Written Reviews – Page 17

DVD Review – The Best Of WWE Raw (15th Anniversary Set)

15 years ago, Monday Night RAW debuted. 10 years ago, RAW featured Mike Tyson and Steve Austin almost going at it. 5 years ago, RAW celebrated its tenth anniversary with a piss-poor awards show that was generally disliked by anyone who watched it (and the DVD they released was no better). Now it’s the fifteenth anniversary of WWE’s flagship Monday night show and the company has decided to celebrate with a three-hour reunion episode (which was actually pretty good), a quick music CD featuring entrance themes of more popular RAW superstars, and a 3-disc set which shows the best moments of RAW, throughout its 15 year run.

For the most part, this is a pretty sweet deal. As someone who only got into this stuff during the Attitude era, it was pretty neat to see stuff I hadn’t been able to witness back in the day. Even revisiting some of the more memorable moments like BANG 3:16 and McMahon’s Stooges coming out to Real American (back when making fun of Hulk Hogan was perfectly acceptable behavior) was a treat. There are also a couple matches here and there, although they are outweighed by the amount of vignettes included.

Most of the footage is pretty solid, although there does seem to be some “recycling” of past edited footage for the sake of filling the disc (the ECW chapter seems to be ripped right from the Rise and Fall of ECW DVD they put out a couple years back), but it doesn’t really kill the product. Just about the only other flaw is that everything on this 3-disc set really serves as a reminder of how great and predictable RAW used to be in its glory days in comparison to what’s being shown now.

If you want to revisit the days of RAW back when it was actually unpredictable and daring, you should pick this set up. It’s a nice companion piece to the RAW show that aired a couple weeks back.

COMIC REVIEW – Action Comics #666 (July 1991)

Just for shits and giggles… why not revisit Action Comics #666?

There’s no devil worshipping in this issue, but it does open with Superman going mad and on a killing spree… so I guess that’s the closest thing to demonic or devilish tales to be had here. Alas, the cover story kind of gives way that all is not what it seems, but how we get there is… well, it boils down to a cliche used to dismiss the sort of tales that would once be advertised as “imaginary stories.” This was the 90s. We don’t have room for imaginary stories unless they’re part of our great canon.

The core of the story boils down to exploring Superman’s fear of losing control and going crazy, which is something that writers like to explore every so often to varying degrees of success. Before this issue came along, there was an arc where Superman had exiled himself into space after killing some dudes (I think it was kryptonians from a parallel world; I don’t recall) and that probably did a better job of exploring that fear over the course of several issues than this one issue could.

For a quick standalone story, it’s a nice, easy read that falls back on some cliche concepts to bring everything back to status quo. The art in general ain’t too shabby, either. A bit messy in some places, but otherwise, pretty good.

Just as an aside, we’re not doing Detective Comics #666 for the simple reason being that it’s the penultimate chapter of the comic event “Knightfall”, the saga that saw Bane break the Bat and a new Batman come in to take the reign. Maybe someday we’ll give that saga a proper look… maybe.

BOOK REVIEW – The Death Of WCW (2004)

The success of the Wrestlecrap book prompted Wrestlecrap curator R.D. Reynolds to cook up another book. One that would tackle the rise and fall of once-prominent wrestling promotion known as World Championship Wrestling. This time, however, he wouldn’t be alone as he would partner up with Figure 4 Weekly head Bryan Alvarez to chronicle this interesting look into what made WCW the dominant force that almost drove the World Wrestling Federation into bankruptcy before everything fell apart… hence why the book is called The Death Of WCW and not The Life Of WCW.

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COMIC REVIEW – Batman #666 (July 2007)

I find it rather funny that several years ago, nothing particularly “evil” or “devil-themed” was conjured up for the 666th issues of Action Comics or Detective Comics, and yet here we are. Superman and Batman’s long running series had recently reached the number of the beast and both involve the devil in some form or another. But while Superman #666 is mostly about him being a dick, Batman #666 gives way to a future storyline in which Batman’s son, Damien, must take up the mantle of the Bat to face the Prince of Darkness… what?

So there’s a real twist here that has the son of Batman facing off against the Anti-Christ Batman or something. Apparently, a deal was made between Bats Jr. and the devil that would prevent the Apocalypse from happening. What kind of deal was it? Well, the obvious kind, of course. There’s the usual devil worshippings and satanic killings that are all the rage in this “devil-themed” stories. It’s seems done to death before, but it’s just a nice, slick story that it never gets boring or even remotely tedious. It’s a pretty fast paced book.

And it’s got nice art to compliment the book – not to say that it’s breathtaking or anything like that, but the thing with Adam Kubert’s stuff is that it’s consistently smooth regardless of the project being worked on. It successfuly interprets and recreates that dark, moody atmosphere which depicts a city on the verge of Armageddon. I don’t really have much to complain about here as far as the content goes, although I’m pretty sure some people will see this as a pointless cash in of an issue number similar to that of the Beast. But hey, I think it’s a decent cash-in nonetheless.

In a time and day when comic companies rely on tiresome story-arcs and gimmicky crossovers to tell their story or lack thereof, the 666th iteration of Batman is an enthralling read for a one-shot story. The dialogue is good, the art is great, and there is never a dull moment. Perhaps most importantly, it says all it needs to say within the 20+ pages of a single issue and also offers a tease as to what happens next, leaving readers wanting more of this stuff. Definitely worth a look if you’re a Batman fan or a fan of comics in general.

P.S. Waiting until All-Star Batman & Robin finishes up its eternally-long first story-arc before I give it a proper review. Honestly

BOOK REVIEW – Wrestlecrap: The Very Worst Of Professional Wrestling (2003)

With the new Wrestlecrap Book of Lists coming up, it seemed only appropriate that I’d go back and revisit RD Reynold’s first literary opus, which is basically a book version of his Wrestlecrap website.

Note: In case anyone didn’t get this hint, Randy Baer is R.D. Reynolds’ shoot real name. Sorry if I’m breaking the kayfabe here, kids.

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MOVIE REVIEW – Mr. Bean's Holiday (2007)

Recently got to see this one yesterday, which is surprising to me because I didn’t even know they made another Bean movie until my mother told me about it. Anyway, in this movie, Mr. Bean wins a train trip to Cannes and through his various acts, trouble comes a-brewing.

Not being a big fan of Bean and having seen a few episodes as well as that first flick ten years ago, my expectations weren’t all that high. This is pretty much the same Bean you’ve seen on the show and the first movie and that seems to be enough, as it’s still a pretty funny flick. Even ten years removed from the movie when he lasted played the role, that Rowan guy can still pull it off. Of course, there were some dragging moments, but that’s to be expected with a lot of movies.

If you’re a fan of Bean, you’ll want to watch this movie. If you’re not, this is still a funny, well-done film, although I’d advise you to pick up the movie and some TV episodes if you want to get Bean at his best.

COMIC REVIEW – Superman #666 (Oct. 2007)

So Superman’s long running series has reached the number of the beast, similar to how his other DC rival has reached the number. You could imagine the DC editorial meetings behind the production of this issue:

DC EDITOR #1: Lookie here, folks. Superman has hit six-hundred and sixty-six issues!

DC EDITOR #2: Wow, that’s incredible! How do we celebrate this momentous occasion?

DC WRITER: How about we show a what if tale about what happens when Superman is influenced by the devil from Krypton and decides to kill everybody?

DC EDITOR #1: Nah! That idea sucks! You’re fired!

DC JANITOR: Why don’t you guys just make him a dick for a whole issue?

DC EDITOR #2: Oh yeah! What a great idea! That’ll sell lots of issues!

DC EDITOR #1: YES! This will SO make up for our inconsistent progress of ongoing storylines spanning five hundred issues spread across the few thousand out there!!! You, sir, are a GENIUS! Here’s a promotion!!!

Ahem…

Let’s get this out of the way: the story behind this issue sucks ass. It’s rather pointless, it doesn’t make sense, it doesn’t play into the larger Superman mythos, and most of all, it’s one of the most cliched plotlines out there that was used simply because of the issue’s number. Anyone who is looking for great storytelling in comic books won’t find it in this issue because this issue doesn’t have it. Perhaps most of all, the plot is sort of misleading. This isn’t about Superman being controlled by the devil or being the Anti-Christ or anything like that; this is about Superman being a dick.

Yeah, that’s right. I said it and I’ll go ahead and say it again. Superman is a dick. If all those issues from the Silver Age don’t convince you of this fact, then this issue should be more than enough to kill any doubts you may have had about your favorite superhero.

THAT is what’s going to sell this issue. Superman is a dick all throughout this issue, as fourth-stringer heroine Zatanna will attempt to convince Superman to stop what he’s doing and Supes is like “Yeah, I know I’m doing bad things and I just don’t care” and will just blow her away or something. He does some nasty stuff to Jimmy (not THAT nasty, you pervert!) because the signalwatch buzzing annoys the hell out of Supes. This is superdickery at its absolute best and it is awesome. So yeah, the story sucks, because Superman being the dick he knows he could be just sells the book alone.

Forget the fact that a name writer and a name artist is behind the creation of this book: this isn’t about them. This is about Superman being a dick. Kurt Busiek does a good dick Superman and the art pretty much compliments the issue. It’s not the cleanest art and not my favorite, but it works.

Hats off to DC for allowing Superman to be his good old true dickery self for one whole issue and as a result, create a weird, screwed-up, fun story in a day and age when the most notable thing in comics are nonsensical crossovers and political overtones forced upon a story just because the writer gets a hard-on for them. While the issue does try to play upon some Christian values or something, it’s just fluff for the issue’s true motive. Anyone who longed for the days of Superman charging damsels-in-distress a rescue fee or stealing away Jimmy Olsen’s newly-earned cash will want to pick this up. But if you’re looking for something deep, you won’t find it here.

But come on. Superman’s a dick here. Just as everyone suspected…

P.S. – They didn’t do anything with Action Comics or Detective Comics when THOSE books hit 666. What the heck?

MOVIE REVIEW – Snakes On A Plane (2006)

About a year ago, the hype machine was started off by a bunch of random Internet users over a film called Snakes on a Plane. Despite not knowing much of anything about the movie, it sounded like a cool movie… and hey, it was gonna have Samuel L. Jackson in it, so it has to be good. Of course, the movie bombed when it came out despite the buzz it had going for it. Those that did see it either loved it or hated it. I didn’t get to see it until recently; a full year after the buzz has died down.

If you’re looking for something deep in plot and characterization, then what the hell are you doing reading a review about a movie called “Snakes on a Plane?” The movie has one of the most absurd plots ever conceived (so absurd that the title says it all) and yet it’s awesome. It’s not a good movie and it doesn’t intend on being a good movie. The reason it’s an awesome movie is because it’s an absolutely terrible movie with a ridiculous plot, a cast of characters so one-dimensional and transparent you really don’t care when they get killed off by the poisonous snakes, and the dialogue. Most bad films end up being enjoyable because of certain aspects and you’d have to turn off your brain to enjoy it and this is one of them. It’s not the best popcorn flick out there, but it’s certainly a better bad-movie than some other crappy bad-movies featuring a popular actor and concept *cough* Catwoman *cough*.

Snakes on a Plane is a good bad-movie and if you enjoy a good bad-movie, then check this flick out. Jackson shines in this flick. Let’s hope that despite the bomb, it gets a sequel.

MOVIE REVIEW – Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn (1987)

The Evil Dead trilogy is an interesting piece of business when you look at the grand scope of the whole thing. In the beginning, you had the original Evil Dead film, which was a decently conceived horror flick built on a crummy budget, some amateurish performances, and a lot of Bruce Campbell getting the crap beaten out of him and then covering him in said crap.

On the other side, you have the Army of Darkness, a much slicker film with a bigger budget, but is more of a comedic fantasy film; its horror aspects having been somewhat toned down from that early effort. However, sitting in between these two very opposite films is the middle child of the trilogy, Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn.

Evil Dead II represented the series’ transition from pure horror movie to slapstick comedy; I believe Bruce Campbell referred to it as “splatstick”. This sequel – a partial remake that retells the first movie but a sequel nonetheless – is more light-hearted than the original and whatever horror elements are used in comic effect. The movie isn’t taken as seriously as it was the first time around and I think that helps a bit as it gives the Ash character some personality instead of just the gutless coward that he was in the first movie.

Don’t confuse light-heartedness with kid-friendly; despite having comic moments, this is still partially a horror flick and there is gratuitous gore and graphic violence. It doesn’t really go overboard however; there weren’t any tree rapings like in the first one. Still, there’s a bit more money put into this one. Bruce Campbell is on the verge of finding that voice for Ash that he’d eventually develop in Army Of Darkness and the rest of the cast that ended up roped into this party turned out slightly better (if not some cliche) performances on this second go-around.

Evil Dead 2 is probably my favorite of the three films. It retains some of the horror aspects that made the first movie memorable while starting to invoke some of Army Of Darkness’s playfulness without leaning into full-bore parody. Army may be the more quotable one, but there’s plenty of good stuff in Dead By Dawn.

GameFAQs Review – Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 (Xbox)

First there was X-Men. Then there was Marvel Super Heroes. Then X-Men came back and tussled with Street Fighters. Then it was Marvel’s turn. Then other Capcom heroes joined the fray. Now we get to Marvel vs. Capcom 2, where a whole bunch of fighters from both universes show up and beat the tar out of each in pixelated fashion. Admittingly, this can be a fun party game if you have a bunch of guys together, but does that equal a good game? Let’s find out.

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