Davedevil

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Everything posted by Davedevil

  1. I have heard that complaint from both but especially the second one, I still think Levi isn't the best they could've gotten for the role. I can see how he'd be a teen boy's dream adult self, but not this one. While I do enjoy the movies' mix of wacky hijinks and exploration of familial trauma (that scene from the first one where his mother rejects him is one of the most heart-rending scenes in a superhero movie I've ever seen), I can see how people would find it jarring. Speaking of that scene, a parallel that hit me a few hours after seeing it
  2. Shazam: Fury of the Gods - The reception to this is slightly perplexing; I thought it was about as fun and charming as the first. Messier for sure, but it was a worthwhile expansion, which is something I enjoy from sequels. They still did a pretty good job balancing the huge cast, who I'd love to see carry on in some way, if what I'm hearing Safran said is true and not just them floundering now that they've said this universe is coming to a close.
  3. I wasn't wowed by the announcements, though I think that's partly because of doing it in a short announcement video instead of an SDCC Hall H panel, but pleased is a good way to describe it, yeah. I'm glad we're getting more of the Batman and Superman families on the big screen again, I feel it's about time for that. I think we need a cinematic Nightwing finally. I wonder if they'll carry over Leslie Grace's Batgirl as a consolation for cancelling her movie. I'm really curious about how they're gonna do Superman: Legacy, especially with the All Star Superman artwork they've attached to it. Acknowledging his Kryptonian side sounds great, we've had too many grounded Superman movies, it'll be cool to finally work with the sci-fi angle to it beyond the Jor-El scene from Man of Steel. I really like the art style in that promo piece for Creature Commandos, I'll be curious to see if the show itself can maintain that look. At first I was a little surprised they're doing Swamp Thing as a film, but I realized that it could end up being a big Halloween movie, like how Warner Bros. cleans up with each Conjuring movie. I'd like a DC horror movie, why not. I saw this on Twitter, but it's funny how the Authority is considered one of those books that really ushered in cinematic comics, laying the groundwork for the MCU, and now it's being used as part of the DCU's new cinematic springboard.
  4. Doom Patrol: The Silver Age Vol. 1 - I never would've picked this up without the show making me fall in love with the characters, but I'm actually impressed with this on its own. This comic has a great deal of imagination, and empathy for outcasts (with 60s comic writers, especially Jewish ones, I can imagine the latter comes easily). Plus the way they deal with the strangest concepts is really fun. It reminds me of Golden Age books where there were no rules, but with Silver Age structures. It really is a DC response to Marvel, but I think it holds up about as well, if not better than most of Marvel around this time. The dialogue is reminiscent of Stan, but I find a bit more art in Arnold Drake's style (though to be fair, he probably did a fraction of the amount of work Lee did around the time). There are the X-Men parallels, of course, but I find the team functionally (and visually) resembles the Fantastic Four more, remixed slightly. You've got the genius with secrets, the woman who holds the team together (but happens to be the one who grows and shrinks), the brightly flying guy. Although Robotman is basically The Thing, almost note for note. A bit more...suicidal though, if you can believe that. Rita's the heart of the team really, she's a warm and vibrant presence (I adored her picking a lock manually instead of using a tiny explosive because she wanted to have some fun in the mission), and I'm glad they let her do a lot of fighting, she's already a lot more of a character than the Invisible Woman was early on. With how much attention is given to her by all the characters, the creative team's affection for her is palpable. Larry, I don't quite have enough from him just yet, and it's really weird to see him be straight, after season 1 of the show spent a lot of time with his sexuality. Cliff is about what you'd expect from the Ben Grimm of the group. And The Chief was surprisingly likable; his single tear at them celebrating his birthday actually touched me quite a bit. The creative team does a great job with giving the sense of forward progression with this title. It was a big deal when My Greatest Adventure turned into Doom Patrol, and it was a big deal when they finally got their classic superhero costumes. They also spent a good amount of time with the villains and they're really not what you'd expect. I've seen the Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Man clowned on since I was a kid on Superdickery and Cracked but I found him a really cool villain actually? There's an earnestness to this series that just really lets me buy into it. The Brotherhood of Evil is great too, I'm glad Madame Rouge gets a lot of focus. I can't wait to see Michelle Gomez as her when I get to S2 of the show. The art isn't my favorite of Silver Age DC (which is probably Dick Sprang and most of the Legion) but it's pretty good. It started off really rough, which works for the off-kilter nature of the book, but then settles to a pleasant cartooniness as it leans harder into the wacky side of it all. I always liked how the people were drawn, but Negative Man and Robotman took a while to get used to. I don't like seeing Larry's cartoon face through the bandages. Please give him his now-trademark shades. And Cliff looked practically demonic, though the rivets in his head make me think it was intentional. I adore the show, but I honestly wouldn't mind a straight adaptation of these early comics, like a Saturday morning cartoon. They can even carry over the live action cast, who are just perfect in their respective roles. And oops, the show got cancelled just as I finished this volume. Damn it. But yeah, I get why they're a cult favorite until now, I really do. I can't wait to see how the group progresses from here. Early last year was when I got into the Legion, now it's Doom Patrol. Soon my next Silver Age team might be Teen Titans. I've never been much of a team guy, so this surprises me, but it's something different and fun.
  5. I missed both of them (Rhoda more than Phyllis because the latter got on my nerves with how callously she treated Mary) but not to the extent I thought I would; I feel like the ensemble got better after, actually. From what I've seen, Season 4 is considered the best because it has every regular cast member, but I found more laughs as it went along. I will say that 5 got a bit too nasty for my tastes, it didn't quite have that balance of earnestness that I love from the show, but the rest were great.
  6. Funny how the two shows I really got into recently are both from the 70s. Kamen Rider - The original 1971 version. I never really found the recent ones interesting, they just feel like toys smashing into each other, but with my building excitement for Shin Kamen Rider and coming across the original series on Youtube, I figured why not give it a shot. The first 13 episodes with the original Rider were fantastic, a great blend of superhero and horror. It was really trying something cool and comic book-y with the directing (makes sense with the creator being a manga artist, who also created Cyborg 009). When the second Rider comes in, it gets much more kid-oriented. I'm already invested, and I liked the expanded supporting cast, so it was charming to me at least. It reminds me of the evolution of the Godzilla movies, but maybe even better since there's a consistent cast you follow. The Mary Tyler Moore Show - One of my new favorite shows. I like getting a sense of an era through media, so it was nice to see the transition out of the 60s into the 70s. Mary's such an endearing character, and I really loved how the supporting cast developed. Ed Asner was fantastic as Lou Grant, he's probably one of my favorite TV characters now. I'm actually even considering watching his drama spinoff. My enjoyment of the show increased with every season, which I don't find very often.
  7. I enjoyed the episode okay, the fanservice worked on me (Ace is my favorite Classic companion, and she had a great showing in this), but it definitely was not the best of the era to me. I loved the episodes of the Whittaker/Chibnall run when it was focused on a single thing (as opposed to the Davies and Moffat eras that thrived on a kitchen sink approach and a subversive approach, respectively). Demons of the Punjab for its focus on empathy. Village of the Angels just wants to scare the hell out of you. Eve of the Daleks was just a fun run-around (literally). Jodie Whittaker is the Henry Cavill of Doctors, I'd say. You see them candidly and they're just perfect for the role, but the portrayal they got saddled with seems to want to drain them of their natural charisma (down to Cavill having a natural S-curl that they slicked back). Whittaker can be quirky and charming in a natural way and she has a great sense of style. Seriously, any press appearance has her looking more exciting and Doctor-ish than any shot of Thirteen. I know Whittaker had input on her costume, but it just feels unfinished, it should've had one more element to it (like the scarf in Resolution). That sounds superficial, but the Doctor is larger than life, and they've made her mundane. I wouldn't say there weren't big, badass Doctor moments, but they fall flat compared to her predecessors. Her "hello, I'm the Doctor" line from The Woman Who Fell to Earth does not compare to Smith's. At all. Her defining moment for me is the "love is a form of hope" speech from Demons of the Punjab. I don't even know what her defining trait is, other than trying to be nice but failing (her not trying to comfort Graham when he admits his cancer fears and just letting Yaz be the one to comfort Dan after he has his near-death scare). She could've been the DIY Doctor like her debut promised (the goggles really should've been a part of her outfit like an anime character), it would've been fun to have her come up with some new gadget every other episode to resolve the problem. Side note: He did a great job as the Master (in this episode especially) but I wonder how Sacha Dhawan would've done as the Doctor. I feel like he would've been a better fit for the tone Chibnall was going for. I don't want to give Chibnall shit, I feel like the whole era was being pushed and pulled by outside forces (mostly the BBC and fan reactions, with the pandemic for Flux and beyond). I feel like Thirteen was similarly compromised, she never got to stand out, possibly in fear of public outcry, hence her being more of a reheated Tenth/Eleventh Doctor. It's not a total miss for the era, when it landed for me, I really liked it. My favorites were: Demons of the Punjab - A really moving episode for me. Rosa didn't resonate for me despite meaning really well, and Witchfinders was a draft away from being fantastic, but this was a fantastic historical. Eve of the Daleks - Fun and snappy as hell. I don't know if the writing holds up (Nick being a creepy obsessive is just a weird choice, the acting really saves him) but it's just energetic in a way the era hadn't really been. The Daleks are so much fun here, it feels like a modernization of Hartnell era Daleks. Sarah was wonderfully charismatic, as well. Resolution - This was badass. It's common fan wisdom that one Dalek is much scarier than a whole host of them, but it really is true. Lin was great, she should've been a companion. Village of the Angels - Professor Eustacius Jericho is a fantastic character, and I'm glad he got to stay on. The Weeping Angels were really well-done here, the sketchy Angel on fire is one of the coolest visuals the show has done. Spyfall Part 1 - The second part falls apart for me, but this is like Eve in that the show has a pulse, it's really exciting. Dhawan is great, too.
  8. I've seen 6 of the 8 episodes of Cabinet so far, I really dig the show. I appreciate how each episode has its own vibe, like how the one with Rupert Grint totally feels like 2000s era YA-targeted horror fantasy movie. The lotion one is my favorite for now, it's got that EC comic/Twilight Zone vibe with the more contemporary but also timeless setting. The directing did a great job getting across the building insanity. It's a shame that the weakest episodes so far have been
  9. Haven't watched the latest episode yet but I agree, it's wild how casually it goes about the most batshit concepts in either the chillest manner or in high octane action. That's a lot of anime but even moreso with this show.
  10. I'm with Donovan on ASM 2, the dragging that movie got wasn't deserved. It still has far and away the best portrayal of the character, Peter Parker with all his neuroticism and heroism, his quips, how he moves in that beautiful suit, it's just spot-on. Gwen continues to be the best co-lead of any superhero movie, although her death is really unnecessary, if ballsy. It looks great too, it has better visuals than most of the MCU movies.
  11. I'm not the most knowledgeable of Bond, but as far as I know the Roger Moore films went into a sillier direction, like him going to space, and this was their attempt to bring it back to a grittier tone. A man being blown up, getting his blood on Bond, who then lands on a woman's boat and proceeds to have sex with her feels like it's setting a tone. I could be wrong though.
  12. The Living Daylights - Enjoyed Dalton in the role, but the attempts to make Bond movies more masculine made me roll my eyes a bit. Still, had fun with this, I liked the characters a fair amount. Mission: Impossible - It's got a little too much plot for me, but it was great to watch. Top Gun - I didn't think it would be that homoerotic. Great music video.
  13. Ms. Marvel - The finale was really good. I wish it could've been 8-10 episodes, or hell, a regular 20-24 episode season. I doubt they could've pulled in all of the cast members, or had as much CGI (thinking mainly of the animated thoughts) that way, but teen heroes especially need the serialized format. Oh, and about that change:
  14. Forgot about that, I only saw Fallen Kingdom once, despite liking it quite a bit. Honestly I missed J.A. Bayona's directing on this one. Felt a little like going from Rian Johnson back to JJ Abrams, appropriately enough.
  15. That bothered me too. Otherwise, I thought it was entertaining enough, glad I saw it on a big screen. The two and a half hour runtime was weird, I was surprised they didn't want to make it a three hour one, but maybe on home media, who knows.
  16. Ms. Marvel - They nailed it. So much fun, so endearing. I'm a little weirded out to have an MCU convention in the MCU, but hey. I don't mind the change to the origin, I kind of like it better, even.
  17. The clips I've seen were really funny. This is the best post I've seen.😆 Mild NSFW warning.
  18. Finished Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night on the Castlevania Requiem collection on PS4. Great games, barebones port. Wish it had the quick save options of the other collections, it would've saved me a ton of trouble. Rondo is a good evolution from SC4, but some of the level designs are annoying. It wouldn't kill them to have added even a handful of wall chickens here and there. At least Maria is fun to play, and much easier. And what hasn't been said about Symphony of the Night? It was a great next step for the Castlevania formula. The backtracking is a little annoying, I wish they let you use the warp points whenever, but it's so much fun to play that it's not a huge con. This feels like what Simon's Quest wanted to be. Also, banger soundtracks. Adding guitars was one of the best things they've ever done for the franchise.
  19. I give my highest recommendation for Bloodlines, if you haven't played it. It builds off of Super Castlevania IV but with that Sega Genesis attitude. A cool thing about the collection is that it includes the Japanese versions of the games but with mostly English text. Dracula's Curse has better music and fairer difficulty, since they bumped up the difficulty for North America to encourage buying instead of renting. Bloodlines (Vampire Killer) is the same.
  20. Got Castlevania Anniversary Collection on the Switch, and I did not expect to play all 8 games, but by God I did. Quick save is great for just playing through the levels without too how much of a hassle, plus it helps the games go by fast. Castlevania Bloodlines from the Genesis is definitely my favorite, that game does some really wild stuff, and Eric is a really fun character to play. After that, it's either 1 or 3. Super Castlevania 4 is a great technical achievement, but I'm not a huge fan of its look or sound. Simon's Quest is actually pretty fun with a guide. The first Gameboy game is the worst, and the second is pretty good. Kid Dracula is such a cute little game too. Overall, best $5 I've spent lately.
  21. Hah. Great segment. Glad that DC's been much more open with its history in a fun way. It's so cool every time I see you or Josh working on some content for them, they couldn't have picked better people for the job.
  22. Orphan 55 is one of the funniest trainwrecks of a Doctor Who episode I've ever seen. I'm not one to pick out plot holes and structural issues as an episode is going, but things in this story really do just happen to have other events happen and call that a plot. Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror is an episode I'd like to like more but yeah, it really is just fine. I feel like as it is, it only has enough meat on it for half an episode. I don't know how it could have more story in it, though.
  23. Spider-Man: No Way Home - It doesn't nail everything (some people do better with the Marvel humor than others) but I was very satisfied with it. Really loved the action scenes, and they get across some genuine emotion here, more than the previous films even attempted.
  24. I forgot A Lonely Place of Dying was in Titans as well, I remembered the Perez covers but thought that it was all Aparo interiors. I didn't realize Perez was a co-plotter on that book too, though it makes sense.