Akira (review by Logan Burke)

Boy, it sure has been a while. More on that at a later date, though. I would just want to spread the word of a film I saw recently. The film in question Katsuhiro Otomo’s 1988 animated epic Akira. A cult sensation among anime, Akira is based on the manga of the same name (though differing quite heavily in plot) created by writer/driector Katsuhiro Otomo. Let’s begin, shall we?


Akira take place 31 years after initiation of World War III in what is now know as Neo-Tokyo (I should note that according to most anime, adding ‘Neo’ to the beginning of any major city automatically makes that city futuristic). A group teenagers in a biker gang with our main characters - protagonist  Shotaro Kaneda and Kaneda’s childhood friend Testuo Shima - are locked in a brawl with a rival biker gang. Suddenly, Testuo crashes; this is assumed to have been caused by a young, zombified-looking boy who seems to have the ability to destroy things by almost sheer will-power. After being taken to the hospital, Tetsuo begins having extreme hallucinations. Meanwhile, Kaneda begins fall for a woman, Kei, who is part an anti-government resistence force. The plot continues to evolve and grow more complex from there, building to a glorious climax. The doesn’t get overly-complex, and shouldn’t too hard if you were able to wrap your head around, say, Inception.

This story gets dark. It doesn’t pull any punches, but still manages to not throw any real unnecessary ones either. With exceptions in the very later portions of the film, gore is used to a largely realistic effect with one of the characters, Kei, reacting the way you would expect one human being to react when shooting a man in the face for the first time in her life. Akira contains a few depictions of real hardcore crime but nothing is overplayed and is always very subdued.

In fact, that’s a fairly good way to describe how things play out in this movie, ‘subdued.’ Most everything remains quiet allowing the viewer to take in more and actually feel the tension for themselves rather than be forced into it with music swells. The rarely - but always effectively - kicks in at key moments. I feel this film’s non-reliance on overbearing dramatic moments and loud action sequences makes it highly appealing to watch.

Another thing I found extraordinarily appealing was the art. The dark colours, tones, and even the way characters moved to a certain extent reminded me greatly of Secret of Nihm (which, let’s be honest, of all Don Bluth’s work, Nihm is even stronger than Dragon’s Lair). The lines felt organic and kinetic; when characters were moving, they were moving; when they were still, they looked still. Testuo’s hallucinations are a major highlight, too. These hallucinations were almost so realistic I could almost feel them.

I have speaking so highly of this film, what could possibly be bad? A couple of things actually...

For one, the dub I had was lackluster at best. I do suppose it’s worth mentioning I had the 2001 remastered edition with all new voice-work, which from what I have heard, isn’t nearly as good as the original ‘88 English. My recommendation is that you track down the Japanese voice-track and go with the subtitles (like I always say, ‘subs, not dubs’).

This is kind of a real jarring issue here: I’m wasn’t completely sure I should like our hero Kaneda. It’s easy to see he’s really a good and caring guy who’s also tough, but he cannot seem to drop his stock “tough-guy” persona, coming off as a bumbling idiot or just plain rude the majority of the time. Other characters - especially Kei, the love interest - are given little time to develop and their emotion become very ambiguous.

Other than that, I don’t suppose there’s too much to go on about when it comes to the negative aspects of this film.

So far, I’m really not sure I could pin down the theme of this film. Akira sure has a lot it could say about nuclear war, or the very nature of human life, or really any of that generic thematic element. Akira is definitely one I’ll go back to, and just maybe, I’ll discover something new every time.

Should you see this? Yes. Big problem? It is hard to find easily. The god many of us have sacrificed our souls to, Netflix, doesn’t even have this title available on DVD. Try video stores, try anime stores (if those exist), and try your internets.

For now, I give Akira 86/100 points

IMDb: 7.9/10

Rotten Tomatoes: 88%

Metacritic: 76/100

Fallout: New Vegas (by Brogan)

Fallout: New Vegas is the new spin-off in Bethesda’s Fallout franchise (originally created and formerly owned by the now-dying Interplay Entertainment). This game was developed by Obsidian Entertainment; many employees of Obsidian are former employees of Fallout’s original developer, Black Isle Studios. Before I start, let us note that I am playing the Xbox 360 version of Fallout: New Vegas, so don’t complain or ask if the PC version is better because it probably is. Also very important to note, that I have not completed the game. I will edit the review commenting on the game later, but I am sure I have more than enough evidence to review this game. Let’s get started, shall we?

New Vegas takes us to (where else?) New Vegas. More specifically, the alternate-universe post-apocalyptic Mojave wasteland of 2281. You play a courier for the Mojave Express, who was carrying a platinum poker chip which you are subsequently shot and killed for by a casino owner named Benny (voiced by Matthew Perry). You are revived, by a man named Doc Mitchell, after being unburied by a robot named Victor. The “Courier’s” journey begins there as you set to find who killed you and why, and eventually settle feuds between the three factions of New Vegas: the mysterious Mr. House who practically owns the New Vegas strip; NCR or New California Republic, which fans of Fallout 2 may remember greatly; and Caesar’s Legion who are slavers attempting to liberate the wasteland under a rule similar to that of Julius Caesar in ancient Rome.

The connections with the original two games in the franchise is highly apparent in New Vegas. Marcus, a super mutant once again voiced by Michael Dorn, makes his appearance. Talking to him, gives dialogue about the Master’s army (from the first Fallout) and a tribal he had traveled with (meaning “the Chosen One,” main character of Fallout 2). Another big connection is the large presence of the NCR, an organization you help begin in Fallout 2. The mythos is retained much better than Fallout 3.

Speaking of which, Fallout 3 didn’t have a great mythos that much at all. I’m all for moving the location and moving the franchise forward, but the story surrounding the first Fallouts were really great in my opinion. Their weren’t very strong (a tradition held pretty well through Fallout 3 and New Vegas) but I think the setting really made it. Fallout 3 took about half of it, and tried to do it’s own thing with the DC wasteland. Fallout: New Vegas takes right back for the most part, and it feels wonderful!

Don’t expect a similarly wonderful feeling from the gameplay. It’s not bad. It’s exactly like Fallout 3’s (for those who haven’t played that, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion with guns and stuff) only this time around, we have the welcome addition of iron sight aiming. This addition actually make shooting outside of VATS possible. Also, companion actually work in this one. They’re all competent fighters, and your ‘companion wheel’ is very convenient. Actually other minor additions such as tons more weapons, a return of the reputation system, and ammo-making make for a good experience.

The presentation as barely changed at all. Graphics look exactly the same, if not worse at times (more on that later). The original score has a lot of old tracks, which is really cool, but they were not very good in the first place. Now the licensed track are better with both Sinatra and Crosby, but seem to be fewer tracks than in Fallout 3 (again, something I’ll touch more upon later). All together, it doesn’t look or sound awful.

Actually the voice acting is top-notch. There is an well-known cast here. Zachary Levi, Felicia Day, Danny Trejo, and even “Mr. Las Vegas” Wayne Newton, lends his voice to New Vegas’ loving DJ “Mr. New Vegas.” And as always, Ron Perlman returns to give his signature Fallout Narration.

Now to be fair and warn those who may want to know, this game earns it’s “M” rating. It earns it without the use of nudity to be fair though. Sex, drugs, violence and all that good stuff run rampant throughout New Vegas. What were you expecting though? It’s a video game about a post-apocalyptic Las Vegas for cryin’ out loud!

How does Fallout: New Vegas sound so far? Pretty good? I would hope so! I know that you know there is probably a catch. There is. The games seems very… unfinished.

I just mean New Vegas is riddled with glitches. More than just lines where the textures end (which is so bad here it’s not even funny). There are some big ones. One time, I’d go by raft to a Legion fort, and in there was a crucified NCR trooper. I tried to talk to him, but every time I tried, I would be sent back to the island I came from. I have even heard rumors of glitches that could have ruined my console, but I had no such luck. The songs seem to be so few because something makes only four of them be played the majority of the time. The amount of glitches can get frustrating. You have been warned.

As a game it is better than Fallout 3. More weapons, more quests, more choices. It’s really fun if you like Fallout, or even RPGs of this style. Those glitches, however, really hold this game back. As a game, I give Fallout: New Vegas 90/100 points. However, with glitches factored in 60/100 points. Skip it until Bethesda releases a patch, if you’re not bursting at the seems to get this one.

Redneck Zombies (by Brogan)

Redneck Zombies is a trashy zombie flick released by Troma Entertainment in 1987. The film is remarkable in one aspect: it was one of the first ever straight-to-video releases. If I may say before I start, I love Troma films. Toxic Avenger, Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D.,  and other similar films made by Troma; all horrible, but meant to be that way, and I think that is what makes them some of my favorites. I was thinking: "Maybe this will be the same way. Who knows?" I suppose watching was the only good way to find out.

The film has a family of (in a community of) bumbling hillbillies discover a large barrel of toxic waste. By mistake, the infuse into the moonshine they normally sell to the townsfolk. The green liquid is consumed, and soon after they're turned into - you guessed it - "redneck zombies." At the same time, there is a group of back-packers in the area. These people end up being the ones who are meant to survive the zombie onslaught. And thus, your hyper-gore-filled zombie picture commences onward.

The characters are... bad. There are a lot of unlikable stereotypes plaguing this film, but that's not uncommon for Troma films. Maybe it's the fact that most movies I have seen have been entertaining, and the fact that Redneck Zombies isn't entertaining makes me just really not like the bad characters. Every character is written in such a way, that it almost seems as if the film is trying to annoy me. Maybe it was the poor acting. I swear I could have seen an extra, painted as a zombie, smiling huge as if they're six and their mother was watching.

This is one of the most atrociously edited film I think I have ever seen. Cuts to just a black screen for somewhat lengthy periods of time; one small part where there is subtitles for absolutely no reason at all (only one line of dialogue too); and there was even a couple instances where the actors didn't even get to finish their lines. I was really looking for it, but I would not be shocked to see the boom-mic once or twice.


I love zombie films. I know I have readers who do too. This film, so not worth the time or effort put into watching it. If this was one of first straight-to-video movies ever, then I now understand where the bar for those has been set. Bonus points to the film though for some semi-okay gore effects (I guess). Redneck Zombies gets a 21/100 points.

Guest Review: Kirby's Epic Yarn (by Samuel Broemmeling a.k.a. FrozenCelery)

Kirby’s Epic Yarn is a game made by Nintendo following the Kirby series, and yet focuses on an entirely different purpose. With the most clever and yet cutest graphics, this is one of the best Kirby games I have ever gone through. Keep in mind that I was looking forward to this game since I had heard about it on E3, and pre-ordered it about three months before the actual release date. As any other ordinary Kirby game, it starts out with a little child-like cut scene showing the problem Kirby faces. In this case, he steals a tomato that had belonged to an out-of-place character named Yin-Yarn. As his punishment, Kirby was sucked into a yarn and fabric- like world and ended up with a blue yarn fellow named Prince Fluff, who introduces the optional two-player mode that I will explain a little bit later. Kirby, with the help of Prince Fluff, now has to face all these different worlds to go face Yin-Yarn and save his world.

Now, at first, this game had me awestruck, in a bad way. Not only can you not jump endlessly or for a long period of time, but you also are unable to suck up any enemy and take their power, due to you being only made of yarn. Instead, you grab an enemy to either unwrap and destroy immediately, or turn them into a ball of yarn to throw. As for jumping, you jump normally once, and jump again to transform into a parachute to slow your fall. It doesn’t sound tremendously exciting, but as you get the hang of it, the game enhances and you become more alert of what you must do, such as through the yarn at a specific box in a specific order, or killing a mini-boss more toward the end. When you get to the actual bosses, you will never be disappointed in them. Every single boss in this game had given me joy to battle.

Another flaw for me I had found in the game is that it is impossible to die. Instead, you lose all your beads, which basically mean points. At the end of each level, you get a metal depending on how many beads you get, and for the bosses, you need a certain amount to get the two extra levels at the end of each world. This makes it so a child playing won’t cry and complain that he died for the 516^th time, and that actual game-players want to make it their objective to obtain the amount of beads and get a gold medal. I find this ingenious, since I have many relatives who were made to not play video games, and I feel like I am not the only one.

I basically had locked myself in my house playing this game non-stop until school had come around the corner, and by that time, I had gotten my good buddy Dengakuslash to share the flawless story and  endless cute with. Yes, two-player mode. Not a lot different than single-player mode, but it definitely added an advantage and disadvantage. The advantage was that you now had two pink and blue balls of yarn collecting beads and kicking fabric ass like no tomorrow, while the disadvantage being that the enemies could kick your ass right back, AND that the game expects you to collect more beads for a medal knowing that there are two of you. It was a blast playing with two people though. I wish we didn’t have to be at school in only a few hours, because otherwise I KNOW we would’ve beaten it, no matter how long it took. Like most Nintendo games(at least for me), It was hard to put the controller down.

As we played through the first two worlds, what we had noticed the most besides the incredibly vivid graphics and cuteness, was the soundtrack for this game. Each song to each level had added a dramatic effect to what was happening in the level, and definitely set the mood to what was going on, and in most cases, they were remixes of past Kirby levels. Like most games by Nintendo, you would think that the remixes made to the levels are disappointing, unfamiliar or just awful in every way. When I hear the remixes on this game, I automatically think of how bad the remixes on Super Smash Bros. Brawl were. The composer who made the music for this game was hardly shy of perfect. I cannot tell how impressed I was with the soundtrack in this game.

Besides collecting metals, there are a lot of neat little optional things you get to do in this game. For one, you can get furniture for your room, or furniture to make other rooms. When you make other rooms, you allow little fabric creatures to move in and offer an optional game to get different wallpapers and such. There are 5, and a few of the mini-games include ones similar to hide-and-seek, and capture the flag. Collecting furniture is a bit trickier, but sometimes easier. There are 2 furniture pieces hidden in each level of the game, and also the soundtrack to the level. It is really challenging to get all three and also end up with a gold medal, and yet, still soothes you.

Final Verdict: Play this game. It is fun to play with by yourself or with another person. The soundtrack will blow you away. The graphics are too amazing for words. It offers a great optional part to the game. The game itself is soothing and relaxing, yet challenging and fun. There is no reason for you not to play this game. I recommend Kirby’s Epic Yarn 210%.
Final Score: 98/100 points.

Skyline (by Brogan)

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World taught me something: a movie trailer doesn’t always tell about the quality of the film. Maybe Skyline has taught me that my previous theory is just that, a theory. Skyline, if you didn’t already know, is a movie about aliens attacking earth.  Now to be fair and warn you, there is a high chance of me handing out spoilers in this review. However, don’t stop reading. You may not care that I spoiled this once we’re done.

It starts with Elaine and Jarrod (played by Scottie Thompson and Eric Balfour respectively) being awakened in the middle of the night by strange blue light hitting the streets of Los Angeles. Jarrod is drawn to the lights as black veins stretch across his face and body, and almost immediately we cut to “15 hours earlier” (this movie thinks you’re stupid and puts time passage markers all over) as they’re arriving in L.A..  They are there for their friend Terry’s (played by Donald Faison of Scrubs fame) party. This is the point where all hell breaks loose and people keep dying left and right, but to be honest I stopped caring when (I guess) I learned that L.A. party-goers like to spy on people masturbating through high-tech telescopes.

Skyline is a mess. At first I just don’t like the characters, but then I grow to just not care. The CGI is just awful; the aliens look piss-poor, the people are stiff and not-detailed, and explosions are just… blah.  All the times when this film could have had some effectiveness are ruined. They show the aliens almost immediately and without build-up, not to mention the earlier bit with “15 hours earlier” serves no purpose other than to tell us what they’re doing there and Elaine is pregnant (which barely plays any role until barely at the very end of the film).

Oh, here’s one of the spoilers I was talking about: the aliens are here to harvest human brains! You read that right, human brains.Yes, the major motivation behind the villains of this film is barely enough to sustain a one-shot villain in a SyFy original series. Sound ridiculous? It should. Obviously not to the Brothers Strause though. This movie is meant to be totally serious and scary.  The film acts like it’s Cloverfield from time to time using similar camera work, sets and occasionally film quality. Wait a minute, Cloverfield is not a fair comparison to Skyline and should be offensive to the makers of Cloverfield.

With bad CGI, bad acting, bad writing, directing, and suspense, Skyline can’t even be a movie better than an episode of Torchwood. I’m not even going to get into how bad its stupid sequel-baiting ending was here.  It’s a film, with actors. Do not see Skyline. I give it 26/100 points.