Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Ghost Whispers

By: Robert Murphy

Getting right back into things, I immediately wanted to watch the second act to the new Ghost in the Shell series Arise. The episode is entitled Ghost Whispers and presumably takes place a short time after the first, the Major is still on her own however and still mulling over what she wants to do with her new found freedom. What is a highly advanced cyborg with combat and hacking talents to do though? Well trouble is brewing and an unknown attack has hit Japan in a more than critical way, even though most of the higher ups know the cause, there is still the issue of stopping it and the Major gets roped into solving it. Not that she argued about it too much or anything though.

Another great story takes place this time around, Batou enters the stage and we learn significantly more about his past and just how complicated it is. He has always been a top favorite in my book, a kind hearted but incredibly strong man that you wouldn't want to take advantage of his good nature. The war period before this time however was a dark point for him and his team and one moment in particular has haunted him the most, his former commander especially though as he faces death for the action of their last assignment. In order to blow the lid on the whole affair he leads Batou and his team to take down the powers that be in Japan and make them be an example. This proves to be an interesting task because of the future that Ghost in the Shell is set in, everything is controlled by computers in some way. Much like the way airlines control flight patterns, cars and other forms of transportation also have guided controls to them and they're about to be taken down. We've all seen what hacking another android can do but if you hack the entire nation then you have chaos on a whole other scale. 

The introduction to the rest of the main cast also comes into play, seeing some of my other favorite characters was a must and it is done in a solid fashion. Like in the previous chapter our future team members get a more detailed look into what sort of characters they are and what they bring to the team. Ishikawa in particular receives a whole new level of respect from me as not only an expert hacker but a pretty scary fighter too. He isn't alone though and for the most part, everyone finds a time to shine, even if it is for a moment and for the skills we already know they're masters at. It's a feature that I hope will not disappear in the future because most of the time you are only given the chance to see the Major do her thing and while that makes sense, it can make you question why she even needed a team in the first place. 

Often one of the more under appreciated team members though also gets to strut their stuff for the screen and that is the Logicoma. Last time we saw the Major be apprehensive towards our friendly crab/tank with the personality of a five year old. This time though she is much more open to letting the A.I. into her shell and allowing the goofy robot to create some of the lighter moments for the episode, even if it doesn't know it was being funny. The relationship we've seen between her in the Logicoma in the original was just the same as it is presented now but it is something that I'm glad isn't done away with. 

Near the end however, things start to slow down for me quite a bit. I have nothing wrong with action in a show in fact it can be one of my favorite parts but it has to be done well and the epic concluding moments to Ghost Whispers went out just as the title suggests, a whisper. The final fight with Batou, the Major and the bits and piece of her current group were just not nearly as powerful as they're made out to be. The Major ends up being the one who gets hacked by Batou but that doesn't seem to affect her, the Major and Batou both lose and arm during their fight but again it doesn't even make you jump or frankly care. Sure, the losing the arm gag is a good one but you don't have to do it to death because when you do, you make a lack luster affair. The final twist near the end was also extremely low as well because since the beginning you saw it coming, maybe not all the piece but you new a twist was coming and there is no pop when it comes on screen. This makes the overall ending a bust in a way when you had so much going for you up until this point. 

So what Ghost Whisper has going for it was a great cyber terrorist attack, one that introduces you to the rest of the Major's team in yet another solid fashion. Most of the big names get their moments to shine, Ishikawa being the one who has some of my favorite scenes for the whole episode. However, thing end rather sourly, not enough to make you regret watching the hour long show entirely but with everything that you saw before it, you would have expect more for the final. 

Good:

- Getting the rest of the team into the story and giving them some shining moments

- Logicoma and the A.I.'s unique brand of humor

- Interesting cyber terrorist attack and plot

Bad:

- The not so shocking twist at the very end

- Lack luster finale and action scenes that could and should have been better

Scully Rating: 8.0 out of 10 

Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Ghost Pain

By: Robert Murphy 

This past year, the buzz about the new release for the Ghost in the Shell series left me wondering and wanting to now what was to come next for the show. With the American release for the first two chapters in the series finally coming out, my curiosity could finally be answered. Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Ghost Pain is the first part of this new venture and gives us a how new look and new face to the team we came to know over the years but the changes are not as severe as they may look at first glance. Although, while others may be shocked by the new look, it is something that I enjoyed as I watched this first chapter. 

Major Motoko Kusanagi appears with a younger looking face and presence than we are used to and while her shall we say "older" self is more in control, this younger presence hasn't quite learned the ropes just yet. The Major has just returned to Japan after hearing about the death of a former Lt. and close friend, she sets out to find the killer and solve the mystery behind the allegations he had surrounding him before his death. It felt effortless to jump into this cyber crime mystery, like slipping on a glove and that was something that made me love this first chapter. Not only this but the mystery itself is a rather good one, The Major doesn't have as many resources to work with as we've come to see before and the whole situation felt more like an undercover crime solving as she followed up on clues left by security cameras in one instance to follow the last known locations of the Lt.. It's more of a dangerous situation for her to move around and that's something that gave the story and edge I appreciated, the Major isn't so free at this point in time and it makes things much more difficult for her. 

This also obviously all takes place in a time before the formation of the Major's team as well but many of the big names and faces make their appearance. While the Major follows her own leads on the crime she finds that there are quite a few others looking for information and out to solve the murder themselves. Following their own leads, members of Section 9 meet one another on mostly by happenstance as they all come from different walks of life and having their own brand of skills. This is also nice to see in action because many times during the original show you don't fully see just how unique and strong the aspects of Section 9 are apart from the Major. The scene I particularly enjoyed was when all the mountain of information comes crashing down around her and her future team members and boss stand around her. It's a powerful moment in the story not only for her and the team but it further shows their abilities that are prominent here. 

As I mentioned earlier though, the Major has a different feel to her this time around and that's because she hasn't yet become the person viewers have seen her as before. It's not necessarily a weakness that I am talking about either, she is still the incredible fighter and expert hacker but she hasn't yet stood on her own quite yet. She also faces an actual weakness though in the story and that is an unknown pain and issue with her cyborg body. The "ghost pain" she experiences throughout the story hinders her on more than one occasion and she neither knows where it came from our what is causing it. It makes solving the crime even harder for her especially when trying to defend herself against her attackers but also the allegations she begins to face as well. Seeing her strength this early on though proves one a strong lead the Major has always been though and despite this negative aspect working against her, she still kicks serious tale throughout the episode. 

Things begin to take a trippy turn too once these attacks occur on her body, there is a serious question of what is real and whether or not the Major is at fault. Ghost in the Shell has always excelled at this sort of story telling, not being able to distinct reality from a false memory implanted inside of you. It's always a possibility in this cybernetic future as the Major shows off just how easily you can hack into something or someone, how can you fight when your eyes are hacked into? It's kind of a scary thought but a great aspect to this story as the Major suffers from something invading her body now and whether or not it has effected her in some way. 

What else can I say for Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Ghost Pain? The mystery and mind altering story is one that I thoroughly enjoyed watching and works well with the Ghost in the Shell style that I've seen in the past. The Major is also a different sort of character now, not completely but her new presence was an angle that worked for her and the story. Also, seeing new aspects for the future Section 9 team members was something of a surprise but a great one as we see new perspectives on their characters too. I feel like all the gripes or negative comments about the new look will disappear once viewers watch this first installment to Arise and I eagerly await watching the next installment.

Good:

- A edgy story/mystery

- New looks and aspects to not only the Major but other Section 9 members

- The reality questioning aspects to the Major's story line were trippy and fascinating to watch  

- The still present cybernetic and futuristic setting 

Bad:

- The question of whether this is a prequel or a whole new series may linger in the back of your minds 

Scully Rating: 9.0 out of 10 

The Interview

By: Robert Murphy 

Despite all the hype and controversies over the latest love child of James Franco and Seth Rogan, I had every intention of seeing the movie for myself before it became the scandal for the end of 2014. After watching it though you will feel the sensation that you were expecting to get from it and that is the sheer idea that a movie like this caused such a fuss to begin. Aaron Rapaport (Seth Rogan) plays side kick and long time producer to the TV celebrity gossip show, Skylark Tonight, the host of which is none other than Dave Skylark (James Franco). The two have created a successful life for one another but it isn't till the celebration of their 100th show that Aaron feels like he's just creating smutty nonsense for the star studded masses. Seeing this disgust effect his friend prompts Skylark to do some research and try to give him a real chance for a real interview and the lucky winner just so happens to be the world's most infamous name at the moment, Kim Jong-Un. The leader of North Korea turns out to be a big fan of the American television scene and Dave Skylark is one of his favorite people to watch, leading the two on a journey for the possibly the interview of the century. 

The mission turns into a spy comedy quickly though once the CIA contacts Aaron and Dave to assassinate the leader during their trip, the idea of which is funny enough to think about but is rather short lived. The expected happens from here on out, the two will likely screw up a few times along the way and that Dave being the simple minded one will fall for Kim Jong-Un. Yes, a bromance like Rogan's and Franco's forms between the world leader and talk show host and they go around enjoying the finer things of North Korea, hot woman, drugs and alcohol. Making the story out to be the idea that Kim is just a bro who is stuck in a bad situation and one who maybe just needed a good friend and also have his daddy love him a little more when he was growing up. The series of failures that follow the story to kill Kim prove to be nothing but one of escapades that will make you chuckle and then it is on to the next one. The plot barely strings together as you watch along and at one point the CIA sends in a drown to help the two out and it soars close enough to Kim Jong-Un's palace that I thought, "Why didn't you just bomb the place if the guy is such a threat?" 

Once the pretenses get dropped though and Dave sees through the sugar coated parade that Kim has clearly put on for him and Aaron, you would things would kick into high gear but in actuality it's the opposite. An attempt at gratuitous and disgusting violence and flopped humor begins to break out, the fight scene between Aaron and a particularly feisty technical manager being the worst of it all. The fight drags out for the longest time and involves Aaron getting two fingers bitten off, which grow back in the last scene of the movie apparently and also leads the technician to have a joystick style control shoved up his rectum after he lands on top of it. The whole experience leaving me scared as it flipped between that and Dave flopping through his interview with Kim who cries, craps his pants and storms off to destroy the western coast of the US. It's just enough to make you wish you had a theater to walk out of in a way as the film winds down it's last moments with a dramatic tank scene set to Katy Perry's "Firework". 

What I can say for The Interview is the impressive array of stars on screen that make use of what little screen time they're given as Franco and Rogan attempt their brand of humor for 112 minutes. Lizzy Caplan perhaps being the most name worthy for myself as the CIA operative that tries to get the assassination off without a hitch and actually save Rogan and Franco from certain death as well. Diana Bang as Kim Jong Un's chief of propaganda however makes probably the most impact for the film as she attempts to save her country by using the two to prove to North Korea that Kim is not a good leader and far from a God. Seeing your idol and leader of your nation poop his pants in front of you wouldn't really be the thing to do it I would think but never the less it inspires the uprising of the nation in the movie but just makes you realize again what you're watching. 

In the end, I don't know if North Korea is responsible for The Interview getting pulled or not but if they actually sat down and watched it I think they would just feel bad that it was ever a thing to begin with just like the rest of us. The movie does have it's chuckle moments of course as you might expect but really it all just feels like it was trying to hard to make light of the situation the world is in. The foul mouth and sexual escapades of Franco and Rogan are best left in the United States where they won't bother the rest of the world and just leave it that. 

Good:

- Co-stars to Franco and Rogan's attempt at humor deserve recognition for their roles and willingness to be a part of the flop film

- The occasional laugh here and there 

Bad:

- Plot barely strings together with one off jokes and escapades for Franco and Rogan

- Lewd, foul mouthed and sexual reference every where you go

- If dootie and poo poo jokes are where comedy is at now then I don't want to be a part of it

Scully Rating: 3.0 out of 10 

Bleach 611: Soul King

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/611/17

The Zero Division has fallen, and Juha Bach moves ahead to face the Soul King, who is still confined inside some giant crystal.  However, Ichigo arrives, finding the dead or incapacitated bodies of the Zero Division.  But, as he looks down on the pieces of Ichibei, he hears his voice, asking Ichigo to call his name.  When he does, Ichibei gets back up, all in one piece.  He explains that names have power, and by calling his in time, Ichigo brought him back.  He also goes on to explain that if Juha Bach kills the Soul King, that Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, and the World of the Living will all blink out of existence.  He then asks Ichigo to stop Juha Bach at all costs, since his power still hasn't come back.  Can Ichigo stop the seeming unstoppable Quincy King, the son of the Soul King himself?

I'm not very surprised by the revelation that Juha Bach is actually the Soul King's son, given his intimate knowledge of the Soul King's castle, as well as the melancholy feeling he seemed to get when he arrived.  But, there are still a lot of things that are unclear, whether Juha Bach will be able to take his place, as his son, or if Ichigo has the power to stop him at this point.

Psycho-Pass 2

By: Robert Murphy

**Heavy amount of spoilers**

The original Psycho Pass was an anime that I had no prior knowledge of going into it when I began to watch it and it instantly became a program that I wanted to watch every single week. This wonderful sensation returned when the newest season, Psycho Pass 2, made it's arrival just a few short weeks ago. The show depicted a futuristic world in which everyone lives under the law of the Sibyl system, a faceless body behind society that watches everything that you do and will remove you from society if you present a threat to it. It does this by measuring people's intent to do wrong doings such as commit crimes or acts of violence because this affects everyone around them and their Hue. Hue is the color system by which everyone is judged, having a clear Hue means you will live a happy life, a dark Hue and you either are imprisoned or killed. It is a dark and marshal law type of town but everyone lives in peace, from the outside looking in the society under Sibyl is a paradise but those like Akane Tsunemori know the truth.

The story this time around is a further continuation of what happened from the first season of Psycho Pass. Akane has returned as the now veteran inspector and works with a mostly new team of faces but never the less, she returns to trying to protect society after learning the truth about Sibyl last season. Her new threat though is something of an entirely different level, a man named Kamui has arisen from the shadows and not only is he committing horrible crimes but he doesn't even register on the Sibyl system. Where as apposed to our last bad guy could simply keep his Hue levels low while committing crimes, Kamui simply doesn't even exist. Kamui though isn't acting out randomly, no he is a character with a plan and I watched it meticulously unfold each week and I absolutely could not stop watching. You find out that he wants to know how the Sibyl system works, taking down Enforcers, kidnapping Inspectors and testing Dominators, all to find out how Sibyl judges society. All this was incredibly interesting as I said but at the same time, insanely frightening because these experiments usually involved gross amounts of death, violence or mutilation of people to get what he was after and he just unflinching moved on to the next problem. 

This brings me to the other point of the season I enjoyed which was the Sibyl system itself getting revealed. Yes, we learned that the Sibyl system is a being run by the minds of societies most intriguing criminals but other than big reveal we don't learn much. This time around the origin story behind Sibyl and how even some of the people volunteered to be apart of it. It sets the ground work for most of what we know in the new season and despite having a short time to do so, it manages to present the information smoothly. 

Earlier I mentioned how we are introduced to some new characters, while most of Akane's former team were lost in the first season some still remained but a new junior detective has joined the team, Mika Shimotsuki. While she is the junior, she has been in the field with Akane and the Enforcers for some time now. She is an overall mix for me as a character for the simple fact that she does serve a purpose to the story that I liked but her actions are so irksome that it's hard to notice. Mika excepts the Sibyl system to a fault, she views criminals as people to be judged and removed and Enforcers are the lucky tools to be assisting in Sibyl's justice. She in turn hates the actions of Akane and her attitudes toward dealing with latent criminals, Mika would just want to shoot them and be done with it and not trying and save them if possible. Mika does in the end learn the truth about Sibyl herself and her response as a pure believer proves the feeling that most of society would make if they found out the truth as well. People cannot question the will of the "God" that they live under and excepting is the best course of action.

As for Kamui as the new villain, he may have had an enjoyable plot that wrapped me up each week but as for a character, he is fairly flat. The brief moment where you finally get to know what he's all about is right at the end before he pops into a blood bubble and then you're left to think about the rest of the time you actually learned nothing about him. He was a ghost in all honesty, even when people talked to him on screen it's almost like he's not even there and he just seems to be another faceless entity like Sibyl. This was overall great to further the plot in the story but as a villain you would think with all he's done he would inspire more emotion in you. 

For a final sort of warning though I would like to note how immensely bloody this season was. Psycho Pass 2 already has the mature rating, Psycho Pass had it too, this time however it is more than warranted with the number of people that you will watch implode all over the screen and warp your senses. There is also a puppy scene I don't want to get into, psychological and physical torture will ensue and you will be watching it all. It is a mixed sort of feeling I had because the show does not do it for any shock value whatsoever but it is a lot and I wonder if it was really all that necessary. 

My final thought is that Psycho Pass 2 continues the already great ground work that was put forth from the first season. Not only do we learn more about the Sibyl system this time around but it itself gets to be judged by another entity and has to decide whether or not it can evolve or be destroyed by it. The story also sees the return of some great characters, Akane herself becomes more of the main character that I wanted her to be and carries herself stronger than ever after the incidents with Sibyl. I do however wish that Kamui had been a much more dominant presence, I didn't get to like him until the very end and then he was gone and unable to make a further impact. But else wise, if you can handle the mature rating and are a returning fan, I would recommend watching Psycho Pass 2.

Good:

- Akane and a couple other returning solid characters as well as some new ones

- Learning more about Sibyl and it's origins 

- Kamui's plan and unraveling the Sibyl system had me wrapped up every week

Bad:

- Kamui himself isn't too dominant of a bad guy

- Mika was a hard to like character and her actions certainly don't help

Scully Rating: 8.8 out of 10

Sword Art Online 2

By: Robert Murphy

It would seem that Kirito and Asuna just cannot escape from the virtual world and heck if I had the DIVE system technology that they have I would certainly spend all my free time in a virtual world too. This season of Sword Art Online is a bit tricky to sum up as it follows three different arcs to the universe, one of which is the main sort of story that was teased about when word of the new series first came out. A new game and a new enemy arises in Gun Gale Online, people are being killed in the game and then found dead in real life as well. The fear of another SAO incident leads Kirito to once again get involved and put his life on the line against the unknown player called Death Gun, you heard me. We also see the return of Asuna and all their friends in ALfheim Online and a short trip in to Norse mythology ensues for a new quest. Alongside all of this, a new player arises in the game whose swords skills even put Kirito's to shame and round of the show for a final tear jerking arc.

As I said, it's hard to sum up all that happens in Sword Art Online 2 because it goes much more differently than the first and differently than most anime in general. Sure, other shows have different arcs to them but there is sense of flow to most of them to make it all work together and connect that SAO 2 just didn't have. Kirito entering the new world of Gun Gale Online was something that we all expected this time around and it leads to the introduction of our new character, Shino Asada. Shino is an incredible sniper style character and her skills are beyond extraordinary to say the least, she herself is entering the Bullet of Bullets competition in GGO to prove her worth as a top level character and that she can escape from what happened in her past. She was all around a great character for this first arc, her and Asuna's skills and brief rivalry made for a some funny and stellar action scenes, watching Kirito laser sword a sniper bullet like it was nothing was particularly jaw dropping. The mystery to this arc is also a particular nail biter, despite the lack luster name of Death Gun, he himself is a force to be reckoned with as he has skills that challenge Kirito along with legendary weaponry from GGO to help him fight. His link to Kirito's passed and the events of Sword Art Online make you realize that Kirito didn't make it out of that game without blood on his hands and that haunts him to this day. It's an emotionally driven arc to say the least, not only for Kirito but for Shino too as her dark passed makes you question how she could ever even hold or look at a gun the same way.

All this emotional tension though gets dropped at the conclusion of the GGO arc of the story and we move on to a few fluff episodes that take place in ALfheim Online. Shino joins Kirito, Asuna and their friends in an adventure for Excalibur, a golden sword that has been sought after by Kirito for the longest time. These few episodes are pointless in my opinion, it detracts from everything that the season had going for it as they all enter a Norse God style adventure that ends just as soon as it begins. The final arc however brings back the emotional toll once again, I had been a bit apprehensive after the addition of the smaller arc I had seen before it but this chapter really brings home the series as a whole I felt. 

A new player is revealed for the story, she is a legendary swordsman and she is challenging all new comers to fight her in a duel. This opens the Sleeping Knights arc and it is one that Asuna takes a huge part in and Kirito takes a side seat for the show and she finally returns to the character we all knew her as in the first part of SAO. Her strength as a legendary swordsman herself shines through once again and she teams up with our new character Yuuki. Yuuki is the underline reason for Asuna coming out of her shell in this arc and the two form an incredible bond as characters that I loved but unfortunately Yuuki too has a past that she will not be able to avoid. She is a full dive player meaning she plays almost 24/7 and this is because she is terminally ill. It never occurs to you that there could be players diving who are in hospital beds and that's one of the most powerful parts of this arc that I found. Despite this unfortunate circumstance though Yuuki is a shining and bubbly character whose personality I normally wouldn't go for but this time I liked it especially for the way her actions bring Asuna to stand up for herself against her mother, for her and Kirito and for her to lead her own life. 

In the end, Yuuki and Shino both made excellent additions to Sword Art Online 2, I just wish the story had a more fluid way to it's storytelling because despite the two amazing arcs presented this season, they just don't fit together and the pointless fluff story in between them furthers that divide. Ultimately, what I think impressed me most is the characters as I said before, Yuuki and Shino both have hard fought pasts and open up a side to the show that I didn't think I was in for and Asuna makes a wonderful return to her former self, standing up against her mother and all the ways she was being forced to live her life. If not for the sub par way that the episodes are put together and the very final cliff hanger you are left dangling with at the end of the final episode, Sword Art Online 2 would have made for a more enjoyable watch.

Good:

- Yuuki and Shino are both great new characters 

- Asuna returns to her former strength and I fell in love all over again

- The GGO and The Sleeping Knights arcs were emotionally powerful and very strong separately

Bad:

- The combination of all these arcs doesn't make this second season flow coherently 

- The unnecessary Norse Mythology adventure episodes should have been avoided 

Scully Rating: 7.0 out of 10  

The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies

Zach Goodier

The long anticipated and dreaded finale to the Middle Earth saga is upon us, and Tolkien traditionalists have lined up alongside Jackson film fans to pile into the theater and see the finale we’ve all been waiting for.  So, does it deliver?  Well, the answer is a little tough to explain, but the answer is a disappointing no, at least in terms of giving us the finale we all hoped for.  Warning, some *SPOILERS* ahead

The most praiseworthy use of CGI is Smaug, but he isn't in the film for long.

Story:

For starters, Smaug is bearing down on Laketown, as he seeks to burn it down for aiding the Dwarves in their quest to reclaim Erabor.  This only lasts about 10 minutes, as things reach a rather quick and unsatisfying end as Bard shoots him dead.  This is following the book fairly well, but it all just happened too quickly, and if felt like I had just gotten comfortable and one of the most popular characters of the last movie was already kicked off and the story continued on a poorly paced mess as the Dwarves are faced with Bard and the survivors from Laketown who seek the share of the treasure horde they were promised, and the Wood Elves soon arrive to lay claim to the treasure, as well.

Bard is a good character, but he feels too much like a discount Aragorn at times.  He doesn't want the position of power... check.  Natural leader who everyone wants to follow... check, and so on.  

Meanwhile, Gandalf, Saruman, and a few other familiar faces face off against Sauron in his keep, where he has begun to revive the 9 wraiths of the fallen kings of men.  After a fight, Sauron is driven off to the east, where he will eventually rebuild his kingdom in the lands of Mordor.  As Gandalf moves to aid the Dwarves and Bilbo in finishing their quest, he arrives just in time to find that an army of dwarves has moved in to aid Thorin and his party in securing the Lonely Mountain and the kingdom of Erabor.  However, things reach a peak as two armies of orcs and goblins move in to lay waste to all the races of Middle Earth.

Elrond gets a good action sequence in the 1st act.

Most of the 2^nd and 3^rd acts are heated battles, which make gratuitous use of CGI and over-the-top stunts.  The pacing of the story really started to wear thin, as I became increasingly impatient with the story that felt filled to the brim with nonsense rather than the more direct feel of the original LOTR films.  That isn’t to say that it was all bad, but in LOTR, battles felt grounded, epic even, but the battle in this movie felt chaotic, messy, and just nonsensical at some points.  For example, the dwarves that come to aid Thorin are pinned by the armies of orcs that have come to take the mountain, and the dwarves are all holding out waiting for Thorin to join the battle and save the day… but how?  Thorin has a small questing party, not an army.  Sure, some of them are tough as nails, but they can’t turn the tide of a battle they are decisively losing.  Still, it somehow all works out, and these leaps of logic break the immersion that made LOTR so gripping and brilliant.

Characters:

Despite all of the characters who are showcased here, the only ones that matter all that much are Thorin, Bilbo, and perhaps Thranduil.  Bard has his moments, but he exhausts most of his significance to the story in the first half hour.  Thorin is being gripped by madness, as he obsesses over the treasure he now possesses, and Bilbo has to make a difficult decision on whether or not he should step up and try to take action to confront Thorin about how he’s changed.  This makes for some great moments, although there is a lot of drawn out scenes involving Thorin’s decent towards madness.  Thranduil has some strong moments in this film, which help him become more likeable, as you understand his plight, and that there is a more “human” person there.

The Necromancer story doesn't take up a lot of time in the movie, much like Smaug, which is a shame because it's arguably more relevant to LOTR fans than Bilbo's story, as it does more to set the stage for the rise of Mordor and the Ring Wraiths.

Bilbo is obviously central, as his struggle walks the line of helping the dwarves in protecting their new home, while trying to find a way to make peace with the surrounding factions, all of whom have grown weary of Thorin now that he is hoarding the treasure and going back on his deals.  This is arguably the strongest theme in the movie, as we see there is justice behind many of these characters, with the exception of the orcs.  This keeps the tension high if you haven’t read the books.

Gandalf is... here.  He just doesn't feel as significant as he did before, though.

Presentation:

The action is fairly good, with good choreography.  However, the use of CGI can make the fights look too animated (probably because most of them are).  Like the previous films, live characters fighting cartoons just doesn’t work.  It never looks right, and since virtually all the fights are like this, it really breaks the immersion within the film.  One of the reasons LOTR went down as one of the greatest franchises of our time was because virtually all of the close-up fighting was done by actors, not cartoons. 

I'm not sure how LOTR did it, but many of these scenes I felt very aware that there must be a green screen right behind these guys.

Speaking of how cartoony it all felt, the characters all seemed well aware of their plot armor, as a pair of dwarves has no doubts at all about fighting a horde of 100 goblins and easily emerging victorious.  Granted, this is the Hobbit, not LOTR.  But when it’s being marketed as the LOTR prequel we’ve all been waiting for, it feels like these trilogies are in 2 separate universes, since Aragorn never swaggered into an engagement with 50 orcs single-handedly and strolled out like a boss. Sure, he easily killed more than that throughout the movies, but it was with an army at his back, and friends at his side. 

Overall:

Even the epic battle just felt too
dragged out and uninteresting.

This movie wasn't completely terrible, but it did leave a very unsatisfied feeling as I walked out.  A lot of this was carried over from the first films, but made even worse in this one.  Sure, the orcs were always animated, but since they have so much screen time, you forget if you’re watching a live-action movie or an animated film. Furthermore, the story felt slow and dragged out, and tries to fill up its lengthy run time with enough add-in material to say this movie was approximately 90% filler story rather than source material.  That’s not surprising, since they had only about 50 pages of the original book left to cover anyways. 

Whether it was Peter Jackson’s fault, or the studios, or something else, it doesn’t really matter.  This movie was a conclusion to the Middle Earth films, but not at all the one that I felt Middle Earth deserved.  It trips over its own feet so much it seems to forget where it was even going until the last half hour or so.  It tries to throw in some of the epic battles that defined LOTR, but there was no feeling of build-up, like they just dumped the battle in, and even then it never felt as real as the classics, which almost ruined the battle entirely. 

This was a difficult movie for me.  As a LOTR/Hobbit fan,  I wanted this to be the last epic film in one of my favorite movie franchises of all time... But it just didn't live up to those expectations at all.

To make it perfectly clear, I didn’t hate the film, but it certainly didn’t feel like it was at all up to the standards set by the previous Hobbit films, films in general, or The Lord of the Rings, that established Middle Earth as one of the greatest cinematic universes of all time.  And I can't blame the actors, who all did a great job; however, I felt this movie was deeply flawed from the conceptual stage, as you can tell they tried to drag this ending out, despite a lack of remaining source material.  

Good:

-Interesting story on the side of Thorin, Thranduil, Bard, and Bilbo.

-Some strong moments for several of the main characters.

-Bringing in some of the other Tolkien material helped the story along, like the Necromancer and bringing Saruman and Elrond into that fight.

Bad:

-Story dragged out and bogged down way too much with filler scenes and stories.

-WAY too much CGI where it shouldn't have been needed.

-Hardly feels like the same Middle Earth we know and love.

-Not at all the ending the Middle Earth movies deserved.

Scully Rating: 6 out of 10

Bleach 610: Mausoleum of Skulls

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/610

Juha Bach's true power has awoken, and now Ichibei stands before "The Almighty."  However, Ichibei isn't done yet, and he has a final technique to prove it.  However, will his power have any effect on the seemingly untouchable Juha Bach and all seeing "eyes?"  And moreover, will Ichigo arrive in time to help in this increasingly hopeless battle against a demi-god?

Ichibei had a good run, but I think his number's come up.  He seems to have exhausted all his options, and he's been put against the ropes, with no way out.  If nothing else, he has managed to draw out Juha Bach's powers, so hopefully everyone else might have the chance to find out if there are any limitations to it, and possibly give our heroes an advantage in the future battles.  However, it is more than likely that Ichigo will just have to power through it, like he so often does, although I am not sure how at this point.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season One)

Zach Goodier

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a show follows up on the activities of S.H.I.E.L.D. following the events of The Avengers.  It follows the revived Agent Coulson (more on how he came back later), as he gathers a team of agents to travel the world to protect it from threats both native and alien, as they contend with rival organizations out to steal and develop advanced technology, as well as alien threats that come from off-world to cause trouble on Earth. 

(L to R) Skye, Simmons, Fitz, Coulson (duh), Agent May, and Agent Ward.

Presentation:

The visuals are all top-notch to for a TV show, with quality CGI being used in most places.  Some scenes, like Coulson’s Corvette turning into a hovercraft, don’t quite pull it off like the movies have, but that’s all minor details that don’t occur often enough to kill the show, but they can make you pause and criticize for a bit.  Costumes and such are all solid, and all the tech S.H.I.E.L.D.  uses looks as futuristic, yet realistic, as anything we have come to expect from the films.

Coolest "bus" I've ever seen.

Story:

The story is really well done, despite a rather slow start.  Each character has their own history, which gives them some intrigue as the show moves forward, and nearly everyone has a reason for being on the “Bus” that doesn’t entirely involve loyalty to S.H.I.E.L.D..  That makes it more compelling when you see conflict between team members, since you realize that there is a lot going on, even internally, to keep everyone (including the viewer) on their toes.

 Several cameos appear, whether it’s Nick Fury or Lady Sif from Thor, there are quite a few little treats to carry you through, and towards the end of the season, tensions are raised sky-high as loyalties of fellow agents are called into question as the show’s timeline runs parallel to the events of Winter Soldier, introducing us to a whole new world that our characters must adapt to, and not everyone is who they appear to be.

Bill Paxton has a recurring role as a hard-nosed S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.

Characters:

As I said before, each character has their own story, which helps shape them and their role in the show.  Agent May is an elite operative who is by the book and one of the toughest women around, but she has a colored past that made her take a desk job before Coulson pulls her back into the field.  Agent Grant Ward is a tough, young agent who is reluctant to join Coulson, but ultimately decides to join.  Fitz and Simmons are two scientists who serve as the biology and tech researchers, helping to understand the strange events and technology the team encounters in the field.  The last member to join is Skye, who is a rogue hacker who has run-ins with the team early on, and eventually decides to join.  However, the team is reluctant to trust her, considering her action against S.H.I.E.L.D.  and other intelligence agencies.

Not every S.H.I.E.L.D. agent is what they appear to be...

Overall:

There’s a quality show here, without a doubt.  If you liked Coulson, and wanted to see more of him, this is definitely the place to do it.  While they slowly delve into the mystery of how Coulson came back from his run-in with Loki, it still hasn’t fully been explained, but that’s because it’s one of the persistent mysteries that the team is struggling to solve as the story progresses.  

The greatest enemy S.H.I.E.L.D. has ever faced lies within.

While some of the CGI isn’t up to par with what the movies have spoiled us with, it’s easy to forgive the show since all of its other areas are fairly top-notch.  The story might struggle to gain traction in the early part of the season, once it finds a solid pace, it gradually builds up in excitement until you find yourself on the very edge of your seat as you move into the end of the season, and you wonder how, or even if, S.H.I.E.L.D. can ever be the same again.

Good:

-Excellent story arc

-Coulson, Coulson, and don’t forget Coulson.  We missed you so.

-Great cast of characters that surprised me throughout.

Bad:

-Somewhat slow to gain traction in the beginning.

-CGI is hit-or-miss.

Scully Rating: 8.0 out of 10