(series review) - Blue Eye Samurai

 
I love anime, but if I am honest, I am the anime watcher of yesteryear. I loved Manga when I was growing up. I collected Guyver on VHS, New Dominion Tank Police, I had Project A-Ko and Akira is an absolute classic. Unless I am mistaken, Anime is the "new" Manga and I am not really into it. I am not caught up and I do not watch them all some interest me and some don't. I simply want something to capture my attention and satisfy my anime-watching needs occasionally. I used to watch The Boondocks and Afro Samurai. I got into Attack on Titan (but fell off), I watched Castlevania and watched Troll Hunters (but fell off), I don't know. I just need something a bit more engaging. When I heard about Blue Eye Samurai, I kept hearing good things so I decided to give it a go.  It is great!

In the time of the Samurai around the 1600s and the Edo period of Japan, a mixed race/bi-racial child was born. Frowned on by the locals, discriminated against, bullied and called names like demon and monster, the child was seen as an outcast which left them bitter and resentful. Not knowing who their father was, they made it their life-long mission to seek revenge on the man who made them this way, no matter who gets in their way.

I do like samurai movies and anime. There are a few Samurai-inspired games I am also interested in such as 'Ghost of Tsushima', 'Black Myth: Wukong' and 'Rise of the Ronin'. Afro Samurai was great and this series also reminded me of that, in some ways. A tale of revenge, not unlike most samurai stories, but this one is told through a few flashbacks here and there through the different stages of the warrior's life, what led them to where they are, what they are doing and what the warrior did in a challenging situation. I kid you not, there is a long sword fight which leads to the best long sword build-up I have ever seen in life. It was absolutely amazing, as well as clever. I want to go into it, but I also do not want to spoil it. Long Sword fight!

What I also liked about the show, was the characters. Well thought out and well voice acted. The way the story is told, you have a bad-ass samurai and you are shown how bad-ass they are, but you are also shown that the samurai is not invincible and I loved that. Getting a few punches here and there is one thing, but when your character is shown to be human rather than achieving the impossible, you tend to like and connect with the character more, well at least I do.

Clever, and witty with great music and animation. There is a top-down view I have NEVER seen in animation before and with the lighting and movement of the characters, I can only stress how visually entertaining and stunning this show is. They also took a few liberties in how they would also tell the story with the flashbacks, some were told in puppet fashion whilst others were in "black and white" with splashes of blood, a lot of blood. This series is gory, so expect to see blood splash everywhere. I am hoping for a season 2 because, I can only assume (due to the storyline) we can have 3 seasons, but if any of the other seasons are like this one, I will definitely be back to watch it. Bring on that trailer!!!

(trailer review) - Dune: Part 2

 

Star Wars is one of the best "sci-fi" franchises out there, next to Alien, Terminator and Predator. However, Dune is something that came out back in the day as well and if I am honest, nobody really talks about it? Was it well received when it came out? Maybe, but people talk about Blade Runner which came out 2 years before. Alien 5 years before that and Terminator, a year after Dune. So, why didn't Dune do well? I could not answer that as I have not seen it and I am not sure if I really care to, but I have watched the most recent remake and it is phenomenal. Denis Vilenue directed something I feel, is just short of a masterpiece. Maybe it is my bias towards sci-fi, but everything in that movie was simply, well told, well acted and well visualised. It was a long movie, but you did not feel it. The ships looked amazing and the shear size of them. A story that is only starting to begin with the sequel. The film did a lot to show us who the main characters are, the side characters, the "villains" and the world/universe we are inhabiting while we watch. This trailer is simply no different. 

This trailer elevates the previous film. This trailer looks amazing. The last trailer, wow, but this is the third trailer and although I do feel a third trailer is a bit much for a movie coming out in March (but the strikes and such), this is a nice reminder to what will be in store so the film does not slip by us. It looks like we are going to see a divide between Paul and Channi. There are more players involved and people who will challenge Paul who is trying to fulfill his destiny which will bring about a prophecy he does not seem to be ready for. The fighting, the war, the sand worms. The first trailer showed Paul calling for a sand worm and riding it, this trailer, has the fremin riding them and it simply looks awesome. Do not get me wrong, this movie could face plant and be terrible...but, I think I trust in Denis to deliver at this point. I mean, if everything with the prequel went soo well, how can you lower the bar?

(trailer review) - The Boys: Season 4

I tell you what is interesting, there has been a lot of talk about Superhero fatigue, that people are tired of superhero movies, shows etc, it is everywhere. However, if this was correct, a show like this would not have the buzz and hype surrounding it. No, it isn't just the blood and gruesome kills. It is not the adult language or sexual content, it is the storylines. It is the drama behind the visuals. The Boys find a way to teach/say or even address issues other comic book shows and movies would not even dare to even think about. So with that said, there is a quality and execution issue and The Boys, three seasons deep and a spin-off show, Gen-V, does not suffer from that.

Numan is running for Presidency, Billy is dying, Homeland has his kid back and it also seems he is going to trial due to his behaviour back in the previous season, not to mention that large crowd of Homelander or Supes supporters. With new superheroes emerging as well, season 4 of The Boys seems as though it is going to take us on another 'The Boys' ride. If we are lucky, maybe, just maybe we will also have some people from Gen V come and join this season, especially when Homelander showed up in the last episode of Gen V. The showrunner behind this series knows what they are doing and they have not dropped the ball yet!