Star Wars Starfighter Review

Posted on December 28, 2013 by dreager1

Star Wars has had many games in the past and they have all been decently good to great in the past. This one plays out like the Rebel Strike Star Wars game for Gamecube, but the gameplay is more refined. Could this game keep up the solid reputation of the Star Wars games or would it end up crushing out hopes? Only one way to find out!

Well, usually I would go into the plot right away, but that’s tougher than expected. There is definitely a plot, but you continue to switch characters are you go through the levels and while I do like the main, main character the most, the others are still cool. It’s just hard to follow the story and you’re really just focusing on the action. I’m sure that the story is very engaging and epic, but you won’t remember it by the time that you complete the game. Instead, we shall spend our time focusing on the gameplay and graphics.

The graphics hold up pretty well for the most part. The ships look good and the energy attacks are also solid. It reminds me of the retro N64 (Awesome) days while also throwing in some modern Gamecube action into it. The graphics are definitely a + and the only parts that don’t look very good are the humans. Still, they play a very small role in this and what really counts are the battles.

One of the reasons why I like the Starfighter series so much is that it finally takes Star Wars back to its roots. Originally, the whole concept of Star Wars was about how there would be climatic battles in space and how it would be awesome. After the first few Star Wars films, they started to diverge from that. In this game, fighting in space is all that you will do and it’s definitely a great experience.

The gameplay is essentially a 3D shooter. You can play it in first person mode or seeing from behind the ship. In this game, I find it a lot more convenient to use first person mode and you can attack foes that are incredibly far away. The game was definitely designed well because in most other shooters, you simply cannot attack from that far away. The blasts would just fade away into nothingness and you would have to wait until you are closer. There are usually dozens of enemies that continue to attack while you have to try and fend them off. You are able to lead your comrades into battle, but I never really used the function. By the time you tell your comrades to destroy an object, you will have basically finished the job.

Most of the missions involve destroying a lot of enemies and protecting your allies. There are 15 missions in Story Mode and it doesn’t drag on. The game could definitely be considered to be on the short side and it could have used some more levels. I’m not sure that 15 levels would have really cut it for me if I had bought the game at retail price, but for the bargain of 4 dollars, I’m all right with it. It’s still no excuse to be such a short game, but there is a decent amount of replay value through bonus missions.

You only have a few weapons to use in the game, but they’re all that you truly need. You have rockets which do heavy damage, but they do run out of ammo quickly and you cannot reload. There are energy grenades that automatically replenish and also deal great damage, but they are harder to aim as they cannot travel great distances. They are best used from a high point to drop on unsuspecting enemies. Of course, nothing beats the classic machine gun style energy bullets that you can fire to take down any enemy given enough time. You have complete control over your vehicle and you can turn it around as you dodge enemy attacks and counter. By turning it around, I mean that you can make your vehicle fly sideways or even upside down as you do 180s and 360s. Yes, this is one of the best pure shooters out there and the gameplay would usually make the game an 8/10.

The only reason that this game does not crack an 8 is because the gameplay does not have enough support from the other modes. As I’ve mentioned, the game is pretty short and the story is completely forgettable. If the game had been longer and if the story had been more memorable, then I likely would have given the game an 8. It was just lacking something. Maybe an epic 2 player showdown mode would have added to the score and likely would have made the game an 8.

Overall, this is a fun Star Wars game. It’s not going to be hailed as one of the all time greats and you may not even remember it after a while, but it’s very fun and is that not the main function of a video game? Ultimately, having fun is the most important part of playing a video game and this one definitely succeeds. I highly recommend this game as long as you don’t mind the lack of length and you definitely need to like the shooting genre. If you didn’t like Star Fox Assault or Robotech’s aerial combat system, then this is not the game for you. This game only features aerial combat, but it’s some of the best space fighting that I’ve encountered. You will not want to miss out on this game!

Overall 7/10

The Mighty Thor Volume 2 Review

Posted on December 28, 2013 by dreager1

It’s time to continue the Walter Simonson era with this collection! The plots start to come to a close with only one big plot continuing. The others have wrapped up nicely and this seems to be the end of an era for Thor. Could this comic surpass the first one thanks to the abundance of action or did Thor’s underwhelming portrayal destroy its chances? Time to find out!

Well, the first part of the collection deals with Malekith as his plan goes into motion. He realizes that he cannot hope to defeat Thor in a battle of power so he decides to resort to trickery instead. After tricking Thor into drinking of the golden mead; it would seem that Malekith may have the upper hand in the battles to come as Thor starts to act irrationally. With only Roger Willis at his side, Thor infiltrates Malekith’s home base and they begin their assault on the castle. Outnumbered hundreds to 2, Thor and Roger fight on and may get more than they bargained for when Algrim appears to join the fight.

The rest of the collection (excluding the final issue) deals with the threat of Surtur as he seeks to burn away the 9 Realms and destroy everything. It’s a very ambitious goal, but now that he has the Twilight Sword, it would seem that the goal is not unreachable. All Surtur has to do is light the sword with the giant fire that is in Asgard and then he will be able to burn away the 9 Realms. The climax is a large one as Surtur heads to Earth to find the Rainbow Bridge and must content with the (3rd string) Avengers and Fantastic Four. The X-Men are evidently too busy to deal with a being who will incinerate the universe.

Surtur has brought a legion of fire demons with him and their sheer numbers bring the heroes to a halt. Unfortunately for them, none of the S Rank Heroes like Spiderman, Cyclops, Ironman, or even the Incredible Hulk are around to help. The heroes quickly start to get overwhelmed and that’s considering that they get a lot of reinforcements. The Army, Knights of Valhalla, Beta Ray Bill, The Asgardians, and many more heroes are around to help, but they’re still being crushed. Thor is forced to let Earth fend for itself as he goes to aid Odin against Surtur himself. Can they defeat this being of immense power?

There are other plots about as well like Lorelei’s plot to get Thor, Loki’s plot to rule Asgard, and Thor’s mission to free the souls in Hela’s domain which he has had to put on hold. Roger Willis gets a pretty big role during the Malekith arc which could have been considered as a slightly different plot from Thor’s, but they ultimately merged and concluded. Balder’s plot was also concluded in the end, but not in a cool way.

Thor did not look quite as good as in the first volume. While he still does show glimpses of his former glory from the first volume, the golden mead tricks him a little too easily. I would hope that such a thing would not affect Thor The Thunderer. Aside from that, Thor is still a solid character, but the effects of the Golden Mead do affect him greatly for the first few comics. Thor does give it his all against Surtur, but he ends up succumbing to sadness after the battle because he regrets his lack of power. This will likely lead into the Hela plot, but is he ready for such a battle? Only time will tell, but he did look pretty good when he fought Hela towards the end, so I wouldn’t count him out.

Odin has a big role in this volume and he’s a lot better than usual. It is regrettable that he did not let Thor know that he was being deceived by Melodi, but that’s his only negative scene. Odin has a lot of good dialogue and he usually says “Well met” if someone addresses him correctly. Odin puts up a good fight against Surtur and while he may not have been a match for the fire tyrant, he still put up a valiant effort. If the battle had been a fair one, perhaps Odin would have had the upper hand.

Surtur makes for a great villain and he’s easily one of Thor’s most impressive ones. He fears no being and even Odin does not seem to be at the same level of power. Surtur is good with a sword and also pretty fast as he was able to land some good hits on Thor when even Hela could not. Surtur essentially fought Thor, Odin, and Loki back to back which is not a bad feat. He’s a likable fighter and you almost want to root for him as he doesn’t seem to hold a grudge against the heroes. No, he wants to destroy everything, but it’s not personal and it’s hard to root against him.

Roger Willis is a pretty likable character and he gets a big role in this collection. It’s too bad that his reflexes were too slow and he could not warn Thor about the Golden Mead, but he still took matters into his own hands and got rid of the rest. He put up a solid fight against the Dark Elves and he’s handy with a gun. He even admits that he could have beaten the rest of them if he had his platoon from back in the day. I can’t say that I doubt him as he put up a solid fight. He almost destroyed Malekith when they fought because he knows that iron is their weakness and exploited it. He mildly helps against the fire demons and proves that humans can still be tough. It would be nice to see him appear in more comics in the future.

Loki also gets in on the action to further his own agenda. Using trickery, he does manage to last for a little while against Surtur which is impressive. He could have done even better if he had used his abilities to the fullest and not stayed so close to the monster, but Surtur would have eventually wiped him out anyway. I can’t say that Loki is very likable in this comic since his other plans are hard to root for, but at least he got to fight.

The art is solid for the comics and they look really good. The art definitely amplifies the intensity of the fight scenes and makes them look even better than usual. It helps to capture the dramatic tension that fills the characters as they fight Surtur. There seems to be no hope, but still they fight on. After all, if they always believe in the Three Fates, then they would basically be doomed. This is definitely some nice art!

I do have to say that the fight scenes are very well done. Nowadays in the comics, we rarely get such large fight scenes and they tend to only be a few pages at the most. In this battle, we get some nice/long fights that keep on going for a while and the fights are also very dramatic. You feel the blows as the characters make dramatic speeches while going in for the win. It definitely helps to remind me that Surtur is a very real threat and someone who should not be taken lightly.

Overall, this is a solid collection of comics and continues Simonson’s solid run. Some parts like the Lorelei plot still drag on, but it has a much grander feel than the first collection. I still don’t care for Balder the Brave and his subplot ends on a pretty low note. Still, I am glad that it is now over! Surtur is definitely a big threat and it’s nice to see how the rest of the Marvel universe responds. Human Torch and Reed Richards play a critical role in the comic and it makes sense if you’ve read their comics. They always perform well during crunch time! It’ll be very hard to top the Surtur saga as far as Thor comics go, but we shall see. If they use Kurse, then it is always possible! I highly recommend this Thor collection as with the previous one. All Marvel fans should appreciate the drama and the action!

Overall 7/10

The Mighty Thor Volume 1 Review

Posted on December 27, 2013 by dreager1

Thor is one of the original Avengers and he has had hundreds of comics over the years. This is the start of the Walter Simonson run so it’s a solid way for the graphic novel to begin. Thor is a character that can be difficult to write properly since writers make sometimes make him appear to be a slow minded thinker who just punches until his opponent goes down while others make him out to be a solid thinker, but with strength that cannot come close to matching that of the Hulk’s. I am glad to say that Thor looks very good in this collection and it’s the best incarnation of him that I’ve seen in quite a while. (The pre Bendis days after all)

This comic has a lot of plots that occur within its pages and also starts a lot of plots that do not conclude in this volume. The collection definitely has undertones of despair and dread in it as you know that something sinister is about to befall Asgard, but there is nothing that the heroes can do about it. They do not know who the ultimate adversary is and they can only wait for him to strike. Thor is essentially on his own because the rest of the heroes on the planet are basically absent the entire time with only Jarvis making a cameo.

The first part of the collection deals with the debut of Beta Ray Bill. This arc is pretty famous and for good reason. Beta Ray Bill has become a fan favorite character in the Thor comics and while I don’t usually care for him that much, he was a solid character in this arc. After he defeats Thor, (Or should I say, Donald Blake?) Beta Ray Bill is taken to Asgard where he has to deal with Odin. Odin decides that Thor and Beta Ray Bill will have a duel to the death and the winner will claim Mjolnir as his own. This begins the epic battle of the two titans.

After the shocking conclusion and the even more shocking decision that Odin makes, Thor and Beta Ray Bill decide to take out the demons that are attacking Bill’s species. Lady Sif decides to come and help the two of them as they fight against all odds. The demons are not powerful, but they have sheer numbers on their side. Can the three warriors stop the demons before they destroy the innocents aboard the spaceships?

Next up, Fafnir decides to attack Earth and wreck vengeance on Thor for what Thor had done to him ages ago. His powers have increased considerably and not even Mighty Mjolnir is really a match for him. Thor enlists the help of a senior citizen whom Thor fortifies with the power of youth and together they launch an attack on Fafnir. It’s a bold move on their part since Fafnir is one of the strongest monsters (Aside from Godzilla) to attack the Earth. Unfortunately for Fafnir, there isn’t a real sense of danger because he picked the wrong city to attack. See, earlier in the comic, we had a shocking pair of guest stars. Clark Kent and Lois Lane were on the scene…yes, the famous DC characters successfully infiltrated the Marvel collection and made it 20% cooler. It was the highlight of the collection since Superman got his classic smirk in and even though he only appeared for a page or two, he instantly saw through Thor’s disguise. Here I thought Batman was the world’s greatest detective! It’s always good to see Superman get his props.

The last few comics mainly deal with Balder The Brave as he attempts to deliver a letter that Odin has entrusted him with. He has to deliver it to Loki, but it’s definitely a bad time for him. He has sworn never again to destroy an enemy since he has been to Hela’s domain and he found out what happened to them. You can’t help but feel for the poor guy since the fate of those in Hela is pretty grim. More on that later, since it’s something that you really need to think about. Loki has never been the nicest person, so will he accept the letter or turn to the dark side with Malekith?

That’s definitely a good amount of plot lines in the comic! There are also many other things happening at the same time and I will get into most of them while talking about the characters. Thor is a solid protagonist in this collection and his character is portrayed well. He’s a man of honor who talks dramatically, but unlike most of the other Marvel heroes, he can back it all up. Fans may not appreciate the fact that Beta Ray Bill beats him pretty easily in their first round and that the second round may be closer than it should have been. Regardless, Thor does a good job of protecting humanity and fighting the Kaiju that are around. At one point, Thor decides to get a secret identity which leads into him meeting Superman and Lorelei so it’s a mixed bag. I’m not sure that it was a good move having him get a secret identity, but at least he keeps his abilities this time.

Beta Ray Bill is a fighter who debuts in this collection and he’s decently cool. When he first appears, he has the aura of an epic opponent around him as he quickly moves in to take Thor down for the count. This guy has fought a lot of powerful adversaries in the past and it’s a wonder that he has not already defeated the demons. He even tries to land a hit on Odin, but it does not work. He was a very solid character through and through. While I do not like his humanoid form as much as his real one, it’s all right I suppose.

Superman was one of the highlights of the collection and while his appearance was short, it was powerful. The author definitely knew who Superman was since he made sure to keep him in character. Superman smirked at Thor when he fell because he quickly found out his true identity. One could even say that he may have helped Thor behind the scenes during the big fights because with his super speed, it would be a simple matter. Adding him to the comic was definitely a good move.

Odin is back as per usual and he’s definitely a lot more reasonable than he used to be. He still has his moments where he will make people fight to the death for no reason, but he has made some progress. He’s pretty terrified of the villains that are to come, but at least he makes a (slight) effort not to show it. You have to admire his bravery for such a feat. In the end, he was a decent character this time which is better than usual.

Loki is still one of the big villains of the collection along with Lorelei. They have a subplot where they try to wreck Thor’s life and alienate Lady Sif. The plots start to separate as Loki makes a deal with Malekith and Lorelei goes to the human world to trick Thor into drinking the magical elixir. Loki does a good job of messing with Balder The Brave and you can’t help feeling bad for the hero. Loki is not someone to be trifled with and he will likely do more in the next volume. He’s definitely an intense villain, but his plans can go too far so he’s still not really likable. Lorelei ‘s plans last throughout the whole collection and she is still plotting to get Thor. So far, Thor has unwittingly outsmarted her at every turn, but she has not given up yet. Her plot isn’t really interesting and can only be endured while we wait for it to end.

Fafnir is a pretty cool dragon and he’s someone that can be admired. His rivalry with Thor is legendary in his eyes and his hypnotic abilities are pretty good. They definitely shouldn’t be underestimated and you have to admire his raw power. He was a solid example of how a monster should be portrayed if he wants to be remembered as a powerful opponent. It’ll be nice to see him again in the future and how the heroes could possibly defeat him. The way that he lost in this collection was basically plot hax.

There was another plot line involving Hamburgers and French Fries that was pretty interesting. A guy is on the run from these mysterious beings who are chasing him, but they die when they eat human food. This person realizes this somehow and he manages to take down two of the agents. Now, he’s got to make sure that he saves the world in time. Unfortunately, it may be too late as one of his associates runs into Malekith and may not stand a chance. There’s also another plot with a mysterious fire being creating a sword. He calls it the Twilight Sword and when he smashes his hammer into the ground, the shockwave can be heard through a billion billion planets. This being was powerful enough to fight Odin’s two ravens and he shouldn’t be underestimated. Odin seems to think that this being will be the end of Asgard….and he may be right!

The art for this comic was very good. This was during the modern classic days of Marvel and everyone is in their signature designs for the most part. The art doesn’t really have any faults and everything is just fun to read. I read the whole collection in one sitting and I like to think that the art had a part in that. If the art was worse, then that may have been tough.

One part of the comic that can be sad to think about is the Hela plot. According to the Asgardian rules, warriors who die in combat go to Valhalla while people who die of regular deaths go to Hela’s Domain. This doesn’t really seem fair as many good Asgardians would end up going to Hela’s Domain. Balder went there himself when he died and saw the many horrors that it contained. It’s essentially Marvel’s version of Hell and it’s a scary thing to think about. Knowing this, Balder decided to stop destroying people because they would go into a fate much worse than Death. Could Odin and pals stop this if they wanted too? The sad truth is that they probably could, which makes Asgard look as sketchy as ever. I’m definitely not a fan of this twist since it’s something that can’t really be solved. Now, we know what happens to the villains that die and it’s pretty sad for them. Marvel has quite a few hells already and there doesn’t seem to be quite as many happy places for the heroes. I definitely can’t blame Balder for his vow, but naturally he was forced to break it, in part because of Odin. Maybe the plot will come back and they’ll find a way to resolve it, but I doubt that they could think of such a way unless the place was obliterated by ~~Surtur~~ the fire demon.

Overall this was a pretty solid collection of Thor comics. I’m not sure about Thor essentially leading the Viking into his doom, but since Hela’s domain was the only other option; It makes the whole thing a little harder to blame on Thor. The comic had its share of downer moments when Loreli’s plot would enter and Beta Ray Bill’s true origin, (Which I recommend skipping. It’s only a few panels and completely unnecessary. His life was already tragic so we didn’t need to go and make it even worse. It won’t destroy the comic, but those panels could greatly hurt your enjoyment so I do recommend bypassing them) but for the most part we got a lot of action and solid writing. It’ll be nice to see the plots start to conclude in the next volume which I will be reviewing soon. Will all of the plots end or only some of them? All I know is that we will find out soon enough! I recommend this comic and it should be a fun read for all comic book fans.

Overall 7/10

Fantastic Four Crusaders and Titans Review

Posted on December 26, 2013 by dreager1

The Fantastic Four have never gotten the same amount of recognition that the Avengers and the Xmen have received. They were once Marvel’s first superhero group and now they have faded away. They are still very popular, but the fact that their films didn’t really hit it off did not help matters. I’ve always enjoyed the team and in the old comics, I dare say that they’re more fun to read than the other teams. Once things started to progress in the 80s to 90s, I definitely preferred the Avengers and Xmen comics, but the Fantastic Four will always be a fun group. Could this comic capture their greatness?

This collection has many comics in it, but most of the plots extend through several comics so their are only a few big story arcs in this collection. The first comics deal with the Crusader as he attempts to judge the humans for their transgressions. There is a plot twist that makes the whole thing seem a little more personal on the Crusader’s part and he has a pretty tragic back story. He’s a pretty decent villain and he put up quite the fight!

Next up, The Hulk came into town and the Fantastic Four would need to subdue him. Reed Richards had created a device that could turn him back into Banner, but then the Government got involved. They figured that they could step in and quickly kidnap Bruce Banner, but the Thing wouldn’t have any of that and he quickly broke the device which turned Banner back into the Hulk. Turning his back on humanity, the Thing joins forced with the Hulk to fight the Fantastic Three! Could this be the end?

Later on, a mighty punch from a powerful foe managed to completely break away the Thing’s outer shell and he was now a mere mortal once again. This wasn’t totally because of the punch, but it’s really cool to think of it that way. The Thing is happy at first, but then he realizes that he is no longer popular. Making matters worse is the fact that Luke Cage has replaced him on the Fantastic Four. Things keep on getting worse and worse for the Thing and he doesn’t help matters either as he doesn’t take the whole experience very well. Reed builds him a suit that will let him gain a pretty good degree of super strength while he is inside of it, but then Luke Cage begins his assault. Can Ben Grimm defeat Luke Cage while in his new suit? Also, why is Luke Cage evil!?

Finally, the largest chunk of the collection is the plot that involves Galactus! A golden ape appears in the city and warns the Fantastic Four of this grave threat. They head to the High Evolutionary who tells them that Galactus seeks to destroy Counter Earth. The Fantastic Four head for other worlds which would sacrifice themselves for Counter Earth and the High Evolutionary does battle with Galactus himself.

The collection has a pretty solid array of comics and they remind me why I always found the Fantastic Four comics fun. Reed Richards is a solid leader and while he doesn’t actually do much leading in this collection, he proves why he deserves the title. He comes up with plans as they arise and he does what he can to help the others. His powers start to fade during the second half of the arc, but he still keeps it together and manages to save the day. He can be pretty blunt with the Thing and even admits that he’s happy that the Thing doesn’t make a lot of wisecracks. He’s basically just a great superhero and he’s Marvel’s Batman. How cool he is definitely depends on the writer, but this collection really did a good job. He keeps his smarts while also showing that he can use his intelligence to be a good fighter.

The Human Torch is decently cool, but he has his ups and downs as the comics go on. At one point, he almost decides not to help everyone out because it might hurt his social life. Last time I checked, superheroes should rise against such things when the time is at hand to fight. On the other hand, the Torch did a really good job when he was fighting. He consistently gave it his all and his attacks definitely dealt some decent damage to everyone but Galactus. He may not be my favorite member of the Fantastic Four anymore, but he’s still a fun character to root for. At least, he was during this era of Marvel.

Invisible Woman is still known as Invisible Girl in this collection. She can definitely change her name, but she has decided not too at the moment. Her abilities are definitely potent and she proves that the Thing isn’t able to shatter it and she makes pretty good use of her abilities. A lot of the comics deal with a situation where the FF wouldn’t stand a chance without her. It’s nice to see her get some props because her abilities are definitely very dangerous. She’s another solid member of the Fantastic Four and her abilities will only get stronger as time goes by.

The Thing is the final member of the Fantastic Four and he’s the most sketchy. On one hand, it’s easy to root for him and he gets a lot of the best lines. On the other hand, he has a tendency to feel bad for himself a lot and he always looks at the negative side of things. He is never satisfied when he has his powers or when he’s human. It’s a lose-lose situation either way and he can get a little unbearable to watch. When he’s in a good mood, then the Thing is a great character. When he’s feeling bad for himself, then he’s a pretty bad character. Overall, I’d still say that he’s a fun character, but I can’t wait until he just accepts his situation. The comic with the Hulk definitely made him look bad (Along with the other FF members) and he should have been able to find a way to stop the Government without breaking the device. Definitely not his best move.

Galactus is in this comic and he’s as likable as ever. I mean that in a good way as he’s always been a fun character to read. He talks in a very scientific way, but in a way that makes sense. You do have to respect his power and the fact that he is an honorable person. I wouldn’t call him a hero and he would definitely rank as a villain, but he does keep his promises. His end is actually pretty tragic and I wonder where he goes from here. His herald at the moment is Destroyer, who still doesn’t really have a soul. At least now he can travel through the cosmos!

Luke Cage is around for a few issues, but I wouldn’t call him the greatest character out there. He’s all right, but I definitely wouldn’t want him on the Fantastic Four. I just don’t really find him interesting. There’s nothing wrong with him, but he’s just a little on the generic side. The High Evolutionary is around and he makes it hard to root for him. He doesn’t mind when his allies are all in lethal situations and decides not to help them when a flick of the switch will possibly save them. He didn’t even want anyone to go and rescue them which is pretty sinister. He talked a good game when he fought Galactus which was his highlight, but I’m guessing that everyone was rooting for Galactus. I know that I was! The Golden Ape was a fun character although he made some pretty rash decisions. He reminded me of the Beast and he even talked like the Xman.

The art for the comics is really good and you could say that this is basically Marvel’s prime. The newer comics look really good for some of the Marvel comics as well, but this one just has a really natural feel to it. They did the comics by hand and you really have to marvel at the effort that it must have taken. The art is definitely very good and with solid writing as well, this collection is basically complete.

Overall, this is a great Fantastic Four collection and maybe the best one that I’ve read. I really can’t think of any negatives in the comic. I’m sure that there is some minor stuff if I squint hard enough like parts of the Thing and Human Torch’s portrayals, but nothing that’s really big. So, why isn’t this comic a 10? There’s nothing really wrong with the comic, but also nothing outstanding enough to warrant such a high rating. As I see it, the comic did everything right and the score is what most comics should aim for. It would take some thought to see if this really was the best, but I can certainly say that its the best Fantastic Four (Strictly Fantastic Four) comic reviewed on the blog thus far. I look forward to reading more of this team and I actually have another Fantastic Four comic on the back burner that I’ll be checking out. It’ll definitely be fun to see their adventures. I highly recommend this comic and it’s fun for all comic audiences. Drama, Action, Humor, this comic has it all!

Overall 7/10 (Close to an 8, but not quite)

Pokemon Genesect and the Legend Awakened Review

Posted on December 24, 2013 by dreager1

I had high hopes for this manga one shot because it was based off of the greatest Pokemon film of all time. That’s a pretty big feat and it’s one that will probably never be surpassed. It would only make sense for this manga to be the greatest Pokemon film adaption and it would definitely rise up to great things during its journey through the years. Was it as good as I had hoped? No, it was even better!

The plot is essentially the same as in the movie, but I shall recap the plot in case you somehow missed out on it. Genesect has been awakened after millions of years and he wants to return to his home. Since it is no longer there, he decides that he shall just conquer an area and make it his! There are a few other Genesect who are with him and are ready to help…willingly or not! Ash and friends don’t realize the gravity of the situation as they have fun at a local area. While they’re playing with the Pokemon, Genesect viciously attacks and even defeats the ~~All Powerful, Invincible, Indestructible, Immortal, Light Speed, Universe Buster~~ Legendary Pikachu! Ash doesn’t take this very well and he gets pretty emotional. Since Ash is no longer a threat, the Genesect only have one Pokemon to contend with….Mewtwo!

It’s a pretty awesome plot and an even better manga! Genesect is easily one of the greatest Pokemon of all time and his personality is pretty intense. This guy will remind you of a classic Shonen Jump villain and he definitely knows how to fire a nice blast. The other Genesect are around, but not really likable. One of them gets his own subplot, but it was mainly just to make Ash and friends seem useful. The main Genesect was the only truly awesome character and his speed/power are at incredible levels. This is one guy that could hold his own against fighters like Goku.

Mewtwo is also pretty awesome and I dare say that the manga made her even cooler than in the movie. She actually tells Genesect that she is faster than him and that’s something that you will usually find in DBZ or Bleach. The line was extremely hardcore and just so epic that you really had to stop and think about it. Not bad….not bad at all! Mewtwo did pretty good in her base form, but when she went Mega, it was a whole new ball game. Mewtwo was able to fight all of the Genesect while they were teaming up and it was definitely a testament to her incredible power. She has a variety of attacks and her high level of speed means that she is the perfect fighter to battle any opponent. Mewtwo has no weaknesses and she can even use her mind abilities if she needs too.

Unfortunately, Ash doesn’t look very good. Ash’s role just isn’t as good as it should be and he doesn’t seem like he has the amount of experience that he should have developed by this point. Ash has fought opponents like Gary and Paul in the past and he’s even went up against foes like Team Rocket and Team Magma in the past. He should have taken the whole Genesect battle in stride, but that’s not what happened. Pikachu looked good since he was able to block Genesect’s strongest attack and he probably would have defeated him if he was not double teamed. Pikachu did his part and even though he did not fight for the rest of the volume, it was a decent attempt.

Ash just didn’t have Pikachu’s courage or finesse. He couldn’t bear to see the Pokemon fighting so he tried to end it all by becoming a martyr as he jumped in the middle of the blasts. Mewtwo was around to bail him out, but I didn’t see anything heroic or epic in that scene. It was just Ash making a pretty bad call and I can’t even say that I was really surprised. It’s too bad because Ash used to be such an intense main character. I’m sure that he’ll go back to his roots, but it’s definitely sad that he couldn’t really help against the villains. At one point, he tells the main worker that he has to go to the park to see what’s happening, but it sounded more like a question than a demand and Ash looked a little too emotional at that point.

The art for the volume is pretty clear, but I don’t think that the artist is great at facial expressions. They actually remind me a lot of the Maximum Ride volumes and that’s not really a good thing. It just doesn’t translate that well, but the rest of the art is solid. The fight scenes show us that Pokemon are pretty high tier when they want to be and the art is solid for these scenes. The battle art reminds me of Bleach and that is certainly a good thing. The fact that you can completely understand every panel is a sign that the art is good and it’s easy on the eyes. It’s fun art and it fits perfectly for Pokemon. The writing is also a step up from the previous film adaptions and it has a more serious feel to it. This definitely isn’t the classic days! They’re actually going all out!

Overall, this manga was extremely good. This is how you write a successful Pokemon manga and it would have made an awesome ongoing series. Mewtwo is a solid fighter and he has a pretty cool demeanor. Genesect was an awesome villain and he may have been the first Pokemon villain to be truly evil…at first anyway. You could also argue that he was just misunderstood. I still liked the ending because it was essentially a parody of Man of Steel and showed what Superman should have done. At least Mewtwo didn’t erase their memories at the end which is always a good thing. I highly recommend this volume and it may be the perfect jumping on point for new Pokemon fans except for the fact that Ash doesn’t look so good. Get ready for some intense action!

Overall 8/10

Dream Trigger 3D Review

Posted on December 24, 2013 by dreager1

Dream Trigger is a game that I wanted to get for a very long time. It just looked like it would be a blast! It had the right mix of action, scenery, and overall epicness. There was no way that such a game wouldn’t be an instant hit right? It was one of the first 3DS games after all. Well, let’s see if my gut instinct was right on the money!

The gameplay is pretty unique since it’s overhead like Marvel Alliance, but it is a shooter. It’s a shooter that is unlike anything that you have ever played because you don’t have guns and you don’t actually shoot anything. See, you Are the bullet in this game. You use the stylus to set off musical bombs that force the villains to turn tangible and that is when you strike. The more of your musical bombs that uncover the enemies, the more that your energy meter builds up. When you have enough meter, then you use the L or R button to get your character over the enemy and incinerate him. That’s the whole gameplay in a nutshell so you’ll really want to enjoy it.

Dream Trigger has 55 levels and they’re only a few minutes each so it shouldn’t take you very long, but they artificially extend the game through the challenges. You have to beat challenges to unlock more stages and to unlock the final boss, you’ll need around 65-70 challenges completed. That may not sound bad and it could definitely be worse, but I felt that it was unnecessary. A lot of the challenges aren’t hard, but they are guaranteed to take you a long time. (Ex: Defeat 10000 enemies. To put that into perspective, each level only has 100-200 enemies and a lot of levels don’t have quite that many anyway. I unlocked this one after the final boss I believe)

There is also an enemy who can make things difficult for you. The Tracker is a being of limitless power who can take away all of your life points if you get caught by him and then lose the challenge. I forgot to mention that your life points/DP Points are the only thing that allows you to move. When you run out of them, you must play the stage that you are standing on. It may be an old stage, but it doesn’t matter. You need DP Points to move and the only way to get more of them is to replay a stage. I’ll admit that it can definitely be disappointing when you have a bunch of points and then you lose them all in one shot.

I can’t really say much for the soundtrack because the sound effects are sooooo loud. You won’t really hear the soundtrack at all when you’re blasting enemies by the dozens. You can probably lower the sound effect volume, but I don’t count that since it isn’t the game’s default setting. So, the soundtrack is pretty underwhelming in this game.

The graphics in the game also leave much to be desired. There are a lot of colorful effects and things happening on screen, but it’s more chaotic than graphically intense. The graphics aren’t really bad, but they aren’t memorable either. It’s just the way that the game is set up, but you could find better graphics on the N64.

There is a lot of replay value or a little depending on how much you like the gameplay. Keep in mind that even though there are 55 stages, there are really only 2 stages. The Boss Battle stage and the regular stage that contains a mini boss. The rest of the stages keep the same formula and they don’t try to change it at all. The bosses and enemies may change shape as your avatar does throughout the levels, but nothing changes. The Final Boss didn’t even have a super gimmick that makes him a lot different than the other big bosses. That was a little disappointing. The gameplay just isn’t made to be played for very long periods of time and you may get tired of it. If you reeeeally like the gameplay, then you should have fun with the game. There are plenty of challenges to try and complete and you will definitely need to spend a lot of time on the game if you wish to complete them all. If you do not like the gameplay, then the challenges are going to seem unbearable at times.

Overall, this is definitely not one of the better games out there. 55 levels is pretty decent considering that this was one of the first 3DS game and that it’s not known as one of the big games. That being said, the lack of graphics and animation will probably start to let you down and after replaying the same level 40 times over…you may decide that beating the game isn’t worth it. I barely made it to the end of the game because the challenges were just so tedious. It certainly took me a while to unlock the final boss and it’s a little sad since the actual game is pretty easy. If you’ve played enough games in the past then your reflexes will be up for the job. I can’t really recommend the game that much since it’s so repetitive. On the other hand, it’s only 5 dollars at your average game store so it’s not that much money. It can be fun to play when you want to eliminate some time, but I don’t recommend it as you main time consumer. It just doesn’t have the replay value that other games have. Seriously, I cannot stress enough that you will be playing the same stage over several times and the “new” stages that you unlock as just recolored versions of the same stage as well. You can make customizations to the enemies and the effects, but they just change the design and nothing else. The game may not have been quite as impressive as I thought it would be, but considering the 5 dollar price tag, I think that the score is pretty appropriate.

Overall 5/10

Digimon Tamers Review

Posted on December 24, 2013 by dreager1

Digimon is one of the better franchises out there and they have always come out with some pretty solid shows in the past. The first two Digimon Adventures both cracked a solid 8/10 which is pretty impressive. Digimon Tamera takes a few steps away from the previous two series as it uses a completely different approach in how the plot progresses. Would this be a welcome change or did they fix something that was not broken?

~~The story takes place 10 years since the end of Digimon Adventure 02.~~ The human world doesn’t really know about the Digital World aside from a government agency that tries to stop them from materializing. It’s their life’s work, but they are unable to stop just about anyone from actually appearing. Rookie level Digimon are more than a match for them which can make things a little dicey. To clarify the earlier statement, people do know about Digimon, but they believe that they are fake and from the TV show. They play with the cards and just have a lot of fun.

Takato decides to make his own Digimon and he uses his creative art skills along with his powerful imagination to create Guilmon and they quickly become pals. Unfortunately, the Digimon Queen (Rika) wants to destroy Guilmon and a third tamer steps in to stop this while claiming that his name is Henry. Whether or not he is telling the truth doesn’t matter as much as the fact that he seems to be one of the good guys. The three tamers must now team up to fend off the evils of the Digital World.

There are two main story arcs to Digimon Tamers. The first 10 or so episodes as the heroes leveling up and building their bonds of friendship. Once that is taken care of, then it’s time to take down the Devas. They work for the Digimon Sovereign and it would appear that he may be able to crush the whole world in an instant. At least, that’s how the Devas act as they oppose the legendary Tamers. There are several Devas and each one possesses abilities that are beyond Guilmon and friends. To stop them, it is time to Digivolve and unlock their true powers!

After the Tamers challenge the Digimon Sovereign and learn of the untold truths of the Digital World, they are attacked by the D Reaper. Right away, The heroes know that they are outmatched and the D Reaper begins to erase the universe. They must use all of the past experience that they have gained so far and unleash their ultimate power. Nothing seems to work against the D Reaper, but there’s got to be a way!

That’s the jist of the plot so let’s start talking about the Digimon Tamers. Takato is the main character and he’s a lot different than his predecessors. Tai was a bold leader who took charge and recognized the value of friendship along with the ability to protect his friends. Davis was always ready to act and he possessed courage that was basically unheard of along with his limitless self confidence. Takato doesn’t really possess any of those things or not in such large portions. He’s not exactly the bravest fighter and he’s not as bold or daring as the others. He lacks confidence and he’s definitely not a leader. He does tend to panic and he didn’t stand a chance against Rika when they fought the first time since he forgot to use his D Cards.

Arguably Takato gets better as the series goes on and arguably he gets worse. He’s pretty sad for the second half of the series because of what happens to Jeri and he never becomes the main character that you would have expected. This guy is definitely no Kaz Gordan, but he does have his “hardcore” moments. Unfortunately, they can’t be taken seriously because he just isn’t that guy. It may help that his voice just doesn’t have the same level of coolness as the other main characters. His main Digimon is Guilmon who is a fire type. Guilmon is a decent character, but he can also get a little annoying. He’s at his best when he’s in his Champion or Ultimate mode.

Rika is another one of the three Tamers and she’s a step up from Takato. She was at her best during her Digimon Queen days as she could quickly defeat opponents with Renamon. They were a dangerous combo and it’s not really known how many Digimon she deleted back in the day, but it was likely a lot. As the series went on, she started to bond with the other Tamers and showed them that it’s never too late to turn good. Unfortunately, she lost her edge and Renamon also seemed to lose power. Renamon’s ultimate form was easily the worst one from the three heroes and her champion form wasn’t really impressive either. Her mega form is pretty solid and that’s likely what counts in the end. Guilmon stole the best forms for each of the levels aside from Rookie anyway. Renamon is still superior in her rookie form and she seems like a pretty capable fighter. She has a good level of speed and she can fight in hand to hand combat.

Henry is the third tamer and he’s definitely a mixed bag. On one hand, he doesn’t really like to fight all the time and he’ll have his moments where he yells at Suzie and shows why he lacks the strength of heart that the other two have. By the end of the series he has gotten better at this, but he got fooled to the very end. At least now he will know better than to hand out his Digivice no matter what the reason may be. He’s pretty experienced, but he doesn’t have a lot of battle experience since he usually skips that part. I didn’t really care for Henry and he just wasn’t as likable as the other heroes of the past. Terriermon was pretty cool and he was the best from the three Digimon. He always knew when it was time to win and he could definitely hold his own in a fight. He was pretty cool and never backed down from a fight. That’s something that I won’t forget! Terriermon may have thought he was tougher than he actually was, but the idea that he could win is the important part.

Ryo is a tamer who came into the show during the final episodes. This guy was more experienced than the original three tamers combined and he was also the most skilled. Not even Rika could defeat him in the card game as he became the Digimon King. Ryo uses Cyberdramon and together they make a pretty deadly combination. He’s the best character in the show and it’s easy to see why. He basically takes the whole thing in stride and acts like how Tai probably would have if he were here. He also gets a pretty intense Mega form as well. He was a solid addition to the team and it makes me wish that he had come around a little sooner. This guy could have definitely used some more screen time. His Digimon partner is also pretty cool and he’s always ready for a fight. He reminds me of Black War Greymon and that’s definitely a good thing.

After those characters, there were other kids who tried to help in the ultimate fight against the villains. Jeri was a classmate of Takato and she used to be a pretty chipper character. After a traumatic event happens, she becomes sad and shuts herself off from the world for essentially the rest of the series. It can get a little tiring as she makes things a lot tougher for the heroes and was not strong enough to give the D Reaper a good fight. She definitely has the most traumatic history from the main characters, but I’m pretty sure that Tai or Davis would have tried to do something about it. There may not be anything that can be done, but they would still find a way. If Takato can turn a piece of paper into a Digimon, there is always hope.

We also have Kenta and Kazu who are basically around…to be around. They don’t really add anything to the show and there isn’t much of a point to really have them around. They provide the playful banter and try to keep the atmosphere light, but it’s not a very significant job. Kenta is the guy that Kazu messes around with a lot, but they’re still good friends deep down. Kenta gets his own Digimon by the end of the series, but he doesn’t really try to fight the D Reaper anyway. The Digimon is usually there for support and epicness. Kazu is more of a leader and aside from the fact that he was scared along with Kenta when Takato got a Digimon, he’s more of a decent character. I can’t really say that I care for him overall, but he’s a decent fighter. He tries his best and that’s what counts in the end I suppose. He ends up with a pretty weak Digimon which limits his fighting capabilities.

Suzie also gets a decent role as she helps to remind the other kids that they’re not the only ones who can put up a good fight. That being said, she is far too young to be a Digidestined and I don’t think that she should have been chosen. More often than not, she’s just a hindrance in battle and she really has no idea on how to fight. She’s not quite as motivated as the others and she doesn’t really realize the gravity of the situation. I think that she would make a wonderful Tamer if they had just let her train for a few more years.

Alice is a mysterious figure who appears during the final episodes of the series. She comes in with Dobermon to save the heroes and let them unlock their full potential. After saving them, she left and vanished back to where she had come from. She is shrouded in mystery and it would be interesting to get an OVA about her adventures and what happened along the way. Could it be that she’s stronger than she lets on? She seemed to be pretty experienced as she fought alongside Dobermon against D Reaper agents.

Yamaki is the leader of the Government squad that is dedicated to defeating Digimon once and for all. He starts out as one of the big villains who wants to defeat Digimon no matter what and he uses very extreme methods to get the job done. He was essentially another Light Yagami who thought that what he was doing was right. Luckily he turned over a new leaf and realized that Digimon can actually be pretty cool. Unfortunately his character development is arguably crushed in the final episode and makes him do a complete 360 which changes his character a lot. He’s a pretty fun character to watch and he tends to get the better of whoever he is talking too, but he also loses a lot. It’s a win/lose situation and you’ll either like him or you won’t.

One of the worst characters in the show is definitely Janyu. Janyu tries to get away from the whole Digimon business, but he’s quickly drawn back in and forced to make the “tough” calls. He chooses to make the call that banishes some people to another world from which they have no hope of returning. It’s supposed to be Heroic, but I couldn’t agree with the move at all and it just made him look like the next big villain. I had to take a few steps back myself as I realized the dire consequences of it all. Janyu is definitely not a character to look forward too and I didn’t like him even before the big decision.

Shibumi is another character that you can write off as an unlikable fellow. He talks a really good game and he is able to travel between worlds with ease which makes him look pretty cool. Unfortunately, those stunts don’t tend to impress me and I have to say that he could have looked better. He was purposely vague for a lot of the show and he knew a lot more about Digimon than he should have. It just wasn’t right!

Impmon is one of the bigger characters in the series and he has a lot of hardcore moments. He is another character who starts off as a villain and then sees the light. He wasn’t completely evil at first, but power quickly consumed him and brought him over to the dark side. While he was evil, Impmon had a pretty big fight with Gallantmon and he showed that he was one of the strongest Digimon in the Digital World. Once he turned good, Impmon continued to gain new abilities and he could defeat just about anyone. He was a pretty fun character to have around and he was one of the best members of the supporting cast.

Calumon is around for the majority of the series and he’s not someone to be trifled with. He is pretty oblivious to everything around him and he just liked to have fun. He is able to outsmart Mega Level Digimon which is a pretty good feat, but he’s not really any good in a fight. I don’t really mind the character, but he doesn’t really add anything to the show either. He’s just around.

Leomon is around, but he never really got the chance to be likable in this show. He put up a pretty good fight as per usual, but it was still hard to take him seriously. He’s only a Champion level, but he’s always hyped to such incredible levels that it’s a little scary. He really shouldn’t stand a chance against such powerful competition. He’s not an awful character, but not a really likable one either.

The D Reaper is the final boss of the series and he’s a being of unimaginable power. Some have said that he may even be a Universe Buster depending on how deeply you look at the episodes. While I’m not sure about that, he’s definitely a force to be reckoned with. The D Reaper is essentially a giant blob of goop that consumes everything that it touches. That doesn’t really sound impressive at first because you can just keep on blasting it while avoiding the goop. The Chunk could probably outrun the goop and that’s saying something! Well, the D Reaper is far more than just a giant blob of goop. The D Reaper has many forms and it can assimilate Digimon and use their abilities.

The D Reaper has a bunch of puppet creatures that it can shoot out to overwhelm weaker Digimon and it even has Sentries that can deal with Mega level Digimon. Justimon had a tough time and he was only fighting one of them! The D Reaper assimilated Jerry and created an evil clone of her that should not be underestimated by any means. Finally, the D Reaper also showed off its master form and it’s huge! That’s not necessarily a good thing, but it looked pretty cool and that’s what counts. It was a solid way to show off its power. The D Reaper may not really have much of a personality as it just wants to delete and find out the meaning of emotion, but it was a decent final boss. Beelzemon may have been a better final boss, but this was a way for Humans and Digimon to team up!

The Animation in this series was a large step up from the previous seasons. I’m not sure why, but the animation was just big improvement and also looks better than season 4’s animation. This one felt a lot more modern and like it could be a 2000’s anime while the others were more dated. The animation boost also meant that we could finally have some hand to hand fights like Gallantmon vs Beelzemon. That was definitely a big bonus and helped the season big time.

The Soundtrack is also top notch. I didn’t think that it would be possible to top season one’s themes, but this season managed to pull it off. The Digivolution theme is really intense and one of the best themes out there. The Biomerge theme isn’t that good, but it can be overlooked since the other forms were all pretty intense. The show used a lot of the same music as the 90’s Avengers show which was pretty interesting and very nostalgic. That’s how you win the fans over!

Continuity wise, you can make a lot of cases for the show. Personally, I would say that it takes place during or after Season 2. Basically, the fact that everyone could basically have a Digimon was a threat to the status quo so the Government decided to get rid of them. It’s pretty dark, but they must have tried to eradicate the Digidestined as well. I doubt that they would succeed so I like to think that Tai and friends are duking it out in another part of the Digital World. At least we know that Omnimon is okay so that’s a start. I would have liked some cameos from the first two seasons, but maybe next time.

Digimon Adventure has been my favorite season for a long time, but it has finally been surpassed. Digimon Tamers is just That good. It’s pretty different from the first season as its a lot darker and there’s more drama. The characters don’t take things in stride as much as the original main characters, but they’re decent in their own right. The show didn’t suffer from any bad insert songs like Season 2 and we got more high speed action. The animation also gave it a bit of an edge.

If I had to name a negative for the show, it would be the amount of drama. During the D Reaper arc, they definitely add a lot of it and it can be a little overdone. The series was actually similar to the first two seasons in tone during the earlier part of the series with the first few Devas. Things got more emotional once they went into the Digital World and during the D Reaper part. The Tamers also don’t look good since they actually give up at certain points and seem to lose their drive to win. The show could have used a little of the light atmosphere from the first two seasons during the climax with the D Reaper. The Tamers lacked the strength of heart and the determination that the older generations had and it would have helped a lot in the climax. Still, aside from some of the characters and the drama, there really isn’t much to negatives to mention in this show. There is a rushed romance between Rika and Takato that doesn’t really go anywhere and is just there for the lolz, but you can ignore it. You may not even count it since it’s only a few lines on it.

Overall this was a pretty solid show and actually one of the all time greats. In the end, it actually managed to surpass the original two seasons. That was pretty impressive and this show is well rounded. It is pretty good to great in all areas and there aren’t really many negatives about the show. I recommend it to people who like to see some good action, watch a 90’s feeling anime, or just like Digimon and Pokemon. You won’t regret it and the soundtrack/animation also make it worth your while. I wonder if Season 4 can match up to this one.

Overall 8/10

Heroman Review

Posted on December 22, 2013 by dreager1

Heroman is an interesting anime for many reasons including the fact that Stan (The Man) Lee had a lot to do with it. It was his big jump from comics to the manga world (Along with Ultimo) and it’s interesting to see his take on anime. Stan even makes a few appearences in the show and he can usually be seen at the coffee shop. That being said, will this be the next Spider Man or the next Spider Ham?

Well, the series has quite a few different story arcs even though its only 26 episodes. Joey Jones is your average school kid who gets bullied by the brother of one of his friends. His other friend is the tough guy who tries to protect him and that’s the inner cast for the first episode. The plot begins right away so the bullies are taken out of the picture pretty quickly. The brother (aka Will) gets a big role, but his friends fade into obscurity except for Nick. Joey finds a pretty neat toy and as he starts to fix it, a lightning bolt strikes the toy and grants it unimaginable power! He decides to call the toy Heroman and he gets an electronic glove which lets him give orders to Heroman and also comes with other perks that make Joey a true fighter.

Joey doesn’t have a lot of time to celebrate about this because Earth is attacked by an alien race known as the Skrugg. The Skrugg don’t have a great defense, but there is strength in numbers and they are able to fire compressed air which can rip a hole through a building. It’ll be hard to resist as you watch Heroman take them all down, but you should not underestimate these opponents. The government is basically overwhelmed in a short amount of time and it becomes painfully evident that Heroman is humanity’s last hope. Can he defeat Kogorr and the alien race or is he doomed to die? Meanwhile, Will believes that he can take down the Skrugg without any help!

The next arc deals with the government as they hire Agent Hughes to find out exactly what Heroman is and to take him down! That’s essentially what he is aiming to do at any rate as he puts Joey, Psi, and the Professor on the run. Did I mention Psi yet? He’s the tough guy who helps Joey, but an unfortunate accident put him on crutches and now things are dicey for him, but at least he has a hovering skateboard. This arc had a lot more tension than the previous one and while the action died down and essentially vanished, it was a pretty fun arc.

We had some mini adventures after that like an island arc and Will returning. It all led up to the ultimate showdown where the Skrugg decide to take down the planet…starting with The President. This time Heroman may not be enough to stop the Skrugg, but if he cannot….then who can!? Joey and friends will be there to back him up and that’ll just have to be enough this time.

Let’s talk about Joey Jones. He’s the main character of the show and he’s a pretty likable character. From the start of the show, you can already tell that he’s a pretty nice kid. He quickly makes a play for the toy robot once its discarded and it ends up paying off big time! He always looks out for his friends and he tries to save the world and help people whenever possible. There’s really nothing wrong with Joey and that’s why he’s a really solid character. He doesn’t really have any character flaws, but he’s still not perfect. It’s not that he does something wrong, but it’s what he hasn’t done. I could have used a little more rebellion against the government when they tried to frame him. With his super speed at the ready, Joey is more than a match for any government lackey that opposes him. Still, it’ll be tough to find a main character as heroic as Joey in a modern anime. Joey can’t fight for the beginning of the series as he uses his glove to give Heroman commands, but he finds out that it also grants him super speed and the ability to make powerful barriers. Joey quickly becomes a dangerous force with this weapon at his side.

We’ve also got Psy who is definitely one of the main characters, but he’s not very likable. He has a bit of a tragic back story and things didn’t always go his way, but it’s still hard to root for him. He looks really bad when the team went to find the Professor and he tends to get in Joey’s way during the fights. Professor Denton is also a pretty underwhelming character as he’s just there to get Joey into trouble. He doesn’t show his intelligence off that often and half of the time you can’t even take him seriously. He gets captured more than once and usually it ends up being his fault. He even ditched Joey and Psy once because they wouldn’t go with him on a crazy adventure!

Lina is Joey’s childhood friend and they go to the same school which is convenient for them. Will and her father don’t want Lina to hang out with Joey, but she realizes that he’s a true hero. Unfortunately, she can be a little gullible and has a fight with Joey because Will told her “his side” of the story that Joey neglected to tell her. That part was a little annoying and made you take a step back, but aside from that, Lina was a perfectly reasonable character. I dare say that she is one of the better main heroines, but that is largely up for debate as I’ve definitely seen better. (Rukia, Tokiko, Akiza are some examples of cool heroines.)

I should probably mention HerrrrrroMan! In the show they tend to really drag out the pronunciation of the word so I felt that I should do the same when I type his name. On the other hand, that would get old fast so I’ll go back to normal for now. Heroman’s origin is really sketchy and will stretch your imagination a little bit. I don’t mind that electricity turned him alive somehow, but how did that also materialize an electronic glove on Joey? How did it give Heroman super forms and a personality as well as the ability to become pure lightning? That must have been a really powerful bolt of lightning! Well, we shouldn’t dwell on it, but it will definitely give you something to think about. Heroman isn’t an incredibly likable character because his personality isn’t easy to cheer on. He doesn’t talk and he always has a really blank/mean expression on his face. He can fight to an extent, but his hand to hand skills are really sloppy and Joey has to bail him out with some quick commands. Heroman’s design is also pretty off putting which isn’t his fault, but it limits his abilities. In a hand to hand fight, he lacks the speed to finish off the smaller foes and he’s not good at long range for most of the series. He is pretty tough since he can use Burst Mode and a number of other techniques, but he’s not very likable. He also likes to brag and make an O shape sometimes for the thrills. He’s not the sharpest tool in the shed, but he always gives it his all and that’s what counts. (Heroman did have one rage moment when Joey got injured so I’ll give him props for that)

Will is one of the antagonists of the series. He may have good intentions at times, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that he’s your average bully. He also gives way to the dark power for a while and he becomes completely unreasonable during the later half of the show. He only backs down when he’s captured and is in no position to really do anything anymore. He is decently quick and the show gives him a lot of props since he’s constantly able to outfight Heroman, but I never really bought that. It just made Heroman look weak as opposed to making Will look tough. He is a lot cooler in the second half of the show design wise, but overall he’s not a character that will really get better through the course of this show. Perhaps Will will become a better character in a sequel show if this series ever gets one.

Will had a friend by the name of Nick, but he was even worse than Will. This guy had no strength of heart and his willpower is just sad. One could argue that he was already inherently evil and I wouldn’t really be able to disagree. He doesn’t get to appear for long which is a good thing, but at least he got some backstory. Joey had a sister by the name of Holly, but she didn’t really add anything to the show either. We got a very last minute history for the family as we got to see Joey’s parents and some character development but it wasn’t needed. Holly likes to mess with Joey a lot, but in the end it’s just playful fun. (Although Joey and Psy really overdo it with the acting sometimes) Joey’s grandma is also around a lot, but she never really realizes when anything is happening.

The government is definitely around and even the President gets involved! He was a decent character and he stayed firm as the White House started to be destroyed. With the aliens at his doorstep, he was still ordering his underlings to inform him on what was happening. For the most part, all of the government duties are actually carried out by Agent Hughes. Agent Hughes goes undercover at Joey’s Coffee Shop (It’s not his, but he does all of the serving) and digs up some info on Heroman. After that, he does a 180 and proceeds to try and annihilate Joey and friends for the betterment of society. Officially, he was just trying to take them alive, but bombs usually end up destroying the target! He’s supposed to be a pretty likable character by the end, but he looks so bad for the most of it. He caused Joey and the others a lot of trouble so it was hard to let him off the leash. (He was a lot like Rossiu although not quite that bad) I liked him a lot at first, but he went steadily downhill from there and the ending couldn’t really save him.

I barely even want to take about Dr Minami. He was really annoying and I couldn’t take him seriously at all. He was one of the end arc bosses in the show, but he’s just a human with a machine. Does he really believe that he could actually defeat someone as powerful as Heroman? The series actually ends on an epic note with an after type of scene, but because it involves Minami, I really can’t take it seriously. The President should have known that he was fishy.

Finally, Gogorr is the leader of the Skrugg. His abilities are in a league of their own and they can’t be compared to the average Skrugg. His speed is what makes Gogorr so deadly and he was completely destroying Heroman when they fought originally. Not even Joey’s barrier was a match for his power and Gogorr proved to be an intriguing opponent. He looked his best during his first big fight against the heroes and it’s the way that you should probably remember him. He was a little on the generic side as far as master villains go, but he had a cool design and he was a threat. In the end, I can’t really ask for any more from a villain. (We do have to ignore that he begs for his life towards the end of the first climax) An honorable mention for cool villain will go to the plant monster that was kind of alive through artificial intelligence.

The show had a pretty decent soundtrack. The music score is pretty limited so you will be listening to the same music themes a lot over the course of the series, but they’re decently fun. I found a handful of themes that I liked and they did introduce one new theme during the final few episodes of the series. It may not be 5 star material as far as soundtracks go, but it’ll definitely be enough to satisfy me in this area. The animation for the show is also pretty good and I’d say that it’s around average. Considering that it’s a modern anime, it doesn’t look spectacular, but it does have its moments. Whenever there is a scene with lightning, then it’ll typically look pretty good. I believe that the animation would look even better, but they seemed to have a bit of trouble animating fight scenes. It may be due to the character designs of the Skrugg and Heroman, but they didn’t really mesh well with the art. The humans looked pretty good which is why I think this. Again, the animation is definitely not bad, but it’s not great either. This isn’t exactly Bleach or Index, but it’s good enough.

Overall, Heroman is a pretty fun series to watch. It’s pretty lighthearted and it feels like more of a day to day adventure than most other shows. They manage to squeeze in a lot of things during this series and it has a good amount of replay value considering its size. It’s basically the definition of how a good anime should be as it’s about average in all categories, but more towards the positive side than the negative side. This won’t become one of your favorite anime, but you won’t dislike it either as you’ll either remember it as a good anime or just forget it because of its averageness. You should like this anime if you’re a fan of robot action, like alien invasions, or just want a cheery story about a kid and his adventures. There really isn’t much of a reason to dislike this show unless you go in with very high expectations or expecting the wrong thing. I definitely recommend this anime! (Oh yeah, Stan (The Man) Lee also gets to appear. He’s a reoccurring character as he’s always at the coffee shop asking for more coffee and acting a little loopy. He’s not a very likable character, but he’s Stan Lee so he’s still pretty awesome. It’s cool to see him in an anime!)

Overall 7/10

Street Fighter X Tekken Review

Posted on December 21, 2013 by dreager1

Street Fighter X Tekken got a lot of hype when the game was first announced. Two of the biggest fighting series in the world would be fighting it out on the big screen! Who could resist such an awesome game in theory right? Well, it was a little underwhelming in certain aspects of the game, but the gameplay lives up and that’s the important thing….right!?

Well, let’s go back to the amazing hype before the game came out for a little longer. They actually released cinematic episodes to increase the hype and boy were they awesome. I could barely believe my eyes as I saw Ryu getting completely annihilated by Kazuya and also had to take a step back when Bison challenged Jin. I could finally see all of the big Tekken vs Street Fighter matches that fans had been dreaming about for years and it was in movie format. The cinematic episodes had pretty awesome animation and it was a perfect way to hype up the game although it was a bit of a mixed bag.

The flip side of this was that it hinted at a story mode that wouldn’t actually happen in the game. It’s not uncommon for Capcom to do this since we’ve also got Marvel vs Capcom 3 in that regard, but it can still be sad. If you have enough money to make such awesome cutscenes, why not form a story line around them? (Smash Bros 3DS could also learn a thing or two from that, although there is still hope) Still, it can be forgiven since it’s still awesome to have cutscenes to watch on Youtube. What can’t really be forgiven is the extremely lazy Arcade Mode.

When you have a two vs two battle system, then you should unlock both endings in one shot or at least one ending. In this game, unless you are the correct pairings that the game wants you to be, you are basically toast. That was pretty disappointing since it’s sad to play through an Arcade Mode and not be rewarded with any cool cutscenes. There also isn’t a theatre mode which makes you wonder what the point of playing Arcade Mode is in the first place. You can only watch the cutscenes when you replay Arcade Mode and that can get old fast. That was a pretty big negative for the game, but I guess that means that I’ll just need to ditch Arcade Mode and focus on the other choices.

One thing that you’ll be able to appreciate is the fact that the game is pretty difficult. Mission Mode is insanely hard and you’ll really want to have a lot of Street Fighter knowledge before you begin the battles that will change everything. Trial Mode is also pretty tricky if you’re not familiar with the correct buttons to use in Street Fighter. They do a bad job of translating the symbols into the PS3 controller scheme. Since every character has a lot of trials, there should still be plenty for you to do and it’ll keep you busy for a while.

The most important part of a game is always the gameplay so….how did this one fare? I’d say that it’s essentially Street Fighter style, but a little quicker like the Capcom Vs games. It’s fun to see how the Tekken characters fare in SF style and they’re pretty cool. This game also has the Pandora mode which sacrifices your life so that your partner can gain unimaginable power! It’s not a technique that I recommend since it’s highly risky, but the payoff can be pretty good as well. 2 on 2 is always fun because you can use team combos and use strategy to plan on how to fight your opponents. Switching out is the key to success!

The soundtrack is pretty forgettable, but it’s all right. While you’re fighting, the soundtrack will seem to be pretty good. You just won’t have any recollection of it once you are done playing. The stages are all right, but they seem to be lacking in variety. They aren’t exactly the next Tatsunoko vs Capcom in that regard.

The character roster is pretty good as well although this leads to a negative. First of all, it’s awesome to see Pac Man and the truly original Mega Man back in action. These guys practically invented the gaming industry and to see them in a modern fighting game brings tears to my eyes. It’s pretty disappointing that Pac Man uses a robot to fight in this version, but I guess that we can’t win them all. Cole MacGrath is also present in the game and his thunder abilities can be pretty fun to use.

The problem is the fact that a lot of the characters who are on the screen can’t even be used. You have to buy them as a DLC pack and that’s pretty disappointing. On disc DLC is even worse than regular DLC because you have to see them every time that you head to a character select menu. They shouldn’t be on the disc if you have to actually buy them.

Not counting the cinematic episodes, the graphics are only decently good. I’d say that Tekken 6 actually looked better in pure animation as this one just seems a little grainy or unfocused. There’s something about the game that just doesn’t look right and I intend to find out what it is! Considering that it’s a pretty modern PS3 game, the graphics definitely don’t impress me and I believe that they could have put more of an effort into that. Graphics aren’t immensely important, but it’s still fun to have good graphics.

Overall, this is a pretty good fighting game as long as you are getting it as a fighting game. You can’t really expect anything from the Arcade Mode and Trial Mode isn’t very interesting. Mission Mode is insanely hard, but definitely fun to play until you defeat the opponents. In pure gameplay, the game is a lot of fun and you’re bound to love it. Air combos are still epic and your tag combos can come in handy as well. The best part is still the fact that you can go online and challenge opponents to ultimate battles of skill and precision!

Overall 8/10

Avengers and The Infinity Gauntlet Review

Posted on December 19, 2013 by dreager1

The Infinity Gauntlet is one of Marvel’s most popular arcs and it’s a very legendary series. Thanos got to show off his true power and we saw that Cyclops was a force to be reckoned with. Remakes are rarely as good as the original and this comic is no exception, but could it still be a pretty fun comic in the end?

Well, the plot is virtually the same as the original story arc and Thanos has whisked away half of the population. One key difference is the fact that the people have disappeared, but they don’t really say that they died. Invisible Woman decides to send a squad of fully prepared heroes to deal with the situation which includes Spiderman, Hulk, Ms Marvel, Dr Doom, and Wolverine. This gang of heroes is ready for anything, but will they be a match for someone like Thanos!?

It’s a fun adventure in its own right, but since it is called The Infinity Gauntlet, there was bound to be a lot of pressure on the comic right away. Seeing Spiderman and friend take on Thanos is always fun, but the comic uses large amounts of comic relief in every scene which can get old very quickly. Dr Doom is forced to make the heroes sandwiches!! (Albeit there is a plot twist about Dr Doom, but considering the nature of the plot twist, technically it doesn’t really make a difference) Spiderman is constantly mocking everyone the whole time which is cool, but he also mocks himself at some points. He doesn’t even put up any resistance as he lets Thanos win without a fight. The Hulk is pretty annoying since he seems to be less smart than he used to be…and that’s saying something! The driver of the ship that they are using isn’t really a great character either.

The worst part of the comic is definitely when they head into the gasoline shop to refuel the ship and they get to meet the guy’s parents. They’re pretty mean to him and make the heroes look pretty bad. The comic really felt like filler and they didn’t really need to add a new group of villains did they?

The art for the comic was pretty underwhelming and was slightly worse than expected. The characters look off model on a number of occasions and there are virtually no fights. That may not be the art’s fault, but fight scenes can make the art look better at times. This one had no chance to show off any great scenes with art, but they likely wouldn’t have been that great considering how skilled the artist was.

The collection may sound pretty negative at this point, but it wasn’t without its positives as well. One of those positives is that we got a lot of cameos from various heroes and villains as they tried to keep the peace on Earth. The main character cast featured several cool heroes even if their portrayal may not have been spot on. There wasn’t much action, but Thanos still looked pretty good during the fights for the most part. He was maybe a little too scared when Dr Doom attempted to take him down for the count, but we can try to overlook this. The comic doesn’t really drag on as its pretty short and that’s the important thing..just having fun while reading the adventure!

While that’s great and all, it’s still cool that the collection also brings the original Infinity Gauntlet..or the first issue of the series at any rate. The issue completely blew the remake away and it felt like a true Marvel comic. Thanos is a lot more intense in this version and the art is leagues ahead. Everything about the comic felt like true quality and Spiderman got a lot more respect in this version. He seemed like a selfless hero which is basically what he used to be before the current age. Even Captain America was pretty intense as he realized the gravity of the situation. Silver Surfer may have been a little too hysterical, but he always was a dramatic character. The issue just felt like a solid prelude to the series and had the epicness that the miniseries just couldn’t muster. There was a random subplot with these three guys who were driving along, but we can ignore that one for now. The characters are unlikable, but we don’t have to see them for very long.

Overall, this is a pretty solid collection. The Infinity Gauntlet issue was a lot better than the new version and helped to save the day, but the new version wasn’t awful. It was a lighter twist on the classic story and it was still entertaining. I just could have used a little less comic relief and a little more action along with some better art if possible. This is still one of the better Marvel Adventures, but I dare say that Batman’s Brave and The Bold comics are still superior. I recommend this comic if you read the original Infinity Gauntlet or just feel like reading a story that brings together all of Marvel’s greatest heroes…or at least a few of them. (Of course, you may just want to skip to JLA vs Avengers!)

Overall 7/10

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