Thunder Birdo vs The BioLizard

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Suggested by Destroyer Thunder Birdo has a cool name and all but I don’t think he is quite ready to take down someone like the BioLizard. This monster was able to take on two super powered hedgehogs like it was nothing. The amount of strength and endurance this monster has cannot be overstated. Birdo can shoot dozens of blasts and it just won’t be enough to deal any actual damage. The rift in power between these two fighters is absolutely night and day. Perhaps Thunder Birdo will get a solid win soon but that time isn’t now. BioLizard wins.

Tetsuya Kurodake vs Asmodai

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Suggested by Sonic Asmodai may be a talented monster with quite a few forms up his sleeve but he isn’t quite ready to handle someone like Tetsuya. Tetsuya has an Asmodai of his own along with a bunch of other monsters and spells at the ready. Together with these forces I don’t expect Tetsuya to go down easy or at all really. He has every combat advantage you could possibly ask for. Asmodai would need to work some serious magic to try and win this fight. Tetsuya wins.

Nui Harime vs Jiren

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Suggested by Random Nui Harime is a fairly strong fighter and one who is unconventional as well. Jiren may not quite understand her abilities at first and he probably wouldn’t care to find out either. In the end, all he will care about is securing the win and that’s exactly what he is going to do. A quick energy blast should take care of that. Jiren wins.

Ben Hur

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Ben Hur is definitely a film that I’m sure just about everyone has heard of at some point or another. It definitely became very well known as a film taking place during the crucifixion but seen through the eyes of a Roman centurion. It’s a pretty different take and in this case it is not the main plot.

The main focus of the story is on Ben Hur and Messala. They used to be friends for many years. That all changed when Messala became a high ranking official for Rome. He began to obsess over proving himself to the empire and wanted Ben to help him find the Jews who were not complying with his laws. When Ben refused they became enemies. Unfortunately Ben’s sister accidentally puts Messala’s superior in a coma which gives Messala a good excuse to imprison them. Ben is sent to a ship where he will spend his life. Can he ever get off?

Well, most of you know this story from the horse race so you can probably guess where the story goes from there. At its core Ben Hur is really a revenge story as he tries to take Messala down once and for all. The horse race is definitely quite long and intense, so fans of that kind of sport will enjoy it. I’ve never cared for horse racing because whipping them is just barbaric. They made a point to show that Ben doesn’t hit his horse at least, but you’ll definitely feel bad for the other horses. At least none of them were seriously injured or anything during the race which was good. Definitely a very tense moment throughout.

After the big climax it’s fair to say that the film slows down quite a lot. While parts of the climax are needed like Jesus appearing again and meeting Ben Hur, we could have done without the subplot of Hur’s sister and mother becoming lepers. At least shortening some of their scenes or something. The film also shows how Ben starts to go down the same dark path as Messala after a while which fortunately concludes with him not going that far but it does make the lead hard to root for at times.

Watching the film will definitely remind you of how tough things were back then. The Jews were enslaved by the Romans for a very long time and throughout history they were always being attacked or invaded by other groups. It’s easy to see why in this film a lot of them have given up on waiting for God to avenge them or to settle things diplomatically and just want to attack. It’s certainly the easiest option but not always the right one. The two don’t have to be mutually exclusive as there have been many cases throughout history where fighting the oppressors is the right thing to do. You just have to look at each individual situation.

The film does its best to show Messala as being more than a one note villain. He’s not insane at all and his goals do make sense. From his perspective, Ben is essentially aiding terrorists instead of his long time friend. Naturally this betrayal stings and he isn’t the kind of guy to allow a slight to go unpunished. Of course he is evil as made evident throughout the film so don’t mistake understanding his goals for actually justifying them. He’s an entertaining character who is always fun to have on screen and makes for a compelling villain. He certainly gave Ben a good fight although it’s clear that Ben was more skilled as he won despite several disadvantages.

The scenery definitely appears to be accurate to what the land must have looked like back in the day. There definitely weren’t a bunch of shiny skyscrapers or anything like that in these days. It was just a lot of desert and stone surrounding the area. The designs for the chariots and the horses were on point as well. I do have to say that if the building tiles were so fragile back in the day then I’m glad we found a better system. Clearly the tiles breaking is a rare occurrence as the main characters would have been more prepared otherwise, but definitely still not a risk you want to have.

Ben Hur isn’t a pleasant film to watch, but it’s certainly a long one and a film that has really gone down in history as being iconic. It’s probably one of the first ever revenge stories to really hit it big. If you take away the Biblical aspects of the film then it would certainly fall quite a bit, but with that part of history included it certainly makes this film a lot more legitimate. If you are interested in seeing more of this point in history from a fresh perspective then it makes sense to watch this film. Be sure to take a break during the intermission though as otherwise it will definitely feel like a very long adventure.

Exar Kun vs Bass

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Exar Kun is skilled with the Force, but that doesn’t make him a match for Bass. Bass has speed at an unmatched level and his destructive power isn’t far behind. It’s fair to say that Exar Kun won’t even be able to last a minute against such an unbelievable foe. It’s unfortunate, but at the same time it is rather expected. Bass is just that powerful and it’s why he has never lost a match on the blog. Bass wins.

Suki vs Train

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Suki is a skilled fighter and one who should not be underestimated in close quarters combat. However, Train is an expert martial artist as well so we shouldn’t overlook that. He has the massive speed advantage here and his Railgun also gives him the edge in long range as well. When pit against such an overwhelming opponent I just don’t see what Suki can do to stay in the fight. She is simply outmatched here. Train wins.

Asta vs Bass

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Asta is a strong fighter and his sword is certainly very useful, but I don’t think that will be enough to stop a foe as mighty as Bass. Bass is simply on a whole other level compared to Asta and the fight would be over before the kid could even lift his sword. It’s unfortunate that Asta is not yet at a level high enough to give Bass a proper fight, but few are. Bass wins.

Beyblade Review

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Beyblade is a pretty iconic franchise and one that has gotten quite a few tv shows and manga over the years. I probably still have it ranked as the biggest anime franchise that I haven’t jumped into yet next to maybe pretty cure. It’s definitely a fun series with quite a lot of tournaments and matches going on. It’s not a particularly long manga but one that makes the most of its 14 volumes. Definitely a title that lived up to the hype.

The series follows a kid named Tyson as he journeys to become the greatest Beyblade player ever. The game of Beyblade has become incredibly popular across the planet because of how it made top spinning fun again. Of course the road to being the best won’t be easy and Tyson makes plenty of rivals along the way. There are also villains who plan to use the tops for their own nefarious plans. Looks like it’s time for the heroes to let it rip!

As you can probably guess, there are a bunch of tournaments over the course of the Beyblade series. Everyone wants to be the best after all so it makes sense that you have to win a lot to stay at the top. While some of the tournaments have 1 on 1 battles, Most of the series is about team tournaments. The main characters actually had a pretty stacked roster for a while since Tyson was with all of his rivals. Of course, the villains were also quite powerful. One of the more serious arcs involved a kid who tried to destroy everyone’s Beyblade to prove to his father that he was a strong fighter. That arc had a cheesy ending, but actual villains which was certainly hype. Surprisingly the later volumes played it straight with the tournaments, but of course that works for me.

The final arc of the series is…you guessed it! A huge tournament. Naturally this was the perfect way to end things off as Tyson got to fight with all of his rivals one last time. They all got new metals from the sponsor to make them even stronger as well. He seems rather shifty the whole time but in the end it turns out that he was just a normal guy. During the whole arc I was waiting for the inevitable twist that the guy was evil but surprisingly nothing like that happened. The tournament went on without a hitch. We even got a private battle between Tyson and Kai before it was over. I always like seeing two of the fighters go at it before it’s technically their turn to fight. It builds up the suspense. A good example of this is Lan vs Chaud in the NT Warrior anime as they fought in the streets. It’s especially good if you know that the final fight is not going to end or if it’s going to be interrupted somehow. Unfortunately this is the case for Beyblade.

While it’s not something that would affect the score of the series in the slightest, the ending did leave much to be desired. The final fight doesn’t actually get to happen and it just feels rushed in general. I’m cool with it ending abruptly but only after a winner is chosen. I think it’s safe to say that Tyson would have won here but I still wanted to actually see it. Stretching the series out to 20 volumes would have done wonders for it as 14 just feels too short. It’s all over in the blink of an eye. At least that shows how solid it is.

Meanwhile the series does something interesting with the bonus chapters at the end of each volume. Usually they are just comedic stories for most titles, but in Beyblade they are used to give development to Daichi. At first you just wonder why this kid is getting so much screen time but by the end you realize that it was all deserved. It leads to him showing up in the main series and made his appearance feel more like a crossover than just an ordinary new character. For the past volume we got a big time skip which is certainly a trope that many titles like to use. The only problem is that once again the fight was off screen instead of being shown. Off screen fights are one of the worst things that you can do so it should be avoided at all costs.

As Tyson is the main character I’ll talk about him first. He is definitely a solid lead who is always ready for a good fight. He knows that a good offense will take you far and is always trying to make his top faster. Tyson always makes sure to have fun while he plays as well and never loses sight of that. If someone tries to stop him from a match whether it be friend or foe. The scene where he tied up Daichi was definitely fun and challenging Kai before their match was also the right move. Tyson just has that enthusiasm and intensity that you want to see from a main character. He never backs down from a challenge.

Then we’ve got Daichi who is the main character of the backup stories and a supporting character in the main series. I was actually worried at first that he was going to beat Tyson but fortunately that was not the case. While I prefer Tyson to Daichi, both are still quality characters. Daichi really improved a lot considering that he didn’t have much to work with. His origin story was also the most grim while being surreal at the same time. His father gets crushed by a rock but with his dying breath urges Daichi to take up his Beyblade and fight. Considering that he is being crushed to death while still alive, the father took it in stride. Well he would be proud that Daichi ended up being one of the best players in the world.

Then we have Kai who is the big rival of the series. He’s definitely an all star beyblader as well and really forces Tyson to keep on improving to match his pace. While you never really get the impression that he can beat Tyson, that doesn’t take away from his character. He still talks tough at every corner and can match Tyson yell for yell. Depending on how you interpret the ending maybe you can even say that he is the world champ although I would call that a stretch. Kai is always a step ahead of all the other rivals and the fact that he was able to learn Tyson’s ultimate attack so easily is pretty impressive.

Max is one of Tyson’s many rivals, but I could never take him quite as seriously as Kai. I guess I should say now that none of them were ever all that serious in comparison but maybe I’m setting the bar too high. As it stands, Max does have a pretty good defense so I suppose that I should acknowledge him as a good fighter. His defensive playstyle makes him a good counter to Tyson and he did make it very far in the tournament. Certainly farther than you may have expected.

Then there is Ray. He is another strong fighter who wants to be the champ. He does let the allure of power get to him quite a bit though as in his final fight you can barely even recognize the character. He only cares about winning, but fortunately Tyson snapped him out of it. Ray is skilled though and I may take him in a fight against Max. I’m sure it would be a close fight though.

We’ve also got Kenny who is the brains of the operation. Unfortunately he isn’t very good at the actual game though and you know how I feel about characters like that. It’s great that Tyson has someone around who can fix his top, but Kenny should really focus on improving his own skills first and foremost. That is ultimately how he will improve.

There are a bunch of other supporting characters of course, but I won’t really go into the rest. For some it’s because they’re too minor and for others it’s because its been a long time since I read the earlier volumes so I don’t remember them quite as well. As a result the series will have pretty good replay value if I ever read it again. One consistency that I always remember is how fun the series is though. Each volume had great pacing and never let up. It’s very easy to just pick up and read. There aren’t really any negatives to speak of here.

The art is rather standard but that doesn’t mean it’s bad at all. It’s not an elite title of anything like that but it is easy to follow the action. The character designs are on point as well. You can feel the intensity behind every play even if it never gets quite as exaggerated as in the TV show. I’m sure many people didn’t think a manga about tops could be this exciting but it just goes to show that anything is possible when tournaments are involved.

Overall, Beyblade is definitely a great manga. It is one of those timeless classics that has just aged very well. You can’t help but get really excited while reading it. It’s easy to see why it became such a big sensation over the years and I look forward to seeing how the sequel stacks up. If you haven’t checked this manga out yet then I would definitely recommend fixing that. This is one title that you don’t want to miss.

Overall 8/10

Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: The Flash Review

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It’s time to look at one of the newest Lego films around! DC has had a pretty good track record with their Lego adventures and are certainly leading the pack. This is because their specials actually have some pretty solid action scenes to go along with the good one liners. I dare say that DC has taken Legos to the peak of where they can reach and this one continues their roll. It still has some competition ahead of it for being the best DC specials, but I would put this one up there as probably top 3. Flash makes for a great main character and always makes the right moves.

The story starts with the Justice League trying to fend off an attack from the Joker. Unfortunately for them they are getting creamed. Flash should have been there to help, but he was busy enjoying a donut with a milkshake. Truly that is an underrated combo if you ask me. Still, he manages to save the day anyway, but then a mysterious being known as the Reverse Flash shows up. Flash chases him, but finds himself back to the start of the day. This keeps on happening and it seems like Flash is stuck in a time loop. In order to get out he will have to move even faster, but what if doing this ends up wrecking reality itself!? Only one way to find out!

I’m always up for a good time travel story. Nowadays this usually goes hand in hand with the Flash and his story arcs. Flashpoint is probably the most well known Flash event of all time and then the TV show also likes to casually mess around with the past and the future. It makes for good story arcs that open up a lot of moral questions like should you change the past or simply ignore it. Typically they go for the worst possible moral though and that is that the past shouldn’t be altered. Fortunately, it’s safe to say that this special doesn’t really go there at all. The trope can be especially annoying when the villain changed the past first and the hero still isn’t able to go back and correct it. A bit off topic though so lets get back to the adventure.

I do like how Flash handled the situation though. He kept on going after the Reverse Flash because he knew that one day he would surpass his limits. Even though Batman kept telling him to wait Flash would go anyway. The montage showed that he probably tries this at least 50 times. Imagine living through the same day that many times and not going crazy. Flash really kept it together and in the end he made the right move since Batman’s great advice was simply to say “Run faster.” That’s really the best advice that Batman’s got? Flash was able to do it of course, but after Batman’s constant “Wait” moments I was expecting something else. Still, Flash was easily the best character here and that’s not easy to do in a special where Batman and Superman are present.

In the other plot we have Reverse Flash proving to the world that he is a better hero than the normal Flash. Instead of trying to join the League or anything like that he spends his time trying to prove that they aren’t needed anymore. With the speed at which he solves crimes it may even appear to be true. If he were a legitimate hero then he would have a mild point, but of course he would run out of energy at some point so the league would have to step in again. It’s fun how he makes everyone look pretty petty at times like when the League was caught eaves dropping on him. Batman saved the situation from being a tragedy, but it still was not their greatest moment. Ah well, they did their best.

As far as the Justice League goes, they were all in character. Batman and Superman were a great contrast to each other as you would expect. Superman was super cheerful and would try being nice to Flash while Batman would just give him the tough facts. Wonder Woman was more of a mediator and Cyborg was busy messing everything up like usual. Likewise with Plasticman but to a greater extent. The new member of the group who got a lot of screen time was the Atom. If they wanted him to look terrible than they succeeded.

Considering that he is a new recruit the guy seems to have a considerable ego. He complains quite a lot and you have to repeatedly wonder how he actually got on the team. The guy definitely doesn’t seem like he belongs, but I guess that’s just one of those mysteries that you have to think about for a little while. He gets a subplot of his own where he tries to contact the league while he’s tiny and it’s a treacherous journey for him. I’d like to say that it helped him get likable by the end but not really. At this rate the new recruits are all going to keep on losing out.

I will say that the first half of the special does beat the latter though. I enjoyed the Groundhog shenanigans from the beginning as Flash kept trying to stop his evil doppelganger. His route to the trouble involving all of the food and villain arrests were fun as well. The movie accurately shows just how overpowered the Flash should be and since it’s part comedy they are actually able to pull this off instead of totally nerfing him. That’s not to say that the second half is bad, but Dr. Fate singalongs just don’t have the same appeal you know? It was definitely a radically different take on him, but at least it had personality. Dr. Fate usually doesn’t actually do much except get in everyone’s way. I do feel bad for Zatanna though since her training seems like it will take a very long time to actually get anywhere.

There’s not much to say about the animation that hasn’t been said before. It’s Lego animation so it’s pretty much the same every time. I’m not a huge fan of it, but it looks well enough and at this point it’s pretty polished. The action scenes are still solid as I mentioned earlier and they did a good job with the speed animations. As far as I’m concerned, they put in the proper amount of effort there. There isn’t much of a noticeable soundtrack here so it’s a few steps behind some of the others, but the sound effects are good and what music we do get tends to be solid as well.

The writing is on point which is always very important for a film like this one. The humor is actually good as opposed to just being obnoxious or annoying. Well, those two things are kind of the same I guess. Either way, the writing really understands the characters here. Cyborg and Atom are annoying, but it’s not necessarily the humor that makes them annoying, but the characters and I wouldn’t hold that against the writing since I’m pretty sure that it’s intentional. It may not be laugh out loud funny (Almost nothing is) but it works pretty well and the sarcastic wit from the heroes is part of the charm behind the Legos.

Overall, The Flash is a solid movie and one that I would certainly recommend. Whether you are a fan of Lego adventures or comic book films this is one title that you don’t want to miss. It really pulls out all of the stops and each act of the film feels like a complete film. Honestly the first act alone could have worked as the whole movie and I would have been satisfied. It’s a long 70ish minutes, but not in a bad way. They manage to squeeze a lot of content in there so I’d say that it’s actually very fast paced. There really isn’t anything majorly negative to say about the film and that’s how you know that it’s quite solid.

Overall 8/10

Knuckles vs DK

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Suggested by Super Dark Shadow. DK is a powerhouse who has always been known as one of the stronger Mario characters. I can’t really argue that to be honest since his physical power is actually pretty scary. That being said, I definitely think Knuckles could take him on. Knuckles is strong as well and in his most powerful forms he is also quite fast. Knuckles would have DK down in a few hits guaranteed. This Kong just isn’t strong enough to stop him. Knuckles wins.