Jason X – Throwback 20

 

Originally published on Set The Tape

Friday the 13th might not be a franchise that many people give much respect, it’s a schlocky, silly, overly gory series of films about a killer that won’t die, so it’s not exactly going to win any awards. However, it was still a smash hit when the first film came out, and quickly established itself as one of the biggest franchises in horror cinema. As such, the single film gained a sequel, then became a trilogy, then a series that seemed as un-killable as its star, Jason Vorhees. However, it’s also fair to say that the series, like many long running horror franchises, had a shaky time, and seemed to not know what to do with itself.

When the time came to make the tenth movie in the series, in part to keep the character fresh in people’s minds whilst Freddy vs Jason was stuck in development hell, the producers knew that they would have to do something noteworthy to make them stand out. After having sent the immortal killer to both New York and Hell, where else could he go? Perhaps the one place that hasn’t been corrupted by capitalism? That’s right, Jason gets to go to space!

Pitched by writer Todd Farmer, the bold idea to send Jason into space in the far future was seen by most at the time to be a wild idea, perhaps too silly to be believable. Both Critters 4 and Hellraiser: Bloodline had made the leap to send their monsters into space (strangely enough, both in their fourth outing), and this had failed to do much for either franchise. However, thanks to a pretty tight script, some cool concepts, and seemingly everyone on the film knowing not to take things too seriously, Jason X actually worked.

The story of Jason X began in the year 2010, where the US government had finally managed to capture Jason Vorhees (Kane Hodder). Held at the Crystal Lake Research Facility, the government attempt to kill Jason repeatedly, over two years, but failed to execute the mass murderer. Whilst one of the scientists, Rowan LaFontain (Lexa Doig) argues that they should freeze Jason, preventing him from performing any more crimes, the military arrive to take him away, wanting to research into his regenerative abilities. During the commotion, Jason breaks out and proceeds to kill everyone in the facility. When he stabs Rowan he pierces the cryogenics pod, and the two of them are frozen.

From here we jump forward 455 years to an Earth that has long since been abandoned due to over-pollution and severe climate change (probably a pretty safe prediction for the future we’re currently looking at). A spaceship from Earth II arrives, carrying a history professor and his students on a field trip. The students discover the buried Crystal Lake facility, and find the frozen Rowan and Jason. Using their technology, they revive Rowan and heal her wounds, whilst keeping Jason frozen in storage. Whilst Rowan is shocked to learn that she has awoken in the future, her warnings about Jason come too late, as the killer thaws out and begins a murderous rampage aboard the ship as it makes its way through the emptiness of space towards humanity’s new home.

The pitch for Jason X is pretty absurd on a surface level; sending the killer to space is kind of silly. However, when you begin to look at the ways that this can create new story opportunities it kind of makes sense. By this point everything new and interesting that could have been done with Jason had, and making more movies would have just been new takes on the same formula. Changing things up was needed. And space presented a unique opportunity.

Once aboard the ship the characters were essentially stuck in one location. Yes, it could be large, with multiple levels and rooms through which to run and hide from the killer, but you’re still ultimately stuck with him. You can’t just get away and know he’s not going to find you when there’s nowhere to go. And the film uses this conceit quite well. The change in location also opens the door for interesting ideas. For example, the ship has hologram technology, giving the victims a chance to try and trick Jason. There’s an android, which allows for the opportunity for someone to actually be able to fight Jason with an actual chance of surviving. And most iconic of all, it allows Jason the opportunity to evolve.

Touted on the posters, and shown briefly in the trailers, Jason X was probably best known as the entry in the series where Jason becomes a cyborg. Blown to pieces by the ship’s android crew-member, it seems like Jason is stopped once and for all. However, thanks to the pesky medical nanites established earlier in the film, he’s repaired and becomes ‘Uber Jason’, a silver masked, cybernetic killer. Yes, it’s silly and over-the-top, but kind of delightfully so. It’s the kind of ridiculous you want from a film where someone’s smashing heads frozen in liquid nitrogen, or the killer is beating up holographic bimbos.

Unfortunately, not everyone at the studio had faith in the film, and thanks to little advertisement and a strangely staggered release, the movie performed poorly in the cinema, only making $16.9 million, becoming one of the worst performing films in the series. However, upon hitting home release it found a wider audience, and ended up making more than triple its budget in video, DVD, and merchandise sales, making it one of the most successful films in the franchise.

Despite the silly concept, and despite the poor box office, Jason X has become one of the more popular entries in the Friday the 13th series. It’s the film that folks who haven’t seen scoff at upon hearing about it, but that those that have watched it will defend. It’s not the best film ever made, it’ll never be called art, but if you’re looking for some ridiculous fun it certainly ticks a lot of boxes.

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Sword of Azrael: Dark Knight of the Soul #1 - Comic Review

 

Originally published on Patreon

Other than making a brief appearance in DC vs. Vampires: All out War, which isn't in the main DC continuity, I've not really seen much of Azrael over the years, which considering how big a character he is in one of the most famous Batman stories, Knightfall, it's a surprise that he isn't used more. Perhaps this is because some writer find him a hard character to pin down, and his strong religious connection can sometimes lead people to not really knowing what to do with him.

Well, it seems like Azrael is getting something of a revival, with not just one, but two comics released in the same week. The first, this one, isn't actually a new story, but collects together the three part story that featured in Batman: Urban Legends into one nice single issue that kick-starts his new series.

The story sees Jean-Paul navigating his new life in Gotham, where he works in a hospital as a porter during the day, and hunts down criminals at night as the masked vigilante Azrael. Azrael has discovered some strange things happening in Gotham, where the dead are rising, and believing that it could be God's divine intervention, wants to look into it.

Unfortunately, it turns out to not be anything to do with God, but a group looking into harnessing the healing powers of the Lazarus pits (similar to the work happening in Task Force Z). However, it turns out that there is a connection to the Order of St Dumas, and Azrael comes face to face with another holy warrior on a mission for her chapter of the Templar Order.

Azrael: Dark Knight of the Soul is a nice reintroduction to the character, especially for those who've not seen him much since Knightfall (there is a nice nod to his time in Justice League Odyssey where he went to space). the book seems to also handle his character better than I've seen a lot of other writers do, and Dan Watters seems to know how to write a character with a complex relationship with his faith that doesn't just turn into 'religion = bad'.

The book has some nice artwork too, and some of action scenes really pop off the page, especially the one where Azrael gets blown out of a building and the building is divided out into smaller panels with Azrael crashing his way from one to another. His new enemy also looks pretty cool, and her design compliments Azrael's quite nicely.

My biggest criticism with this one-shot it that it's not anything new if you've been reading Urban Legends, and if you're coming to this new it does get a bit clunky in places where the three parts are stitched together because there were supposed to be cliffhangers scattered in there. It also feels like a bit of a misstep bringing it out the same week as the start of his new series, especially as if folks are unsure about the character they have to take a risk on two issues at once, and this could ultimately harm sales, and could reflect badly on what's a pretty interesting character.

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Reign of Fire – Throwback 20

 

Originally published on Set The Tape

Most post apocalypse films use science to explain away the end of the world. Whether it be rampant global warming, viruses escaped from labs, or our own robot creations rising up against us, it tends to have some basis in reality that can be explained away, and often comes from humanity having done something it shouldn’t have. And whilst Reign of Fire certainly lays the blame for the end of the world at human feet, it’s not the kind of reason you’d expect from this genre. Instead of humans playing god and paying the price, we end up digging in the wrong direction when working on the London Underground, and unleash dragons into the world.

Reign of Fire begins in the early 2000s, where we join a young boy, Quinn, and his mother as she works on part of an expansion project for the London Underground, digging new tunnels beneath the city. When one of the machines discovers a huge cavern, Quinn goes into the ancient chamber to have a look around. However, inside he finds a creature from nightmares: a dragon. The creature escapes from the cavern, killing the workers, and reaches the surface. Quinn manages to survive, but his mother dies in the chaos.

We then jump forward twenty years in time to 2020, where Quinn  (Christian Bale) is part of a group of survivors holed up in an old castle in Northumberland. We learn that in the years between the release of the dragon, many more of the creatures began to appear, and their population skyrocketed to millions. Scientists concluded that the dragons were responsible for the extinction of the dinosaurs, and for ushering in the ice age, and that they may bring humanity to a similar end. Over the next twenty years this prediction is proved right, as the majority of the human race is destroyed by the creatures.

Quinn and his community struggle to survive in this dragon infested world, but hope for a better future appears when a group of American soldiers appear, led by the charismatic Denton Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey). The group claim to have killed dozens of dragons, and that they’ve figured out a plan that could result in the destruction of the entire species.

One of the things that really helps Reign of Fire is that the film leans into the ridiculous concept without ever treating it as anything other than completely serious. There are no cheesy one-liners, no camp; it’s treated with the same level of realism and horror that any other post apocalyptic movie is, it just happens to be that there are huge dragons flying around. Well, they’re actually Wyverns if you want to get technical, but they get called dragons in media so often people don’t seem to distinguish the two anymore.

The terror of the dragons isn’t downplayed, and the very first scenes of the movie where we get to see their awakening, and the resulting loss of Quinn’s mother are done in such a way to make it clear to the audience that these are creatures of terror, that they bring death and destruction, and that no one in this film is untouched by the tragedy. The actors have a sombre quality to them during the early scenes of the film where you get to see their small community. They’re doing their best to survive, to keep hope alive, but many of them seem resigned to the fact that they’re all going to die sooner or later, whether from dragon attack or starvation.

Whilst Christian Bale is a decent enough lead in this, and that he certainly plays the tired, grizzled leader well it’s Matthew McConaughey who steals the show as dragon killer Van Zan. McConaughey brings his usual level of charm and eccentricity to the role, and manages to be intimidating, charming, funny, and frightening all at the same time. It’s an unusual role for him, and it’s rare to see him as bulked up and buff as he is here. (As a side note, if you ever get the chance to read his autobiography Greenlights you definitely should for his wild stories, and his attempted exercise regime for this film is certainly bizarre, as he would drink a double shot of tequila for breakfast, run five miles barefoot through the desert, and wrestle cows. And you can certainly see that strange energy in his performance here.)

Despite the age of the film the effects hold up pretty well, and whilst there are a few cases of the CGI not quite looking perfect it doesn’t look awful. The practical effects are all very good, and the sets, costumes, and props help to keep the world feeling real and lived in, even if the dragons sometimes look a little obviously fake.

Reign of Fire is never going to be seen as a great piece of cinema, but it can be a decent enough piece of entertainment. If you’re looking for something a bit ridiculous with a decent cast this film certainly ticks those boxes. And in a world where so many movies take a more science based take on the end of the world it’s fun to go a little fantastical sometimes.

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Multiversity: Teen Justice #3 - Comic Review

 

Originally published on Patreon

I'm starting to become unsure of what I feel about this series. There are some things that I really enjoy about out. The gender swapped spin on the DC universe is a lot of fun, the characters are pretty enjoyable, and some of the changes to the world and the stories are really interesting. But it also feels like the story doesn't really know what it wants to do some times either.

This issue deals with the young team finding Raven, who's soul self has been lost along with Troy, who's been taken by the creepy church cult. The team are having to come up with a way of getting inside the church to try and find them, and need to figure out a way past their barriers using science and magic working together. This in itself isn't bad, but the execution of it feels overly long, and in places kind of meandering too. It feels like it could have been done a lot quicker and a lot more smoothly, but it gets kind of clunky in places too.

The story has also sent Aquagirl off to the planet of the Star Sapphires alongside some of the members of this version of the Justice League, and she ends up finding herself alone there and stranded. She's able to find the body of Hal Jordan, a member of the Green Lanterns, and takes his ring. Eventually, but some unexplained method involving the power rings, she's transported back to Earth to her friends. 

The stuff with her and the ring feels kind of vague, like we're not getting a full explanation as to why these things are happening. What we do get instead is a presentation about some of the differences of this universe, as the ring talks Aquagirl through the history of the different Corps. Whilst this whole side story eels like an excuse to give readers an info dump, I kind of liked the info dump. I love the Lantern stuff, and getting a handy couple of pages that explained this universes versions of them, and gave us a peek at the alternative versions of characters we know was fun.

Ultimately, it doesn't feel like a lot actually happened in this issue, though I do feel like I understand more. Hopefully some of the fun of the first issue will come back now that the team seem to be ready to launch their rescue attempt, and will be coming up against some evil Green Lanterns.

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Sherlock Holmes: A Detective's Life - Book Review

 

'The famous detective returns in a thrilling anthology of Sherlock short stories, all penned by masters of the genre, such as Peter Swanson, Cara Black, James Lovegrove and more. A brand-new collection of twelve Sherlock Holmes short stories which spans Holmes's entire career, from the early days in Baker Street to retirement on the South Downs.

'Penned by masters of the genre, these Sherlock stories feature a woman haunted by the ghost of a rival actress, Moriarty's son looking for revenge, Oscar Wilde's lost manuscript, a woman framing her husband for murder, Mycroft's encounter with Moriarty and Colonel Moran, and many more!'

One of the things that I really like about Sherlock Holmes stories is that they can work in almost any format. There have been short stories, novellas, novels, and stories that span multiple volumes and hundreds of pages. The character and his crime solving methods fit wonderfully into almost any style. And whilst it's great that there are so many books being published where the worlds most famous detective solves a case over hundreds of pages it can sometimes be nice to get back to the short stories. And Sherlock Holmes: A Detective's Life is a great new collection that has a huge variety on offer.

The book has twelve stories set across Holmes' life, and we go from him and Watson only recently having become friends, to them being longtime crime-fighting partners, to the final days of Holmes' life as he retires for his twilight years. 

The first story in this collection is 'The Adventure of the Spiritualist Detective' by Stuart Douglas. This is set not long after Watson has moved in with Holmes, and the text makes it clear that whilst the two o them have worked together a few times before this, it's still at a point where Watson is trying to pin down the kind of person Holmes is. As such, when the two of them are called in to investigate a strange haunting presence in the home of a well connected spiritualist it strikes Watson as unusual when Holmes begins talking about ghosts and the afterlife as if he believes in them. It's especially unusual when Holmes declares the home to be haunted and flees the property.

I really enjoyed this as the first story, because it instantly made the reader feel like these stories could potentially do anything. Fans will know that whilst Arthur Conan Doyle believed in spiritualism, Holmes very much does not; so him ranting and raving about ghosts makes you instantly unsure what's happening here. The story does some fun things with expectations, and delivers a pretty solid start to the book.

'The Tragic Affair at the Millennium Manor' by David Marcum is a slightly spooky affair, where a young woman returns to England after some time in India and begins to believe that her missing fiance is stalking her in her remote home. There's talk about two brothers vying for her affection, a remote cottage, and something awful hiding in the trees that makes this a particularly stand out tale early on in the book. It feels like one of those classic stories where the detective duo head off to a remote estate to look into a case, and where nothing is how it first appears. It's a slightly gruesome tale, and one that I loved reading in bed in the dark thanks to some particularly chilling moments.

Amy Thomas' story 'An Encounter With Darkness' differs from the other stories in this set because it's one of a few that aren't written from the point of view of Doctor Watson, and is instead told by Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock's brother. In this story Mycroft brings Sherlock into a scheme that he's been working on for a while, using his younger brother to help him make steps into infiltrating the criminal underworld under the control of James Moriarty. 

Moriarty is one of the most iconic villains in literature, and possibly the most famous character in the Sherlock Holmes mythos after Sherlock and Watson, as such, using him can sometimes be a daunting thing. You want to make sure that you get him right, and that you don't overuse him either. For those trying to write stories where it could fit in with the Conan Doyle tales, you also have to be careful not to mess with that lore. Thomas does an amazing job here by having Moriatry being this sinister background presence that haunts this story and looms over proceeding. It's a great tale that I found myself wishing could have gone on for longer.

'The Wild Man of Olmolungring' by Cavan Scott is another story that bucks the trend by having it told from a more unusual point of view; this time being from the diary of Sir Ernest Henning. Henning's tale follows his adventures in the Himalayas, where he and his team of explorers search for evidence of the Wild Man, the Yetti. Whilst on the mountain the group runs into a strange Scandinavian man alone up on the mountain in a snowstorm. When one of the expedition is attacked in the middle of the night the group begins to think that they might be close to finding their prize, but the newcomer believes otherwise.

This story stands out as one of the most unusual of the bunch, and doesn't follow many of the traditions of the typical Holmes story. It's in a completely different setting, has a new narrator, and doesn't seem to feature any of the characters that we know. However, there's a very definite Holmes story here underneath it all; and one that will probably surprise a lot of readers.

These stories aren't just set during the height of Holmes' career, however, as there are some that follow the consulting detective after his retirement, when he leaves London to make a home for himself in the countryside. 'The Adventure of the Third Cab' by James Lovegrove is the first of these stories, and sees Watson going to visit Holmes for one of his first times; but doing so with a strange set of instructions. Following Holmes' detailed list exactly, Watson ends up stranded in the middle of nowhere with more questions than he started with.

This is perhaps one of the more laid-back mysteries in the entire book, and it leads to a story that feels quite peaceful and calm more than anything else. It reflects the kind of life that Holmes has made for himself now, one where he can still get involved in a mystery or two, but ones that don't have lives hanging in the balance, or begin with a body being found. It has the feeling of a man who's retired but can't quite give up his old life, and works wonderfully for Holmes at this age.

The final story in the collection is 'Peril at Carroway House' by Eric Brown, and sees Watson going to visit a much older Holmes, one who is now living in a small apartment in Eastbourne. Holmes, who is in a wheelchair, has brought Watson in to help with a case that he feels is brewing on the horizon; and being proven correct as always, Holmes is soon approached by a young woman asking for his help. A young woman who is the daughter of Irene Adler.

This felt like a perfect story to end this collection on. It showed Holmes at his oldest, at a point in his life where he's left his crime solving ways behind, yet gets dragged back in because he's approached by someone with a strong connection to his past. However, this story is more complex than it first appears, and heads into some unexpected territory that whilst surprising, is extremely welcome.

Sherlock Holmes: A Detective's Life is a wonderful collection of short stories, all of which are enjoyable and entertaining, that show a variety of cases, a wonderful selection of mysteries, and Holmes at various points in his life. And no matter how these stories differ, how surprising and strange they are, how old or young Holmes is, each of them captures something about the character and the original tales that makes them so wonderfully popular and beloved.

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DC vs. Vampires #8 - Comic Review

 

Originally published on Patreon

The world as we know it is over, vampires rule , humanity is reduced to a food source trapped inside blood farms, the few that are free are being hunted to extinction, and the worlds most powerful heroes are now monsters. Things have never quite looked as bad for Earth as they do here.

With things being so dire, the remaining heroes are barely holding on to their will to keep fighting, let alone coming up with a plan to save everything. The magic users are trying to find a way of reversing the vampire infection, to little success, and the more scientifically minded are experimenting on Harley Quinn to try and turn her now deadly blood into a weapon to use on the undead.

The heroes have rescued Supergirl, but without her powers there's not much that she can do yet. So, a plan is formed to get her to Australia, where they hope that they will be able to find a spacecraft that will get her above the permanent night that surrounds the planet, allowing her to recharge in the sun's light.

But this isn't the only plan, as other survivors are coming up with last ditch moves of their own. Barbara Gordon, Black Canary, Harley Quinn, and Frankenstein set out to journey into Gotham, the seat of the vampire king's power, in hope of locating Dick Grayson and putting an end to him. Knowing that the mission doesn't hold much hope of success, and that another vampire will probably just take over as king anyway, the four of them still feel like it's about all they can do to challenge the oncoming end of everything.

Green Arrow also seems to have a mission of his own, and in the last pages of the book we see him having gone off alone; though it's not clear yet just what he's doing.

This kind of feels like a weird issue in the series, as everything before now has been focused on the destruction that the vampires are causing, on the killings, the loss of our way of life, on everything that's been taken. But this issue instead takes a slightly different approach, and looks to what might be left. We slow down and spend time with the survivors when they're not fighting for their lives, when they're trying to justify to themselves why it's worth fighting anymore rather than giving up.

In some ways this issue feels kind of hopeful, like there could be a way of changing things and saving the world, yet that hope feels so faint and so remote that it feels like a foolish one. James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg have done a good job at capturing the emotions you'd feel living through the end times, of wanting to believe in a better tomorrow, yet feel a sense of hopelessness at the same time.

There are only four issues left of this series (apart from the tie-in's) and it feels like we're moving towards the end game now. But honestly, I don't know if they even have a hope in hell of surviving, let alone winning.

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Dark Crisis #3 - Comic Review

 

Originally published on Patreon

Things aren't going well for the world without the Justice League. Deathstroke's army is continuing to attack any and all heroes that they can find, withe in instructions to go further than they've ever gone before. Beast Boy is a victim of this new attitude, and lays in a coma in hospital, shot in the head by Deathstroke himself.

As his friends and family gather around him, reeling from the attack, Jon and his new Justice League try to do what they can, now under the tutelage of Black Adam. Whilst at first this seems like a good idea, and the redeemed hero keeps trying to push the younger, inexperienced heroes to work harder and stronger, the thing we were all expecting finally happens; Adam goes too far.

With the villains willing to cross new lines, and the old Justice League gone, it seems like Adam is less willing to stick to his new morals, and pushes the new team to kill their enemies. The confrontation that comes from this is suitably tense as hell, and I've never seen Jon pushed to being this angry before; it even looks like it surprises the hell out of Adam because it's so unexpected from the character.

Thankfully, Adam is prevented from crushing Count Vertigo's head, but storms out. With the new League feeling like there's nothing that they can do they scatter, leaving Jon to wonder just what can be done. Luckily, there's more than just a League out there, there's a Society. The Justice Society of America is there to help, and I've never been more happy to see my favourite super hero team. The splash page of them arriving at the Hall of Justice is a definite artistic highlight of the series so far.

Elsewhere, Ravager tries to confront her father, and we see that there's more to Deathstroke than just his new outlook, as something dark and evil has gotten under his skin. It's still not clear what this is yet, but it instantly brings to mind Blackest Night and the black ichor that went along with the Black Lanterns.

Speaking of Black Lanterns, the assembled Green Lantern Corps travel to the world of the Black Lanterns and find a Black Power Battery has appeared, apparently lending some credibility to Black Adam's claims that Nekron fought the League. Entering the battery , Ha, Jo, and Kyle end up facing Pariah, and it seems like Hal has become trapped in one of the prison universes the League are stuck in.

A lot happens this issue, perhaps the most since the title began, and it really feels like things are ramping up. The Corps are preparing for war, the JSA are there to lead the Earth's heroes, and Black Adam has turned to the Legion of Doom and the villains unaligned with Deathstroke to join the fight. Earth and it's powered community are about to clash with forces of evil from beyond our universe; and it really feels like it's not going to end well.

As with the previous two entries in this series, it's been another superb issue.

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Alien 3 – Throwback 30

 

Originally published on Set The Tape

The first two films in the Alien franchise are widely considered to be the best in the series, and for many, the perfect blending of science fiction and horror. A large reason for their success was due to the time, care, and passion that was put into making them. The first film was developed over years, had a director who cared about the project, and sourced some of the best designers and craftspeople around. The second movie, which wasn’t rushed into productions, was much the same, as the studio waited until the right director with the right kind of vision came along. But after these two films the series took a bit of a dive in quality, and I believe this is in large part due to the troubled production of Alien 3, which has now turned thirty years old.

Following the success of James Cameron’s Aliens, 20th Century Fox wanted another Alien film to come out as soon as possible. The studio were so desperate to not only make the film, but to promote it as being bigger than the first two, that it released teaser trailers announcing the film’s release before a script had even been settled on. These trailers hinted that the xenomorph would be coming to Earth, something that doesn’t actually happen in any of the films in the series.

Having now announced the film, the studio quickly set to work finalising a story; something that fans of the series will know did not go well. Compared to the first two films, which went through relatively few treatments, Alien 3 went through development hell. A script by William Gibson proposed a story that took inspiration from the Cold War, and would see Michael Biehn’s Hicks stepping into the lead whist Sigourney Weaver would only feature in a cameo role. This version would later be adapted into a novel, a comic series, and an audio drama. Another treatment by Eric Red had everyone from the second film dying, and the alien creatures attacking a small town under a bio dome on an alien planet. And another, by David Twohy would see the duplicitous Wayland Yutani corporation performing illegal experiments on a prison planet.

The treatment that came closest to being created was by Vincent Ward, and saw Ripley’s escape pod crashing onto an artificial, wooden planet populated by monks. This floating world, clad in wood and made to look practically medieval, would come under siege from the xenomorph, who would be seen as the devil by those living there. This treatment also had Ripley being infected by the alien, and giving her life by the end to kill it and save the last few monks from certain death. There are a large number of storyboards and some amazing painted art pieces and xenomorph designs for this version of the film that are well worth searching out, and there are extensive behind the scenes features that cover this version of the film in the Alien Anthology Blu-ray set.

Elements from both the David Twohy and Vincent Ward scripts were taken by series producers Walter Hill and David Giler, who crafted the basic story that was eventually put onto film. With so much of the pre-production time, and millions of dollars, having been spent just on the scripting stage, the film was rushed into production to meet its release deadline. Music video director David Fincher, who’d never directed a feature film, was brought on board to helm the project as production began at Pinewood Studios.

The now decided on story saw the survivors of the second film fall victim to a facehugger, loose on board the ship. When it causes an electrical fire their cryo-pods are moved onto an escape pod, and ejected into space. The pod makes planet-fall on a remote planet that’s home to a small prison population of highly dangerous men who’ve found religion in the far reaches of space. Sadly, Ripley is the only survivor of the crash. Or at least, the only human survivor.

When the stowaway alien manages to infect one of the prisoners’ dogs, a newer, faster, and highly deadly creature is set loose upon the universe. With Ripley being the only woman on the planet she has to fight to try and make those in charge believe her wild story, all whilst trying to avoid any of the dangerous inmates who want to cause her harm. With no help coming, no weapons, and danger around every turn, Ripley has to fight harder than ever before to survive.

Alien 3 was released to some mixed reactions, with a lot of reviewers disliking the film, and comparing it unfavourably to the previous entries in the series. Despite the poor reception, the film still did well at the box office, and made more than $1 million in profit. Despite technically being a success, director David Fincher disowned the film, claiming that excessive studio interference, tight deadlines, and poor conditions made it the hardest project he had ever worked on.

Despite the director distancing himself from the film, Alien 3 gathered a cult following over the years, and became a much loved entry in the series. An alternate cut of the film, the Assembly Cut, was released in 2003 as part of the Alien Quadrilogy box set (also later released in the Alien Anthology Blu-ray) which saw an additional half hour of deleted and alternate scenes added to the film. This version fleshed out the side characters more, had a whole new sequence where they managed to capture the creature, had the alien come from a cow instead of a dog, and featured an alternate death scene for Ripley. Other alternate versions of Alien 3 have also been released, with the William Gibson version having been adapted into comics and a novel.

Alien 3 might be considered the film that ‘dropped the ball’ for the Alien series, the film that began a decline in quality that would only become worse in Alien Resurrection. But it seems unfair to label the film as completely bad. Despite being stuck in development hell for so long it has a pretty decent, coherent story. The film has a look all its own thanks to its interesting designs and colour palette. It has a strong supporting cast, including actors like Charles Dance, Charles S. Dutton, and a host of great British actors. Alien 3 is not a bad entry in the series. It’s not even a bad film. It’s just been compared to the first two films for so long that people assume it’s bad. Alien 3 has been looked down upon for too long. Perhaps now, as it turns thirty, we can start to admit it’s actually a great movie.

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Beastlands: Keepers of the Kingdom – Graphic Novel Review

 

Originally published on Set The Tape

Beastlands: Keepers of the Kingdom is an exciting new fantasy story for readers of all ages who love magical creatures, noble quests, and fighting for what’s right. Originally created and funded on Kickstarter, this new graphic novel from Dark Horse brings together the first five issues of the series.

Beastlands: Keepers of the Kingdom transports readers to a fantasy world where amazing magical creatures called Keepers coexist alongside humans. These Keepers can take many forms, but all of them form a strong, lasting bond with one particular human and become their friends and protectors for life. However, in the kingdom of Griff the king has outlawed Keepers, blaming them for the recent death of his daughter. Not only that, but all Keepers have been ordered to be put to death, and any of their companions who try to resist are to arrested.

It’s in this world that we encounter three teenage travellers, Mac, Ava, and Ping; along with the two Keepers, Renzo and Luna. The three of them are searching for clues to the whereabouts of Mac’s father, an explorer who disappeared years before. Whilst searching for clues as to the next stage of their search the three friends come into contact with Griff, and enter into a fight for their lives, and the lives of their Keepers.

Beastlands: Keepers of the Kingdom has been described as being perfect for fans of Pokemon, Digimon, Game of Thrones, Avatar The Last Airbender, and other fantasy worlds. And as someone who has been a fan of most of the franchises named in the Kickstarter, I honestly do see the attraction, as this was a thoroughly enjoyable read.

The first thing that will draw people in with this book is the Keepers. The creatures that inhabit the world that Curtis Clow and Jo Mi-Gyeong have created are wonderfully designed. The Keepers, and other ‘regular’ kinds of fantasy animals that you encounter throughout the book, look amazing. Each of the Keepers has something of a unique design, and many of them take elements from existing animals and put a fantasy twist on them. For example, Renzo, Mac’s Keeper, is a large blue and white wolf with sabre-tooth fangs. Ava’s keeper is kind of reminiscent of griffin, though uses some other animals in a similar configuration. The front part of the body is a sleek panther-like cat, with the back feet of a large bird, and huge wings on her back. Oh, and she has big horns too.

Every Keeper that you encounter across the course of the book does something a little different with the design, and you can see why the series’ description mentions Pokemon and Digimon, as some of these creatures wouldn’t look out of place in those worlds. The artwork, provided by series co-creator Jo Mi-Gyeong, looks fantastic too, and really brings the creatures to life, whether it’s a huge, fierce Keeper fighting soldiers, or some cute little bunny creature hanging out in the background.

But the book is more than just the fantastic animals that call it home, as there are some great human characters and a compelling story here too. The trio of teens that we follow across the book have a mixture of personalities that work well together, and we see more than once in the story that when they’re alone they kind of struggle, and it’s only when they’re all together that they really come out on top. The three of them make a great found family; and family is a key component of this story.

It seems like everything is driven by family. Mac is looking for his lost father, the King has turned into a tyrant through grief for his deceased daughter, and those with Keepers are fighting to protect them because they’re more than just animals, they’re family. These themes are everywhere in the book, and I expect that they will continue on to become an important part of the story as the series continues on.

One thing that readers should be aware of going into the book, especially as I think it’s a book that a lot of younger readers will want to pick up and check out, is there are some scenes with disturbing content throughout. The first time we see the King he executes his own Keeper in front of the kingdom, and we see him behead the beautiful animal. The first time we meet the teens a group of bandits are trying to rape the girls. There are scenes where Keeper companions are executed, and children are hung and killed. The book doesn’t really pull any punches, and whilst it doesn’t revel in the violent imagery it doesn’t shy away from it either. And whilst this content could disturb or upset some readers it does help to get you drawn into the story and invested, as you quickly understand the stakes and don’t want terrible things to happen to our heroes.

Beastlands: Keepers of the Kingdom collects together the first five issues of the series, but the story doesn’t end here. The book sets up this world and these characters and gets you invested really quickly, and I think that most who read this will come away waiting eagerly for the next volume to come. If you’re a fan of fantasy stories, amazing creatures, and great stories Beastland: Keepers of the Kingdom is not a book you want to miss out on.

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DC Mech #1 - Comic Review

 

Originally published on Patreon

DC occasionally comes out with a concept so weird that you're kind of not sure if you want to read it or not. These ideas tend to get relegated to their own timelines and universes, and get to go a little bit wild. The recent Jurassic League is an example of this.

The latest entry in this 'fuck it, let's just do it' category of books is DC Mech. This series begins at the end of World War Two, where the Justice society helped to end the war and stop the forces of the axis powers. However, in the middle of a huge celebration a portal forms above the city and a huge mechanised Parademon from the distant world of Apokolips arrives on Earth.

The Justice Society engage the huge mechanical warrior in battle, and manage to defeat it. However, the society suffers extreme losses, and many of the heroes die stopping this single warrior. This battle brings the age of the super hero to a close, as the world knows that they need stronger defences for when the next attack comes. Humanity dedicates itself to developing its own giant, mechanised warriors.

Many years later, the planet of Krypton comes under attack from the forces of Apokalips, and whilst his parents fight to buy him time and infant Kal-El is placed inside a giant robotic warrior and sent out amongst the stars, flying towards the planet Earth on a journey that will take him many years.

On Earth, decades later, the heroes and villains that we recognise have been replaced with giant robotic versions of themselves. Wally West pilots a giant flash battle suit, and Bruce Wayne watches over Earth from a floating asteroid and goes into battle in a huge Batman mech. When a trio of Parademons attacks the Earth, the two of them engage them in battle, and receive assistance from Kal-El and his own mechanised warrior. With more of Apokalips' forces on the way, can these new heroes come together to form a team in time?

The concept of this book, to replace all of the major characters in DC with piloted mech suits sounds pretty wild; but its actually pretty fun. Kenny Porter has come up with a decent way of justifying not only the reason why this would be happening, but how the tech would develop too, by giving Earth a giant Parademon mech to research for decades.

The changes in the timeline, and how things have shifted from what we know are pretty interesting, and there seems to be some big changes because of this. For example, Bruce has a godmother that he keeps talking about, a woman who seems to have provided warnings of things to come and pushed him to become Batman. I've got a theory it's going to be someone we know, but am interested in seeing who it is, and how these characters have changed in this new world.

The giant mechs are also pretty cool, and some of the designs look great. The fights take on a different feel now that they're between huge robots rather than people, especially as they mechs are incorporating the powers and abilities that the characters would normally have. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how more heroes and villains have been adapted into this new set-up as the series goes on.

These separate kinds of side stories can be a lot of fun, and can provide a decent distraction from the stuff that's happening in the main universe, and they can let creators go a bit wild and try something different. I'm definitely intrigued by this one, and am looking forward to seeing how it goes.

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