Frost Fight! (2015)

Marvel Super-Hero Adventures: Frost Fight!

In short form Loki and Frost Giant Ymir scheme to rule over realms, by plunging the worlds into an ice age?  Loki's lineage is that he is the crown prince of Jotunheim, biological son to King Laufey. In a ploy seen in the original motion picture, to rule Asgard and gain the thrown, Loki tricked Laufey into Asgard in a devised coup to kill Odin in his chamber, but killed his father for what I can surmise as a shame or disenchanted view of his true  origins.  So in his blue skin appearance in a frosted cave in the presence of Ymir, Loki appears unbothered by the cold temperature and can rule a kingdom in ice.

Long form the movie opens up in Monuriki Island, a very small uninhabited island from the islands of Fiji.  Tom Hanks movie Castaway was shot there. The plan was Ymir to arrive on the island and unleash the Casket of Ancient Winters on earth. By being in a small desolate pocket on earth, finding and arriving to the point on the planet that would create the ice age would garner the heroes to be too late to stop it and undo the damage.  The avengers did however arrive before the casket could be opened, and Tony Stark questioned in their battle of why a frost giant is standing his ground continuing to fight back where the environment he is in averages  30*C/ 25*F in the month of December, a place that never sees snow. Thor does state Ymir comes from Nifelheim a realm of mist/fog, but is perceived as a cold landscape.  The avengers bring on a trainee named Reptil to observe the team work.  Captain America has him moved out of the battle area and scout the perimeter.   Reptil soon spots Loki to whom after being discovered plots a quick escape and conjures a dimensional black hole sucking the contents of the island and any inhabitants into it.  Captain Marvel and Captain America mange to separate the Casket of Ancient Winters just before Ymir gets pulled into the vortex and finally sealing the inter dimensional rift.

Next we see the villains regroup in a frost cave, Ymir suggest if they stealing the ancient powers of Jolnir a mythic character that is half frost giant and half elf that can bend time and space among other gifts not yet discovered.  They could accomplish their goal of domination.  According to Ymir if they upsurp the Casket of Ancient Powers an item that also exists in Jolnir’s realm they can transfer Jolnir’s powers into Loki.   The duo would need to travel to Alfheim – home of the light elves.   Just before they make there way, Loki decides to keep the avengers busy, he travels to a realm where dinosaur like creatures roam the planet and drops a triceratops like creature in downtown Manhattan Island.


In recourse of distraction, Reptil transforming his appearance to a dinosaur to stops the triceratops; thinking she has found her young and becomes docile. They suspect Loki is up to something, meanwhile in the realms of space Loki has put out a large bounty for the capture of Jolnir. That posting grabs the attention of Rocket and Groot, just months before they were destined to join the Guardians of the Galaxy.  Thor Returns to earth after securing the Casket of Ancient Winters in Odins vault, and reports the bounty of Jolnir, and begins to laugh it off as Jolnir on Midgard is referred to as Santa Claus.

Agents of Shield SEASON TWO (11 -19)

Season two of Marvel's Agents of Shield was not as connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as fans would have liked.  Joss Whedon had express fatigue from working so closely within the frame work of Marvels phase 2; completing Avengers and then its immediate sequel, while ensuring that the vast story arcs, structure, and care would be given in telling the continuing saga through into the next chapter. As for network television Whedon was really hands off, Episodes 1 - 18 of the season focused on carrying on with its own storyline as season one's finale had initially set up.  Episode 19 would provide a little exposition entering into the opening of Avengers: Age of Ultron.  While retrospectively the show's final mission provides an interesting call back to the entirety of season two.

Episode 11, is the start of a new chapter in direction of the series, not given a name to what those whose hereditary genetic markers has given rise to.  Leo Fitz had uttered a diagnosis of Skye’s condition of being inhuman, only once in the body of the season.  The Mystery of Skye’s lineage is revealed and the resolve of Phil Coulson’s resurrection has concluded. These were the two largest questions fueling the underbelly of the first season.  Raina the woman in the floral dress who was seeking life’s great mysteries beyond the veil of human eyes and Skye are from the same lineage, and are now forever transformed into what can be classified as biological metahumans not enhanced like Deathlok or Donnie Gill (the altered young man who can freeze anything).The first ever Shield interaction with a bio-metahuman was Agent Melinda May’s experience in Bahrain. Episode 17 titled Melinda reveals the story of Agent May and what forever changed the trajectory of her life and garnered her name the cavalry. The tie-in to the slaughter of all the Shield Agents that protected Skye as a baby are all brought to light.  The story really develops exposition in episode 12 titled 'Who You Really Are', with a Kree battling the Asgardian warrior Lady Sif on earth, the Kree race had done experiments to human subjects with Terrigen crystals, the experiments failed as no compatible hosts were found, and they were meant as expendable weaponized world destroyers.  Very much in creative design process of having an advance civilization who came to a planet not inhabited by their kind  and began creating biological world destroying weapons, such as in the movie Prometheus.   The evolution of Jiaying allowed for a state of a controlled existence with these military designed weapons (meta-human), which gave birth to a new civilization in a hidden city called afterlife.  In Episode 11 titled Aftershocks, By destroying the heads of hydra by turning them against each other leaving only Dr. List and Baron Strucker as final leaders to topple; The Agents of Shield fought amongst themselves as to whom is the true embodiment to follow in Nick Fury’s footsteps.  Raina develops a clairvoyant extra sensory perception, and is a hideous physical monster constantly hiding in the shadows. While the family reunion of Skye and he biological parents will lead to the inevitable clash of worlds with shield and her kind in the season’s final episodes.

 Episode 19, leads to the capture of Dr. List one of the powerful heads of Hydra, this in turn reveals the whereabouts of Baron Strucker and his base in the Sokovia.  The assault on Dr. List’s location allows Phil Coulson to extract files from Hydra's servers, this in turn recovers the location of Loki’s Sceptor, and unveils the preparation of Theta Protocol a hidden agenda that took up most of the teams funds and Coulson’s absence in the period of the finale of season one to the start of Season two; and is now ready to be revealed in Age of Ultron. These revelations are really brought up in a private video conference call between Maria Hill and Phil Coulson in the final moments of the episode, and Raina’s vision of the coming of the Age of Ultron.  

Episode 11, provides one historical flashback, Jiaying being a mentor and introduces us to the young teleporter known as Gordon.  What it sets up in the big picture is a definitive time line of events.  We see the red door of the entrance to Afterlife and young Gordon trying to grasp his powers for the first time, but the flash back reveals the year 1983,

The Final Mission involves time travels to 1982 and skips a series of months until landing into 1983 and a young Jiaying, 5 years before the birth of Skye and the meeting of Skye’s father.  Daniel Whitehall the Hydra Agent working under Red Skull who cheated death by harvesting Jiaying glands and tissues and captured her rejuvenating ability. Is now in this branch of the time-stream a youthful version of himself, who harvested glands and tissues of Skye and captured her quake powers instead. Mother and daughter confront the earlier version of Whitehall, and Jiaying falls victim to her fate early and undermines the birth of Skye, but according to the principles of Endgame rules of time travel, Skye’s present is now the future and thus she is not going to be erased from history.  Shield is systematically destroyed by an invading enemy, this time not Hydra, Mac who led the division with shield factions in season 2, is leading Shield in an alternate faction and goes rogue by way of undermining his normal routine to infiltrate Sybil a powerful A.I.  Who can predict outcomes based on the patterns of her enemies.

 Jemma Simmons is the one agent everyone depends on to unlock the mystery for the team to advance forward. As  Leo Fitz sits on the side lines due to neurological damage; coincidently in the final mission Leo Fitz is hidden somewhere in time. In the series final two episodes Jemma is having problems retrieving particular memories ; an act made deliberate by  her and Leo to protect the mission,  that was triggered  to get worse when Daniel Whitehall digs too deep into Jemma’s mind and involuntarily wiping out all memory of Fitz existence. Besides the reintroduction of Daniel Whitehall, Patton Oswald’s Koening character (s), Agent Garret, Jiaying & Gordon, we also revisit the concept of project insight, the city of Afterlife, and another family Reunion for Skye with the sister she never knew she had.  The conspiracy theory of Coulson being an LMD finally gets explored in this season, and mentioning May’s ordeal in Bahrain, and seeing that she has finally moved passed it in the final season. Has made the experience of watching season two with fresh pair of eyes as actions, people and historical points have some call back for the final mission; which in turn works as philosophical Endgame scenario 

We're looking back at the previous MCU phases after watching the Infinity War and EndGame movies; you would gather a better appreciation of the storytelling and subtle nuisances that begins to shape the season and beyond. When you discover the journey becomes more exciting when you been to the destination.

Lego Marvel: Avengers ReAssembled

Lego Marvel Super Heroes: Avengers Reassembled is a delightful short animated spoof on the avenger’s movie.  It’s a loosely adapted story taking from the final films of phase 2 that is Age of Ultron and Ant-man. The animation was released on November of 2015, a few months after the summer release of Ant-Man, with release notes from civil war for having Spiderman making his cameo appearance in this story.

The animation keeps with the trend of using puns and rolling gags to occupy the brevity of its story.  The premise is very straight forward Tony Stark is going for Ice for his special announcement party when Utlron kidnaps him and controls the ironman armor and all of Tony’s Iron Legion.  It’s up to the avengers Captain America, Thor, Vision, The Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye to rescue him and save the world from annihilation. In this adventure, we as the viewer are introduced to little Sokovia a small district in New York and that appears to be a giant castle near central park west. Von Strucker and his members of Hydra have made a deal with Ultron, work for him and they get to keep a small part of the world...Australia..  That line or thought bubble  comes straight from Superman II as Gene Hackman’s Lex Luthor strikes a bargain with General Zod  in his conquest for world domination.  The film offers a little help from Ant-Man as Captain America like’s to refer to joking one liners of Scott Lang’s size in making the roll call of his name to fellow avengers.  Ant-Man is called in to combat yellow jacket another miniature character that’s in league with Ultron. 

The animation has a runtime of 22 minutes; just enough to tell a complete and fast pace story, and concludes just before you look down at your watch should you feel the story starts to drag.  Directed by Rob Silvertri, an animator by design that is just breaking into his own. His next project Blazing Samurai is set to release in the summer of 2021.

Ultimate Avengers 2

Ultimate Avengers 2, was a follow up to a movie that was released earlier that same year in 2006.   Unlike its predecessor, this film has 3 well known actors providing their voices.  Producer Craig Kyle, has went on record to say he did not want people trying to guess who was providing the voices in the original movie, so he deliberately hired regular actors who best occupied the role.  On the credits you will read Dwight Schultz , Mark Hamil, and Chi McBride;  in addition to regular voice actor Olivia D’Abo who was known best for her role in the Wonder Years, playing Fred Savages’ sister.

The sequel probably takes place in real time, only a few months after the events of the first film. The film opens up in Wakanda, as Prince T’Challa has returned from abroad, his father King T’Chaka sent him to study in Oxford , where gained an PhD. in physics. The Chitarui aliens have entered Wakanda lead by Herr Kleiser a high ranking member of the alien hierarchy who is a shape shifter alien; who back in World War 2 absorbed and devoured the original Nazi officer with that name.  In the early phases of Marvel, the studio did not own the rights to the Skrulls it was a property of 20^th Century Fox, The Chitauri, an alien race existing only in the Ultimates; are revealed to be a subversive group of terrorists within the alien Skrull race.  This fact is completely dropped and not included in the motion picture movies due to the conflict of Intellectual property ownership.

Ultimate Avengers 2: The movie, predates Avengers: Age of Ultron by 9 years, but shares some similar story threads. In the theatrical release Thor was given a vision by the Norns of Fate while bathing in a sacred pool. While in this movie Thor can be seen practicing the art of Ruinic divination. Translating messages from ancient ideograms by using the environment and sacrificing a bit of his own blood.  The message came in the form of a nightmare vision foretelling the death of the avengers. Steve Rogers has trouble sleeping as he struggles being a man out of time; out living everyone he has ever known, and pushing hard at being just a soldier the one thing he was designed for and finds comfortable in doing; as his life outside of that appears empty.

Bruce Banner remains under containment and is periodically interrogated for his actions in the first movie; those scenes are a throwback to issue #7 of the Ultimates comic titled Homeland security.  The interrogation establishes the tone for this movie.  We are watching a drama; many of the cast of characters have conflicts ahead of the alien invasion, Hank Pym though a scientific genius is emotionally unstable with his relationship with Janet, and displaying an imbalance on his perception with acceptance on accomplishments. Tony Stark has a subtle call back to the story of demon in the bottle has he is seen having a private drink amongst the team who are arguing.  Thor has constantly defied his father with his connection to Midgard, in the comics that defiance has led to numerous occasions where Odin had stripped him of his powers. Conversely the original motion picture, Thor’s powers were stripped because his ego and lack of empathy and consideration for his people on Asgard, had him cast out to Midgard.

At the heart of this movie is an extra-terrestrial invasion; however the film does not embrace a lovecraftian approach in its storytelling.  Herr Kleiser is the only entity with body manipulation, as his story climax takes shape with a horror element.  The overall direction of movie leans more to Orson Wells’ War of the Worlds, adapted by H.G. Wells novel; the images with the attack on London clearly depict imagery from that story and the world being encased in a dome with attacks all over the world in tandem to the attack on Wakanda.  

Most characters story arcs reach a resolve or an evolution; as characters like Bruce Banner does end up in a different place by the conclusion of the movie there is an open door for a further story development.  Ultimate Avengers 3, though possible to make is not likely to be created as Marvel Studios has plan to set up both future television series and animated series under the umbrella of phase 4 and phase 5 line ups. A realization would have to come from fans pushing a request through social media and other venues to show interest.  An opportunity that won’t be realized in that specific art form, however fans will have splinters of other stories starting with “What if….”  An upcoming animated anthology series coming to phase 4, with an episode asking what if Peggy Carter received the super soldier serum during the World War.

Agents of Shield SEASON TWO (1 - 10)

Seasons one and two of Marvel’s Agents of Shield are a woven series of stories presented within the timeline of Phase two. Joss Whedon, his brother Jed Whedon, and Maurissa Tancharoen, are the initial writers and creators of the series. Jed and Maurissa would continue to be the creative cog of the series right to the very end of its final mission, but while Joss bookended the phase from Avengers to Avengers: Age of Ultron, the series was a close reflection of that world and the mythology in this universe.  The two seasons remained grounded to events on earth, and to coin the marketed phase – ‘it’s all connected’ The show would contain sparse cameo appearances and would lead up to a part of story that could segue into the fabric of the cinematic universe, while remaining an organization in the shadows.

At the conclusion of Agents of Shield season one, the next installment of story to hit audiences would be James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy while the show was on its summer hiatus. Guardians marked the first real off planet exploration besides the world of Thor. With no immediate earthbound activity to crossover with, the Agents of Shield season 2 was now freed up to continue its own developing storyline, when the series returned in the fall of 2014.

Season two is both expansive in cast and in concept.  No longer a functioning arm of government, or recognizable branch of law enforcement the Agents of Shield were only covert.  Phil Coulson was appointed the new Director by Nick Fury; who the world now believes is dead, sharing a fate like Coulson. This invisible dead man concept or rational was never explored for its practical difficulties. However, in light of this glaring formality Coulson was forced to make face to face meetings and establish a worldwide network of shield agents who have gone underground but still continue to track the movements of Hydra.  Many let go agents became mercenaries, available for hire, while most held onto the fundamentals ideals of the organizations.

The serum that saved Skye and brought Coulson back to life had a side effect, the last memory of a mission from a dead Kree alien’s DNA caused Coulson and those injected to carve out alien symbols in a sequential pattern until its host found its destination. That serum mystery got resolved in these first 10 episodes and opened up the door to unlocking Skye’s past.

Being Agents on the run,  and chasing Hydra, has brought on a few additional cast members , actress Lucy Lawless played an agent whose demise sets up the stakes for this seasons main story arc. The series brings the character of Mac, the resident team’s mechanic, Antoine 'Trip' Triplett last season’s add-on from the clairvoyant story arc (a descendant of the howling commandos), and Bobbi Morse (aka Mockingbird) & Lance Hunter the mercenary for hire.  

Daniel Whitehall 

Season 7

The summer of 2020 aired season 7 “The final Mission”, it deposits that the agents are now jumping through time to prevent futuristic machines from altering the history of the world and eventually conquering it.  Using this plot device of time travel the series displays call backs on season two while reaching its ultimate conclusion.  The first ten episodes of season 7 that calls back to first ten episodes of season 2 are the following. Patton Oswald’s Koenig character; Eric Koenig the liaison for 1^st hidden base in episode Providence was killed in season one, his clone brothers Billy & Sam were the custodian liaison of Shield’s current secret base. In the opening episodes of season 7 we are introduced to the original, Ernest Hazard Koenig who operated Shields first underground speak easy. The show deals with uprising of Hydra and the planned launch of project insight; the Hydra’s secret from the Captain America: Winter Soldier storyline.  Like season two, the final mission introduces us to Daniel Whitehall the Hydra scientist who butchers Skye’s mother to gain her eternal youth, and a younger Whitehall who gains Skye’s powers by the very same means. Both seasons returns us to the home of Skye’s birth mother and battling with Whitehall. 

Daniel Whitehall

Season 2

Leo Fitz the science and Technologies agent was left with neurological damage from prolonged lack of oxygen from the conclusion of season one, and because of his disability was not an active member of the team in the first 10 episodes. The same can be said in the final mission; his character is somewhere hidden in time purposely, he helped craft the time jump machine to continue on with their mission, but has his presence kept a far. This is essentially how Fitz was utilized in the ten episodes of season two.  Jenna Simmons played by actress Elizabeth Henstridge had her first solo mission working as a mole for Hydra’s R&D division in the opening episodes of season two.  The actress herself had her first directorial debut directing the 9^th episode of Season Seven; a groundhogs day scenario, and arguable one of the best episodes of that season.

Ultimate Avengers: The Movie

Ultimates was a comic book series created by Mark Millar, in response to a slump in sales across the board with Marvel historic intellectual properties.  The number of subscription and sales for Thor, Captain America, and the Avenger comics at the turn of the century were at a low.  Ultimates, Wolverine, Spiderman and X-men were doing much larger numbers than the Marvels usual brands, and executives gave Mark Millar cart blanche to retell the story, for a younger audience without any need to search for earlier issues for context; all readers would have ground floor start in this world’s iteration of Earth’s mightiest heroes. 

The genesis of each character remained somewhat the same, the story was told in modern day setting, and each story and its style was conceived in a way that it could be told in a theatrical movie experience kind of way.  Nick Fury of the 60’s was adapted from the cold war model of super spies; readers at the time loved James Bond and relate to this world.  Nick Fury was now a trendier African American who completed his tour in the Gulf War and became the head of Shield.  Thor though obviously powerful was not taken seriously as an entity having god like lineage, Captain America remains a man out of time, who dedicated himself to fight a war and went through a life altering process only to now find out there is no great war to fight.  The Ulitmates was created in a world post 9/11 were tragedy had consequences and collateral damage of say a Hulk smash affected your neighbors and the unknown bystanders in the vicinity; who might have been related to your co-worker.

It is very important to note that Ultimate Avengers: The movie was released in 2006,  two years before the theatrical release of Iron Man, the movie that  brought Robert Downey Jr. into the spotlight,  and introduced us to Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. After watching either version of Ultimate animated movies, victory does not come without a price; either a significant loss, or consequence of one’s actions.  In any true form, the villain rarely sees him or herself as a villain. It is a matter of chance and circumstances; or one bad day that lead down a path.  In the Avengers movie: Age of Ultron Tony Stark can be viewed as Villain, his intentions are noble; his PTSD and haunting nightmare drive him to create the Iron Legion, and the Ultron program. To protect the earth from an alien invasion or an extinction level event.  Tony devises a three day window before Thor leaves for Asgard by holding a party to keep Thor on earth, while enabling the God of Thunder continued visits to Jane; as he tries to interface the technology of Loki’s scepter to the A.I. of his Ultron program. That plan to interface goes awry when Ultron determines that man himself is the root cause of earth’s decay, and the avengers are the true threat which needs to be stopped to allow the fall of humanity.  Determined not to repeat his mistakes Tony convinces Hawkeye to leave the room to check on an injured Natalia while he convinces Banner to create a second murder-bot, with the Jarvis A.I.  to interface with; in order to undo the mistake he just made with Ultron, not fully knowing if this version won’t repeat the same results. In the Ultimates animated movie Bruce Banner is viewed as the villain. Like the greek myth’s Prometheus who stole fire from the gods, Banner’s desire to crack the code of the super soldier serum unleashed a god like horror to man, a rampaging beast of carnage.  Banner deliberately lies to Nick Fury and Betty Ross regarding trials of test subjects and uses all the vials of Steve Rogers’ blood on himself to gain control intellectually of his monster. The deceit and lies may have been forgiven if he was successful in controlling the Hulk, instead it compiled to the threat of an alien invasion with Hulk attempting to murder each Avenger.

Similar to the Phase one set up of the MCU which was influenced by Mark Millar’s work, Nick Fury and shield unearth a frozen Captain America trapped suspended since his days stopping hydra and a Chitauri invasion during the Second World War. Vibranium composes the haul structure of the Alien aircrafts, and Captain America is thawed out in time to lead a team of earth’s mightiest heroes to prevent Earth from being conquered.  It’s the team’s ego and not working in a team environment that causes the Avengers to fail, and nearly lose a member. The crushing defeat and learning to trust each other, and follow a plan allows the heroes to shine; However not all the heroes can be seen in the light as David Banner’s misguided attempts almost kills the entire team at the edge of victory.

Mary Shelly

Mary Shelly

Aug. 30, 1797 - Feb. 1, 1851

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly, an English Author, whose father William Godwin was a philosopher and novelist; he was considered radical because he favored Utilitarianism and was the first modern proponent of Anarchism. Godwin published two books in one year the first was an attack on political institutions, the second a mystery novel designed with intent to attacking aristocratic privilege. The father and daughter had a close relationship but it was stained as Godwin had to work abroad to support his family, as her relationship with her stepmother was rocky. Godwin has been quoted to describe Mary as ‘singularly bold’, imperious and active of mind. Her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft was a defender of women’s rights and had written a book on her travelers to Scandinavia, where she gave birth to a daughter Fanny Imaly, A daughter out of wedlock which was a situation frowned upon by their peers, and by society at the time. Godwin pursued and married Mary Wollstonecraft when she fell pregnant with Mary; and to ensure Mary Shelly's birth was legitimate. Shelly herself was born in London, August 30, 1797.  After giving birth to Mary her mother died a few days later. Four years later, her father remarried and Mary Shelly would eventually become the sister to five semi-related siblings.  

At Age 16 Mary eloped to Italy and became the second wife of Poet Percy Bysshe Shelly.  Shelly’s original wife died of suicide; Mary would bare Percy several children of whom only one survived a son Percy Florence.

Mary Shelly’s first book, Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus (1818), was conceived for a ghost-writing contest; on a stormy night in June 1816. Influenced by the experiments of Luigi Galvani, an Italian physician, physicist, biologist and philosopher who pioneered bioelectromagnetics. In 1780, Galvani discovered animal electricity, more specifically muscles of dead frogs ‘legs twitched when struck by an electrical spark.  The creation of her novel won for her a place among the imaginative writers of England, it was an instant wonder, and has spawned a mythology all its own to this very day.  Many believed Percy had written it since he penned its introduction and the book debuted as a novel from an anonymous author.

 After Percy’s death from an accidental drowning in 1822, Mary returned to London with their son and pursued a successful career in writing.  Frankenstein was followed up by Valerga (1823), The Last Man (1826), Lodore (1835), and Falkner (1837).  Mary Shelley would succumb to brain cancer and died on February 1, 1851. Her final novel Mathilda was finally published over a hundred years later in 1959.  There was a loosely adapted autobiographical movie released in September 2017 along the festival circuit, before reaching a theatrical debut in the spring of 2018 starring Elle Fanning in the title role; the film does depict the turbulent years, and infidelity that Shelly experienced in her marriage with Percy.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

Guardians of the Galaxy is directed and co-written by James Gunn.  A man who got his start learning the craft working for Troma studios, the b-movie production company that brought you a cult favorite like the Toxic Avenger.  Gunn came to Marvel expecting that a few of the songs he wanted used could receive clearance for the soundtrack of the movie; coming from his last film which had a budget of $3 million dollars and some creative restraints. Gunn was happily surprised that the Marvel’s legal team and budget was accommodating to include all the songs on his wish list. The reward in bringing these songs to the landscape of the movie was to bridge generations, the music of the 70’s have a nostalgic undercurrent for an older audience and to a young generation who listen to music that samples songs of that decade got to re-connect to the original artist. A lyrical narrative of the songs relate in the journey of telling this operatic space odyssey.  At its time Guardians of the Galaxy volume 1 is the only Marvel soundtrack that broke into Billboards 200 music charts. Black Panther would be the second motion picture of the stable of 23 to reach the same musical status and influence a market that was not in the movie industry.

The Worlds of the Guardians; Earth is referenced as Terra,   Gunn has made a note that not all aliens speak the same language, and that Peter Quill aka Star Lord has some form of interpreter device that allows him to understand and communicate to all the species, so when a character mentions a hamster in one of the dialogues it is not an Earth hamster, but in a reference to an animal that characteristics and stature would be equivalent, that his device could interpret in a translation based on Terra edition translation.  

Morag: The Abandoned planet, in a written scene not included in the movie The Broker, played by British actor Chris Fairbanks provides Peter Quill a holographic map device of an ancient city in Morag. Centuries ago the planet cultivated an advanced civilization until climate change or some extinction level event decimated the inhabitants.  Every 300 years the oceans would recede allowing passage into the remnants of this once great city. Quill arrives early, likely when it’s not safe to do so to claim the Orb before Yondo and the Ravagers, or Korath the Pursuer and his men arrive on the planet.  This one fact can explain why in the last 300 years neither that of Thanos nor anyone else was unable to claim all the infinity stones until this point.

Xandar- Headquarters to the Nova Empire, The Nova Corps, and to the Broker.  The planet has 3 Suns in relative close proximity to one another; this unusual alignment is showcased on the chest plate of a Nova officer and is a proudly distinguished insignia of the planet’s inhabitants.

The Klyn. Is  space station that acts as a prison, or a federal penitentiary, for the worst offenders that Nova Corp has come in contact, a super max prison structure, similarly seen in films like Fortress,  Escape plan,  and partially in face off.  The Klyn is where the last member of the Guardians of the Galaxy is met, Draxx the Destroyer. The alliance and the formation of the group is forged in their need of one another to escape the Klyn and their reason to remain is the contents of the Orb.

Sancturary  is a planetoid planet , ruled by Thanos and home to the Chitauri, The Other, and the Space Throne. In the movie we are first introduced to Nebula on the planetoid to accompany Ronan the Accuser, it is however suggested that the children of Thanos resides at Knowhere. But for the movie it seems very evident his Black order would be by his side.

Knowhere  A mining colony  is actually the remnants of an ancient celestial head, Home of the collector,  A captured Howard the Duck and Dark Elf, and according to comics The Black Order (Children of Thanos) would also reside here, but that would make little sense because the infinity Gem being guarded by the collector would be at a threat being so closed to Thanos’ minions. We are also introduced to Sakaarn people giving chase to the guardians in addition to the ravagers.  The planet Sakaar not visited in the movie is further right of the Knowhere and more  along the outskirts of this Galaxy

Hala  is the Home Planet to the Kree, Home to Ronan the Accuser, He is unearthed and dressed in his introduction of the movie . As his name suggest he represents the military branch of government and is  a jurists, and is considered the third most powerful Kree in the Empire. The Kree and Xandorians have orchestrated a peace treaty, to end their 1000 year blood soaked war, Ronan holds on to his fundamental old ways most likely witnessing the death of his grandfather and father in this bloodied war.  Ronan is clearly divided with this union of peace and wants the eradication of Xandar , The Power stone would grant him satisfaction in his bloodlust.

Horror Film (2020) Review #13

Debuting on the 40^th Anniversary of the original Halloween, is the first of a planned trilogy. Directed by David Gordan Green,  with Danny McBride and David Gordon Green as its writers and one of the many executive producers, to this booted franchise.  It begins as a direct sequel to the 1978 original, this film recons every sequel that ever existed, and tells the story in the present day, 40 years later.

The Premise – Michael Myers as young boy kills his sister and goes mute and is institutionalized, 15 years later he goes on murder spree back in his hometown of Haddonfield, Illinois until he was shot and re- institutionalized, until another 40 years later still mute but always able to talk a now 61year old Michael Myers escapes while on a bus transfer to a more notorious institution where he was expected to spend the rest of his days. 

Coincidently escaping again on Halloween, and each time he enters Haddonfield he is leveling up, racking a higher death toll from his previous engagements and is doing so with more ferocity. It seems being aware for all those passing years he was probably getting angrier.  Something his psychiatrist Dr. Sartain, hypothesis but could not determine, as the next Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence character) Dr. Sartain was Loomis’s protégé  and has been obsessed with seeing this caged killing machine let loose in its natural environment to further his curiosity. That curiosity would have its own self cultivation for a killer’s mentality.  Meanwhile Laurie Strode the survivor of the 4 decade old murder spree has suffered PTSD, which has affected her coping and moving forward in life. Having 2 failed marriages and an intervention of child services removing her then 12 year old daughter claiming the harmful environment would pose a threat, is now estranged and is kept away from her teenage granddaughter.  Has turned to alcoholism, but relishes the opportunity to kill Michael herself.  The deputy at the original crime scene 40 years ago who stopped Loomis from shooting Michael Dead, is now the local sheriff and knows firsthand the depth of evil that has befallen his town. 

Battle ready like Terminator’s Sarah Connor, Laurie Strode and Michael Myers are destined to battle it out and end their differences with the only difference being Laurie has also been waiting patiently and quietly for 40 years for her  own brand of judgment day.

With an accredited writer’s acknowledgement, for both John Carpenter and Debra Hill who serve as Executive producers to the trilogy along with Blumhouse productions, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Malek Akkad whose father was a producer on the 1978 film.  The film began a 28 day shooting schedule on January 13, 2018 and premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, that quick production turnover is due in part by it was the first Halloween movie to be shot digitally and not on film.  TIFF is mentioned in this summary because Director David Morgan Green has debut his previous films at this festival before giving them a theatrical release to the world.

Bloodshot

Bloodshot marked his first appearance in two different Valiant publications in November 1992 (Eternal Warrior #4 and then a week later in Rai #0), before venturing onto its own self title series in February 1993. Issue one has a street value of about $65, where-as-the November issues have a value between $30-45 depending on the quality of the issue.
The comic book's first few original issues shares similarities with the 2020 motion picture, A Soldier named Ray Garrison awakens each time with his memories wiped by a corporation  called Rising Spirit Tech / Project Rising Spirit.  A program that creates the ultimate soldier, injecting powers of regeneration and meta-morphing made possible by nanites in his blood, that also allow him to telekinetic or Wi-Fi connect to any technological computer or A.I. nearby and override and download any computer systems at his will.

Guy Pearce plays Dr. Emil Harting who was the CEO of Rising Spirit Tech. The person responsible for re-animating Vin Diesel's character Ray Garrison. Bloodshot awakens on a mission that is of personal revenge which motivates him to complete his mission with complete conviction. Garrison eventually teams up with a military medic or in this instance a hacker named Wilfred Wigans played by Lamorne Morris and another progeny of the Rising Spirit. Who venture to stop the corrupt organization from the killing of select targets and free Bloodshot from Harting's control.  The film in this manner is similar to Iron Man 3 with the extremis Program.  Guy Pearce once again plays a tech genius, this one named Aldrich Killian who is looking to establish military contracts for his new enhanced super soldiers who's blood has Extremis; a DNA rebranding that he has not perfected yet without the help of Tony Stark; and with Ray Garrison until the mix of man and machine became perfectly symmetric.

The film is directed by Dave Wilson who's body of work encompasses video effects and directing  video games & game trailers.  Has the climatic fight sequence shot and stylized like an action sequence from out of a videogame. There are very little to no civilians seen in the entirety of the film which holds superhero type characters who possess amazing stamina and durability, which comes across like a fully working videogame sequence.  Though this is merely an observation does not detract from the visual effects team, Dave Wilson nor production crew from pulling off top notch set of action sequences.

Horror Film (2020) Review #12

Mandy, co-written, directed, and co-produced by PanosCosmatos, an up and coming director his first film Beyond the Black Rainbow, a psychedelic horror film about a young woman heavily sedated  trying to get out of an institution, shares some common elements to Mandy his second film. Having a hallucinogenic vibe, it’s a slow burn in the first act and the both take place in 1983. However with Mandy, it feels like it has a 70s cult vibe. The film is cut into 3 parts each acts comes with a 70s Heavy metal Album cover graphic. The Shadow Mountains is an introduction; the opening shares with the viewer the love of the two main characters before their lives our tragically ripped apart through senseless violence.  Nicolas Cage plays red, a logger who lives in a cabin in the quiet rural area of the Shadow Mountains, with his love Mandy, played by Andrea Riseborough a store clerk by day and an illustrating artist by night who creates images of sci-fi fantasy.   The album graphic displays the year 1983, and on the radio of Red’s pickup truck we hear a speech given by President Ronald Regan. According to the director, 1983 is a mystical mysterious time for him, it was the introduction of the video store, he would see all the incredible VHS covers from D'Argento & Romero's Horror to Craven's slashers' and Friedkin's The Exorcist, but at 9 years of age he was never allowed to watch them, so 1983 was a mysterious time, a wall that he could not see past and know beyond the pictures.
In the first act we  learn that Mandy had a difficult childhood, and by living a quiet secluded life it  has benefited her and Red. One day while walking along the road Mandy passes a vehicle carrying Jeremiah Sand and his followers the Children of the New Dawn. It’s here that sparks the childlike desire as if seeing a shiny new toy when gazing upon the sight of Mandy, as Jeremiah played by Linus Roache feeling he must now possess her.

The Children of the New Dawn are Jeremiah’s cult followers; they do his bidding and would die for him, as the youngest demonstrates by playing Russian Roulette with a service revolver in front of a helpless Red.  Mandy refuses Jeremiah’s advances and he has her killed and burned alive; in front of a beaten and tied up Red who is left to die.  The Cinematographer Benjamin Loeb descends into a psychedelic atmosphere with saturating the screen with blood red and astral purple, and to make sure there is no misgivings the pupils of the eyes become dilated when the screen is in this state. The film is a tale of bloody revenge, but it's based on tragic loss, and as the gore intensifies in every scene, so does the realization that this film is a tragedy, the film does not relish in the violence, though it is very much fueled by it. 

Jeremiah looks like the silence of the lambs Buffalo Bill, fused with Charles Manson and Red States’ Abin Cooper.  
The Premise: A cult leader calls fourth LSD  ridden demonic bikers to capture the object of his desire Mandy. Hoping to sway her affections with a hallucinogenic cocktail, Mandy's strength of will belittles him, and in a scorned rage he burns her alive in front of her significant other played by Nicolas Cage, who was tied up and left for dead. The few scenes of non psychedelic haze is to inform the audience the reality of the situation and to provide some exposition.  Reeling from the trauma of witnessing Mandy's demise we see a man coping with crushing loss and grief while being fueled by growing rage.  The cameo appearance of Bill Dukes as Caruthers is the only verbal exposition, we get a hint of some dark past backstory of Cage's character, and a quick overview of the biker gang and where to begin Cage's path for revenge.  During his elimination of the bikers, he comes across their Demonic LSD laced elixir and all semblance of his humanity gets eradicated as he enters an apex killing mode to fulfill his Bloodlust. If this was a videogame, Cage has just levelled up to demigod mode.

Horror Film (2020) Review #11

The Turning is based on the novella by Henry James called ‘The Turn of the Screw’, published in 1898.  The story has been adapted multiple times in its 200+ years, this includes ballet and opera, and has inspired other gothic pieces of storytelling, like Guillermo Del Toro’s Crimson Peak.   

In 1961, a movie starring Deborah Kerr titled ‘The Innocents’ was more of a psychological horror in comparison to this film and was more clearly defining of the adaptation to James’s work.   There is apparently an alternative ending to the Turning , that has Kate (Mackenzie Davis) fleeing with the children,  with Miles (Finn Wolfhard) unable to shake his possession of the spirit of Peter Quint, and the film would leave us with the cliffhanger of him being  over taken.

The Premise: Jessel the children’s Governess flees the estate one night, and appears to be captured by Quint the grounds keeper.  Some time has passed and new hire Kate Mandell quits her teaching job to become a private tutor to a wealthy young heiress’ Flora who had witnessed her parent’s tragic death years prior.  Before she arrives, Kate stops to say goodbye to her mother who has been placed in a care facility, and appears to be suffering from some form of mental deterioration, we learn her mother has a passion to pastel drawings. Soon after her arrival to the estate Kate meets Miles, Flora’s older brother who has unexpectedly returned from boarding school. As the film progresses, Kate as trouble connecting with Miles and finds the children becoming more distant as strange images begin to plague the estate’s dark corridors and pools.

The Turning was released in theaters at the beginning of January 2020, with mainly under whelming reviews by critics and audiences, as its conclusion was left very open ended. Directed by Floria Sigismondi who is known for directing music performance videos, has directed a few episodic television shows including The Handmaid’s Tale, American Gods, and an Episode of Marvel Netflix’s Daredevil.  The goal of the ending was to leave the audiences to draw their own conclusion, if there were spirits plaguing Kate and the Children, or was Kate losing her mind, as a predisposed inheritance from her mother’s degenerating condition.  The film also sets up an unreliable time frame, on how much of what we are seeing is taking place or if any  at all, as to show intent of reality is caving inward.

The story has over a dozen film adaptations, Director Mike Flanagan who completed the Haunting of Hill House Season on Netflix, is in the process of a second season called The Haunting of Bly Manor, which has direct connection to the Novella as being the backbone to the series.   Films like ‘The Others’ and ‘In a DarkPlace’, as well as having the same title ‘The Turn of the Screw’ has been made into a film and tele-film,  All sharing a similarity of atmosphere and connection of losing one’s mind or being haunted by  ghosts.  This film is different from all pre-existing creations as nothing is presented on screen to warrant  its conclusion. The acting by all three primary characters are stellar as they hold our attention, but half way through the film you begin to feel that this film is not going anywhere in its plot, once you discover and explore the environment, the film loses traction and then the film really stops to a stand still and leaves the rest to your own imagination.  

David Cronenberg ‘s history of violence had an abrupt stop, but the film was fully fleshed out  for the audience to be invested and make their own conclusion, The final moments of the Sopranos , leaves the audience bewildered, but  dialogue given in the initial season of what is taking place fills in the gap of the show’s finale, as the film comes full circle and the audience can draw a definitive conclusion.  The Turning will be a bench mark, and a head scratcher, as solid acting, beautiful composition in cinematography, but lacking a plausible direction of its deliberate ambiguity. There is nothing in three quarters of the movie to suggest the sudden dramatic shift, unless the beverage Kate ingested altered her reality the day her mother’s letter arrived.