AUSPICIOUS OPENER

RAEG
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“DIOUFY? WHERE ART THOU?”

WEST HAM 0 CARDIFF CITY 1 (MILLER 91″) Hilarious mugging and Big Sam in a great hot funk, what more do you want from your football?

Skyrim Watch, Part 2

Lots of new information available since my last post about Skyrim, but it is only at Quakecon that we got actual live gameplay footage.

(Quakecon 2011) Elder Scrolls V Skyrim 35 Min Gameplay Fixed Audio [HD 720p]

What I got from this video:

  • The draw distances are amazing. No more trees and structures popping up out of nowhere.
  • At the same time, great detailing on the little things like logs, small plants.
  • The spell effects look good, which fixes one of my pet peeves from Oblivion. I wonder how moddable they are. Hopefully Bethesda is including OBSE-esque hooks for extra scriptability.
  • While the one weapon or spell per hand mechanic looks like it’ll add whole new dimensions to game play (it looks like a super-charged version of what we got in BioShock), it looks like parrying with weapons is off the table, perhaps in the interest of game balance.
  • The areas demoed are the same as in the previously released game play trailer. Would have preferred to see something new.
  • Obnoxious audience is obnoxious.

The Collector’s Edition was also announced at QuakeCon. I’m sorry, but while I am a huge fan of the Elder Scrolls series, USD150 for a PVC sculpture, a making of DVD and an art book is just a rip off.

Edit: the video was taken off. Will be updating the post once a better version is available.

Thundercats Episode 03 – Minute-by-Minute Impressions and Thoughts

When am I going to meet a hot pirate queen?!

So I was quite impressed with the first 2 episodes as well, as described in golliz’s post. A lot of people have also been raising the point that Avatar’s success is a watershed moment similar to that of B:TAS and Thundercats is the first western series to start reflecting the impact on design and conceptualization. I can’t say for certain how much of an effect (if any) that has and how long this halo effect will linger over the American animation industry. I see some styling in the art that could possibly be attributed to it, but the writing and character designs don’t strike me as particularly Avatar-ish. Heck, to be brutally honest I think the only really clear Avatarism was the blessed decision to leave Snarf as a Momo-esque gremlin clone instead, to the relief of everyone sane over the age of 10. As much as I would I like to say B:TAS completely changed animation in the West, the truth is that for a good long while after it arrived it was still the Timmverse carrying the banner of a more sophiscated palette all by its lonesome, if you discount the odd unusual offering such as Gargoyles. In fact, I don’t think there was much of an effect until Avatar arrived. So colour me a skeptic until I see more concrete evidence (or more episodes!) that there will be knockon improvement in quality for art and writing for the next 5, 10 years. Or none.

As for the opening pair of of eps, there were some truly weird oddities, like the Naruto-style clerics, and there was some less-than-impressive CG for an important scene, but in a general sense, the animation, staging and set pieces were pleasant surprises. The first THUNDERCATS HO! moment with Lion-O and the Sword of Omens was truly a mark-out moment for me. So let’s roll onto episode three, running commentary style and see how things go.

Last we left our power trio they were escaping from Mumm-Ra’s clutches after GandalfJaga bought them some time. With Lion-O getting his Bambi Moment, the plot markers are set for a HOT BLOOD HERO’S JOURNEY. So, without further ado, let’s start….

—–§—–

0:05 HO! It’s still the old theme….just very short and remixed

2:15 Anakin? That you?

2:35 Team 7 exiting Minas Tirith

3:35 “I’m not anti-children, I’m anti-brat”

3:40 SERIOUSLY? They’re doing a nyaaaaan~? Is this simulcasting in Japan?

4:10 AHHHHHH New Zealand

5:00 “Pffft…we don’t need no stinkin’ food when I’m 15min from getting my plot epiphany”

5:15 HOW THE HELL DID THEY MISS THAT ARCH? They’re effin’ cats!

5:40 Someone tell the production crew about the viscosity of sand/silt

6:15 Where the hell’s that accent from? Scotland? India?

6:30 NO PARROT. I AM DISAPPOINT

6:50 This is so Dark Sun….the show is really wearing its influences in a bloody obvious fashion

7:20 CORNELIUS TUNA. And damn, the wiki redirects too

7:25 You know it’s not going to happen, but why did they have to dangle that in front of us! Sheesh

7:40 Ah right the perennial favorite of Japanese animation

7:45 MOBY DICK (TENTACLES). Make your best Khan the Catfish joke.

7:50 OK, the Nebuchadnezzar now? What next, a map leading to water tattooed on someone’s back?

8:35 Someone is probably writing a Cheetara/sea kaiju fanfic as we speak

9:05 “Yes, Ishmael, grab a spare harpoon and let’s go fishin’!”

9:15 They’re bitin…….I need two palms to cover my face right now

10:05 Area cleaning comes AFTER the puke

10:50 Heavy-handed male bonding. At least, I hope Tunaface is male

11:45 This cook knows the value of foie gras

13:20 I suspect we’ll be getting a lot of sibling rivalry moments. Just wait till they start hitting on that piece of tail

14:10 What’s all that talk about mystical tech? No one is surprised by the Millennium Falcon turrets?!

16:45 CREW OVERBOARD

17:00 Half expecting a Jaws ripoff here, considering how many “influences” (ahem) there are throughout this ep

17:25 KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN TEH CATFISH

17:50 AHAB OVERBOARD

18:15 They can’t shut their gobs either for feasting or talking it seems

18:35 SQUISHIE SHAI HULUD IS BREAKING FAST

18:55 Who didn’t see THAT coming

19:00 THE LISAN AL GAIB HAS MADE IT RAIN, PWAISE BE!

19:35 Now I’m getting a bit of the World Destruction vibe here

19:50 PITCH THEM OVERBOARD. PLEASE.

21:10 Finally, now that we’re done with the capsule cliche character development nicely tied up in 1 ep, plot development!

—–§—–

Man, considering the grimdark evident in the season opener, this was not the kind of episode I would choose to do as a followup, whether in tone or plot. Not only was it a very silly parody of everyone’s favorite whale hunt, the extremely heavy handed treatment of Lion-O’s cliche descent into the “Dark Side” was followed by an all too cliche resolution. That in itself may or not be a big issue, but having handed Lion-O his epiphany on a platter with almost zero contribution from his party members certainly is one. It didn’t help that the two brats’s antics completely destroyed what little gravitas the plot treatment delivered. The whole thing just felt like characterization by numbers, and having ticked the checkbox, the episode then concluded sheepishly with a giant plot marker, as if to tell the audience, “Hey! Here’s what really important that will have bearing on the main plot thread!”

If we go back to that contentious topic of Avatar comparison again, this is a vastly different third episode compared to the Southern Air Temple. There’s a more steady and subtle buildup of the downer elements of Aang’s mindset in Avatar, cumulating in The Storm, 12 episodes in the show where the protagonist finally achieves his clarity of mind after exorcizing his inner demons. In contrast, the first three episodes of the new Thundercats just seems to highlight the fact that the great season opener seems more like a Lodoss-style hook to get the audience interested in the show first. I hope I’m being too cynical, but it’s not like anime in Japan isn’t notorious for starting with a bang first, followed by a disappointing mid-season crawl. Or perhaps I’m just overthinking all this, and THIS SHOW JUST NEEDS ITS PANTHRO. Just sayin’.

All in all, moderately groansworthy and quite a climbdown from the first pair of episodes. I’m still generally hopeful for the show, but I might have to scale down my expectations a tad. The art also seemed to take a minor hit, which doesn’t bode too well for the rest of the show. Hopefully it’s just an aberrant blip.

Red Tails – That’s Not a TIE Fighter

Red Tails (2012) HD Movie Trailer - Lucasfilm Official Trailer

My only exposure to the subject matter in moving pictures was the 1995 HBO film with Laurence Fishburne and it’s always a fascinating subject to revisit, as it’s one of the most interesting subtexts on how social and racial demographics impact the execution of total war. This actually looks pretty decent and raises hopes it will be a good flick, and on a purely visceral level the Me 262s should warm the cockles of any war nerd’s heart.

As an aside, this looks like the first Lucasfilm-affliated product that isn’t a complete wash out of the gate in a long while. Let’s hope the Taint of Lucas doesn’t strike this time round.

Thundercats 2011 Review (Ep01 – 03)

When news first came out that the 80’s cartoon “Thundercats” will be rebooted, I really wondered if USA is already scraping the bottom of the barrel when even cartoons are being remade.  On top of that, the felines aren’t even getting the ‘upgrade’ to be converted into a movie like their peers, Transformers and … Smurfs.

It took me about 5 minutes of the pilot to make me realise this reboot might have been the best cartoon for kids (and kids at heart) since the Justice League Unlimited series!

The pilot and 2nd episode, respectively named “Sword of Omens” and “Ancient Spirits of Evil” were bundled together which is all about setting up the new lore. The 2011 Lion-O seems much younger than the 80’s counterpart, while the rest of the pack, Tygra, Cheetara and the two kiddos pretty much remain similar to the original. (note: Cheetara is one hot kitty! MEOW!)

Brief Episodes review : *SPOILERS AHEAD*

What’s great about the series is the elements of classic tales incorporated into the episodes.  The first two shows referenced the Trojan Horse which led to the downfall of Thundera, after the King was betrayed by his own trusted aide.  There are some seriously good shit happening in this pilot which was dark in theme yet ok for kids to enjoy. The pilot deserves an A+ in my humble opinion.

So, the big challenge would be how are they going to follow that awesome opening?  Well, episode 3, “Ramlak Rising” falters a bit. Carrying on where they left off, the cat pack trio now led by a Lion-O consumed by vengeance embarks to avenge the late King by killing MummRa. While the rest thought the right thing was to seek out some ancient book.  The new King quickly veto that and they basically ended up in the Pirates of the Caribbean movie (…or so I thought!)

Fortunately, the story took a turn for the better towards the end as the theme of obsession for revenge shone through which is of course, a direct homage to “Moby Dick”, which I thought really saved the entire episode.  (Grade : C+, but that’s cos the first ep was so good)

Interesting notes on ep 3 though :

1. Wileykit and kat’s attempt to get Lion-O to change his mind was basically to act cute and purr to him, a moment they made me laugh out. Especially because I had just fed a cat and it was what the cat did.

2. speaking of hungry cats, boy the two Wiley can eat!

3. still on the topic of food, why would fishes whom already have decent food want to cook cats as dinner? First time I have ever seen fishes eating cats. Reverse cannibalism?

4. Yes, cannibalism was being referenced with humor in this cartoon.

5. Last but not least, as I was trying to find pictures for post, I only just learnt of the following news… that this may be one of the rare moments where the voice actress is as chio (if not more) as the character she plays! I had no idea that Emmanuelle Chriqui voiced Cheetara!! (Entourage’s Sloane, You Don’t Mess with the Zohan)

Hubba Hubba!!!

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The Darkest Hour – At Least It’s Not Skyline

The Darkest Hour Trailer 2011 Movie Official HD

DEY AR COMMIN 4 OW WIMMIN ENERGEEZ!!!11one

How many alien invasion films have we gotten in the last 2 years? This is bloody ridiculous (and that’s not even counting the “thoughtful” lower budget attempts like Monsters.) On the plus side, it looks better and sounds more plausible in execution than the last film that had glowy bits descending from the heavens. On the minus side, the science is going to be completely ABSURD and it’s giving me bad Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within flashbacks. There is also the usual gaggle of teens that I suspect I will wish murder upon when I watch it, and the sheer implausibility of the light bulb scene is just eyerolling.  At the very least, though, one thing this trailer doesn’t have is the “gritty” shakey-cam that is popular with the epic disaster genre lately. One of the very, very few blessings that Hollywood is capable of these days.

They probably thought setting it in Russia would a good change of environment, and hey, equal opportunity destruction amirite? Maybe one day there will be a (hopefully good) S.T.A.L.K.E.R. film. A guy can hope.

P.S: I refuse to post about Battleship. Sorry, Mr Neeson, I love your badasstitude but there are limits to my dreck buffer.