Category Archives: Reviews

Soul Calibur V Review

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Soul Calibur has always been a cool fighting series. There is a lot more sword fighting than other fighting series. (Street Fighter, Tekken, Virtua Fighter, etc) I’ve always been a big fan of swords and I think that it’s a cooler way of fighting. Prior to this game, I’d only owned Soul Calibur II. (Link FTW!) Could this game continue the epic legacy?

Well, this game has an actual story mode, which was a great addition. The game is 20 chapters long which is like playing Arcade Mode three times. That’s not too bad and the game took me 2:30 to complete. Of course, that’s counting the good ole days of Vs. Mode and ranking up in Quick Battle mode. This game feels really modern which is something that I’ve always liked about PS3. The games always seem to be much higher tech than the other consoles. I mean, just look at MVC3, FFXIII-2, Bakugan, etc. They all have really vibrant colors and the gameplay is nice and fluid.

One interesting thing about Story Mode is that the game takes place several years after the last few games. So, you will recognize some of the characters, but they’re definitely older than we remember. The story mode follows Patroklos (The son of Sophita) as he journeys to find his sister, Pyrrha. He realizes that the man he was serving had just been using him to further his own ends. Patroklos escapes and finds the Soul Calibur. Unfortunately, his sister has turned into a Malfested. Can Patroklos save her, or will he have to make the “Ultimate Sacrifice!”. While you play as Patroklos for most of the levels, Pyrrha is also playable for a couple of battles. Her lines are pretty unique when she wins and you may not even be able to tell that she just won. Her Malfested form is pretty cool and helped the series to get to new heights in terms of power. Nightmare is also epic, even though he’s currently using a decently unlikable character. I dare say that Nightmare’s design grows more and more epic as the games go on.

Aside from the story mode, there are a lot of other modes to play. We have the Legendary Souls mode. It’s essentially a Boss Battle mode and while it may be pretty quick, these guys have a lot of skill. I wouldn’t underestimate them if I were you! We’ve also got the traditional Quick Battle mode which will help you with trophies and give a nice boost to your record.

Let’s not forget about the realm of online gaming! You can challenge others and improve your online record. Unlike Brawl, your record in Wifi is public and you won’t be forgetting that anytime soon. It adds more incentive to the battles and really makes you give it your all. Just watch out for Rage Quitters!

The Trophies for this game aren’t outrageous and you should be able to get most of them in no time. This game has a lot of replay value and the battle style never gets old. Not everyone will agree that it beats Tekken and SF, but I’d say that it does. There are so many ways to approach a fight and it’s fun using your tactics. Ezio is the guest character in this game, but I can’t say that he’s nearly as fun as Link was.

One thing that I should definitely mention is the Character Customizer. Soul Calibur is known to have the best one and I’ve seen people make characters that resemble Link, Mario, and even Bass EXE! I’m definitely going to give that a shot at some point and it sounds fun. You could almost buy the game for this reason alone. Think of it as a console version of Mugen! There’s no end to the possibilities and it’s definitely fun to play around with.

The character roster may not be huge in this game, but it’s big enough. 28 is a solid number and then we have the custom characters which increases it by a lot. The stage count is also impressive and I’m glad that they added a solid number of them. Having a good amount of stages is nearly as important as having a lot of characters so that we get variety.

Overall, this is a solid game that is definitely worth your money. The game brings a whole new level of excitement to the franchise and you will feel every blow. There is enough content here so that you can keep playing it for a long time. Getting to level 99 is a long, but not tedious journey. I’ll be eagerly awaiting the next installment in the series and I hope that it comes soon.

Overall 8/10

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Review

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Final Fantasy is a legendary video game series and you can expect that every game in the franchise will turn out to be very good. From all of the (main, aka numbered) games that I’ve played, I can say that they’re all Great. Not just good or very good, but great! Final Fantasy XIII was a solid game and I dare say that it may even beat FFVII. Could the sequel be as good, since Lightning is no longer the main character?

Well, the game starts off with one of the greatest cutscenes of all time! I dare say that it Is the greatest cutscene of all time. Lightning and Caius have an epic (Quicktime) battle where buildings are being destroyed and Valhalla is on the brink of ruin. Not only was I thrilled to see a really cool villain, (The first major threat since Sephiroth) but the series was definitely getting more climatic. This was the perfect way to start off the game and you got to play as Lightning. who’s far superior to Serah

How did Lightning become a warrior of Valhalla? Well, since she made the ultimate sacrifice in FFXIII, it makes sense that Etro would want her to be the leader. Considering how powerful Caius and his army of monsters are, it’s good that Lightning is there. It’s also nice to see the monsters from the first game, take on Caius’s army. It was definitely intense. Interrupting this battle is Noel, who falls from the sky. After seeing how useless he was in the fight, Lightning just ditches him in a portal and proceeds to fight. Unfortunately, the plot continues from Noel’s point of view.

This Is a Final Fantasy game, so I’m not going to take the time to explain everything. The plot would take many paragraphs and it’s something that you should experience firsthand. That being said, I will talk a little more about the plot since that was all just the (Epic) protloge.

After her resurrection from FFXIII, Serah is now at a peaceful village with some minor characters from the first game. She’s now a teacher and she works to make the world a better place. Lightning’s Moogle can become a Bow and Arrow which Serah uses to defend herself. The world is pretty crazy and aliens appear out of nowhere. It would seem as if the world was ending! Noel comes to help, but he just adds more questions to the mix.

Serah and Noel must travel across time and space so that they can undo the evils that Caius has wrought. The time stream is very dilluted and things are happening that shouldn’t have. Along the way Hope decides to go to sleep for 500 years in a time travel test. I just figured that I’d throw that out there since the original FFXIII characters don’t really do anything in this game. They travel to many worlds and see futures as they may have been. They also get to travel to the past, the only weird part is…Lightning is gone! She’s not in the past anymore and she’s not in any of the futures. Caius must have done something!

The climax of the game is definitely awesome and is one of the best in Video Game History! Caius makes for a perfect villain and he basically embodies darkness itself. Plus, if he has truly destroyed Lightning…can anyone defeat him? Odin…..let’s just say that he went up against the wrong Bahamut!

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The game only took around 21 hours, but it will feel like a lot more. That’s definitely in a good way and you experience a lot of plot. Throughout the game you will have traveled to dozens of planets and I recommend trying out the Chocobo races. There are many weapons to get and once you have the Ultima, you’ll be good to go. Choosing what battle formations to use can be a critical part of the game.

The gameplay is pretty good and basically plays out like the first game. This time you only have two humans at a time, but you get a monster to help out as well. The leveling up system is definitely intense and you can get up to level 600! I got Serah and Noel to around level 305 before I completed the game. Getting level ups isn’t very hard so you won’t need to worry about that. There are fragments to be found throughout the game and they do pay off. You can buy items for a lower cost and get more EXP per battle. Who wouldn’t want to get those fragments!?

There is a Lot to do in this game once you complete it, so you may find yourself playing this game for many hours once you have finished it. It sounds like a lot of fun and once I’ve finished most of the games in my backlog, I may go back to finish it all. The game’s a lot of fun and the gameplay never gets old, so why not right?

The music in this game is also very good. The theme against the minions is a cool rock song for some of the battles and the climax is filled with a lot of good songs. The last song is pretty great because it’s very emotional and fits the ending. The ending is also a spectacular ending and one that should be put in the record books. Not only does one of the two main heroes die, but there’s an after credits scene. Let’s just say that one of the characters didn’t have a change of heart!

I’m psyched for the sequel because there’s a lot of potential. The remaining hero seems to have turned into a villain and it may be time for Lightning to become the hero once again. The next game is called “Lightning Returns” after all! Serah and Noel were decent heroes, but I am definitely ready for a new lead. Aside from Lightning, Noel, and Caius, the rest of the cast wasn’t extremely interesting. The monsters were epic, but none of the human characters were really cool. I don’t really mind since they can be ignored for most of the game.

I should also mention the graphics. I doubt this will surprise anyone, but the graphics are some of the best that I’ve ever seen in a game. Imagine the Advent Chidren film, but in 2013 and set in an apocalyptic time. The intro reminded me of Cloud’s fight against Sephiroth and it was definitely similar. Another hero against a hero who turned into a villain. There are definitely a lot of parallels in the games.

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I highly recommend getting this game. It’s one of the best games I’ve played and it has passed Kingdom Hearts II for my favorite RPG of all time. This is one game that you definitely will not want to miss. You don’t even need to get the original game first since this one works as a stand alone, but you will appreciate the cameos more if you do get the first one. This game definitely increases the danger and epicness of the game and is the best Final Fantasy game to date. I’m not sure if the final game in the trilogy can possibly top this one, but it is Final Fantasy, so I won’t deny that it has a chance. When a game has the best intro, one of the best endings, and possibly the greatest after credits scene, how can you not buy it!?

Overall 9/10

Avengers The Complete Collection Volume 1 Review

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The Avengers have gone through many lineup changes and have had dozens of different comic series. This was the beginning of the Geoff Johns run. Since he did such a great job with Green Lantern, this meant great things for Avengers right? Well, I can safely say that it’s one of the better Avenger comics that I’ve read although it does start to lose some steam in the middle.

I’d say that the book is basically divided into three parts. The first chunk of the book deals with the In Betweener. He’s been separated into two while Yellow Jacket and Wasp have been taken to another dimension by a powerful villain with a key. Let’s just say that Yellow Jacket never stood a chance. The Avengers are pretty bewildered in the real world as they can’t keep up with all of the disturbances. They’re going to have to go to the other dimension and stop Scorpio!

The In Betweener doesn’t make things easy for the heroes since he doesn’t want to become one being again. The Avengers are powerful, but most of their heavy hitters aren’t around and things look dire. The In Betweener is actually stronger than I would have guessed, but the Avengers get one last chance as Thor appears to take him on. There are also alien creatures that make for good cannon fodder against the heroes.

This arc had a lot of action and it was a nice way to start the trade paperback. Iron Man even helped to make sure that the economy was doing all right. There’s some tension between the Jack of All Hearts and Scott Lang, which continues through the book. It was a decent subplot, but I can’t say that I like either character very much.

There is a miniseries about the Vision, which is the only part of the book that I didn’t really enjoy. Why’d they have to make his origin so complex? There is a villain in the story, but the whole thing is slowed down by all of the dialogue. Not to mention that the Vision isn’t a very compelling character to read about. He’s become a better character in recent years, but not in those days. The miniseries really felt like filler and while it wasn’t awful, it was a step down.

Things get exciting again for the final arc. Thor is now King of Asgard and he makes for a good ruler. On Earth, some of his worshipers are destroyed and Thor decides to avenge them. Balder and friends are hesitant at first, but later on they start to goad Thor into fighting. It was a pretty big personality shift, but I was glad that they were eager to fight. The only complication is that while Thor is protecting his friends…he’s defeating the villains! Obviously the government won’t stand for that and they tell Iron Man that he must stop Thor…or they’ll do it by force!

Even Iron Man knows that you don’t want to get the government mad. (Dr Doom’s threats didn’t help matters either) Iron Man goes to confront Thor and I was definitely not rooting for him. Villains getting diplomatic immunity eh? I never really bought that! Heroes are above such things, but I’ll go more into that later. Iron Man uses the Destroyer armor to challenge Thor and Captain America shows up as well.

It’s safe to say that Thor was definitely going to defeat them in the end, but they did give him a decent fight. The Avengers definitely did not seem very heroic this time and it was a somber way to end the comic. Black Panther’s also not really high on Stark’s buddy list at the moment. The Jack of Hearts is about ready to blow up and Scott Lang is more miserable than ever. Can the Avengers survive this!? At least there’s a nice cliffhanger for the next volume right?

Back to the villain’s immunity thing, should it matter? Let’s get into the situation a little deeper, Thor stepped in because a corrupt government was murdering the citizens for the thrills. They were essentially enslaving them and acting like Nazi’s. The governments can’t stop them because it’s happening in another country and they don’t want to start a war. That’s fine, since the government never gets anything done in the comics, but the Heroes shouldn’t stand for that. Superman ended World War II once because he felt like it. The Avengers should have come in and stopped these guys years ago. At least Thor did something about it, but the Avengers were quick to turn against him. I don’t really think the Avengers should defend these guys.

Sure, the villains shouldn’t be murdered, but they should be taken to prison. They can’t just leave things at the status quo, what about human rights? Dr Doom mentions that he may have stepped in, but then the Avengers should just go up against him as well. Sometimes (A lot of the time in the modern comics…) the Avengers seem to believe that obeying the government laws is more important than being a hero. Being a Hero means making the tough choices, which sometimes means going against the government. So, this comic had a mixed up moral in my opinion, but the actual fight was still epic. This was one of the few times where Iron Man and Thor had a serious fight and I’d say that it’s their best match. It’s not incredible lopsided and the art makes everything feel even cooler.

This is definitely a comic that I recommend. The art is excellent and this was definitely during the prime of the Marvel Universe. (In art at least) The villains are pretty tough and the book was a page turner. The dialogue was also strong and never bored me. (Aside from the Vision series) Once again, Aside from the Vision mini series, there wasn’t really anything wrong with this collection. All Avenger fans should check this out and people who love epic battle scenes. It’s a complete comic and a way to get into the Marvel Universe.

Overall 8/10

Lost in Shadow Review

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Lost in Shadow is a unique game that came out for the Wii. I can’t say that I had ever heard of it before I went to Gamestop. When I saw the game, (With such a great price) I knew that I needed to buy it. Everyone had been talking about Limbo being awesome and this looked similar….so why not!? I’m definitely glad that I ended up buying this one.

Lost in Shadow has an epic beginning which may leave room for interpretation. Here’s the plot, (As best as I can describe it) a kid is kidnapped and when he wakes up, his body is gone. His shadow is all that’s left of him and now he needs to find it. It would seem that his body has been taken to the top of a really huge tower. The shadow must be careful, he may not be a physical being, but..THE SHADOW BEAST is lurking around! There are also a lot of other monsters and obstacles that he must be on the lookout for. Not to mention that the being who kidnapped him may still be around.

The plot is definitely intriguing and plays like a horror game. Along the way to the top, you find the memories of other kids who died. Each memory makes you stronger and your health increases. There is a leveling up system in the game, but it’s less prevalent than in most. It’s very easy to level up and each level up is pretty drastic. By the end of the game, you’ll be completely outclassing your opponents. (In the final boss, my health would always be full thanks to the minions) You should probably go and collect all of the 90 memories. Something cool may happen if you do…! I did’t, so I don’t know what the bonus is, but it’s probably worth it. I may go back and do that at some point.

The gameplay is fun and it’s like Mario. Not exactly the same and you do have the option of attacking. I’d say that it’s like a mix of Drawn To Life and Mario. Story mode is decently long and you’ll probably be playing the game for a while. Getting a game over is pretty rare and you really don’t want to die. If you die, then you resume the game as another kid and the previous “you” is added to the total of dead people. It may take a little time to get used to playing in the shadows at first, but you get the hang of it.

Towards the end of the game, you also get to experience the “Light world”. Instead of being a shadow, you become a being of pure light. It’s the only way to exist in the real world without your body and it’s fun. The game turns into a 3D platformer during this part and it can be a nice change of pace.

Time to go into one negative. It’s not a big deal, but the game is pretty easy. There are only 2-3 bosses through the game, but none of them will really pose a threat. You health bar is just wayyyy too big and you don’t need much of a strategy to defeat the enemies. Just keep on swinging your sword and the enemy will go down quickly. The Final Boss is a little different, but you will defeat him easily enough. The minions are constantly re spawning so you can just beat them (In one hit btw) and you’ll gain back most of your health in one shot. Games don’t have to be super difficult, (Like Mega Man X) but I think that it should be a little tougher than this. Take Mario (Only the 2D games) or DBZ. I’d never call them difficult games, but some levels could still take a few tries. It’s not a big deal though, since you’ll enjoy the game anyway.

Well, this was definitely a solid Wii game. The Shadow Beast makes for a pretty impressive villain. He even has his own theme going when you fight him…or when you’re running away from him. Towards the end, this fairy appears who can rip holes in reality. (Or the dimension, but impressive eh? That scene came out of nowhere) I think that the game could definitely use a sequel since I would like to see the mysterious knight battle. (And the ending is pretty depressing for the main character) I definitely recommend this game. You’ll have a unique Wii experience and a lot of fun along the way. The game has a good amount of replay value and I should mention that the graphics are pretty solid. They’re excellent during the cutscenes and look like Final Fantasy. Time to go and buy the game folks!

Overall 6/10

Cheetah and the Purrfect Crime Review

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There have been a lot of DC Hero novels, but what about the villains? Well, in response to DC’s villain month, DC took it upon themselves to switch up the books as well. Cheetah is not alone and Catwoman also meets up with her as the book progresses. 2 villains may be a bit much for Batman to handle, but Wonder Woman appears to help him stop the evildoers.

Well, Cheetah is supposed to be the main character in this book, but I’d say that Batman gets around the same amount of screen time. That was a little weird, but the book is only around 50 pages, so it’s tough to juggle all of the characters. Cheetah and Catwoman don’t have much of a plan and seem to just want to have fun. They steal things, but since they can’t really sell them…what are they going to do?

That’s one thing that has always made me chuckle. When villains steal a very rare and priceless artifact, where are they going to sell it. They can’t just go to Ebay and try to give it to the highest bidder. The cops would be on their tail right away. The Black Market sounds like the obvious place to go, but can you truly trust another villain. That doesn’t usually work so well Regardless, they did manage to steal quite a few objects in this book.

Batman quickly gets on their trail, but even with the help of Wonder Woman, the villains manage to escape. I felt bad for the heroes since this must have been one of the biggest embarrassments of their career. Batman’s just lucky that Superman wasn’t around, since he would probably poke fun at the whole thing. Cheetah’s not exactly Doomsday and Catwoman’s no Shadow Dragon. Batman and Wonder Woman don’t really have a good reason for letting the heroes escape and it’s partially off screen to keep things believable.

Overall, this was a pretty book. It was entertaining, which is definitely the important thing. I think that book should have been longer, but since the whole series is short, that’s barely a negative. Cheetah and Catwoman got along a little too well and I would have liked to see them fight a little first. Villains should never team up so easily. This was a pretty fun start to the villain novels and I recommend it for all fans of DC. If you want a rich DC experience, then I may suggest that you first check out the Superman’s pal Jimmy Olsen series.

Overall 6/10

Rear Window Review

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Rear Window is a film by Alfred Hitchcock that came out in 1954. This is pretty big since I’m sure you all know of the big kaiju film that came out at the time. The film has an interesting premise since the main character is in a wheelchair and he won’t be able to go and stop the villain(s?) by force. He’s going to need his wit in order to win this round.

The film begins with Jeff in a wheelchair. We learned that he would take any risks for a good shot and that he wouldn’t be able to walk again for a week. Jeff is definitely not the most heroic of characters and he resorts to staring at people through the window. Somehow, they never seem to notice him. Several people try to stop Jeff from looking out of the window, but he’ll have none of that. Eventually, he notices some suspicious behavior and thinks that someone may have been murdered!

You have to admire the fact that Jeff could piece together such loose evidence and then turn it into a murder. I’m not sure that many people of today’s world would come to the same conclusion so quickly, but since Jeff had nothing to do, but stare out of the window, it was easier for him to notice. A subplot is that Jeff is unhappy with the perfect dinners that his friend always brings him. The subplot is not necessarily about the dinners, but that stuck out the most. How do you not like a “perfect” dinner? I couldn’t really sympathize with the fellow in that regard.

Getting a little more into the character, Jeff is an awful protagonist. You really can’t help, but root against him during the film. Jeff is not a hero and he’s really just trying to help to pass the time…maybe even to get a scoop. Staring at your neighbors is hardly polite and Jeff never learns his lesson. Having such a main character can definitely take away from the experience. Of course, I didn’t really like any of the other characters…….

One thing that takes serious points away from the film is the dog scene. It was definitely unneeded and they should have just switched it for a “Paper lands on flowers and someone crumples it” scene. It would accomplish the same purpose and we could avoid the animal violence. The ending is also not great in that regard.

One solid part of the film is the fact that it actually has a climax. Can Jeff defeat his assailant without being able to walk? He definitely gives it his all, but he definitely doesn’t seem like he will be the next Terminator! Of course, he was basically asking for that to happen when he left his door unlocked.

This film was pretty enjoyable, but it did have its flaws. There is some romance in the film, which gets old fast. The dog scene didn’t help and the main character was pretty awful. I did think the police were pretty good at the end. One of them even took out his gun and he looked like he was going to use it! Hopefully the police check out the owner of the building since he seemed a little shady in the film. If not for the romance and the dog scene, the film would definitely have a higher score. As it is, you’ll probably enjoy it if you like the classic mysteries. If you want a really intense mystery, check out Goku’s fight against Frieza in DBZ, The Namek Saga, which only lasts 5 minutes…..

Overall 4/10

Superman Prankster of Prime Time Review

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You’ve probably already seen some of my other Superman reviews in the past. So far, Superman’s books have been pretty fun and they keep things at a nice pace. The books are very short, but that just makes you wonder how much damage the villain will end up doing. The Prankster isn’t much of a fighter, so can he hold his own book!?

Well, the plot is that the Prankster has his own TV show. The TV Show is about pulling pranks on your friends and it’s supposed to all be in good fun. Has the Prankster turned over a new leaf? Surprisingly, Superman doesn’t give him the benefit of the doubt and thinks that he’s up to no good. Jimmy Olsen goes undercover to find out, (Which is a nice homage to the old comics) but can he get away with this!?

Well, that’s the plot in a nutshell. I’m afraid that Superman doesn’t look so good. Not only was he a little out of character near the beginning, but he was unable to track the signal that Jimmy tried to send him. It was short, but he definitely should have been able to track it. Not to mention that he let a crook get away towards the beginning. With his speed, I don’t think that should ever happen to Superman. Perry White looks pretty good and he makes sure to keep everyone in line.

I will give the book props since they used the Prankster. He’s hardly Superman’s most popular opponent and he’s decently obscure. Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean that he’s actually a good villain. I suppose that you can’t win them all, but this does bring in some hope for other obscure characters. (The Shadow Dragon maybe!?) Let’s just hope that the Prankster can think of some new pranks for his next appearance!

All in all, this was a decent Superman book. It was pretty short as per usual, but there wasn’t a really powerful villain involved. Superman never had to break a sweat and I thought that the ending was a little cheesy. Superman, (Completely in character since he loves to mock the villains back in the classic days) decides to pull a prank on the Prankster, so that he can add humiliation onto defeat. I recommend this book if you’ve always been a big fan of DC or if you just wan’t to read a fun book. Of course, if you want a true Superman book where he gets to fight, check out Superman’s battle against Cyborg Superman!

Overall 6/10

Pitch Black Review

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Pitch Black is the first film that features Riddick (Or Carolyn, depending on how you look at it) as the main character. The poster definitely promises a horror film that will keep you at the edge of your seat. Does this work as a horror film? More importantly, what about those fight scenes!? Find out all of that and more as the review unfolds.

A crew’s spaceship goes through space, but something goes wrong and there is a fatality. It’s definitely a quick way to start the film and I’m sure that not many were expecting the cast to be whittled down so quickly. They crash land on a mysterious planet and quickly gather their bearings. They had been transporting a dangerous prisoner by the name of Riddick. He definitely wasn’t to be trusted, but what would they do with him now? Riddick does make an escape attempt, but things don’t go so well.

Another member of the crew is devoured and then the cast finally realizes the gravity of the situation. They release Riddick and decide that they’ll need to work together in order to get out alive. The plan is simple: They will grab the power cells and use them to launch their solar powered ship out of their and maybe get back to their planet. (Earth…..right?…) Unfortunately, the inhabitants of this planet have ideas of their own.

Well, one thing that makes this film interesting is the use of the 3 Suns planet. Since the planet has 3 suns, the film has a green edge to it. It feels like you’re watching a black and white film, but slathered with a green paint. It was pretty interesting to watch and it was definitely unique. Of course, once the planet gets dark..it stays dark. Riddick is able to see through the dark with his eye, but will that be enough of an edge to survive?

The monsters/aliens in this film are similar to Pterodactyls. They can fly and one good bite could prove to be the end for a human. As far as physical strength goes, they’re about as tough as an average wild animal. Like a Bull for instance, so a human may be able to overpower one of them, but it’s not so simple. Not everyone can use what they’ve learned on paper to keep a Shark’s mouth closed so that he can’t bite them. The aliens are quick and they usually come out during the dark. (I wonder why….)

The cast isn’t very strong in this film, but that tends to be the norm. Carolyn becomes the leader, but it’s more of a “By Default” type of position. “The end justifies the means” seems to be her way of thinking. Towards the end, she has her hero moments, but she did take time to make her decision. I’m not saying that she’s an awful character, but not a great one. Riddick? Well, he’s your average thug villain, who may have the potential for good in him. I don’t know about this, but when he’s properly goaded, he can be tricked into doing the right thing. He’s decently skilled, but not extraordinarily so.

John is another member and well….there is a plot twist about him. He’s pretty unlikable and you could say that he’s the main villain. It’s ironic since Riddick was supposed to be the big villain, but John seems to have less morals and is probably deeper into the side of evil. Does he make it through the film? Erm…..when was the last time, the “jerk” character made it to the end? Not going to say if this guy breaks the trend, but think about it.

Now, disclaimer time! This review is based off of an edited version that I saw, which edited out the language and made the film a TV 14. So, unless you can find an edited version, this film has a Ton of excessive language. The violence can also get pretty graphic, so if you’re squeamish about people being ripped apart and heads getting crunched….you may want to skip on this one. So, if you’re thinking about bringing a kid to watch this…I’d advise against that. Just a fair warning from your epic blogger DReager1!

So, in the end, did this film work as a horror film? Well, I guess we had a couple of “Jump out” moments, but the film had more tension than actual scary scenes. I guess, if you found Jaws scary, then this should fill the bill. There isn’t really romance in this film, but do I recommend it? For those of you who like horror/alien tales, you’ll probably enjoy it, but there are definitely better options out there. If you’re looking for a “deep” plot and some epic dialogue…what are you doing here? This wasn’t exactly a great film and calling it “good” may be a bit of a stretch. I can’t say that it was my favorite, but it’s better than some other horror titles. like Haunting in Connecticut If you want a movie that will chill you to the bone, check out Bleach: Hell Verse!

Overall 3/10

Colombiana Review

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Colombiana is one of those films where the protagonist has a gun and you just know that someone’s going to take his last walk. The poster gives you a Salt/Tomb Raider feel so this could be good news if you enjoyed those films. One thing that didn’t help was the trailer, which I found to be pretty awful personally. The actual movie is better than the trailer, but was it good enough to be considered a good movie?

Cataleya is the main character of the film and some may consider her a Hero. If you consider Light Yagami, The Punisher, or the Superior Spiderman as heroes, then by all means! She would definitely be heroic, but I don’t really consider those guys to be heroes. Goku, Superman……Bionic Bunny! Those guys did their duty and stayed with their morals. Cataleya’s big mission is to avenge her parents and destroy anyone who gets in her way! It will take some time to climb up the mafia list, so she makes a name for herself as she bumps more and more people off.

The plot is pretty basic which is (Almost) always a good thing. This means that the film can spend less time on the plot and more time on the action. There is also a character by the name of Danny. (Hardcore name, but awful character) Saying that he was an awful character is a bit strong, but I definitely did not like him. I don’t know…I just felt that he was a disgrace to such a cool name. Ignoring that guy, there weren’t many subplots in the film. We had the cliched FBI vs CIA fight, (Which never gets old! Honestly, it’s always the best part of the films) I wasn’t really sure who to root for. I guess I would go with the FBI, but they’re always so much weaker for some reason. I wish that this plot would have gotten more screen time, since it was pretty intense.

This film does have a lot of romance which can definitely bring down the movie for you. Cataleya and Danny are already not good characters, so this helps them to be that much worse. Danny tries to be a “tough guy” and even gets some “hardcore” lines. Unfortunately, they don’t make him a more endearing character. Cataleya’s uncle is supposed to be someone that we can possibly root for, but the opening scene already shows that he’s a complete villain. Why root for him? Of course, Cataleya also becomes a villain so I guess everyone’s evil this time. I bet even Danny had a secret agenda.

So, would I recommend this film? Well, the film has some action scenes and one hand to hand fight, but there are also some things that hamper it down. The romance is a bigger subplot than usual and the character cast is astonishingly unlikable. Cataleya’s scene where she spits out the disk is pretty gross and can also be a quick turn off. There’s the usual summer blockbuster violence, but I can’t remember anything that was unthinkably violent or wince worthy. If you’ve seen Jaws or Terminator, then you’ll be okay……if you want a real movie where the main character uses a gun…I don’t know what to tell you. (Maybe when this film gets a sequel, we’ll have something) If you want to watch a show where the main character has a gun, check out Black Cat!

Overall 3/10

Dragon Ball Z Battle of Gods Review

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DBZ has been around for a long time. It has spawned many video games and over 10 movies through the years. The manga had over 20 volumes and people still debate the ole Superman vs Goku battle. (The latter easily wins) The old movies for DBZ have been Very good, (Usually getting a solid 8-9) which definitely amped up the pressure for this film. There had been a lot of hype revolving around Goku’s rumored…Saiyan God Mode! Let’s see how the film did.

Well, the plot of the film is pretty basic. Bills has finally woken up from his slumber and he wants to find the Super Saiyan God and do battle with him. Whis informs him that a Saiyan has defeated Frieza and that most of them are on Earth. Goku is training on King Kai’s planet when Bills pays him a little visit. On Earth, Bulma is celebrating her birthday and the whole cast is basically invited. Chi Chi’s dad looks pretty impressive and he seems to have gotten stronger over the years. His appearance definitely suggests this. (Not to mention that he doesn’t seem worried for most of the film) The Z Fighters are all having fun, but they are told that Bills may be coming!

The plot’s good and all, but when you watch a DBZ film, it’s for the fights! The film has several fights sprinkled through the film. The film is less than 90 minutes so they have to make sure and keep the side characters from having long battles. The animation is pretty solid and definitely one of Toei’s best showings thus far. Before I go more into the fights, let’s take a look into the characters. (Yes, I did imply that I would talk about fights in this paragraph, but I decided to move it to a bit later in the review)
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Goku is the protagonist and he’s pretty solid. There was something a little off about him in this film. He obeyed King Kai a lot more than usual and even hid from the main villain. Granted, Goku was told to hide, but that was pretty sad. Goku does pull the whole, “I can’t defeat you right now,” trick, which I was never a fan of. Goku’s Super Saiyan 3 mode looks awful, but it always was his worst transformation so ignoring the power levels, (Which will Definitely be discussed) it was all right. Goku’s portrayal was definitely better in the older DBZ films, (Particularly Broly, Cooler, Bojack) but it could have been worse. He still beats 100% of the protagonists in any live action film.

Vegeta is in this film (Of course) and he gets a decently large role. Unfortunately, the writers pull a “Broly” on us. Longtime fans will probably get the reference, but I will explain. In the first Broly film, Vegeta was very out of character and feared Broly. He didn’t even try to help until we were nearly at the end of the film. This gets repeated in Battle of Gods, since Vegeta fears Bills’ true power. He knows that if Bills gets upset, then the Earth will be blown up. Realizing that losing his honor is a small price to pay for saving the world, Vegeta throws it all away. It was one of the worst scenes in the film and was definitely sad. The fights are so good that this didn’t take away any points from the film, but it made things closer than they should have been.

The other characters are mostly obsolete. Gohan dons his superhero getup, but he seems to not be as alert as he once was. He decides to challenge Pilaf’s gang, (In a way) which leads to a bullet hitting Videl. The scene was extremely unexpected and also felt very forced. Gohan could easily stop the bullets and quickly catch them after they were deflected, but he didn’t do it in this round.
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This brings me to the Pilaf gang. They were definitely unneeded and they were actually pretty boring. Their subplot didn’t bring anything to the table and can be regarded as filler. They have a plan of their own, but it definitely doesn’t go anywhere. Trunks and Goten are basically here to get beaten up and show how tough Bills is. Piccolo and the other Z Fighters barely even give it a good try. Bulma is present (It is her party after all!) and at least she keeps Bills in line. Unfortunately, bravery is not usually enough to stop a being who can end galaxies in an instant. Master Roshi is basically here for no reason and Shenron looks pretty awful.

We can’t forget about Whis and Bills! I really don’t like Bills as a character and he has far too many comedy moments to be taken seriously. His intro was one of the least epic, villain intros that I’ve seen in a long time and he would have worked better as a Hero. Whis is all right and he likes foods, but the end plot twist didn’t really help him. I don’t like when comic relief characters actually turn out to be extremely powerful. It just doesn’t work like that! I may not like Bills, but I can at least respect his power. Whis? I’m not so sure about his power.

Now, it’s time to finally check out the fight scenes! The first battle scene involves Super Saiyan 3 Goku vs Bills. The fight scene is definitely not as fluid as the others and is easily the worst big fight scene in the film. (“Big” meaning that the Z Fighters and Goten don’t count) Super Saiyan 3 looked astonishingly bad and one would almost be disappointed. I know that I was disappointed in Goku’s performance. Goku has fought enemies like Cell and Buu already. (Frieza was already mentioned in the film and he’s the only one who’s hyped up.) Goku’s hand to hand combat skills are flawless and there’s no way that he would be so outmatched. (2 hits…really?) This was definitely to show how strong Bills was, but it just made Goku look bad.

The next big fight scene would be Vegeta vs Bills. This is where the power levels really start to get dicey. Vegeta is overwhelmed as well, (Since he’s only using Super Saiyan 1. It’s debatable that he was using 2, but I’m skeptical to say the least) but Bills makes the mistake of incurring Vegeta’s wrath. Vegeta lands a couple of solid hits on Bills and he exceeded Goku’s SSJ3 mode. The film really doesn’t want you to miss this, so they make sure to mention it at least 3-5 times. So, even with rage, Vegeta’s Super Saiyan 1 passed Goku’s Super Saiyan 3? Since we know that SSJ3 = 4X Super Saiyan 2 which = 3X Super Saiyan….that’s a reeeeeally big jump. There’s no way that I would ever buy that! The animation for this fight scene was much better than the first and you definitely felt the impact from the blows. It was really short, but that’s a decent price to pay.

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The next/final fight was another Goku vs Bills. This was a long fight and had several stages. The animation is top notch and it’s definitely fun to watch. There was one questionable scene where they looked to be in VGA, (Video Game Animation. Looked a bit like Raging Blast or Ninja Storm) but I like that animation as well. Not nearly the same as anime, but good enough. Goku and Bills actually fought in the city for a while, before going underground and in space. The fight was very fast paced and we even got an insert song, which was fun. Whenever a lyrical song appears during a fight scene, you know that things have gotten to their height in epicness. That part of the fight was easily the best and won’t be forgotten. It felt like the Man of Steel film, but if it were animated and 1000x cooler. The fight was very satisfying and it played a large role in the film’s overall rating. Goku finally unleashed the powers of his Super Saiyan God Mode, which was what many fans had been waiting for. (Although it didn’t play a huge part in the battle. His god status did, but the form didn’t help as much)

This did raise some questions about the morals of such an ability. Is it really a good thing to ascend to the realm of the gods? The same gods who couldn’t even beat Frieza? (King Kai!) This film seems to ignore the fact that the gods in DBZ are actually weak and they hype the power up. With Goku’s (Possibly incomplete since Pan couldn’t help much) God Mode, he definitely puts up a good fight. The only drawback is that Bills is basically toying around with Goku. I dunno, I’m all for “Overpowered” characters, but I just don’t believe that he is so much stronger than Goku. This film definitely tried to prove that he is the absolute strongest DBZ character in existence, but is he?

Back to Goku’s God Mode, (Which is a good super form, but a lot riskier than you may think. The time limit seems to be shorter than fusion and the original Super Saiyan God couldn’t stop the extremely weak inhabitants of Planet Vegeta…just saiyan) he essentially cheated to get it. His power level wasn’t high enough to unlock this mode, so he jumped ahead by siphoning off power from his friends. Goku seems to regret this right away and he only did it so that he could save his friends. He really wanted to beat Bills with his own power, but “borrowed goods”. I’m sure that Goku would have unlocked the powers at some point anyway, but it’s too late now. I think I’m inclined to agree with Goku about the morals of such power, but if it’s the only chance to save his friends, then it is definitely worth it. After using it once, Goku’s natural fighting instincts have memorized the pattern and now Goku is essentially a god. What this means, is that all of his forms have been dramatically increased in power.
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Upon learning this, Goku uses his Super Saiyan abilities. He probably should have gone to SSJ2 and SSJ3, which would have crushed Bills, but perhaps he cannot? It would seem that Goku may not be able to go past SSJ1 anymore, of maybe he was just too weakened. This could be like Gohan’s Mystic Mode, which stopped his natural Super Saiyan transformations. This also means that Goku will probably never use God Mode ever again, since it is now inside of him. Too bad, since it was a pretty solid form, but it is basically a recolor of his SSJ1. (Which is still his best form) There is a plot twist, which can make things tougher for Goku and pals in the future, but I wonder how. If Goku can still use his SSJ3 mode, but infused with God energies, no being in the multiverse should be a threat to him.

I do need to talk about the power levels a little more. We saw that Vegeta’s SSJ1 surpassed Goku’s SSJ3. That was just one moment where it feels like the movie messed up. I believe that Toriyama has forgotten most of the Cell Games and the Majin Buu saga. Bills even mentions that Goku could not defeat Frieza in his current state. He was probably just talking about Goku’s base form, since Super Saiyan could still defeat him, but that’s just wrong. Goku’s base form is far superior to Frieza at this point and it wouldn’t even be a close fight. Their power levels aren’t even close anymore! Also, this movie takes place before Uub appears, which makes things even trickier. How could Uub hurt Goku, when his strength increased so drastically? I think they haven’t thought things through enough and this is why people say that Superman could win. Goku and friends keep getting stronger, but their feats and power levels are extremely inconsistent. I hope that they do a better job with this in the next movie, but that’s why it’s best to just look at the idea behind the scenes and see the feat that was meant to be, but not necessarily present.

In short, this was a solid film. Their were several negatives and inconsistencies, which hurt the film, but the overwhelmingly great fight scenes were enough to keep them at bay. The threat was real and the animation was pretty solid as well. The ending has a nice collaboration of pages from the manga and near the beginning of the film, we get a little Goku vs Frieza scene. Goku also gets to use the classic Kamehameha wave, which looked pretty impressive. No Spirit Bomb this time, but I can’t really say that I missed it. Hercule gets one epic line which reminds us why he’s so epic. I almost wanted him to challenge Bills! This is definitely a solid movie for DBZ fans to watch and it will hopefully convince people that Goku does beat Superman in overall ability. You won’t regret checking this film out!

Overall 9/10