Tag Archives: Action

Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic Review

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This was always one of the most well known Star Wars games. It’s pretty much a living legend and for good reason as it is a very detailed action RPG with a ton of mechanics and a detailed story. I would say it lives up to the hype as I had a blast with it. Get ready for a very difficult final level though, the more you train the better.

The game starts off by introducing us to the main character who has amnesia and is aboard a republic ship that is crashing for some reason. He manages to escape with Carth, a reputable republic soldier. They end up rescuing a Jedi Warrior known as Bastila and the three of them have a very uneasy alliance. The main objective is to stop the Sith and to do that they need to find out how the villains have amassed such an unending army. There has to be foul play at work here but finding the source of that won’t be easy. The only clue they have to go on is something called the Star Forge but what that is remains a mystery.

Right away one of the things I enjoyed about the game is all of the dialogue options. You can constantly act like a jerk, take the nice guy approach, or just go for pure chaos. The dialogue options also have a big impact on the game itself so it’s not like you’re just fluffing out the game length. I ended up not getting to recruit two members to the team because I didn’t say the right things. The ending was also very different because of the route I went. It helps to make the whole experience feel a lot more authentic to me.

The story here is also very long so you can expect to be playing this game for a long while. There is a lot of time for the characters to develop and there are tons of side quests and extra content to play. For the most part I stuck to the main story beats but you could easily add several hours onto the play time if you want to go and explore. It can also be useful for EXP as this is one game where it’s not so easy to grind. Most worlds don’t allow enemies to respawn once you defeat them so you will be stuck after you have defeated them all. I recommend beating as many enemies as you can.

The gameplay is pretty much that of an auto battler where you keep changing the moves as they fight. Think of it like you’re the head coach and the fighters have to do whatever you tell them. I would have liked to actually do the battling myself so that part of the gameplay can be a little weak. The whole “Let the A.I. decide what to do” angle usually isn’t really my thing. That said, I would say the game has a good amount of polish to it so it works out well enough. There is definitely a whole lot of depth to this system as well.

Whenever you level up you get to decide which stats and skills to increase. It’s a bit overwhelming with the amount of options so usually I would do the auto level and just let the computer decide. This can make the end of the game even more difficult so it may be worth researching what the optimal build is. Of course it can be fun to just go with your gut so choose the option that seems like it will be the most enjoyable and you can’t go wrong there.

The graphics really hold up here. I like the designs of the levels and characters. Then the actual combat looks good too and it’s all got a very distinctive style to it. It really holds up while playing this port. I also liked the soundtrack well enough although it doesn’t stand out as it’s mainly the kind of Star Wars themes you’d expect to hear. Perhaps they are iconic but at this point you’ve really heard them all before.

The character cast is one of the biggest strengths here. The main character gets a lot of development and of course because you can decide how he develops then that makes the whole game more interesting too. In fact, your choices even determine how you will fight the final boss which is massive. I had to break out all of the cheese strategies for him including using some rather villainous tactics. Look, this guy was going to keep regenerating all of his health over and over so I had to put a top to that. I succeeded and then ran away a while to regain my strength. The final boss ended up being really long but I won in the end so that’s what counts right?

The game also has some quality of life features that I would highly recommend using. For starters you can save the game anywhere. I highly advise having several backup slots at different points so you don’t get stuck. There is one game breaking bug after all which I got trapped in but fortunately I had a backup save just a few minutes away. In one of the final temples just save a lot because the glitch room is the one where there are two light towers. I can’t say I remember the exact planet though so just keep your guard up.

Then for the final boss, don’t be afraid to just run a lot. It may take a while but you’ll win in the end and that’s what counts. The Star Forge itself is incredibly difficult but one thing you should know is that the enemies actually aren’t endless. After a bunch of waves they do finish so just heal up and save between waves. Eventually you will beat them and can move forward. It had to be one of the most challenging final areas I’ve played through in a long while so it felt nice knocking that one out.

As for the other characters, Carth was one of the big ones. I like how he can’t really trust anyone and always seems like he’s about to pick a fight. The guy may not use the Force but he can defend himself and knows how to fight. He was responsible for a lot of the great banter along with Bastila. Bastila is a Jedi who is very by the books so naturally she tends to have a lot of disagreements with the main character since I tend to be more on the impulsive side. I would say the script was always at its best when these 3 were fighting.

Then you also had characters like Canderous the Mandalorian who naturally didn’t get along with Carth due to their respective backstories. Malak also made for a good villain. He perhaps gets a little overshadowed by some of the heroes but he was a very imposing presence all the same. There are a lot of other characters who get big roles here so you’ll want to play the game to see them. The game is also long enough where you really feel like you’ve gone on a full adventure by the end of it.

Overall, This is a great Star Wars game that you don’t want to miss out on. You feel like you were watching a movie here and this could really be adapted for the big screen. It was definitely a lot of fun playing it on the Switch and I can also confirm that it’s the hardest one that I’ve played. An RPG with limited leveling up functionality is definitely not something to take lightly. That said, just fight smart and have a lot of backup saves. You’ll be just fine by the end of it and if you absolutely need to, you’ll be able to go back and level up. Just don’t use up all your saves in the final dungeon because then there really is no way out!

Overall 8/10

MultiVersus Review

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This game got a whole lot of hype when it was first announced. Finally someone was trying to make a true competitor to Super Smash Bros and it was a company that could actually keep up in terms of the big names. Lets face it, no platform fighter will ever beat Super Smash Bros but if you can get a game that’s at least at a high level on the PS4 and Xbox, then you can now get the money from those guys who don’t have a Switch. A lot of attempts have been made in the past but it’s fair to say that this is the best competitor.

So the game is in the free to play style which means that there will be a lot of updates as this will just keep on going from season to season. It can be tough to make time for a free to play game at times because you know in the back of your head that it never ends but this one is very user friendly. You can actually just pop in for 2-3 minutes a day to get your initial win bonus and then head out. You don’t have to spend any money to get all of the characters right now so it’s also a very good currency system.

How it works is you earn gold for leveling up your characters, your player level, and also for playing games. Every day you get 100 coins for your first win and after that it drops to more like 20. You can also give people toast after a match to grant them 20 coins and they can do the same for you. Each character is typically 2500-3000 coins with a rare exception being 1500 sometimes. At the time of this review I’ve unlocked around 5-6 characters but I’ve gotten to play as even more because they switch the character rotation every week. I thought that was a nice touch since it’s like you get a demo as the characters.

Additionally your progression saves which is really cool. So when you do unlock the character someday, you don’t have to start back at level 1 again. That would have been pretty annoying. There are several modes here like 1 on 1, 2 v 2, and free for all. I spend most of my time in 2 v 2 but I do a quick match against a bot to get my 100 coins for the first round. Right now I mainly just do the first match and call it a day but occasionally I’ll play a longer batch.

As this is a fighting game there is really no end to the replay value. There isn’t a real story mode or anything like that yet so this is all about the fighting. That’s why it’s good to have such big characters here because otherwise I think it’s difficult to survive only on the gameplay. The gameplay is really good of course but seeing the characters mix it up online is definitely where the real fun comes in.

The graphics aren’t quite at AAA level like Super Smash Bros but look pretty good for a free to play title. I don’t think the graphics here were really the main focus of the game and that makes sense because the gameplay is absolutely what you need to have on point if you want this to be the next big thing. The soundtrack is really fun though. I love hearing the DCAU Batman theme on his stage when it plays. I’m less familiar with some of the other series on here but having everyone bring in their respective tracks was a superb idea. The only stage that’s annoying is the music stage because they made the speakers so loud. I always have to lower the volume a few dials when this stage gets picked up.

Of course you’ve been waiting for the gameplay part. So right off the bat I can say that it is great, however it is still a full tier below Super Smash Bros. There are no grabs or blocking here so everyone is always attacking 100% of the time. It reminds me of Super Smash Bros 64 where the hit stun is really big so you can land a ton of really crazy combos. There is a ton of lag online so at times you feel like you are warping around. It’s super rare to see lag on any game that isn’t Nintendo so that took me by surprise.

There isn’t a lot of talking in the 2 v2 battles but in 1 vs 1 it’s great to hear the characters banter and say their signature lines. There are even some character specific dialogue options that appear when two characters fight each other like Superman and Batman. The combos feel very satisfying to land and the hit stun for each blow is a big reason as to why. A lot of the other Smash clones couldn’t quite get this across which is why they didn’t work as well if you ask me. You want to feel the power behind each hit and that’s exactly what this game pulls off.

They can probably improve the game even further without changing any of the actual gameplay elements by finetuning some of the hitboxes. Overall I’m very satisfied though. Each match is a lot of fun and it’s great to see all of these character here. I’m sure there are still limits on who they can add but if the game can just get a few more big shot guest stars then that would be fantastic. In the meantime I’ll keep building my coins up. As a free to play player it’s going to be a very long time before I have all of the characters anyway so I’ll be ready.

I like all of the customizations here like putting on your own badge for people to see and the stats that it tracks. I think it’s a big mistake not to capture total play time though. I’m always curious to see that but the stats here are a bit limited. Maybe later on they’ll add some more but I’d be really curious to see how long I’ve been playing by the end. I know it’s definitely been many hours by this point.

Overall, MultiVersus really succeeds at being a true platform fighter that’s unique and does its own thing. There are no items, no final smashes, and not even any real stage hazards. The character roster is strong in its own right and should continue to get even better as the seasons go on. With the amount of players it has I’m sure that it won’t be in any danger any time soon of going away. Makes it easier to spend a lot of time on it since you feel like you’re in a good place doing so. Likewise if you do want to spend some money on the game. The beginner’s pack is not a bad deal as it unlocks all of the characters for you. It’s $40 so it really feels like you’re buying the game at that point and then you go free to play from there. It’s really a tempting offer but in the end I didn’t go for it yet. Meanwhile you should get the Platinum trophy for this one naturally after playing a lot of rounds. None of the trophies are unreasonable, they’re just meant to be a little time consuming.

Overall 8/10

Peppermint Review

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This review is of the TV-14 edited version of the film. All thoughts below should be addressed as such as a review of the unedited version would be more negative

Peppermint is definitely one of those films that is very much a basic thriller. There’s not a whole lot going on here beyond the main character getting her big revenge but that’s exactly what you’re expecting here. The film lives up to the premise it’s advertising so that’s always a good thing. In the end it can be a bit violent as you can guess but ultimately I’d say it’s a fairly decent thriller that holds up well.

The movie starts off with Riley destroying a villain so then we get a flashback to set this up. Her husband was recruited to get into a dangerous gig but he declined the offer. The main problem here is that the news of his declining didn’t make the rounds in time so the mob leader quickly destroys him as well as his family to make a statement. Riley was able to survive the bullet wounds though and after seeing how the justice system was bought out by the crooks, decides to handle this on her own. At the end of the day there is nobody else that she can trust but herself to get the job done here. Now it’s a race to destroy everyone who has wronged her, the courts, the gangsters, etc. She will keep moving forward until she has destroyed her enemies!

There isn’t a very large cast here as most of the villains are bumped off fairly quick. I would say the only important villain here would be the actual leader at the top of the charts. He’s not someone who should be taken too lightly at all. Diego is his name and he actually does a good job of ruling the mob. The guy rules by fear to the point where he murders people just for thinking about betraying him. That’s certainly an effective way to
stay in charge and also prevent more people from getting ideas.

At the end of the day once you get past the fear then he’s just another guy. In fact we even see the mob that owns this mob and it shows how he’s still just a big fish in a small pond. I suppose if we ever get a sequel to this it could be about Riley going after those guys next. The movie really fleshes out the world around it pretty well so there’s a lot you could do after this. To an extent Riley even feels like a bit of an Anti-Hero. We see that she has ended crime in a whole area and is protecting people even outside of her quest for revenge.

She helps a kid by beating up his alcoholic father and just generally makes the world a safer place. Riley isn’t above murdering her opponents of course so she’s not a full hero but definitely a figure that will give the villains some real pause here. They absolutely do not want to mess with her. Riley went off the grid for a few years to hone her fighting abilities and this seems to have really paid off big time. At this point she is able to out fight just about anyone in her way even if they are armed.

Riley is a fun lead character. She goes about her business very directly and doesn’t drag out the deaths or anything like that. She quickly lets them know why she is about to destroy them and then does it. It’s all a very straight forward approach which shows that she means business. Also she did try going through the legal system first. It just didn’t work so she was then forced to seek other avenues which made a lot of sense. Once the mob has bought out the court then it’s clear that justice won’t be coming.

Then we’ve got the main cop Beltran who does well here. He’s definitely not thrilled about getting mixed up with the gang since everyone who messes with them tends to disappear but he does want to see true justice get accomplished and goes past that fear. He also helps the film execute a really solid ending which really helps wrap everything up nicely. A bad ending can really and I mean really hurt for a film like this so getting around that was absolutely crucial. This ending is basically perfect so I was satisfied.

I wouldn’t say there are any big issues with the film either aside from some violence. As a revenge thriller like this you can absolutely bet that people are getting shot and destroyed but by and large it avoids being too excessive about the whole thing. What helps is that we mainly follow Riley as she destroys everyone and don’t get nearly as many scenes of the villains popping each other off. It’s a pretty big distinction because that’s usually when the films tend to get a bit more gratuitous with that.

I also always enjoy the classic trope of one person launching a full war against the entire villain empire. Just give her a few months of training and skills and now nobody can stop Riley. Is it super realistic? Perhaps not but it’s definitely always fun to watch. She also got a whole lot of intel to be able to locate everyone and take them out at the ideal times. Riley didn’t just panic and jump into action but planned everything out carefully and it paid off for her.

Overall, Peppermint is a pretty good film. I dare say it was better than I had been expecting. If you told me that this was a comic book origin story I would have believed you. It’s very much got those Punisher vibes at the ready. The fights are good and there is a lot of room to make a sequel out of this. I would definitely recommend this if you want a pretty intense action thriller. I wonder if revenge thrillers go for one word titles on purpose. Salt, Taken, Peppermint, Faster, etc. Maybe it’s a subliminal message that the film is about to be nonstop action with quick pacing.

Overall 6/10

Dusk Diver 2 Review

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It’s good to have Dusk Diver back in action. I thought the first Dusk Diver was quite a bit of fun even if it was real short. Well this game continues with that action while also being longer so that’s a good thing. In some areas the budget does begin to show itself and I think the game could have masked that more but either way you’ll have a fun time here.

The game starts by explaining that Yang has somehow kept her abilities after the first adventure. Additionally her teammates can still turn into animals at times so clearly some ties to the gates have stayed in place. The heroes have to look into this but in the meantime a mysterious kid has appeared in the other world and the government is starting to act really shady as they create a lot of barriers. When you throw in another faction that wants nothing more than to destroy the world, the heroes know that they are going to be in for a tough time here.

I wouldn’t say the plot itself is amazing compared to the average RPG but there’s enough in here to keep you engaged. It has a bit of a slow start but once the dark diver shows up then the game really starts to cook. I’d say that it also went all out in the climax with the big villains and fights there. You can see all of the potential here and how this would make for a great anime. Throw a solid budget at it and there will be no looking back. There’s still a lot of comparisons you could make here between Yang and Yang from RWBY. Their personalities are different but the similar power set and character design will always be fun to note.

The gameplay is your classic beat em up style. You control one character and try to destroy all of the monsters. Beating all of them allows you to then proceed to the next area so you keep on repeating those steps. You can buy new moves as you earn ability points and you also upgrade your weapons. You can even control how you level up by personally picking the attributes that you want to increase. The max level is higher than 100 so you can expect to go very far here. I made it to around level 100 before beating the game.

My only critique on the gameplay style would be that the enemies have a lot of health so it can feel like they are damage sponges at time. You aren’t in any real danger but beating them can take quite a bit of time. The combat system is rather basic too so you’ll really spend most of your time spamming the same moves over and over again. Not exactly the most explosive gameplay style. I always like beating enemies so it works out well enough but they probably could have done more with this.

The graphics are definitely solid. There aren’t a lot of cinematics here but the ones that we do get are fun. I like the lyrical song that plays when you unleash your final smash during some of the big bosses too and overall I’d say the soundtrack is good. The game succeeds on those technical areas. One odd thing is how the text boxes can’t keep up with the game is in the middle of a cutscene. You have to turn auto off and manually click through or it’ll be as if the characters are constantly cutting each other off.

Throw in a typo or two as well and those are the kind of cracks you don’t see as much in a AAA game. There is a lot of content to go through here though so they didn’t skip out on all the bonus content. I even beat the game without getting a significant amount of the trophies here. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like there is a level select and a lot of the trophies are miscible so I would have to go back to the start anyway. I’m hoping New Game+ at least lets you keep the collectibles so you aren’t completely starting from scratch but I’m not sure exactly how that works.

It does add to the replay value though so you can bet that you will be here for quite a while. This is no longer a game that you can just pick up and complete in a batch or two. My advice when playing is to max out your power right away so you end the battles easier and then save your gems so that you can quickly level up your weapon as soon as you have beaten the chapter. It’s always a good idea to do this since the boost is big. Additionally, make sure you eat food as often as you can and always buy something different. I bought every food dish I could find in the city and it paid off with a ton of extra EXP.

You also get passive stat boosts so there are really no downsides to doing this. You want every advantage that you can get in a fight after all. While the game isn’t super difficult, you can still be given a good run for your money if you aren’t careful. There was a boss or two where I just won with barely any health left. It’s very cheap to buy items though so don’t be afraid to buy a ton of potions and revives. Those always come in handy.

Overall, Dusk Diver was a lot of fun. In some ways I absolutely think they could have done more with it and I really zoom in on this because my expectations for the series are quite high. The concept is just so good and I always like this kind of gameplay after all and the characters are fun so right off the bat that’s a lot of advantages for this title. With more of a budget I think they can take this to the next level but we’ll see if they do that for a 3rd game. The new concepts and characters were all fun to see. There’s a lot more you can do with this world as well now that it has gotten so much development and build up. Especially since you could say this game ends on an even more open note than the first. There’s no reason why the series would have to end when you take that into consideration. If you want to play through an action title with a lot of combat then this should be right up your alley.

Overall 8/10

Secret Reverse Review

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It’s always fun to see a manga creator make a story with the superheroes. This one’s sorta a manga but sorta a comic so I had to choose carefully what category to put it in. Ultimately I went with a comic since it does read left to right and it’s all in color. It’s a pretty fun story with a good amount of action and the artwork is naturally very high quality. Ultimately there’s a lot to like here and it would be cool if we could get a sequel or more stories in this continuity.

The story starts with Ironman heading to a big video game convention. It’s not really his thing as he prefers tech expos but he was invited and a big deal is that Kaioh has something which will change the industry forever. It’s an invention similar to Duel Monsters which makes solidified holograms with unlimited potential. Ironman is intrigued but unfortunately something has caused Kaioh to go crazy with power. Ironman will have to team up with the spectacular Spiderman in order to stop him. But is there someone pulling the strings behind Kaioh?

It’s fortunate that Spiderman was around to help because this probably would have been difficult for any one hero. Kaioh’s tech has a lot of versatility to it but for the most part he uses it like Doc Ock. He has the tendrils behind him to back him up during the fight and since they’re hologram based they can keep on changing. It makes for some really flashy battles and if this was a long running series instead of a oneshot, I suspect we would have seen a lot more monsters summoned.

Kaioh cracks pretty quickly so I wouldn’t say that I was a fan of the guy at all. He has no great ambitions and is pretty shortsighted with how he’s thinking about things. He has a cool design and is really smart but at the end of the day he lacks strength of will. The name is a nice homage to Kaiba but he lacks that guy’s cool points. If this had been allowed to be a true crossover and Kaiba was around I suppose they would have had to drastically change the plot.

Spiderman looks good here as he’s an experienced pro who gets the job done. The author does a good job of giving both Peter Parker and Spider-Man their due respect here. He’s not quite in the adult phase yet but you can tell that he’s no beginner. He gets his share of good quips and moments as well in there. Then you have Ironman who’s more of the main character here and he looks really good.

As Tony Stark he did well in bearing with the pain to hold onto the card for a full minute. That was impressive and he was able to stay in control so he didn’t attack any innocent civilians with his blast. Then as Ironman he quickly gets the job done with his attacks. This was a solid pair to choose for the two superheroes without a doubt. There are also some original characters here like Kaioh’s daughter but there isn’t really a lot of time for that. She was brave in getting the heroes to arrive and trying to talk him down though.

Then you have the actual alien and I thought the design here was really good. As for the being’s overall plans, it probably could have handled things a bit better. Shouldn’t you keep the tech on the downlow until you have everything in place? Showing it off at an expo just seems like you’re courting disaster here. That was his biggest undoing so I guess overconfidence got him in the end.

This is a oneshot so there’s no big cliffhanger or anything like that but that could have been a fun way to end things. Have different stories with each hero fighting more of these creatures which would eventually tie into some kind of big event. Or maybe you could do the reverse next time and have some Yugioh characters going up against a Marvel villain. That may even be a more interesting turn of events although it’ll be difficult to pick a villain strong enough to give those duelists a run for their money.

The art was really good as I mentioned earlier so the whole adventure really ends in the blink of an eye. It’s why we need more superhero stories like this with a manga touch to them. There are countless heroes and villains to choose from and all kinds of fun adventures to put them in. Hopefully this one ended up doing really well so we can get more of them.

Overall, Secret Reverse is a fun story. It’s a very direct superhero story with two heroes taking down the villain. Feels like a classic Marvel Team Up issue. Whether you’re a fan of the comics or just want to see an alternate reality of Yugioh in a way, then this is the title to check out. I do think Yami Yugi would make for a really solid hero if he was ever transported to Marvel/DC. There are tons of ways he could use his monsters for justice.

Overall 7/10

Sakamoto Days

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It’s time to start another big Jump title. This one’s got a clear premise with a lot of appeal from the jump and the execution’s been solid. The action/comedy angle works with a fairly strong main character cast. I’ll have a review for the series once it’s finished but I like to think that won’t be for quite a while yet.

Overall 7/10

Samaritan Review

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It’s always nice to have another superhero film around. The more the merrier I say and this one’s fairly good. It feels a little low in stakes for the most part so it’s very much an old school origin story but it’s an interesting one and has good pacing throughout. I’d be interested to see this continue into a full series so hopefully it can keep on going. Definitely worth checking out on Amazon.

The movie starts by explaining to us the legend of the Samaritan and Nemesis. They were twin brothers who developed extraordinary abilities such as super strength and durability. They could not easily be injured and so one of them used their powers for evil while the other turned to good. Eventually after a fantastic battle they were both presumed dead but in the present many believe that the Samaritan still exists. One such believer is a kid named Sam who really looks up to this hero. Now he thinks that his neighbor across the street is actually the Samaritan. Is he right or is this all just wishful thinking?

I don’t blame the reporter for not believing Sam because apparently the kid tends to think a lot of people are the Samaritan. It’s the classic “Boy cried wolf” scenario that always tends to get in the way for characters like this. The reporter’s role is small but I look forward to him doing more in a sequel. He seems like a likable guy after all. As for Sam, he’s okay but I do wish the main character could have been someone a bit older. Kids can rarely hold their own plots as the lead and the whole time you wish you could see more of Joe instead.

Sam can fight to a degree and so I wouldn’t say he’s bad or anything. He stuck up for his friend when it counted and didn’t back down from the villains. There’s a solid moment when he punches out the main bully as well so I would give major kudos for that. But for every good moment like that, you have him being a thief or working with the villains. He was hard up for cash which led him to the wrong side but ultimately it’s still a choice that he made.

Now Joe is a solid character. He still helps out at times but prefers to stay to the shadows. Unfortunately that is also his weakness as I always have an issue with heroes just deciding to mind their business. As soon as they got their powers that just wasn’t a realistic option anymore. It may not seem fair but at this point he has an obligation to society and to keep on fighting. So being off the grid for so many years wasn’t good, particularly with how bad the town has gotten. It’s clear that nobody is in a good position right now and he could have easily made a difference. At least he eventually gets back into the action.

Cyrus is the main villain here and he’s okay. I mean he’s your average thug type but at least he doesn’t seem totally insane. He’s got an actual goal and isn’t the kind of guy to blow up his minions for no reason. I think if he could have gotten a true power bump and started flying around that would have helped him out. Still, I was satisfied with him. He doesn’t get a ton of screen time until the climax but makes his presence felt for sure.

Sam’s mother Tiffany doers her best throughout the circumstances and is a good supporting character. She’s suitably tough on Sam for some of his bigger mistakes without being too overbearing about it. She also does her best to protect him when the villains come around and so she definitely did her best. Ultimately there were just too many villains even if individually they weren’t too powerful. Sam punched out the main bully easily enough after all.

The fight scenes are fun but there aren’t any real threats for Joe to fight here. Even the main villain never appears to be a true threat if you ask me. There’s no point where you think Joe is going down. This may be the first film in the series but I think you can still put in a more powerful villain. Have the hammer amp everything up to a higher degree than just being an attack item would have worked for example. At least the movie still does have fun with the effects when Joe is punching everyone out. You have characters sliding across the floor and falling through the wall.

I’d also give the film credit for one solid twist in there. It’s not one I was expecting but then when it happens, it makes a lot of sense in hindsight. That’s the best kind of twist as it’s clear that the film did give you a fair chance with the various signs and I would say it was the right move. I thought it was very interesting and adds an extra layer to the film. It’s something that the sequel can build off of as well.

Throw in a real soundtrack and this movie would be even better. Surprisingly there just isn’t much music at all here so the film is often quiet. I suppose it’s going for a more somber approach but you should always find a way to put in some good tunes somehow. Trust me, they can enhance any film even if there aren’t a lot of action scenes. Ultimately this is a fairly grounded film so I’d call it a low key action title but it’s one that works well. I would certainly recommend it to any action fan.

Overall, The Samaritan is a quality film and one that was well made. I think it could have stood to be a bit more explosive but as far as origin stories go, it still does the trick. It’s hard to see this being the next big action franchise or anything like that but you never know. I’m always ready for more superhero films no matter what studio wants to do it. Hopefully if this does well then Amazon may think about turning it into a whole cinematic universe.

Overall 7/10

Cellular Review

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This is one of those films with some fairly big names but I can’t remember ever seeing it anywhere. So it’s fairly obscure and I’d say the film turned out to be good. I’m not calling it great or anything but it was better than I expected. There’s a lot going on in here and it keeps this from just being another film about finding someone who’s being held captive.

The movie starts with Jessica getting kidnapped by a group of thugs led by Ethan. They want some kind of information in connection with her husband but she has no idea what they are even talking about. Fortunately while they may have broken the phone, she is able to repair the shards of it just enough to make calls. She brushes the cords together enough times until she is able to reach a guy called Ryan. He’s not really in the mood for any of this and figures it could be a trick either way. Still, he decides to humor her and eventually hears enough where he knows that this is real. It’s going to be difficult to get anyone to believe him though so it’s a race against time now.

Right off the bat I do think the whole plot is a tad convenient with the broken phone still being able to make calls. I mean the whole wires thing was creative but still I’m a little dubious about that being enough to actually get to a phone nearby. That random element just felt like the odds were a little too low for success and the whole movie is build around that premise. Beyond that the rest is believable enough and turns into your classic thriller film.

Ethan makes for a fairly intense villain. We don’t know a whole lot about him but you know enough to tell that he is serious about his threats. When it comes time for a fight he’s also a lot more skilled than the heroes but this isn’t really a full action movie which is lucky for them. There are a few other villains but none of them are quite as important for the most part. They definitely don’t get the same amount of screen time at least.

Unfortunately Ryan isn’t a great main character. I don’t blame him for thinking this is a trick at first. That part’s believable enough as this whole scenario is hard to buy into but he’s just not a very nice guy. He’s trying to get back together with his ex but when she gives him a basic task to complete…he gives it to his friend? How would that help his relationship with the girl at all? I feel like that plot didn’t make much sense and just confirms her suspicions on him not being very mature. It’s no wonder that they weren’t together anymore.

I suppose part of the film’s goal is to show how he gets more mature throughout the film but considering how short the time frame is here it’s hard to really say that. Being in the middle of a very stressful situation isn’t a great way to really see development after all. As for Jessica, well there’s not a whole lot that she can do either way so I’d say she did well enough. It’s not like getting captured was her fault and she fights well in trying to get out. So all in all I would give her character a thumbs up.

Her husband Craig looks awful though. His role is small but he basically got her into this whole situation and is not a reliable guy. I’d argue that he didn’t think ahead at all and he should have been able to warn her ahead of time. I did like Officer Mooney though. He’s getting ready to retire but when this situation comes up he figures he can help out one last time. He goes above and beyond the call of duty in getting mixed up with this when he could have just walked out into retirement. I have to give him some solid credit for that. He is quick with the trigger and isn’t an easy mark for anyone.

It’s easy to say that he’s the best hero in the film. I dare say he would have held up way better than Ryan as the lead. His plot has some intrigue to it as things don’t line up with the cops and it adds an extra layer of mystery to the whole thing. Ryan doesn’t have as much time to really dwell on this since he’s always on the move while Mooney is able to put the pieces together. Chad is Ryan’s best friend but the guy has almost no purpose being in the film. I guess the film has him try to be funny but it doesn’t work. Then there’s the ex Chloe who probably should have held her ground in staying away from Ryan. It’s clear that this guy is trouble.

The movie does have some decent comedy scenes like when Ryan broke into the phone company and flashed his gun. After how he tried so many times to do things peacefully, it was a good way to end that. Then I also liked that lawyer that Ryan bumped into. The guy may have been a bit exaggerated in how standoffish he was, but it made for some great moments. I’m a bit mixed on how the cell signals could just cross like that but I’ll assume it’s possible. It definitely helped to increase the stakes as well as the issue of not dropping the signal or Ryan would have no way to contact the lady again. Above it all though, the lawyer was just really funny in all of his scenes.

In a lot of ways the film is very by the books. The gimmick is unique with the whole cell phone angle but beyond that there isn’t much that stands out. I would say the thriller elements are exciting enough where this is a good movie even if it’s not great. I didn’t have many issues with it at all. The heroes could be a bit on the annoying side without a doubt (Ryan executed his final plan horribly. If not for Mooney he would have been doomed. Maybe choosing the park where everyone knows him was a bad idea…) but the pacing was quick and so the film glides by. It doesn’t drag on and so there’s a good amount of replay value. I’d be able to rewatch this one fairly quick even though I just saw it.

Overall, If you’re looking for a fun thriller movie that you haven’t watched before then this is a good one to check out. It’s a fairly light adventure that doesn’t feel high budget or anything but it doesn’t make mistakes either. I feel like a good amount of effort was put into this one and I’d be cool with a sequel or another film using this gimmick. I think there’s a lot you could do with it but I would find some other way for the main character to be contacted. A broken phone just doesn’t make a lot of sense for me.

Overall 7/10

Tekken: Bloodline Review

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When Netflix first came out with the teaser for Tekken I was pretty stoked. From all of the fighting game series Tekken tends to have the best storylines. I may be more of a Street Fighter fan with the gameplay but the stories had less of a strong continuity than Tekken. Tekken was always going to give you a very solid cinematic experience and that translates well into a game. This one may be ultra short at only 6 episodes long but in a way you can just treat it as a 2-2.5 hour movie. It’s really quite elite and succeeds at everything it tries to do.

The show starts off by introducing us to Jin and his mother Jun. She is training him how to fight but only in self defense as might doesn’t make right. Jin tries his best to keep to these teachings but its tough with so many bullies around. Well, one day a mysterious being known as Ogre appears and murders Jin’s mother. He swears to avenge her and goes to meet his grandfather Heihachi to achieve the strength he will need. Jun had said to seek this man out and while Heihachi makes it clear that he doesn’t care about Jin, he agrees to teach him. Jin will have to enter the next King of Iron Fist Tournament and win. The more he wins, the more Ogre should be tempted to come out as he has been destroying powerful fighters across the world. What better bait than a fighting tournament right? Does Jin really have what it takes to beat all of these guys?

I mostly grew up with Tekken 4-6 so I don’t know too much about the earlier games outside of the bullet points. So it was nice to have more of an adaption for Tekken 3. This always felt like the beginning to me so I wonder what the first two games’ story was. Or maybe they were old enough so they didn’t really have enough of one to fill a whole show. Regardless, the decision was a good one because the story here is most excellent. Right off the bat you have a big villain and a tragic hero death. The main character losing a parent to a powerful foe may be something that happens a lot but when executed well it still hits you emotionally.

The show is in CGI but fortunately it keeps the cool visual effects that the games had when someone is hit. You really feel the power behind every blow and I would say the graphics work here. The show looks a whole lot like a video game throughout its run. The fight choreography was on point as well so I was not surprised when I saw Rooster Teeth in the credits. This is some of the better CGI on the market. Would hand drawn have been better? Yes, but they definitely did all that they could with the CG and it didn’t hamper the story. You’re still going to be having a blast with all of the fights. You may wonder how Jin can keep on fighting at times, particularly near the end when it feels like he fights in numerous battles with no break, but I guess we can chalk that up to the “Devil Gene”.

The Devil Gene is a big point of emphasis in the show because it ties into the Ogre mystery and why he attacked in the first place. Any Tekken fan will definitely recognize this as something that will be important in the future as well. It plays a part here and is referenced a lot but I would say it’s more of a preview of things to come. I certainly hope we get a season 2 or some kind of continuation. Keep this going because Tekken has a ton of potential!

I also liked the soundtrack but I think the opening is a huge missed opportunity. There is virtually no animation in the opening at all and the song is really dead. It doesn’t help get you pumped for the episode or anything. It just feels like a bit of a waste and is the only weak element of the show. Not a big deal since it’s just an opening but still, you’d expect better than that.

One of the main reasons why the show is so amazing is because Jin is a great main character. That is always the starting point when you want to make a show successful after all. He is motivated by revenge but hasn’t lost himself in it yet. He sill wants to be a great fighter and he’s made some friends along the way. The show doesn’t have time to dwell on this much but you can see that he does have a fairly stable life built around him. He always goes about things the right way and even by the end Jin still feels like a hero. Perhaps he is someone that the others will have to be careful around but I’d trust Jin at this point in time.

I also liked his fighting style a lot. It’s certainly more basic than most of the other characters but it shows how he relies on fundamentals. If the show was longer I would have liked to have seen more detail into the Kazama fighting style so we could really compare it to Mishima. That’s a big subject in the show as Heihachi wants Jin to learn his Mishima style over Jin’s mother’s style but we technically don’t see too much difference between them. Jin does get one KO move from his mother which was nice to see though.

Then Heihachi works really well as the main villain. He may be the CEO at the top of his company, but by no means has he gotten lazy in the slightest. His fighting abilities are just as deadly as they ever were and he gets to show them off at different points here. There is also a shocking moment involving a gun that was incredible. Heihachi really gets a lot of respect here and earns it not only as a fighter but as a strategist as well. His fans should definitely be very pleased with how he looks.

Jin’s friend Xiaoyu also looks really good. She is determined to be a fighter in the tournament and is tired of people treating her like a kid or thinking that she’s too weak for being a girl. Well, Xiaoyu does prove herself here and does better in the tournament than I was expecting. She’s just a fun character and brings a little light hearted cheer to the tournament as everyone else is fairly serious.

This hype does come at the expense of Nina to an extent though. It’s incredibly hard to believe that Nina would lose to Xiaoyu. I thought they were going to pull a twist where Nina lost on purpose to do some sleuthing in the background or something but instead she actually lost. Well, it’s an effective twist in that I wasn’t expecting it, but I’m still a little skeptical. Nina is fun in her brief appearance though and I expect we’ll see a lot more of her in future installments.

Next up is Paul who is a likable guy. He gets to talk tough and goes far in the tournament. It also feels like his fighting style is rather ordinary like Jin but it takes him far. He doesn’t get a whole lot to do here but I’d say the role was good enough. There is only so much time for each character after all and you get the feeling that Paul’s a good guy. He’s experienced and has been around the block a few times so he can give Jin some advice as well.

Leroy is more of an annoying character. He’s one of those guys who has a big grudge with Heihachi and wants revenge. Fair enough, but once you start taking that out on other people then it becomes a bit of a problem. He just wants to start trouble whenever he is around and that’s not a good idea without a good reason. Just taking out your revenge on someone else doesn’t cut it and so I found him to be one of the weaker characters here.

King was a solid fighter here. Now, there’s one moment where he defeats someone rather brutally so everybody gets upset, but I technically didn’t think he was crossing the line or anything. It’s not a Neji vs Hinata situation or something where it looks like the fight’s about to go beyond the match. King II just flat out won with his techniques and stopped once the opponent was down. We also find out why he is fighting later on and it tracks with him not being a bad person.

So I thought he was good, but the show tries to throw in a little mystery that deflates before it starts. So during the tournament the characters suddenly realize that this isn’t actually the original King. That’s cool and all but in the first or second episode they had already mentioned that Ogre destroyed King or at least that King vanished after the fight. So from the jump we knew that this wasn’t the same King even though it’s treated as a twist of sorts. I thought that was a bit odd.

Usually I’d be talking about Kazuya more by now but he really ends up missing out in this show. He’s still missing after the fight with Heihachi but unfortunately we didn’t see the scene of Heihachi throwing him off the mountain. We did get the reverse though. Those two always have an incredible rivalry so I’m ready to see him in the sequel. He also becomes more of a true rival to Jin. Right now Hwoarang has to fit that bill and it’s harder to take him seriously.

Hwoarang is a good character and I do like him but the victor is never in doubt when he goes up against Jin. It feels like those two are just in different leagues at this point. The fight appears closer than it really was. It’ll be nice to see him stick around but I feel like he probably won’t get many more big fights like the one in this season. As we wrap up the characters, we have to talk about Jun. She’s a lot of fun even if her screen time is quite brief. She helped train Jin the right away. While she does tell him to only fight in self defense, it’s to a reasonable angle at least.

My only issue with self defense is when characters take it to the extreme like letting people throw drinks on them or even land a hit. As long as you can fight back when you’re attacked then it’s all good. She reminds me a lot of the mentor character in Shenmue. Jun is really at the top of her game here and you can see why she is known as such a powerful fighter that even Heihachi gives respect to. She did well in the fight against Ogre too. I thought it was a good showing of how skill can let you keep up with a more powerful fighter for a while even if it won’t ultimately change the outcome.

Finally there is Ogre and I thought he was great too. He’s got a very Doomsday kind of vibe to him. He just shows up out of nowhere like a natural disaster and murders whoever is in front of him. As the show goes on we learn more about the logic of when and why he appears but either way you don’t want him to appear. Almost nobody can fight this guy 1 on 1 and hope to survive. The show even gets a little more out there than you’d expect with the final battle. Ogre does not hold back that’s for sure.

One thing the show could probably tone down for season 2 is the flashbacks though. This show is only 6 episodes long and yet there are a considerable amount of flashbacks. They seem to come in almost every episode over and over again. Some of the scenes we see multiple times and it’s not like the audience will have forgotten. Even ignoring the binging format, it’s only 6 episodes. You really don’t need flashbacks like that. If you want to use 1 or 2 to build up the emotional appeal then that’s fine but more than that is just excessive with no real benefit to doing so.

Meanwhile one unique thing the show did that I thought worked really well was having everyone talk very slowly. At first I thought it would just be something Heihachi did but it works for the entire cast. It’s like everyone is trying really hard to enunciate every syllable no matter how long it takes. I feel like this is either a tribute to the original game’s dubbing or that’s just the custom within the Tekken world. There’s no way it’s a coincidence and all of the VAs just talk like that. Whatever the reasoning behind it was, I thought it worked well. That slow way of talking wasn’t obnoxious like how it’s handled in other titles but just feels very regal here.

It also helps with the very cinematic style of each episode. Each episode feels like part of a grand movie. The characters are expressive, the backgrounds are memorable, and the music raises the tension. With the characters speaking slowly, you also feel like they could lunge at any moment so everyone has their guards up at all times. Some characters aren’t too smart and like to take their chances like the one guy who thought he could cheat Heihachi out of their deal, but for the most part everyone plans things out carefully. You have to in this kind of world or you’ll vanish pretty quickly.

Overall, Tekken is a superb show. At the end of the day it really did everything right. It would have its super hype moments and it would also get very emotional at times. Not making any big mistakes is enough to get you to a 7 but if you want to go beyond that then you have to also be strong in all areas. That’s what Tekken does here. The fight scenes are really excellent and the story is great. The character cast is very strong and this is really a superb adaption. Any Tekken fan should be proud of how it came out and even if you don’t know Tekken, you can easily enjoy this as a solid action show. The plot is fairly straight forward with the tournament and you can follow along from there. In a lot of ways it feels like the anime version of Mortal Kombat and that’s always high praise. Hopefully a sequel comes sooner than later.

Overall 9/10