First and foremost, I must say this: DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THIS EPISODE. You WILL hate yourself if I am the one to ruin it for you. This episode began with a huge debate over whether Randall (Captain Leg Wound) would live or die. The argument is that Randall could possibly lead the group of 30+ strangers to Hershel’s farm if he is let go. If they kill him that threat is potentially squashed, Dale is arguing however, that if they execute a fellow human being for a crime he hasn’t even attempted to commit, they lose their humanity.
Throughout the episode, Dale attempts to convince everyone in the group to find another way to deal with Randall, one by one we see how these people have changed since the Zombie threat has arrived. All the while, Carl is becoming more and more desensitized because of the world around him. He is beginning to act out. He yelled at Carol (who cares?), but he also taunted a walker in the woods after stealing (and losing) Daryl’s gun! Continue reading The Walking Dead: Season 2, Episode 11- “Judge, Jury, Executioner”→
The fall of our economy has been hard on everyone, including Hollywood, California, that magical place where even the litter is diamond-encrusted. It’s hard to believe, but big-budget studios have taken a pretty noticeable hit in recent years, and revenue continues to fall each year. It always helps to look for the good in bad situations and that’s just what this story is all about.
It looks like Warner Bros. has hit the brakes on Jaume Collet-Serra‘s upcoming adaptation of Akira while they make one last negotiation to work out the on-going budgetary and casting issues that have been plaguing production from the start. The Hollywood Reporter says that a call has been made requesting that the entire crew and production crew drop everything they’re working on until further notice. As one insider put it, “everyone has been sent home.”
This would be great news for Akira fans like myself. I’ve made it pretty clear that I’m not a fan of the way the remake was going. Besides some questionable casting decisions and storyline changes, Akira just doesn’t seem like it’s doable in live-action; anime, as you probably know, can go to some pretty wild places from time to time and Akira‘s subject matter requires an extensively realized cyber-punk world. I imagine lowering the budget would make this challenge even more difficult.
Akira is the latest title to go down the Hollywood remake poop-chute, and about a week ago it was reported that Garrett Hedlund(TRON: Legacy) was at the top of the list for the role of ‘Kaneda’. While rumors of Hedlund playing the gang leader and sweet motorcycle-owner remain pretty thin, Gamma Squad reports roles have been offered to former Harry Potter co-stars Gary Oldman and Helena Bonham-Carter.
Oldman would play ‘Colonel Shikishima’, the man in charge of tracking down the not-yet cast Tetsuo, and Bonham-Carter would take on the character of ‘Lady Miyako’, “a high priestess and former test subject of a secret government project led by the Colonel,” who as far as I can remember was not originally a part of the Anime film. It’s difficult to say how the new Akira will turn out; the original movie is a cult classic, and it was one of the very first Anime films I ever saw. Suffice it to say, I was too young and new to the genre to get most of it, but from what I remember it’s a very complex, very cool and visually impressive sci-fi story set in future Japan.
How director Jaume Collet-Sera will translate that to an Americanized Hollywood picture remains to be seen, but just having Commissioner Jim Gor…uh, Gary Oldman attached would get me on their side.
I know what you’re thinking: How can a Wolverine anime be any good, especially with the character now having a link to the Disney empire? But truth be told I was pretty impressed by this show’s first episode and hoped to be equally impressed the following ones. Sure they went the route of having the male lead looking very tall and willowy with almost feminine features in the face, but the amount of kick assery that Logan perpetrates in this episode and his manly voice pretty much erase any misgivings I had about his appearance.
Speed Lines? Check.
I suppose if you’re looking for short and hairy Logan then you should stop reading the review and not watch the show. The rest of you can rest assured though, he’s still a bad ass character and in one scene even beats up some stealth Ninjas whilst drinking a Canandian beer. I know that’s something my colleague Supa Scoot can appreciate.
Now, to the story. It starts off with Wolverine and Mariko Shingen on a sweet yacht being all lovey-dovey with one another in trademark anime fashion. Then, in the perfect way to ruin such a scene, a group of scuba mercenary-types with jet packs erupt from the water to open up with a hail of gunfire on the two lovebirds. Logan uses his body to shield Mariko and then sends her away as his healing factor kicks in to the max. I was a little disappointed to see that they went the movie route of Logan being able to heal himself instantly before our eyes in a matter of seconds. I think his power just works better and makes him a little less invincible when in takes him some time to heal. But for such a fast paced show I eventually accepted that it was for the best.
The next time we see Logan he is meeting with his friend Asano, who I’m to assume is some sort of lawman, whether he be SHIELD or INTERPOL. (He mentions Metro PD) I wouldn’t so much call it a meeting either as Logan rescues Asano from a group of stealth AIM soldiers. AIM of course stands for Advanced Idea Mechanics and they are curiously absent of their trademark bee keeper uniforms. Now they wear what look like fencing outfits…. anyways, moving on. This is the scene where Wolverine unleashes whilst catching his other can of beer at the end of the fight.
The story revolves around Wolverine’s gal pal Mariko having disappeared in between the opening and Asano informing Logan that he has found her being held by her crime boss father Yashida Shingen to marry another crime boss named Hideki who is the man in charge of Madripoor. Madripoor, in case you didn’t know is located near Japan and is a sovereign city-state made up by various criminal organizations. Think Tortuga from Pirates of the Carribean or something. (FYI Madripoor isn’t real) The plan is for Shingen and Hideki to join their forces with Mariko as the glue between their alliance. (yeah that sounded weird.) Logan obviously can’t pass on a chance to rescue Mariko from the marriage and at the same time help Asano and his colleagues. To avoid any confusion, this is not Yuriko the future Lady Deathstrike nor is it Yukio the female ninja. Logan and his Japanese women…
It looks like this will be an ongoing story in the series, so not every review will be such a summary but I thought it best to get everyone up to speed. The episode itself was extremely enjoyable to me. As I said I liked Logan despite his anime man look. He dispatched quite a few guys in true Wolverine fashion and they sure didn’t skimp out on the blood. The fight that Logan has at the end with a certain someone was extremely hardcore and I assure you if you’re an action fan and a Wolverine fan you won’t be disappointed.
The music including the opening title is excellent for the subject matter, it was getting me pretty pumped as Logan popped the claws and unleashed some fury. I should also point out that the show is only in Japanese with English subtitles at the moment on Animax, (G4 has supposedly broadcast an English dub, but I don’t get G4) but honestly I think that will turn out to be for the best. The voices are perfect so far and I see an English dub completely ruining it. If I hear anything even close to “You and all your base are belong to us” I will lose my shit Wolverine style. I will try it out once the show is on DVD dubbed in English but for the most part I am enjoying the Japanese version with subtitles.
I’m giving the first episode a four out of five Snikts for exceeding my expectations with the subject matter and Wolverine’s overall presentation character wise. I expected the animation to be exceptional and it truly was. Join me soon for the episode 2 review!
Amongst my endless volumes of anime, I would definitely say that Afro Samurai is one of the best series I’ve had the pleasure of viewing. It is an incredibly deep story, accompanied by one of the best soundtracks in anime history. So it was only natural that my heart broke when I heard that Samuel L. Jackson had teamed up with Gonzo Studios to create a live action film.
Spoilers Ahead…
Afro Samurai revolves around a young samurai (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) who seeks revenge for death of his father, murdered by a lone gunman in the conquest for his father’s number one headband. Throughout his wanders in a futuristic feudal Japan, he is accompanied by an imaginary loud mouth Afro Ninja, and fights countless swordsmen/androids. Afro kills all who stand in his way until he achieves his ultimate goal of revenge.
But lets consider something, the original series consisted of five episodes, filled with constant character development, so its obvious that key plot elements will be axed during the writing process, leaving us with a potential Dragonball: Evolution. And when you aim a movie towards die hard fanboys, those are the type of things you can’t miss. Afro Samurai is perfect the way it is, a live action film will only drag the series down. The only redeeming quality is a potential RZA (original Wu-Tang Clan member) soundtrack.
Afro Samurai is now looking for a writer and cast to attach to this production, and it is due to start filming in 2012.
Grizzly Bomb 