LEGO Marvel Superheroes Review

The last time the Marvel Universe banded together for a world-encompassing game was in the less than stellar Ultimate Alliance 2 five years ago. (Yes we're all still wondering why The Avengers game adaption was replaced by Battle for Earth.) The LEGO format by now is no stranger. We've had the very successful LEGO Star Wars and more recently LEGO Batman. (If that wasn't enough, expect LEGO The Hobbit soon.) As shocking as it may be, Warner Bros. actually produced this game. That's basically the equivalent of a Marvel show airing on Cartoon Network. So, does this game cash-in on the Marvel Cinematic Universe phase using the LEGO format or is it something a little more? LEGO Marvel Superheroes is a very nice time for longtime and new fans alike. It perfectly strikes a balance that appeals to everyone. In a world where gory violence dominates the industry, it's very nice to see a happy and cheerful gaming experience.

Loki has returned and alongside Dr. Doom has banded together all the major villains of the Marvel world. It'll take the combined forces of the Avengers, Fantastic Four, X-Men, Spider-Man and more to stop them and the hungry Galactus whom is edging closer and closer to Earth. The game knows what it is: a parody of the comics and Cinematic Universe. It's a lot of fun, and surprisingly the writing is very good. I say surprising because with anything modern Marvel related when it comes to cartoons and the like, you'll see the writing is geared toward the younger audience with no care whatsoever about its longtime fans. Here it's legitimately funny, you'll find yourself smiling throughout the surprisingly long playthrough.

The gameplay is identical to the other LEGO games. Of course, playing as the Marvel heroes should be a different experience, and it is. Every character's abilities is wonderfully realized. From Spider-Man's webslinging to Storm's lightning, the game makes great use of the characters and their unique abilities. The actual levels are pretty well thought out. Despite the game's often large cast per level, each character is put to good, equal use. The playthrough is definitely long, you'll most likely be spending a week on it. Plus, that's only about 12% of the entire game. The Hub World (New York City) is home to an abundance of other things to do. So this game has plenty of replay value after you beat the main story. (And the fact there are over 100 characters to unlock adds to that incentive.)

The obvious negative is the really odd decision to make the characters invincible. It's impossible for you to lose. If you explode into a million LEGO pieces, you reform seconds after. It doesn't really hurt the gameplay experience, but it must be mentioned. Every video game should be able to make you lose, otherwise there's no challenge. That's what a game is, you win or lose. That's why I don't like the recent things Nintendo has done with their games, such as in Super Mario Galaxy 2 and New Super Mario Bros. U where if you keep losing the game gives the option of bypassing the level.

Despite being in the loading screen, the Silver Surfer doesn't do anything in the story and ends up being knocked out for most of it. Fans of Galactus will probably be disappointed with his portrayal. Throughout the story he's hyped as the big boss but in the end Loki ends up controlling him for the final fight. (Gotta love how Marvel prioritizes him over characters like Galactus.) The boss fights are definitely solid. The final battle is nicely grand in scale. I am particularly pleased with the way Spider-Man was portrayed throughout. (He's better portrayed here than in his own cartoon!) This being based mainly on the Cinematic Universe, you'll be having plenty of laughs. (Such as Coulson promising Cap he'll make sure the Statue pf Liberty is repaired.) Speaking of that, it was genius to have Magneto controlling the Statue of Liberty and using it as a weapon, I don't think we've ever seen something like that before.

Overall, LEGO Marvel genuinely surprised me. I wasn't expecting much, but it ended up being one of the most fun times I've ever had with Marvel. The writing is fantastic, you'll be having a blast watching the cutscenes. With a pretty solid comic book-like soundtrack, the game rarely becomes boring. There's plenty to do to in the really expansive New York City hub world. Whether you're a fan who's been reading since 1962 or a brand new fan thanks to the movies, LEGO Marvel Superheroes is well worth your time.

4/5

A Smile Says it All

There's a lot of harshness wherever you go. Whether you're in the 'glamorous' Las Vegas or Lower East Side, you'll run into plenty of cold-hearted people. That's why a smile is one of the greatest things in the world. It shows you giving acknowledgement to another individual. And it also makes you happier on the inside, a cool psychological effect.

Let's look at the Christain perspective.

One song I've recently discovered is 'Smile' by Kutless.

 Though everything's the same inside there's something real

A faith which causes me to change.

I think a smile says it all

In any given situation, the Christian has the ability to smile, even through the hardest of things. Why is that? Because we know Someone is always with us, and that we'll be experiencing true happiness in the end. As the Casting Crowns says it, "I will praise You in this storm." Look at it another way. The atheist, the unbeliever, doesn't have much reason to smile unless they're "high up in the food chain."

A non-believer struggling in various aspects of life has absolutely no reason to smile, because they have nothing to look forward to and more often than not feel alone with an emptiness inside. There's always the saying, "I'm lucky to be alive." But if one is living in poverty or struggling greatly in another area and doesn't have anything to look forward to, there's not much reason to be happy, or even pretend to be, is there?

Always smile. Even when you don't feel like it. You'll more often than not make someone else feel good. And especially if you're going to wear a cross chain, go to church, or call yourself a Christian, just remember that

A SMILE SAYS IT ALL :D

SON OF GOD Review

They call him Jesus of Nazareth.

Despite being the Bible, it has not been explored in the movie industry as much as it should have. In fact, the last major Christian movie was The Passion of the Christ, which was ten years ago. And before that, the last 'big one' was The Ten Commandments, from 1956! Since The Passion, there have been a number of Christian movies such as Fireproof and Courageous. But outside the the Biblical audience, those films aren't that well known to others. That is what's so exciting about Son of God. The announcement came almost out of nowhere, I was shocked that it would be an actual theatrical release worldwide. Now that it's officially out, how exactly was it?  There will be complaints, of course. Liberties are taken. But in the end, it does what it sets out to do: tell the story of Jesus Christ.

What a lot of people don't know going into the theater is that this movie was actually part of The Bible mini-series awhile back on the History Channel. What they did was splice together certain parts for a movie experience. Some of it you can tell has more of TV budget than film, but it's nothing too bad. The intro I particularly liked, a very nice prologue featuring all the key Bible Scriptures from the Old Testament. After that, we head on over to the main story. The film is over two hours, so I can't believe I'm saying this, but it could have actually benefited from another hour. The birth scene could have been longer and more detailed. The fact that the Satan scenes were removed didn't help matters. How great would it have been to see the Three Temptations adapted for the big screen? It was a truly missed opportunity.

Diogo Morgado had an interesting thing ahead of him; portraying Jesus is always a challenging but accomplishing task. I am definitely pleased with how the portrayal came out. He portrayed happiness, righteous anger, and sadness effectively. He nicely delivered all the core verses Jesus said in the Scriptures. The Disciples, while technically getting screen time, don't stand out other than being "the disciples of Jesus." Only Peter and Judas really are given importance, even John the Baptist is surprisingly not a big deal in the film. But, Mary Magdalene is. She was definitely one of the best written of the people in the whole thing. The strange thing however is that she's featured a lot more than John, (almost every five minutes) and was made out to be a more important figure than what was said in the Scriptures when compared to The Baptist.

The 'antagonist,' Pilate, (Greg Hicks) is done well enough. He's a harsh Roman emperor, and the film displays that perfectly. The story does a nice job displaying how big the Romans were at the time in comparison to the citizens. What I personally like about this film more than The Passion is that since it covered the life of Christ, it managed to have key scenes the aforementioned movie couldn't include. We have the paralyzed man from the roof, the woman who was about to be stoned before Jesus said, "Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her," the resurrection of Lazarus, and when he knocked over the tables in the Temple. The latter scene I felt was very well done. It could have gone the other way and make Jesus look like a berserk man, but the film nailed it perfectly. (The tax collector scene was also very good.)

The thing, however, about the movie is that it assumes the viewer knows everything about the Scriptures it's based on. So key scenes such as Judas hanging himself are rushed because it assumes the viewer knows this ahead of time. Also, some of the lines are very robotic and could have been handled better. The biggest culprit is perhaps the scene where Peter denied Jesus three times. We know it's going to happen, but the problem is that it feels and looks scripted, as if he's reading an off-screen paper with the lines. Mary surprisingly doesn't play a huge factor here. But, her actress does a nice enough job displaying the emotion of a mother losing her son.

It's hard not to compare the final act to The Passion. Let's get one thing out of the way: yes, the Passion's portrayal of it was definitely more powerful and emotion inducing. But, that's not to say the Death wasn't handled that great here. It does the job very well, with great emotion portrayed by Diogo. It's a nice reminder that while He was God, He still had the flesh of a man, and thus felt pain. The entire Cross scene was well done. I also like how well the film does explaining the reason why Jesus was crucified. (Aside from the Spiritual reason.) Here we have this Man forgiving people's sins and claiming to be the Son of God, a clear blasphemy to some of the Jews at the time. The story does a great job explaining this, even more than The Passion. The soundtrack is pretty much what you'd expect. It goes nicely with each scene, and has good choir for the emotionally powerful ones.

Overall, SON OF GOD is a pretty great watch. Yes, it does take some liberties, and changes a few things, but in the end, it's hard to complain since what we get is a great telling of the life of Jesus. It could have used more scenes detailing certain things, and the fact that the Three Temptations wasn't included was immensely disappointing. But, despite any lingering complaints, the film succeeds in what it wanted to do. It might be a long time before we see Jesus on the big screen again, so the film is special in that regard too. We're all going to have our personal faults with it for taking some liberties, but by the end when He's on the Cross you'll forget about everything. SON OF GOD is definitely worth a watch, for anyone.

I am coming soon.

4/5

Pokemon Origins Review

2013 was a big year for the Pokemon franchise. If you're even just a casual gamer, you know what I'm talking about. Pokemon X & Y debuted. Not only did it revolutionize the gamplay, it also brought in a lot of newcomers to the series, such as myself. Like a lot of people, I grew up watching the early seasons of the Pokemon anime. I believe I stopped at around Diamond and Pearl. The problem with the anime is that after the Johto Region Tournament, the show didn't really go anywhere. Worst, Ash seemed to have lost all his character development from the past seasons. After Advanced, the show was just a turnoff to longtime fans. Enter Origins. a one-shot being a new adaption from square one. Yes, 'Red' from Pokemon Red Version is the star. For the first time in a long while, a Pokemon anime looks epic. Origins is definitely a great watch. It's a testament to how a Pokemon show should be done.

The story is adapted from the franchise's first game. The main character Red wants to become Pokemon Champion. Along the way he's sidetracked with other things and constantly running into his rival, Gary Oak Blue. A very cook gimmick about this special is that it actually uses the classic battle theme and gaming screens, as if this was the actual game you were playing. It's a nice touch, especially for longtime players. Lets's dive into the meat of things. Since this is based on the very first game, you see a lot of the same characters from the anime's first season. Professor Oak is pretty much the same. Brock is a vast improvement over his comic relief anime self, I enjoyed his many great lines. Sadly Misty doesn't do much or get any lines.

And that's perhaps the only major problem with this special, the pacing. You can't fit a whole game with 8 gym battles in just 90 minutes, or four episodes. You need at least a season of 13. Honestly, this would have been better as a show than one-shot OVA. Red tells us by narration in-between episodes all of his accomplishments. It feels rushed, even his battle with the Elite Four we couldn't see in all its glory. We also didn't get to see how Red's first encounter with Giovanni went down. A lot of the good stuff is just simply done by quick narration.

It's hard to nail down the personality of a silent protagonist from a black and white video game from the 90's. Red pretty much is the same as Ash Ketchum from the earlier seasons, a trainer that loves his Pokemon and does the right thing. Blue is a big jerk throughout, which is expected. But wow, walking away from helping the secretary? He goes from being cool rival to unlikable antagonist. Giovanni is very similar to his anime self, except he's actually less Dr. Eggman and more like a villain. His turnover to disbanding Team Rocket was kinda sudden, (again, this plot development would have benefited from being a series) but nonetheless he was solid.

One of the best things this OVA generates is genuine emotion. In 90 minutes, it showed more emotion than the entire 17 season anime! Cubone's story was incredibly done. But, easily the best thing is that the fights are utterly fantastic. Actual punches are seen on screen and there's a sense of epic-ness the anime fails to portray. This is a testament to how battles in Pokemon should be done. And finally, one of the biggest hyped things was the inclusion of Mewtwo and Mega Charizard. Once again, the fact that it's only 90 minutes doesn't give Mewtwo enough time to have a proper story. But, Mega Charziard was definitely awesome and the fight between the two was just as good as a Dragon Ball Z battle.

Overall, Pokemon Origins is a refreshing new take on the classic game. There's no denying that the anime has turned into a repetitive mess, (at least the current XY anime is so far solid) so it's nice to see a more mature and 'epic' thing. The only real problem is there isn't enough time to invest in a lot of the plot points. Most of the gym battles are done through 5 second narrations. But despite that it's a great watch. Finally Pokemon fights are epic and on par with high-tier anime battles. It's a shame it's a one-shot, hopefully we'll get more down the road.

4/5

WORLD WAR Z Review

WORLD WAR Z received all the wrong kind of hype when it was first unveiled. At the screening for the 2012 Super Bowl viewers saw a teaser for it. The problem? It was mysterious, and not the good kind. It didn't show us any real reason why someone would pay $12 to see it. It was one of the most poorly made teasers ever created. And the fact that it would be deviating from the novel it was based on didn't help matters. But then it came out, and lo and behold it actually garnered some good reviews. It ended up being one of the surprise hits of 2013. Zombies in Hollywood is nothing new, in fact many call it an ongoing fad, same with vampires. There has been good zombie/infected flicks such as Dawn of the Dead and Quarantine, and hundreds of low budget, plain awful films. World War Z rises above the latter and aligns itself with some of the zombie greats. Director Marc Forster delivers a near-perfect experience, easily one of the best action-horror films in awhile.

The plot follows Gerry who is the key player in finding a vaccine for the zombie plague. He'll have to travel far and wide to get there while trying to live another day to see his family. This film plays out much like THE LAST OF US. The intro starts out where we meet the main character and his family. There are hints to what's happening on the TV stations and overall ominous atmosphere. The opening act is easily one of, if not the best part of the film. The perspective is very realistic and frightening to think that this could actually happen. The CGI zombie took away from that realism a bit, but it quickly picked up afterward. It's a great beginning, it sets up the tone and panic. It's not something you haven't seen before, but regardless it's handled marvelously.

The film perfectly creates an atmosphere of tension and unease, much like THE LAST OF US. The second part of the beginning act where Gerry and his family were in the apartment is a callback to those dark levels for people that played the aforementioned game. Brad Pitt is one of the bigger name actors out there, so naturally he's pretty much on screen the entire time. He does a solid job as the protagonist, nothing to complain about. His wife (Mireille Enos) has a genuine feel to her dialogue, plus the chemistry between her and Pitt is good. The daughters are your stereotypical terrified kids you find in these movies. There are quite a few other characters that pop up throughout the two hours. One of the more interesting ones was the deranged ex-CIA-agent, who sadly after his appearance doesn't appear again or is even mentioned. But pretty much everyone fits their roles nicely. (It was also interesting to see Agents of S.H.I.E.LD. star Ruth Negga in this.)

One of the things setting this apart from other zombie films is the location, which changes throughout. We have New York, then Newark NJ, and even Jerusalem. So in-between all the mayhem we're treated to some nice scenery. I bet you would never expect a zombie invasion in Israel, we're so used to seeing these things in American cities or suburban towns. The actual zombies don't disappoint. Like in Dawn of the Dead, they run at incredible speeds. There's a lot of action within the two hours. It's definitely more of an action movie than horror, which isn't a bad thing. We've seen a lot of movies where the characters are defenseless, so it's nice to see them taking on a proactive role.

The film never fails to unnerve the viewer. The only scene I didn't particularly care for was in the climax. After Gerry finds out the cure he starts walking back to the others past the un-dead. It's a bit cheesy and kinda ruins the mood. Thankfully the final few minutes with the narration makes up for that. There are plenty of great scenes throughout. From the Jerusalem invasion, to the plane, to the the W.H.O. Building, there's a lot of great set pieces. The soundtrack is pretty typical, it matches the scenes nicely enough. There's no memorable themes, but then again in this type of movie great music isn't such a huge factor.

Overall, WORLD WAR Z was a big surprise. It succeeds in being an action-horror film, a lot of fun but with plenty of scares too. The zombies don't disappoint, plus I don't think we've ever seen a film where they use each other to get over great walls. It's two hours, but it goes by rather quickly since it's paced really well. I hope it goes down as a 'classic' zombie flick, because it deserves it. I eagerly await a sequel.

4.5/5

Take Up Your Cross

Every day we're called to take up the Cross. Not just when we're feeling happy, not just on Sunday mornings, not just when we feel like it, but every day. It's not often the easiest thing to do, but we are called to do it.

How exactly does one fight the good fight of faith each and every day? How does one be a light in whatever area he/she is placed?

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." ~Philippians 4:13

The Cross has always remained the primary symbol of the Christian faith. Throughout the years it has become more of a symbol for general religion than on Jesus himself. The average person that sees it thinks automatically of 'religion' than the Death and Resurrection. The Christian however every time he/she sees the Cross it's a testament and reminder. It's a symbol of faith. That's why we often wear necklaces and chains of the Cross. I wear one every time I go outside and to work.

Of course, especially if you're going to wear something like the Cross, you have to be prepared to live by it.

Since I'm a cashier, I've seen a lot of people. And a good majority of them do have Cross/necklaces. But sometimes I think quite a few forget that they're showcasing their faith because of the way they act. They don't seem any different than the average person. Wearing a Cross is a broadcast of your faith, and if you're not going to be any different than the average person, you might as well throw it in the trash can.

Because being a Christian means taking up your cross daily.

There's a big mentality (especially among teens and young adults) that faith is something to keep to yourself. There's this 'coexist' nature that runs rampant. "If believing in Jesus works for you, fine. Just keep it to yourself." That's basically what a lot of the thought process is these days. That's not what Jesus would be doing. One shouldn't be afraid to talk about God. You'd be surprised at some of the conversations that can result.

One time I was talking to a girl who was helping me bag while I was working the register. She wasn't a believer, but not quite an atheist either. She said, "It would be ignorant to say there is no God." Everyone has a worldview. While you may not change them, you can plant a seed that God can grow.

Would you be willing to sacrifice anything and everything, whether it be a career or simple attitude adjustment, to take up your cross? Jesus said in Luke 9:23:

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me."

Pokemon XY Episode 3 'A Battle of Aerial Mobility!' Review

It's been quite a bit since the special 1 hour sneak peak of Pokemon XY, the latest Pocket Monster show. As a re-surged fan of the series thanks to the new games, I went into this show with mild expectations. I love the XY world, but the anime hasn't been quite 'good' since Advanced ended. But with every new season there's a chance for redemption. The two premiere episodes were solid, from there the show would either keep up the quality or deride itself into a repetitive mess. Thankfully if Episode 3 is any indication, XY could be the best Pokemon season in a long time.

This episode is separated into three points of views. First we have the main one which is on Ash, Clemont and Bonnie, second on Serena, and finally on Team Rocket. First we'll talk about Ash and friends. We see the protagonist update his progress to Professor Oak. I don't know when the latter's voice changed, but it's pretty awful. However, the action is when the Heroes go on their journey to the Santalune City Gym. In the beginning of the episode, Ash registered for the Kalos League. I'm going to assume this league will be in the climax of the season once he collects all the gym badges.

Before continuing, it's very important to mention the theme song. It's a fantastic remix of the original theme from Season 1! It gives the feeling that this season will be like the originals. Past all the cheesy friendship dialogue, we find the heroes in a forest when a Dedenne appears. These things are exclusive to X & Y and look remarkably similar to Pikachu. So naturally their brief 'encounter' proved fun enough. But, despite Dedenne's inclusion, the new Pokemon to watch for is Fletchling. Wow, if you ever thought that bird was a bit on the weak side, you'd have to watch the eisode. He plays the main characters for a bunch of fools. The battle between him and Froakie was fun with pretty smooth animation. The battles in this season are proving to be solid, I'm looking forward to the 'big' ones. So the two major things that come out from this part of the story is Froakie learning to trust Ash and the latter catching a Fletchling. The bird should prove to be a great addition, I already personally prefer him to Froakie.

It is interesting that this season is taking its time with having Serena and Ash being partners on the journey. She's proving to be a fun protagonist. I still miss her more serious in-game personality, but she could be worse. I'm sensing these two will be close friends as the show goes on, maybe something even more? Then again, it's easy to forget that Ash is still like 10 years old seventeen seasons later...which doesn't make much sense. Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing which Pokemon Serena picks. (Hint, it's Fennekin. The theme song spoils that surprise.)

Team Rocket...I just have to ask why? They serve absolutely no purpose. Thankfully they didn't have any run-ins with Ash, but their scenes were pretty filler-y nonetheless. But, we do learn one thing: Giovanni is still in business. Again, I just don't understand. In the theme song it shows Team Flare's logo, so why not just let them be the villains and Team Rocket take a break? Obviously the biggest thing from their point of view is that James catches an Inkay, who was trolling Team Rocket the whole time by stealing their food. Inkay must be some kinda weakling though if he could be captured without any attack necessary.

Overall, this was a really solid episode. Past the cheesy dialogue and filler Team Rocket, there's a lot of cool stuff going on. Fetchling has a lot of personality, even being as cool as the original Pidgey! The battle between it and Froakie was good, the animation is very nice.  The story so far is moving nicely, it remains to be seen if the pace doesn't falter.

4/5