount of plot in there. It might not be the most exciting movie out there which keeps it from being a bit higher but the quick length keeps it from dragging on. For example if this had been a 2 hour movie I would argue that it would actually hurt the experience since that would just be too much. At about an hour? Yeah that’s a pretty good length for this one.

Overall 6/10

Blame! Review

Posted on July 9, 2023 by dreager1

Blame! is one of those manga that is definitely super unique. You really won’t see very many things like it. So it’s pretty cool that this got a movie and in some ways it even clears the manga. On average the manga does have higher highs but it also has lower lows with some of the intensity going on there. This one hits a fairly safe peak and stays there. I think it would have looked a whole lot more impressive with proper hand drawn action of course and you could have made this longer but in the end it was a satisfying watch.

The main guy’s name seems to be spelled differently every time I see it. I’m used to something like Kyrii, but here it’s Killy but I’m pretty positive it was spelled differently within the film. I guess it doesn’t matter in the end and I’ll go with Killy. So the movie starts by explaining that humanity fell a long time ago. The world now belongs to the robots. The “Builders” are the robots which continue increasing the size of the world to no end. The problem with this of course is that these are basically empty buildings and floors with no food or anything and so humanity keeps falling more and more to hunger. You can travel for days just to get enough food for one meal.

The film follows a girl named Zuru as she tries to help her village by finding food but it isn’t easy. She leads an expedition to get something at least but most of her group are murdered by the nearby robots. The only silver lining is that she bumped into Killy who is clearly very powerful. If the village can get him to stick around then maybe they’ll be saved. However, Killy has bigger goals in mind and aims to save the entire world if he can just find the net terminal gene. Is it possible that this is actually located within the village?

The apocalyptic world is a very good setting for this story and the film does properly capture the atmosphere from the manga. The robots are for all intents and purposes limitless since the master computer can create hundreds in seconds and installs new bases with every expansion. Basic robots are enough to destroy dozens of humans and the specific material needed to destroy them is very limited. By the start of the film the heroes have already lost most of their ammo. The exception to this is Killy who has a super gun with unlimited ammo but the drawback is that it does zap some of his energy every time he uses it.

The humans really figure that they are only delaying the inevitable and that there is no true victory at the end of the tunnel. It’s a rather depressing thought but it is impressive that they have lasted this long so far. A good chunk of the film is really about building upon this atmosphere and so I wouldn’t expect too much action. We get a big climax near the end and some quick action at the beginning but that’s about it. There are long sections where no fighting happens but fortunately the characters and setting are enough to keep the film afloat.

From the characters Killy is definitely the best character I’d say. It’s clear that at this point he doesn’t have much humanity as he’s basically emotionless and can barely even talk at times. He will say his general idea but that’s about it. He’s not exactly a conversationalist and is really just interested in saving the world. Think of him like the Terminator in that respect. Ultimately he is someone you want on your side though and he quickly goes back to help the humans when they’re in trouble. He ultimately prioritizes saving the world over side missions but he won’t abandon anyone right in front of him. That’s really all you can ask for from a guy in this kind of rough situation.

He does save a ton of lives directly by beating the enemies and indirectly by giving the village enough food to tide them over for a few months. Then Cibo is the other big character here as she is someone who managed to survive for thousands of years long enough for Killy to return. That can’t have been easy so that’s impressive. She’s really handy to have around since she can interact with the robots and has impressive hacking abilities. Cibo is the brains to Killy’s brawn and without her the village would not have been in a good spot. She’s also a lot of fun to have around. She may mostly be emotionless like Killy but she talks a lot more and is someone you can count on.

For the most part the villagers are just around but they’re all likable enough. When they’re wearing the robot suits it can be tough to tell them apart. Outside of the suits they all just want to help the village out. Zuru steps up when the going gets tough and takes the leadership role. This is definitely appreciated since otherwise the village wouldn’t have really had a good plan. The village elder was also good as he made the right call in banking on Killy. After all if the village doesn’t do anything they will eventually die so you may as well take a risk now right? Some of the other villagers tend to panic and don’t do as well so their performance varies.

Then as I mentioned earlier we do get a good fight near the end. Sanakan is the final boss here and she’s one of the more impressive villains in the manga as well. She can hold her own against Killy and then some as her strength and speed both appear superior to his. He has a better weapon which does help to equalize things a bit. What makes Sanakan stand out is how she can actually plan things out and knows how to infiltrate a hero base. The rest of the robots are terrifying but still mindless so you can work around them. That’s not so easy with someone like Sanakan who can use tactics against you.

This worked really well as the climax to this film. It was a fitting way to end as Killy had to fight for humanity’s survival and the fiery backdrop felt appropriate for a final boss. In the end I wouldn’t say the animation for the film is all that great but it’s clear that they tried hard for this fight. The CG can just be a little stiff and it doesn’t have the same intensity that a hand drawn film would have had.

I think CG works well enough for robots as it’s still at a disadvantage but not as much as with the humans. That said, it’s not enough to hurt the film. You can always still tell what is happening and that’s the important part. The soundtrack is a bit more bland, I couldn’t really tell you any of the tracks or even say that I recall them much. For a sci-fi film like this you can absolutely do better.

Overall, Blame! is a pretty fun film and a lot of that is due to the premise and story. With any animation style you’d probably have a good time here and the CG works well enough. Killy is a solid hero to root for and that climax was really intense. This is a film that you won’t be forgetting anytime soon and it would be fun to see it get some sequels and see how that goes. In the meantime while you may be left with some questions, I would say you should get most of it since the film breaks down the story well. In the end robots will always claim the advantage over humanity at some point. It’s only a question of when.

Overall 7/10

Fate/strange Fake: Whispers of Dawn Review

Posted on July 9, 2023 by dreager1

It’s time for Fate to begin another animated spinoff. The franchise has really done a whole lot as it expands in every way and this film is already going to be getting a full TV show later on. It’s definitely impressive and this one kicks the route off to a really good start. The Holy Grail War always feels grand in every timeline and this one’s no different. The special also already adds a number of different hooks to really make it stand out.

This one starts off with a rumor about a new Grail War taking place in the United Stated. The ministry is skeptical, however they can’t take a chance on this being legit and send over a pair of professionals to check it out. Due to the war being in America the rules are a bit different due to the magical history not being present. There is no ruler/observer this time around and there is one less servant….for now. There are conditions by which an extra servant can still appear but otherwise this is still very much the classic war that you remember. Each of the masters summon their servants and prepare for battle. Who will come out on top?

This whole special/movie is really about setting up the tournament so at this point it has barely started. Still, that makes it the perfect way to build up the hype and introduce the characters. The cast is already quite large so don’t expect them to all do a lot just yet but we already know some of their motivations and we almost get the first big fight here. The quick clash was a good way to get you ready.

Now the main question you may be wondering is…who am I rooting for? Well let me break down the teams and my general view of their goals and why I would or would not root for them. First up we have Gilgamesh and Tine, this is the pair I am rooting for. Tine’s goal is really to win this grail war quickly o that she can push away all of ther interlopers who have appeared and are wrecking the land. As someone who has helped protect the land for many generations she just can’t let this stand and I resect that. Excellent motive right off the bat so she had my attention. She can also fight and took care of the other guy real quick.

One thing you will learn quickly in this series is that you always have to act very quickly. If you want for even a moment then you may get bumped off by the very servant that you summoned or someone else can land a cheap shot. So your best bet is to use a command seal immediately and otherwise you may be in trouble. Tine doesn’t have this problem because she knows how to address Gilgamesh with respect and doesn’t cross any lines. That’s the kind of dedication and devotion that he is looking for in his subjects. No more and no less, just do what you gotta do and you’ll be fine. It’s completely possible that she will have some sinister motivations in the background but for now she’s easy to root for.

Then Gilgamesh is a super impressive servant as always. I love how grand he talks at all times and the man carries himself like a true professional. He is not someone to be trifled with and we actually get to see him cut loose for a little bit as he gets excited in one scuffle. It’s very rare to see him treat any opponent with a high level of respect so that was cool. Also if you’ve been watching some of the other spinoffs like Grand Order then you get a little something extra in all of the interactions with him and his rival since you got to see more of the context there. Yeah I don’t see any team passing this one and they should be the obvious lock to win the tourney.

Then we have Enkidu and Wolf. In theory this is the next strongest pairing but I’m highly expecting Enkidu to suffer the worf effect here. The pieces are all just in place right now. This guy’s a literal god compared to all of the other servants who are mere heroic spirits. He can control the very atmosphere and environment and Gilgamesh has been looking forward to fighting him. I’m betting that the little girl’s shadow is going to show up and murder him since the foreshadowing is already there. It would be a shame to see Enkidu go down so quickly but I do have high hopes for this new villain so it really could work out. It’s also a little too early to actually be worrying all that much.

I like Enkidu as a pretty solid antagonist. He’s a very reasonable fighter and someone with complex motivations. Then you have the owner who is a normal Wolf. It’s an interesting concept since before now we’ve only seen humans be masters but it makes sense that any sentient life could do it. My one problem is how the Wolf is going to be involved in the fighting and could get hurt now. That already happened here and it’s definitely animal violence you don’t want to see. If the series brings that back in any form it’ll definitely be concerning. This was the only part that wasn’t great since the rest of the special was spectacular.

Alexandre is another fun pick for a master because he’s a police officer. I guess police chief is probably more appropriate here and the guy even has a personal army dedicated to his cause. He wants to fight for justice but gets criticized by one of the other officers for it. You can tell that this guy’s sense of justice is probably more the tyrannical sort but considering some other fighters here are going to be pure evil, you may need to root for him.

This is really helping to take full advantage of the fact that the war is in America this time by involving the police and government. I’m really liking the approach. Unfortunately while this guy is one of the more interesting characters, I really don’t like his servant Orlando yet. The guy doesn’t seem like a fighter and gets overwhelmed too easily by his vices. I have a feeling he’s going to be a chore to watch until he eventually gets bumped off. Hopefully he can prove me wrong.

Then we have Flat and Jack who feel completely out of their league. Flat has skills but doesn’t totally know how to use them yet which could come back to hurt him. Then we have Jack the Ripper who seems reasonably tough but not all that impressive. Yeah they should be very worried at this point and could be a first round exit. They have no interesting motivations for being in this tournament either so there’s not much reason to root for them. They’re just doomed.

We don’t know almost anything about Richard and Ayaka yet so I’ll mainly skip them. Richard seems like a solid hero and the only “Hero” out of the 12 who is actually heroic. You can tell that he’ll be one of the main characters. As for Ayaka she appears to still be in her rebellious phase so we’ll have to see how that plays out. I see them being a fun combo to root for but I’ll still take Gilgamesh any day. Richard’s going to really need to prove himself here.

Tsubaki’s just a kid so right now it’s not like she has any big plans. Fortunately she seems to potentially have one of the strongest servants since the mysterious shadow is getting a lot of hype. Her whole plot is wrapped up in some mystery right now since we don’t even know if her parents totally know about what happened. Initially it seemed like her father wanted to be the master based on the planning and getting the artifacts but we also got a scene where he was monitoring a mysterious bruise/imprint on her so maybe this is a plan to make her powerful. Either way I can see this being one of the darker plots but as long as she has the shadow to protect her I expect things are going to start going up for Tsubaki.

Next up is Jester who is very much a big wild card character here. His servant Assassin seemingly took him down for the count right away but he was able to auto revive later on. He definitely has some pretty solid abilities even as a “human” so there is more to him than meets the eye. Even the servants may want to be afraid of the guy at this point and I think the Assassin should be very nervous. It’s going to be difficult for her to get away from this guy should he choose to chase after her. Making some humans a big threat is a good way to increase the tension though so I look forward to seeing what this guy can do.

While Waver and Grey are not in the tournament it will be interesting to see if they get involved in the action. As a pseudo servant Grey can fight and while the Waver show depicted how she would not be able to hold her own against any servant perhaps she can get some kind of power up. Waver is also well versed in magic and perhaps he would be able to come up with a spell that could work as well. They don’t need to get involved but it would certainly be fun.

Francesa is very much another mystery character. She is a servant where we don’t know who her master is and she appears to be a double agent. Francesa also doesn’t seem particularly heroic and has a whole speech about how easy it is to be a villain. This is someone you want to watch out for because she will absolutely stab you in the back. I don’t expect she will end up being one of the stronger servants but should still have a sizable role.

Then we have Faldeus who is a government worker and it seems to be implied he’s either CIA or FBI. He’s a really fun character right off the bat here because he made a great plan and executed it flawlessly. He knows how to be undercover and having the government around here is a brilliant move. It adds a whole new dimension to the Holy Grail War and really spices things up. I’m betting he will be a main antagonist here and at the end of the day even servants can die against bullets if you land the attack with enough stealth. Yeah this guy is going to be a lot of fun.

So there are the combatants. As you can see the movie set up a whole lot of plots and characters right from the jump which is excellent. This tournament is bound to be a blast and even thought the tournament is typically only a few days long, you can easily make this a long series just by having lots of fights, planning etc. The bigger the cast the bigger each day will be and the cast is already quite large here.

The animation is definitely really solid as you would expect. We haven’t had much action yet but all of the characters are really clear and the backgrounds are sharp. The soundtrack isn’t quite as memorable as the other Fate titles just yet but I did really like the ending theme. I’ve been hearing it a lot on Pandora and it really helps bring in the grand vibes of the series. Fate should always feel like a huge deal with even the weakest spirit still being a powerful fighter and that comes across here.

Overall, I expect this is going to be a really high tier part of the Fate franchise. The setup was excellent and there is just so much to do here. It’s still early to get a proper vibe on how things will play out so we’ll just have to wait and see. If they keep the production values and writing up then there should be no worries here. I definitely recommend checking this one out as soon as possible.

Overall 7/10

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time Review

Posted on July 2, 2023 by dreager1

It’s time for a movie about the dangers of time travel. See time travel is something that can be super beneficial and help you out of a jam but it can also become something that you rely on too much and then you’re really out of luck. You want to hit the middle ground but with that much power it’s just not so easy. This is definitely a solid film all around and one that I would recommend checking out.

The movie starts by introducing us to Makoto who is living a fairly ordinary life. She is best friends with two guys, Chiaki and Kosuke. If you’ve studied up on your film cues then you’ll know that this is already a red flag. According to film rules guys and girls can never stay as just friends! 😦 One day Makoto falls down while in the supply room and crushes a time travel device. She can now go back in time by building up energy and running like the Flash before literally leaping through time. It’s a power that she will have to master quickly or she will end up going too far back. It’s a lot of fun but is she somehow causing trouble by messing with the timeline?

First off the animation is solid here. It’s not quite at the mainstream anime level like Naruto or Pokemon but still above your average western title. There aren’t a lot of bright colors and the like for it to be able to show off with the animation but it’s all clear and you can follow along which is the important part. The writing is on point and the characters are likable so you have a good foundation here. The soundtrack’s more on the subdued side though so don’t expect to get a lot of big lyrical songs this time around.

This film’s more of a romantic slice of life so don’t expect too much end of the world stakes or anything like that. There definitely is danger here and things happen but for the most part it’s really about Makoto learning to stay and face her problems instead of running away from them. Always a good moral if you ask me. I do have some issues with the romance here but we’ll get into that in a minute. I did appreciate how Makoto’s aunt took the whole time travel aspect in stride though and offered her two cents about how to use it responsibly. A much better reaction than being shocked and having Makoto explain it all again.

As the main character Makoto is pretty solid. She wants to keep the status quo and is pretty good about rearranging events to make this happen. She wants to help people out and just seems like a good kid in general. Perhaps not very brave with how much running she does but at the end of the day she really tries her best. It’s probably not the most satisfying ending for her but that’s the risk of time travel. You never really know what timeline would end up being the best one and ultimately I’d say she left her ideal one.

Then there is Chiaki who is one of her best friends and he keeps trying to confess his feelings to her which causes Makoto to have to use more of her time travel. He just isn’t ready to stay as just friends and she’s not ready to let him out of the friend zone so it’s a tough dynamic. In that sense her plan was always doomed to fail though because from how he confessed it was clear that he had been thinking about this for a while. So even if she found ways to avoid him for a little bit, it was going to happen eventually or he’d move on. She needed to be able to stay in the pocket and throw out the rejection in the flat. Just let him off easy and you’re good.

He gets some points for his tenacity but also loses some for the fact that he went on the rebound rather quickly. After she avoided him enough times he goes after her best friend and it makes you think he couldn’t have been that head over heels for her. It’s always a tough call of when it’s time to move on. I would argue that this is way too soon though because even though he couldn’t get an answer out of her, he was still ready to move on.

Likewise the same thing happens with Kosuke. It’s more ambiguous but I would say it’s heavily implied that he likes her as well and ultimately goes with someone else. You could also just say that he was looking out for her as a friend so to the film’s defense it is up to you to decide. He’s a nice guy and did his best to not let anyone down while pursuing his own dreams. He really took school seriously which differentiates him from the others by quite a lot.

So with the romance, ignoring the whole why couldn’t they all just be friends angle (Because sometimes people just are friends and none of them are in a secret crush but that’s never to be in these things) I would say Makoto seeing the various timelines and how the guy would end up with someone else just showed why perhaps the romance wouldn’t have been best. If you were truly soulmates then the guy wouldn’t be going with another girl so easily right? To the guy he doesn’t remember confessing so it’s not a rebound per say but it does show that she was easily replaced and that’s not the basis for a good romance. That’s why I’m not really sure that it would have worked out.

Also while you can “learn to love” someone, I also don’t think that’s a great starting point. She clearly didn’t see him as that kind of guy and I would say the first impression is huge. She mainly just got jealous when he was with someone else and that’s another red flag. Wanting a guy because otherwise he will be taken seems like a very petty reason to me. At least the film does take place over the full summer and they’ve all known each other for a while so I won’t say that the romance is super rushed or anything. It may not be the best one but it still made an attempt.

Of course the film is at its best when we’re just seeing Makoto having fun using time travel. Before she realizes how serious it all is, it’s nice to see someone just enjoying the ability. Particularly since she uses it for everyday things like having her favorite dinner multiple times or getting to sleep in. Being able to rewind time means being able to ignore the consequences of your actions for a while. You can go to a restaurant and order all the most expensive things. Then after leaving you can rewind time and you stay full since you still experienced the event like how she was so tired after doing Karaoke on a bunch of loops. The applications of time travel are endless and I’d love to see a long running comedy about it some day. Just a character having fun with the power and living a perfect life. You’d probably need some kind of threat or danger eventually to hook people but I’d have fun just watching that series as in. Also kudos to the film on the unique method of landing out of time travel with the forward roll into the wall. It’s a little element but one that really helps the film stand out since that is very memorable.

Overall, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a pretty good movie. In some ways you’re just as interested in the movie that we didn’t see though. The apocalyptic future sounded real interesting and you sort of look forward to seeing how things went. It also adds an extra layer to the ending because it’s really hard to interpret exactly what’s going on. Personally given all the evidence I can’t see how things will ever work out for Makoto so that part’s tragic but as long as she has fun in the present then I suppose that’s all that matters. At the very least she definitely wouldn’t want to use time travel again even if she got the ability again.

Overall 7/10

Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King Review

Posted on June 17, 2023 by dreager1

I’ve been waiting ages for this film. When they first announced that Black Clover was finally getting a movie I was definitely hyped. This is one of the best franchises out there and the king of Shonen Jump. There’s a reason why we call it G.O.A.T. Clover. Getting that on a movie budget was certain to be an all star product and the film does not disappoint in any way. It’s basically a lock for film of the year so you can basically skip everything else. Nothing’s touching this and now I just need to wait until we get the next season already.

The movie starts by showing Conrad’s fight against the magic knights. He puts up a terrific fight but ultimately Julius manages to take him down with time magic and he’s locked away. Julius’ eyes even flash black for an instant when he uses his ultimate spell which was intense. We fast forward 10 years to where a tournament is being held and Yuno will finally be able to fight against Asta. Ultimately this isn’t to be though as Conrad shows up in the present along with 3 other Wizard Kings from the past. The 4 of them have decided to destroy the entire world so that they can remake it as a better one. Asta won’t let this happen though and he commands the magic knights to unite and fight. Can they really defeat a whole squad of Wizard Kings though?

One of the hype parts about this of course is that the enemies are all Wizard Kings. They’re characters who are well fleshed out with their own goals and desires as well as being ultra powerful. To become the Wizard King you need an incredible amount of power after all so it’s not like just anyone can do this. Sort of like how I said Naruto surpassed the Hokage at least by the Pain arc at worst, Ichigo surpassed the Captains by the early part of the Arrancar saga, and Luffy surpassed the admirals by Marineford, I would say Asta surpassed the Captains fairly early on. You could say Yami is an exception but he wipes everyone else out pre time skip. Now this is where the rubber meets the road and we can see exactly how that turns out.

The movie doesn’t cop out with their abilities either and each king looks fantastically strong. Sure they do have the advantage of unlimited mana thanks to the super sword running around but even without that their individual techniques are on point. The movie is close to 2 hours and almost the whole thing is the big fight scene. This is what I love to see, the pacing is nonstop with action around every corner. Not every movie could handle something like that and it’s fairly rare because a lot of time you still need to develop the OC characters and have a lot of time to regroup. Here you hit the ground running.

There are numerous times in each fight where the villain or hero is about to lose and then the second wind comes in. That’s super hype to be sure because these Wizard Kings have determination on their side as well. They’re not going to give up so the heroes have to completely put them down. I’ll go more into their goals later on although it’s not as convincing of a case as even someone like Thanos. It’s a more surface level argument for world peace that doesn’t have too much nuance since the film makers likely didn’t want you to doubt the heroes at all. Probably for the best but of course the side effect is that these Wizard Kings do feel a little crazy.

Another really strong part of the film is the animation. Even outside of the fight scenes everyone looks really crisp. The character models are really on point and this is a full 2023 film on all sides. It’s just great how smooth everything is and it’s the kind of film I could quickly re-watch right now. The replay value is incredible and the choreography is on point. The super form for the main villain is also great and they didn’t hold back on the beam effects. By the end this feels like something out of DBZ.

Then we have the soundtrack and I think it goes without saying that this is going to be another 10/10 ost. You have the insert song from the anime, a song that I believe was new, and then a ton of battle themes. The soundtrack is very fast paced which fits the film since it was very fast paced as well. The production values were really high throughout and of course the writing and story is very good as well. Asta gets his usual inspirational moments and Noelle also gets her moments to shine. You can’t help but be inspired during their speeches.

Okay so lets talk about the villains. First up is the main villain Conrad. So he wants to make the world more equal because he’s seen how mean the nobles are in how they pick on the commoners. They murder, insult, humiliate, and basically enslave those without magic and right now the kingdom isn’t doing much to change that. As he’s mentioned there have been incremental improvements but it’s always small things and the world itself doesn’t change much. The main TV show has delved into this as well and so he figures that at this point they just need to end the world. It does mean to an extent that he did give up though.

Now you do get it because in a lot of cases things don’t always get a lot better even when the hero wins in the end. Look at all the crazy stuff that still goes on in Naruto. I do think Asta will do a better job of changing everything because that has been such a huge topic in the forefront as opposed to being a subplot but yeah that’s Conrad’s ideal and motive for this. I liked that Asta also engaged him on the actual points of this like how nobody will accept the end result after watching their comrades die in front of them.

Even if you could absolutely guarantee world peace, if it involves a massive genocide like this, then it will never end up convincing people. You’re doing more than cracking a few eggs, you’re basically just being the villain. At the end of the day I’m always about saving the 1 person over the 100 as a philosophy. You must never sacrifice anyone and of course this isn’t even a subtle case, it’s just him murdering a whole ton of people and so you’ll never waver as you root for Asta. I’m sure that each of the Wizard Kings saw some super twisted things in order for them to agree with Conrad like this but at the end of the day it all comes down to them losing hope and giving up when they shouldn’t have.

Conrad’s abilities are pretty handy with his key magic. It feels a little broken if anything with how long range it is but that’s probably why he became the King. It may not be fair but having a super cool ability gives you a huge push towards becoming the Wizard King and that’s how it’s always been. His final form is epic and the whole time he really puts up a good fight. He has a solid plan as well and shows good tactics throughout the film. I’ve said this a few times already but the movie never forgets that these are Wizard Kings that we’re dealing with and so they get a lot of respect.

The only Wizard King who was a bit off was Jester. Mainly because this guy just seems super evil and unstable the whole time. Sure he agrees with the plan for probably the same reasons but he just feels evil throughout. His dialogue is what you would expect from the Midnight Sun, not someone who used to be the leader. His abilities are still really handy with the barriers though. Barriers have a whole lot of positives to them like how agile you can make them. They’re flexible and can keep on adapting to attacks. This guy really doesn’t give up either and from all of the Wizard Kings you could make the case that he’s the only one to never really lose. He could have absolutely kept on going.

Then there is Princia who I dare say is the most powerful out of all the Wizard Kings. Take away amps like the swords and put all of them together in a fair fight and I’m going with her. First off she can summon an army of really powerful fighters and then once you get past them, it turns out that she is a close quarters fighter as well who can hold her own with the country’s strongest, Mereoleona. The fact that the fight was so close there really showed off what she could do. I don’t think any of the others would have been able to have held their own in quite the same way. She was also a fun character and had a solid personality. You could actually see why she was a good person at one point and ultimately just got jaded.

Finally we have Edward who is probably the weakest. Mainly because he relies on summons and ice but has nothing else once you get past that. This is relative of course, he’s still an incredibly powerful Wizard King but not as intimidating as the others. He has a good code of honor and isn’t just going crazy with power so I can really respect that. He has a good exchange with Noelle and ultimately keeps his honor to the end. He doesn’t crack or go crazy at the end which is really good because a King should maintain grace to the end.

As for the heroes, everyone gets something to do here but of course some get more screen time than anything. For the Black Bulls, I thought Finral actually looked really solid here. His reaction times were good enough to block a hit from Conrad and he was critical throughout in getting the heroes out of danger. Of course Noelle looks fantastic in showing off her high power level and also making an impassioned speech to remind Edward of what he stood for. Noelle doesn’t give up and the series continues to do a great job of keeping her in the same conversation as Yuno and Asta.

The various captains all get to fight but Yami is really the only one with a sizable role and even then it’s a bit smaller than you would expect. He doesn’t look quite as powerful as you might think as well but I guess at this point he’s finally being surpassed. His fans should still be satisfied with his appearance here. Mereoleona looks excellent as expected. She’s the most impressive grownup here from the heroes side. Her powers continue to get more and more intense every time she fights and it’s clear that she has no upper limit. She will just continue to fight until the end and almost no other character can burn as brightly.

Yuno looks great here as well as he saves Asta on more than one occasion and keeps going after the villains. He has enough stamina to outlast all of the Captains as well. I would say that even in the film it feels like Asta has left him in the dust to an extent because Yuno just doesn’t have the KO power that Asta has but his normal abilities are still do good that he can continue to hold his own. As always I like Yuno’s confidence and his positive rivalry with Asta. They really do a good job of building each other up as always.

Finally I’ve already talked about Asta but just to confirm he is amazing as always. His speeches really land and he’s the kind of guy that you want to represent your kingdom. He’s the last to go down and will keep trying to make the world a better place. Naturally there are a ton of other character helping out including a cameo so watch it for yourself to see all the fun characters. This feels like a true event movie in the best ways with how high the stakes are.

Now lets talk about the negatives of the film. Well…yeah I had no issues with the film so that’s it for this section.

Overall, Sword of the Wizard King is a film that I highly recommend you check out. They did a fantastic job of showcasing the skills of all the heroes while establishing these villains as top tier threats. The Clover Kingdom is so loaded with powerful fighters that the enemies have to be able to hold these own and that wasn’t a problem for these guys. The movie really goes by in an instant so you need to watch this as soon as possible. The only rough part is having to wait for the next product which can still take a while but hopefully not too long. When the series comes back though, I will be ready!

Overall 9/10

Fate Stay Night – Unlimited Blade Works Review

Posted on June 15, 2023 by dreager1

As always Fate delivers with an excellent movie poster right out of the gate. This film faced the very daunting challenge of needing to adapt something that should usually take well over 10 hours to adapt and cramming it into a little less than 2. The good news is that the pacing is super fast as a result and of course there are a lot of nonstop action scenes. On the negative side, this means that sometimes the fights have to be quick and some are basically skipped entirely. Ultimately it is a great film but one that you admittedly don’t need to watch since the show exists.

The film starts off with Shirou walking Sakura home and then he swings by the school for some reason and gets murdered. He wakes up and summons a servant known as Saber and goes to the Church where he is introduced to the Holy Grail War. He now needs to find a way to defeat all of the other masters so that he can make a wish on the Holy Grail and save the world. It won’t be easy since all of the masters have their own powerful servants but Shirou knows he needs to win or the others might have really bad wishes that they try to unleash upon the world.

The movie doesn’t actually explain most of the opening except in the vaguest of terms though so be ready for a lot of flash forwards and jumping around. The film really seems to expect that you’ve already seen the first show that kinda sorta adapted the Fate route. It’s a valid technique to be sure but even if you’re a member of the general audience you should still enjoy this one for the great visuals and fights. In a way you will probably get more out of it if you’ve seen the show first though so you can have fun seeing which parts are the same and which ones changed. Personally I would say the way to watch the main Fate titles is to start with the Unlimited Blade Works show, then Fate/Zero, then it probably makes sense to check out the Heaven’s Feel trilogy if you plan to watch those, but otherwise skip to the original Fate Stay show and then check out this movie. By that point you will have basically seen all of the routes and it’s fun to compare them all.

This movie’s a little older now since it’s from back in 2010 but the visuals definitely hold up. The fights here use less flash and glamour but make up for it with a lot of really tight choreography the whole time. In particular Shirou’s final 2 fights really hold up super well. The movement is intense and you really got to see the various characters’ fighting styles. There’s a lot of back and forth and while you will probably have some doubts on some of the power levels here, the fights themselves are good which is what counts.

Because the film doesn’t really explain how Shirou gets so powerful over the course of the movie all of his scenes will probably have you a bit stunned. How can this normal kid be going up against the greatest heroes in history? Well even in context I can’t say that I actually bought that so you’re right to be skeptical. A lot of the climax is about clashing ideologies and overcoming any doubts you may had. It’s a great message but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it meshes well into the actual physical fight. So the animation is top tier but some of the battle results are more sketchy.

As always Fate does have an incredible soundtrack through and through. The themes fit the battles, the suspense scenes, etc. Fate always has a way of sounding and feeling very grand which is important for this setting. You really believe that these are heroes of ancient times duking it out and I’d say it’s important that Fate always retain this feeling. It’s also part of why the movie still holds up very well because the production values were on point.

Talking about the characters is a little interesting due to the fast paced nature of the film. Yes we know a lot about the characters outside of the movie but if we purely use the film as a reference then things get a little different right? For example we really don’t know much about any of the servants beyond Archer and I guess Gilgamesh/Lancer have decent roles as well. Caster, Berserker, Assassin, and a few others are practically non characters. They have the cool designs and a big fight but you wouldn’t really know them much otherwise.

Archer makes for a very intense character as always. No matter which voice actor he gets in the dub he always sounds very regal and I love the design. He’s super powerful and has a lot of interesting backstory although not all of it could make it here. He still tends to steal the show. Likewise Gilgamesh is great, he radiates power and has a very cool aura about him. He’s definitely someone you don’t want to underestimate. Lancer’s great because he’s really chivalrous and honestly one of the only servants who actually feels like he was a big hero back in the day.

Most of these so called “Heroes” don’t always feel heroic. Saber is also cool as always although her role is definitely a lot smaller than you would expect. I still enjoyed her battle with Berserker a lot as the film really showed off her speed. They had a fun special effect for how she would dash into a blue ball of light.

Then you have Rin as the main heroine who is a very nice character and definitely someone who saves Shirou a whole lot of times. Without her he definitely would have been dead many times over. Additionally her creativity in finding a way to take down Caster was super impressive. She took the situations in stride and there were moments where she almost felt like more of a main character than Shirou. Rin never quite took the lead role away but she was close.

Finally there is Shirou and I’ve always been a fan of the guy. He fights for absolute justice without compromise so he doesn’t trade lives and does try to protect everyone in front of him. It may be an impossible goal and he knows that but it doesn’t stop him from trying. Shirou always aims for the very top and the movie is about how he will never let any doubts overcome him. The movie still manages to nail his character arc even if there is less time for details. As a main character he really doesn’t miss although I will grant that he doesn’t always make the smartest decisions like running into the forest all alone or being out late at night during a war with powerful super monsters after him.

Overall, Fate Stay Night is a great film. It may be completely out of context for someone watching out of the blue but in a way that’s part of the fun. Check it out and if this all seems interesting to you, use it as a launch point to really get into the franchise. While there is little reason to watch this now that we have a complete TV show to adapt the whole thing with more depth, it can also be a quick recap of sorts if you want to relive the events without going through the whole show again. It’s almost like a recap movie in that sense and the film even treats itself like that at times with how scenes will quickly transition to the next one at the drop of a hat. Many plot elements and characters are skipped over so it’s like an abridged adventure. I’d be curious to see movies tackle other big series like this just to see how it works out.

Overall 8/10

Legion of Super-Heroes Review

Posted on June 11, 2023 by dreager1

It’s always good to see the Legion of Superheroes getting some screen time. The 2 season cartoon was short lived but it was a blast and since then you only see these guys occasionally in movies and shows. Well with a full movie to themselves this is another winner even if you will probably end up missing most of the big legionnaires. For plot reasons we’re mainly stuck with the B team.

The story starts with showing us Supergirl’s origin story of Krypton blowing up and after that she was taken to Earth where she has had a really difficult time fitting in. Unlike Superman who arrived here as a baby, she was fully grown which meant that it was a much steeper adjustment period. Batman wants her gone and so Superman comes up with a strategy to train her. He’ll drop her off in the future with the legion and she agrees although the tricky thing is that we don’t see a way for her to get back until Superman decides to check in. Although based on the final scene we can assume she has a communicator. The future is fun enough but Supergirl is still having a hard time fitting in and a mysterious cult is around to make things more complicated.

First up on the positives, Supergirl makes for a good main character as always. I like how aggressive she is and how she’s always ready to fight at a moment’s notice. That’s what you always want to see from the main character. Additionally she trusts her own judgement and doesn’t just follow the crowd. She may not be as good at fighting yet as you would expect but that should come in time. So far I tend to enjoy each portrayal of Supergirl and this one’s no exception.

The animation is also pretty smooth here. Only thing I’m not a big fan of is the style almost uses a bit of a blush effect on the characters which you don’t really see much of outside of some anime. For the most part this style has been good though. Not as good as the New 52 style but it works well enough for the fight scenes and everything. On the whole it’s still good here as well.

The film’s pacing is quick and so the movie goes by very fast. It’s a fairly basic kind of adventure even with some twists thrown in but the writing is strong enough where this will have a lot of replay value. I can definitely watch it at any time. The battles are also good and the film even has a very hype ending to lead off into the next adventure. I’m always game for a film ending on a complete to be continued note since those endings definitely build up the most suspense. I was definitely not expecting the movie to end the way that it did.

Now the film does have some power level issues. For starters one of the villains in this film has abilities comparable to Supergirl’s. I would say they are still decisively weaker so it’s not like you’re wondering who would win but they are still on that level to the extent to which most other characters would lose instantly. Yet there is a scene near the end of the film where the villain is confronted by a group of the weakest Legionnaires in existence and instead of turning them all to paste with a quick speed blitz, he orders a retreat. If you’re being charitable then you can say that he was doing it to protect his foot soldiers but I kind of doubt that.

Part of the problem with having a villain this powerful is that you then have to be careful for scenes like this. The villain won’t have any trouble with the side characters so you can’t have a teamwork message delivered in that way. There are ways to pull it off but they will need a good plan and some prep time. It’s the only way to handle a character like this. You could also just buff the side characters a bit with cooler powers and that would have done the trick too.

This villain looks laughably bad in the intelligence department after all like when he is so busy monologuing that he doesn’t notice someone being freed right in front of him. Trust me that’s a really bad look. He also gets really whiny as the film ends to the point where you can’t take him seriously. Ultimately I don’t think this character was handled well and I would have done something different for the villain because it’s definitely more shock value than anything. I find it hard to believe that things would play out this way but I guess that’s why they call it a twist.

Brainiac 5 gets a pretty big role here as he’s trying to prove himself since the other Brainiacs have always been so evil. I definitely has to be rough growing up with your entire family being famously evil so nobody trusts you. It’s no wonder that he is so standoffish in the present since he doesn’t want to give anyone a chance to knock him down. He has some really good tech but while he looks super impressive in the first fight, I feel like he never quite matches up to that again. If he could have delivered with offensive weapons on the level of his barrier then he really would have been totally unstoppable. Instead he doesn’t always seem ready for the fights.

The film does have some romance but that’s definitely one of the weaker parts of the film here. Supergirl and Brainiac 5 barely even know each other after all. It may be a tribute to the TV show which may have been a tribute to the comics if that was ever a thing but this just doesn’t work out. Personally I could have kept them as rivals because their banter in those moments were so good. They made for really good rivals all the way through and you could have built upon that for several more films with a lot of great burns on both sides. Perhaps in a slightly more friendly way as per character development but don’t just get rid of it.

The Circle is actually an interesting group. They basically go through time and terrorize multiple place at once. The idea of a terrorist group that can chase you across time is absolutely terrifying because how do you even stop a group like that? They also mean business as they murder someone early on in the film to set the tone. Characters definitely do die in this movie so there is a real body count. I’d be up for the Circle returning at some point.

If we do get another Legion film at some point hopefully we do get to finally see the main legion members get some action this time. Particularly Lightning Lad has always been a lot of fun. He may be a founding member but he’s still a bit of a hotshot so you can count on him to have some hype moments. Nothing against Bouncing Boy and Arm-Fall off Boy (Name was something like that) since they’re okay…but they’re not starters for a reason. The film shows off what they can do and how every ability can be useful but I can also totally understand why they would not be on the front lines since their powers aren’t super strong. Go up against the wrong opponent and that would totally be game over. Since a lot of these characters still seem like teenagers or young adults at best, it’s a lot of risk.

Overall, This was a pretty fun film. It really breezes by and the future makes for a good backdrop. The fights are on point and while the power levels may not all work, you won’t be taken out of the movie. The mystery is also good with a whole lot of suspense at all times. I will admit that at times I was more engaged with the current day plot with Batman and Superman but it’s hard to turn those plots down. Honestly if the whole film focused on Batman doing his detective work I’d be all for it but of course it would defeat the purpose of the future plot. I’m sure we’ll see more Batman moments before long so in the meantime definitely check this one out.

Overall 7/10

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime – Scarlet Bond Review

Posted on June 11, 2023 by dreager1

It’s time to take a look at the recent Slime movie. This one looked pretty fun even if perhaps the trailer didn’t have a lot of action in it. The whole time you were wondering how the movie would play things out considering how powerful Rimuru is. Would the movie be trying to have some kind of ultimate threat to go up against the heroes or would it be more low key about hanging out in the town? I would say it ultimately leans toward the latter a bit more. So this is a fun title but it doesn’t hit the same highs as season 2.

The movie starts off by introducing us to Hiro who fought off a ton of attackers from Clayman’s army but was ultimately unable to save his friends and family. Everyone was wiped out and so his life lost purpose until one day a queen named Towa showed up and nursed him back to health. She even gave him a name so his powers increased dramatically. He now lives to serve her but her kingdom is in rough shape. There is constant poison that floods in and while she can dispel it with her crown, the price is that it continues to zap her strength. Eventually it is likely that she will die if this keeps up. Their only hope is if Hiro can get help from the great demon lord Rimuru so that they can cultivate the forest and get more space but will he listen?

Of course if you’ve seen the show then you’ll know that Rimuru is a very chill guy so that’s not really a problem. Throughout the film I’m waiting for some moment where Hiro and Towa lose faith in Rimuru or get tricked into thinking that he’s the enemy. I feel like that happens every time in these things but surprisingly this never becomes a problem so I was pretty happy about that. Slime didn’t go in the obvious route and it was a very smart decision on their part. I definitely appreciated it.

In fact, none of the usual misunderstandings happen here. The characters actually talk and so you still keep the calm vibe for the most part. Every time the film seems like it’s going to swerve…it just doesn’t. Of course again that means there will be a little less excitement and danger for the most part but this was a fun change of pace. Rimuru is always in control and deep down you feel like all of the characters will be okay. Towa is really the only one in danger since anyone trying to attack Rimuru’s village would be slaughtered in an instant. His village is ridiculously overpowered at this point after all with multiple demon lord protectors as well as the legendary storm dragon.

In fact that only reason there is any real conflict here is because Hiro is one of the biggest suckers I’ve seen in a while. I can’t really mince words with this guy, he just makes really bad decisions the whole way through. Why would you possibly listen to some old guy with a super shifty plan when you can talk to the all knowing Rimuru? It just felt a little contrived that Hiro would even consider such a thing in this situation. So I liked him for the most part but that scene was definitely hard to overlook. It just wasn’t a good moment for him. In terms of being an honorable guy and very powerful, Hiro stacks up though.

Meanwhile Towa is nice enough as well. The whole time I was expecting her to suddenly turn evil or something but again the film isn’t really going for that. Instead she’s just trying her best to help out even when the odds are against her. She has a bunch of old advisors who aren’t the most helpful but they’re not too bad. I will say that the actual main villain of the film is very underwhelming though to the point where he barely even appears in the movie. It’s actually a little funny because you can tell that the film didn’t care about him at all either. He’s here because he needs to be but that’s really it.

There is a really interesting subplot with Diablo and Violet though. Rimuru sends him off to get some intel on what’s going on and we see once again how Diablo is super resourceful. He immediately knows who is behind the curse and confronts her. We also see how crazy strong he is to the point where Violet can’t keep up at all. Diablo continues to be a fascinating character and I’m really looking forward to seeing what he does in the future once he unveils his big plan. Right now it’s safe to say that he’s really got everyone right where he wants them. This also made for the best fight scene in the whole film so I was definitely glad to see it.

The animation here is definitely solid. Again it’s probably not as high budget as the show since they really went all out for season 2 but it’s all very streamlined and colorful which is what I was hoping to see. The battles aren’t frequent but the ones that we do get are very solid. There is a long battle in the opening that was good and of course the climax has some big action scenes of its own like with Benimaru’s big fight.

Benimaru gets a big role here since he and Hiro are related and from the same tribe. That’s the emotional beat for this movie and it’s good to see Benimaru getting some shine since he was one of the first main supporting characters for the Slime show. The rest of the tribe members like Shion don’t get as much to do but it’s probably hard to squeeze everyone in. They do all get quick fights near the end though.

Then we have Rimuru who is a fun main character here. I would say the only issue with him is that he’s extremely powerful and can do anything, yet he tends to let a situation play out. This means that characters will get injured and be in life threatening situations that he could have stopped. In this movie it’s especially noticeable since people do get super injured and even nearly die. Rimuru goofing off only works when everything’s fine because you can say that he would have stepped in but that’s just not the case here.

We get a lot of death fake-outs and the like in the climax of the film and you can’t help but feel like Rimuru really just let things get as bad as possible. He needs to focus up! Still, he’s a good enough character and if I lived in the village I would still feel very secure overall. What are the odds that you’d find yourself in a dangerous situation there compared to in the rest of the world right?

Overall, The Slime movie is pretty fun. It’s a lot more laidback and casual than you might expect but in a way that’s what made the series big in the first place. It’s taking a different approach to the usual Isekai titles and it works well. It’s the ultimate power fantasy of having a bunch of other fighters who are all super powerful to but on the same side. For once the heroes have the overwhelming edge and if you watch this film with that in mind then I expect you will have a very satisfying time all around.

Overall 7/10

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Review

Posted on June 4, 2023 by dreager1

This film has certainly been a very long time coming but I can confirm that it delivers in every way. This is the kind of sequel you like to see where it improves upon everything from the original. The first Spider-Verse film was really good and now this one I can safely call elite. It’s a really thrilling film all the way through with an impressive cast of characters and the fight scenes are excellent. It’s not likely that you will see any other films in theaters this year that will be able to match these fight scenes unless you are checking out an anime movie.

The movie starts off with a fairly long prologue focused on Gwen and the events that led her up to the movie. It’s a really effective origin story here and it’s also fairly lengthy so there is really time for the moments to sink in. I love it when the movie title doesn’t show up for a while to let you know that everything you just saw was the intro. That was handled really effectively here to the point where you might think Gwen was the main character for a moment.

Then we come to the main plot. Miles has been Spiderman for a long while now and at this point he’s definitely a seasoned veteran. Unfortunately it has become harder and harder to balance his personal and professional lives. His parents are starting to get worried but Miles isn’t ready to tell them about his secret identity yet. When the Spot shows up along with a ton of other Spidermen, Miles is going to have to make a choice and find out where he really wants to belong. With the other Spidermen or with his family.

Lets jump on some of the really strong aspects of the film first. First off is the animation because that was really top tier. You don’t see this level of speed and intensity in just about any American animation. It’s extremely rare and this would hold its own with some anime. The fights allow you to feel just how strong Miles is with how quickly everyone is zipping about and each fighter has their own strengths. My favorite fight in the film is definitely the big team battle with the Spot but there are a lot of good fights to enjoy throughout the film. The opening battle with the Vulture was also solid and he put up a really good fight considering how the odds were. It lets you understand just how strong Spiderman’s villains are even when he is dominating in a fight.

There are a lot of really fun transitions here from scene to scene and I liked the captions for thoughts and also character introductions. Those were handled well like they were straight out of a comic which is the entire idea. Then you have the excellent soundtrack. Each character and universe have their own themes which fit the setting but additionally the instrumental themes for the fights were really good. There was always a quick tempo for each battle which served to enhance the scene even further. The movie definitely did not hold back in terms of the technicals.

Of course the writing was not lagging either as this is a very well written movie. In a lot of ways Flashpoint did a lot of damage with the message it was getting out about not being able to defy destiny and sacrificing the one for the many. This film’s taking the opposite approach in clearly portraying that you can always shape your own future and a big part of Miles’ character development is really relying on his own strengths and judgment. If you know that something’s wrong then it doesn’t matter if anyone agrees with you, you have to do your best to hang in there and do what you gotta do.

The characters are all developed well but in particular Gwen and Miles get the bulk of the scenes here. Gwen is mainly trying to internalize all of the issues that she is going through and naturally this does lead to some troubles for her down the line. Quick avoidance leads to slow troubles after all and her issues are continuing to grow in the background. She makes her share of mistakes in the film to be sure but is someone trying to do her best throughout. Gwen’s a very charismatic character and someone who is easy to root for so she’s definitely a standout here.

My favorite character ended up being Miles who in a lot of ways is also trying to deal with all of the issues on his own. It does take some to really trust anyone enough to talk about issues especially when you’re Spiderman but he’s definitely just about ready for that. He goes up against some really tough odds during the film but keeps on going. I also appreciate that he has a lot of self confidence and isn’t listening to the other characters who keep trying to get him to quit. He also gets a lot of witty banter the way you would expect a Spiderman to have.

Peter Parker doesn’t get to appear a whole lot this time though. Ultimately this is Miles’ film and how he is working on being the best Spiderman he can be so it makes sense not to give Peter a huge role so he doesn’t take that away from the kid. Peter’s not the best in this film so I’m looking forward to seeing him make a comeback in the sequel. It’s time for Peter to find his own confidence and make the right moves instead of being a bystander.

Throughout the film I only had 2 main issues which are not big enough to hurt the film but are still worth noting. Both basically come about due to the scope of the film. The first is a power level issue involving the thousands of Spidermen in the film. As you saw in the trailer they get mobilized at sone point and I don’t care how good any individual Spiderman is, you’re not lasting more than a second against those numbers. So there are large scenes where you just don’t believe what’s happening at all because escape just wasn’t an option at that point. You simply won’t believe that it is possible.

The other issue is really just that most of the Spidermen don’t act like Spiderman. In theory the vast majority of these should be reasonable Peter Parkers and yet they blindly obey orders without really questioning them. Of course that’s going to happen in a plot like this but as the writer your job is to work around that. There should definitely have been some good ways to avoid the scenario so everyone stays in character. If necessary you do the old mind control trick. It’s perhaps not the most original one out there but it does the job. So those were my two issues plot-wise at least and it’s funny that they’re both basically relating to the same scenes.

Otherwise the film really didn’t make any big mistakes and was really solid all throughout. The writing is great whether it be for the serious moments or the fun ones. The Spot is a really solid villain here and I liked him pretty much from the Jump. His powers are incredibly versatile and this is not someone that just any hero could deal with. It’s why Spiderman is a good foe for him because the web slinging allows him to stay close. A normal land based hero would likely be too slow to actually keep up with this guy. The Spot is also very determined and holds a grudge, both of which are very good attributes for a villain.

Then we have the other villain in Spiderman 2099. Yeah I’m going to call him a villain because at the end of the day your intentions don’t matter as much as the actions. Just ask Thanos and Garou. This guy has lost sight of what it means to be a Spiderman but he’s still a very cool character. In terms of design I would also say that he has the best looking outfit out of all the characters. He looks really intimidating the whole time. The guy’s super tall and buff. Throw in that his costume also has claws and that Miguel himself has fangs and yeah you don’t really want to cross this guy.

There are loads of other Spider characters running around but only a few more important ones. One is Ben, but his fans will likely be dismayed at how he looks. The guy’s basically a big joke the whole time who is as incompetent as possible. Be prepared for him to get slapped around by everybody. Then you have a Spiderwoman driving around on a motorcycle. She was my least favorite character because of how unreasonable she was the whole time. It feels like almost all of her lines are threats in the film. Additionally I’m just going to be direct and say it, fighting while super pregnant seems very irresponsible. A single hit to the baby and that’s game over.

You see some heroes try to do this now and again but it never seems like a good idea. Particularly in this scenario where there are thousands of other heroes who can help out in the meantime. Then you have the Indian Spiderman who’s a lot of fun. I like how he uses the webs with an object of sorts to focus them. It’s a unique fighting style right there. Then you have Hobie who likes to defy the system and was easily the most independent thinker out of all of them. This was someone who was not going to just obey all of the rules and I definitely appreciated that. He may not have been around as long as he could have but his scenes left an impact.

The film’s cliffhanger isn’t quite as dire as you may have been expecting but it’s still a cliffhanger all the same. I’m thinking they wanted to leave this as a more cheerful ending so it wouldn’t be too intense for younger viewers since this film is still in theory aimed a bit younger than something like Fast X. So the audience is given an out by the end here when it could have ended like a minute or two sooner and had a completely different vibe. It’s a really hype ending either way though and you’ll be ready for part 2. There’s definitely a lot left to happen and I’m expecting some really big fights. In theory part 2 will have even more action than this one.

Of course a lot of the fun here is in picking out all the cameos and there are definitely a ton of them all throughout. Ranging from TV shows to video games to movies, just about every Spiderman is here. It really goes to show just how many there have been over the years. Spiderman’s a household name for good reason after all.

I should also give a quick shoutout to Miles’ parents before ending the film because they were really solid the whole time. They’re dealing with a whole lot from their end as well with Miles always vanishing and running off. His cover stories aren’t always the most convincing either so it feels like he’s going through some kind of rebellious phase that he can’t clue them in on. We also see Gwen’s father and he is trying to do his best as well but doesn’t always take things well. In that plot I give Gwen at least 50% of the blame too though because she could have handled things better.

Overall, Across the Spider-Verse is an excellent film and definitely one that I would recommend checking out. The humor is on point, the pacing is great, the characters are excellent, the animation is masterful, etc. It’s a sequel that does everything right and you can especially appreciate the fast tempo and visuals by watching this one in theaters. You do not want to wait on this one and should try checking it out right away. As the “Part 1” is not in the title there are a lot of people who don’t even realize that this is one of those films that won’t be fully resolved just yet. Something to keep in mind because that always guarantees a fun ending.

Overall 9/10

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Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Review

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