Warning: Spoilers abound.
I just saw the first episode of the new Thundercats. Truly, it is a completely different experience from the new Voltron. While Voltron Force is a sequel and fond tribute to the original, full of in-jokes and enthusiasm, Thundercats is a complete re-take on the original, the tribute much subtler, the tone darker, and the animation much flashier.
My surprise was how derivative it was. We begin with Lion-O blowing off or forgetting about a royal engagement with his father so he could sneak out and collect forbidden artifacts from beyond his world. Very Little Mermaid. Then it moved to the whole "Son of the leader wants to do things differently and has new ideas which make everyone, especially the leader, think he's a dope, but really it's what makes him special and actually saves the day" plot, a la How to Train Your Dragon, among many others. Then we have the whole Lion King thing where Lion-O has to remember who he is, and must take his place as an actual leader. And we end with them being told that they must find the sacred book that explains everything, which is beneath the setting sun. So...Saiyuki, right?
Being so derivative, the plot was pretty predictable. We know that Lion-O is going to come into his own, that his interest in the forbidden "technology" is going to come in handy. And when the General (Grune?) tells Claudus that Panthro is dead, it is simply unbelievable. We in the audience must conclude that he is either mistaken or lying. When he reveals the nunchucks, we know he must be lying. Therefore, the giant wad of gold he is hauling in must be a Trojan horse. It would have been a far better surprise for the audience had he just said they were separated, or done a "You mean he isn't here?" thing.
The Panthro/Mum-ra thing did confuse me, though. Is Panthro really dead? Or was he alive but possessed, or is he a traitor? Or is he missing while Mum-ra just used his form? I guess we will find out later-- it was the only twist that really surprised me, and is keeping me guessing.
The tributes were subtle but nice. The Sword of Omens looks very much like the original. The temple is shaped in stone like the techno-cat headquarters in the original. It was great to see Tygra's whips and vanishing act. Claudus, Lion-O's father, was played by Larry Kenney, who played Lion-O in the original series. Slythe was given those distinctive Rankin & Bass jowls.
The whole thing looks very anime, but I think that works fine (and I wish they had gone that way for Voltron). Lion-O does look like Zack Fair. He really does. But he's cute and I like his conflict--he wants to be a good prince, but he wants to be himself, too, and he has all these ideas, and is thinking, but you can tell he's a good (cat) person. Tygra is pretty awesome, funny and cocky but just a bit of a jerk when it comes to dealing with his privileged little brother. It's interesting that he's Lion-O's "brother"--I am very interested in finding out how that came about. Cheetara hasn't had much character development, but she's certainly kick-ass. Wily-Kit and Kat are pretty cute, actually. Mum-ra seems appropriately menacing (though Robot Chicken's Mrs. Mumbletipeg has ruined his menace for me forever, I think).
Best of all, Snarf doesn't talk. He just snarfs, and is pretty cute, too. A very pleasing development.
Other things I liked:
The technology thing is interesting. At the beginning, it's just fiction to them, like magic to us or forks to mer-people. They probably heard stories about those crazy apes who used technology and ended up trashing the planet then blowing themselves up.
I like that there are various species on the planet, that the cats rule and dogs, lizards, and other species are living on the fringe. I really liked Lion-O's act of mercy towards the lizards, which comes back to practically save the day. It's those little things we do...
I also liked how various cats do various things. The Lions are the warriors. Cheetahs are the clerics. It would seem Jaga himself is actually a cheetah. I don't know what tigers are--concubines, maybe? I mean, that would explain Tygra...
All in all, it is definitely an improvement over the original (which admittedly, isn't hard). I only wish that it wasn't quite so predictable, but that's okay--it's a classic sort of tale, and if the characters are interesting and the view is pretty in the telling, that's a good enough start. We can only wait and see how the story will progress.
July 29, 2011
June 22, 2011
Voltron Force -- First Thoughts
Quick first thoughts about Nicktoons' new Voltron Force after one viewing of the first three eps.
Opening song is just nails on blackboard. Just...no.
In general, the character design is not my favorite. I don't like the eye-color changes on Keith and Allura. I think of all the characters, Hunk benefited from the new style most. Pidge didn't fare badly either. The previews of Lance scared the crap out of me, I thought he was going to look terrible, but he actually looked okay once he was moving around. Keith shouldn't have bowed to peer pressure about the mullet.
Specifically...
I hate that they made Keith blue-eyed, I mean, they made him nice and dark skinned as he should be, they should have just left him with black eyes. I noted the hat tip to his former self with his fighting style when we first see him. I have always liked the long hair, but can understand him actually listening to Allura when she suggests he cut it. Funny they actually called it a mullet. Still, I think he coulda put up more of a fight about it. The voice actor brings an older, more mature Keith to the table, and I think he did a good job, but I must admit I surprised myself by getting misty-eyed when he went to form Voltron and did the whole spiel, because I miss Neil Ross, and no one will ever do it like he did, but at the same time it was kinda neat to hear it again.
Lance was the pleasant surprise, I thought they were really gonna mess him up and they didn't. I like his look (a little less wiry than I would have liked but I'll believe he's been working out), I liked his tone, I thought the voice actor did pretty good. It shocks me that he could pull off the obedient soldier shtick for what, like, seven years? Color me impressed--though perhaps he managed by laughing in his sleeve at the higher ups all that time. I'd like to know why he chose the boys he did, if he was watching them a while or made a snap judgment right there and then, or if it was something else.
Pidge and Hunk (I'll lump them together because I care about them about equally) fared the best visually. I like an older, taller, less dorky, less squeaky-voiced Pidge and they delivered. I admit I think I like this Hunk better than the original, just at first glance, but then, I never much liked the original.
Allura should be blue-eyed, and she should relax her hair just a little. She does have an alien look that people have commented on before but to be fair she is an alien, so I'll let it go for the moment. I liked the attention she paid Lance. I saw the secret smile, her touching his broken arm. That was interesting (though he wasn't the only one she touched). She's definitely less a little girl than she was before. I also liked her calling Keith and Lance "boys" to break up their fight, a nice nod to the original.
Coran looks awesome. He sounds too young, but he looks great.
Lotor could have been more handsome, but I can see how one might not look their best after being raised from the dead. Mark Hildreth is great as always, I recognized his voice instantly. Heero is angry! The minion seems interesting, but what is Hagar doing in a nebula?
I see we've gone with electronic space mice, like in the comic. I like how the one screws Keith over, then redeems itself. Keith's concern that he was talking to it was a nice touch.
Daniel is obviously Mini-Keith, gonna be the Raimundo, no doubt. He's not too slappable...yet, but if he interrupts Keith again while forming Voltron he should just be popped right out the hatch.
Vince (I wonder if he isn't a nod to another attempted reboot of another 80's import) is, as others have mentioned, a deus ex machina so far, but in a way that makes him somewhat interesting. Perhaps he will be in Coran's seat one day, rather than a Lion's? I kinda like the notion of a main character in an action series who isn't meant to fight.
I didn't need Larmina to come in and have that hate this place, hate these boys, hate everything attitude. I mean, she's on Arus, training to fly Lions, on Arus. With the Voltron Force. Like, on Arus. That's my childhood dream, so stop being all tetchy about it you little witch, or I'll really give you something to be tetchy about! ...Sorry. She seems to loosen up rather quickly, though, so that's good. And it's always nice to see a kick-ass girl.
The Sky Marshal--I don't know why they went with Sky rather than Space Marshal or even Air Marshal (my Voltron fic had an Air Marshal)--is a cool idea. I do love the insurrection-like stuff, with the established bureaucracy against the heroes. The Alliance was always a little touchy-feely for my taste, anyway. It's nice to see it mixed up a little.
As for the mighty robot, again, the stills worried me. The lions were made to look more--organic, so that when we saw Voltron itself, it looked more obvious that it was Black Lion with it's feet up the other lions' rears. But once in motion in the show, I didn't get that sense, and it looked like Voltron. The new lion designs aren't awful, I like Black Lion and the others I'll get used to--again, in motion, they are better.
The plot is okay, but it seems a bit rushed at first. I think they could have spread out the kids getting tapped and taken to Arus over yet another episode (so there were four to open, like the original Voltron had, rather than just three). I'm all for a quickly moving plot but a touch more motivation would have been nice.
There is a potential for some real interesting conflicts, and it would be great if it became more than a robeast of the week show. They have a chance to really go in wild directions with this, and I hope they do.
And I dunno, I still think Allura had more chemistry with Lance than with Keith; yeah I saw her grab at Keith and yes he took her hands for a brief moment but it didn't feel as friendly as the smile she shared with Lance. I can't explain it better than that.
All in all, I went in prepared to hate it, and I could not. It was actually quite engaging, I enjoyed every hung lampshade and hat-tip to the original, and despite my qualms with the character design, and the rush job at the start, I really do get the feeling that those who worked on it actually went back and looked at the original, and might even have some affection for it (something I never got from V3D). Here's hoping that they can create something that becomes a worthy continuation of the legend of Voltron.
Opening song is just nails on blackboard. Just...no.
In general, the character design is not my favorite. I don't like the eye-color changes on Keith and Allura. I think of all the characters, Hunk benefited from the new style most. Pidge didn't fare badly either. The previews of Lance scared the crap out of me, I thought he was going to look terrible, but he actually looked okay once he was moving around. Keith shouldn't have bowed to peer pressure about the mullet.
Specifically...
I hate that they made Keith blue-eyed, I mean, they made him nice and dark skinned as he should be, they should have just left him with black eyes. I noted the hat tip to his former self with his fighting style when we first see him. I have always liked the long hair, but can understand him actually listening to Allura when she suggests he cut it. Funny they actually called it a mullet. Still, I think he coulda put up more of a fight about it. The voice actor brings an older, more mature Keith to the table, and I think he did a good job, but I must admit I surprised myself by getting misty-eyed when he went to form Voltron and did the whole spiel, because I miss Neil Ross, and no one will ever do it like he did, but at the same time it was kinda neat to hear it again.
Lance was the pleasant surprise, I thought they were really gonna mess him up and they didn't. I like his look (a little less wiry than I would have liked but I'll believe he's been working out), I liked his tone, I thought the voice actor did pretty good. It shocks me that he could pull off the obedient soldier shtick for what, like, seven years? Color me impressed--though perhaps he managed by laughing in his sleeve at the higher ups all that time. I'd like to know why he chose the boys he did, if he was watching them a while or made a snap judgment right there and then, or if it was something else.
Pidge and Hunk (I'll lump them together because I care about them about equally) fared the best visually. I like an older, taller, less dorky, less squeaky-voiced Pidge and they delivered. I admit I think I like this Hunk better than the original, just at first glance, but then, I never much liked the original.
Allura should be blue-eyed, and she should relax her hair just a little. She does have an alien look that people have commented on before but to be fair she is an alien, so I'll let it go for the moment. I liked the attention she paid Lance. I saw the secret smile, her touching his broken arm. That was interesting (though he wasn't the only one she touched). She's definitely less a little girl than she was before. I also liked her calling Keith and Lance "boys" to break up their fight, a nice nod to the original.
Coran looks awesome. He sounds too young, but he looks great.
Lotor could have been more handsome, but I can see how one might not look their best after being raised from the dead. Mark Hildreth is great as always, I recognized his voice instantly. Heero is angry! The minion seems interesting, but what is Hagar doing in a nebula?
I see we've gone with electronic space mice, like in the comic. I like how the one screws Keith over, then redeems itself. Keith's concern that he was talking to it was a nice touch.
Daniel is obviously Mini-Keith, gonna be the Raimundo, no doubt. He's not too slappable...yet, but if he interrupts Keith again while forming Voltron he should just be popped right out the hatch.
Vince (I wonder if he isn't a nod to another attempted reboot of another 80's import) is, as others have mentioned, a deus ex machina so far, but in a way that makes him somewhat interesting. Perhaps he will be in Coran's seat one day, rather than a Lion's? I kinda like the notion of a main character in an action series who isn't meant to fight.
I didn't need Larmina to come in and have that hate this place, hate these boys, hate everything attitude. I mean, she's on Arus, training to fly Lions, on Arus. With the Voltron Force. Like, on Arus. That's my childhood dream, so stop being all tetchy about it you little witch, or I'll really give you something to be tetchy about! ...Sorry. She seems to loosen up rather quickly, though, so that's good. And it's always nice to see a kick-ass girl.
The Sky Marshal--I don't know why they went with Sky rather than Space Marshal or even Air Marshal (my Voltron fic had an Air Marshal)--is a cool idea. I do love the insurrection-like stuff, with the established bureaucracy against the heroes. The Alliance was always a little touchy-feely for my taste, anyway. It's nice to see it mixed up a little.
As for the mighty robot, again, the stills worried me. The lions were made to look more--organic, so that when we saw Voltron itself, it looked more obvious that it was Black Lion with it's feet up the other lions' rears. But once in motion in the show, I didn't get that sense, and it looked like Voltron. The new lion designs aren't awful, I like Black Lion and the others I'll get used to--again, in motion, they are better.
The plot is okay, but it seems a bit rushed at first. I think they could have spread out the kids getting tapped and taken to Arus over yet another episode (so there were four to open, like the original Voltron had, rather than just three). I'm all for a quickly moving plot but a touch more motivation would have been nice.
There is a potential for some real interesting conflicts, and it would be great if it became more than a robeast of the week show. They have a chance to really go in wild directions with this, and I hope they do.
And I dunno, I still think Allura had more chemistry with Lance than with Keith; yeah I saw her grab at Keith and yes he took her hands for a brief moment but it didn't feel as friendly as the smile she shared with Lance. I can't explain it better than that.
All in all, I went in prepared to hate it, and I could not. It was actually quite engaging, I enjoyed every hung lampshade and hat-tip to the original, and despite my qualms with the character design, and the rush job at the start, I really do get the feeling that those who worked on it actually went back and looked at the original, and might even have some affection for it (something I never got from V3D). Here's hoping that they can create something that becomes a worthy continuation of the legend of Voltron.
November 9, 2005
You cannot hurt the Color out of Space
A recomendation:
If you like H. P. Lovecraft, or even if you just love funny stuff, you're gonna enjoy The Adventures of Hello Cthulhu. One of the most vile creatures of human imagination finds himself on an island with the vapid but adorable Hello Kitty and friends. Despite his attempt to recruit reptilian minions and hook up with the enterprising Dagon and The hard-blowing Color out of Space, two other monsters of unspeakable horror from Lovecraft's beastiary, they cannot escape their adorable surroundings.
I got into Lovecraft about a year ago, and consider him one of my favorite writers of all time. His stories are more eerie than jump-out-of-your-skin style horror, and written in a unique style that draws one into his dreary New England towns and cyclopean alien vistas.
Eventually, I gotta find myself some Miskatonic swag. Or maybe a Cthulhu plushie. He's so cuuuuute!
If you like H. P. Lovecraft, or even if you just love funny stuff, you're gonna enjoy The Adventures of Hello Cthulhu. One of the most vile creatures of human imagination finds himself on an island with the vapid but adorable Hello Kitty and friends. Despite his attempt to recruit reptilian minions and hook up with the enterprising Dagon and The hard-blowing Color out of Space, two other monsters of unspeakable horror from Lovecraft's beastiary, they cannot escape their adorable surroundings.
I got into Lovecraft about a year ago, and consider him one of my favorite writers of all time. His stories are more eerie than jump-out-of-your-skin style horror, and written in a unique style that draws one into his dreary New England towns and cyclopean alien vistas.
Eventually, I gotta find myself some Miskatonic swag. Or maybe a Cthulhu plushie. He's so cuuuuute!
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