Movie: Tron: Legacy

So this is just my opinion. I know a LOT of people who enjoyed this movie, but unfortunately, I wasn’t one of them. Keep in mind, I’m a guy who loves originals and good plotlines. I like 90% of the movies I watch.

I honestly thought it sucked. They said that it didn’t have a great plot (I agree), but the visuals would make up for it. I sat there with my 3D IMAX glasses (spent around $18.50), and I couldn’t find a good reason to have them on. It’s not that I don’t like 3D IMAX (I saw James Cameron’s Avatar and liked the visuals), but I thought this movie could be watched in regular 3D for the same effect.

Now read this part only if you’ve seen the movie: (well, I’ll try to not reveal much)
I thought the beginning of the movie was pretty solid, although I was creeped out by the younger looking Jeff Bridges. It had a nice setup. The whole virtual world, especially the disk and cycle battles, was visually stunning.

After that, it kind of falls apart. [Side note: They had a freakin litson (fried pig), and they didn’t even eat it!! Filipino RAGE!] For a movie that boasts eye candy, there wasn’t much to see after the games. I mean, “oooo!” whitish and grayish lights for the battles, but then it just felt like the seeing the same thing throughout the rest of the movie.

The ending also left me heavily unsatisfied. There was enough action leading to the climax that I expected an epic boss battle at the end (My RPG senses kicked in). But there wasn’t much. I would’ve loved to see something like a transformation into a Sark 2.0 and a memorable defeat.

That’s what this movie lacks. There weren’t any memorable lines. And even when the movie tried to be funny or cliché, it didn’t appeal to my senses. It had random plotlines that make you feel like you should just accept what’s going on rather than understand anything.

What sucks even more is that the program Tron doesn’t play a big role in this movie. Yes, he appears, but why have it named Tron if he’s going to be in it for a few minutes? In the original, he at least helps Flynn take down the MCP. Maybe it would’ve been cooler if Sam wrote the program Tron beforehand, then have it help him throughout the movie?

And yes, I agree that Daft Punk provided an amazing soundtrack. But OMG, there was a freakin guy dancing in his seat for the whole 2ND HALF OF THE MOVIE!! To the guy who was shaking around in the Edwards in Mira Mesa on Dec. 21 at the 10:00 showing….F*CK YOU! It was cute the first minute, but the last HOUR?? You were like a pimple I wanted to pop while watching the movie!

To the animators and creators of the special effects, I applaud your effort. You did an amazing job creating a unique atmosphere. It’s going to take more than that to win a nerd like me over though. If you’re going to pay homage to the original, do it right (like enlivening Sam’s boring transport into the mainframe) =P

Disney, stop ruining the things I love like trying to reboot Tron…and making Prince of Persia into a movie…and buying Marvel. UGH! Is there no end to your tyranny??

Rating: Rent it!

 

Rating: Rent it!

Kirby’s A Little Too Happy

I’m excited for the new Epic Yarn game coming out on October 17, but not THAT excited. What’s worse is that he’s peeking out of a curtain making it seem all the more suspicious…like a flasher!! Nintendo sent this picture to gamers through e-mail.

Maybe our minds have been too much in the gutter, and it’s almost impossible for us to get out (or I could be the only one. In that case pardon my immaturity). ANYTHING could seem like a phallic symbol. Ever see the box art of The Little Mermaid VHS? Google it.

Now if you look closely, something in that kingdom looks a little stiff. I actually own the VHS with this pretty picture before they “circumcised” it. =)

Seriously, what happened to Kirby??

Source: http://kotaku.com/5647832/check-out-kirbys-epic–uh-

Song of the Day: The History of Everything

To celebrate the season premiere of Big Bang Theory (Woo 4th Season!), here’s the awesome theme song by the Barenaked Ladies. They don’t have an official video, but this one shows cool pics with the lyrics!

Go watch the show already!

Video By: andyhookedonjesus

Song By: Barenaked Ladies

Catching Up With The Big Three

The war is on! It’s pretty rare to hear of someone who loves anime and manga not to hear about these three manga. In Japan, they’re known as the Big Three: One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach.

After finishing up with Bleach and Naruto this week, I feel very content in having the stories up-to-date in my head, yet sad that I can’t read chapters in bulk anymore. It’s probably a good thing because the next day, I usually have red eyes from staring at the screen so much. (O_O) Now there will always be people who prefer one over the other two. Me? I actually like all three! (^_^)

Thinking about starting these massive chapterific manga? Welcome to the stat comparison!

Naruto

This is actually the first of the three that I watched (not read). My friend had the first 125 episodes on some DVDs. Yay for bulk watching! I was a faithful watcher, probably watched until the 60th episode of the Shippuden arc. After that, I couldn’t take filler anymore, so I caught up with the manga. Hahaha. In this manga, you follow the young troublemaker Naruto, who has a huge dream of leading the village he lives in as “Hokage.”  At first it starts of with the characters becoming ninjas and going on ninja missions, preventing wars, and fighting along the way. There are a lot of plot elements including revenge, finding the “way of the ninja,” being driven to despair, and friendship. A pretty intense friendship, I should add. What’s cool is that everyone has some sort of unique power or move, so the fights aren’t boring.

# of Chapters: 511 (as of 09/23/2010)

Unworldly Element: Ninja techniques

Read if you like: ninjas, ninja moves, kids who want to follow their dreams, ninja fights, mythology, elements (like water, earth, fire), guys in midriffs, a really questioning relationship between two guys

One Piece

Out of all three, One Piece has to be my favorite. Why? All the characters are so awesome, and it’s freakin hilarious. While the other two get really serious, One Piece keeps the humor almost every chapter. Everyone’s so random too, they’re not all ninjas or shinigami. I keep wanting to read more and more! In this one, you follow atheyoung pirate Monkey D. Luffy with dreams of crossing the Grand Line and becoming “King of the Pirates.” (Sound familiar yet?) He eats the Gomu-Gomu fruit, which makes him a rubbery man. He can pretty much stretch anything. Hehe! Weakness? Not being able to swim! Sucks fir a pirate!! On the way, he gathers a bunch of people for his pirate crew and all of them are seriously awesome and funny in their own way. What’s cool is that everyone has a reason for joining his crew so you get a lot of character development. I just love how Luffy is stupid and won’t take no for an answer. Haha. It’s the longest out of the three.

# of Chapters: 597 (as of 09/23/2010)

Unworldly element: Devil Fruits which give random powers

Read if you like:  pirates, people gaining powers by eating devil fruits, variety of fighting moves, friendship, character development, unique cosplay ideas, adventures, cute reindeer, rubber and stretching

Bleach

I began watching this one, then turning it over to the manga. The filler was also unbearable. No idea why it’s called Bleach, but it became super popular. In this manga, you follow the young hothead Ichigo who gains the powers of a shinigami (Death God). He uses them to send ghosts back to Soul Society, or heaven. But the plot becomes much, much deeper than that. How? You kind of have to read it. It plays between humor and seriousness where character relationships are funny and fights are deadly serious. You get so many fights between characters that it’s freakin crazy! And the artwork in the fights are extraordinary! Even though mostly everyone uses swords, every sort of weapon or enemy has two or three different forms so the fights get more intense as the battle enrages.

# of Chapters: 421 (as of 09/23/2010)

Unworldly element: Shinigami powers.

Read if you like: wondering what happens beyond death, sword fights, fights in general, rescue missions, talking stuffed animals, big-breasted chicks (Oh yeah, there are a LOT)

[Spoiler]
Well, now I’m beginning to notice a trend between the three. Characters always like to get stronger. Naruto did the two year thing. Now One Piece? Bleach is pretty much an ongoing “getting stronger” manga, in which Ichigo somehow masters every skill 100x faster than normal.
And I think it’s kind of cool how everything’s getting tied to the beginning now. Each of these manga rely heavily on backstory to explain a current situation or relationship. It’s mostly to show how and why characters turn out the way they did. How the hell do the writers imagine a plot 400 chapters later and tie it to the beginning?? I love Naruto’s and One Piece’s history. Bleach totally just mindf***ed me. LOL

Do you have a particular favorite? Comment below!

8-Bit Glee, Yipee!

Glee Season 2 Premieres tonight at 8! If you don’t remember season 1, you can play this really awesome NES-ish version that’s loosely based on it.

I dunno why people be hatin’ on it. I guess no one appreciates a good 8-bit version of anything now. It’s actually well done! I ❤ 8-bit remixes.

HINT: It’s much more fun to play the wrong answers, ESP. “Discourage.” =)

Jin is Back in Hawaii! (Hawaii Five-0 Review)

But he didn’t crash land there.

A new crime drama has emerged on the shores of CBS called Hawaii Five-0. It’s a reboot of the classic 1960-1980s series which starred Jack Lord and James MacArthur. The difference? The new one has a zero instead of the letter O in the name. ooOOoOo!

Quick definition of reboot: a discarding of much or even all previous continuity in the series, to start anew. Effectively, all previously-known fictive history is declared by the writer(s) to be null and void, or at least irrelevant to the current storyline, and the series starts over. This isn’t a remake, which would probably follow the story completely and then add its own stories to clear things up.

So if you’ve never or have watched the original series, don’t expect this to be a sequel.

I’m not really a crime drama person. But what drew me first to watch this show was the fact that Daniel Dae Kim (LOST), Grace Park (Battlestar: Galactica), and Masi Oka (Heroes) would be in it.  Mixing all the best Asian actors in sci-fi culture into one show?? Ok, I gotta see what this has to offer! Not only that, executive producers Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci (Star Trek & Fringe) and Peter M. Lenkov (24), Director Len Wiseman (Underworld) are in the crew. It’s like a dream come true! Can’t go wrong with that, right?

It depends on your taste of television. After watching Jin in LOST shout “Others, others!!!” and now watching him speak perfect English, it’s a bit of a culture shock. Then Boomer/Athena sporting the awesome BSG uniform and clashing between her cylon orders and human emotions, now with practically nothing on half the time and punching everyone who gets in her way…ok, it’s pretty much Boomer in a bikini. Haha. Once you get used to the fact that these two have left the sci-fi spectrum, it’s already the end of the episode. I don’t know when Masi Oka will appear, but I’m just excited to see him again after NBS canceled Heroes. Those bastards.

Ok, let me review the show as a whole. I have not watched the original, so I can’t really compare the two, except that a lot of people said that the new reboot definitely holds on its own as a new series. The set location is amazing! Did you know that LOST was filmed in Hawaii too? LOST fans will have a lot of fun pointing out a bunch of locations from Oahu.

The show starts off very dramatic. Then it eases off into a search and destroy. The music is VERY similar to a bunch of shows that I watched before. There were times when I felt like I was watching the Amazing Race.

What I didn’t like were the characters and the overarching theme. Although Alex O’Loughlin who plays Steve McGarret is a pretty good-looking guy, I don’t get a sense of what drives his character. [SPOLIER ALERT] Yes, you screwed up by killing the bad guy’s brother (and show no emotion), and now you’re now searching for the guy who killed your father. (Episode climaxes) Well, now that he’s dead…what are you going to do now? Oh wait, they didn’t find the body or did they? Yeah, that was unclear. Wait, I remember there’s a box with a key. And that’s it. Isn’t the reason he formed this group to find and eliminate the terrorist? What’s the point of staying together after that? I’m kind of left with the feeling that this show will just be about solving crimes and cool stunts along the way. Is this what the show’s going to be about?

As for the other three characters, I didn’t see much drive either. Scott Caan as Danno has a pretty interesting backstory though. He hails from New Jersey, and interestingly enough acts like a character from Jersey Shore. I love the ringtone he set for his wife! Yes, it’s way early in the show, so maybe they’ll give more depth later. Just don’t expect too much from the pilot except a bunch of action scenes and guys with a “Screw the rules, I have immunity!” attitude.

Maybe I’m just not a crime drama person. I LOVE shows like Psych and Monk because they’re quirky and original. This one didn’t flow with my humor. Perhaps I should watch the original first. I’ll watch the new Hawaii Five-0 until Masi Oka appears, and then I’ll decide whether to love it or lose it.

Song of the Day: White Knuckles

I’m always, always impressed by OK Go’s videos. Remember the one with the treadmills?? If not, I’ll show it in another post. That still amazes me to this day.

I bring this video because it was just released this week and shines in creativity with a “How the FRAK did they do that all in one take??” feeling. =D

Video By: OK Go

Cease & Desist Strikes Again

You can’t get anything free nowadays. Not even free information.

In May 2009, I was so bummed to find out that the creators of a truly awesome sequel to Chrono Trigger called Crimson Echoes received a Cease & Desist letter from Square Enix saying to eliminate the production. Chrono Trigger happens to be one of my favorite games. Even the looked down upon Chrono Cross made its way into my all-time favorites. Crimson Echoes tried its best to explain the ties between the two…since a lot involves a lot of crazy connection. Much like what Kingdom Hearts is doing now. The game was 98% complete. =(

I sat through the whole 90 Youtube videos of the playthrough posted under the user name CE Memorial. I would’ve truly loved playing it. =(

AND NOW, Nintendo strikes at Pokémon fan sites. By now you probably know what the top three Pokémon look like. I believe this is all we’re going to get now until the game officially comes out for North America. I’m glad to say I saw the images of all the Pokémon before they sent out a letter saying that all images regarding Pokémon Black & White be taken down. Yes, there will be an ice cream and a chandelier Pokémon. Hahaha.

Now I’m left with a blank page of names. Like I was going to get the ROM…I’d actually buy the game. At this point, I think anyone who’d download it would just want to play it for a few hours, use a Gameshark, then quit. The true fans would buy, play, trade, and catch all 649….Then wait for Pokémon Gray. Which I’ll most likely buy. Mwahaha!

Read the full letter here: http://ds.ign.com/articles/112/1122074p1.html

And if you’re a Chrono freak like I am, you can watch their game here: http://www.youtube.com/user/CEMemorial

Song of the Day: Falcon * Paaawn~ (Iyaaaaahhh Mix)

I’m in a video game mood this week. To celebrate the upcoming release of Kirby’s Epic Yarn for the Nintendo Wii, this is a video made from the awesome sounds of Kirby with the tune of his theme. If you combine one of the cutest characters with one of the most annoying moves, you get this surprisingly catchy tune!

(Found this on Vanessa’s facebook. Thanks!)

Live-Action Pokémon Movie??

This ain’t no rickroll.

SOOO it looks like no one learned from Dragon Ball: Evolution and The Last Airbender. Cartoon live-action movies SUCK BALLS! WHAT?? The trainer looks like he’s in college? And there’s a gun??? Yes, because Pokémon in real life will obviously cause mayhem and violence upon the world. They are lovable creatures…Ok maybe about 100 of them. The trailer itself looks sketchy (apparently it was 30 seconds of a 3 minute trailer), and the details are unknown where this was aired and who is producing this. But please do us all a favor and destroy this. I mean, secretly a small tiny part of me wants to see it, even though it looks horrible, but I know I’ll just hate it.

OMG, if this actually does happen, I’ll probably throw up, then eat my throw up just to throw up again. Glad thing I didn’t watch the Last Airbender. (O_O)