Hey there folks, CrazyGamerHistorian1999 here and we will be ranking the superhero movies of awesomeness from top to bottom, the best of the best from awesome to super awesome!
So here we go...
7. Fantastic Four (2005) -Epic
6. The Incredibles -Incredible
5. Hulk 2003 -Great
4. Incredibles 2 -Super fantastic
3. Fantastic Four Rise of the Silver Surfer -Ultra incredible
2. The Avengers (2012) -Mega Awesome
1. Captain America The First Avenger -Super awesome
Do you agree with this list?
James M signing off!
2019 Reading Wrap Up
I finally put together my reading list. I lost track along the way and had to do a bit of hunting to put together my final list.
Tell us about your reading year? What was your goal this year and did you have a plan, and/or follow rabbit trails or wing it?
I started out the year with a book buying ban in place, except for new releases preordered, and a plan to read from my shelves. I read 25 physical fiction books and 10 physical nonfiction books so managed to make a small dent. I didn’t buy any new books until mid May I think and those were mainly ebooks. Stress about the completion of the house project got the better of me and I turned to revisiting old friends for three months or so and reread several series and afterwards, just sort of winged it. I managed to complete 7 out of 10 of my original 10 x 10, failing completely with 1001 books, book chain and hubby picks because I forgot which books he gave me. Bad me. However, based on the books I did read, I replaced those with three new categories - steampunk, romance and thrillers and there is a little overlap. Not including the rereads, I read a total of 88 books.
Which book made you laugh? Weaver Takes a Wife by Sheri Cobb Smith. I enjoyed the by play between the two main characters.
Which new to you authors did you discover and would you read another book by this author? I really liked S.K. Dunstall, and Rebecca Roanhorse and will definitely read more of their books.
Which authors and/or detectives would you like to continue exploring from Whodunit Bookology. I definitely want to read more of Ellis Peter, Kwei Quartery, and Fred Vargas. Plus read the first book in the series of the authors I somehow never quite finished for some odd reason: Donna DeLeon, Harry Kemelman, and Stuart Kaminsky.
Which one made you cry? The Lost Art of Letter Writing by Menna Van Praag touched my heart.
Non Fiction – From my shelves 1. Benedict Option - Rod Dreher (304 p)
2. The Cat Who Came for Christmas - Cleveland Armory (256 p)
3. View from the Cheap Seats - Neil Gaiman (544 p)
4. Thanks a Thousand - A.J. Jacobs (160 p)
5. King Alfred's English - Laurie White (170 p)
6. Writers and their Notebooks - Diana Raab (208)
7. Writer's Guide to Persistence - Jordan Rosenfeld (234 p)
8. Writing from the Inside Out - Dennis Palumbo (256 p)
9. Story Trumps Structure - Stephen James (304 p)
10. A Secret Sisterhood: Literary Friendships of Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, George Eliot, and Virginia Woolf - Emily Midorikawa and Emma Claire Sweeney (352 p)
Steampunk
11. Lady of Devices - Shelley Adina (#1 Magnificent Devices)
12. Her Own Devices #2
13. Magnificent Devices #3
14. Brilliant Devices #4
15. A Lady of Resources #5
16. A Lady of Spirit #6
17. A Lady of Integrity #7
18. A Gentleman of Means #8
19. Devices Brightly Shining #9
20. Fields of Air #10
21. Fields of Iron #11
22. Fields of Gold - Shelley Adina #12
23. The Black God's Drums - P. Djeli Clark
Romance
24. Act Like It - Lucy Parker (#1 London Celebrities )
25. Archer's Voice - Mia Sheridan
26. Black Hawk - Joanne Bourne (#4 spymaster, historical romance)
27. Forbidden Rose - Joanna Bourne (historical romance)
28. Changing Habits - Debbie Macomber ( 400 p)
29. Dangerous to Trust - Teresa Hill (#1 Spies, Lies and Lovers)
30. Must Love Weiners - Casey Griffin. (359 p)
31. Summer on Mirror Lake - Joanna Ross (#3 Honeymoon Harbor, 432 p)
32. Barefoot in the Sun – Roxanne St Claire (#3 Barefoot bay)
33. Barefoot by the Sea (#4 Barefoot Bay)
34. Barefoot Bound (#7 Barefoot Bay)
35. Old Dog, New Tricks - Roxanne St Claire (#8 The Dogfather)
36. Hot under the Collar - Roxanne St Claire (#1 Dogmothers, 376 p)
37. Three Dog Night – Roxanne St. Claire (#2 Dogmothers)
38. Under Currents - Nora Roberts (Romantic suspense, 448 p)
39. Weaver Takes a Wife - Sheri Cobb Smith (Historical London)
Detective
40. A Better Man - Louise Penny (#15 Armand Gamache, 448 p)
41. Kingdom of the Blind - Louise Penny (#14 Armand Gamache, 400 p)
42. Connections in Death - J.D. Robb (#48 In Death, 384 p)
43. Vendetta in Death - #49 (368 p)
44. Golden in Death #50 (400 p)
45. Amnesia - G.H. Ephron (#1 Peter Zak Medical )
46. Chalk Circle Man - Fred Vargas (#1 Adamsberg)
47. Killing Floor - Lee Child (#1 Jack Reacher, Thriller)
48. Morbid Taste for Bones - Ellis Peters (#1 Brother Cadfael, 12th Century mystery)
49. Murder on the Orient Express - Agatha Christie (Mystery)
50. Wife of the Gods - Kwei Quartey (#1 Darko Dawson)
51. Cocaine Blues – Kerry Greenwood (#1 Phyrne Fisher)
Thriller
52. Deep Fathom - James Rollins (608 p)
53. Crucible - James Rollins #13 Sigma Force, 637 p)
54. Origin - Dan Brown (656 p)
55. Promise Not to Tell - Jayne Ann Krentz (Suspense thriller, 464 p)
56. Rise of Magicks - Nora Roberts (Supernatural thriller, 480 p)
57. The First Prophet - Kay Hooper (#1 Bishop files, Paranormal thriller, 400 p)
Fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction
58. Circle of the Moon - Faith Hunter (#4 Soulwood, 368 p)
59. Shattered Bonds - Faith Hunter (# 13 Jane Yellowrock, 400 p)
60. Archangel's War - Nalini Singh (Guild hunter series)
61. Silver Silence - Nalini Singh (#1 psychangeling/trinity series)
62. Ocean Light - Nalini Singh (#2 psychangeling/trinity series)
63. Black Kiss – J.R. Ward (#1 Black dagger legacy)
64. Blood Vow (#2)
65. Blood Fury (#3)
66. Blood Truth (#4)
67. The Beast (#14 Black Dagger Brotherhood)
68. Chosen (#15 BDB)
69. Thief (#16 BDB)
70. The Savior (#17 BDB)
71. Where Christmas Finds You (#18 BDB)
72. Hunter Hunted - Keri Arthur (#3 Lizzie Grace)
73. Demon's Dance - Keri Arthur (#4 Lizzie Grace)
74. Unlit - Keri Author (#1 Kingdoms of Earth and Air)
75. Diamond Fire - Illona Andrews (Hidden Legacy)
76. Heat Stroke - Rachel Caine (#2 Weather Warden)
77. Justice Calling - Annie Bellett
78. Linesman - S.K. Dunstall (#1 Linesman, Science Fiction)
79. Night and Silence - Seanan McGuire (#12 October Daye)
80. The Shape of Water - Guillermo Del Toro
81. Storm Cursed - Patricia Briggs (Fantasy, 368 p)
82. Trail of Lightning - Rebecca Roanhorse (#1 Sixth World, dystopian sci fi, 304 p)
83. Wild Country - Anne Bishop (#2 Others, Fantasy , 496 p)
Literary and Miscellaneous
84. Lost Art of Letter Writing - Menna Van Praag (Literary - Cambridge England, 320 p)
85. Kafka on the Shore - Haruki Murakami (Japan, magical realism, 467 p)
86. Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore - Matthew Sullivan (Literary, 337 p)
87. Nick of Time - Ted Bell (#1 Nick McIver Adventures, time travel 464 p)
88. The Source - James Michener (Historical Fiction, Israel, 1104 p)
Rereads
1. Death and Relaxation - Devon Monk (Ordinary Series)
2. Psy Changeling series # 1 -18 - Nalini Singh,
3. Dirk and Steele series 1 -3 Marjorie M Lui
4. Black Dagger Brotherhood - J.R. Ward
5. Barefoot Bay series - Roxanne St Claire
6. Night Stalker series - M.L Buchman
7. Soulwood Series - Faith Hunter
8. Guild hunter series - Nalini Singh
9. Northern Lights - Nora Roberts
10. Born of Darkness - Lara Adrian (#1 Midnight Breed Hunter Legacy,)
11. Death of the Red Heroine - Qui Xiaolong (China, 90's detective)
How'd your reading year turn out?
Guest Post -James M's review of IDW Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 24
Greetings everyone, CrazyGamerHistorian1999 here, IDW Sonic the Hedgehog issue 24 has released and Year 2 of the comic has come to an end, but the nightmare that is the Zombot Metal Virus situation continues and things getting more dire and serious for Sonic and his friends. Let us have a moment of silence to honor another one of Sonic's friends who has fallen victim to this horrific event.
*Moment of Silence*
Now, without delay, let us summarize the issue...
Plot/Summary:
Following the events of Issues 21, 22 and 23, Sonic travels to Spiral Hill Village (Tangle the Lemur's home town), a place he hadn't visited since issue four, where the Metal Virus has struck and most of Sonic's friends are trying to handle the situation by holding off the robot zombie horde long enough to gather any survivors and get them to safety.
Sonic meets up with Espio and helps him fight off some Zombots before the ninja, just like Shadow in the Crisis City two-parter, criticizes Sonic for letting Eggman/Mr. Tinker go in Windmill Village, despite the blue hedgehog's protests. You know, Sonic, it doesn't hurt to take criticism from time to time even if it can come off as a bit too harsh!
After chatting with Espio about the situation and meeting up with Whisper, who is playing her part in fighting off Zombots and protecting civilians from getting infected, Sonic meets up with Tails, Amy, Cream and Gemerl. Amy is thrilled to see Sonic, who tells Tails that the data recorder got smashed when he encountered Eggman in Barricade Town. The two tailed fox sadly shrugs it off. Sonic notices that Cream looks a bit down before learning that her mum fell victim to the Metal Virus. As the blue hedgehog runs off, Gemerl informs Amy that Sonic's speed is starting to lose its ability to hold off the infection any longer.
Sonic meets with Tangle, who actually got a drop of the Metal Virus and is slooooowly becoming a Zombot but not before she managed to imprison an infected Jewel the Beetle in a glass cage in the museum. The two heroes team up to fight Zombots and use Tangle's tail to trap a group of them in a makeshift tripwire before Sonic heads off to the Restoration rendezvous point, leaving the lemur to do battle with more Zombots before she succumbs to the infection, becoming a Zombot.
Arriving back at the rendezvous point, Sonic tells the others about what has happened to Tangle, much to the dismay of Whisper who has to be held back by her own Wisps. Sonic's friends board and take off with Sonic atop the shuttle, hitching a ride like he would on the Tornado whenever he and Tails make use of the plane.
Meanwhile, aboard the Faceship, Starline talks with Doctor Eggman about if the doctor has a solution to the ongoing problem only for Eggman to dismiss Starline, saying he has it under control. The issue ends with Starline using the Warp Topaz to bring Zavok and his gang aboard, setting his plan in motion and ending the issue as well as Year Two of IDW Sonic on a dark and ominous note!
Conclusion:
This issue, though it was decent, was more darker than ever, with the situation getting more dire, Sonic's speed no longer being enough and Tangle becoming a Zombot. Ian Flynn is a fantastic writer and knows when to raise the stakes for a storyline in a comic book during a major conflict. The artwork is incredible, spot on in every way.
Year Two really shook up the status quo for the Sonic comics, while the status quo for the comics has changed numerous times throughout Sonic's long history, this is different as the hedgehog is fighting for his life against robot zombies and this is nothing compared to when he fought crazy wizards, powerful gods of destruction and insane genies bent on taking over the universe.
Don't forget, in this continuity, the gang just went through a war with Eggman where the mad doctor took over the world for a time as seen in 2017's Sonic Forces the game.
This issue gets an 8/10.
Is there no end to this nightmare in sight, is there at least any hope left? What's next after the Metal Virus saga and will this comic finally bring in familiar faces from Archie Sonic and other Sonic media? Also, can't SEGA finally cease being super protective of its I.P and lift those weird mandates that make no sense? Whatever happened during the time of Archie Sonic is over, the infamous Sonic 06 is a thing of the past and times have changed, SEGA needs to calm down.
I happily close out this review and say see you later to you all!
Bye now.
-James M
2020 Reading Plans
I'm going back to reading whatever I'm in the mood for on any particular day. I'm also going to Feed My Muse as much as possible in order get back to writing regularly. My physical shelves reflect my various moods over the years which have segued from science fiction and fantasy to historical fiction to mystery and romances, which means I have a wide variety to which to choose. I'm bound and determined to read from my teetering tbr stack, both physical and ebook wise. Although I'll make room for new releases from my favorite authors of course and books that arise from the various 52 Books optional challenges.
Since we are entering the year 2020, I going to play with several categories and mix it up a bit and do a 20/20 challenge. I plan to read 10 books in two categories and either 4 books in 5 categories or visa versa.
10 x 2 plus 4 x 5 = 20/20
Categories
All about Eve
Answer me this (writing craft and other non fiction)
Clocks and Corsets (Steampunk)
Dragons and other fantastical Creatures
Ladies of Fiction
Love and Mystery
Mood
Out of this world (Fantasy/Science Fiction)
Out of this world (Fantasy/Science Fiction)
Revisit Old Friends
Step into the Past (Historical Fiction)
Step into the Past (Historical Fiction)
Listed below are just a few books on my shelves I want to read this year.
Physical
A Lesson in Secrets - Jacqueline Winspear (Mystery)
Amazing Adventures of Cavalier and Clay - Michael Chabon (Historical Fiction)
Boneshaker - Cheri Priest (LOF - 1879 Seattle steampunk)
Burning Page - Genevieve Cogman (#3 Invisible Library - Fantasy)
Devlin Diary - Christie Phillips (17th/21st Century England - Historical Fiction)
Devotion of Suspect X - Keigo Higashino (#1 Galileo International, asia mystery
Far Pavilions - M.M. Kaye (historical india, LOF - July)
the Fifth Season - N.K. Jemison (Fantasy, LOF - June)
The Gathering Storm - Robert Jordan (#12 WOT series - Epic Fantasy)
Green Mile - Stephen King (Thriller)
Hollow Man - Dan Simmons (dark fantasy)
Intensity - Dean Koontz (Thriller)
the Lady of the English - Elizabeth Chadwick (12th Century England - Historical Fiction)
Oil and Marble - Stephanie Storey (16th Century Italy - Historical Fiction)
Queen Hereafter - Susan Fraser King (11th Century Scotland - Historical Fiction)
Running Blind - Lee Child (#4 Jack Reacher - Thriller)
Sacred Hearts - Sarah Dunant (1570 Italy, Historical Fiction, LOF - Sept)
Snow Queen - Joan Vinge (Fantasy)
This Census Taker - China Mieville (Fantasy)
the Three Body Problem - Cixin Lui (Science Fiction Chinese - Asia)
When Christ and His Saints Slept - Sharon Kay Penman (Historical Fiction, LOF - May)
Fantasy reads and rereads
Heralds of Valdemar Series by Mercedes Lackey
Arrows of the Queen
Arrow's Flight
Arrow's Fall
Arthurian Saga - Mary Stewart
Crystal Cave
Hollow Hills
Last Enchantment
Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman - Dragonlance Chronicles
Dragons of Autumn Twilight
Dragons of Winter Night
Dragons of Spring
Lord of the Rings - J.R. Tolkein
Hobbit
Fellowship of the Ring
Two Towers
Return of the King
Non Fiction Books
52 Lists Project- Moorea Seal
Crafting the Personal Essay - Dinty Moore
Just Write- James Scott Bell
Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction - Edited by Tara Marsh
the Year of Writing Dangerously - Barbara Abercrombie
E Books
A Share in Death - Deborah Crombie (#1 Duncan Kincaid, LOF-March)
A Madness of Sunshine - Nalini Singh (LOF - August)
A Trace of Cooper - Anne Renwick (#1 Elemental tale - Steampunk)
Atomic Sea - Jack Connor (Dragons, etc)
Boundary Born - Melissa Olson (# 3 Boundary Magic - Paranormal)
Boundary Broken - Melissa Olson (#4 Boundary Magic
Brewed Awakening - Cleo Coyle (#18 Coffee House Mystery)
Clockwork Scarab - Colleen Gleason (#1 Stokes and Homes - Steampunk)
Devil's Advocate - Morris West (Religious Fiction)
Eve - Anna Carey (Apocalyptic - All about Eve)
Fortune's Fool - Angela Board (Historical Fantasy)
Frozen Ground - Debra Web (#1 Storm watch series - mystery)
Grit - Elizabeth Hunter (LOF - April)
In the House of Brede - Rumer Godden (LOF - December)
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimito (LOF - Jan)
Let it Shine - Alyssa Cole (Multicultural Romance)
Priory of the Orange Tree - Samantha Shannon (Dragons)
Sins of the Angels - Lydia Hawke (Thriller)
Snow Angel - Jayne Fresina (Victorian or romance)
Tea with a Black Dragon - R.A. Macavoy (Dragons, etc)
Ten Thousand Doors of January - Alix Harrow (Fantasy)
The Golden Spider - Anne Renwick (#1 Elemental Chronicles - Steampunk)
The Pirate - Jayne Ann Krentz (Romance, LOF - October)
The Unkindest Tide - Seanan McGuire (#13 October Daye - Paranormal)
Guest Post -James M's review of Star Wars The Mandalorian
Salutations Star Wars fans and today we will be discussing the very first live-action Star Wars TV show The Mandalorian by Jon Faveru, which airs on Disney Plus.
Let us begin!
So what is Disney Plus first of all, its a streaming service where you can watch movies and TV shows straight from Disney, from movies that had theatrical releases to TV shows that have aired before on TV to shows made for the streaming service.
As for the subject of today, what is The Mandalorian aside for the fact its a TV show?
Allow me to explain and summarize...
Set 3 years after the events of Return of the Jedi, following the end of the Galactic Civil War and set long before the events of The Force Awakens, The Mandalorian follows a Bounty Hunter who was adopted by a Mandalorian clan as he travels the galaxy in search for his next job. So far, as of this review, there have been 7 episodes and the show is reaching the tail end of its first season.
In the first episode, after capturing a guy, the Mando is assigned by the Imperial Remnant and the Guild to track down a 50 year old target. After reaching the planet where the target is located (and getting a ride), the bounty hunter teams up with an IG assassin droid to take out multiple mercenaries before finally getting his hands on the target which is actually a baby of Yoda's species.
In the next episode, after getting his hands on Baby Yoda, our hero has to fix his ship after a group of Jawas tear it apart. How does he convince them? By slaying a mudhorn and taking its egg. In episode three, The Mando delivers the baby to the Empire and fixes his armor with help from his clan. Before he leaves, he realizes that he made a mistake and liberates Baby Yoda from the Imperials before ending up in a standoff with a town full of Bounty Hunters and manages to get away with help from his adopted family.
Side note: The Mandalorian bounty hunter was orphaned thanks to a droid attack in the Clone Wars and was adopted by the Mandalorian tribe he lives with nowadays.
In episode four, the Mandalorian teams up with an ex-rebel soldier named Cara Dune in order to help a farming community fend off a pack of raiders who happen to have an Imperial walker on their side. Afterwards, the Mando and Baby Yoda leave due to the fact the Guild is still tracking the young one, which leads into the fifth episode. In episode five, our hero drops by Tatooine after his ship is damaged in order to repair it. While he does so, he helps a junior bounty hunter hunt down a mercenary while narrowly avoiding Tusken Raiders.
However, things nearly go south for The Mando when the junior hunter turns on him and attempts to capture Baby Yoda. In the end, the bounty hunter is defeated and The Mando's ship is repaired but not before he learns about how to take care of kids. In the next episode, The Mando teams up with a group of old Bounty Hunter buddies to bust out somebody from a New Republic dungeon ship. Things take a turn when the team betrays the Mando, leading to some epic action scenes including one sequence that would feel right at home in an Alien(s) movie with the bounty hunter stalking one of the rogues in a corridor while lights flash.
Oh and Dave Filoni makes a cameo as a New Republic pilot at the end of the episode.
Finally, we reach Episode 7, the penultimate episode of the season, where The Mando teams up with the Guild and some old allies to take on the Imperial Remnant faction that has been after The Child/Baby Yoda ever since the start of the show. The episode ended on one heck of a cliffhanger with the Moff of the remnant arriving and his Death Troopers firing on the cantina while a group of speeder bike stormtroopers capture the child.
Overall, The Mandalorian is a really fun show that deserves a watch assuming you have a Disney Plus account be it on TV or on your mobile device. This show has great moments, excellent acting choices, amazing special effects and a way past cool soundtrack. This show has become one of my favorites right up there with Star Wars Rebels and Resistance as well as The Clone Wars 2008 show and the 2003 Clone Wars micro series.
Anyways, time to sign off for now. See you all next time!
-James M
Side note: I will review the 8th episode of the show very soon, do not fear.
Guest Post -James M's Top 10 movies of the decade
The end of 2019 is upon us and the 2010 decade is nearing its end. I thought it would be fun to look at all of the movies of the decade that were pretty good.
10. Toy Story 3 (2010)
9. Iron Sky (2012)
8. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
7. Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Parts 1 and 2 (2010/2011)
6. Ready Player One (2018)
5. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
4. Pixels (2015)
3. Despicable Me 2 (2013)
2. Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them (2016)
1. Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
10. Toy Story 3 (2010)
9. Iron Sky (2012)
8. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
7. Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Parts 1 and 2 (2010/2011)
6. Ready Player One (2018)
5. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
4. Pixels (2015)
3. Despicable Me 2 (2013)
2. Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them (2016)
_______________________________________________________
Honorable Mentions:
Solo A Star Wars Story (2018)
Terminator Genisys (2015)
Adventures of Tintin (2011)
Despicable Me (2010)
Angry Birds Movie (2016)
Men in Black 3 (2012)
Godzilla (2014)
Despicable Me 3 (2017)
Godzilla 2 King of Monsters (2019)
_______________________________________________________
1. Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
_______________________________________________________
MEGA HONORABLE MENTION:
The Three Stooges movie
Ralph Breaks the Internet
Incredibles 2
Battle of Los Angeles
Battle of Los Angeles
Kong: Skull Island
Ghostbusters Answer the Call
Ghostbusters Answer the Call
Iron Sky The Coming Race
Men in Black International
_______________________________________________________
What do you think of my picks?
-James M
Guest Post -James M's review of The Legend of Zelda 1980s cartoon
The Legend of Zelda, Nintendo's most cherished video game franchise that has been going strong since 1986-1987. But we're not here to talk about any of the games or do a retrospective of it, yet. We're talking about the cartoon. Salutations, people, this is James M here and let us begin this one.
"Hey, excuuuuuuuuuse me, Princess!"
-Link
By the late 1980s and early 1990s, with the success of video games, cartoons based on video games were pretty popular and, given the success of The Legend of Zelda, it was a matter of time before a cartoon happened and it did happen. So what is the Zelda cartoon all about?
In the fantasy world of Hyrule, Link and Princess Zelda fight to protect the Triforce from the king of darkness Ganon himself. Ganon is still a major threat and the main villain, but he is a bit goofy. What do you expect? This is a family-friendly show and Zelda is partially meant to be family-friendly. The series ran for 13 episodes and one season before being canceled. Was it popular among many? Yes, it was. Is it enjoyable? Of course, it's worth watching.
When it comes to the voice acting, hearing Link talk isn't all too bad, as long as you can not worry about the whole "hey excuse me princess" line that has become a bit infamous over the years. When it comes to Zelda's design? It's actually pretty decent, who wants to see her constantly be the damsel in distress all the time and be your typical princess. Heck, at one point in the show, we actually see her in a swimsuit. Even though it's not a two-piece, she still looks great. The episode we see Zelda in a swimsuit? It's a water park episode and we see her in a swimsuit twice. Once at the beginning and again at the end of the episode where she and Link are having fun in the water park.
Either way, the show knows how to impress people and deliver some quality fan service.
Speaking of Link and Zelda, Link is in love with her and a running gag throughout the series involves him trying to get her to kiss him only for everything to always go south for them afterwards. Technically, the kiss does happen at one point. Except for the Zelda that Link gets to kiss is not the real Zelda, but a doppelganger created by Ganon himself. Yup, we have the bad guy gal doppelganger episode that most shows are famous for. Link and Zelda's relationship throughout the Legend of Zelda franchise's history has changed a bit over the year, most of the time there has always been a bit of a romance between them, leading to Zelink shippers coming up with their own stories.
My thoughts on the cartoon?
Its really good and, of course, worth your time if you are a Zelda fan.
Sorry, my review was short, but I tend to do that sometimes.
See you all later, my friends.
-James M
Guest Post -James M's Review of Tangle and Whisper Issue 4
Hey Sonic fans, your old friend here and today, we are taking a look at the final issue of the Tangle and Whisper miniseries after so much delay. So lets get going...!
Miniseries Recap:
So here's the story so far. Following the battle with Metal Sonic at the Floating Island in Year 1 of IDW Sonic, Tangle went back home to her village and was soon getting bored until she reunited with Whisper who was in the midst of chasing down Mimic, a rogue working for Eggman after betraying her old team The Diamond Cutters. Tangle volunteered to help Whisper and the girls went after him together, pursuing Mimic to an old Eggman base, things went south as Mimic nearly got them both destroyed by blowing up the base. Nonetheless, they survived and Mimic didn't notice. After things settled for a bit, Whisper told Tangle her backstory and laid out the plan to defeat the evil shapeshifter, leading up to this story...
Summary:
The issue kicks off with Tangle and Whisper assembling at the Diamond Cutter's old base, ready for the final showdown with Mimic, who showed up with back up in the form of Eggman's robot army. After an exchange of words between the girls, the battle begins as they start shooting down robots. As for Mimic, he's already gotten inside the base. Whisper tells Tangle to go deal with Mimic and when Tangle comes face to face with Mimic in the base, the shapeshifter turns into Sonic and claims he's here to help. Pretending to fall for his trick, Tangle leads him to a room and activates some Diamond Cutter recording holograms and the holograms taunt him.
Tangle fights Mimic and while the octopus puts up a good fight, he's no match in the end. When Whisper and her wisps arrive, thats when the fight goes in Team Tangle/Whisper's favor and they soon have Mimic on the ropes and they pin him down and manage to contain him, even when Mimic tries to shape-shift into different forms such as Eggman, Vector and Smithy the Lion. You know? That scene almost reminds me of the ending of Terminator 2 where the T-1000 ended up in molten steel and shape-shifted into a bunch of different things/people before being completely destroyed. The only difference? Mimic the shapeshifter i.e organic & furry T-1000 does not get "killed off" as Whisper's about to shoot him when Tangle stops him and suggests they lock him up.
So they do just that... at Tails' workshop inside a nice cage prison created by Tails himself with the two tailed fox assuring them he will never get out. Mimic, being stubborn like all villains, boasts that he will get out eventually, given that he's been locked up in Eggman prisons a few times and has always gotten out Scott-free. Either way, Tangle and Whisper's mission is accomplished, the past is behind Whisper and the Diamond Cutter team can rest in peace. The story and the miniseries ends with the girls fist bumping and parting ways for a while until "The Last Minute" arc in the Metal Virus saga happening in the main IDW Sonic comic.
Final thoughts:
This issue and the miniseries was amazing, it did a fine job telling a compelling story and had lots of great character moments (as well as character development), epic action scenes, comedic beats and a really heartwarming ending as well as a really good villain. Will we get another miniseries like this in the future? I dunno, time will tell, time will tell.
Anyways, James M the CrazyGamerHistorian1999 signing off...
Guest Post -James M's review of Godzilla Raids Again (1955)
Hey, Godzilla fans, the time has come to look at the film that really got the ball rolling for the Godzilla franchise one year after the original's release, GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN!
With the success of Gojira, Toho began working on a sequel and it released within nearly a year of the first movie's release, this movie changed the Godzilla formula forever, for better or for worse.
So why don't we go over the plot, eh?
Plot:
The story picks up just months after the events of the first movie with a pilot named Tsukioka out looking for fish in his plane when he has to go help his fellow pilot Kobayashi who crashed on a nearby island. The two pilots talk and laugh while camping out on the island until...
"GRRRYYAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNGK!"
That's right, Godzilla's back, but it's not the same Godzilla from the first movie as this one is a creature that is obviously of a different member of Godzilla's family. Doc Yamane's warning from the end of the first movie has come true, nuclear tests continued and we now have another Godzilla. But this time, Godzilla's not alone as he's engaged in battle with Anguirus, an ankylosaur from the same prehistoric era as Godzilla that mutated due to nuclear testing.
Tsukioka and Kobayashi hide to avoid getting crushed by the monsters and only come out of hiding after Godzilla and Anguirus fall into the ocean. The pilots head back to Osaka where they report the situation to the authorities and Doctor Yamane, before trying to come up with a plan to stop the beasts. It's not long before Godzilla comes ashore in Osaka, Anguirus soon arrives and the two battle again. The clash of the Kaiju actually decimates Osaka, the monsters smashing buildings left and right as Godzilla mostly uses his atomic breath and actually lights most of the surrounding area in flames. After a long fight, Godzilla defeats Anguirus and actually lights his corpse on fire with his heat ray after injuring the ankylosaur by biting his throat, ouch.
With Osaka in ruins, people begin recovering and move to Hokkaido before they start figuring out a way to defeat Godzilla. While out doing his usual fishing deal, Tsukioka spots Godzilla making landfall on an ice-covered island and reports back to base while Kobayashi keeps an eye on Godzilla before the air force arrives to bomb the beast. While dive-bombing the king of the monsters, Kobayashi gets shot down by Godzilla and his plane crashes into a snow-covered mountain, causing an avalanche to fall upon Godzilla, giving the Japanese the idea of burying the beast in ice. You think a ton of snow is gonna be enough to actually destroy Godzilla? He will be back, mark my words in about, oh, 7 years. *COUGH COUGH* King Kong vs Godzilla *Cough cough*
Anyways, the Japanese armed forces get to work soon enough, the planes bomb the mountain enough to make an avalanche start to burry the King of the Monsters. As the snow engulfs Godzilla, he lets out that roar from the end of the first movie. You know, the "AHRRRRAHHHHHHHRRRRRAAAAHHHHRRRRRRAHHRRAHR!" He tries to use his nuclear breath, but it's not enough as the snow finally buries him, thus making the operation a success. The movie ends with a view of the island while Tsukioka says tells his fallen friend, "We have defeated Godzilla."
Thoughts:
Godzilla Raids Again is not a bad movie despite not being a success at the box office and among critics when it first dropped in 1955. It actually is quite good, even the American version is still good.
Anyways, see you all next time, people!
-JMM
Guest Post -James M's review of Sonic Retold
Salutations people and today we're looking at another fan-made continuation of the pre-reboot Archie Sonic timeline known as... SONIC RETOLD!
Given that I review fanmade stuff sometimes, you think I would ignore this after I reviewed Archie Sonic Online a little bit. No way, Jose. I'm reviewing this. Why? I read it all, all of the first couple chapters. Anyways, let's get on with it.
As you may already know, after a legal battle between Archie and a former writer that had been going on for a few years, the Archie Sonic comics rebooted and 20 years of incredible and maybe not so incredible stories were trashed in favor of a new timeline that was in line with the games. However, a ton of people were not too happy and a handful have taken it upon themselves to give the old pre-reboot continuity of Archie Sonic a proper continuation and send off. The folks at Archie Sonic Online have been doing a fine job, but there is one group in particular that has been doing a fanmade continuation of pre-SGW Archie Sonic long before. The group in question? Well, its actually a dude who goes by the name of GLITCHER!
So, how does SONIC RETOLD play out? Well, it starts with the events of Sonic #243 and the Endangered Species arc and completely rewrites it all, no Thrash showing up to ruin everything and no dealing with the Krudzu Hybrid Hydra this time. Sonic and his friends save most of the echidnas in Albion and mostly drive out the Dark Egg Legion before they continue on with their mission to save Sally Acorn, whom Sonic soon has bad dreams about from time to time. In New Mobotroplis, on the homefront, Team Freedom deals with the Tails Doll as usual and there's still the whole Ixis Naugus and Geoffery St John plot that was going on before the reboot happened.
The fan comic does make a nod to the Worlds Collide Sonic & Mega Man 2013 crossover that lead to the reboot, this hints the crossover will happen at some point in the future but not right away. How does the nod happen? Silver is meditating and communicating with Mammoth Mogul's future self through the veil of time and gets a vision of events to come such as the aforementioned crossover. Even Eggman has plans to unleash the Genesis Wave again. Heck, at the end of issue one of this series, Eggman talks with Lein-Da (the hot and shapely echidna grandmaster chick) and cackles evilly as he says, "So Sonic is making his way north here. It won't matter, once I unleash the Genesis Wave, this world will be wiped from existence and a new one will be born in its place which I will be its ruler. The last thing Sonic will ever see will be his princess. HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!"
Glitcher does a fine job with the writing and the artwork, not to mention the tone of the story as there are times where it can be really light-hearted and family-friendly and then can be super dark on the same level as Sonic SatAM and most of the later Archie Sonic comics whenever the situation gets dark or we get a bit of a nightmare fuel body horror episode. For example, we actually see Eggman tear Mecha Sally apart just so he can upgrade her. What happens to most of her torn off robot body? Eggman incinerates it. While this comic/fanfic is enjoyable, it's almost nothing compared to Archie Sonic Online or other fanworks such as Sonic Travels to Jurassic Park the fan film or SonikkuFan94's fan comic Sonic Nova Unexpected Baby.
My thoughts on the fan comic that is currently on hiatus?
It's... really good. There may be issues with it that I cannot name, but overall, it's worth your time so go on Deviantart and read it all, this comic is full of hilarious moments, cringe-worthy scenes and some amazing action pieces from time to time.
The whole thing... gets a 9/10.
Overall, a fun read for anyone who loves comics, books, and Sonic, even if the works are fanmade.
Thank you for joining me as I review this piece of Sonic history in the fanbase.
Peace out!
-James M.
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