Author Archives: Joe

November 5, 2011

Danzig Legacy 10/29/2011 NYC

By Joe
danzig_october30

From The Village Voice.

You may be wondering how a self-professed giant fan of Glenn Danzig could sit on writing a review for perhaps the greatest show a Danzig fan could ever hope to attend for a week.  Well, thank mother nature for that one for knocking out my power for 5 days immediately following the show.  Do you think 5 days in the cold (and horrendous traffic on interstate 91) could dampen my thoughts on this show?  If you said “Hell no,” then you’d be right.

Last Saturday my best friend and I attended this monumental show.  From the moment the Danzig Legacy show for Chicago was announced I was torn.  This was a show I had to attend but could I really justify the cost in flying out to Chicago to catch it?  Compound that with the fact that likely no one I know would be willing to do the same made it a tough proposition.  Thankfully, shortly there-after two additional dates were added and one included New York City.  Now that I could handle easily as my best friend just so happens to live in the city so I’d have a place to crash and a bud for the show.  It’s what most people would refer to as a no-brainer.

I talked about the actual show in a previous post, so I’ll spare you the specifics here.  All you need to know is that this was designed to be a career spanning set list for Mr. Danzig.  The majority of it would focus on the current band, Danzig, but there was also a set for the goth-punk outfit Samhain and the legendary Misfits.  It would have been cool to see more emphasis on the reunion aspect.  The current Danzig line-up of Tommy Victor, Steve Zing, and Johnny Kelly was used for both the Danzig portion and the Misfits portion.  Kelly was switched out in favor of former Samhain drummer London May for that portion of the show.  For the Initium and Unholy Passion songs, bassist and original Samhain drummer Steve Zing would return to his position behind the kit with May handling bass duties.  When the set list got to the November-Coming-Fire portion, May would switch with Zing and handle the drumming for the tracks he originally sat-in on.  And for the Misfits set, former axe-man Doyle would join the Danzig band and pound his way through the classic tracks.  Musically, Doyle adds little to the songs but his commanding stage presence and over the top persona really add to the energy of the show.  It would have been awesome if more guys could have attended, but Glenn Danzig isn’t really known for keeping in touch with his old band mates.  Misfits bassist Jerry Only would have been out of the questions, and to be honest, it really wouldn’t have done anything for me to see him there.  I would have loved to see original Samhain and Danzig bassist Eerie Von though, and I consider it a real shame he and Glenn had a falling out after he left Danzig as they were friends for years.  If original Danzig guitarist John Christ had popped in for a track or two that would have been pretty awesome as well, but he and Glenn were never really the best of friends so it’s understandable.  Damien is someone I thought had a chance of picking up the old axe and stepping onto the stage with Samhain, but he was either busy, never asked to join, or just didn’t want to.

Regardless, seeing the guys who were there perform songs I never expected to ever see performed was something special.  The venue, the Hammerstein Ballroom, is a nice open area with tiered balconies that accommodated the largest crowd I’ve ever seen for a Danzig show.  I was seated in the first balcony section and had a great view of the floor and the stage.  The section was packed, and the people on the floor were jammed in tight.  I don’t know if the second balcony was completely full but there were quite a few people that I could see from my limited vantage point.  Security really wasn’t busting anyone’s balls for taking pictures, a rarity at a Danzig show, though stage hands were using laser pointers to point out people obviously boot-legging the show.  I took a couple shots with my iphone, but they didn’t come out great (iphone’s really suck when zoom is used) so I won’t bother to upload any for this post.  Some great videos did make it to youtube though, for those interested.

The set list was the same as the one from Chicago that I posted earlier.  It was great to hear “Overture of the Rebel Angels” back where it belongs, though I would have preferred something other than “Skin Carver” to kick off the show.  Even though I’m not particularly fond of the song, it did do the job and the crowd was really into it shouting the chorus back at Glenn.  Glenn looked to be in great shape for the event.  Noticeably slimmer than usual, he jumped around the stage like a man half his age.  His voice, while not quite the same as it was in the 90’s, was strong and the levels were great as I didn’t notice any one instrument over-powering the others.  Steve Zing was a great addition to the live band a couple years ago, and his bass-playing is more than capable.  He adds enthusiasm and isn’t afraid to get close with the crowd.  Johnny Kelly’s drumming is awesome, and I think that’s an opinion most people share.  Tommy Victor has been the most maligned member of the band, as his style is different from previous Danzig guitarists so his solos differ as well.  I never particularly care how a guitarist plays the solos live, as long as they’re still good.  To that end, I have no problem with Tommy.  Is he my favorite Danzig guitarist?  No, but he doesn’t harm the product.

Overall, the set list for the first Danzig section was pretty awesome.  After “Skin Carver” and a couple cuts from the new record, it switches back to “Twist of Cain” and moves in a chronological order for the remainder of the set.  The usual favorites are played, with the exception of “Devil’s Plaything,” my all-time favorite Danzig track which rarely gets played.  I personally had only seen the band do it once on the 20th anniversary tour in ’08, for this one they go right into the song following “Her Black Wings” omitting the intro.  I was some-what disappointed by this, but it was cool to hear the crowd kind of surprised when the riff kicked in and it still proved to be the highlight of the Danzig set for me.  After “It’s Coming Down,” the band disappeared to the back and the Danzig back-drop was lowered, replaced by a giant image of the November-Coming-Fire back-drop and soon “Initium” could be heard coming from the speakers.

After the intro finished, the band burst onto the stage to the familiar sounds of “Samhain” leading the way.  Glenn returned to stage sporting the dog mask he wore for the final Samhain performance back in 1987.  The band ripped through the song and others from their debut album and the crowd seemed into it, though perhaps not as into it as they were the Danzig stuff.  This wasn’t that big of a surprise to me as Samhain has always been the Glenn Danzig band to get the least amount of attention.  There was a point in my life where I didn’t even know a band had existed for Glenn in between The Misfits and Danzig.  The crowd certainly was into the Misfits cover, “Horror Biz,” but once things kind of slowed down with “Unholy Passion” the crowd energy kind of dyed down.  That’s too bad, as “Let the Day Begin” followed which has always been my favorite Samhain song, though I have to admit, it sounded a little off live.  I’m not really sure what it was, but it kind of lacked intensity.  “To Walk the Night” was awesome though, as was “Mother of Mercy” but by that point the crowd had almost completely checked out.  I tried not to let it bother me, but it did.  Ingrates!

This is the reason why many turned out for the show.

After the Samhain set, the band once again vanished to the back and a new Misfits backdrop replaced the Samhain one.  This made the crowd go crazy as an instrumental track took over featuring generic haunted house noises and a howling wolf.  It seemed like the wait was longer than the change-over to the Samhain stuff, but eventually some distorted guitar tones filled the air as Doyle marched onto the stage to a huge ovation.  The rest of the band soon followed and the air in the venue was charged!  Glenn provoked the audience with an “Are you ready?!” before the band blasted-off into “Death Comes Ripping.”

The floor was turned into a sea of bodies, feet, arms, and torsos flying every which way as the band bludgeoned our eardrums.  This is how I wished the crowd had been the whole night!  Every line of every song was being screamed back at Glenn as they tore through the old classics.  There would be a pause between most songs as Doyle would change guitars (presumably due to broken strings more than tuning issues) but the crowd seemed to enjoy the brief respite.  Every song seemed to get the same ovation, which is to say a huge one.  For me, the high-light was definitely “Last Caress” which closed out the set.  I have always wanted to hear that song live ever since I was a kid in middle school, and to finally hear it was practically overwhelming.

When the set ended, the band once again vanished backstage and the Danzig backdrop was raised once more.  When the band returned to the sound of machine gun fire it tore into “Bringer of Death.”  Even though that’s a song that would normally elicit a big response from the floor, the crowd seemed like it was tapped out.  Sure the pit got moving a bit when the situation arose, but it was nothing like it had been during the earlier stages of the show, and certainly not even close to what it was for the Misfits stuff.  Little changed for the next two tracks, as the band went back to the debut album for “Not of This World” and required closer “Mother.”  It was all too obvious why most people showed up, and that was to see Glenn and Doyle do the Misfits stuff.  Expected, but it still kind of bummed me out to not see people go nuts for the other classics.  In my section, hardly anyone even left their seat all night.  I have never been to a show where people actually remain seated.  It was bizarre.  My friend and I tried to stand during the first part of the show, but people behind us complained.  So long as the people in front of us remained seated (they had stood up for the first part of the show too, they’re true fans, but had sat down once the first set ended) we would do so as well so as not to incite the ire of those behind us, but damn if I didn’t feel like an old loser for sitting at a metal/punk show.

After the conclusion of “Mother,” the band did the usual pre-encore stuff and said its goodbyes.  The stage hands then set to work on getting the crowd to call the boys back on stage but the crowd was mostly quiet.  Talk about frustrating.  A chant would go up for “Danzig!” here and there but die quickly.  Maybe the crowd didn’t know what to chant for, since it obviously wanted some more Misfits tunes, but it was still kind of embarrassing.  Even though the response was lackluster at times, Glenn never let it bother him.  He was in a pretty good mood all night.  I guess he knew what the people wanted and was fine with it.  That was a change from when I saw Danzig and Doyle together in Boston in 2005, where the crowd was dead all night save for when Doyle was on stage.  This enraged Danzig to the point that he didn’t even do an encore.  That was also my buddy’s first Danzig show, and it always bothered me it ended that way.  He was concerned this time around when the crowd was so lackluster before the encore that it would happen again.  Thankfully, the band did re-emerge on stage with Doyle once more leading the way.  The band ripped into “Skulls” and the place once again went nuts.  When it was over though, it was over for good.  Glenn thanked us and gave his usual “Take care,” before vanishing into the snowy evening.

When it was over it was like my body crashed.  I had been waiting and looking forward to this show for so long and for it to be over was kind of a drag.  Still, I had the time of my life and even though the crowd let me down at times it was still the best Danzig show I’ve ever attended.  Just to see the band in top form hitting on the majority of my favorite songs spanning over 30 years of material was unreal.  I never, ever, expected to see Glenn Danzig do a show like this even in my wildest dreams.  He’s always been against this type of thing but I think his attitude over the years has mellowed quite a bit.  He had also frequently said the Samhain thing would never happen again after doing a semi-reunion in 1999, a tour that never came close to me, so I felt particularly lucky to catch it this time.  He seems to take delight in doing the old Misfits songs with Doyle, so much so that it’s surprising he doesn’t do it more.  The band as a whole really feeds off the crowd when it goes nuts for those old tunes and I imagine the view from the stage is something out of this world.

Glenn Danzig isn’t getting any younger so it’s tough to say how many shows are in the future.  Since he resides in the LA area, I suspect there will always be shows going on out there to some degree, particularly around Halloween.  For those of us in other parts of the country though, there’s the possibility that this could be it.  While I don’t feel that is the case, it was in the back of my mind last Saturday that this could be the last Danzig show I attend.  I’d like to think that when such a time comes he’ll let everyone know with a farewell tour, but it also wouldn’t shock me to see him just disappear quietly.  If this was the last Danzig show I’m able to attend, then that was one Hell of a way to go out.  Bravo, boys!

4 Comments | posted in Danzig, Music

October 28, 2011

Danzig III: How the Gods Kill

By Joe

Danzig III: How the Gods Kill (1992)

On the eve of the second of four shows in the Danzig “Legacy” tour, it seems like an appropriate time for the last review of the original four Danzig albums from the Def American days.

The third full length album for Danzig would mark a turning point.  The first two albums had been fairly rock-oriented but Danzig III would bring back some of that metallic edge found in Glenn Danzig’s previous band, Samhain.  Danzig III: How the Gods Kill arrived in 1992 to little fanfare, but the band was on the verge of breaking out.  Mostly ignored by MTV due to the band’s “satanic” imagery, Danzig would break thru the network’s censors with the first video from the album, “Dirty Black Summer.”  Soon the band found themselves as guests for shows like Headbanger’s Ball and things started to pick up commercially as well, culminating in a massive Halloween show at Irvine Meadows that same year.

The band would hit its commercial peak following the release of the follow-up EP, Thrall-Demonsweatlive, but Danzig III is the album that got everything rolling and has become a favorite for many fans of the band.  The album was also the first for the band to receive a special release.  The album was released as a box set with a VHS of the video for the title track.  The box itself contained the full cover image done by H.R. Giger, a modified version of his piece Master and Margarita.  Fans could also purchase their own Danzig dagger from the fan club via mail order which has since become an expensive collector’s item.

The cover of the “Dirty Black Summer” single with the Giger interpretation of the Danzig classic skull logo.

The third Danzig album is the first album with the label where Glenn and the boys had almost total control.  Glenn Danzig had received a producer credit for Danzig II along with Rick Rubin, and though Rubin would receive one for Danzig III as well, it has long been stated by Glenn that by this time Rubin had little involvement with the band.  That is evident in the sound of the album.  Rubin is famous for taking bands and stripping them down to a very basic sound which is what he did with the band’s debut album.  Danzig II added more blues elements and the band flexed its creative muscle a bit more with songs like “Blood & Tears” and “Pain in the World.”  Danzig III would keep some of that blues base but add a heavier production.

This is quite apparent in the album’s opener, “Godless,” a dark and foreboding track with an explosive center.  Danzig sings in a throatier voice this time around achieving a deeper sound.  The guitars have crunch, but the tone lightens when the time comes for guitarist John Christ to shred.  This more visceral style probably isn’t what suits a technical player like Christ best, but he pulls it off just fine.  Eerie’s bass is actually audible on most tracks this time around, as opposed to just a few like with the previous two albums, which helps contribute to the album’s forceful low-end.

The first single, the previously mentioned “Dirty Black Summer,” was a good choice as it’s probably the most accessible song.  It’s a blues-rock number where Glenn’s evil croons take center stage.  The vocal hiccup between lines in the chorus gives it a unique quality, though the silly subject matter makes it a bit tough to take serious at times.  The thunderous “Left Hand Black” may be the album’s heaviest moment and its rebellious chorus an easy crowd pleaser.

The standout tracks are the title track and the ballad, “Sistinas.”  The title track effectively uses the old trick of start quiet and build to an explosive chorus before slowing things down for the outro.  It begins with a nice piano melody and some soft singing by Glenn.  When the song gets bigger the guitars come in with pinch harmonics in excess.  Despite the simple approach, the song is quite effective and a great high point.  In contrast, “Sistinas” starts quiet and remains so.  Danzig croons away like a modern-day Elvis with some desperate, uncharacteristic lyrics.  It’s so good it’s the type of sappy ballad even a metal-head can get into.

That said, the album isn’t perfect.  “When the Dying Calls” is one of the band’s weaker closing numbers for an album and “Do You Wear The Mark?” is a shameless rip-off of Black Sabbath’s “Into the Void.”  Glenn really stretches his vocal chords for “Bodies,” and the result is something between okay and annoying and “Heart of the Devil” has some lyrics that are almost too campy to ignore.  Glenn Danzig has always walked the line between campy and cool and every now and then he strays a little too far to one side.

Danzig III – How the Gods Kill may have its flaws, but it’s an album that’s definitely worthy of one’s attention.  The good far outweighs the bad and while it’s not among my favorite Danzig releases, it’s in the next tier of very good along with the likes of the first record and the most recent, Deth Red Sabaoth.  Because this is the point in the band’s life where a lot of fans hopped on board, it holds a special place for many so I can see why it often is cited as the group’s best effort.  I have to respectfully disagree, but I have listened to this album a great many times, and plan to continue to do so.

Top Tracks

  • Godless
  • How the Gods Kill
  • Sistinas

1 Comment | posted in Danzig, Music

October 22, 2011

The Greatest Games I’ve Ever Played

By Joe

When discussing a particular favorite of mine I tend to cite something as “one of my all-time favorites” and let that statement hang in the air.  Recently I began playing just such a title and got to thinking about this more in depth; what are the best games I’ve ever played?

Those N64 graphics really have not aged well.

When I get into a gaming lull, such as what I’m in at the moment, it’s easy for me to get down on the current crop of games.  Nostalgia has a funny way of tinting things and convinces us things were always better than they are now.  That certainly can be true for a lot of things though often times it’s a false impression.  With games, I hear it quite frequently whenever a new wrestling game is discussed.  Fans cling to the old THQ game WWF No Mercy and often cite that game’s greatness when discussing the faults of whatever the latest release is.  And while that game is a good one, and probably did some things better than the current generation, it truly was surpassed long ago as the greatest grappler of all time, if it ever even truly held that distinction (I suppose that’s an argument for another time).

That said, this current generation of consoles hasn’t produced a whole lot I would consider to be among my favorites of all time.  Perhaps it’s not fair to assume more games like that should be released when it’s challenging for the truly great in any medium to come along.  How many new movies that come out in a given year can be considered among the medium’s all-time best?  One, if any, probably.

So how many games have been released for the PS3/Wii/360 will I remember as some of my favorites?  A few.  There’s Red Dead Redemption, which ended up being a lot more than just Grand Theft Auto Cowboy.  Mass Effect 2 is certainly in the running and the super hero genre has never received a game better than Batman: Arkham Asylum.  There might even be a few more, but that’s a solid start.  And here’s hoping Skyrim enters the discussion in a month or so.

Maybe some of my favorites have been released this life cycle, but I’m not ready to anoint any of them yet.  Plus this is a blog that caters to nostalgia and while I may post game reviews for new titles, a feature like this one should focus on the oldies.

Sorry, but you're only 9 years old! Check back next year.

I made a list of what I considered my favorite games of all time.  Off the top of my head, my list totaled over 20 but I wanted to limit this feature to a top 10 of sorts.  I immediately cast aside anything that wasn’t at least 10 years old.  A solid decade is enough time for an opinion to be formed and take root.  This meant some of favorites did get cut-off.  One of which, Warcraft III, just barely missed out as that one is only 9 years old.  Another was Metal Gear Solid 3.  I suppose I could have just replaced it with one of the two games that came before it, but I felt like my heart wouldn’t really be in it, so no MGS in my top 10.

I also eliminated any obvious selections, so no Ocarina of Time.  Why?  Because there’s probably already a million other blogs and review sites out there telling you the game is a classic.  What’s one more really going to add to things?  In addition to knocking off the Zelda franchise, this also knocked out the traditional Mario titles.  It’s not that I don’t love me some Super Mario World, it’s just been talked about enough.

Despite that criteria, my list isn’t going to be full off obscure titles.  There’s some that could be classified that way and a few obvious ones.  Once I established my criteria for this feature I began weighing each game amongst the pack.  I already had a couple that I knew had to be included, but some tough decisions had to be made for others.  I basically just picked them apart and started crossing off the games with the most faults until I got my 10.

The last two were particularly difficult.  I can’t even remember which game I was stacking this one up against, but number 11 became Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil.  As great as the game is, I realized my biggest argument for keeping it on the list over the game it was duking it out with was because of it’s obscurity, which seemed like the wrong reason.  I love the game so much though, that I figured I’d show it some love in this intro piece.

Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil (2001)

Klonoa 2 is the Playstation 2 sequel to a game that was released in 1998 on the original Playstation.  Published by Namco, Klonoa 2 is one of the first 2.5D platformer titles, meaning the graphic’s engine renders everything in full 3D but the gameplay is more like a 2D side-scrolling platform title.  This is the type of approach Capcom would take with its Viewtiful Joe franchise and Nintendo would implement for New Super Mario Bros.  I don’t know if Klonoa was the first of its kind to utilize this, but it was definitely the first game of its type that I played.

Klonoa is a typical platform character in that he’s furry and cute but it’s kind of hard to figure out just what kind of animal he is.  His design has a little spunk to it with a backwards hat and giant shorts.  He has two big floppy ears that allow him to hover momentarily and extend jumps.  The main gameplay mechanic centers on Klonoa’s ring.  The ring (which he holds with his hand because it’s huge) shoots out a grappling hook-like beam that grabs enemies.  Klonoa can then hurl those enemies as a weapon or use them for a double jump.  Some enemies or objects will have propellers or something that allow Klonoa to do other things with them as well.

Instead of being a left-to-right and collect everything type of game, Klonoa tends to focus more on puzzles than anything else.  Often there’s switches that need to be activated in a certain manner that isn’t always clear.  Early on in the game things are pretty simple but the challenge factor gets upped the further you progress.  It never becomes truly difficult, but is often satisfying.  There are boss encounters that often play with the perspective.  Usually Klonoa is on a bridge or a ring and the boss will be in the center giving the game more of a 3D feel at times while still maintaining the classic 2D “invisible wall” restrictions.  The game is also quite colorful and a joy to behold.  Namco went with a cel-shading look which was growing in popularity at the time and it works very well with the game’s visual style.  The story line isn’t anything ground-breaking, but it’s presented well with nice cutscenes throughout.  Namco chose not to dub any of the characters so they chirp in Japanese (or what I think is Japanese, I suppose it could just be gibberish) and it actually works as these types of games usually end up with some horrendous voice acting.

Look how cute he is with his backwards hat and giant zipper!

That’s a quick and dirty overview of Klonoa 2 but what’s most important to know is that the game is just plain fun.  It’s a true joy to play and the level design is on par with Mario’s best.  And really, outside of Mario’s best, this is one of my favorite platforming games of all time.  I’d easily take it over any of the 3D platformers put out by Rare and Insomniac.  It can be had for less than $20 on eBay so if you’re itching for a good platforming experience definitely check it out.

So be on the look-out for my official top 10 greatest games I ever played feature.  I’ll have plenty more to say on the subject.  This feature will differ from my top 10 albums list as I don’t plan on actually numbering them.  I don’t know what order I’ll even post them in but I’ll try to break up titles that may be similar to one another (I did restrict myself to only one game per franchise, so things shouldn’t get too repetitive).  I do, however, have a favorite game of all time and I will save that one for last.  And lastly, if you’re curious, most of these games will be from the Playstation era.  I didn’t plan it out that way, it’s just how it ended up.  Even though when I think of old games my mind immediately goes to the original Nintendo and 16 bit systems.  I guess in 10 years if some other 20-somethin’ blogger decides to make a similar list it will be populated by Xbox and PS2 games, if not 360 and PS3.

Leave a comment | posted in Greatest Games, Video Games

October 17, 2011

The Definitive Batman Film

By Joe

It's taken awhile, but on October 18th the greatest Batman story ever told makes its way to animation.

On the eve of the latest Batman film release (and video game), I thought it would be fun to look back at the films that have already been released.  After all, it wouldn’t be much fun to try and determine what the best Batman video game is considering most have been subpar.  It would be Arkham Asylum with a runner up of….?  I guess there were some okay 16 bit games, but nothing mind blowing.  It sounds like the soon to be released Arkham City is just as good so at least Asylum will have some company on the rather short good Batman video game list.

Arkham City will be the Batman related item that moves the most units tomorrow, but not to be forgotten is the direct to DVD feature film Batman: Year One.  Year One is of course an adaptation of the popular comic seres by Frank Miller that ran in the late 80’s.  Year One is perhaps the most celebrated Batman mini series, and certainly is the definitive take on the caped crusader’s origin.  Many elements from the plot of the book was incorporated into Batman Begins and, to a lesser extent, the animated series.  I’m curious how well it will hold up considering Batman’s origin has become a well told tale over the years.  As great as the book was, do we really need another origin story?  That fact alone will likely make it problematic to review as it will be hard to judge the film on its own merits.

Regardless, Batman has had his origin told many times to varying degrees of success over the years.  Plenty of other stories have also made it to film in either a live action medium or an animated one.  There’s been some great Batman movies, and there’s also been some stinkers, but which one is the definitive Batman movie?  There are quite a few contenders, so lets start whittling them down.

Let’s start with the first, often referred to as Batman: The Movie based on the television series staring Adam West in the titular role.  As entertaining as the movie can be, lets throw it out right away as the definitive Batman flick because it is not at all representative of the character.  Charming, but no Batman.

Yeah it's not Bruce Wayne in the costume, but this movie is not one to be missed.

Animation should not be discounted just because it’s not live action, which seems to command more respect in the US, and Batman has had some great animated portrayals.  One of those excellent features is Batman Beyond: The Return of the Joker.  What could have easily been written off as a marketing gimmick turned out to be a nice series and the direct to video film was the high point for the Batman Beyond franchise.  As good as it is, it’s not a true portrayal of the Bruce Wayne character, so it’s out of the running.  If you haven’t seen it though, check it out.  It can likely be had for a few bucks on the second-hand market.

Two other animated features that skipped theaters include SubZero and Mystery of the Batwoman.  SubZero focuses on the villain Mr. Freeze, a villain failed by the comic books until Bruce Timm and Paul Dini got a hold of him and made him a truly tragic villain.  The film is a good one, but is over-shadowed by the stand-alone episode from the animated series “Heart of Ice.”  Mystery of the Batwoman puts Batman into the role of detective, something the films have a tendency to gloss over at times.  It’s a fun little title, but not really noteworthy.  It’s out.

Lastly, two other films can be written off right away, and I’m talking about the two Joel Schumacher directed features Batman Forever and Batman and Robin.  Batman and Robin was a mess with a bloated cast and oppressive visual style.  It’s a wretched abortion of a film and one of the worst pieces of crap I’ve ever had the misfortune of watching.  Batman Forever is merely subpar.  By comparison with its sequel, it’s positively exquisite.  It did have some fans, notably Roger Ebert who didn’t enjoy any of the other Tim Burton produced/directed films, but I hesitate to say it’s good.  It certainly isn’t memorable, and was another Burton helmed project that put most of the focus on the villains and not on the Batman character.

If you’re keeping count, that leaves us with six feature films to choose from:  Batman, Batman Returns, Mask of the Phantasm, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and Under the Red Hood.  This is where things get tricky.

Michael Keaton - still my favorite Batman.

First of all, to be the definitive Batman film it has to focus a lot of its attention on the Batman character.  Three of the above mentioned films are origin stories, so Batman, Batman Begins, and Mask of the Phantasm are all up for consideration.  The Dark Knight spends a lot of time on the Joker, but unlike Burton’s Batman, the character doesn’t dominate the screen.  He’s actually not on screen as much as you probably remember, but his presence is felt all throughout the film.  While it’s not an origin tale, TDK does deal with an important part of the Batman character, namely the issue of escalation and how to deal with it.  Under the Red Hood is similar in that it focuses on an important aspect of Batman, how he deals with his greatest failure, the death of Robin.  The film that doesn’t really tell us much about Batman is the second Burton directed picture, Batman Returns.  In that, the villains dominate the landscape and while we learn Bruce is a bit lonely, there’s not a whole lot there.  The lack of acting for the character is what drove Michael Keaton away from the role.  The film is still entertaining, but the definitive Batman?  No way.

The next one to fall out of contention is Under the Red Hood.  While it does a good job of combining aspects of classic tales like A Death in the Family and The Killing Joke, it doesn’t quite hit it out of the park.  The mystery of the film is solved pretty quickly by anyone with half a brain, but the climax of the film is pretty spectacular, it’s the getting to that point that is less so.  The film kind of meanders a bit and stalls out before recovering.  I also felt that there could have been even more exposition on the part of Batman and insight into how he coped with Robin’s death.  It’s a good film, and wonderfully animated, and it was also nice to see some new voice actors take on Batman and the Joker.  It is not, however, the definitive Batman movie.

And then there were four…

I did a rather exhaustive review on Batman several months ago.  To summarize, I found it to be a good film that had an interesting take on the character.  This Batman was more vengeful and less honorable than other portrayals.  And while the Joker may have dominated a large chunk of the movie, Batman’s origin story was presented well, though with the odd twist that the Joker was the man responsible for the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne.  The film is also noteworthy for setting a few trends for later movies, namely the black armored costume worn by Batman.  The more realistic take would be used in every live-action film to follow, as would Batman’s arsenal of “wonderful toys.”

The only Batman film to receive two thumbs up by At the Movies with Siskel and Ebert. Surprised?

Mask of the Phantasm may be the most criminally under-appreciated Batman movie of all time.  For a long time, the hardcore crowd would cite this as their favorite Batman movie and it also received a two thumbs up approval from critics Siskel and Ebert.  It was released on the big screen, and had modest success.  It told another version of Batman’s origin, and even showed us how close Bruce came to giving up the cape and cowl in a truly great scene where he falls to his knees at his parents’ grave begging for forgiveness.  His motivation is for love, as he tells his parents he never expected to be happy again when he made the promise to avenge their deaths.  Unfortunately for Bruce, as is often the case, things don’t work out with his love interest.  All of these details are presented through flashbacks as Batman tries to figure out the identity of a new villain, the mysterious Phantasm.  I have some complaints with the film, but they’re mostly superficial.  One is the Phantasm doesn’t have a very strong presence in the film, but that’s mostly due to time constraints.  Another is that the animators take a lot of liberties in how the Phantasm is portrayed in order to protect the character’s identity.  The reveal scene comes across a little funny as a result.  Mostly though, the film just plain works and Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill are forever etched into my brain as the voice of Batman and Joker.  There’s also a different take on the Joker’s origin shown which is kind of cool.  Or at least, it shows the Joker before he became the Joker.

Batman Begins is the much celebrated beginning of the Christopher Nolan trilogy set to conclude with The Dark Knight Rises next summer.  If Burton’s Batman could be criticized for focusing too much on the Joker, Nolan’s could be criticized for not establishing a truly compelling villain for Batman to battle.  The origin presented is exhaustive and focuses on all of the aspects the other films ignored.  This mostly included Bruce’s training in the far east under Ra’s al Ghul and his early exploits in the Batman costume.  We get to see everything that lead to Batman’s creation with an incredible attention to detail.  Nolan covers everything, and Christian Bale helps erase the stain of George Clooney (though I still prefer Keaton).  As I mentioned though, the villains come up a bit short and I’ve never really been sold on the Tumbler as the new Batmobile.  As an origin tale though, it is perhaps unrivaled.

"Bat voice" aside, Bale has proven himself a capable Dark Knight.

The Dark Knight is without question Batman’s greatest box office triumph.  Most of the films based on Batman have done well, but nothing like The Dark Knight.  A lot of that success is due to Heath Ledger’s Joker, a truly charismatic and effective portrayal of the clown prince of crime that delighted seemingly everyone.  It’s hard to imagine that people were wondering if he could top Nicholson’s Joker, but Ledger practically erased that character from existence.  The movie is big, and the plot remains interesting through to the end.  There are some minor quibbles to be had though.  One, Bale’s “bat voice” seems worse this time around compared with Begins.  It’s distracting and should be axed for the new movie.  Another is the rush-job placed on Two Face.  Such a great villain really deserved his own film.  The portrayal wasn’t bad, but felt wasted.  As a Batman character study, we see just how far the character will go and what ends justify the means.  It raises good questions about just how intimidating Batman can be when he’s not willing to really bust up the bad guys.

Another worthy debate, best Joker: Nicholson, Ledger, or Hamill?

Four great films, and not just great Batman films at that.  How do I narrow it down from here?  It won’t be easy as an argument can really be made for each, but one to me clearly has the weakest argument of the four.  Three of these films deal with Batman’s origin story, and the one that comes up short is the inaugural Batman from 1989.  This origin story was unique, for sure, but the changes made don’t really suit the character.  I’m talking mostly about the whole Joker as the killer angle.  It helped add more emotion to the main conflict of the film, but forced the film into killing off Batman’s greatest villain!  A true shame as the sequels could have used him, though Warner Brothers likely had zero interest in paying Nicholson for a sequel.  It was a good movie for the time and integral in moving Batman away from his more kid-friendly persona established by the television series, but it’s been topped.

As great as The Dark Knight is, I’m afraid it too has to go.  If we’re looking to establish what is the definitive Batman film, I feel an origin story is always going to have a leg-up on anything else.  Something emotionally heavy like the death of Robin could perhaps have trumped it, but not the death of Rachel Dawes.  A fantastic film and one of my all-time favorites, but it’s not the definitive Batman film.

So that leaves two.  The animated and surprisingly emotive Mask of the Phantasm and the fantastic rebirth of the character in Batman Begins.  Mask of the Phantasm has the whole animation stigma working against it.  I personally view both mediums with equal weight, but it can’t be ignored that the animation isn’t particularly jaw-dropping.  What works for TV is a little less impressive on the big screen.  Still, the animators do a great job of portraying emotion and the quality of the voice acting is phenomenal.  Begins has a strong cast, and features great direction.  The origin of Batman is extremely well told, as is the origin for soon to be Commissioner Gordon.  It’s unfortunate how The Dark Knight kind of overshadows it now, as I’ve rarely had a better movie going experience than when I watched this one for the first time.

I suppose the easy way out would be to say there are two definitive Batman movies, one live action and one animated.  There’s no conclusion in that though, and I hate cop-outs.  Maybe it’s the contrarian in me, but I feel the definitive Batman film is…

Mask of the Phantasm.

The origin story is perfectly told, not in terms of specificity but in how it shapes the Batman character.  It is the only Batman movie to effectively use a romantic interest for Bruce that enhances the picture, and doesn’t feel like something that was included because a director felt Batman needed a love interest.  And as much as I like Begins, I’m not sure I ever truly buy into the fact that I’m watching Batman.  When I watch Mask of the Phantasm though, I know I’m watching Batman.  Animated or not, this is Batman how he’s supposed to be and if you’ve ignored this movie or forgotten about it, you’re missing out.

5 Comments | posted in Comics, Film

October 11, 2011

X-Men Animated Series Wrap-Up

By Joe

Over the course of five months I blogged about my favorite cartoon as a kid:  X-Men.  I gave an episode synopsis/review for every episode (well, I cheated a bit by looking at them by plot, so 4-parters weren’t split out by episode as I went through it all) which was a lot of fun for me.  For some, it necessitated a re-watching of the episode which would lead to me watching episodes I didn’t necessarily need to see again, but wanted to.  And with every episode available on DVD, it was really easy.

These DVD covers are pretty awesome.

I was a first day purchaser for each DVD as they were released by Buena Vista.  The DVD’s had some nice, original, box art but the actual content was bare bones.  That is to say, there really wasn’t anything other than the episodes themselves (in broadcast order).  It was disappointing, as even some of the VHS tapes from the ’90’s at least had some roundtable discussions with the creators of the characters and show, but in the end a minor flaw.  I was so happy to finally have the show I adored as a kid on DVD and at the ready whenever I wished to see it that any short-comings could be overlooked.  And much to my satisfaction, the program has aged well.  Sure it may not look and animate as well as modern cartoons but the content and characters are watchable even at an adult age.  That’s something not every cartoon from my youth can claim (I’m looking at you, Mario).

So as a way to put a nice bow on everything, I figured I would list my favorite episodes.  As with my individual reviews, I’ll go by plot so, for example, “Out of the Past” would be considered as one episode, even though it’s two parts.  I’ll draw a line at the four and five part story arches, of which there were 3.  And while those are entertaining, none of them would crack my list anyways as their wide scope is some-what of a hindrance.  Though I suppose if I liked an individual episode enough I would have included it, but I really didn’t.

I figured a top 10 would be too easy, so I settled on doing a top five which proved really difficult.  Ultimately, my criteria was equal parts enjoyment and importance to the series as a whole.  As a result, through no conscious effort on my part, all five episodes ended up coming from the first two seasons.  I’m slightly uncomfortable with that because it makes it seem like the final three seasons aren’t that good, but they are!  There were some tough final omissions and I would be remiss if I didn’t list these honorable mentions:

  • “Cold Comfort” – a personal favorite of mine due to Iceman’s inclusion, it also gave us a nice look at the original X-Men.  My toughest omission.
  • “Days of Future Past” – a fun time travel story that smartly adapted the classic story for the television show.  Some nice intrigue with the Gambit character.
  • “Courage” – I love Morph, so this another personal favorite.  It didn’t have the impact it probably should have had though, making it actually an easier omission than expected.
  • “Bloodlines” – Nightcrawler, the Friends of Humanity, and some soap opera family drama.  Great episode.
  • “Graduation Day” – this one goes without saying, it’s the final episode so it carries much importance.  However, it felt hastily thrown together and could have been a lot better.
So what episodes made my Top 5?  Read on:

Remember when you could only get "X-Men" on VHS one episode at a time?

Till Death Do Us Part – A very important episode that sets up the events for all of season 2.  Morph is reintroduced and when it happened it had impact.  Even though he had only been “dead” for a season it felt like a shock to see him back and as a bad guy.  Mr. Sinister also made his true debut for the series and lived up to his name.  Most importantly though, the Friends of Humanity were introduced serving as a real world enemy for the X-Men and one they couldn’t simply face head-on.  The FOH bring the civil rights aspect of the show into the forefront, and when the writers are working with that mind-set, the show is at its best!

The Final Decision – Season one’s finale and the first time the X-Men team-up with arch enemy Magneto.  Such a partnership would become the norm in later seasons to the point where Magneto didn’t even feel like a villain, but here it had purpose and weight.  The episode’s melodrama where the X-Men are seen walking off into certain doom was chilling, and still is for me today.

A Rogue’s Tale – Perhaps unexpected if you didn’t read my original synopsis, but a great origin story for Rogue and another episode with emotional weight.  Sometimes it feels like the girls of the team get overlooked, but getting a glimpse of the tragic parts of Rogue’s past were revealing and extremely well done.  As a viewer, we empathize with the Ms. Marvel character but at the same time with Rogue as well, blurring the line between hero and villain.  The fact that the episode doesn’t really have a nice, happy ending, just adds to the experience.

I wonder what he would look like if he shaved?

Beauty and the Beast – I considered making this number 1, but couldn’t for what will soon be obvious reasons when I get to number 1.  This episode though represents everything that is great about the X-Men.  Here we have Beast, a mutant who has some neat abilities and can do things normal men cannot, but it comes at the cost of his physical appearance.  Before this episode, we didn’t know Beast that well but from what we did know it seemed like he didn’t let his appearance get him down.  Here we see him vulnerable as his mutant heritage threatens the safety of the woman he loves.  We see the ugliness of humanity both through the FOH and Carly’s father, who can’t even acknowledge Beast as a person even though he gifted his daughter with sight.  The drama is handled exceptionally well for a kid’s show, and the ending always affects me.  If I had to pick just one episode to show someone new to the X-Men what the show is all about, I’d probably go with this one.

Night of the Sentinels – How could it be any other?  This is the episode that started it all and hooked me and millions of others right from the start.  It effortlessly introduces us to the X-Men through Jubilee and the hostile world they inhabit.  The Sentinels prove to be a truly threatening and deceitful menace that earn their distinction by killing the lovable Morph in the second act.  We get classic interactions between Wolverine and Gambit, Wolverine and Cyclops, and Cyclops and Xavier.  We see not only the conflicts that exist in the world, but the ones that exist amongst team members.  The animosity between Wolverine and Cyclops especially is quite riveting and Wolverine drilling Cyke in the gut put everyone on notice, and sent kids flying to toy stores looking for Wolverine action figures.  I can’t think of a better first episode(s) for any series than this one.  It accomplishes everything it needs to and then some.  Today, I still love watching it.  I laugh when Jubilee blasts Wolverine, I ache when Jean relays the news on Morph, and triumph when Wolverine sinks his claws into the neck of a Sentinel.  I love this show!

So that’s my top 5.  Feel free to agree or disagree, I won’t argue as there are many worthy episodes.  I didn’t even list one of the enjoyable Wolverine-centered episodes or any of the clever time traveling ones.  This is such a fun show, if I ever have kids I hope they take to it else I’ll be really bummed.

Though I’ve exhausted the topic of X-Men, there are more shows to revisit.  Perhaps I’ll never do as exhaustive a look at any other show, but I plan to do some DVD reviews at least and I already know what my next subject will cover.  I also intend to get to looking at older video games and talking about my all-time favorites.  I have the CDX to continue fiddling with, and some SNK hardware to talk about.  In short, I’m not lacking for nostalgia.

And lastly, if you haven’t heard Powerglove’s cover of the X-Men theme, where have you been the last year?!

1 Comment | posted in Comics, Television

October 2, 2011

Danzig – “Legacy”

By Joe

I’ve  been waiting awhile to post on this subject, mostly to see how things get finalized, but as we’re now one week away from the inaugural show it seems I can’t wait any longer.  For those unaware, Danzig – “Legacy” refers to four shows to be played over the next month that will cover the entire Glenn Danzig catalogue, including his time with The Misfits and Samhain.

For someone who seems reluctant to discuss the past in interviews, Glenn Danzig has not been shy about including some fan service into his live shows.  For many years it was not uncommon to hear the occasional Misfits or Samhain song at a Danzig show, often an old track being used as a reward of sorts for good audiences.  Then in 1999 came the Samhain reunion tour which was a part of that year’s Satan’s Child tour.  For those shows, Glenn was joined on stage by former Samhain drummers Steve Zing and London May, with the two switching off between bass and drum duties.  Pete “Damien” Marshall was not available so then current Danzig guitarist Todd Youth subbed for him.  Then in 2005, Danzig was joined by former Misfits guitarist Doyle on stage for a set of old Misfits classics.  The mini set would take place in the middle of the Danzig set and then carry over into the encore.

I expect blood for the Samhain set.

Danzig – “Legacy” is shaping up to be a combination of the two.  I don’t know who’s idea it was to do this, but it was first announced as part of the RiotFest which will take place in Chicago on October 7th.  Not long after additional shows were announced for New York (29th), LA (31st), and Austin (November 4th).  The participants are expected to be the same as before, with Steve Zing (now the current Danzig bassist) and London May representing Samhain and Doyle from The Misfits.  Some of the flyers state three sets will be played, one for each band, but the format of the show is still up in the air.  Also up in the air is who will be playing guitar for Samhain, though Glenn recently stated it will probably be current Danzig guitarist Tommy Victor.  I suppose there’s still an outside chance that Damien could show up for a show or two, specifically the NY one as I think he still resides in the area, but former Samhain/Danzig bassist Eerie Von has ruled himself out.

It would have been nice to get a true reunion with some old Danzig and Samhain members joining the party (I won’t even allow myself to consider the possibility of a Misfits reunion with Jerry Only) but you’re not going to hear me complain.  I missed out on the Samhain reunion in ’99 so I’m beyond excited at the chance to catch it again.  This announcement really snuck up on people and the general consensus among the fans seems to be shock and delight.

There’s a lot of possibilities for set lists considering the music spans over 30 years but there are some songs I would love to hear.  I’m betting the sets won’t be far off from what’s been done in the past, but that won’t shut off my imagination.  If I had it my way, the show would go something like this:

  • Overture of the Rebel Angels (intro)
  • Hammer of the Gods (Danzig)
  • Snakes of Christ (Danzig)
  • Left Hand Black (Danzig)
  • How the Gods Kill (Danzig)
  • Death Comes Ripping (w/Doyle)
  • 20 Eyes (w/Doyle)
  • All Hell Breaks Lose (w/Doyle)
  • Astro Zombies (w/Doyle)
  • Last Caress (w/Doyle)
  • Skulls (w/Doyle)
  • Hybrid Moments (w/Doyle)
  • We Bite (w/Doyle)
  • She (w/Doyle)
  • Horror Business (w/Doyle)
  • Initium (following a short intermission)
  • Samhain (Samhain)
  • All Murder, All Guts, All Fun (Samhain)
  • Black Dream (Samhain)
  • The Howl (Samhain)
  • Archangel (Samhain)
  • Unholy Passion (Samhain)
  • In My Grip (Samhain)
  • To Walk The Night (Samhain)
  • Let the Day Begin (Samhain)
  • Descent (Samhain)
  • November’s Fire (Samhain)
  • Twist of Cain (Danzig)
  • Deth Red Moon (Danzig)
  • Mother (Danzig – because they pretty much have to play it)

Encore:

  • Devil’s Plaything (Danzig)
  • The Hungry End (Samhain)
  • Die Die My Darling (w/Doyle)
  • We Are 138 (w/ Everyone)

A man can dream.

 

 

UPDATE – 10/8/2011

The first show of this brief four show tour occurred last night in Chicago and the set list looks mighty fine.  I hope it doesn’t change at all when it comes time for the New York show.  The band lineup was as expected, with London May and Doyle being the only additions to the regular Danzig lineup of Tommy Victor, Johnny Kelly, and Steve Zing.

Overture of the Rebel Angels
SkinCarver
Hammer of the Gods
Rebel Spirits
Twist of Cain
Her Black Wings
Devil’s Plaything
How the Gods kill
Dirty BlackSummer
It’s Coming Down
—
Initium
Samhain
All Murder, All Guts, All Fun
Horror Biz
Unholy Passion
Let the Day Begin
To Walk the night
Mother of Mercy
—
Death Comes Ripping
Vampira
Bullet
Martian
Night of the Living Dead
Halloween
Astro Zombies
Last Caress
—
Bringer of Death
Not of This World
Mother
—
Skulls

1 Comment | posted in Danzig, Music

September 26, 2011

Opeth – Heritage

By Joe

Opeth - "Heritage" (2011)

On September 20th, 2011, Opeth unleashed its tenth studio album on the world, titled Heritage.  Nearly every (legitimate) sub-genre of heavy metal under the sun has been attached to Opeth at some point or another, but with Heritage none could be found for the long-time head bangers can really no longer be called a metal band.  Make no mistake, Heritage will be and is a divisive album for Opeth fans and the metal community.  In the short time it has been available here in the US, most of the reactions to the album have been extreme in one direction or another.  Some fans feel its progressive rock sounds are brilliant and the birth of something new and exciting for the band while others feel its absence of traditional metal is both misleading and a poor choice.  For me, the truth lies somewhere in the middle, though I’m leaning more towards the “brilliant” crowd.

Truly, the album is an exercise of confidence for Opeth.  Confidence in each other, confidence in their ability, and confidence in the music itself.  For a band that’s been around for over 20 years to so drastically change things up is both admirable and frightening.  On the surface, this sounds like no other Opeth that came before it, including the other absence of metal record Damnation from 2003.  Look closer though and some traditional Opeth sounds can be found.  The lead track and early crowd pleaser “The Devil’s Orchard,” is quite close to a traditional Opeth track but without the heavier elements of the band’s past.  The obvious jazz elements present on the album are what really distinguish it from past works.  The lead guitar work is often frenetic and engaging, and bassist Martin Mendez is given a lot of room to breath on this record and the results are quite excellent.  Where the album really abandons the past is with the more abstract titles like “Famine” and the jazz-fusion mid-section of “Nepenthe.”  And seemingly to add a completely different sound to the album there’s “Slither,” the Dio tribute track that’s the closest thing to pure rock Opeth has ever recorded.

Opeth live in "Woostah," Massachusetts on the Heritage Tour, 9/20/2011.

While the album is indeed good, it’s hard not to argue that a certain aspect of the band has been lost along the way.  Yes, Opeth has always dabbled in prog rock and their music has often contained complex rhythms and time changes but it was still always heavy metal, Damnation aside.  Heritage is truly a progressive rock album, and judging it on that basis alone it’s good, but not earth shattering.  Opeth will not be confused for King Crimson.  Comparing it with past releases, and it’s actually quite similar to the more progressive moments on Watershed, the band’s previous album.  If this sound is the future for Opeth (and lead singer and principal composer Mikael Åkerfeldt left open the possibility of bringing back the death metal component) then I find myself with some mixed emotions.  The defining aspect for Opeth, to me, has always been the duality between the light and dark, heavy and serene.

I’d be less concerned if I didn’t think the direction for Heritage would carry over to the live show, but one look at the Worcester, MA set list from the first night of the tour is quite a thing to ponder.  For those not interested in checking the link, the only songs played were those devoid of Opeth’s heavier side.  Songs from the new album were joined by older songs such as “A Fair Judgement” and “Credence” with nothing even remotely metal finding its way into the set.  I was in attendance for the show and it was quite interesting to feel the tension in the air.  The crowd was fairly receptive to the band but the air was charged as people were just waiting for something big and heavy to release that tension but it never came.  The new tracks did work really well live, which I expected as there’s a very natural and organic sound to the record, and most of the older tracks sounded quite good as well.  It still would have been nice to hear “The Lotus Eater” or “Deliverance” as a final song or encore.  This new approach even prompted a sort-of apology from Mikael as he kind of thanked the crowd for dealing with the difficulty of being an Opeth fan.

Heritage leaves Opeth in a curious position.  No one, not even the band, seems to know where this is going to lead.  Opeth has a reputation and a fan base that won’t let its popularity be diminished much, if at all, by this new direction.  It’s even possible the band could attract new fans, those who always liked the band’s mellow side but not the death metal aspect.  I won’t even try to speculate but I will continue to look forward to and consume everything this band releases.  Opeth is an extraordinarily talented outfit that never fails to put out engaging, thought-provoking, music and in that Heritage is just like all of their previous observations.

Some technical thoughts on the collector’s edition release:

The collector's edition of the album includes quite a lot of stuff.

The bonus tracks, “Pyre” and “Face in the Snow,” are quite good but also sound as if they were left off the album for a reason.  “Face in the Snow” is the better of the two and sounds like it could have easily fit onto the Damnation record.  It kind of ends abruptly though and I wish some more thought had been put into that part of the song.  The two tracks, like the bonus tracks on Watershed, are annoyingly included on the DVD portion of the release and not the CD.  There’s a widget on the Opeth facebook page that’s supposed to let users download the tracks by inserting the DVD into their PC/Mac, but it wouldn’t work for me.  I contacted customer service for Push Entertainment, the company responsible for the widget, and they just suggested I clear my cache which solved the problem.

The DVD also includes a 5.1 mix of the album, so if you have a killer set up it might be worthwhile to give it a listen.  The real attraction, for me, is the included “Making of Heritage” documentary directed by Mikael himself.  It’s very similar to the one included on Watershed and goes in depth into the recording process of the album.  Mikael talks a lot about how Heritage was conceived and explains why it sounds the way it does, which considering the album’s drastic change in direction, is quite enlightening.  I am a terrible musician myself so I always enjoy and am fascinated by those opposite.  Watching the more mundane sections of the documentary are extremely interesting to me, they may not be for some.

The deluxe version of the album also contains a 7″ for the two bonus tracks, so at least owners of that can listen to them on something other than a television.  Each track has its own side, so no cool back-side artwork like the Throat of Winter single.  The deluxe version also contains the album on 180 gram vinyl and spans two records.  This version of the LP has a lenticular cover which is pretty cool.  There’s an oversized artbook and lyrics insert, as well as a print of the cover on sturdy paper.  I’d love to frame the print but it’s hard to find a quality 12×12 frame at stores.  The whole thing is housed in a hard slipcase with the cover art on the front and normal back cover design as well.  It’s quite pricey, but cool for the collector.  There’s still some available at the label’s webstore.

Top Tracks:

  • The Devil’s Orchard
  • Slither
  • Folklore

Leave a comment | posted in Music

September 17, 2011

X-Men Season 5 (Part 2)

By Joe

September of 1997 brought with it the final episode of X-Men, the animated series that first began airing on Fox Saturday mornings on Halloween of 1992.  Shows aimed primarily at kids often last only a season or two, but X-Men made it for 5 years and 76 episodes and to this day is still the longest running television show based off a Marvel Comics property.  While the show wasn’t able to maintain the momentum it generated in the first two seasons, it was largely a quality program for its entire run.  Here, in September of 2011, my series overview will come to an end with the final 4 episodes.  It was a lot of fun reliving my favorite show as a kid and if you wish to do so as well all of the episodes are available on DVD.  The DVD’s themselves are fairly unspectacular but all of the episodes are there and that’s what matters most.  I’ll probably make one more post on this subject to serve as a wrap-up, but this ends the individual episode examinations.

Old Soldiers

Uncanny X-Men #268 probably served as inspiration for this episode.

Now here’s an interesting idea for an episode of X-Men that also gives us a cameo from a classic Marvel character and further adds to the Wolverine mythos.  “Old Soldiers” is a flashback episode triggered when Wolverine visits the grave of someone who must have been important to him at some point in his life, but we’re kept in the dark for now.  The flashback details an outing Wolverine had during World War II where he was joined by none other than Captain America.  Wolverine and Cap are sent to rescue a scientist from the dreaded Red Skull.  We get to see the two break into the compound, confront the Skull and his goons, and escape in a thrilling fashion.

Captain America is depicted well and the writers give him some personality so he’s not some stale Superman clone.  They even go so far as to have Wolverine make fun of him for wearing his ridiculous costume but Cap has a good response illustrating that he’s more than a soldier, he’s a symbol.  The Nazi stuff is predictably toned down but not hidden entirely, which is nice.  Wolverine doesn’t yet have his claws, but the writers give him some slide-on ones that were supposed to help him and Cap scale a wall.  It’s kind of a cop-out and I wish they hadn’t bothered, plus they don’t look like they’d be very helpful for wall climbing.

Cap and Red Skull; it wouldn't have bothered me to see more of them.

There’s a nice little twist ending as well, that I won’t spoil here.  This episode was probably inspired by Uncanny X-Men #268, though sadly, they weren’t able to work Black Widow into the story.  The animation works pretty well, though I do dislike how wild Wolverine’s hair looks in the present time portion of the episode.  All in all, a cool one-shot and sadly the last of the Wolverine episodes.  As overexposed as Wolverine is, his solo episodes are very good and rarely disappoint.

Hidden Agendas

This episode contains another first-time cameo, this time it’s the mutant Cannonball from both the New Mutants and X-Force.  Unfortunately, it’s one of the least memorable.

Rogue and Gambit's new look.

Rogue travels to the south to meet a young coal miner who was recently exposed as a mutant to his small town.  Rogue presents herself as a teacher (borrowing Gambit’s last name) in an attempt to reach out to the young Sam Guthrie.  Surprisingly, Sam does not encounter much hostility from the locals but soon some government agents show up and start meddling around.  The resulting scenes are so predictable they’re dull, and in the end Sam ends up staying right where he is.

The episode is notable for the debut of Gambit’s new voice actor, whom I don’t particularly care for too much.  I also don’t like how Rogue looks with this new animation style as she seems to have more of a toon quality than most.  It proves distracting and undermines the episode’s serious plot.

Descent

Here’s an interesting episode I never thought we’d see, and perhaps the best of season 5.  “Descent” is another flashback episode though we’re not really certain who’s flashback it is until its close.  It takes place in old London and focuses on two characters, Dr. James Xavier and Dr. Nathaniel Essex.

Dr. Essex is brewing something sinister.

Obviously, Xavier is a descendent of the Charles Xavier we know.  Comic book readers will know who Essex is through name, but most television only viewers will easily figure out that he’s in some way related to the villain Mr. Sinister.  Xavier and Essex are rivals who both approach the work of Charles Darwin differently.  Xavier believes genetic mutation is random while Essex believes it can be influenced by science.  Essex takes the same view that Magneto will, which is that mutated humans are the next step in human evolution and thus destined to be superior.

The episode appropriately illustrates the descent of Nathaniel Essex from public ridicule to outright scorn.  Essex is soon discovered to be experimenting on his own wife and a mob is organized to confront him and chase him out of town.  This basically forces Essex to begin experimenting on himself which ultimately leads to the birth of Sinister.

This is just a bad ass picture of a Victorian Sinister, one that needed inclusion in this post.

This episode is just a great character study and gives the audience insight into how Sinister’s philosophies were born.  Seeing Sinister get rejected by Darwin is also a fun visual and giving a more personal rivalry to the Sinister/Xavier conflict is also welcome, as before this episode the two characters really didn’t encounter one another much.  I suspect for kid viewers this one may have been a little dull but I consider it one of the most underrated episodes for the series.  A true hidden gem.

Graduation Day

And here we are, the final episode.  Unlike most shows, X-Men gets a proper series finale and does provide some sense of closure.

The basic plot of the episode reintroduces the conflict that got it all started; mutants and humans, Magneto and Xavier.  Old pal Henry Gyrich returns at the beginning (minus his trademark glasses and with a new hair color) as a speaker at a hearing on mutant rights and he springs an attack on an ill Charles Xavier that outs Xavier as a mutant (I never knew the public was kept in the dark this whole time, I suspect I’m not the only one).  The resulting attack combined with Xavier’s health lands Charles on his death bed.  The general mutant population is outraged, and war seems inevitable.

Jean finally gets to rock the yellow and blue.

The X-Men are left to deal with the resulting upswing in conflict, while Magneto lurks on the periphery.  Morph gets to make a return and poses as Xavier on television (the animation for his morphing power is terrible, by the way) in an attempt to quiet the masses.  Meanwhile, Cyclops, Jean, and Wolverine head off to find Magneto and hope to quiet his rebellion.  Mutants have amassed around some cave Magneto is apparently living in, lead by Sunfire.  They are patiently awaiting direction from their leader who has yet to show himself.  The X-Men sneak in a rear entrance they uncover and confront Magneto after he destroys the blackbird.  Magneto, foolishly believing the X-Men were that easy to take out, is taken unawares but soon gains the upper hand.  When Jean springs the news on him that Xavier is dying he is stunned, and thus begins his monologue.  Magneto is understandably torn.  He loves Xavier as a brother despite their rivalry, and yet now is his chance to realize his own dream.  Suddenly, Jean realizes Magneto could help save Charles, and Magneto reluctantly agrees to accompany them back to the mansion.

Magneto’s powers somehow are able to amplify Xavier’s and he is able to awaken momentarily.  This grants us a final scene where Charles is able to go around the room and individually acknowledge and say goodbye to each member of the X-Men from his bed, including Morph and Magneto.  Some of it is genuinely touching, particularly his good bye to Cyclops, but once complete it looks like Xavier’s time is up.  Then out of no where, Lilandra teleports in and slaps some device on Xavier’s forehead.  She lets the X-Men know that the technology of the Shi’Ar can save their beloved professor, but in order to do so she must take him away and is unsure if he’ll ever be able to return.  Thus the episode comes to a close with Xavier imparting words of encouragement telepathically.  As the screen fades we’re left with a final group shot and many questions.  Is Morph finally back on the team?  Is this what is needed to get Magneto to finally marry himself to Xavier’s cause?

Obviously, these questions are never to be answered as the show is brought to a nice conclusion.  If I have one complaint about this episode it’s that the pacing is off.  Everything moves far too quickly due to time constraints.  I would propose that this episode should have at least been a two-parter, if not more, with Magneto’s army being bigger and more impressive.  It also could have served to get more cameos into the mix as mutants are forced to choose sides.  The lesser episodes of season 5 could have been scrapped to accommodate this, but sadly the writers didn’t have the foresight to do this.

Nonetheless, “Graduation Day” is a fitting farewell to our mutant heroes and one that is all too bittersweet.  Some of the more narrative heavy episodes of season 5 and the renewed human-mutant conflict of the final episode illustrate that this show still had legs, if placed in the proper hands.  Still, it was a good run and a faithful portrayal of the X-Men that has been equaled by no other movie or television series since.

So long X-Men, and thanks for the memories.

Leave a comment | posted in Comics, Television

September 15, 2011

Edguy – Age of the Joker

By Joe

Edguy - Age of the Joker (2011)

I’m not sure what my expectations were for the new Edguy album, Age of the Joker.  Ever since 2004’s Hellfire Club, the band’s first outing on Nuclear Blast, Edguy has been incorporating more and more elements of traditional metal and hard rock into their music and less of the power metal they were known for.  This has caused a bit of a rift with their fan base.  Some long for the days of Theater of Salvation and Mandrake and a great chorus of fans deride the band’s new sound.    At the same time, the group’s exposure increased and as a result so did its popularity, and we all know what that does to the “hardcore” fan base.

Hellfire Club served as a breakout, and the following album Rocket Ride furthered that while also further removing the band from its power metal roots.  Following Rocket Ride, frontman and brainchild Tobias Sammet took some time off to create the next Avantasia record before returning for 2008’s Tinnitus Sanctus.  Tinnitus once more saw a reduction of the power metal sound, almost eliminating it entirely, in favor of more mid-tempo tracks and hard rock riffs.  The press was fairly positive at first, but fans did not seem to enjoy it as much.  The album was unbalanced and for every good track there seemed to be an under developed one.

Tobi and the boys are back with their 9th studio album.

For those who hopped off the Edguy band wagon following Tinnitus Sanctus I will say the latest album Age of the Joker is a marked improvement.  However, those longing for the old power metal sound should not bother.  Some of the pre-release hype for AOTJ has called it a return to form but that seems quite misleading.  If trying to compare AOTJ with prior Edguy works is necessary, then I would say it is best described as a melding of Hellfire Club’s heavy riffing with Tinnitus Santus’ rock undertones.  And really, the album is at its best when it goes for that sound.  When the band tries to stretch the songs out into something epic, such as with the lead track “Robin Hood,” things stumble and the band struggles to keep the song interesting.  In the very specific case of “Robin Hood,” the subject matter just doesn’t lend itself well to an epic 8 minute song.  Sammet tries to play it tongue and cheek with some sophomoric humor thrown in (Robin Hood is just trying to get someone to caress his “Little John”) but the vocal melody for the chorus just doesn’t fit.  Some of the attempts at humor fall flat as well, such as Robin being out for “bling,” and the middle section just doesn’t work.

The album is immediately redeemed with the next song, “Nobody’s Hero,” a blistering rock track with a great chorus.  The lead riffs are some of the album’s best and everything comes together well.  The momentum is carried on into the anthemic “Rock of Cashel” but does stumble once again when the band tries to stretch out another long track with “Pandora’s Box.”  The song meanders along alternating between the interesting and the dull.  The middle section features an oddly placed blues section where Tobi’s vocal cadence reminds me of Bad era Michael Jackson.  That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it did make me nearly laugh out loud while listening to the album on the train.

The rest of the album contains more high marks with songs like “Breathe” and “Faces in the Darkness.”  The album never truly breaks out a power metal track like Tinnitus did with “Speedhoven” but that’s okay.  Most of the songs are well developed and contain plenty of trademark catchy Edguy melodies.  Sascha Paeth is back in the producer’s chair and the result is the typical polish one would expect of a Sascha Paeth album.  Everything has a nice sheen to it without sounding over produced.  If I had one complaint with the production it’s that the line between Edguy and Avantasia continues to blur.  I guess so long as both outfits continue to put out quality records that’s not such a big deal.

The rest of the album isn’t all gold.  “Behind the Gates to Midnight World” is too long and could have been trimmed down, and I find the album’s closer to be overly sappy and corny, but every Edguy album apparently needs to contain a Bon Jovi-like ballad to round things out.

Overall though I’ve enjoyed Age of the Joker quite a bit.  I don’t know where I would place it amongst Edguy’s other albums but time shall sort that out.  Start to finish it’s one of their catchiest releases that will likely prove pretty accessible for new fans.  Old fans who enjoyed Hellfire Club and Rocket Ride will find plenty to like here as well, though if you’re looking for that speedy, Helloween type of stuff you’re probably better off looking elsewhere.

Top Tracks

  • Nobody’s Hero
  • Faces in the Darkness
  • Fire on the Downline

Leave a comment | posted in Music

September 11, 2011

Star Fox 64…3D!

By Joe

Fox pilots his way into the world of 3D.

There’s no denying that the Nintendo 3DS got off to a rocky start, rocky enough that a significant price cut has already taken place less than 6 months after the initial launch of the system.  The 3DS has struggled not because it’s a bad machine, but because the software has been pretty weak.  The eshop wasn’t ready at launch and the closest thing to a killer app the system had was a port of a 2 year old fighting game.  Well, the times are finally changing.

In June the 3DS received its first big Nintendo release, The Legend of Zelda – Ocarina of Time 3D, and now here in September we have number 2, Star Fox 64 3D.  Now, the contrarian is going to argue just how great these titles could possibly be considering both are re-makes of Nintendo 64 games that are each over 10 years old.  And in the case of Star Fox, we’re talking about a remake of a remake as the original was a remake of the original Star Fox for Super Nintendo.  And really, it’s tough to argue the point.  Yes, both are remakes and while the graphics have received a complete overhaul the games themselves are still largely the same.  OOT benefited by having the Master Quest added to the package which had previously only been released for Gamecube as a bonus for those who pre-ordered Wind Waker.  Star Fox 64 3D is still largely the same as well, but there are a few additions worth covering.

A screen shot from the original "Star Fox 64."

First, the game can be played with a new control scheme that utilizes the system’s built in gyroscope technology.  This means you control Fox by moving the 3DS around instead of using the circle pad.  It’s kind of interesting to mess around with, but if anyone claims to prefer this scheme over the circle pad I’ll probably give them a pretty queer look.  It’s just not very intuitive, and I have yet to use it in game beyond the tutorial.  Star Fox also has a new gameplay mode simply called 3DS.  It’s basically an easy version of the N64 game.  Enemies are easier, continues are allowed, and Fox can take more damage.  The one cool addition is the ability to select what world you go to next, rather than letting the game dictate what path you’re on.*  It’s an easier way to experience every level in the game instead of figuring out how to beat each level in order to advance in a different way.

*For those who never played the original, the game advances depending on how you finish a level.  There’s a designated easy and hard finish for each level and opting for the hard way is the only way to experience the game’s true ending.

And a screen shot from the same level in "Star Fox 64 3D," notice a difference?!

The last big addition is obviously the 3D.  I will say, of all the 3DS games I’ve played so far Star Fox 64 makes the best use of the effect that I’ve seen.  Using 3D actually adds to the experience, in a minor way.  It helps you more easily judge what enemies are closest and prevents the enemy polygons from overlapping as much giving you a clearer picture.  That said, I still tend to opt to play with the effect turned off as I just find it too distracting.  I also tend to move the 3DS too much which causes a blurring effect when the 3D is turned on.  Which also renders those special 3DS controls useless if you wish to have the 3D visuals turned on.

Outside of those changes the game is basically the same experience.  That is to say, it’s a lot of fun and presents a satisfying challenge.  On Nintendo 64 mode, the game goes old school and ‘Game Over’ means what it says as there are no continues.  The game does save after each level so you can leave and come back, but it only has one available save slot.  There is however a handy ‘Guest’ mode that allows a friend to play on your 3DS without saving over your game.

The visual upgrade is quite nice and gives the game a nice, clean, look.  Let’s face it, the visuals of the Playstation/Nintendo 64 era have aged rather poorly.  I’d argue even worse than the 16 bit era, so the enhanced graphics are quite welcomed.  The gameplay is fast and frenetic and you may get pissed from time to time.  The good thing though is that practice makes perfect.  I never owned any Star Fox game before this one because I was always terrible at them, but it didn’t take me long to beat this one (not the hard route, mind you).  In fact, that is one of the downsides to this game as the single player game is very short and will take most gamers a little more than an hour at most.  It’s a game that’s made to be replayed though and one that expects you to come back and try to beat your best score.

This game is loaded with epic boss encounters.

There is a multiplayer component as well, but I haven’t tried it.  It’s kind of cool in that you only need one gamecart to play with friends, the downside is that it’s local Wi-Fi only.  Why Nintendo continues to screw up online play in their games is one of the great mysteries of life.   This makes the multiplayer a negative.  Another negative for the game is the voice acting, it’s horrible.  I don’t care for any of the voices, maybe I’m just picky, but I find them awful.  Another negative, and this is going to sound kind of odd, are the ending credits.  They last nearly 10 minutes!  That might not seem like a big deal but this is a portable system.  If you finish the game while riding on the train you’re kind of out of luck for the next 10 minutes while the ending credits slowly trickle by.  I never understand why some games force the player to watch the entire credit sequence, it doesn’t make me appreciate all the hard work these individuals did, it just makes me resent them.*

*Upon paying more attention the next time through, I noticed that you do get the option to skip the credits right away.  Not sure if you’re SOL if you miss that and I think you miss out on the little story-line bit at the end, though no one is likely to play this game for its plot.

The cons for this game are, in the end, pretty minor.  If you’re someone who enjoys arcade-like flight simulators or someone who enjoyed the previous incarnations of Star Fox I’m willing to bet you’ll enjoy this take.  Really, the biggest con for this game is that it’s a remake and I’d understand if some people just aren’t all that enthusiastic about re-buying a game they may have already played to death (especially for those who picked up the Virtual Console version for their Wii).  If you’re in the mood though for some Star Fox action, Star Fox 64 3D delivers.  Now Nintendo, let’s see an awesome, all new, original game for the 3DS please!

Leave a comment | posted in Video Games