Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on November 7th, 2023
Hopefully, most of you reading this review enjoyed my breakdown of the 1st part in this series. I honestly haven't been this vested in a two part series since Batman's Long Halloween. That one had the added sting that we had to wait a full year until we got the complete 4K version. At least in the case of Justice League and RWBY, we get the full 4K splendor from the get-go. However, as I alluded to in the first review, there was certainly room for improvement. We shall see if the creators can correct those issues now that the series shifts into the Justice League's world. Let's take a look.
Last time on Justice League X RWBY, the Justice League and RWBY teams had fought off Kilg%re and his army of superhuman Grimm. It was actually revealed that Remnant was nothing more than a simulation to eradicate the two teams, and it nearly succeeded on that front. A portal was then opened up, which returned Justice League back to Earth and RWBY back to the real Remnant. However, just because both teams are returning back to their home doesn't mean that everything is fixed the way it should be.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 16th, 2023
In 1995, I remember very vividly going to see Mortal Kombat on the big screen during my summer off from college (when very often I had nothing else to do). I was instantly wowed by all of the characters that I had played with in the first two video games and seeing them brought to screen. The music was absolutely fantastic (and still one of the best soundtracks I have ever heard). However, what I have carried with me most from that experience is my utter love of one character. Johnny Cage. Fast forward nearly thirty years, and we finally have a film where he is the main character and no longer some sort of side gag by all those involved. Let's go to the Cage Match! Join me, won't you?
We start off with a jazz tune in the subway played by Santa Claus. A thief decides to steal from Santa Claus. How dare that guy! The criminal then runs to the closest subway car with nobody willing to stand in his way since he has a gun. Nervous, he gets to the top of subway car to get away from everyone else. But someone is following this cutpurse, and that looks to be a mime?! The mime attacks the thief, who soon demands that the performer say something, anything. But all the mime says is "Mime the Gap." Shortly after that, we hear "CUT!" It would appear that was the wrong line in the script.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 20th, 2023
"This is The Batman we're talkin' about here."
In 1992 Batman: The Animated Series hit television sets all over the country. It was perhaps the biggest comeback for the Dark Knight since Adam West went camp with the cowl in the 1960's. Yes, the Tim Burton film and its sequels went a long way to bringing the bat back into the popular culture, but the series is what took the fans by storm. Kevin Conroy became, for many, the definitive Batman when he was hired to voice the series, and Mark Hamill finally got out of the shadow of Luke Skywalker with his voice rendition of the Joker. The show was a hit, and around the early years it was decided to do a direct-to-video movie called Batman: Mask Of The Phantasm. Somewhere in the production Warner Brothers had a change of heart. They decided to roll the dice on a theatrical release of the animated feature, likely assuming the series fans would flock to their multiplexes in droves. That didn't happen, and the film lost money even on a modest budget. But in video release it did become a hit. The studio didn't understand that the generation that loved the show would appreciate it more in that setting. It also doesn't help that the mid-production change meant changes to aspect ratios and other animation work that had already begun production. The end might have been a mess at the box office, but it's a solid film that now enjoys a modest upgrade to UHD/4K. The results are admittedly mixed.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 24th, 2023
When Superman was first introduced to us, it was in Action Comics #1 back in 1938 from the writer Jerry Siegel and the artist Joe Shuster. Since then the character has become a cultural phenomenon that’s been featured in just about every form of media from radio shows, TV shows, cartoons, movies, and everything else in between. The character has evolved quite a bit since those early comic book days, and one of the characters biggest evolutions came with the Max Fleischer cartoon series. It was 17 animated short films that played in theaters before the feature film began, but these short films would draw in audiences that wanted to see this caped hero and his amazing adventures.
The collection contains 17 animated shorts.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 1st, 2023
Most people who know me know that I adore Scooby Doo. Some of my favorite episodes of Scooby Doo are those where they have famous guest stars solving mysteries. Addams Family, Harlem Globetrotters, Batman, etc. Classic Scooby goodness with characters that I enjoy and always wondered how they would work in another universe. Today, I have the benefit of seeing how Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and other Justice League members will look and react in the RWBY world of Remnant. Let's take a look.
Superman (voiced by Chandler Riggs) is breathing heavy and struggles to open his eyes. When he does, he sees a strange world, and he's suddenly become a teenager. In front of him are two young teenage girls named Ruby (voiced by Lindsay Jones) and Yang (voiced by Barbara Dunkleman), who are taking on demons simply known as the Grimm. However, these Grimm are strange to Ruby and Yang as well, since they can shoot lasers. Superman gets up to help the two ladies when he realizes that his powers are completely different from what they were.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 1st, 2023
Most people who know me know that I adore Scooby Doo. Some of my favorite episodes of Scooby Doo are those where they have famous guest stars solving mysteries. Addams Family, Harlem Globetrotters, Batman, etc. Classic Scooby goodness with characters that I enjoy and always wondered how they would work in another universe. Today, I have the benefit of seeing how Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and other Justice League members will look and react in the RWBY world of Remnant. Let's take a look.
Superman (voiced by Chandler Riggs) is breathing heavy and struggles to open his eyes. When he does, he sees a strange world, and he's suddenly become a teenager. In front of him are two young teenage girls named Ruby (voiced by Lindsay Jones) and Yang (voiced by Barbara Dunkleman), who are taking on demons simply known as the Grimm. However, these Grimm are strange to Ruby and Yang as well, since they can shoot lasers. Superman gets up to help the two ladies when he realizes that his powers are completely different from what they were.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 27th, 2023
"Superman's journal, final entry. My cells are breaking down at an alarming rate. I'm running out of time. I have few regrets. My life has been a wonder. I've traveled across space and time, seen and done things beyond imagination. I had parents who loved me. Good friends like Pete, Lana, and Jimmy. I got to help people while living an incredible adventure. I loved a good woman, and she loved me back. I'm tired, but I still have one more job to do ..."
We all know the story and its many incarnations. All-Star Superman is one of the more unique stories to be told through Warner Brothers Animation's DC feature films. It's not the latest. It was released in 2011 before Warner Brothers started to release their films on UHD. Of course, there was no UHD Blu-ray in 2011. In addition to the recent and upcoming animated features, Warner Brothers is going back to those earlier films, and All-Star Superman is as good a place as any to start.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 18th, 2023
Most anime fans, particularly those in the west, would probably consider Cowboy Bebop one of the greatest series of all time. Before it got bastardized in a clueless live-action remake, it was a wonderful story of a bounty hunter crew down on their luck who never made any money but always had one hell of an adventure. Set to some wonderful jazz numbers. So naturally, when I heard about a new anime movie about an once powerful god who is now down on his luck as a penniless bounty hunter, my curiosity was certainly piqued. Let's check out New Gods: Yang Jian.
Oh boy, we start off with some narration. Let's see ... a long long time ago, a calamity (wait, I have to look this one up; OK, got it) broke out between Heaven and Earth. Life hung in the balance (woah, heavy), and there was violence and destruction. Forces of Shang and Zhou fought for supremacy. Humans and Gods united in order to stand tall against opposing forces. After the battles ended, they went back to their respective realms. And the world was at peace. (Awwww.)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 31st, 2023
"Him is he who bays and slavers forever outside time and space, who shambled down out of the stars when Earth was new and spawned abominations in the seas and blights upon the land. Woe to man when He comes again. To gaze upon his form is to invite madness. That is why in order to serve Him I chose to make some adjustments. Him, The Lurker is on the threshold, and behold, He is coming..."
The latest release from the Warner Brothers animation team in the world of DC Comics is Batman: Doom That Came To Gotham. This series of animated films is no longer part of any shared universe as the many that came before might have been. At least for now these animated adventures are standalone stories, often with their own atmosphere and universe. That's certainly true of Batman: Doom That Came To Gotham. This is likely the most uniquely-styled entry in the series of animated feature films.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on December 21st, 2022
I am not usually into serious zombie movies or television series. I am not a particular fan of The Walking Dead or The Night of the Living Dead. I do allow exceptions for, say, the Resident Evil series, or perhaps something funny like Shaun of the Dead. So the first time I saw Paranorman probably about half a dozen years ago, I wasn't expecting much. Thankfully I did not let my biases creep in, and to be honest, quite enjoyed myself. So I was very excited when I saw the 4K slide across my desk. Let's dive in.
This is a feature presentation. We join a horror movie already in progress. There are monsters, lost of squishy stuff, and some bloodcurdling screams. Then the zombie goes munch munch on the brain matter of the blonde heroine. Rumor was that it was far from satisfying.
