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Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru Review

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I remember pretty vividly when the author of Naruto announced that he was going to be starting a manga about Samurai next. In theory this would be the next big thing that would rise to great heights. Unfortunately it didn’t last very long and I can see why. I enjoyed the manga well enough while reading but I can see how weekly there would be some chapters that were dreadfully boring. Even by the end I would say the character roster is fairly low tier and the art could be messy. Some interesting ideas though and I suppose that is the case with a lot of manga that end early. Good ideas that just didn’t work out.

The manga starts by introducing us to Hachimaru. He is a very sickly kid who has to always be hooked up to a generator or he will die. This is pretty rough for him because the guy has always wanted to be a legendary Samurai. Right now he can only achieve this vision by playing video games. The virtual reality is highly advanced as this seems to be in a far future kind of setting so at least he has learned some skills. He is the #1 Samurai in the world in that game but it doesn’t help his real life circumstances.

In this world, in order to be a samurai you have to commit Seppuku which is to stab yourself in the gut with your sword. Usually this is a means of suicide but in this world if you are “chosen” then you will survive and become a Samurai. If you aren’t…then you will have just murdered yourself. Hachi’s father warns him never to try this but one day a group of evil samurai show up so Hachi performs the ritual and manages to survive. They also get saved by a wolf named Daruma who claims to be a very powerful Samurai.

The stakes are bigger than either of them as Daruma explains that he needs to find the 7 legendary Samurai who will serve as keys to open a mystical box. Opening that box will end up saving the entire universe but the heroes have to hurry. Additionally, the various villains will want to have a hand in putting a stop to this as well. There is really no time to waste but will Hachimaru’s ability to become a Samurai be a hinderance or a help?

There are a lot of other concepts that the manga introduces. There are so many of them in fact that it takes whole volumes to explain them all. The series ended with 5 volumes and I want to say that even up to the final volume there were new elements being added. It’s a lot to take in and it’s clear that Kishimoto had a lot that he wanted to cover but I think it would have worked better if he had spaced things out a bit.

From the start I also didn’t like the whole Seppuku aspect. I never like it in movies, games, or shows when someone does that. The character always claims that it will reclaim their honor and all, but you can’t claim anything when you’re dead. The fact that the only way to wield this power in the universe is to trust your life to a 50/50 stab…it’s a very odd mechanic and it’s one that just doesn’t work well. No wonder there aren’t a ton of real samurai in this world.

Now, there are several divisions of Samurai. I forget the terms but to be a true samurai you need a princess. The princess is able to power you up through prayer which allows you to use a variety of skills like spirit swords and body hopping. Hachi gets a princess near the end but this setup does mean that the princess likely won’t be doing much since her whole function is to stay in the back and pray. It’s a mechanic that doesn’t seem to have any future potential for battle so that could be tough on the princesses.

As you can see, there are just some fundamental issues I have with the series setting and build up. It’s something the series can get around but it is tricky for making this one of the elites. As mentioned, there is also an absolute ton of info dumping going around here. I think the author could have managed to condense this quite a bit and that would have gone a great deal into improving the series.

Then for the art, it’s not as good as you would expect since Naruto was pretty solid. I think the artist has an issue with scale sort of like the Shaman King/Ultimo series. Since this series gets into breaking moons and such rather early on, the action scenes get really crazy. It can be really hard to tell what is happening in a fight without severely slowing down and just trying to see what is going on. You have to take a deeper look but the art just gets way too convoluted.

All right, so lets take a look at the characters here. First up you have Hachi who is a reasonable main character. He wants to see the world and become the best samurai around. He had to live with being away from his dream for a really long time so he makes the most of it when he’s finally free. He does get jealous about Ann really fast but ultimately recovers with a decent character arc. I didn’t have any real qualms with this guy.

It’d be nice if Hachi was a little more self confident and slow to make mistakes but I saw improvement during the series so he would only have continued to get better. His dog Hayataro is more machine than anything at this point but he still a good dog to have around. He is able to transform which lets Hayataro fight even further as well. Having a machine dog around also lessens the chances of animal violence which is a win in my books.

Furuta is the guy who raised Hachi for a while. Now, this is a character I’m not a big fan of. I know he was locking Hachi away for his own good and all that but by the end of the series they’re low key hinting that he knew a lot more than he let on. Keeping secrets rarely pays off and this is definitely not going to be one of those times. I’m not sure if I actually believe he’s no longer around but with the series over, I suppose the future plans might not even matter.

Daruma is a really big character and serves as Hachi’s mentor. The guy used to be super powerful but due to plot reasons he is currently stuck as a wolf now. It seems to be going for an All Might kind of deal where he can temporarily go into his true form but only for short bursts of energy. It’s too bad because his normal form is awesome while I’m not a big fan of the wolf form yet. It’s also hard to scale how strong the wolf is since he is supposed to be pretty tough still but spends a lot of time sleeping so it’s hard to say. I wasn’t really on board with him, but Daruma’s not bad.

Then there’s the main heroine Ann. So she has a bit of a tragic backstory because her brother Nanashi failed the rite and ended up dying. Again…this is why using Seppuku as a way to gather your powers is insanity but as a result she has a hard time getting close to anyone, particularly Samurai. As her job is to pray for one, that’s a little tricky. As the series goes on she learns how to work with Hachi more effectively though.

Ann doesn’t get a whole lot of time to shine yet, but I expect she would have made for a pretty good team along with Hachi at some point down the road. I just hope she could learn to do more beyond just praying like perhaps firing off energy blasts or something. Just as a way to give the princess more to do than just being protected. She’s also more of a timid character so I wouldn’t mind if she really upped her confidence levels by the end.

As the series goes on, we meet some more Samurai and miscellaneous characters. One group is Sanda and Ryu. Sanda is a very tricky fellow who works for a mobster so you want to be careful how much you take his words at face value. I was not a fan of his though. He just made way too many wrong decisions at a late point in the game. So by the time he has his character arc I just thought it was way too late for him.

I do like Ryu though. His gimmick is that he is always forgetting things. Even if an event happened mere seconds ago, he won’t remember it. The guy’s short term memory is shot but he’s still an excellent fighter. It’s a gimmick that may get old eventually but at the moment I’m definitely cool with it. He was a very memorable character which was important. Also I have to say, I feel like Kishimoto was choosing these names as homages. The series has characters named Ichigo, Goku, Ryu, etc. That can’t be a coincidence.

Nanashi is another character who joins up with the team. As one of the 7 keys, you can expect that he would have continued to stay relevant as the series went on. He’s not bad, the guy doesn’t have a lot of self confidence initially as well but gradually continues to improve. I’m not super impressed with him yet though so he would need more time in a sequel series to get better. It’s also interesting how the series already has two characters named Nanashi. It’s just rare when that happens especially when a series isn’t all that long.

Next up is a cat warrior named Hanaichi. He’s not really a big player yet but he’s another Samurai who gets a lot of hype so you will want to keep an eye on this guy. His ally, Goku is more interesting though. Goku’s an excellent warrior who is also good outside of combat and even gives Hachi a few pointers. I could see this guy getting a big role down the road. He’s certainly one of the most impressive samurai we see in the series.

Now lets look at some of the villains. First up is Ata who is the first serious fighter that Hachi has to go up against. His skills are pretty decent but of course as an opening boss you know that he isn’t going to be one of the more powerful opponents. His goals are rather basic as well. His design is fairly unique though so I’ll give him that. As far as opening bosses go, I would say he was decent. Plus he is still relevant since the heroes haven’t really fought him at his best yet.

See, in this series the soul is more important than the body so you can always create another body around it if you are strong enough. Strength of will is absolutely essential in this series and it’s really how the samurai get the will to fight. Without that then they would be in trouble, but naturally someone like Ata will be ready for the longhaul.

Then you have Benkei who had a whole tournament scheme going when he always intended to just rob the winner. It’s a solid plan and the guy can fight so that definitely went pretty well for him. Still not a standout villain or anything but he was a fun one to have around. Near the end of the series you get a whole group of Hachi clones/siblings who show up. None of them have a chance to do a whole lot though but it’s an interesting idea. More secrets from the past coming to light and all of that.

Samurai 8 really gets bold by the end. At this point the author likely knew the series was ending so why not go all the way right? The series goes in a much different direction than I expect it would have if this stayed as an ongoing. It ends on a very open note so perhaps this will get a sequel series someday. It seems like a longshot especially since Kishimoto is so involved with Boruto right now but I guess you never know.

The fights were good and while I wasn’t fully engaged in the story yet, there was a lot of potential. In a way this series was going for the kind of adventure feel you would have in Fairy Tail, minus the fanservice. The issue is that it tries to go too fast and doesn’t feel natural the way that Fairy Tail does. Mix in the messy art and now you’ve got a bit of a problem.

I liked the video game analogies though and how Hachi was leveling up like he was in an RPG. If the video game aspect had been pushed a bit sooner then that definitely could have helped. It flowed really well with the series and also would have probably amped up the fights a bit as well. If the series ever does get a sequel I’d certainly be down for it.

Now you may be thinking, with all of these negatives, how will this title still get a positive score? Well, at the end of the day the manga was still fun and interesting. I was engaged enough with what was going on and blasted through the volumes in no time. It could have been better but we still had quality action moments, no fanservice, and the series was well written. The issues I mentioned will keep the series from being great, but it’s still a pretty good read and a nice way to spend some time.

Overall, Samurai 8 is a good series but one with enough flaws where you can see why they pulled the plug. It was just a good time to have something else give it a shot. My main issue was really with the series introducing way too many concepts in a short time (Particularly since I didn’t like most of them) and allowing this to make the fight scenes way too convoluted. It’s cool that he mixed in sci-fi with traditional samurai battling so well but there were too many layers to everything. If you’re looking for a good action title to check out though, you can’t go wrong with this one especially since it’s so short.

Overall 7/10

Patriot Games Review

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

When you’re getting ready for a movie about a CIA agent forced to go back in for one last ride, you know that things are going to be hype. This movie gives you everything you’d expect. You’ve got explosions, solid dialogue and an overall engaging film. There’s just something that’s hard to place my finger on in why it doesn’t pop out as much as the others. I don’t know, it’s a very good film but at the same time I guess it feels very by the books? No matter, still one I would certainly recommend to any action fan.

The movie starts with Jack just minding his own business now that he is a teacher. He has stopped being in the whole CIA business but then an assassination attempt occurs right in front of him so he is forced to intervene. He takes out one of the terrorists but the others get free. Jack is put on a ludicrous trial but after that it looks like things should be fine right? Well, it might not be all happy as he would hope as the other terrorists want to enact some revenge.

No matter how hard the villains beat the drum about how it’s all Jack’s fault for murdering one of their guys and how they need revenge…they wouldn’t be in this position if they hadn’t just tied to murder someone. I mean, you really reap what you sow in this kind of situation so you’d just think they would have thought more about that. It’s like if you put someone in prison for robbing you…the other robbers don’t have any kind of valid argument for wanting revenge. Of course, they’re all villains so it is what it is there.

As a result I’m not a big fan of any of the villains though. The main villain here is Sean. He is really all in on getting revenge since his brother was the guy that Jack got. He puts this above everything else so even his mission which is really about assassinating the British Minister of Ireland takes a backseat to his ambitions. As you can imagine, this isn’t something that thrills the rest of his group but there’s not much they can do about this anyway.

The other villains just don’t seem super smart. There is one scene in particular that I can’t go into depth with here but needless to say, if you see someone going crazy in front of you while they’re holding a gun, you should really….really think hard about your next step. If that step involves yelling and waving your gun around without a plan then things are probably not going to go well.

Jack is a very solid main character as you’d expect. He may be retired from the CIA but he hasn’t lost his skills or keeping the environment around him in view. He reacted quickly in the opening shooting and really did what he had to in order to win. Jack stays strong throughout the movie and is consistently resourceful. He may not be as quick to go into action as someone like Ethan Hunt, but he holds his own in a fight pretty well. Since his family are also targets, the whole movie is pretty personal for him. Jack doesn’t let it gets in the way of keeping a cool head though and maintains a good balance.

Commander Robby was also a solid character. He surprisingly doesn’t get to really be in the fight scenes here but just having him around in the climax is reassuring. Usually the main hero has to fight everyone off while completely alone but this time he at least has backup which is really good. This way they can at least keep the other villains subdued and also protect key areas.

As mentioned, the writing is solid throughout and the film’s pacing is pretty good. You definitely won’t be bored while watching this one. It’s also always interesting to have a main character who is less of a combat professional and more of a behind the desk guy. It may not always seem like it since he does get into a lot of fighting here but he gets to help out a bit with the planning in the background. That was a pretty interesting dynamic. We even get to see a fight from the TV screens back at base which was definitely a very different kind of experience. It was a unique way to show how the analysts see the fights going down in the military ops as usually we’re following the view of someone on the ground.

One of the more intense scenes would have to be when Jack is being followed by a couple of thugs out in the street. It’s broad daylight and he’s in an area with a lot of marines and soldiers, yet in that moment the place feels very secluded. That’s how it always goes too, when there’s trouble around it’s like everyone tends to vanish. The scene was handled very well and Jack had a good plan of action.

Meanwhile you had the car chase with his family as well. It’s too bad they couldn’t turn out of there because one turn would have probably saved them a lot of trouble. Of course, I’m crashed into that same area in a lot of Need for Speed games as well, it can be hard to dodge at that kind of intersection. It’s fun to think of how different the film would have been otherwise though. Definitely would have played out very differently.

Finally, we also had this Irish group who gets thrown into the mix since that’s where the terrorists are from. There’s some tension with the leader and Jack since the guy refuses to out the villains even though they’re committing acts of terror so Jack has to apply a little pressure. A blackmail subplot like that can always be intense and it’s rare to see the hero on the side of it.

Overall, Patriot Games was a pretty solid film. It’s a good action title that feels high quality. It may not really stand out among the more powerful titles out there, but it really doesn’t make any mistakes. It’s an intense story about a man having to protect his family from the revenge of a group of terrorists. Definitely a timeless kind of story that you could check out at any point.

Overall 7/10

Howl From Beyond the Fog Review

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Well, this film was definitely not quite what I had imagined based on the title. It’s going for a very retro action figure type style. At first when you see the characters appear you’re wondering if maybe there was a budget issue so they had to use mannequins for the characters. Then it hits you that this is actually the style. I’m not a big fan of stop motion and it’s one of the animation styles I would put below CGI. It didn’t do the short film any favors this time around.

The movie introduces us to Eiji. He has moved back to his hometown after news came out that his brother had been destroyed. His cousin Takiri is there but she’s supposed to be dead so Eiji can’t mention that and his mother is also around. The biggest secret though is that they effectively have a secret Kaiju in the backyard. This will come in handy since a bunch of thugs are trying to force them off the land. When in doubt, it’s time to call in the Kaiju! Can this monster save the day?

Unfortunately the humans don’t make it easy on him. It’s always pretty annoying when the Kaiju is doing pretty well only for someone to say “Stop!!” and distract the Kaiju as he gets blasted by the villains. That happens here quite directly and unfortunately the Kaiju isn’t too durable this tie around. A quick shot is already able to deal some pretty decent damage to the point where the Kaiju nearly gets knocked out. It was concerning but the Kaiju has a lot of determination which is good.

The design’s not bad, I guess I would say it looks a lot like a Brontosaurus. It’s got a long neck and just has that kind of shape. While it doesn’t have Godzilla’s fire attacks, it does manage to use a heavy breath attack by inhaling the fumes. I wonder if that might have even been a tribute to the Atomic Breath given that it acts like true breath rather than an energy blast. It was cool to see though since it gives us some action.

So the movie isn’t very long at 35 minutes. It really picks up once the monster action gets going, but until you get there it does have some issues. It just feels like the movie isn’t very interesting without the Kaiju. You don’t really get to like any of the characters all that much and they don’t get to stand out with the brief time they have. When a film’s this short you really have to either develop the characters real quickly or you have to just focus on the Kaiju I suppose. The thing is, this is still more of a character driven story which is problematic when the characters have no time to be introduced.

For the first half you’ll probably end up being a little bored here. So you’re waiting for the second half which is more fun but it takes a little bit to get there when you compare it to the overall length of the movie. Finally, the animation itself gets in the way here. It’s just hard to find this style all that hype or engaging. If you’re a fan of the style then you’ll like it, but otherwise it’s just very jarring as you’re trying to get into the story. None of the effects look as real as you’d like.

This style really works when you throw a lot of humor into the mix. Think of Robot Chicken or something like that. The animation isn’t supposed to look great but you don’t really mind because you are laughing the whole time. That doesn’t work with this short because it is played 100% seriously. You won’t be grinning or smiling at any point because it’s not really that type of film. Unfortunately you can’t pull off a more serious type of story with this style or at least, it will be very difficult to do so.

Overall, Howl from Beyond the Fog is an interesting idea but this was just the wrong medium to do this. At its core it’s a story about a Kaiju living in the backwoods and defending the main characters from danger. It’s seen as a scary entity by most but the main characters know that it’s actually a good guy deep down. That’s a classic kind of story but one where you just aren’t able to get invested into this time. If we ever get a remake or something like that I think there would definitely be a lot of potential. Otherwise, I would say to pass on this one.

Overall 4/10

The Spirit Review

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The Spirit is definitely a very unique movie that’s for sure. It really does walk a fine line between being a total comedy with how over the top everything is and a serious action film. In the end the film actually does blend this combo over very well for nearly all of its screen time but ends up faltering near the end. I knew things were about to get dicey when the cat showed up….

The movie starts with the Spirit being called in since there was a sighting of his arch nemesis, the Octopus. The Octopus manages to murder someone real quick and steal a suitcase first but Sand escapes with the other Suitcase. Octopus crushes the Spirit and now the hero must figure out a way to catch the guy. What is the Octopus doing and how can he be stopped? The Octopus hinted that he knows something about the Spirit’s immortality and Spirit’s old flame Sand is involves so he really has to see this through to the end.

Spirit is definitely a movie that is bonkers and isn’t afraid to really get out there. The first moment I knew something was up was when the Spirit and Octopus have their confrontation mere minutes after the film began. Usually the hero can’t meet the villain that quickly. Then as their fight escalates you can tell that neither one is a normal human because they are taking some really crazy attacks. They seem to murder each other several times during the fight.

Well, Spirit and Octopus both appear to be immortal. Not in an eternal life kind of way but in a “We can’t be killed way”. That actually ties into Octopus’ plans which is to use a serum which will actually give him eternal life. Sand has the vase though so she’s in danger now. It’s quite a lot of plot here and that’s not even accounting for Spirit’s origin story. It’s a fun dynamic though as apparently the hero and villain will often spend a whole night beating each other up only to walk away when it’s all over.

It’s not like they’re pals or anything but they do seem to joke around a bit. They both know that they can’t destroy the other so I can see how the futile nature of their fights would become humorous to them. Octopus definitely seems to have better fighting abilities than the Spirit though. I’d argue he had the edge for the majority of their fight with ease.

Where the Spirit really shines is with the color palette. The movie uses a lot of very interesting visual styles and I would consider it a total hit. This was extremely unique and actually worked out. It’s not one of those gimmicks that you’ll shake your head at but one you will give the thumbs up right away. Not only does it make the Spirit look mysterious but it gives the whole film a pretty epic air. When characters talk to each other the backgrounds will often disappear.

You have characters fading into the light or into the darkness. Even Sand showing up from the water is a very ominous scene. The most every day normal scenes will look different like this and it really does work quite well. It captures that Noir feeling as well. Mix in the Spirit’s numerous monologues and you’ve really got something going here. It helps with the film’s dramatic atmosphere.

As mentioned though, it gets so dramatic that I have to see a lot of these moments as comedic ones. Spirit loves talking about the city and his past. While that is a staple of the Noir genre, you just can’t help but feel like the movie is parodying it. Something about the way the Spirit is having his conversations just gives you that feeling. Then of course for the comedic moments you have most of the Octopus scenes. He’s dressed up as a different culture each tie he appears and the guy is always messing around. He never seems to take anything seriously and murders his henchmen on the regular.

This is definitely some dark humor but the henchmen aren’t smart enough to do anything except what they’re told. So for example one of them even murders himself because the villain told him to do so. It’s certainly tragic to be one of those henchmen that’s for sure. Another gets blended which was a really intense scene to be sure. So the film has its dark moments thrown in as well, mainly as dark humor.

Now, where does the film go wrong? Well, as you can guess with the cat, we get some animal violence as the Octopus shows off his latest conquest to the Spirit. He can melt anything by using the special blood/serum that he wanted although it would simply power the Spirit up so that guy needs to try and grab it. He should have used it on the henchmen instead of on the cat though. That would have been a lot better.

So the film instantly lost a pair of stars for that. Meanwhile the film is trying to make the Spirit a parody of James Bond to an extent. I definitely don’t remember this trait in the comics but he seems to fall in love with every girl out there. Spirit seems to believe that every lady in the city is fair game so he openly has affairs with all of them. Fortunately for him every girl loves him as well so it’s quite easy to make this happen. We do have two main heroines here who both like him as well and he’s not shy about still making moves in front of him.

So the Spirit isn’t exactly the most heroic guy. Even ignoring that, he doesn’t have the best relationship with the cops. He’s always on edge and even threatens to punch out the chief without any good reason. The cops have a point that the Spirit is really running a one man show and the cops who accompany him all get murdered so naturally there would be some bad blood here. It’s hard to get a read on the Spirit. He’s a fun guy to be sure but I definitely wouldn’t call him very heroic. He seems extremely unhinged.

The Octopus is certainly a fun character. He is definitely a villain as seen with the cat but at least the guy has concrete goals. I’m not sure if having eternal life is the automatic win card that he thinks it is, but I suppose it doesn’t hurt to live longer since he is already fairly tough to beat. He reminds me a bit of the Joker with how crazy he is the whole time.

His right hand woman Floss also does a good job of keeping him on track. If he starts to go off the deep end then she reminds him of what was going on. To an extent she doesn’t always seem to be thrilled to have him as leader though so he should probably watch his back. That said, I guess by the end she still seems loyal enough.

As for Sand, I wasn’t a fan. In the flashbacks she already seemed quite obsessed with jewels and this didn’t change when she got older. In a way she’s like Catwoman only much more violent as she actively murders a lot of people in order to get what she wants. I was surprised at just how brutal she can be. I figured the movie was going to play her out as more of a misunderstood character but it actually went all the way as a villain.

We’ve also got Ellen who liked the Spirit but still gets jealous when he has other affairs. That’s why I don’t see the relationship ever working out. Either she is okay with being cheated on the whole time or she is going to need to find someone else. The Spirit doesn’t seem like the loyal sort after all.

In fact, there’s a pretty intense scene where the villains use that against him. He can’t resist any girl and one of the villains is a lady so you can picture how that goes. He just goes down like such a chump that you can’t help but laugh. This is the hero who is supposed to protect us? Okay….yeah that’s not going to end very well. The Spirit definitely has his priorities…too bad they aren’t the right ones.

Overall, The Spirit is a very different kind of action film. It’s really all over the place and in a lot of ways this works out. It’s really unpredictable and I loved what they did with the visual directing. The whole thing has a comic book/noir approach that nobody else has really used before. It’s a shame that the Spirit himself wasn’t a little better at being a hero but his inner monologues are a blast. If you can get around the cat melting scene then this is definitely a film you’ll have a lot of fun with. I’d definitely be up for a sequel coming out at some point since there’s a lot of potential here. That said, I think it would be difficult to capture the same energy twice so maybe it’s best to not even try.

Overall 5/10

The Creation of the Humanoids Review

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It’s time for a sci-fi film dealing with how robots would be treated in the future. It’s definitely an interesting look at the situation. It’s a very dialogue heavy film but one that goes about this in the right way. I was never bored with what was going on and it was all very interesting. Perhaps because it was very tangible and interconnected as opposed to conversations that don’t really go anywhere. The humans are all portrayed in a super unlikable way though.

The movie starts off with Cragis and his partner running some routine patrols. After World War III, humans built some pretty advanced robots who eventually started repairing themselves until they reached a very high level. If they ever reach Level 100, they would for all intents and purposes be human. Right now you’re not allowed to go past the 70s but the robots have secretly gone to Level 90+. A lot of humans resent the robots because of how perfect they are. They feel like humans will one day be wiped out and if they ever saw Terminator then this is a real possibility.

The robots not outnumber the humans. Currently there is a program in place that prevents them from hurting humans but a human was just murdered by a machine so now even that law is in jeopardy. Cragis learns that his sister is going out with a robot and this scandal could jeopardize his standing within the humans cult. Can he convince her to dump the robot or is this a lost cause?

A good deal of the film is that very debate. Now, here’s why Cragis looks pretty bad the whole time though and doesn’t work as a sympathetic main character. He’s constantly name calling the robots by referring to them as Clickers which is something they say they’d rather not be called. He then picks on robots for no real reason except to try and make himself feel better. He’s so threatened by the robots that he can’t even stand to talk to them.

Cragis feels that the humans will gradually grow weaker and weaker as long as the robots do everything for them. He is afraid that people will lose their drive and will effectively cease to be humans. One of the main problems with this is that you can’t stop technology in the end. You can slow it down but it’s best to find ways to work with it. By denying the robots, Cragis is just putting himself in a tight spot.

Not that he would know but the robots do appear to have some sinister plans for the rest of the world though even if it’s framed as not necessarily being a bad thing. Basically they intend to turn the rest of the world into robots. If it’s optional then that might not be bad but if they intend to trick people then it could get dicey. I doubt they would need to for most of the population though as many will be thrilled to become immortal at the drop of a hat. Their physical abilities should also be slightly amplified as well.

The movie is fairly low key for the most part but there is a plot twist that occurs at one point. You’ll probably figure it out when one of the robots starts laughing about the irony of something occurring but refuses to talk about it. It was a good scene for foreshadowing even if it was very direct. The robots definitely aren’t going to go down easy and we certainly get quite a few scenes of them talking among themselves about the plan.

Thing is, it’ll be difficult for the humans to stop them since they don’t suspect much. The council for the humans has already become more powerful than the police and they don’t suspect anything. It seems like the robots have infiltrated a lot of places already so it’s far too late to do much about it. Based on the ending, it’s not like the main characters will be doing much about it either.

Maxine is the main heroine here and she’s not bad. Cragis definitely seems really desperate to be with her from the start though so you’d like her to be a bit wary about that. She seems more open to the robots taking the place over but has no strong opinions one way or the other and basically says she’ll just back Cragis up with anything.

As for Esme, well it definitely seems pretty drastic to get with a robot that’s for sure. Apparently in the future this is more common place outside of the Order though so nobody else really cares. The robot has to follow her every command though so it’s hard to feel like it’s ever an equal partnership. That seems like it would ultimately be the biggest hurdle here.

The writing is solid though and you will be at the edge of your seat for a bit before leaning back again. At first you suspect this could even play out like a Sci-Fi thriller as the robots take over but then you see how this is a very low key kind of film. The robots have their plans but there won’t be any violence or action here. In a way it’s trying for a more realistic approach there as taking over the world silently would surely be more efficient since the robots won’t be destroyed that way.

It’s very interesting which I like. As for the debate about robots taking over, well I’d say at the point that such robots are created it does make sense to use them. I’d always be 100% skeptical about them learning true emotions though. I think it’s possible to simulate them but I’d have a hard time believing that it’s possible for a robot to develop a soul and thus emotions. It’s just impossible for that to ever happen. So in that scenario I still wouldn’t see them as a threat but a good ally or resource for tasks that would be too dangerous for humans. There are tons of different tasks they would be able to accomplish and you would just need to make sure you keep enough drive to work on your own and not get complacent.

Overall, Your mileage here will probably vary with how interesting you find the dialogue to be. It was definitely right up my alley so I was definitely having a lot of fun with it. The humans mostly seem pretty unreasonable the whole time but I suppose it’s because the film really wants you to be on Team Robot here. There’s a lot of reasons to distrust both sides at the end of the day. A sequel could have a lot of potential as an action movie or even to expand the lore. There’s a lot about this future that we don’t know yet but the foundation of it is already pretty cool.

Overall 7/10

Mega Man Megamix: For Whose Sake? Review

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This is a very quick one shot but an interesting one without a doubt. It serves as a prequel to Mega Man 9 and shows why a lot of robots are upset. For once it isn’t that they are being manipulated by Wily or anything like that. At 16 pages it can only give us the general premise but it makes the heroes look shifty. So the government has passed a new law that the robots all must lose their individuality. Additionally, they will be given an expiration date at which point they will no longer function. Additionally they will be personally dismantling a lot of the older robots.

A lot of the robots have already been burned and destroyed so various robot masters from the original games have decided to fight against this. They pick up their blasters and basically jump into action. Dr. Light is arrested as well since a lot of these robots used to be his so the government figures he is an easy target. Light even tells Mega Man not to interfere since he shouldn’t fight for the humans anymore. Mega Man doesn’t agree and the one shot ends with him about to jump in.

The government are definitely the villains in this story. The fact that they want to just dismantle all of the robots just like that is crazy. These aren’t some random robots without emotions or anything. These are robots that are top of the line and have demonstrated a lot of unique personalities. In fact, that’s pretty much why the law was in effect so the government is trying to stamp out all of these robots just like that? It’s definitely a little concerning to say the least.

This also isn’t Dr. Light’s best look. I’m usually not a big fan of the guy but at least he is usually trying to be reasonable. Not here. Telling Mega Man to stay out of the fight is really counter productive since the robots are going to need him at the ready. Additionally he seems to be saying that the humans aren’t worth fighting for and that’s really a jump. Yes, don’t fight for these humans but Mega Man still has a job to do. Ideally I would like to see him jump in and help the Robots that are about to be dismantled.

They definitely look like the antagonists here but they’re just fighting for their right to survive. It is cool to see some of the older robot masters going up against the new ones but Mega Man should be helping them out in order to balance out the scales as well as defend their rights. I feel like Mega Man would absolutely be on their side in this battle. It just doesn’t feel right that he would oppose them. There are only a few pages here but I’d also like to see if there is more reason behind the law coming out now as opposed to the humans just being super scared as normal. I wouldn’t be surprised if that is it though.

The art here looks really good. The artist definitely has a great feel for how Mega Man is drawn by this point and all of the illustrations are clear. It makes this one shot really easy to read as you blast through to the end. If it ever got a full adaption that would be great since Mega Man 9 wasn’t exactly filled with story content. So developing it through a manga would really be ideal. Cossack and Wily are also around so it would be interesting to have the 3 of them there. Have Bass and Proto Man show up as well. They certainly wouldn’t want to be destroyed either but if the government is smart they would be put on the Exempt list along with Mega Man, Cut Man, and a few others.

Overall, For Whose Sake is a very interesting Mega Man story. Even from the title you can see how the story will test on whose side you’re on. The robots trying to survive or the government trying to destroy them? Complicating matters is that the Robots have started attacking cities in retaliation after finding out that thousands of them have already been destroyed. Once things escalate to violence it’s hard to turn back. Regardless, if you’re a Mega Man fan then you definitely will want to check this one out.

Overall 7/10

One Piece: Vivi’s Adventure Review

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One Piece has been getting quite a lot of different one shots and specials to celebrate the 1000th episode coming up. It’s definitely fun to see a series get so much content and last for so long. One Piece has lived through many powerful Jump titles and continues to tell its tale. I thought it slowed down quite a bit after the timeskip because you can’t really compare masterpiece arcs like Water 7 and Marineford to Punk Hazard or Fishman Island. I thought Whole Cake Island was fun though and while Wano started out slow, we’re definitely in the payoff part now. So things are on the up and up all around. This special chapter rewrites Vivi’s iconic farewell with a new art style. It’s a fun revisit although personally I would have picked more of an action chapter here.

Since this is just one chapter stretched out to more of a monthly sized one, there isn’t a whole lot that happens. The chapter opens up with Vivi being forced to make a tough call. She can ride out with the Strawhats and officially become one of them or she can stay home and rule her land as a Princess. Her land would be devastated without her, but on the other hand if she doesn’t join now then she may never see the Strawhats again. What is the right decision? She only has 8 hours to decide at which point Luffy and the gang have to skip town.

Vivi was a fun character back in the day and everyone thought she had a fairly strong chance to join the crew. Ultimately she did not but perhaps one day when she reappears she will still be considered as one of Luffy’s mega crew. Sort of an extension of the main crewmates at least. Vivi’s still in the arc that is happening off screen so everyone’s looking forward to seeing how that plays out. Vivi would have made a good addition to the crew as she has a nice personality that would bounce off of the others pretty well. I would definitely take her over Franky or Brook in a heartbeat after all. She would need to learn a few more fighting moves though. Ultimately if I were her I would have chosen to leave but I won’t fault her for deciding to stay home.

As for Luffy and the gang, it definitely feels weird to see them being overwhelmed by normal enemies. Random marines with iron spears are absolutely decimating the ship and there’s just nothing the heroes can do about it. Effectively it is the weakness of not being able to fight much at sea. The gang of pirates are always at their best when fighting on land which can be ironic but that’s just the way it is. Zoro and Sanji at least don’t have devil fruits so they would be able to swim around and fight but it’s still hard to out maneuver whole ships in the meantime.

There are some pretty strong friendship messages in this chapter like Luffy and the gang arguing with Mr. 2 but as soon as they explain they are staying here for a friend he is quick to jump on their side. After all, risking your life for a friend is definitely fair game. Luffy and the others also take it pretty well when Vivi decides to stay. There wasn’t a lot of yelling for her to come aboard or anything, they just rolled with it and hoped for the best and had the iconic X pose.

It’s a very self contained chapter so it works really well as a one shot. Of course, I would like to have added a final scene at the end showing modern Vivi or something like that as a stinger into the future. Maybe show her entering the Reverie or something. It would be a pretty good way to build hype if you ask me, but I’m definitely ready to see what’s next on the One Piece spinoff list. This one as drawn by the artist of Nisekoi and it was impressive since I wouldn’t have otherwise recognized the art style if I didn’t already know about it. Granted, I haven’t read Nisekoi in a little while which probably would have helped a bit.

Overall, Vivi’s Adventure is a pretty good story. The good thing about choosing this chapter is that it works very well even if you don’t know much about One Piece. You can still understand what is going on with the story. The large scale context doesn’t matter much as the main story is really just about the emotional choice between friends and your family duty. In that sense you can immediately understand the stakes and what is going on here. So definitely give this one a read and as it’s only 1 chapter long you’ll have it completed really quickly.

Overall 7/10

The Lone Ranger (1956) Review

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So far the Lone Ranger has not had a very good track record with the movies. I wasn’t particularly a fan of the other two versions I saw but seeing as how this is one of the original versions of the character, maybe it would have more potential. Fortunately that did turn out to be the case and in fact I would say it’s way better than the other two. I wouldn’t say it’s great but it will keep your attention more than the others.

The movie starts off by introducing us to the Lone Ranger and his partner Tonto grilling someone about the recent talk of Indians with saddled horses going around and committing crimes. There is currently a treaty in the land so that the Indians and settlers respect each others turf but this group appears to be ignoring it. The guy doesn’t know anything but refers the heroes to town. There, the governor asks the duo to take a look into this since they are the only ones he can trust. Tonto and the Ranger solemnly promise to look things over and see that justice is served.

This is one of those films where there are not a lot of likable characters on either side though. The Indians are led by Red Hawk, a man who has helped the Ranger many times in the past but he is now getting old and is slowly trying to step down as leader. The main issue is that his replacement is quite eager for battle and would jump into a war as soon as possible. If this were to happen then casualties would be unavoidable and that’s not something either side wants. Still, Red Hawk confirms that none of his men would do such a thing.

As for the guy stirring up a lot of trouble, his name is Kilgore. He’s the guy who keeps reporting these crimes but of course aside from him and his men there aren’t many witnesses. There’s certainly no time to catch any of these guys so it really becomes a battle of words which is not ideal for getting to the truth of the matter. He wants to raise his daughter as if she was his son so that she can inherit the ranch and all of his belongings someday.

Kilgore’s wife isn’t happy about this but he basically threatens her to stay silent on this. Given that this guy is a complete mob boss who isn’t above murdering just about anyone, it’s not exactly easy to get him to back down either. Of course he needs to watch his back since one of his men, Cassidy is a bit of a loose cannon. The tables can easily turn in this kind of thing.

But at the end of the day they are your classic wild west villains. There isn’t anything particularly cool about these villains. They want to grab a lot of land and conquer as much of it as possible. There isn’t really anything to their development beyond that so I wouldn’t really consider them to be all that interesting.

As for the Lone Ranger himself, it is interesting how his secret identity is that of an old man. It’s an interesting angle but it defeats the purpose when he then shows himself right afterwards. I feel like with an identity like that you need to keep it on ice a bit longer and put some distance between both of your personas so that nobody will suspect anything. If you just appear back to back then it’s very suspicious.

As an old man I suppose he intends to get people to lower their guards. It works once but as an old man instead it makes the others feel bolder at times like when the Ranger attempts to interrogate a store owner. Lets just say that it did not work in the slightest. The Ranger has a cool scene where he shoots the rope before the town can hang Tonto though.

Long Ranger is a serviceable lead. He’s not the most interesting guy I’ve seen but he’s not bad either. He wants to fight for justice and get everyone to the right outcome. It’s a classic kind of character personality. The Lone Ranger doesn’t really add anything to it, but he doesn’t take it away either so it all ends up balancing out in the end.

As for Tonto, he certainly takes a lot of the risks here. Keep in mind that all of the villains are trying to eradicate the Indians so the Lone Ranger sending Tonto on a solo mission deep into enemy territory was very risky. If the horse didn’t alert the Ranger in time he definitely would have been too late. Tonto definitely had to risk it all in order to claim victory. He fought well too, but nobody can be expected to defeat a whole town. The Ranger definitely gives his allies tough missions like that though. The instant he asks a man named Ramirez to help him out, you’ll be a little worried for that guy.

Back to Tonto’s mission though, this is really where the Sheriff looked pretty bad. He talked tough throughout the movie but when it was crunch time he ultimately faltered. He just watched as this guy was about to be hanged and didn’t do anything. The leader of the relations office tried helping so I’d give him a lot more credit than the Sheriff. It’s just hard to come back from that.

The music in the film was pretty catchy. The Lone Ranger’s alter ego had a fun enough theme. I suppose the classic hero theme has also aged well over the years. So all in all, you’ve got a pretty decent combo there. I dare say that the music is a little better than I expected. The writing is on point as well. It’s a fairly chipper adventure although at the same time, the film can certainly get serious when it wants to be. It manages both genres well.

There isn’t as much action as you might expect though. The Ranger does get to have a fist fight with Red Hawk but that’s about it. Beyond that you just have a few gunfights here and there. Surprisingly the Ranger even gets bested in one of those fights near the end. I was definitely not expecting him to get shot in the chest. At the same time, I was not expecting him to tell Killgore where his wife was hiding so the Lone Ranger really liked to surprise me.

Overall, The Lone Ranger is a franchise that tends to not really be my speed because I’m not big into the Wild West or any of the old eras like that. That said, I think this film captured the essence of the franchise a lot more than the newer films. It had enough fun dialogue and character moments to keep me entertained. I wouldn’t say there is a lot of replay value here though. If you pit it against a lot of other classic films then it would lose but on its own the film really isn’t bad. It could stand to have a little more action but it does the job if you want something quick to watch.

Overall 6/10

The Legend of Zelda Oracle of Seasons Review

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Legend of Zelda is a series where the main games tend to be terrific but some of the older ones don’t work as well. It’s a little bit like Metroid to that extent where I didn’t care for the first couple much but then they got better. This game plays out like a very old school LoZ title where you are really left to your own devices. It ends up making for a game that is pretty annoying to play.

So someone has decided to mess with the 4 seasons. The global climate is out of whack now and nobody really knows what to do. Fortunately Link is on the case. He will have to use the staff of seasons in order to put the world right again. It’s the only way to bring peace and prosperity back into the land. We don’t know exactly who the villain is, but he will certainly regret getting in Link’s way.

The main gameplay style here is that of an overhead adventure. You travel across the world as you look for different essences as well as the 4 seasons themselves. You can use various weapons in the hub world like your sword, boomerang, and other weapons. Talking to civilians will help you get past obstacles that can’t be overcome by brawn alone. There are also portions of the game that simulate the Mario experience as the game turns into a side scroller. It’s always pretty fun to go through those segments as a change of pace.

I played this game as a virtual console port on the 3DS. I can say right now that I can’t imagine playing this game without the access points. I use those quite a lot. Without them there are obstacles that will take you back to the beginning of a dungeon. If you make a wrong step you may find yourself in a room that you can’t back out of and you have to take the long way around. The game has many anti quality of life features that stack up.

On the plus side, I do like the graphics. They’ve aged well and this is a colorful style that just really works well. It’s why a lot of people like sprites since they transition into the future really easily. The soundtrack’s also pretty decent. It’s all catchy and works well for the various dungeons. So on a technical level this game was on the money.

The actual gameplay is pretty smooth as well. You never feel like the weapon is hitting too late or you miss something that you’re aiming for. The core gameplay is solid so I don’t expect you will really come across any issues. So this pretty much wraps up the good parts of the game. They are considerable of course but the negatives do outweigh them this time.

First off, there’s not much of a story. It’s not the kind of thing that will lower a score but when bosses show up without any dialogue or cutscene, you know something is up. Yeah there is still a story overall but it’s fairly barebones. I will give the game credit for having a cliffhanger ending though. It flat out tells you to go and buy Oracle of Ages as the game ends. There is a caveat to that though.

It looks like you have to buy both games to effectively link them and unlock the true ending. If you just buy one then you will really be playing through almost the same story. So…this seems like a really crafty way to get people to buy both titles. I also wonder how that would work through virtual console. I’m guessing I wouldn’t be able to transfer save states like that and if so that would be awful. I don’t know for sure though so just keep that in mind if you want to see the true ending.

No, the real issue with the game is the puzzles. LoZ loves its puzzles but the problem is that the series is often not as good at it as the real puzzle titles like Professor Layton. Half the time you are given no clue as to what to do next or have to use your weapon in a new way that was unexplained. I spent 20 minutes blasting one enemy with elemental attacks only to find out that it wasn’t actually causing damage. (Why have the boss glow as if you landed a hit when the hit didn’t work?)

Between dungeons you often have to do tasks in the hub world but there is no way to know what you are supposed to do. Additionally the hub world is huge so running back and forth is incredibly time consuming. The game took a lot longer than I expected it would in order to conquer it and this was why. I spent hours just spinning my wheels when I could have been at the next dungeon already.

I never cared much for that aspect because if I got a game then I want to be playing it. I want to feel the gameplay and just go all in but this really slows things down. I ended up needing a guide for many parts and I don’t see how I would have ever guessed what to do in some of these cases. There are some places you can teleport to in order to save time but not nearly enough of them. You still have to walk large parts of the world map on your own which is not ideal.

At the heart of it, the game just isn’t very fun to play for this reason. Sure, some of the dialogue can be fun, you can enjoy the boss battles but anytime you’re having too much fun the game slams you down with a dead zone where you have to figure out where to go next. It leaves you in a tough spot but not a fun one as you’re running through areas you’ve already been to a million times already.

At least because of that the length is considerable. If you get this game for the going rate of $10-$15 bucks then this is really not a bad deal. There’s also the replay value of getting the true ending but if you do need two copies in order to get to it then that may not be applicable in the virtual console version anyway. Definitely do your research before buying the game.

Overall, The overhead Link games aren’t really my style and this one was no exception. If it focused on more combat and less wandering around then I think it would have fared a lot better. Link games always have solid combat after all and that would have aged really well. So if you’re in the mood for a Legend of Zelda game, I’d recommend checking out Skyward Sword, Ocarina of Time, or Breath of the Wild instead. At the end of the day this one just wasn’t fun and is best left to history.

Overall 4/10

Sonic Colors: Rise of the Wisps Review

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It’s always hype when Sega decides to give us a cool Sonic animated short. This one is in the Sonic Colors part of the verse. It’s a phrase I never thought I would see again. I was never a big fan of the Wisp mechanics since I much prefer to just be doing my own thing at all times with Sonic speed but if you’ve got it you might as well use it right? This special is around 10-12 minutes long and features Metal Sonic so you can’t go wrong.

The basic plot is that Eggman has his two robots: Cubot and Orbot kidnapping Wisps across the planet. Sonic and Tails decide that the mad man must be stopped. He’s already captured a lot of the Wisps across the planet so saving them all will be difficult. Additionally, Eggman has brought in his most powerful robot of all time…Metal Sonic. Can Sonic take down this robot or are the Wisps doomed?

Sonic has his signature humor which is always fun. The guy’s just a great character and even with only a few minutes to spare in the special you can tell that these guys really get the core of his character. Sonic may not like to sit around and listen to long stories but he is quick to act. Metal Sonic may be a tad faster in base but Sonic has a lot more experience in combat and uses that to his advantage.

He also has the Wisps at the ready and uses them to get a pretty good advantage in their battle. Sonic reminds us that the powers of friendship are always a mighty ally to have on your side at all times. Even at the end of the special he is looking at the big picture while Tails is beginning to panic. It’s why Sonic is always seen as such a natural leader.

Tails doesn’t look at good with the panicking but usually that is the sidekick’s role. You panic a lot which by extension makes the main hero look even better. It’s all part of the plan after all. Tails peaked in Sonic Adventure 2 Battle and since then the new continuity hasn’t used him quite as well. His gadgets always do come in handy though.

As for Metal Sonic, this is one of those versions that is more on the mindless side. I wouldn’t say he is completely mindless or anything like that but the guy is more instinct than anything else. He just wants to win and prove he is the fastest but don’t expect a lot of strategy or anything like that. Still, it is great to see him as always. He definitely gives Sonic a run for his money.

Cubot and Orbot are decent. I prefer them as Eggman’s mindless minions to some of the other iterations. Changing one of their voice boxes to the announcer’s sound effects felt very odd though. Maybe they couldn’t get the voice actor back in time for this special? That would be my guess at least but the whole announcer thing works well enough. Just watch your volume if you’re on headphones because it can be a bit on the loud side.

As for the Wisps, I’m still not much of a fan but they do end up helping when it counts which is good. It was nice to see them actually contribute and even try to free everyone before Sonic showed up. It at least meant that the Wisps were resourceful and weren’t just going to wait and be saved. Now that’s what I like to see.

The animation’s not bad. It’s definitely good for a Youtube exclusive. The colors are smooth and we get some nice speed effects. It’s going for a bit of an old school cutscene look. I like the direction it’s going in but for a full show I would definitely like to clean up the animation a bit. This special has full voice acting which is really cool so that definitely gets a thumbs up from me.


Overall, This special is under 15 minutes so there isn’t a whole lot more to talk about. It’s pretty fun and really feels like it is over in the blink of an eye. The writing is solid and most importantly, they really got Sonic’s personality across. He’s really a hero you can count on and who is always ready to have the team at his back. He isn’t trying to do things solo if it’ll put anyone in danger. It’ll be cool if we get more specials like this.

Overall 7/10