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Movie Review: Dragonlance – Dragons of Autumn Twilight

This film is bad. Really bad. You just won’t believe how vastly, hugely, mindbogglingly bad it is. I mean you might have been appalled by The Crystal Skull but that’s just peanuts to this. Listen…

I read the Dragonlance books as a teenager and am, even as we speak, playing through the AD&D Modules. I was dead excited to hear there was a film and even enjoyed watching it for the first ten minutes. It begins at a quite relaxed pace, introducing the characters with some humorous banter and bloodless action. But this is soon replaced by break-neck pacing. The plot feels as if it is on fast-forward, with a lot being told in exposition and chunks of the story being missed out altogether. With a large cast of characters they get no more than a handful of lines each, and several are left standing around with very little to do. Ultimately 90 minutes just isn’t a sufficient run-time to do the story justice.

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The animation is mostly 80s style 2D, with the jarring addition of 3D CGI for the Dragons and Draconians. The two styles just don’t mesh and make the production look amateurish. The bloodless action is replaced by amazingly inconsistent gore. One moment we are looking at Hobgoblins dying in pools of blood, the next the ground is perfectly clean! Continuity errors like this persist throughout the film, almost every time the viewpoint changes, and their lip-synching is about as good as mine!

So I was enormously disappointed and appalled to think that this might be anyone’s introduction to Dragonlance.  So do yourself a favour and don’t let this film ruin what could be a wonderful experience. Read the books.

Links

Official Dragonlance Movie Site

Buy the DVD on Amazon (if you must)

Buy the books on Amazon (that’s better)

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Epic Fail Spotlit on Johnny Saturn

Pop over to Johnny Saturn, a serious superhero webcomic, and read what they have to say about Epic Fail.

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Epic Fail Spotlit on Johnny Saturn

Pop over to Johnny Saturn, a serious superhero webcomic, and read what they have to say about Epic Fail.

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Art Interlude: Guan Yin

So here we have a painting I’ve been working on of Guan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy.  Tinuvielle is at a Guan Yin temples in the storyline right now. As my twitter followers will know I’ve had a touch of writers block this week so that’s why I’m doing something different and having an Art Interlude. If I print Epic Fail up as a big Graphic Novel Book sometime I think I would like to use this Guan Yin Painting as the endpages. Of course you can’t tell from the photo, but a great deal of it is painted in gold. I am a lot better at hands after painting this. She has a thousand you know (most of them off page)!

Previous stages:

guan yin art interludegoddess guan yin wipguan yin wip stage 3

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Guest Strip at Union of Heroes

Ancire – the creator of Union of Heroes – became my nemesis during the Webcomic Planet WAR! Then we both joined the Webcomic Planet Collective at which point we put our differences behind us.  And by differences I mean Amuletts.  In back-stab position. So that’s what I drew when he asked for a guest strip.

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Webcomic Spotlight: Cosmic Hellcat Adventures

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Who gave these people a spaceship and are they out of their minds? They have guns! GUNS for heavens sake! I wouldn’t trust them with a pair of scissors! But thankfully they’re in a webcomic, so you can enjoy the madness and mayhem in the comforting glow of your own monitor.

Amaya, Chaste, Damsel and Sarah are four feisty, forthright felinoids (cat-people to you and me) who make up the Science Ninja Action Team known as the Cosmic Hellcats. They are a group of notorious trouble-makers and rules-breakers, pursuing their individual agendas rather than working together to get things done. But their chaotic tactics give them the advantage because no one can guess their next move! They’re out to paint the Universe red, stick a finger up at authority and speak to the rebel in all of us.

If you thought Star Trek was dull and skirts weren’t short enough then this is the comic for you! The current storyline is Ninjas vs. Pirates.

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Movie Review: JJ Abrams’ Star Trek

I watched JJ Abrams’ Star Trek on my Birthday. I’d read some positive reviews – unprecedented given Treks usual reception – but I was still anxious. Resurrecting this mostly-dead franchise could have been no easy task. Failure would have been the final nail in the coffin – Star Trek rest in peace. But could it be reborn, be popular even, without sacrificing everything that made Star Trek special? The answer is “Yes.”

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Now, this film is by no means perfect. Indeed I could nit-pick it to pieces, but if that ruined our enjoyment of Star Trek we’d have been on a bad trip since ‘The Cage.’ Continuity errors and implausible science almost make it feel more genuine!

In respect to all that has come before this Star Trek is not a clean reset; Leonard Nimoy’s Spock appears to pass the torch onto this new cast and crew. The plot incorporates Trek lore accurately and appropriately. I had the impression that the creators had not only watched every episode in existence, but read the books as well. I recognised elements from Diane Carey’s ‘Best Destiny’ – a novel about Kirk’s tearaway youth and his relationship with his father. On further investigation (namely Wikipedia) I discovered this, and others, had indeed been an influence. It’s rewarding to see all that wonderful material put to good use.

‘Yesterdays Enterprise’ stylē the plot involves changes in the timeline creating an alternate reality. (It was cool then; it’s cool now). This neatly explains why the characters are a little different from the originals and injects a sense of danger that would otherwise be lacking. We can’t sit comfortably, safe in the knowledge that Kirk dies on Veridian III and Scotty spends 75 years in a transporter. The future is uncertain. Some, like Tasha Yar, might get the chance to live again whilst others have their lives cut short…

Kirk regrets taunting Spock with "your Mom!"

Kirk regrets taunting Spock with “Your Mom!”

The interior design is probably the most jarring thing for Trekkies. Unlike the Enterprise exterior – which seems like a ‘best bits’ version – it borrows very little from its progenitors. It has a sleek, touch-screen, Macintosh feel to it that’s hard to relate to the 1966 design. It looks futuristic, but not distinctive. Personally I’m a bit bored of monochrome sci-fi look. I’d have loved to see some bold primaries in there.

The actors do a great job, especially the leads, and are believable younger versions (though Yelchin’s Chekov is too close to Wesley Crusher for comfort)! The youthful element sets a different tone than we are used too. This film is exciting and entertaining with more humour than there’s been in the last four Trek moves put together. It’s a clear, self-contained story for Trek virgins with plenty of background details and in-jokes that die-hard fans will appreciate. I really enjoyed watching it – it doesn’t suck.

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Promo Amuletts & My Birthday

amulettswebI was asked to whip up promotional images of my characters by the WCPC, so here’s the first one of Amuletts.

As some of you will know it was my Birthday yesterday.  I had a lovely day and went to see the new Star Trek movie.  I got

meanddick

some nice presents, amongst them a Lil’ Richard Plushie!  Richard is a character from one of my favorite webcomics: Looking For Group.

Side by side it’s hard to work out which one of us is more evil, isn’t it?

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Web-Series Review: Star Trek Phase II

stp2bfAs all Trekkies will know, the original Star Trek ran for only 3 seasons before getting axed. What isn’t commonly known is that in 1977 Paramount Pictures planned to restart the franchise as a television series called Star Trek Phase II. Nearly all the original actors were signed up, scripts were written, sets designed – but it never happened. Star Trek: The Motion Picture was made instead.

The fan made Phase II (formerly known as New Voyages) is an effort to create what could have been and continue the Enterprises 5 year mission. It is filmed in a very retro style to make the production feel just like the original. The set is an exact replica of the original starship right down to the multicoloured lighting, in fact it was borrowed by Paramount to film episodes of ENTERPRISE!

The great thing about this series is the dedication of its creators and supporters. There are so many people who love Star Trek and want Phase II to be the best it can be. These include past actors like Walter Koenig and George Takai who reprise their roles as older versions of the characters in To Serve All My Days and World Enough & Time. The scripts, by respected Trek writers like DC Fontana and David Gerrold, really shine. Some were written specifically for the series, others adapted from unused Trek scripts.

The thing that has let the series down so far is inconsistent acting. This is probably due to the main financial contributors grabbing the big roles. James Cawley, an Elvis impersonator, comes across more as the King than Kirk in the pilot Come What May. However, episode by episode, he is improving; the Shatner School of Acting (otherwise know as re-watching Star Trek again and again) is clearly paying off. Cawley doesn’t quite fit the big chair yet, but he’s growing into it.

There are others I can’t see ever fitting their roles. John Kelley as McCoy and Charles Root as Scotty are painful to watch. Though visually convincing Kelley makes no attempt at the accent or mannerisms associated with his character, whilst conversely Root tries too hard! If you can listen to his ‘scottish’ accent without wincing you are made of stern stuff my friend.

Far and away above the rest is Andy Bray who plays Chekov. He looks just like Walter Koenig and clearly benefited from working with him in To Serve All My Days. His accent and mannerisms are perfect. Likewise Spock, despite repeated recasting, has been played by convincing actors. First there was Jeffery Quinn – who looked nothing like Nimoy – and lately there’s been Ben Tolpin – the full package if ever there was one. Brandon Stacey, who doubles as Spock in JJ Abrams’ movie, is taking up the mantle next.

Each new episode of Phase II has been better than the one before. I’m itching to see part 2 of the latest episode Blood & Fire. I make no pretence about it: I’m a Trekkie. Perhaps that’s why I’m so excited about this and get tingly feelings when I hear the opening score. What am I saying? Of course that’s why! Phase II has captured something of what I love and given me the chance to experience it anew. It’s not all it can be, but I have a feeling that in the future it will be.

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Movie Review: The Hunt for Gollum

Filmed in Great Britain and free to watch The Hunt for Gollum is a fan-made Lord of the Rings film based on Tolkien’s appendices. Taking place between The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring, the story follows Aragorn as he tracks Gollum across middle earth to prevent him revealing The One Ring’s location to Sauron. It’s stylistically similar to the film trilogy and the actors seem to have been chosen for their resemblances to their movie counterparts – I’m certain they used some of the same extras as well. All this makes it feel like a part of the series, and the production values are extremely high.

It’s a beautiful production, especially from a visual perspective. A lot of the landscapes are digital but they look incredibly realistic. These guys literally went out and created a whole new world. I cannot fail to be impressed; I’ve seen my share of fan films and where some might achieve the standards of a TV movie The Hunt for Gollum has the quality of a cinema release. They achieve a lot on a budget of only £3000.

Aragorn gets Gollum into the sack

Aragorn gets Gollum into the sack

I’m not sure why –lack of funds or difficulty with the CG model perhaps- but you don’t see much of Gollum throughout the whole thing. There are a lot of scenes with him tied up in a sack (which, incidentally, seemed to change size between shots). This seemed vaguely ridiculous and I just couldn’t believe Gollum would have any difficulty escaping from it. This is the weakest part of the entire film that some rescripting – involving Argorn finding Gollum later in the story – could have avoided. I would have liked to see Aragorn chase Gollum all the way to Mordor only to have him taken by the Orcs. It would have added more emotion and drama to the film – Aragorn getting so close only to fail.

As a fan it’s good to see more of Aragorn as a Ranger. Adrian Webster does a rather introverted performance, but is solid throughout and the camera obviously loves him. This is a huge contrast to most fan productions where the acting just makes you cringe! The fight scenes are the gem of this film, especially the one with the Orcs. All the people involved are experts in stage combat and it’s beautifully choreographed. The Hunt for Gollum really pushes the boundaries on fan-films; no Lord of the Rings fan would want to miss it.