I must give Marvel and Kenneth Branagh credit for successfully realizing the world of Thor on the big screen. It has been stated around the Internet that Thor may have been the most difficult of Marvel’s major properties to port over for the masses what with all the magic and mythology involved. The world of Iron Man was established as a realistic, near-future boasting very believable, though still stereotypical, people. How would gods and a magic hammer fit in?

Well, if you make the gods an advanced alien race and make the hammer a hybrid of technology and mysticism, you’ll find that the world of Asgard works quite well in the established Marvel Movie Universe of Iron Man and Incredible Hulk. And Asgard doesn’t just work well, it looks amazing, too. The sequences in Asgard are the best in the film, filled with eye-candy and, in early scenes, a few cool easter eggs. I’ll note that here as well: easter eggs there are, but the constant barrage of Avengers set-up and fan service that was Iron Man 2 this is not. What little bit of set up for next year there happens to be (Hawkeye’s cameo, S.H.E.I.L.D., and the after credits coda) is welcome, but non-obtrusive. This means the whole film is devoted to cementing Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Asgard in our hearts.

Almost.

See, about half the movie takes place in the heavenly/spacey realms of which Asgard is a part, and the other half is set on Earth. The problem with the Earth sequences are the lack of spectacle. I understand that there is a desert in New Mexico and deserts are kind of drab places by default, but this is supposed to be where Thor learns how not to be a dick. In the space of a weekend at most, Thor goes from kicking serious Frost Giant behind to falling in love(?) with a random astrophysicist (Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster) that can’t drive to pledging an alliance with Earth without ever so much as learning the names of any of its leaders to lecturing his brother (Tom Hiddleston as Loki) on the finer points of the value of life – which Thor was not so inclined to listen to himself not but two-and-half days earlier… And in all of that, the most exciting thing to happen on Earth is the Warriors Three being blown through a diner’s front window? I suppose that’s okay for the Warriors Three since they do nothing else in this movie, but that just makes the Destroyer sequence even more of a letdown.

However, don’t let my rant give you the wrong impression. As I stated earlier, Thor is a success. Not just at the box office, but as a film. Iron Man it is not, but it certainly has the legs to stand on its own and provide the ground work for a franchise. Most of this due to how wonderfully Asgard is presented. The rest has to be in the individual performances. Anthony Hopkins nails Odin, and his scenes with Hemsworth and Hiddleston are the highlights of the proceedings as the family tension is the driving force behind the narrative. Hiddleston becomes a Loki willing to do all the things you would expect Loki to do, though he lacks the flare I’m accustomed to seeing in the comics. This Loki a bit more interesting to me here though as there are some complications and grudges involved here, and I’ll admit I’m not too terribly versed in Thor’s Marvel mythology. Hemsworth is Thor, and Portman is cute. Marvel is doing a great job landing just the right big name stars for their films and in just the right number.

Overall, I enjoyed the movie. The Asgard scenes, especially the ones involving the brothers and their father, are the best parts of the film. Earth is a bit lack luster, but the humor and exposition are good. Like each Marvel film to date, the cinematography was well done, and what few real action sequences there are were presented very well – with the exception of the Destroyer attack which suffers from being set in a desert town.

Final score – 3.5/5

The Middle Tennessee Anime Convention will make its 11th run this weekend here in Nashville, TN. I’ll be there bouncing around panels in between concerts, and I plan to be a part of NikoScream’s Toku Panel for a third year. If you happen to be in the area or can get down here this Friday through Sunday, you should. Lord Zedd is scheduled to attend along with a plethora of returning favorites and musical acts that near guarantees that the awesome dial will be cranked past 11.

Just be sure to bring your raincoat and life raft.

As far as originality, I give Toei props. There have been plenty of ninjas, warriors from space/another time/another reality, and various forms of adventures , but there really haven’t been any heroes from heaven before. The potential this brings is refreshing. Unfortunately, as far as execution goes, all originality is lost. Seriously, this team could be ninjas, warriors from space/another time/another reality, or any form of adventurer and it wouldn’t  change a thing. In a nutshell – the show is a generic rehash of past sentai concepts with angel wings strapped on.

The card battle system, generally a Kamen Rider thing, is nothing more than an adaption of the Magiranger’s Magiphone spell casting. The giant robo combinations are nonsensical, and sometimes unnecessary, stackings of every gattai available in one massive, impractical atrocity a la Go-Onger and Shinkenger. Oh, and those super forms, I’m pretty sure we saw those on another team already:

Legend Magiranger

Super Goseiger

That’s right, now I remember. They looked so different and RIDICULOUS with those f*ing headers stuck on them…

Don’t take that the wrong way. I don’t dislike the headers necessarily. I think they were used too much and in a stupid ways. It was fine at first, novel even. Eventually they just became an eyesore. Of course, the one redeeming quality of the headers is actually that one of them is so powerful it can henshen into a bad ass warrior as well as its own giant robo.

GoseiKnight is the most intriguing character in the whole show. He makes his appearance completely indifferent to humanity and the Goseigers, often placing innocent lives at risk with his single-minded devotion to his mission to cleanse and protect the Earth. True, he evntually becomes a softy, but it takes the whole damn series for his heart to finally melt. He’s a beast; a true immovable object. You could likely count the number of times he’s knocked off his feet in combat the whole series on one hand – seriously, attacks that would depower the Goseigers (even in their super forms) might put GoseiKnight on one knee. Yet, if you look past his incredible tanking ability, GoseiKnight is really nothing more than this series’ equivalent to Boukenger’s DaiKenjin Zuuban. And if that weren’t enough, Datas is a Zuuban clone too.

Finally, if you read my review of the first episode, you may recall I ended it with this recommendation: “I recommend that you give it a shot and give it time to develop, this could tern out to be a another Gekiranger (starts out weak then gets crazy awesome).” I stuck with the series for 42 episodes. I skipped Epics 43-49 and watched the ending, and I don’t feel guilty at all. The show remained entertaining and engaging enough, but ultimately as the climax came, the series failed to make me care. The Goseigers are pretty generic and don’t grow into fascinating or tragic figures like previous teams have done. The gantlet of big baddies they face are too reminiscent of recent villains from Go-Onger, and the message to take care of and protect the earth and the environment was just done in Go-Onger. The show doesn’t suck, but it never takes off either. Tensou Sentai Goseiger is far from heavenly, simply mediocre.

I haven’t posted in forever, but everyone, I still live. In fact, I live with a newly acquired Associate of Applied Science degree in Software Application and Programming (WOOT!) and a new full time job under contract with the Army (not so woot, but definitely a yeah!). I’m possibly on the brink of getting in on an excellent business opportunity that could net a rather large return after it consumes the next year or so of my free time. Finally, I have  second playthroughs of Mass Effect 2 and DCU: O on deck with Dragon Age 2 and Pokemon White in full swing.

Look for some more action here in the next few weeks, I have some toku reviews I owe you all (Goesiger, Gokaiger, OOO, PR: Samurai). Also, I might have some music to share and I don’t know what else.

I feel like I’m back, and it feels good…

MicClish Photography Studios

Assassin’s Creed II

Yes, I know this game has been out awhile, so I know I’m rather late to the party. Despite this, One would think that some of the problems I encountered would have been patched by now, and in fact, I was required to install a mandatory patch when I first booted up the disc. Sadly, I seriously doubt that patch fixed anything.

1) The first glitch I ran into had me smiling, but left me unable to continue my game – at least not without a restart. I had just finished some mission in Florence and was hunting for feathers on the rooftops of the northeastern sector of the city when suddenly Ezio fell through the roof of the building he was standing on. That’s right, Ezio became Kitty Pride for a moment, and I soon watched him fall through the map as the walls broke down and became transparent.

I found myself navigating Ezio underneath the city as he swam in an endless ocean. Apparently, the river along the southern edge of the map is the base level of the entire map, with the city built on top of it. My initial thought was that I could swim to the docks and from there return to the city. Unfortunately, all of the walls were still intact, so, despite the fact that I could see through them, Ezio could not swim through them. I was trapped under Florence with no way out. [Note: The video shows the exact same glitch and how to reproduce it, only in Flori. I was in Florence when it happened to me unexpectedly.]

2) While in the midst of an assassination mission, the game killed one of my targets before I could actually get to him. The result of this was quite amusing. The target reticule on the map that represented my mark latched onto the map marker for Ezio and followed my movement all over the map, even after the mission was completed. The marker remained until I rest the map by leaving for a new city.

3) After solving one of Subject 16′s puzzles, I attempted to review some database entries. I’ll admit that I was entering commands rather quickly, but, last I checked, the entire pause menu isn’t supposed to get corrupted and disappear. I could open and close the map and pause menu with Select and Start respectively, but I got blank screens for both. Obviously, a restart was required.

4) This is the biggest and most unacceptable of the glitches I endured. Upon completing Sequence 4, two story related trophies should unlock. You can’t miss these, their free just for playing so far. When I finished this section of the game, my trophies failed to ping in the top right corner. In fact, the two other trophies I earned after this experience the same session also didn’t get awarded. While I was able to redo the tasks for the latter trophies, the story related achieve ts can’t be retried. I had to replay the first quarter of the game a second time for two trophies I already unlocked. Retarded…

I investigated, and found the trophy glitch was known since the game released and affected the entire trophy system as other trophies were known not to unlock. I assume that patch I had to install was meant to correct that, but alas, such does not seem to be the case. Good job Ubisoft…

Despite all this, I still got my Platinum and finished an otherwise excellent game. If you haven’t played it, you should; just be watch out for these bugs.

Daimajin Kanon

Daimajin Kanon is a retelling of the story of the original Daimajin trilogy of 1966 set in modern-day Japan. The episode opens with the introduction of Kanon Mikazaki, the story’s leading lady, as she wrestles with depression from being unceremoniously dumped by her now ex-boyfriend. A certain song lingers in her mind, dear to her heart, and unfortunately for her, this song is the basis for the new hit single her ex’s band is pushing. To ease the pain and get a fresh start, she moves to a new apartment and begins her life anew…

Meanwhile, Taihei, a woodland priest/monk is reminiscing of a young girl who sang (no surprise) the same Prayer Song to him years ago. This song seems to have the potential to awaken the great Daimajin from its sleep in the side of cliff-face. Soon Taihei is sent in search of this young girl (now a young woman), and mysterious dark spirit action ensues along side angst-ridden drama.

My first reaction to this series was confusion. Is this a drama or a tokusatsu? There are distinct elements of each genre present: a serious, rather dark story and tone with a focus on character and emotion, as well as intense, wire-assisted fight sequences, character’s that henshin into demon-like creatures with Kamen Rider sensibilities, and of course, we can’t forget the giant stone grotto. Usually, when a show can’t decide what it wants to be, there are problems, and the show breaks down upon itself. This doesn’t happen here. I’ve watched the first two episodes, and through both, I’ve only wanted to know more about what is going on. The drama is solid and the toku is a nice aside.

In that respect, Sh15uya (read: Shibuya 15) comes to mind. This series is a J-Drama/tokusatsu hybrid, but truth be told, it plays out more like a dark Showa Rider series with 15-year-olds. Daimajin Kanon plays more like a true drama series that happens to have some special effects shots involved. Regardless, I like it, and so far, it works.

Wrapping things up, the acting is solid throughout, the cast of characters introduced in this first episode are flushed out just enough to make them entertaining and interesting without taking away the desire to want to get to know them more, and the fact that Daimajin is not likely be a major factor in much of the series is a refreshing change of pace for a toku-like show that takes its name from a giant, monster fighting stone soldier. I really enjoy character-driven naratives, and this series is going to win or fail based on the strength of its cast; so, far, I think it’s off to a good start.

Plus, Nao Nagasawa, better known as Nanami Nono/Hurricane Blue of Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger, is in it, and in case you didn’t know – she’s super hot… So, you should probably watch just because of that. Just sayin’…

Let the speculation begin…

Is this the new Rider: "O's"?

via #TV-Nihon (Kamen Rider O’s Was: Unknown new rider?!)

Next up for my series of E3 Impressions is Sony. You can watch the press conference for yourself right here; it is also available on IGN. The overall verdict is very similar to the impression I got from Microsoft; Sony played it safe. The difference for me is that Sony showed off some games and content that actually mattered to me, or rather, content that I could get excited about. Kinect is great and all, but Move seems to have the games that would hold my attention.

Impressions after the jump…

1-Up

Sorcery

I really like the concept behind this Move title. The spell launching mechanic seemed to work rather well, and the potion effect demoed was nifty. The real draw for me though was seeing how the different spells interact with each and combine.

Little Big Planet 2

I haven’t jumped on the LBP bandwagon yet, but this game might change that. “Play. Create. Share.” just got even more interesting now that LBP2 is more than just a social-creative platformer. It really does appear to be a “platform for games” as the level editor can be used to create games of any genre.

Gran Turismo 5

I’m a fan of the series, but the super long wait between GT4, GT5: Prologue, and GT5 has cased my love for the franchise to dwindle a bit. Now that a release date has been announced, I think I may need to dust off my copy of A-Spec…

Twisted Metal

Surprise, surprise, indeed. Great promo with the teaser and the live visit from the clown himself on stage. The demo footage looked interesting. Really, I’m just glad to see the franchise hasn’t died.

Playstation Portapotties

PSP

It still sucks. Period. There is no amount of games, no particular series or franchise, that can save this poor under served handheld. I wish Sony would stop fooling itself into thinking that the PSP is still cool. No one is excited about it anymore. Why? Because Sony didn’t treat it right when it had the chance. And the line up of games shown this year actually looks promising. Sadly, the marketing campaign is a little too late and many of those games could really do far better on the PS3 (both in terms of sales and reception).

Sony, if the PSP is still important to you, take it more seriously. And not just on paper and at E3…

InFamous 2

I really was excited to see this. InFamous is an excellent title and one of the most fun games I played on the PS3 last year. Unfortunately, the trailer left me disappointed. The hints at gameplay were fine and dandy. The redesign made for the game’s protagonist, Cole, not so much. I know a new voice actor was hired for the character, but now the character model itself is, well… It’s like a whole new actor was cast in place of the original – like Don Cheadle replacing Terrence Howard in Iron Man 2, except not anywhere near as good. Since Cole isn’t a real person, why the hell is he an entirely different person now? What happened to continuity? I’m all for change and improvement, but, Sucker Punch, I’m not sure about this one…

Playstation Plus

I would actually place this on the 1-Up list – the features of this service warrant that much – but I can’t because the service, too me, is a little pricey. $50 for a year of early access to content I generally already get access to for free is a little much when you factor in the fact that some of that content will no longer be “owned” by me when I end my subscription. Besides, I’m still not getting all the same features I could get on XBL for the same $50. Nevertheless, this miss isn’t so bad and can really be counted as a hit, after all the free stuff is still free and Plus just adds some extra value to the package.

Next up for my series of E3 Impressions is the “Big N”. You can watch the press conference for yourself right here on Nintendo’s E3 site; it is also available on G4 and IGN. I think Nintendo really brought it this year. It had to with Kinect and Move entering the market, dropping sales numbers, and the general distaste for the loads of shovel-ware released for the Wii. The show opened with what we all wanted (a look at the new Zelda) and we got our first official look at the successor to the DS.

Impressions after the jump…

1-Up

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

I’m a little sad that this title has been delayed to next year as I already have a pre-order for it at my local Gamestop, but in any event, I’m excited that the title is as far along as it is. The new art style is fine in my opinion, though I’ve come across some negative feedback elsewhere. The gameplay, of course, is what’s most important, and it seems that Wii Motion Plus will indeed improve the experience greatly. I’m not fond of the change in control for the slingshot, but the bow and arrow and sword mechanics look to be improved, which is very good news.

GoldenEye 007

The classic N64 FPS is getting a make-over exclusively for Wii. Four player split-screen returns along with online multiplayer. This is sure to be pretty cool, but the potential for failure is also very high. Let’s hope the control scheme isn’t limited to Wiimote/Nunchuck and/or the split-screen isn’t hindered. Regrettably, Daniel Craig replaces Pierce Brosnan as Bond. This isn’t that big a deal, but technically, Craig’s Bond exists in a rebooted continuity disconnected from the Brosnan quadrilogy, so I was a little disturbed that the switch was made.

Kirby’s Epic Yarn

I’m not sure how to describe this title. I do know that I want to play this game, and I can’t wait for it’s release. Seriously, you have to check this title out for yourself. I never thought I’d be excited for a Kirby game…

Nintendo 3DS

This 3D fad must die. Why this old technology won’t go away and stay away is beyond me, but if the entertainment industry at large really thinks that consumers want 3D so badly, why hasn’t 3D been a consistent hit over the years? Because it’s expensive as all hell and, with horrendously few exceptions, sucks terribly bad (looking at you Spy Kids…). But if we must be forced to have 3D as a part of entertainment diets, the 3DS will certainly be more reasonable way to go than having to dish out money for a new TV and sets of glasses for everyone in the house. Why, the 3DS is a portable handheld that requires no special equipment (read: glasses) to produce the 3D effect. And on top of that – the effect is OPTIONAL.

Now, throw in high-end Gamecube/Wii graphics capabilities, motion sensor/control capabilities, twin outside cameras for user-created 3D pictures, apparent software download to local storage memory (from game carts, not the online store), and an analog thumb slider and the 3DS simply stands tall and by itself in the portable gaming market. Sorry PSP fans – I’m not even sure people exist – but Nintendo has out done themselves yet again. I haven’t seen the 3D effect for myself yet, but the reaction out of E3 is nearly unanimous, this system seems like it’s going rock.

Third-Party Support

The N64 and Gamecube both suffered needlessly from lack of support from developers that weren’t Nintendo or Nintendo owned. The Wii so far has suffered from a lack of solid, core gamer centric titles from third-party developers. The DS had a slow start in the third-party department as well. This looks to be changing with the 3DS, and I must say this is wonderful news, not just for Nintendo, but for gamers as well.

Tacked on Waggle

Wii Party

I. Simply. Don’t. Care.

Metroid: Other M trailer

What? I didn’t like Metroid?

No, I just didn’t like the trailer. I wanted to see a demo. I know it was playable on the show floor, and gameplay was demoed at GDC, but I can’t help but feel a little disappointed that Nintendo wasted time in on yet another trailer.

Mario Sports Mix

Again. I. Don’t. Care.

Ok, maybe I’m being a little too harsh on the “bridge” titles as Nintendo calls them. Unfortunately, neither of those games (Sports Mix and Wii Party) looked all that entertaining to play considering how played out the Mario Party and sports titles are already.