Author: Dr. K

Wrestling Recap: Hogan vs. Flair (Halloween Havoc ’94)

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The Date: 23 October 1994
The Venue: Joe Louis Arena; Detroit, Michigan
The Commentary: Tony Schiavone and Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
The Referee: Mr. T (guest)
The Stakes: Steel cage match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship with both men’s careers also on the line

The Build-Up:
Easily one of the biggest missed opportunities in the wrestling world was then-World Wrestling Federation (WWF) chairman deciding not to main event WrestleMania VIII with the biggest dream match the industry could produce at the time, the “Immortal” Hulk Hogan taking on “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair. A falling out with World Championship Wrestling’s (WCW) Jim Herd saw Flair leave WCW with their World Heavyweight Championship, but McMahon was put off from pitting the two icons against each other after being unimpressed with the reception to their unaired matches and a preference for slotting Sid Justice into a main event role. While Flair went on to have a highly-rated WWF Championship match against “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Hogan and Sid put on one of the worst WrestleMania main events and WCW wasn’t about to make the same mistake two years later. Flair returned to WCW in 1993 and recaptured the gold, competing against old rivals Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat and Sting, while Hogan dramatically jumped ship in 1994. Before he reinvigorated his career as part of the New World Order (nWo), Hogan largely continued the same schtick that had made him so popular in the WWF and immediately targeted WCW Champion Ric Flair, whom he defeated for the belt in his debut match at the 1994 Bash at the Beach. With the “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart in his corner, Hogan retained the title against Flair via count-out at Clash of the Champions XXVIII, leading to Flair putting his and Hogan’s careers on the line for one last shot at the gold at Halloween Havoc.

The Match:
It’s probably controversial to say but I’ve never been much of a fan of Ric Flair. I think it’s mainly because he’s always been from a bygone era and his peak was way before my time as a wrestling fan, when the grounded style and presentation was notably different not just to today but to when I started watching wrestling in the nineties. I’m a little more lenient on Hulk Hogan simply because he’s a larger-than-life icon of the industry but I’ve never been massively wowed by his matches as he had a very limited repertoire and very rarely deviated from what worked, meaning I find his matches quite repetitive. However, I will say that much of my exposure to both men was when they were in the heyday of their careers and wrestling in an extremely limited capacity, so a part of me is interested in seeing more from both men at their peak and against a contextual background the plays into their strengths, and even I can’t deny that Hogan vs. Flair was the match of the wrestling industry back in the day. Flair was the first to enter the arena for this long-awaited match. Accompanied by “Sensuous” Sherri and draped in one of his trademark robes, Flair exuded the pomp and grandeur of the classic wrestling heel from head to toe. In comparison, Hogan was his usual bombastic self; played to the ring by his awful “American Made” theme and accompanied by Jimmy Hart and Brother Bruti (all of them garbed in Hogan’s signature garish red and yellow). Hogan pandered to and posed with the crowd in the epitome of the beloved, indomitable wrestling babyface. In addition to Michael Buffer running down each man’s lengthy list of accomplishments, Tony Schiavone and Bobby Heenan emphasised that both men had made an indelible mark on the industry and cemented themselves as icons of the business, and to really hammer home that this match would spell the end of one of their legendary careers. Interestingly, the flimsy, rickety wireframe cage was lowered around the ring after the competitors entered, making for an unsettling visual as the ring crew scrambled to get it secured, though this ultimately milked the anticipation of the crowd as was common for Hogan matches. Also, the cage wasn’t really built or tall enough for climbing; it was simply a frame to keep both men in and ensure a decisive victory by pin fall or submission.

Hogan showed an unusual aggression during the match, while Flair systematically targeted his knee.

Surprisingly for these two, the match kicked off with a bit of a brawl. Hogan pummelled and clawed at Flair in the corner, despite Mr. T’s best efforts to separate the two, and sent Flair flying with a back body drop after unsuccessfully trying to ram the Nature Boy’s head into the wire mesh of the cage wall. A couple of weak-ass clotheslines saw Flair begging off but Hogan wasn’t having any of it. He stuffed his bandana down Flair’s throat and ended up partially scaling the cage to stomp on Flair’s chest in the corner! Despite the fact that the match was no disqualification, Mr. T got very hot about Hogan’s uncharacteristic aggression and the two got into a semi-physical argument that was all the opportunity Flair needed to take control following an eye poke to the champion. Unfortunately, the Nature Boy’s dirty tactics and trademark chops didn’t help him when it came to slamming Hogan into the cage wall. The champion powered out of it and smashed Flair into the mesh instead, then ran him back into the wall to shift the momentum back in his favour and send Flair tumbling to the mat with his signature flop. A low blow and a chop block to the back of Hogan’s knee saw Flair regain control, however. With Hogan down, Flair immediately went after the knee and leg of the champion, which caused him to clash with Mr. T as well. Flair finally tossed Hogan into the steel mesh and firmly established his dominance with a triumphant “Woo!” to the braying audience (of which the legendary Muhammed Ali was a member!) before striking with his patented knee drop. Incensed by the onslaught, Hogan suddenly made a comeback, launching Flair into the corner and the cage wall and then driving him head-first into the mesh like a lawn-dart, but Flair answered back with an ungainly double axehandle from the top rope. The match noticeably slowed as Flair sporadically targeted Hogan’s knee and scored near fall off an admittedly impressive suplex. He was so pleased with his commanding position that he made sure to stop for a bit of a strut.

The two brawled using the cage walls but Flair got some…assistance (?)…when Sherri entered the ring.

The two superstar icons exchanged chops and blows in the corner, and Flair frantically tried to escape the cage when he realised he couldn’t win the slugfest. Hogan followed, however, and assaulted the Nature Boy using the cage before causing Flair to drop crotch-first onto the ring ropes. However, Hogan’s renewed aggression was shut down with a boot to the face and put him at risk of the Figure Four, though the champion countered into a roll-up for a near fall. When Flair tried to stun Hogan with some knife edge chops, the Hulkster simply shrugged it off and started “Hulking Up”. He crushed Flair’s hand, ran him into the cage wall once more and then started grating Flair’s forehead on the mesh. A back suplex scored Hogan a two count and, as Hogan again argued with Mr. T (who, the commentators admitted, wasn’t a professional referee so didn’t have the best technique), Flair again tried to escape. This time, Hogan repeatedly smashed Flair’s head off the mesh and hit him with a barrage of chops, only for Flair to shut down his momentum with a knee lift and a couple more running knee drops, this time to Hogan’s weakened leg. Flair continued to work over the leg and wrench at Hogan’s knee, again causing him to butt heads with Mr. T, before finally slapping on the Figure Four Leglock. The crowd, Jimmy Hart, and Bobby Heenan were whipped into a frenzy as Hogan writhed in the hold before mustering the strength to power out of it and to his feet, but Mr. T accidentally took a bump during Hogan’s big comeback. Frustrated, Ric Flair kicked at  Mr. T and Sherri tried to climb into the ring to help Flair out. Although Jimmy Hart succeeded only in exposing her ass to the audience, Sting intercepted her and got clobbered from behind by a masked man wielding a steel pipe.

Flair’s bizarre decision in incapacitate Mr. T ultimately cost him the match (but not his career).

Sherri leapt into the ring, which sounds impressive (and, admittedly, it was) but it ended up looking a little awkward as she barely grazed Hogan. Regardless, Sherri worked with Flair to handcuff Mr. T to the cage wall, which was a weird thing to do as it meant that the gruff official couldn’t make the count when Flair had Hogan pinned after a shot from the masked man’s pipe. Despite the odds, Hogan took his attackers out, showing no compunction about slamming, clotheslining, or tossing Sherri about before once again assaulting Flair with the cage wall. Flair’s counterattack proved futile in the face of Hulk’s signature “Hulk Up”. Hogan shrugged off Flair’s chops and staggered him with clubbing blows, dropped him with the Big Boot, and crushed him with the Atomic Leg Drop. Mr. T made the count and, just like that, Hogan retained the WCW Championship and Ric Flair’s wrestling career was over. Hogan celebrated with Mr. T and Muhammad Ali but was jumped by the masked man, who was shockingly revealed to be Brother Bruti! Hogan’s former ally then teamed up with Kevin Sullivan and the debuting Avalanche to assault Hogan, who had to be saved by Sting. Considering how big both Hogan and Flair were back in the day, this match was really quite a let-down. It was surprisingly physical, especially in the early going and when Hogan showed an uncharacteristic aggression, but it slowed to a crawl in the middle and there were way too many repeated spots, such as Flair taking a back body drop or the two slapping each other about while perched precariously on the ring ropes. One thing I hate about cage matches is when they fail at the one thing they’re designed to do, which is keep people out. Sherri and the masked Bruti easily interfered in the match, but I don’t understand why she and Flair chose to attack and incapacitate Mr. T when it significantly impacted Flair’s chances of winning. Hogan “overcoming the odds” was a story that had gotten old long before this, but the crowd seemed into it here and were happy to see him win, but it didn’t really land for me. For what should have been an epic clash between the two biggest icons in the industry, the match was plodding and basic and shrouded by smoke and mirrors, meaning the spectacle of their long-awaited clash is mired by an otherwise forgettable contest.

The Aftermath:
Following this Halloween Havoc match, Hogan held onto the WCW Championship for a record-setting fifteen months. He wouldn’t drop the belt until the next year’s Halloween Havoc event, where he was defeated by the Giant before forming the nWo later in 1996. Perhaps in a bid to continue to capitalise on both men’s iconic status, this match certainly wouldn’t be the last time Hogan and Flair faced each other. Between 1994 and 2000 when WCW shut their doors, the two squared off in singles and multi-man matches no less than 21 times in WCW alone! They also fought on an episode of World Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) Raw in 2002, were at opposite ends of a tag team match in Total Nonstop Action (TNA), and even captained teams of five against each other when the WWE put on one of their controversial Saudi Arabi shows in 2019. All this is to say that no, this absolutely wasn’t Ric Flair’s last match in WCW or anywhere else. In fact, Flair was back on WCW television a little over two months later, regained the WCW Championship on more than one occasion, and reformed his legendary stable, the Four Horsemen, to oppose “Hollywood” Hogan and his disruptive takeover of the company. There was even a rumour that the aging Hulkster would be coming out of retirement to face Flair in the Nature Boy’s true final ever match in 2022 but, thankfully (given not just the deteriorating physical condition of both men but also how the actual match turned out) we were spared that contest…until the next time Flair decides to lace his boots up again!

My Rating:

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Could Be Better

What did you think to the match between Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair from Halloween Havoc? Do you think that their matches in WCW lived up to the expectations or were you let disappointed by bouts such as this one? What did you think to the ending and the odd decision to handcuff Mr. T to the cage? Were you a fan of either man during their WCW days? Which of their matches and moments was your favourite and would you have liked to see Hogan and Flair face off at WrestleMania as originally planned? What’s your favourite Halloween Havoc match or event? Whatever your thoughts on Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, and Halloween Havoc, I’d love to see them in the comments.

Back Issues [Brightest Month]: Green Lantern Co-Starring Green Arrow #87

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Although February 2014 was dubbed “Green Lantern Day” (because, by the American calendar, the date read as “2814”, the sector of space assigned to Earth in DC Comics), the significance of this date has passed as the years have changed. Instead, as perhaps the most popular iteration of the character, Hal Jordan, first appeared in October of 1959, I’ve been dedicating every Sunday of October to the Green Lantern Corps!

Story Title: “Beware My Power!”
Published: January 1972
Writer: Dennis O’Neil
Artist: Neal Adams

The Background:
Initially presented as magically empowered railroad engineer Alan Scott, Martin Nodell and Bill Finger’s colourful Green Lantern was significantly reinvented by writer John Broome and artist Gil Kane in 1959, becoming a more science-fiction-oriented superhero. Almost ten years later, Groome and Kane planted the seeds for a diverse peacekeeping force, a Green Lantern Corps, with the introduction of Guy Gardner, a volatile individual who acted as a backup to Harold “Hal” Jordan, popularly known as the greatest Green Lantern of all time. Arguably, however, many fans are more familiar with military-minded John Stewart as Earth’s go-to Green Lantern, particularly after his inclusion in the popular Justice League cartoons (2001 to 2004; 2004 to 2006). Created by Neal Adams, who favoured shelving Guy Gardner for an African-American Green Lantern, John was originally depicted as a belligerent architect whose methods and sensibilities clashed widely with Hal’s, and famously refused to hide his identity. John was later retconned to be a former United States Marine, a change that would come to define his character, and became burdened by guilt after accidentally committing genocide. In addition to serving on the Justice League, John became the first mortal Guardian of the Universe, was one of the rare male members of the Star Sapphires, and has prominently featured in DC adaptations, appearing as a skin for Green Lantern in multiple videogames and very nearly making it to live-action on more than one occasion.

The Review:
Things get off to a dramatic start here as an earthquake rocks Southern California just as Hal Jordan is charging up his ring. Although the tremors are brief and have cause only minor damage, Green Lantern swoops over the city to help out where he can, do-gooder that he is. And he’s not the only one; outside the city, the quake has wrecked a bridge and sees little Suzie teetering over a fatal drop. Luckily, Guy Gardner is on hand to help talk her down, but the poor girl’s so terrified that she’s rooted to the spot. With the remains of the bridge unstable and a plummet into the canyon awaiting them both, Guy makes a desperate run for the girl just as Green Lantern arrives to help. Hal shows up just in time to see Guy get smashed by a bus(!) as the section collapses, rescuing them both from the fall but grieved to see that Guy was critically injured from the impact. When doctors at a local hospital inform Green Lantern that Guy should fully recover in six months’ time, Hal is left dejected. Since Guy has been pegged as his successor, Hal has been relying on him taking over if his personal issues become too overwhelming. Luckily, one of the enigmatic and all-power Guardians of the Universe senses Hal’s anxiety and, aware of the situation, suggests that a new substitute be picked in case the worst should happen. Hal agrees and the Guardian takes him to meet his new replacement in the last place Hal expected to go: an urban ghetto. 

When Guy is injured, Hal begins training socially-minded John to be his backup.

There, we’re introduced to John Stewart in a way that perfectly encapsulates his alternative sensibilities. When a police officer threatens two Black youths with disciplinary action for playing dominoes on the pavement, John intervenes, questioning his authority and calling the cop out on his obvious racism. Hal, however, is unimpressed (though not, as the Guardian suggests, because he’s equally prejudiced) by John’s apparent ego. Though he disagrees with the choice, Hal agrees to approach John as Green Lantern and offer him the position as his backup and John, who’s struggled to find work as an architect because of his race, readily agrees to the opportunity to shake off his reputation as a “square” as a superhero, jokingly suggesting he change his name to “Black Lantern”. Thus, Green Lantern (who doesn’t reveal his true identity to John) begins teaching John about the powers and limitations of the power battery and the ring. Hal teaches John the Green Lantern oath (which he finds “corny”), reminds him to charge his ring every twenty-four hours, and temporarily empowers John with his own Green Lantern uniform so they can begin field training, John, however, refuses to hide his identity behind a mask. He also takes to his training like a natural, mastering the ring easier than avoiding muggers and bigots, and is quickly given the chance to put his skills to the test when they spot an out of control fuel tanker heading towards a crowd at the airport. Although they succeed, Hal is enraged when John purposely causes Senator Jeremiah Clutcher to receive a face full of oil, giving John the chance to insult him with a racist quip. John, however, justifies his actions since Clutcher is a known racist who openly oppresses John’s people in his bid to become President of the United States. 

Despite their clash of personalities, John earns Hal’s resect for his deductive reasoning.

Hal chastises John and, to teach him a lesson, orders him to guard Clutcher from reprisals; he also objects to being called “Whitey”, especially considering John’s so pent-up about racism. Later, Clutcher makes an impassioned speech to his supporters, openly mocking “The Darkies” and accusing them of being of lesser intelligence, which only further raises John’s ire. Although Hal doesn’t approve of Clutcher’s insensitive attitudes, he’s so strait-laced that he believes the senator has the God-given right to free speech, meaning he leaps into action when a Black man suddenly shoots at Clutcher during his tirade while John refuses to get involved. Hal quickly tackles the gunmen, noting that the assassin never tried to put up a fight, while John subdues a White gunman outside the stadium. Hal reprimands John for his prejudice, accusing him of bringing disgrace to his uniform, but John simply shrugs him off and teaches Hal a lesson of his own: he spotted both gunmen at the airport and was suspicious to note that one was shooting and the other was missing. Hal’s stunned to learn that the Black man’s gun was filled with blanks as part of an elaborate frame. The Black man was a patsy, setup to make it look like the “Blacks are on a rampage” and winning Clutcher the Presidency at the cost of an all-out civil war. Hal condemns the senator’s actions and is impressed by John’s deductive reasoning. Hal still has apprehensions about John’s methods and style, but the content architect simply brushes it off and the two seem to finish the story with a mutual respect for each other. 

The Summary:
First and foremost, I have to praise the stunning artwork of the late, great Neal Adams. Adams first came to my attention when I read Batman annuals as a kid and I’ve always loved his bold, kinetic, square-jawed depictions of DC’s superheroes. He brings Hal and John to life in such a dynamic way, depicting them as lean, muscular heroes and giving a fluidity to their actions, and it’s always a joy to see his art on the page. Sadly, the scans I’m reading don’t do the art justice. The colours are muted, messy, and robbed of their “pop”, though this does give “Beware My Power” a bit of a dark edge to it that is reflected in the nature of the plot. Next, I have to comment on Guy Gardner. While he tries to help a girl endangered by the earthquake, he’s unceremoniously taken out when a bus smashes into him, leaving him bedridden like a chump. This element was so random, so unnecessarily over the top, that it may as well have killed Guy (and, realistically, should’ve) since it was a pretty extreme and unintentionally hilarious way to put him on the shelf. It was also weird that Hal’s concern was less for Guy’s welfare and more for his own. His entire concern is on what will happen to him and the Green Lantern mantle if he’s unable to perform his duties and less on how the injuries will impact Guy’s future. It’s pretty selfish, if I’m honest, and does as little to endear me towards the “greatest Green Lantern” as his unwavering commitment to the concepts such as authority and free speech. 

With his outspoken nature and unique appearance, John makes a great first impression.

This means he naturally clashes with John Stewart. While John admittedly has a chip on his shoulder and is overly suspicious of authority figures, he has every right to be since he’s an out of work Black man struggling to make a living in the ghetto and facing unfair persecution wherever he goes simply for the colour of his skin. His attitude might be confrontational, and he might ruffle Hal’s feathers with his cavalier nature, but John’s entirely justified since the story depicts a cop persecuting young Blacks for no justifiable reason and then paints Senator Clutcher as such an exaggerated racist bastard that it’s almost comical. Of course, this is probably truer to reality at the time than we realise. The segregation and public dismissal of Blacks was commonplace and African-Americans had every right to take issue with it. Unlike many of them, John is given the power to affect real change when he agrees to become Hal’s backup Green Lantern. He easily masters the ring (potentially because of his creativity as an architect but also because of the strong sense of injustice he feels) and immediately clashes with Hal in his approach towards using his power. While Hal obviously doesn’t agree with racism, he’s a stickler for the rules and believes everyone should have basic human rights, even dirty scum like Clutcher, so he constantly reprimands John, who frankly doesn’t give a shit about Hal’s opinion. Being a product of the 1970s, the story naturally infuses John’s dialect with a bit too cliché “Jive talk” for my tastes, but it instantly gives him more personality than Guy; as does his refusal to wear a mask, his confrontational behaviour, and his unique look. Consequently, I’d definitely say John makes a better first impression than Guy, Hal, or even Alan. While they were all quite bland and cookie cutter in the debuts, John is bold and outspoken.  He might be a bit of a hypocrite at times (he exhibits the same prejudices towards Whites as he receives from them) and in need of some seasoning, but his introduction was the shake-up the book needed at the time and I’d go as far as to say that both Guy and Hal should’ve been taken out by that bus so the Guardian could’ve empowered John to take over the comic! 

My Rating:

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Pretty Good

Did you enjoy John Stewart’s debut story? What did you think to his characterisation and the personality clash between him and Hal? Were you as unimpressed by Guy’s accident as I was? What did you think to the racism angle threaded throughout this story? Do you think John was justified in his actions or do you think he needed tempering a little to approach things more diplomatically? Where does John rank in the Green Lantern hierarchy for you and what are some of your favourite stories and moments of his? How are you celebrating Green Lantern this month? I’d love to hear your thoughts on John Stewart so leave them below, and go check out my other Green Lantern content across the site! 

Game Corner [00-Heaven]: GoldenEye 007: Reloaded (Xbox 360)

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To celebrate the release of Dr. No (Young, 1962), the first of the James Bond movies (Various, 1962 to present), October 5th is known as “Global James Bond Day”. This year, I’ve been spending every Saturday commemorating cinema’s longest-running franchise, and one up of the most recognised and popular movie icons.

Released: 1 November 2011
Originally Released: 2 November 2010
Developer: Eurocom
Also Available For: Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii (Original Release); PlayStation 3 (Reloaded)

The Background:
Like many gamers back in the day, much of my social gaming was spent playing GoldenEye 007 (Rare, 1997), a best-selling title for the Nintendo 64 that began development as a simple rail-shooter before bucking the trend of videogame tie-ins by being universally praised as one of the greatest first-person shooters (FPS) and multiplayer experiences. Unfortunately, Rare lost the James Bond license and fans had to make do with spiritual successors like Perfect Dark (Rare, 2000), and other Bond titles, and blatant attempts to cash-in on GoldenEye 007’s popularity, like the shameless and mediocre GoldenEye: Rogue Agent (EA Los Angeles, 2004). In 2006 and 2008, both Nintendo and Microsoft expressed interest in releasing a port of the game on the Virtual Console and Xbox Live Arcade platforms but rights issues led to Activision charging Eurocom with developing a reimagining of the classic shooter for the Nintendo Wii. Built around the same gameplay and mechanics as 007: Quantum of Solace (Treyarch/Various, 2008), this new GoldenEye 007 saw Daniel Craig reprise his Bond role and many reviewers comparing it to the Call of Duty franchise (Infinity Ward/Various, 2003 to present). Despite some positive reviews GoldenEye 007 was mostly met with a mixed response that painted it as a lacklustre title. This didn’t stop Activision from releasing this high-definition port of the game to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 a year later, though critics remained as unimpressed as before. Thankfully, after numerous leaks, the original GoldenEye 007 was finally released on the Nintendo Switch and Xbox One so that a new generation of players could experience it and this middling reimagining was left mostly forgotten.

The Plot:
Renowned super spy James Bond/007 in drawn into a globe-trotting adventure as he races to stop a rogue 00 agent Alec Trevelyan (now a terrorist known as “Janus”) from causing a global financial meltdown with a satellite weapon known as “GoldenEye”.

Gameplay:
GoldenEye 007: Reloaded is a first-person shooter in which players assume the role of James Bond, now sporting Daniel Craig’s likeness and voice rather than Pierce Brosnan’s, and journey through reimagined maps and locations that are loosely based on the original videogame and movie. There’s a reason why GoldenEye 007: Reloaded has been referred to as “Bond of Duty”; if you’ve played any of the Call of Duty games, the controls, mechanics, and overall “feel” of the game will be very familiar to you, for better or worse. The game is therefore very much a modern reimagining of the classic Nintendo 64 FPS rather than a true, high-definition remake of the original game. This is first reflected in the game’s control scheme, which a helpful MI6 tutorial walks you through. Bond can climb and vault over downed objects (desks, trees, rocks, and the like), crouch with B to sneak up on enemies undetected for a stealth take down with the right analogue stick, manually reload his current weapon by pressing X and activate certain consoles or pick up new weapons by holding X, and switch weapons with Y. Holding the Left Trigger lets you aim down the sights of Bond’s gun and tapping it enables a helpful auto lock-on to the nearest target, if enabled. The Right Trigger is used to fire, and Bond can throw primary and secondary grenades and similar explosives with the Right and Left Bumpers, respectively. Finally, you can briefly sprint by holding down the left analogue stick, melee attack enemies up close by pressing in the right analogue stick, and apply a number of gadgets (such as a silencer or night vision goggles) with the directional pad (D-pad).

Use stealth, Bond’s phone, or go all-out in a tank in this mediocre shooter.

Your main gadget throughout the game isn’t a fancy watch or bizarre invention of Q and is, instead, disappointingly, your phone. Gameplay is invariably interrupted by phone calls from M and Bill Tanner that update your objectives or add some nuance to this re-told story, and you’ll be using your phone to scan partygoers to find your contact, investigate the environment to find and photograph objects of interest (like weapons caches and such), make recordings, activate remote explosives, and hack into terminals and drone guns. It’s a bit of a shame that so many of the game’s objectives require the use of the phone as it’s not that interesting to use and completely halts the action, though it’s relatively versatile and it can be fun to hack drone guns and gun down large groups of goons. Bond can also crawl through vents as a shortcut and to get behind groups of enemies, shoot fire extinguishers, explosive panels and barrels, and other parts of the environment to take down groups, and utilise his stealth and subdue skills to keep enemies from calling in reinforcements. Sometimes, you’ll be asked to press the right stick rather than hold X to open doors. This causes a “breach” that slows down time so you can dispatch armed foes and rescue hostages, like those on the frigate and Bond’s ally, Natalya Simonova. You’ll also be taking out security cameras to keep reinforcements at bay, activating surface-to-air missile launchers to take out choppers, acquiring and planting explosive charges, and even ploughing through the streets of Russia in a heavily armed tank! This chase mission is far more involved this time around, with Bond firing a chain gun, the main cannon, and even a homing shot, though the controls can be a bit clunky, and you can’t dawdle too long or you’ll lose General Arkady Grigorovich Ourumov. Another prominent feature in the game are quick-time event (QTE) sections. These pop up when Bond needs to pull apart doors by mashing LT and RT together, in first-person cutscenes where you need to activate explosives, and during bosses battles against turncoat Trevelyan and his right-hand assassin, Xenia Onatopp.

The locations are large but the objectives and requirements are sadly lacking.

QTEs rear their ugly heads at the worst possible moments, such as when Bond is racing after a plane down an airstrip. You need to fend off the pursuing troops and then leap to the plane with LT and RT, with failure returning you to the last checkpoint. Speaking of which, checkpoints are relatively generous here, allowing you to reload if you get spotted or are caught in a crossfire. GoldenEye 007: Reloaded has four difficulty settings (“Operative”, “Agent”, “007”, and “007 Classic”), with the enemy AI and objectives increasing for each setting. If you’re playing on “007 Classic”, you’ll be relying on body armour to replenish your health similar to the original game; otherwise, Bond will automatically regenerate health while taking cover, just like in the Call of Duty games. You’ll need to do this quite often, or at least be stealthy and smart about how you play, as Bond is surprisingly weak here. Enemy fire (and, especially, explosives) will end your mission in a split second and you always need to be aware of snipers and even sheer drops off cliffs! Thankfully, an onscreen radar highlights nearby enemies, allowing you to better anticipate their movements. This also points you in the direction of your main objective, with a phone icon altering you to any additional objectives in the nearby area. Unfortunately, Bond is far more limited here than in the original game. You can only hold two additional weapons alongside your standard issue pistol for three in total, though you can retrieve dropped weapons if you wish and the game is pretty good about providing you with helpful or necessary weapons (like sniper rifles or rocket launchers) in key areas. While the game is far more linear than the original version, you have a few options available to you (taking vents, lifts, and vaulting through windows, for example) to explore. You’ll need to pull apart rocks to progress, race through burning environments, fend of guards as they rappel through windows, and yes even defend Natalia as she sabotages the GoldenEye satellite. I actually found this a lot easier this time around (on “Agent” difficulty, at least). It didn’t seem like Natalia could be killed and it was much easier to target enemies, despite having to rush about between different consoles.

Graphics and Sound:  
Technically speaking, GoldenEye 007: Reloaded looks and plays perfectly fine. Many of the environments recreate and update the familiar stages of the original game, including the same sweeping camera cuts and décor choices. These are most prominent in the “Dam”, “Facility”, and “Archives” stages, which take the original map, apply updated textures and mechanics to them, and greatly expand upon them. “Dam” now takes place at night and in the pouring rain, for example. Bond and 006 commandeer an enemy truck to progress further towards their objective, there’s a helicopter pad, and the entire area is transformed from a relatively short and simple experience into a more nuanced opening stage. However, many of the returning stages are so different that they’re basically unrecognisable. It’s as though the developers were told the general concept of GoldenEye 007 and given free rein to imagine that however they like. “Frigate”, for example, is now comprised of a lengthy section where Bond must fight his way on to the ship. There are barely any hostages to rescue this time and you’re mainly disabling the ship’s systems to plant a tracker on the EMP-hardened helicopter as it takes off. Similarly, the “Surface” and “Bunker” levels are now far more detailed and basically entirely new stages. Bond must take cover within the wreckage of wooden huts and make his way through the burning wreckage of the Severnaya facility, and the “Depot” and “Train” stages are entirely reimagined, with the “Train” section being just a short run through a few wrecked carriages and a lacklustre escape where you need to shoot open a panel rather than use Bond’s watch.

Mostly, the game looks dark, bleak, and terrible and doesn’t do much with the Bond license.

Technically, I don’t really mind this. It makes sense that stages are expanded and changed using the new engine and mechanics, but any nostalgia you might feel creeping through the vents of “Facility” or stealthily taking out Janus goons in “Statue” is completely lost when you realise just how different and unrecognisable these environments are. “Statue” is a great example as the stage now takes place in a memorial park and museum. The confusing, maze-like layout is replaced with a dark and dreary covert mission past giant statues and stone trappings, using the sewers and silent takedowns to dispatch Janus’s men. The game also omits entire stages, like “Silo” and “Control”, replacing them with a nightclub stage full of raving partygoers where Bond meets a heavily altered version of Valentin Zukovsky. In fact, every character has had their likenesses completely remodelled with the exception of M, who’s still played by Judi Dench. Obviously Bond is Daniel Craig and that’s fine but the guy they got for Trevelyan is no Sean Bean and doesn’t even sport any facial scars to go with his Janus moniker! It’s almost a blessing, then, that much of the game’s story is conveyed through voice over and cheap MI6 briefings where all we see is digital information rather than character models. However, I think I preferred the text dossiers from the original game as at least that wasn’t doing the Nintendo 64’s graphical abilities a disservice like here. This translates to certain aspects of the gameplay, too. I noticed a few instances of graphical pop-ups and texture warping in the “Jungle” and “Surface” stages, enemies and gunfire often clipped through solid walls, and the game can get so dark and chaotic that it’s easy to get confused and frustratingly picked off before you even have a chance to react. One aspect I did like was that  “Dam” transitioned into an all-new title sequence, with Nicole Scherzinger performing an okay cover version of “GoldenEye” to give the game a cinematic flair that’s sadly missing in its otherwise muted, clinical, and bleak presentation. This is reflected in Craig’s delivery, which is decidedly lackadaisical, and juxtaposed by the vibrant “Jungle” stage and the high-tech “Cradle” finale, where blasts of blinding light cause gantries to collapse under your feet and goons to riddle you with bullets in the confusion.

Enemies and Bosses:
An endless supply of goons, guards, and soldiers will be patrolling every location in the game. If you follow them while crouched, you’ll get to listen in on some fun banter and discussions between them that might have you feeling a little remorse when you execute them with a headshot and you can see enemies going through certain motions, like patrolling back and forth, resting against barriers and walls, attaching charges to walls, and ransacking the environment. This opens a few options to you, such as sneaking up to subdue them, silently nailing a headshot, or going in all guns blazing, though the latter action is not always recommended as it’ll alert all nearby guards and cause tougher goons to come swarming in until the enemies are dealt with. Enemies are generally armed with an array of machine guns, but some also pack rocket launchers, take the high ground with sniper rifles, and you’ll have a fair few grenades lobbed at your head if you camp out in one area. Enemies can take cover (overturning tables and dramatically sliding behind walls) to fire at you, and have their hats shot off. They also busy themselves at computer terminals, vending machines, and in toilets but their gunfire is just as likely to ignite fuel tanks to cause explosive damage as yours so be sure to mind your surroundings at all times. Bosses aren’t really a thing in GoldenEye 007: Reloaded. Most stages end when you’ve completed your objectives, entered a facility, and either evaded capture or been captured. Sometimes you’ll need to hold off against waves of enemies as you wait for a lift to arrive. Other times, you’ll be switching to night vision to take out goons in darkened tunnels

Sadly, the game’s few boss encounters boil down to pressing the right buttons at the right time.

You will also be tasked with finding efficient ways of dispatching rooms or areas full of guards without raising too much of an alarm, and others you’ll be contending with helicopter attacks. This is fine when you’re in your tank but, when on foot, you’ll need to dodge between cover and activate a surface-to-air missile to down the chopper, with the one in “Jungle” unloading a missile barrage that limits your options in this regard. When in the tank, you’ll come up against a fighter jet near the end of the stage that takes a few more hits from your cannon to down, alongside loads of RPG-wielding soldiers, choppers, and trucks in the road but this is closest you get to battling Ourumov as he’s simply executed in a cutscene by Xenia. Xenia is fought as a boss, but this time it’s purely a QTE. Simply tap the buttons as they appear onscreen and Bond will dodge and parry her wild kicks until the sequence ends with her death. As in the original game, GoldenEye 007: Reloaded culminates in a showdown with traitor Alec Trevelyan, revealed as the terrorist Janus, in his antenna control facility. After overcoming the aggravation of getting past the dangerous gantry area, you’ll have another QTE-ladened fight with Trevelyan where the hardest thing about it is realising you need to mash LT and RT together rather than one after to other to avoid having your face burned off. After this, you’ll face one of the game’s toughest and most annoying challenges: a shootout with Trevelyan where he’s protected by a bulletproof vest and calls in goons and even a chopper to help him out. After failing multiple times, I realised that the best option is to shoot him with your unsilenced pistol (which oddly does more damage) and then head outside to the far left. The chopper won’t move around the building to fire at you so you can simply fend off the goons and shoot at Trevelyan until he runs off. Then you simply need to win one final QTE sequence that culminates in a fatal shot to the treasonous agent, and you’ll have achieved a final, if unremarkably hollow, victory.

Power-Ups and Bonuses:
Since you’ll only be picking up body armour on the “007 Classic” difficulty, the closest thing you’ll find to power-ups here are the various guns and gadgets you’ll find throughout your adventure. Bond can use a silencer to muffle his shots and remain undetected and can use night vision goggles in areas with low lighting to take out enemies (thought they don’t seem nearly as handicapped by the darkness), and of course use his trusty phone to hack drone guns. Otherwise, you’ll grab a fair amount of different guns, though barely any of them resemble their counterparts from the original game. You’ve got Bond’s regular pistol but there are other hand guns on offer, including one with a nifty aiming laser and one that fires in bursts. You can snipe from afar with sniper rifles (and some machine guns also make use of a scope or targeting attachment) or blow enemies away using a rocket launcher or a grenade launcher feature to one rifle, and blast goons in the face with powerful magnums and shotguns. My favourite weapon was the Masterson M557, a kind of high-powered, rapid rife shotgun! Classic Bond weapons like the one-hit kill Golden Gun and Moonraker laser also appear in the game’s multiplayer alongside grenades, though I never encountered either of these in the single player campaign. Honestly, I was a little disappointed by the weapon selection. You’ll come across locked crates and cabinets that can be smashed or shot open to grab new weapons, but they all seemed to be variations of machine guns and submachine guns, so I struggled a bit to tell them apart or favour one over the other, generally relying on whatever had the most ammo in the immediate area.

Additional Features:
There are fifty Achievements up for grabs in GoldenEye 007: Reloaded, four of which are awarded for completing every objective on every mission for each of the game’s difficulty levels (though these do stack up, so you can snag multiple in one playthrough). Many of the game’s stages contain the opportunity to earn an additional Achievement, such as getting forty kills with the Wolfe .44 magnum in “Nightclub” and twenty kills with hacked drone guns in “Jungle”, or require you to finish missions quickly or without reinforcements being called in. Five Janus emblems are hidden in every stage, and you’ll get Achievements for destroying one, twenty, and fifty of them, as well as for finishing any mission without taking damage of any “007 Classic” mission without any body armour. Outside of the main story, you can also take part in “MI6 Ops” missions for extra Achievements. These charge you with revisiting locations from the main game and eliminating enemies as quickly as possible, using stealth tactics, or defending three consoles and you’ll earn star rankings based on how well you perform. A good chunk of the game’s Achievements are also tied to the game’s multiplayer component. This can be played on- and offline and sees you again selecting from a roster of characters (including classic characters like Jaws and Oddjob) that you can now select different weapon and gadget loadouts. There are ten different maps to choose from and a variety of familiar game modifiers, such as melee only, team conflict, and a race for the Golden Gun. There are also some new modes here, too, such as “Escalation” (where killstreaks grant you better weapons), “Bomb Defuse” (like a “Capture the Flag” mode except you need to retrieve and defuse a bomb), and “Detonator Agent” (where you’re carrying a bomb and can either pass it to someone else or rack up a greater kill streak). While you don’t unlock fun cheat codes through gameplay like before, you can input some off websites to unlock some extra features for the multiplayer component, though not for the main campaign, which is limited to simply replaying missions on higher difficulties.

The Summary:
I played GoldenEye 007: Reloaded years ago on the PlayStation 3, around the same time as I played through the equally lacklustre Quantum of Solace game, and remember it being a largely uninspired FPS experience. Like many who bought the game, I was excited at the prospect and compelled by nostalgia to pick it up and it’s that same nostalgia that drove me to re-acquire it for my Xbox 360 library. Sadly, time and my experience with the Call of Duty franchise hasn’t made this game any better. While a lot of it visually resembles the original GoldenEye 007, so much has been changed and awkwardly shoe-horned into this samey, uninspired game engine that it may as well be an entirely different game. Indeed, I do wonder if it might’ve been better to tweak the concept a little to simply be a distant homage to GoldenEye 007 rather than an actual, explicit remake but that wouldn’t be anywhere near as interesting or profitable, would it? The gameplay is okay, but even on the “Agent” difficulty things can get very frustrating, boring, and repetitive very quickly. I found myself burning through weapons since they’re all so interchangeable, getting annoyed with how linear and obtuse the stages could be, and being unimpressed by the cutscenes, story, and voice acting. The QTEs were also annoying as they felt very out of place against the shooting gameplay. I disliked how much waiting and faffing around with the phone was involved, and the stealth mechanics were poorly implemented. When the game recalls and provides an updated twist on the original, it’s okay, but the rest of the time it’s just another painfully generic shooter where all you have to do is hide behind a wall until your health regenerates and then push a little further forward. It’s a shame as it could’ve been so much more, but GoldenEye 007: Reloaded was probably doomed from the moment it even thought about trying to cash-in on the original’s success and ends up offering nothing new for either Bond or FPS fans.

My Rating:

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Could Be Better

Have you ever played GoldenEye 007: Reloaded? If so, did you like it? Do you think it lived up to the standards of the original game? How do you think it holds up compared to other Bond games of this era? What did you think to the recreations and changes featured in the game? Were you annoyed by the QTEs and overreliance on the phone gimmick too? How did you find the game’s multiplayer and additional modes? What’s your favourite James Bond game that isn’t GoldenEye 007? Whatever you think about GoldenEye 007, please share your thoughts in the comments  and be sure to check out my other James Bond content across the site!

Game Corner: Dead Space 3 (Xbox 360)

Dr. K1 Comment

Released: 5 February 2013
Developer: Visceral Games
Also Available For: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X (Backwards Compatible)

The Plot:
Three years after narrowly surviving a Necromorph outbreak on Saturn’s moon, Titan, former engineer Isaac Clarke and his allies explore the frozen planet Tau Volantis to discover the origins of the Necromorphs and oppose the fanatical Unitologists, who wish to “cleanse” humanity through the Necromorphs.

The Background:
Taking its cue from seminal survivor/horror franchises like Silent Hill (Konami/Various, 1999 to 2012) and Resident Evil (Capcom/Various, 1996 to present), Glen Schofield and his small (but committed team) shook up the genre with Dead Space (EA Redwood Shores, 2008). Highly praised and selling over one million copies, a sequel was greenlit almost immediately. The team worked hard to improve and refine Isaac’s gameplay and character, which was reflected in Dead Space 2’s (Visceral Games, 2011) equally positive reviews. Unfortunately poor sales meant that development of Dead Space 3 was almost cancelled, so the team scrambled to up the focus on action to appeal to a more mainstream audience and increase sales. Halfway into production, the decision was made to incorporate a co-op mode, which required an adjustment of the mechanics and enemy AI to allow for simultaneously two player gameplay. Environments in Dead Space 3 were bigger than ever, resulting in larger locations, new ways to play, and the inclusion of a rappel system to take advantage of the bigger play area. In anticipation of Dead Space 3 being the final game, the developers sought to wrap up Isaac’s story, expanding on both his character and the lore behind the Markers, while also using the new, frozen setting to tweak and refine the Necromorph designs. Consistent with its predecessors, Dead Space 3 released to generally positive reviews; reviews praised the action-orientated gameplay, co-op mode, and use of horror. Although sales started strong and the game was bolstered by some downloadable content, Dead Space 3 failed to meet EA’s expectations and tentative ideas for a fourth game were scrapped. Largely considered the worst of the trilogy, Dead Space 3 was criticised for its length and repetitive gameplay, and it is generally regarded as a fall from grace for a once-promising franchise.

Gameplay:
Like its predecessors, Dead Space 3 is a third-person survival/horror game set in the vastness of the cosmos many hundreds of years into the future. You’re once again placed into the role of Isaac Clarke, a former engineer now turned disgraced nobody thanks to the traumatic events of the last two games. This time around, you have a few control options available: you can pick from three control schemes or, if you’re feeling very fancy (or very stupid), you can use the Kinect to play! Obviously, I didn’t do this and went with the default control scheme, which sees you aiming with the Left Trigger, firing or bludgeoning enemies with a melee attack with the Right Trigger, and reloading with X. You can press and hold the Left Bumper to run or tap it for a handy (if occasionally clunky) dodge roll, tap the Right Bumper to stomp on enemies or crates or use your weapon’s secondary fire mode when aiming, and drop a temporary waypoint marker towards your next objective or destination by pressing in the left stick. Pressing in the right stick sees you crouch, which is somewhat handy when you engage in firefights with Unitologist leader Jacob Danik’s forces, and you can quickly replenish your health or stasis meter by pressing B and Y, respectively (as long as you have the associated items in your inventory). A is your action button, used to pick up items, open doors and interact with panels, switches, and such. You also press the left stick to take off and land when in zero gravity environments, where you’ll speed about using the bumpers but must collect air cannisters to avoid suffocating. Eventually, you’ll reacquire the use of your telekinetic abilities: while aiming with LT, you press B to interact with certain doors or objects and move them about, blast them with RB (skewering enemies with their own limbs in the process), or press Y to temporarily freeze enemies or hazards (such as large cogs or crushing weights) so you can pass them or easily decimate them.

Between the co-op and rappel sections, there are glimpses of a fun horror adventure here.

So, overall, the gameplay and controls are as you’d expect from Dead Space. Where Dead Space 3 primarily differs, though, is in the inclusion of a two-player co-op mode. Playing with a friend will require to you switch discs at a certain point, but you can play alone and avoid this option and also won’t have the benefit (or handicap) of an AI-controlled partner to worry about (John Carver appears in cutscenes but not alongside you like in other co-op games). While the option to play online is probably disabled now, you can still play in couch co-op, but I’m not sure how much this impacts the gameplay. There’s a certain hacking puzzle where each player guides a circuit to a certain point and presses A but that’s it, and it’s easily bypassed in single player by using both analogue sticks. There are no other areas where two players need to press switches or activate doors so I barely even noticed it as a function, though a late game objective would benefit from two players as you’d be able to split up and cover more ground. The co-op mode may also explain the abundance of Necromorphs (Feeders are especially abundant and annoying in single-player mode) and resources to be found. Another new aspect is a rappel mechanic where you and your partner zip down (or up) walls, shafts, and inclines, hopping across chasms, avoiding debris and hazards, and picking off Necromorphs. It was an okay mechanic but wore out its welcome pretty quickly and became more aggravating by the third of fourth time I endured it. Zero gravity sections are few and far between this time around, replaced by more open-ended sections set in the vast bleakness of space. You’ll float and fly about retrieving key items and activating doors in these sections, but they’re not as prominent in the previous games. One cool section sees you guiding a shuttle towards a planet as it crashes. You need to stay in the pre-set guidelines, blast at space debris, and even repair the ship’s engines to stay on course, which was quite fun.

Puzzles and space-faring sections are short breaks between all the gunplay and gore.

While some familiar Dead Space puzzles return here, they’re also far less prominent than in the previous games. You’ll still be hacking open doors by rotating a cone of light and pressing A on the blue sections, moving batteries to power up lifts and doors, and freezing hazards so you can slip past, but the focus is much more on seemingly never-ending, bloody combat this time around. You’ll make more use of your telekinetic abilities to power up generators and open certain doors, and there are a few puzzles where you use it to move plates into the correct order or awkwardly bend and twist alien architecture to match hieroglyphics or turn large structures to activate power nodes. However, the trickiest parts about these sections are the waves of enemies that’ll burst in the spoil your concentration. Later in the game, you must pay attention to film reels, onscreen prompts, and blood smeared around to activate alien translator devices, and take shuttles to new and previous destinations to explore other areas or take on optional side missions for new loot. You will also frantically tap A or make movements with the analogue sticks to succeed at quick-time events (either during dramatic cutscenes or when enemies grapple with you), and occasionally be forced to explore without your handy compass. Opportunities to use stasis and kinesis in interesting ways are few and far between here; you won’t be freezing bridges or moving about the environment to create new paths all that often. Instead, you search for key items to cobble together at workbenches and insert into something else, diverting power from one system to another to power up lifts or allow you to burn away the Necromorph infestation with a volatile gas, and blasting about through high-speed teleportation tunnels. You can pick from four difficulty modes, each of which increases the aggression of the enemies, and you can use the resources you find from crates, lying about the environments, or pick up from bodies to upgrade your suit and weapons, but you can only carry two weapons at a time and this time you need to craft new ones. I found this to be very aggravating; I wasn’t always able to create new weapons as the resource cost is so high, so I ended up playing most of the game with an upgraded version of the default Plasma Cutter. Furthermore, while it’s fun seeing flares scattered about and revisiting different areas to find new enemies and challenges there, I quickly became frustrated by how often the game simply throws a barrage of enemies at you in place of more intimate encounters and meaningful puzzles.

Graphics and Sound:
Graphically, Dead Space 3 may be the most ambitious of the entire trilogy. While human character models suffer from the same issues that dogged most games of this generation (namely, appearing to be little more than action figures or oddly-rendered puppets pretending to be flesh and blood), the environments, scope, and lighting effects are better than ever. You see this right from the beginning where, in a first for the series, you’re stuck on a frozen ice world and bombarded by snow and limited visibility before running through a gritty, futuristic city that’s ripped right out of Blade Runner (Scott, 1982). Although environments remain cramped and claustrophobic, there’s a grander sense of scale on offer, especially in the zero gravity sections. Far from being confined to scuttled spaceships, you can now blast through the openness of space using your suit’s thrusters and rocket along at blinding speeds thanks to alien technology. The writing and character interactions are also far more dramatic this time around; Isaac is at his lowest, estranged from his love, Ellie Langford, and constantly butting heads with her new lover, Robert Norton. Twists and turns are abundant as the Unitologists infiltrate and brainwash people to their cause, adding greater stakes to the gameplay as you race to rescue or protect Ellie and the other disposable side characters are killed off for dramatic emphasis. I still don’t really like that Isaac is so chatty now, but he’s given a little more weight and characterisation here. He’s not only still struggling with the traumatic influence of the Markers and the previous games, he also has intense rivalries with Norton and Danik and builds a rapport with new character John Carver that makes their poignant decision to stay behind and give their lives to save Elli (and the world) all the more impactful.

Drama, gore, and ominous alien architecture is at the forefront here.

All of this is merely window dressing for what I consider to be the strength of this franchise, and that’s the unsettling, ominous environments you explore. Blood, bodies, and flickering lights all add to the tension, as do the randomly falling grates and corpses, crucified torsos, non-playable characters who commit suicide or are reanimated before your eyes, and the many ominous messages written in blood over the walls and floors. Enemies burst from vents, crawl up through snow, explode to shambling life when infested with parasites, and clamber around walls and over railings to get to you. If you can’t fight them off or get pummelled too much, you’ll be treated to a gory death scene, and body parts will be sent splattered around as you target the Necromorph’s limbs to dispatch them. As ever, Isaac’s meters and ammo are displayed on his suit and weapons rather than a traditional heads-up display, though you can still bring up a live inventory, map, and objective screen and Isaac receives regular incoming video and voice messages from enemies and allies to clog up the screen space. Environments are similar to before, but noticeably different in same areas. You’ve still got dark, confined corridors, barracks, and other areas on spaceships and space stations, but you’ll be in steampunk-like facilities, genetic labs, and Necromorph infested outposts, too. Much of the game is set on a frozen planet, where snow and ice are naturally abundant, and you’re buffeted by snowstorms and crossing crumbling ice caverns. Perhaps the most visually interesting location comes in the final stretch of the game where you’re exploring an alien city, caverns filled with Markers, and a degenerating moon home to a gigantic eldritch abomination that really ups the ante for the finale.

Enemies and Bosses:
Many familiar Necromorphs return in Dead Space 3. As ever, no matter their appearance or attack pattern, your best bet is to target their limbs, severing their blade-like arms and their legs to slow them down and reduce their threat, though many are more than capable of attacking even without a head or reanimating if you don’t pick off the spider-like parasites infesting them so don’t forget to freeze them with Stasis when in a tight spot. “Slash” Necromorphs burst up from corpses, out of vents, and around corners without warning, leaping at you, slashing, and grabbing you to try and rip your face off, so be sure to keep your distance wherever possible. Only a handful of Necromorphs can fire projectiles, but these can be the trickiest to hit. Small variants scuttle about on walls and ceilings firing from their lashing tentacles, “Pukers” cough up acidic bile to slow you down, and the fatter variants spawn tiny parasites that’ll quickly consume you if you’re not careful. Spider-like parasites can infect corpses, making them zombies who shamble after you with wrenches and frantically blast you with assault rifles. The odd wall-mounted Necromorph also reappears, and you’ll again have the “joys” of encountering “Regenerator” variants who can only be slowed and fled from as there’s no dramatic way of putting them down this time. Mine-like cysts will blow you off your feet, large tentacles will block your path, and the aforementioned “Feeder” variants will swarm all around you from overhead vents. In addition, you’ll also get into firefights with Danik’s troops. These guys take cover, fire assault rifles and laser-guided rockets, and can even toss grenades at you that you can throw back using your Kinesis ability. Luckily, if Necromorphs are about, you can hang back and let the two groups battle it out, thinning their numbers to make your life a lot easier.

Despite some horrific Necromorphs, the game suffers from a lack of boss battles.

One aspect of Dead Space 3 I was quite disappointed by is the lack of bosses. Bosses have always been a bit of a weak spot in the franchise and Dead Space 3 noticeably suffers from a lack of tangible boss moments. Some Necromorph enemies can be analogous to bosses, such as the ever-annoying Velociraptor-like “Stalkers” who hide behind crates and rocks and charge at you from out of the blue and the large, skeletal Alien Necromorphs that gore you like a rhino. Easily the most persistent boss in the game is the crab-like “Snow Beast”, a gigantic crustacean you’ll battle in three separate locations, with the main strategy repeating each time but with less options for cover and resource replenishment. The Snow Beast lunges at you and tries to squish you with its spiked legs, only being vulnerable after you sever the whipping tentacles on its back and blast at its exposed mouth/underside. Stasis is useful for keeping it at bay but you’ll need to time your dodge roll well to avoid its lumbering attacks. Eventually, you drive it away but it pops back up again later, this time with crates in the way and no opportunities to recharge your meter, and a third time in the middle of a snowstorm where it’s joined by regular Necromorphs. This time, you use Kinesis to activate two generators and then lure it into the path of two harpoon guns that finally tear it apart. Far more visually interesting is the gigantic, Lovecraftian “Nexus” creature. This squid-like thing tries to crush you with its tentacles limbs, spits up Feeders, and tries to suck you into its maw. You must dodge and dispatch these annoyances and blast its tumour-like growths before targeting more globules inside its digestive tract! Finally, you battle the Tau Volantis Moon itself! The very surface crumbles and changes around you as an eldritch nightmare looms overhead, throwing rocks and depositing Necromorphs onto an unstable circular platform. Luckily, there’s a glowing circle here that will super charge your Kinesis and Stasis abilities, allowing you to slow and dismember enemies and launch large blue rocks into the thing’s eyes. Blast its tentacles when it tries to suck you in and repeat this three times, then succeed at a simple quick-time vent and you’ve won the day.

Power-Ups and Bonuses:
It’s hard from me to talk about Dead Space 3’s weapons as I struggled with the system. This time, you start with the standard Plasma Cutter and can add attachments and circuits to increase its stats (damage, reload time, clip size and such), which is fine, but you also use these same resources (alongside blueprints found scattered throughout the game) to craft new weapons. While many can be pre-made from these blueprints(providing you have the resources), others are cobbled together to give a sense of customisation. Unfortunately, the cost to create and upgrade weapons is so high that I often found myself relying on the standard Plasma Cutter. I created a rapid-fire submachine gun and a shotgun variant, but they were so weak that I rarely used them. A flamethrower proved much more reliable but you can also craft weapons that shoot lightning or acid rounds, darts, and explosives. I was pretty disappointed that I didn’t get to experience much of this, however. One of the appeals to games like this is naturally acquiring new weapons, but I found it difficult to craft new ones and their benefits lacklustre compared to upgrading the Plasma Cutter. A big reason for this is that the same resources are used to upgrade your suit. While Isaac gains new suits as the story progresses, you can spend resources upgrading your maximum health and armour, extending the range and recharge time of your kinesis meter, and improving your oxygen supply. It seems to be much more stripped down and barebones this time around, but these benefits are useful as you have limited inventory space for things like health and ammo. When you reach a workbench, you can store items in a safe for later use, which is useful, and this is also where you scavenger bot will deposit more resources after you deploy it. It’s worth taking the time to smash enemy bodies, crates, and explore your surroundings for pick-ups as they’ll frequently drop ammo, health, and resources to upgrade and craft your equipment. Recharge points for your abilities are also common and you can occasionally make use of environmental hazards (drops, explosive barrels, and laser traps) to dispatch enemies.

Additional Features:
There are fifty Achievements to aim for in Dead Space 3, many of which you’ll get from a simple playthrough. You get Achievements for beating the various difficulty levels, for example, dispatching the Snow Beast, crafting a weapon, and retrieving resources from a scavenger bot, all things you’d do without even trying. Some are a bit more obscure, such as shooting a deer head in an office, using the gas to destroy five Cysts, and not taking damage in certain sections. Others are a little more grindy: there are audio and text logs and alien artifacts to be found, blueprints and weapons to collect, and limbs that need to be severed if you want to tick off all the game’s Achievements. You’ll also need to play in co-op mode, use different weapons and melee attacks, and complete all optional missions to get the full 1000G associated with the game. Finishing Dead Space 3 on any difficulty unlocks “New Game”, which allows you to restart with all the upgrades and weapons and such from your last playthrough, access a new suit, and acquire better upgrade parts. If you have a save file from Dead Space 2, you get access to the “Planet Cracker” Plasma Cutter. Finally, if you managed to download the game’s additional content, you can play an epilogue story that comes with eight additional Achievements and sees Isaac and Carver escaping Tau Volantis, battling Dik’s cultists, and learning of an impending Necromorph invasion of Earth!

The Summary:
I’d heard that Dead Space 3 was the weakest of the original trilogy. Nothing specific comes to mind regarding that statement, just a general consensus that it’s not as strong as the first two games. I went into it with this in mind but expecting more of the same and, in many ways, that’s true. Dead Space 3 doesn’t stray too far from the previous formula of exploration, puzzle solving, and Necromorph slicing, but it adds a few wrinkles and changes things around just enough to drag it down a little bit. The crafting system, for one, was a major headache for me. I really didn’t like that I couldn’t swap to different weapons to break up the action as I lacked the resources to craft and/or properly refine the other weapons. It also took a lot of the fun out of the exploration when all you’re rewarded with are parts to cobble together weapons rather than an actual gun. The puzzles were extremely stripped down, and nowhere near as prominent. Sure, sometimes you have less time to hack a console or need to craft something to open a door, but ultimately the game failed to utilise the Stasis and Kinesis abilities in interesting ways compared to the last two games. It’s the same for the zero gravity sections. Yeah, it’s fun flying through space but these are merely distractions from the main gameplay rather than being standout sequences since the game would rather waste your time on frustrating rappel sequences. The lack (and recycling) of bosses hurts the game, too. I like fighting big, monstrous creatures but these encounters were few and far between. It’s also weird to me that you don’t get an AI partner in single-player and the game didn’t lean more into the co-op aspect. I honestly forget John Carver was even there as he only appears in cutscenes and scripted sequences, making you wonder why they bothered with the co-op function at all. Ultimately, there was a lot to like here – the game is as horrific and nerve-shredding as ever – but I can’t help but feel as though something was lacking. The soul, perhaps? I can’t quite put my finger on it but it was definitely a far less enjoyable and much more aggravating experience compared to the first two, which is a shame considering the core gameplay and mechanics are just as appealing.

My Rating:

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Pretty Good

Did you enjoy Dead Space 3? How do you think it compares to the previous two games? What did you think to the co-op mechanics and the new rappel gimmick? Were you also disappointed by the lack of boss battles and frustrated by the increased enemy swarms? Were you able to craft some decent weapons or did you also struggle with this system? Did you ever find all those artifacts? Which game in the franchise is your favourite? What horror-theme videogames are you playing this October in anticipation of Halloween? Whatever your thoughts on Dead Space 3, drop a comment below.

Movie Night: Spawn

Dr. K3 Comments

Released: 1 August 1997
Director: Mark A.Z. Dippé
Distributor: New Line Cinema / Todd McFarlane Entertainment
Budget: $40 to 45 million
Stars: Michael Jai White, John Leguizamo, Martin Sheen, Melinda Clarke, and Nicol Williamson

The Plot:
United States Marine Force Recon Lieutenant Colonel and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operative Al Simmons (White) is betrayed and murdered by his employer, Jason Wynn (Sheen), and his enforcer, Jessica Priest (Clarke). After agreeing to lead Hell’s armies, Simmons returns heavily-scarred and bound to a symbiotic suit, but determined to avenge himself.

The Background:
After cutting his teeth in the comic book industry with Coyote, avid artist Todd McFarlane made a name for himself by revitalising The Amazing Spider-Man with his signature art style. However, McFarlane grew dissatisfied with his lack of creative control at Marvel and formed his own independent comic book publisher, Image Comics, alongside other Marvel creatives, in 1992. At the forefront of this was Spawn, a hellborn anti-hero first sketched by McFarlane as a teenager. Spawn #1 was an immediate hit; its 1.7 million sales set records and made it the most successful creator-owned comic of all-time. Naturally, Hollywood was eager to capitalise on this success, with McFarlane eventually selling the rights to New Line Cinema for a mere $1 in exchange for creative input and merchandising rights. New Line president Michael De Luca, himself a comic book fan, was eager to remain true to the source material while reaching a wider audience with a PG-13 rating and brought in Alan B. McElroy to pen the script. Attracted to Simmons’ tragic backstory, martial artist-turned-actor Michael Jai White eagerly signed on, enduring hours in the make-up chair and stuck in uncomfortable prosthetics. He didn’t suffer alone though as co-star John Leguizamo suffered from claustrophobia and heat exhaustion to be transformed into the Violator’s diminutive Clown form. Most of the film’s budget was naturally spent on digital effects, courtesy of Industrial Light & Magic, which included a digital rendition of Hell, digitally bringing Spawn’s living cape to life, and the creation of both an animatronic and CGI representation of the Violator’s true, demonic form. Unfortunately, a box office return of just over $87 million meant Spawn failed to match the success of the comic book. The movie was widely panned, criticised for its muddled plot and overreliance on special effects, though Leguizamo’s performance and some visual aspects have been praised. Michael Jai White was dissatisfied with the film, and a sequel was quickly halted. Since then, rumours of a reboot have persisted, with McFarlane constantly claiming that an R-rated reimagining is in the works, only to run into dead ends each time.

The Review:
Spawn immediately gets off to a bit of a bad start by presenting a chronological tale. One of the appeals of the original comic was its disjointed narrative; Simmons was dumped on Earth with fragmented memories and slowly pieced together his background over many issues. Hell, new revelations were being revealed and retconned in years after he first appeared, which added extra layers to his character and tragedy. Instead, Spawn spends some time with Simmons, a callous and deathly efficient CIA operative who meticulously and ruthlessly eliminates his targets. However, Simmons isn’t some cold-hearted killing machine; he has a conscience and is enraged when his latest mission causes the deaths of innocent bystanders. Later flashbacks show that his beloved wife, Wanda Blake (Theresa Randle), feared his life as a glorified assassin was slowly stripping him of his humanity and this, coupled with Director Jason Wynn’s increasing disregard for collateral damage, drives Simmons to bluntly state his intentions to resign his commission. While his rival, the sadistic Jessica Priest, scoffs at this and mocks Al’s decision, Wynn seemingly accepts his resignation on the condition that he completes one last mission for A-6, the counterterrorism offshoot of the CIA that Wynn commands. This mission sees Simmons sent to North Korea to destroy an extremely dangerous biological weapon. However, he finds the facility has already been rigged to blow and is blindsided by Wynn and Priest. Wounded and doused in flammable liquid, Simmons is helpless to keep the two from blowing the factory and spreading their pathogen to a nearby town, infecting and killing thousands to engineer “Heat-16”, a particularly aggressive virus that Wynn plots to use to manipulate the world’s governments into bowing to his every whim.

Assassin with a conscience Al Simmons is resurrected as a warrior for Hell.

In a flash of burning fire, Simmons awakens in a dank, filthy alley – Rat City – wracked with pain and covered in horrendous burns. Here, he’s immediately accosted by young Zack (Miko Hughes) and the mysterious Nicholas Cogliostro (Nicol Williamson). Confused and disoriented, Simmons heads home, only to discover that five years have passed and that Wanda is now married to his best friend, Terry Fitzgerald (Sweeney), who now acts as A-6 public relations correspondent. Wanda and Terry also have a young daughter, Cyan (Sydni Beaudoin), and have found a happiness that no longer includes Al. Tormented by heartbreak and agony, Simmons is hounded by the rancid Clown (Leguizamo), who delights in Al’s pain and takes great pleasure in jogging his memory by transporting him to his gravesite. Simmons learns he was burned alive and blown up by Wynn and, for his many murderous actions, sent to Hell. There, the gigantic demon, Malebolgia (Frank Welker), promised to “let [him] see Wanda again” if he agreed to lead Hell’s armies against the forces of Heaven. Desperate to be reunited with his love, Simmons readily agreed, only to miss out on five years and be bonded to a symbiotic, “Necroplasmic” armour. This painfully emerges from his scarified skin and sprouts chains, a ridiculously large CGI cape, and heals any wounds near instantly. Dubbed “Spawn”, Simmons is left festering with rage at Wynn’s betrayal and immediately arms himself to get revenge, despite Cogliostro warning that giving in to anger and Hell’s whims will only make things worse for him (and, indeed, the entire world). True to the source material, Simmons struggles to reconcile his newfound life. He angrily rejects Zack and Cogliostro (while also being disgusted by the Clown) and even accuses Terry of betraying him, only to eventually learn that he’s part of a far bigger (and unnecessarily convoluted) plot by Hell to bolster their forces. Michael Jai White does a decent enough job in the title role; he certainly looks the part, especially in his comic accurate suit. However, his line deliveries often leave a lot to be desired and the nature of the suit means he gets few opportunities to show off his fighting prowess, so Spawn’s fantastical abilities are often disregarded in favour of simple gunfights.

Spawn struggles to reconcile his past with his new cursed destiny.

Although he prefers to work alone in his vendetta, Spawn has some allies to both steer him in the right direction and appeal to what’s left of his humanity. Zack, a homeless child left scrounging through rubbish for rotting food alongside his abrasive father, Glen (Michael Papajohn), immediately offers Simmons aid and tries to befriend him. While Spawn repeatedly rebukes him, he defends Zack when Glen gets a bit too handsy and eventually opens up to the boy, entrusting him to care for his dog, Spaz, and is guilt-ridden when his battle with the Clown’s true demonic form, the Violator, causes Glen’s death (among others). Spawn is mentored by vague former Arthurian Knight turned Hellspawn, Cogliostro, a wise (if cryptic) old man who pleads with Simmons to let go of his anger, and his former life, and embrace his new destiny as Spawn, while also turning that hell-born power against his demonic creators. While he mainly observes and offers ambiguous advice, Cogliostro has enough Necroplasm left to conjure a sword and even fights alongside Spawn in the finale. Pained to see Wanda, Terry, and Cyan as a loving, happy family, Simmons largely distances himself from them both because of his horrific appearance and because he’s determined to kill Wynn. Still, he befriends Cyan, finding her sympathetic to his plight, and Terry aids him by association by using his high-ranking position to earn Wynn’s trust and obtain incriminating evidence regarding his Heat-16 plot. Still, Simmons is haunted by memories of and his love for Wanda; flashbacks portray them as a loving couple, and he literally sells his soul just to see her again. However, as attractive as Melinda Clarke is, she’s easily the weakest part of the film. In the five-year time skip, Wanda has been advocating to help the children affected by the incident in North Korea, but her address is so dry and her delivery so robotic that it impacts her relationships with other characters. Sydni Beaudoin is similarly cringe-worthy as Cyan but I can forgive a young child for struggling and, ironically, the relationship between Wanda and Cyan was the only one I believed in. She has little onscreen chemistry with Al or Terry, meaning the core emotional hook of Spawn’s journey fell flat for me and left me with an angry, stubborn soldier wielding incredible powers.

The forces of Hell hatch a convoluted plan to commit mass genocide.

Spawn’s target is Jason Wynn, the gruff, boisterous director of A-6 with designs for world domination. He colludes with the Clown to kill off Simmons, his best operative, and create Heat-16, a pathogen he uses to strong-arm governments into joining his “consortium” but which Hell plans to unleash to wipe the Earth clear for conquest. At Clown’s suggestion, Wynn has a heart monitor installed, ensuring that he cannot be assassinated without unleashing the virus, though he’s unaware that the Clown is purposely riling Spawn up specifically so that he’ll kill Wynn and set off the bomb. Why, exactly the Clown doesn’t kill Wynn or set off the bomb himself is beyond me but Wynn, for all his authority and intellect, unquestionably follows Hell’s orders, believing he’ll rule the world for his obedience. He’s joined by Priest, a highly killed assassin in her own right, but she’s quickly felled by Spawn when she defends Wynn. Thus, Spawn’s greatest physical challenge is the Clown, a belligerent and vile creature who constantly badgers Spawn, spitting threats that Simmons laughs off until the squat antagonist transforms into a towering, slobbering demon and attacks him in Rat City. Seemingly able to teleport and showcasing superior physical strength and durability, the Violator easily trounces Spawn, leaving him impaled on a railing, and promises to kill him if he ever steps out of line. The Clown is jealous of Spawn’s high standing in Hell’s army and wishes to prove himself superior in Malebolgia’s eyes, though acquiesces to his demonic overlord’s orders out of fear of reprisal, which only fuels his antagonistic relationship with Simmons. Leguizamo is the film’s highlight, relishing the Clown’s sadistic, spiteful demeanour with a devilish glee and chewing the scenery at every opportunity. Malebolgia is correctly positioned as the mastermind behind the film’s events, but has little direct influence on Earth; instead, he acts through the Clown, who in turn manipulates Wynn. While the Violator is the Devil’s primary agent on Earth, Simmons openly opposes and rejects Malebolgia. However, it takes him some time to realise that, while he thinks he’s acting independently in targeting Wynn, he’s actually playing right into Malebolgia’s hands and needs to choose a different path to make the most of his hell-given powers.

The Nitty-Gritty:
If, for some reason, you’re confused by Spawn’s premise, the movie has you covered. The unnecessarily mysterious Cogliostro is on hand to provide both an opening and closing narration, interludes, and even describe what’s happening onscreen at various points. Then, he and the Clown and even the Devil himself, constantly reiterate both the plot, the details of Spawn’s powers, and the deal Simmons made to be returned from the underworld. After a while, it feels a bit like padding and gets quite insulting. After all, the premise is extremely simple (former soldier is betrayed, murdered, sent to Hell, and returns with funky powers) so it baffles me that we need so much exposition. The film’s pacing is woefully disjointed; I can’t help but think the narrative would’ve been better served by telling the story out of sequence, like The Crow (Proyas, 1994). Skipping Cogliostro’s obnoxious narration and opening with Simmons awakening in Rat City, only to be tormented by fragmented memories of his former life and then experiencing more complete flashbacks as the film progresses, would’ve better captured the mystery so prevalent in the source material. The film is also shot like a music video; while the kinetic editing calms for exposition, the camera is all over the place during action scenes. Insufferable jump cuts and a barrage of demonic imagery are thrown at the viewer for scene transitions or tossed in whenever we need another reminder of what happened to Simmons and what his motivations are. Characters also not only routinely narrate their actions, but Terry even interacts with a touchscreen computer that helpfully displays and announces his surreptitious actions. Some scenes also appear to be missing from the final film, resulting in Spawn speeding through Cogliostro’s training without so much as a montage and Wynn inexplicably sporting a broken wrist for the finale.

Occasionally, the film brings McFarlane’s art to life with striking visual fidelity.

It’s a shame as there are some instances where the film really impresses, at least visually. Rat City is suitably desolate, rainswept, and gothic, perfectly capturing Spawn’s unkempt dwellings from the comic books. Spawn himself also looks fantastic and, thankfully, spends most of the film garbed in his slick, sticky armour. While he looks best when his glaring mask envelops his scarified face, the make-up effects used to bring Al’s burns to life are very impressive and make the actor barely recognisable. Unfortunately, as good as Spawn’s suit looks, its abilities aren’t featured all that much. Mostly, he sprouts spikes and chains as a defensive measure and his cape is entirely absent except in dire emergencies or to give us bad-ass (if dated) shots of Spawn brooding or sweeping into action. There are a few offhand warnings that draining his power will kill Spawn, but no visual indicator of how limited his abilities are like in the comics. Simmons breezes through Cogliostro’s training and quickly masters the suit, conjuring solid armour during his explosive motorcycle chase with the Clown rather than the suit instinctively hiding him or flying him from danger. When in Hell, Spawn unleashes a barrage of Necroplasmic lasers to eliminate most of Malebolgia’s forces and even uses eye beams to extract Wynn’s heart monitor, but it appears the effects budget ran out at this point as these are poorly executed. Similarly, Hell itself is an unsightly mishmash of flaming rocks, lava plumes, screaming Hellspawn hoards, and an absolutely abhorrent CGI rendition of Malebolgia that apparently replaced a far more impressive puppet. The Devil’s mouth doesn’t even move, for God’s sake, and the film just looks like an early PlayStation cutscene whenever the action shifts to Hell. Again, it’s a shame as the Violator looks fantastic (thanks, in part, to also having an animatronic counterpart). The Clown’s transformation is suitably gruesome and it’s clear more time, effort, and money went into animating the Violator, which looks like Todd McFarlane’s artwork come to life. Sadly, he’s only onscreen for one brief fight scene in the alley, a confusing acid trip of a Hell fight, and a surprise jump scare at the end.

Though triumphant, Spawn’s victory is tainted by some ugly-ass CGI.

So, yeah… Hell’s plot was to recruit Simmons before “the other side” since he somehow has the largest kill count in human history and is the perfect candidate to lead Malebolgia’s armies. Malebolgia then immediately ensured Spawn would defy him by screwing him over, then had Clown manipulate Wynn into creating a genocidal pathogen that they want Spawn to unleash by taking his revenge, for some reason. It’s all a bit confusing, needlessly so, but the thrust is that they’re trying to foster Spawn’s hatred and anger and strip him of his morality and humanity. Although he tethers on the edge of fulfilling this destiny, Spawn is pulled back from the brink by Cogliostro, Zack, and the happiness Wanda and Terry have found with Cyan. Still, his love for Wanda is so strong that he speeds to her house to save her from the Clown, who shows up with Wynn to take the Fitzgeralds hostage. There, Wynn threatens Wanda at knifepoint to force Simmons into reaffirming his allegiance to Hell and stabs her when he hesitates, causing Spawn to fly into a rage. Despite having seen the love of his life killed, Spawn opts not to kill Wynn and simply removes and destroys his heart monitor, ending his threat. However, it turns out to have been another double cross as the Clown was masquerading as Wanda and gleefully pulls Spawn and Cogliostro into Hell for a big, blurry CGI fight scene. There, the two Hellspawn fend off the Violator and Spawn finally rejects Malebolgia, eradicating most of his army and fleeing in a burst of Necroplasm, only for the Violator to appear one last time to try and bite Spawn’s head off. However, thanks to Cogliostro’s training, Spawn skewers the Violator and then beheads him with his chains, reducing the Clown to “a little head” and sending him back to Hell. Finally accepting that his old life is gone, Spawn seemingly agrees to take up Cogliostro’s fight, returning to Rat City and watching over the city like a dark protector, ready to oppose Hell should it ever try to resurface.

The Summary:
My first introduction to Spawn was when I was a pre-teen; a friend of mine randomly had a Violator action figure and the design obviously stuck with me because I recognised it in the Spawn trailer and was super excited to see the film at the cinema at the time. I remember enjoying the film as a kid and, for the longest time, I had a soft spot for it due to my deep love for the character, but Spawn hasn’t aged well at all. The visual effects are all over the place (and, I suspect, too ambitious even at the time), presenting a cartoonish version of Hell and a horrendous representation of Malebolgia that drags the film down considerably. This is juxtaposed with a fantastic recreation of Spawn’s suit and an impressive CGI and animatronic Violator. I can even defend Spawn’s terrible CGI cape, but none of these aspects make up for the shoddy CGI elsewhere. Even if the effects were up to scratch, the pacing and narrative is all over the place. Often resembling a frantic music video, Spawn is an almost insulting barrage of visuals and exposition that spells everything out to the audience like they’re children. The performances are similarly disjointed: John Leguizamo is the obvious standout, embodying the role with a rancid glee, and Martin Sheen desperately tries to elevate the material. But Michael Jai White falters as a leading man and Theresa Randle fails to impress as Wanda. I just didn’t buy into their chemistry or their relationship, which is the entire crux of Spawn’s motivation. It’s a shame as the film is a pretty accurate adaptation of at least the early days of the comic book and occasionally brings Todd McFarlane’s artwork to life with impressive fidelity. The rocking soundtrack fits with the quasi-gothic/urban setting and I enjoyed seeing Spawn in action but seeing him rely on toothless gunfire and stumble through what should be emotionally impactful moments hurts my enjoyment. In the end, it’s a decent effort but relies too much on nonsensical, explosive action, terribly dated CGI, and frantic, disjointed editing, bombarding the audience with clunky exposition and failing to hold together under close (or even cursory) scrutiny.

My Rating:

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Could Be Better

What did you think to Spawn? Were you a fan of the character back in the day? Did the constant exposition and barrage of visuals also put you off? Were you also disappointed by some of the performances? Do you think the plot was needlessly convoluted and muddied? What did you think to Spawn’s suit, the Violator effect, and John Leguizamo’s turn as the Clown? Do you think we’ll see a live-action reboot before the heat death of the universe? Whatever you think about Spawn share your thoughts in the comments and take a look at my other Spawn content.

Movie Night: Joker: Folie à Deux

Dr. K3 Comments

Released: 4 October 2024 (Hey, that’s my birthday!)
Director: Todd Phillips
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Budget: $190 to 200 million
Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, and Harry Lawtey

The Plot:
Two years after killing Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro) on live television, Arthur Fleck/Joker (Phoenix) is incarcerated at Arkham State Hospital, experiencing musical madness through a shared delusion with Joker fan Harleen “Lee” Quinzel (Gaga).

The Background:
The Joker has been a staple of DC Comics for decades and is inarguably Bruce Wayne/Batman’s greatest foe. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, the “Clown Prince of Crime” first appeared in 1940 and has been responsible for many tragedies in the Dark Knight’s life, including the death of Jason Todd/Robin and the crippling of Barbara Gordon/Batgirl. The Joker has also appeared in live-action many times: Cesar Romero famously refused to shave his moustache for the role in the sixties, Jack Nicholson set a new standard in Batman (Burton, 1989), Heath Ledger received a posthumous honour for his incredible turn in The Dark Knight (Nolan, 2008), and Jared Leto’s screen time was significantly cut from Suicide Squad (Ayer, 2016). A standalone Joker movie was initially planned to spin out from Suicide Squad before numerous blunders saw Warner Bros. shift towards an unrelated interpretation of the character. Filmed on a modest budget, Joker (Phillips, 2019) was the first “R” rated DC Extended Universe movie and an unprecedented critical and commercial success, despite its protesters and controversy. Though planned as a standalone and the first in a series of darker, more experimental DC films, star Joaquin Phoenix personally lobbied for a follow-up after dreaming up the premise of a musical sequel. After briefly considering a Broadway show and unanimously deciding against transforming Arthur Fleck into a traditional criminal mastermind, Phoenix and director Todd Phillips developed the musical concept further, bringing in Lady Gaga as a new version of Harley Quinn that required her to change her approach to singing. The musical numbers were performed live, which proved an editing nightmare for Philips, who was given an extraordinary level of autonomy over the project, which ultimately failed to replicate the financial success of its predecessor. Reviews were equally far more scathing this time around; indeed, while Phoenix ’s performance was praised and Lady Gaga was seen as underutilised, many questioned the use of musical numbers and criticised the pacing and tedious, plodding narrative. In the wake of James Gunn rebooting DC’s live-action ventures, it seems our time with this alternative Joker is over not just because of these factors but also because Phillips stated he was finished with the character and this fictional world.

The Review:
I’m proudly in the minority of people who didn’t care much for Joker. Even it had somehow been a decent film, in my opinion, I still would’ve found it annoying to have an alternative version of the Joker running around in a Batman-less Gotham City. As a psychological thriller that made you question the sanity and reliability of its narrator, it was okay; but I would still rather watch the vastly superior American Psycho (Harron, 2000) for that fix. Either way, Joker: Folie à Deux (ridiculous title, by the way) picks up two years after the first movie and finds a heavily emaciated, largely silent Arthur Fleck committed to Arkham State Hospital, where he’s routinely harassed, abused, and mocked by bullish guards like Jackie Sullivan (Gleeson). While Joker ended with the suggestion that some of the film’s events were part of Arthur’s twisted imagination, Joker: Folie à Deux confirms that he did kill five people (actually, it’s six, but it’s not common knowledge that he killed Penny Fleck (Frances Conroy), his overbearing and abusive mother), with Murray Franklin’s live execution inciting a riot and a gaggle of clown-themed protestors calling for Arthur’s release. Despite finding his true self and experiencing a euphoric empowerment by embracing his psychotic urges, Arthur is a broken shell of his former self. Lethargic and largely mute, he’s easily bossed around by the guards and kept under the whim of his daily medicines. Jackie and the others regularly taunt him, forcing him to kiss other inmates and rewarding him with cigarettes whenever he tells one of his bad jokes, but the strong, confident, self-assured Joker is absent in the early going of the film (and, truthfully, for much of it). Arthur’s so mellow that his lawyer, Maryanne Stewart (Keener), is working to convince him, a jury, newly elected assistant district attorney Harvey Dent (Lawtey), and basically anyone who’ll listen that the meek Arthur and his psychotic Joker are distinctly different personalities. Her goal in aiding him, in trying the change the public’s opinion of him as some crazed murderer or a martyr to the lower classes, isn’t to prove he’s innocent, of course, since he absolutely is guilty of murder. Instead, she wants to show the tragedy behind his childhood, the mitigating circumstances around his killings, and prove that he’s a disturbed individual who needs real medical help, not to be caged in a veritable torture chamber or sent to the electric chair for actions outside of his control.

A broken down Arthur is given new life as Joker through Lee’s musical influence.

Arthur is largely apathetic about all this. He endures his daily torment and routine without so much as a peep and does his best to go along with Maryanne’s plan, taking solace in his fantasy world where he imagines his life as a classic Warner Bros. cartoon, relives the trauma he suffered at the hands of others and his mother, and seemingly longs for the feeling of empowerment he felt when he embraced his Joker persona. All this changes, however, when he passes through B Wing, a low security section of Arkham housing non-violent inmates, and catches the eye of Lee Quinzel. When Jackie arranges for Arthur to participate in the same musical therapy class as Lee for good behaviour, Arthur finally opens up to this self-professed Joker fan. Instantly enamoured by Arthur and having been inspired by his actions, Lee claims to have struck out against her own abusive family and landed herself in the nuthouse after burning down her apartment building. The two grow closer as Lee professes her admiration and love for the ideal Arthur embodied when he killed Murray Franklin and Arthur, love starved and craving attention, falls head over heels for her in return. The two express themselves through song almost constantly, either in Arthur’s warped imagination or, seemingly, for real. As in the first movie, it’s not always clear when things are real or not, though many of the musical numbers take place in Arthur’s head. These imaginary sequences are also the only times Arthur shows his violent side, braining and beating people to death with footstools and mallets, and are seemingly his new way to work through his pain and frustration and emotion. Unlike Arthur’s obsession with his neighbour, Sophie Dumond (Zazie Beetz), Lee is quite real. Others see and acknowledge her, though it’s debatable whether she really did blag her way into his cell to seduce him and much of her character is called into question when Maryanne reveals that Lee lied about her past to get closer to Arthur. Indeed, rather than being a downtrodden and forgotten member of the lower classes like him, Lee comes from money, is studying psychiatry, and willingly committed herself to meet him, reframing the usual Joker/Harley dynamic as she’s the one subtly influencing him to coax out what she sees as his “true” self.

Faced with daily abuse and a death sentence, Arthur retreats into a musical fantasy.

Lee’s influence sees Arthur become bolder, more confident, regaining the spark that took Gotham’s crooks and destitute by storm. A parade of supporters surrounds the courthouse during his trial, which is broadcast live since he’s such a high-profile killer, and witnesses testify against Arthur’s mental state. Encouraged by Lee to embrace his status as a cult symbol, Arthur snaps and fires Maryanne and opts to represent himself, donning the Joker makeup and persona once more and strutting around the courtroom ranting about his shitty life. By his own admission, however, Arthur knows nothing about the legal system, resulting in him mocking his traumatised former co-worker Gary Puddles (Leigh Gill). These moments, and where Arthur is wailing or uncontrollably cackling in despair, are where Phoenix excels in the role. I’ve never liked the idea of a definitive origin for the Joker, but he certainly brings his A-game in personifying Arthur’s depressing bleakness and Joker’s manic insanity. For the most part, Lady Gaga does well enough as a heavily revised version of Harley Quinn. After she checks out of Arkham, we’re told that Lee campaigns on Arthur’s behalf and she slowly adopts more clown-ish makeup and mannerisms in support of him. When she’s not singing (and she sings all the damn time), she’s an intriguing character, one who I would’ve liked to see more from. She seems to want Arthur to embrace his Joker persona and lead his followers in some kind of revolution (to “build a mountain”, as they say) but it’s not clear why or what their ultimate goal is rather than simply sticking it to “The Man” and unapologetically being true to oneself. Arthur’s main antagonist is himself, as ever; he’s riddled with insecurity, feelings of abandonment and helplessness, and is thus depends on Lee for emotional support. However, while he relishes frolicking around like Foghorn Leghorn, Arthur’s outbursts and rantings see him anger Jackie and the other guards. While the Arkham inmates and Joker’s supporters cheer and applaud his antics, the guards mercilessly beat and seemingly sexually assault him, with Jackie even throttling Arthur’s fellow inmate, Ricky Meline (Jacob Lofland), for being a little too outspoken in his rambunctious support.

The Nitty-Gritty:
Despite some confusion in the marketing and various interviews, Joker: Folie à Deux is very much a musical. Even before Arthur meets Lee, his fantasies favour belting out Frank Sinatra and, after they get closer, this only increases, to the point where almost every conversation becomes a musical number. I like musicals; I’m not against the idea of a musical. I like the idea that Arthur’s warped imagination has evolved to where he retreats into musical fantasy. However, I don’t think it was executed well here and it became very tedious. It seems the only reason these musical numbers is because of Lady Gaga’s stunt casting as Harley Quinn (sorry, “Lee”), and I definitely feel it would’ve been more impactful to just have three or four of these numbers. Indeed, it bothered me that Arthur was suddenly so into singing when surely his fantasy should be being a stand-up comedian or a talk show host like his former idol? Either way, it was physically exhausting seeing mundane conversations turned into songs and it got tired very quickly. While the first half of Joker: Folie à Deux mostly examines a beaten-down Arthur as he shuffles through daily torment in Arkham and his blossoming relationship with Lee, the second half is a courtroom drama, where Arthur’s very presence causes controversy even before he’s prancing around in his clown makeup. Personally, I found the courtroom stuff more interesting, but it was also a joke. The idea that anyone would acquit Arthur when thousands of people saw him commit murder on live television is laughable, to the point where Dent seemingly only endures the circus to bolster his career using the publicity. Things seem to turn a corner when Arthur represents himself as Joker, finally standing tall as a taunting, unhinged figure and stirring up a fresh wave of support from the incels who worship him as a martyr. However, beneath the makeup and the façade is lowly old Arthur Fleck, a damaged man who struggles to live up to expectations. Dent argues that Arthur is faking his mental illness and Arthur’s brief euphoria at reassuming his Joker guise soon comes crashing down following Jackie’s assault, leading him to openly denounce his persona, admit to his wrongdoings, and essentially criticise not just those who support him, but the myriad audiences who hailed Joker a subversive hit.

Ultimately, Arthur fails to live up to Lee’s expectations and ends up shanked like a bitch.

Indeed, Joker: Folie à Deux appears to be taking all the goodwill of the first movie’s success and purposely flushing it down the toilet. Arthur is taken right back to square one, being pushed around and bullied like a feeble, pathetic child and his number one supporter, Lee, is shown to be a deluded, obsessed super fan who encourages Joker’s outbursts with no real end goal in mind. His anonymous supporters rally for him but mostly use the Joker persona as an excuse to lash out, attack the police and government, and commit petty crimes. They’re not trying to overthrow the elite or get equality; they just want an excuse to act like assholes. After seeing how traumatised Gary is and suffering Jackie’s malicious abuse, Arthur snaps again and the empowerment he rediscovered leaves him. His public denouncement of Joker sees Lee leave in disgust and either kill herself or bluntly reject him, depending on which scene you want to believe is real. As the jury delivers their unanimous guilty verdict, the courthouse is attacked, leaving Dent mildly wounded on one side of his face, and Arthur escapes. He’s briefly picked up by some Joker fanatics, who desperately try to shield him in hopes of inciting a revolution, only to be astonished when he flees in fear, wanting no part of their movement. After Lee rejects him, Arthur is immediately and easily apprehended and dragged back to Arkham, ending the film right where he started: a small, broken, screwed up little man facing the death penalty. However, when he’s called to see a visitor, Arthur is stopped by a fellow inmate (Connor Storrie), one of many who gleefully watched Arthur’s trial and supported his manic actions. Disgusted that the lauded Joker is nothing but a worthless nobody who doesn’t appreciate his following, the inmate spitefully tells Arthur a joke and then repeatedly shanks him, mutilating his own face with a Glasgow smile as Arthur bleeds out on the floor and, presumably, dies.

The Summary:
I didn’t care for Joker. I thought it was largely pointless and meaningless since we’d never see this version of the character in the larger DC extended universe and the idea of doing a Joker movie without Batman seemed like a waste of time to me. I’ll admit, it was a decent, gritty, psychological thriller but…it wasn’t the Joker. Joker: Folie à Deux hammers that home explicitly; by the end, it’s obvious that Arthur Fleck was never supposed to be the Clown Prince of Crime and was, instead, the catalyst for psychotic copycats to spread terror and discord. This wouldn’t be a bad concept if the movie was actually good. Maybe if it had taken some time to explore how Arthur’s actions influenced people, perhaps shown us more of Gotham from Lee and Dent’s perspectives and juxtaposed them with Arthur cackling it up in Arkham, I could’ve endured the obnoxious musical numbers. Alas, this isn’t the case and the film instead devotes itself to stripping away everything people loved about the first film except the performances, and even those are called into question by the tedious singing. I didn’t like the idea that Arthur regressed while in Arkham; he ended Joker on a high but it took the obsession of a woman to get him back in gear, which made him seem weak and lack agency. Lady Gaga may as well have been an entirely different character; she’s as removed from Harley Quinn as Arthur is from Joker. In that regard, the idea makes perfect sense but it’s hardly providing a quintessential adaptation of these two popular characters. What really bugs me about these Joker films is how some audiences will grow up or go around thinking that this is what Joker and Harley should be, when the actual intent seems to be the exact opposite. But, by messing with our expectations and presenting this weird, poorly paced, nonsensical musical, Joker: Folie à Deux wastes more of my time than I would’ve liked. It’s not clever or saying anything new; indeed, much of its runtime treads the same ground as the last film. The singing is annoying and gets in the way of the story, and any potential of seeing Arthur truly embody the Joker persona is done away in favour of trolling audiences. I’d love to know where the $200 million budget went on this titanic insult of a film. Still, hopefully now that Arthur is dead we’ve seen the last of his “Joker” and we’ll never have to worry about this terrible incarnation of the character ever again.

My Rating:

Rating: 1 out of 5.

Terrible

Did you enjoy Joker: Folie à Deux? If so…why? Name one thing you enjoyed; I dare you! What did you think to Lady Gaga’s version of Harley Quinn? Were you disappointed that Arthur didn’t truly embrace his Joker persona? What did you think to the musical numbers? Are you glad Arthur was shanked in the end or are you insane and think this is the best Joker ever? What are some of your favourite Joker-centric stories over the years? Whatever you think, good or bad, about Joker: Folie à Deux, drop a comment down below and let me know your thoughts.

Back Issues: Spawn #1-4

Dr. K4 Comments

Story Title: “Questions” (Part One to Four)
Published: May 1992 to September 1992
Writer / Artist: Todd McFarlane

The Background:
Born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, artist and comic creator Todd McFarlane started drawing at an early age and cut his teeth in the comic book industry working on Coyote before getting his big break illustrating Batman: Year Two (Barr, et al, 1987). After jumping to Marvel Comics and working on The Incredible Hulk, McFarlane made a name for himself for his dynamic and kinetic work on The Amazing Spider-Man. Bringing new life to Spidey through his art and his hand in creating popular anti-hero Eddie Brock/Venom, McFarlane eventually became dissatisfied with his lack of creative control over stories and, alongside other Marvel creatives, quit the company and formed their own independent comic book publisher, Image Comics. To spearhead this new venture, McFarlane revisited an old sketch from his teenage years and revised the concept into Al Simmons/Spawn, a former mercenary reborn as a brooding warrior for Hell’s army. Spawn’s debut issue became a record-setting release; selling 1.7 million copies, it was the most successful creator-owned comic of all-time. This success put Image Comics on the map and, aside from a few slumps here and there, Spawn has remained a popular and successful publication for the upstart publisher. This success catapulted McFarlane to new heights, leading to a successful line of action figures, solo and guest spots in videogames, a cult hit animated series, crossovers with DC Comics, and even a much–maligned live-action adaptation in 1997.

The Review:
The saga of Spawn begins with Al Simmons, fittingly, tormented by questions. Although Al’s aware of some aspects of what’s happened to him (he died and made a deal to return), he doesn’t know what compelled him to come back from the beyond and feels separated from the mortal realm. His memories are fragmented, giving him flashes of a life he can’t quite recall. He remembers he was in love, though he can’t picture her face; he remembers there’s someone he hates, though he can’t recall his name; and he remembers that he was a good and loyal soldier for his country. Crucially, he’s haunted by the grinning visage of a skull and the feeling of being betrayed and brutally murdered. The more Al broods on his disparate memories, the more scant images come to mind. He pictures a beautiful woman, one who he was so desperate to return to that a wicked demon granted his request but on his terms, dumping him back on Earth with incredible power and an awesome costume but with no idea who he is or what any of his memories mean. Confident that the beautiful woman he sold his soul for will remember him and fill in the blanks, Spawn heads into the night to find her and the one who betrayed him, his thoughts already turning to revenge. Of course, we get scant clues to his true origin through McFarlane’s employment of media reports relating to Al’s decorated career, his untimely death, and Wanda Blake’s grieving process. These are presented in a very Dark Knight Returns (Miller, et al, 1986) format, showing reporters and pundits addressing the reader next to blocks of text, all accompanied by a mysterious countdown that we later learn tracks Spawn’s current power supply. Such interludes are juxtaposed with our first introductions of detective duo Sam Burke and Maximillian Williams/Twitch, who are currently baffled by gruesome murders that’ve left the victims without their hearts.

The tormented Spawn finds only further pain and questions at every turn.

Spawn’s journey across town takes a detour when he spots a gang of lowlifes attacking a woman. Though he effortlessly dispatches the punks, Spawn terrifies the young lady when he’s suddenly bombarded by memories. The woman’s face taunts him and bleeds into memories of his funeral, where his disembodied soul cried out in anguish only to be ignored by his love. Thanks to the girl he rescued comforting him and bringing him back to reality, Spawn slowly realises that the woman he’s been seeing was his wife and that he’s been gone for five years. Desperate for answers, he claws away his mask and talon-like gloves, horrified to find a scarified body beneath his skin-tight leather and chains. While Spawn weeps in the dank alley and Sam and Twitch stew over reports of a costumed figure in a red cape and chains taking out street punks, the wicked, horned demon Malebolgia relishes in Spawn’s pain from his burning inferno. As Spawn broods, questioning his humanity and feeling comforted by his costume and defending the innocent, he ponders the limits of his powers. Focusing his will, he turns his power on himself to restore his human visage and is aghast to find he’s been transformed into a bleach-blonde surfer dude instead of his true form as a Black man. Enraged, realising that he’s being toyed with, Spawn explodes with anger, trigging a fresh set of memories. He puts a face to new name of his employer and mentor: Jason Wynn moulded him into the perfect soldier, only for them to clash when Simmons took issue with Wynn’s increasingly brutal and cold-hearted ways. Overcome with emotion, Spawn collapses in the alley, where he’s approached by a comical, clown-like figure. Spawn had spotted this squat, colourful individual earlier and readers were treated to him dramatically introducing himself and all the ways he plans on torturing and humbling Spawn to appease his boss, the aforementioned Malebolgia. The clown, introducing himself as the Violator, piques Spawn’s interest when he dubs him a Hellspawn and quickly blows his cover.

Spawn’s outrage at having his life stolen is preyed upon by the demonic Violator.

The Violator goes on a tirade, listing all the ways he could slaughter Hell’s newest soldier. Naturally, given the clown’s diminutive stature, Spawn scoffs at his threats and walks away, completely missing the clown’s transformation into a large, horned, slack-jawed demon, the same creature that’s been ripping the hearts out of mafia bosses all over town. Still, for now, the Violator is content to let Spawn go, primarily because Malebolgia gets off on making his creation suffer. As he aimlessly wanders, Spawn is elated to finally remember his wife’s name. He also remembers having parents and brothers and the location of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) headquarters and an armoury. He stops by the CIA skyscraper first, accosting creep Billy Miller and threatening him to keep his hands to himself and pay his child support, and retrieves Wanda’s file. However, Al’s distraught to learn she’s moved to Queens and engaged to his former best friend, Terry Fitzgerald. With no other choice, Spawn assumes his blonde visage and heads over there with the vague hope of convincing her to see past his façade, only to be left speechless by her beauty and the unexpected presence of a child, Cyan. The added realisation that he was the problem when it came to giving Wanda a child adds to Spawn’s mental anguish and causes him to black out. Wanda and Terry tend to him and he shares some of his pain with them, only to be met with warmth and kindness. Retreating back to the alleys, Spawns rages, openly challenges the being that’s toying with him and fed up with playing games. Luckily for him, the Violator answers his challenge and, this time, Spawn witnesses the clown’s transformation into his true, horrific form. Caught completely off-guard, Spawn is powerless to keep the Violator from plucking his still-beating heart from his chest. However, the crude, leering demon is stunned when Spawn gets up, a burning hole in his chest and all fired up for a scuffle.

Malebolgia interrupts his “children’s” squabbling to torment and punish them.

This leads into the final issue of this four-part arc, which finds the Violator incensed to learn that Malebolgia lied to him about Spawn’s powers. Fully expecting to have killed the Hellspawn with his attack, apparently unaware that humans are being gifted powers greater than the denizens of Hell. After expending energy reattaching his heart and healing from the damage, Spawn launches a blast of hellfire at his foe, returning the favour by blasting a hole right through the demon. However, the Violator easily survives the attack, boasting of his superiority, and manhandles Spawn. To the Violator’s frustration, Spawn meets his arrogance with disrespect and the two start shamelessly mutilating each other over a two-page spread consisting solely of dismembered limbs and sound effects. The mindless battle grows so intense that Malebolgia himself manifests in the alley to break them up, chastising such pointless escapades. Addressing the two as unruly siblings, Malebolgia lays out his grand plans to storm the gates of Heaven and go to war with God, a concept baffling to a lifelong atheist like Simmons. Still, Malebolgia emphasises that God is now Spawn’s enemy and details that Spawn’s past life as a hired killer made him the perfect candidate to become a Hellspawn. Malebolgia also explains that Spawn’s power, though vast, is not infinite and relishes in giving him a simple choice: bow to Hell’s whim, expend his power killing “bad guys” and accelerate his return to Hell while bolstering Malebolgia’s armies, or do nothing and watch innocents suffer. Malebolgia then fully heals Spawn, reattaching his arm so as not to waste any more of his energy, and angrily rebukes the Violator when he takes exception to this. Malebolgia punishes him by banishing him to Earth, removing his ability to switch forms, and returns to Hell. Insulted and frustrated, the Violator storms off in a huff, leaving Spawn to brood over his newfound lot in life. Meanwhile, across town, Wanda awakens from a terrible nightmare in which she sees Al begging for help and it’s revealed she’s as haunted by her memories and love for him as he is of her.

The Summary:
I mean…first things first, let’s talk about Todd McFarlane’s unparalleled artwork. Every page, every panel, is so detailed and full of edgy, moody visuals. Barely a scene takes place in the daytime, bathing New York City, its depressing alleys, and, crucially, Spawn himself in oppressive darkness and shadow. Thus, when Spawn goes to Wanda’s in his forced guise of a blonde, white man, the juxtaposition of colour is like a slap in the face. It clearly shows that a normal, human, happy life is now far beyond Spawn’s reach and he stands out, despite his seemingly normal appearance, due to his jagged and distorted speech bubbles, hammering home that he doesn’t belong in that world any more. Spawn himself makes an immediate visual impression. Sure, there’s a lot of Spider-Man, Venom, and Danny Ketch/Ghost Rider in his design but he’s actually more like Bruce Wayne/Batman since he’s mainly brooding or dramatically standing rather than web-slinging across the city. Garbed in a sleek, black costume, Spawn casts an intimidating figure with his burning green eyes and flowing, blood-red cape and McFarlane never wastes an opportunity to depict him against gargoyles, crosses, cutting through the air like a tiger, or seeped in darkness. Considering his monstrous visage is hidden behind his mask for most of these issues, Spawn expresses a lot of emotion. Tormented by memories, he cries out in pain and anguish and lashes out at every opportunity, unaware that even by doing good he’s fuelling Malebolgia’s will since he’s either expending his finite energy or sending more despicable souls to Hell. While the news report sections are less visually engaging for me and simply a copy of Frank Miller’s narrative style, McFarlane makes up for it with his depiction of demons. The Violator and Malebolgia are horrific, gruesome creatures with a constant cackling visage and they represent an explicit, external personification of the dark power Spawn now wields. This, as much as anything else, is what angers the Violator so since he believes humans are unworthy of such vaulted positions in Malebolgia’s ranks.

Spawn and his demonic adversaries shine thanks to McFarlane’s merticulous artwork.

These first four issues set a precedent that would continue throughout Spawn’s publication, creating a constant air of mystery around the titular anti-hero. Simmons walks the alleys with fragmented memories, barely remembering anything of his past life and being tormented by scattered faces, feelings, and recollections of a previous life that eludes him. This brings him great torment and is the design of Malebolgia, who delights in torturing his “child”, fostering his dark ambitions, and humbling him. Malebolgia gets off on spoon-feeding Spawn memories and information, never once letting him forget who he really serves, and takes great glee in explaining that Spawn serves him no matter what action or inaction he takes. Malebolgia’s chief agent on Earth is, of course, the rancid Violator, a boastful little sprite with a chip on his shoulder. He seeks to spread chaos throughout the city by tearing the hearts from his victims and inciting a gang war, confident in his Hell-born power being greater than Spawn’s and eager to showcase his worth to his master by maiming and killing his newest recruit. Instead, the Violator finds himself in a brutal deadlock, with neither he or Spawn able to land a killing blow. Of course, neither thinks to go for the head and this isn’t strictly true as Spawn would inevitably lose due to his reckless use of his powers. At this point, Spawn barely understands what he is let alone the nature of his “Necroplasm” so he expends his energy without thinking. Healing wounds, firing energy blasts, and transforming his appearance all cause the helpful countdown to decrease, showing the reader just how close Spawn is to ending his new unlife and returning to Hell. Malebolgia explains these rules to him, leading to Spawn constantly considering his energy cost in future issues, but it does give a taste of what Spawn’s capable of since we see him reattach his heart, blow a hole through the Violator, and alter his appearance using his dark magic.

These issues perfectly set the scene for Spawn’s subsequent battle against the dark forces.

Sam and Twitch are also introduced in these issues and offer a fun side plot to Spawn’s constant brooding and rage. Essentially a reimagining of Commissioner James “Jim” Gordon and Detective Harvey Bullock, the two couldn’t be more different: where Sam is loud, gruff, and obnoxious and a lot like the Violator, Twitch is quiet, subdued, and methodical. The two are baffled by the Violator’s brutal murders and somewhat at odds regarding the caped vigilante stalking the streets, since Sam is far more lenient regarding Spawn as he doesn’t have to worry about due process. Spawn’s path doesn’t directly cross with these two here, but they’re nicely set up as supporting characters, as are Wanda and Terry. Again, we don’t learn too much about them at this point, especially Terry, but the story does a decent job of emphasising Wanda’s beauty and Al’s undying love for her. He’s haunted by her face, in agony at being denied her and being able to give her a child, and torn between wanting to confess everything to her and stay away from her idyllic new life. These emotions only fuel his anger and Malebolgia’s glee, driving him to chastise others who so freely take their blessings for granted or brutalise rapists and demons alike to vent his frustrations. While I admit the first issue doesn’t have much going on and largely exists to whet the reader’s appetite and the fourth issue devolves into an exposition dump from Malebolgia, there’s a lot to like in these first four issues. The mystery surrounding Al’s life and death is nicely set up, leaving breadcrumbs regarding Wynn and Al’s killer, as is the uncertainty regarding Spawn’s powers. The artwork is the main reason to delve into these issues, and all of McFarlane’s work, but the narrative is intriguing and strong, appealing to the brooding, edgy nineties kid in me. All the key players make a great first impression through McFarlane’s stunning and visceral art and the stage is set from a dramatic and explosive exploration of the dark path Spawn will eventually follow as he tries to piece together his past, have his revenge, defend the innocent, and defy his demonic master.

My Rating:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Great Stuff

What did you think to Spawn’s first four issues? Did you pick up a copy of issue one? What did you think to Spawn’s costume and powers? Are you a fan of Todd McFarlane’s art style? What did you think to the demonic antagonistic and the mystery surrounding Spawn? Which Spawn characters and story arcs are your favourite? Whatever you think about Spawn, feel free to leave your thoughts below and be sure to check out my other Spawn and horror-related content on the site.

Movie Night [Back to the Future Day]: Back to the Future Part III

Dr. K4 Comments

In Back to the Future Part II (Zemeckis, 1989), Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) travels to October 21, 2015, which is known as “Back to the Future Day” to celebrate the franchise and science.

Released: 25 May 1990
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Budget: $40 million
Stars: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Thomas F. Wilson, and Mary Steenburgen

The Plot:
After witnessing his eccentric scientist friend, Doctor Emmett “Doc” Brown (Lloyd), forcibly transported to 1885 in his time-travelling DeLorean, high school student Marty McFly (Fox) travels to the Old West to save his friend from an untimely death, only to discover Doc endangering  the timeline by falling for schoolteacher Clara Clayton (Steenburgen).

The Background:
Back to the Future (Zemeckis, 1985) started as a passion project for long-time collaborators Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis to recover from a few critical and commercial failures. After refining their script and securing Michael J. Fox for the lead, the duo succeeded in making the sleek and futuristic DeLorean an iconic cinema vehicle and a blockbuster commercial and critical success now recognised as one of the greatest science-fiction films of all time. As Zemeckis never planned for a sequel, the filmmakers faced script and cast issues but ultimately decided to film Part II (Zemeckis, 1989), also a critical, commercial, and influential release. It was apparently Fox who suggested setting Part III in the Old West, which involved constructing elaborate sets on location to depict the burgeoning Hill Valley. The film was not without its dangers: Thomas F. Wilson performed many of his own stunts and Fox almost died while filming the hanging scene! Industrial Light & Magic again worked on the film’s practical and visual effects, including an elaborate model train and track for the thrilling final sequence. With a box office of $245.1 million, it was the lowest-grossing movie in the franchise and yet is still highly regarded for bringing the trilogy to a satisfying close, the performances, and the new character dynamics introduced. With this film, Back to the Future is widely regarded as one of cinema’s best trilogies. While another film has been long rumoured, and the story has continued in comic books, videogames, and a short-lived cartoon, Zemeckis repeatedly stated that there would never be another entry as long as he’s alive.

The Review:
When I was a kid watching the Back to the Future trilogy for the first time, there was a clear hierarchy of preference for me: the second one was the best because of all the fun future stuff, the third was the second best as it had more action than the first, and the first took the bottom spot as it was a little slower and had less visual appeal for me. This was somewhat begrudgingly as I’ve never been a big fan of Westerns; I find them visually dull and narratively repetitive, so it helps when Westerns have a sci-fi or horror bent to them. Over the years, I’ve come to regard Back to the Future III even higher because of the satisfying and emotional way it repeats, continues, and wraps up these characters and the entire franchise to make for one of the most consistently strong trilogies in all of cinema. The film begins by once again replaying the final moments of the first film, in which Doc helps a time-displaced Marty return to 1985 by redirecting a lightning bolt into the time machine. Elated at seeing one of his inventions finally working, and by the prospect of the future to come, Doc celebrates in the street and prepares to head home, eager to get started on his greatest invention, only to be shocked when Marty suddenly reappears before him! This is, of course, a slightly different, older, and more experienced version of Marty, one who’s just seen Doc’s future self blasted back to the Old West by an errant lightning bolt after having revisited 1955 to fix his mistakes from the last film, but the sudden shock is enough to cause Doc to faint in the street.

After a shaky start, Marty eventually embraces and adapts to the Old West era.

Marty takes Doc back to his house and desperately tries to explain the situation to him. I like this scene as it recalls the disbelief and confusion Doc showed towards Marty in the first film (Doc even sarcastically calls Marty “Future Boy!”) However, thanks to Future Doc sending Marty a letter corroborating these events, Past Doc’s adventure with Marty, and the fact that the film needs to get moving, this confusion doesn’t last too long and the two are soon working together like before to unearth the time machine from an abandoned mine at the cemetery. While there, both are horrified to discover Doc’s tombstone stating that he was shot dead by Buford “Mad Dog” Tannen (Wilson) just one week after writing the letter, meaning he never got to enjoy the retirement he’d always dreamed of in Old West. After reading up on Tannen and confirming that the tombstone is real since Doc’s family line didn’t arrive in the United States until long after 1885, Marty resolves to take the repaired time machine and rescue his friend. Thanks to Doc’s detailed schematics, Past Doc makes the necessary repairs and uses his knowledge of fourth dimensional science to get Marty on his way. This is a recurring aspect that Marty struggles with in the film; he has to put his faith in Doc (“You’re the doc, Doc”) that he knows what he’s talking about since he doesn’t understand spatial or quantum physics. What he does know, however, is Westerns. He’s not impressed with the clown-like getup Doc dresses him in and even more embarrassed when his ancestor, Seamus McFly (Fox), helps him avoid social faux pas by gifting him a hat, neither of which fit his idea of Western icon Clint Eastwood. Indeed, Marty even uses the actor’s name as a pseudonym but, rather than being seen as a bad-ass, he’s routinely mocked by the locals. It therefore makes it all the more cathartic for him when he not only adopts a poncho and outfit resembling Eastwood’s “Man with No Name” but also borrows the same “bulletproof vest” trick from A Fistful of Dollars (Leone, 1964) to best Tannen.

Although Marty’s often the uncharacteristic voice of reason, he still has to overcome his vices.

Marty’s friendship with Doc is at the forefront of Back to the Future Part III. Before, Marty relied on the eccentric scientist to advise him and the youngster was mainly cleaning up messes that he’d made. This is still true here but Marty’s whole motivation for defying Doc’s wish to stay in the past is entirely predicated on him wanting to save his friend’s life. However, thanks to an errant arrow, the time machine suffers a fuel leak and the two are stranded in the past similar to the first film. With no gas stations and horses proving ineffectual, the two scramble to find a viable way to get the DeLorean to eighty-eight miles per hour before Tannen makes good on his threat to shoot Doc dead. Doc takes the threat very seriously and, while he’s happy to live out his boyhood dream working as a blacksmith in the Old West, immediately recognises the danger. However, things are further complicated when they happen upon an out of control carriage and rescue schoolteacher Clara Clayton from a fatal fall. Despite being a man of science, logic, and reason, Doc is immediately smitten by Clara and re-evaluates his situation accordingly. This has the unique knock-on effect of briefly switching Marty and Doc’s roles (Marty becomes the voice of reason and Doc becomes the irrational, emotional one), which is further emphasised when Marty also runs afoul of Tannen. Like the first film, this sees their actions impact the future and the tombstone depict the death of “Clint Eastwood” by Tannen’s hands. This comes about because of Marty’s refusal to back down to a challenge and him getting triggered whenever anyone brands him a “chicken” (or “yellah”, in this case). Marty is so riled up by accusations of his cowardice (a holdover from his previous life where his father was a snivelling coward and Marty’s attempts to avoid the same stigma) that he readily agrees to a shoot-out with Tannen, confident that he and Doc will have returned to 1985 by then. However, he’s both horrified to learn he could be forced into a fatal dual and angry at Doc’s suggestion that his pride has negative consequences in his future, something we saw in the second film but which Marty remains unaware of. Thus, Marty’s character arc here is listening to his friend and ancestor over the jeers and opinions of others and realising that it’s better (and braver) to turn the other cheek rather than to step up to an unwinnable fight just to prove himself to a bunch of strangers and assholes.

Love, for better and worse, and allows Doc to discover new aspects of life and himself.

Doc also undergoes some significant character growth here. Having devoted his entire life and fortune to science, Doc’s dreams of seeing the progress of mankind and understanding the nature of existence have been tarnished by witnessing the dangers of time travel. Thus, his instructions and intentions are explicitly clear: he wants the time machine destroyed once they’ve returned to 1985. It’s because of this that he’s perfectly happy living out the rest of his life as a blacksmith in the Old West. He’s quickly established a reputation in the small settlement of Hill Valley and has clearly been enjoying cobbling together steam-powered apparatus and would’ve gladly stayed there if not for the threat against his life. He’s completely caught off-guard, then, when he falls for Clara; initially dismayed to learn that they altered history by saving her, he’s quickly smitten by their shared love for science, astrology, and Jules Verne. Although he scoffs at the idea of love at first sight, Doc can’t deny his feelings for Clara, and he’s fully prepared to stay in 1885 with her but is left heartbroken when she angrily rebuffs him after he’s convinced by Marty to tell her the bizarre truth. In despair, he turns to alcohol and rambling about the future to the locals. After being sobered up by Marty, Doc re-commits himself to their elaborate train heist, having deduced that the only possible way to get the DeLorean to eighty-eight miles per hour is to hijack a train, strap the time machine to it, and boost the train’s engine with controlled explosions. I enjoyed the new wrinkles to Doc’s character here; unlike Marty, he’s comfortable in the Old West and he’s definitely come out of his shell, standing up to Tannen and socialising with the locals. I liked seeing him discover there’s more to life than just science, and his friendship with Marty was explored in new ways through this altered dynamic that saw Marty being the voice of reason for a change.

Buford lives up to his nickname and is a cruel gunslinger who needs taking down a peg.

Once again, Marty and Doc are opposed by one of the Tannen family. This time, it’s Biff’s (Wilson) surely and uncivilised ancestor Buford, who is also accompanied by cackling underlings and has a reputation as a cruel gunslinger and thief. Tannen makes his entrance as all in his line, by confronting a McFly in a bar, and regularly flaunts the law (represented by Marshal James Strickland (James Tolkan)) by dragging Marty through the streets and threatening to hang him as well as sneaking a gun into the town festival. While there is a lawmaster in town, Buford thinks nothing of publicly threatening those who he feels have wronged him and challenging them to a dual. While Buford is as dumb as previous Tannens, easily confused by words and phrases (even those not from beyond his time period) and numbers, he’s a ruthless and callous individual. Although he may hate the nickname “Mad Dog”, it’s entirely appropriate given his drooling, snarling, brutish disposition and he’s little more than a growling thug in a Stetson. Tannen believes Doc owes him $80 after his horse threw a shoe and refuses to be placated by reason since he believes he’s been slighted. When Marty openly defies him at the festival, saving Doc’s life in the process, Tannen shifts his aggression towards the youngster and challenges him to a morning shoot-out, much to the chagrin of Seamus and Doc. Marty, however, is confident he won’t have to think about drawing a gun but that doesn’t end up being the case. Although they have the DeLorean ready and a plan to escape, Doc’s heartbreak causes them to be late and forces Marty to face Tannen in the streets. However, Marty wisely chooses to fight smarter, not harder, once again outwitting the bullish gunslinger and sending him crashing into a pile of manure.

The Nitty-Gritty:
Back to the Future Part III continues the formula established by the last two film that time often repeats. This means we get a sweeping shot of Hill Valley and the clock tower (before still under construction), a McFly/Tannen confrontation in a bar, a chase through the streets, and ruminations on the dangers of messing with time travel. However, rather than being derivative, these are all re-framed in new and visually interesting ways. The Old West setting is an extreme reconfiguring of the 1955 setting of the first film, with Marty and Doc being hampered and severely limited by the technology and resources of the time, only things are way more dangerous now as everyone’s walking around with a gun on their hip and even things as simple as petroleum are impossible to come by. Like in the first film, time itself is a major antagonistic force here. Marty and Doc have less than a week to figure out how to get the DeLorean running and the photograph of the tombstone is a constant reminder of this ticking clock (though, strangely, they never once consider hopping on a train and leaving town for a bit. Considering Buford is later arrested for robbery, this might’ve actually worked!) This is only exacerbated when Buford grows restless for a gun fight and Doc falls into despair over Clara, which is naturally all in service of Marty again getting the better of a Tannen and a thrilling train heist for the finale.

While I enjoy the setting and the timeless effects, Clara’s character felt a bit weak to me.

Although it takes Marty a bit to adapt to the Old West, I’d argue both he and Doc acclimatise to 1885 much faster and better than either did to 2015. Both enjoy walking the streets in their era-appropriate getup, Doc revels in applying his scientific acumen in new ways as a blacksmith, and Marty definitely gets a kick out of parading around with a gun and calling himself Clint Eastwood. While Marty’s gunslinging was mocked in 2015, he impresses in 1885 and he still finds new ways to adapt to the times, such as tossing a Frisbee-branded pie plate and protecting himself with a furnace door. One of the reasons I dislike Westerns is because of how visually repetitive and boring they can be but that’s not the case here, largely because I’m so familiar with Hill Valley from the last two films and it’s fun seeing it reimagined as a dangerous and often disgusting smattering of wooden structures in a desert. While I prefer the fantastical technology of the future setting, I’ve grown to appreciate the simplicity of the Old West aesthetic and I liked seeing stuff like Marty’s Nikes and modern slang being completely lost on the locals. For me, Clara is a more prominent downside to the film. I never found her to be particularly interesting or charismatic and she seems oddly plain in a way that I find distracting. I like that she’s just an unassuming schoolteacher, a slightly insecure and mousy woman who is as uncertain about her newfound feelings as Doc, but I feel like she could’ve been given more to do. Mostly, she’s just kind of there and bolstered only by her convenient fascination with science and literature and she’s often in peril a little too much for my liking. I appreciate that she stands up to Buford, and her physicality in the finale as she rushes to reconcile with Doc, but I think it might have helped to see her at work in her profession or exhibiting a little more personality. On the plus side, this allows the new dynamic between Doc and Marty to shine brighter but I can’t help but feel like the romance between Doc and Clara is a little rushed and flat. The film tries to salvage this by stating that it’s unexplainable love at first sight and by Doc’s obvious inexperience with romance, but just a little more agency like she showed at the festival to make her seem like more of an equal would’ve gone a long way for me.

Although the DeLorean is destroyed, the future is left unwritten and hopefully for all.

As ever, Back to the Future Part III makes use of some fantastic practical and traditional effects and models shots. While the film isn’t as grandiose as the last one, the stunt and horse work on display is impressive and the costume design alone should be a selling point for any fan of Westerns. Marty cuts a resplendent, mature figure in his Clint Eastwood cosplay and it’s exhilarating seeing him and Doc frantically chase after the train on horseback. Once aboard, they clamber over the carriages and politely hijack the main engine, decoupling all the carts and attaching the DeLorean to the cow catcher. Thanks to some specially prepared explosives, Doc pushes the train’s speed and capabilities further than intended, but staggers the explosions so as not to destroy the train prematurely. However, Clara catches up with them, having heard of Doc’s distress over her and become convinced that he was telling the truth, and almost falls from the train in a bid to join them on their journey. Doc’s character growth comes full circle as he braves the trip back to get to her and Marty also puts aside his personal feelings to help save them by slipping them the hoverboard. His friends then glide to safety as the DeLorean finally hits eighty-eight and returns to 1985, the train crashing into a ravine thanks to a spectacular model shot. Fourth dimensional science sees Marty safely arrive in 1985 but his elation is short-lived as he has to quickly abandon the time machine and can only watch, with a mixture of despair and gratitude, as Doc’s wish comes true and the DeLorean is obliterated by an oncoming train. Marty immediately reconnects with his girlfriend, Jennifer Parker (Elizabeth Shue), not only finally telling her the truth but also altering his future when by refusing to race Douglas J. Needles (Flea). While mourning the loss of his friend, Marty is stunned when Doc suddenly arrives in a time travelling steam engine…alongside not only Clara but their young children, Jules (Todd Cameron Brown) and Verne (Dannel Evans). Although the film makes no attempt to explain how Doc built this contraption, this ridiculous oversight is secondary to the heartfelt farewell he and Marty bid to each other and Doc’s impassioned, enthusiastic speech about Marty and Jennifer being free to decide their own futures.

The Summary:
Even now, it’s hard to name a film trilogy that’s as consistent and enjoyable as the Back to the Future films. Each one has strengths and unique, enjoyable aspects that help to keep the themes fresh and engaging, and the story arc for Doc and Marty across the three movies is beautifully realised here. I loved how Marty was now much more confident and surer of himself in his new setting and how he took on the more adult voice of reaso. Him realising that he doesn’t have to answer every challenge to prove himself was also nicely resolved here to show that he’s really learned from his adventures. Similarly, I enjoyed that Doc found something else to live for besides science and his work. Although disillusioned with time travel, he discovers love for the first time, its highs and lows, and is a better person for it, with him and Marty become more well-rounded characters by learning from each other. While I would’ve liked to see more from Clara, she was serviceable enough and I think Buford may be the best and most dangerous Tannen we’ve seen yet. He’s a dog of a bloke and it’s great to see him bested once again. Add to that the visuals, thrilling action, and emotional finale and you have a film that wraps up the franchise in such a perfect way that it really would be a shame to spoil it with a remake (although I would’ve loved to see a re-quel with an older Marty dealing with a rebellious son). While I still prefer the imaginative visuals and high stakes of the second film, Back to the Future Part III has become a firm favourite of mine for how well it uses its Old West setting and its thematic and emotional conclusion to one of the best sci-fi stories (and cinema trilogies) of all time.

My Rating:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Great Stuff

Are you a fan of Back to the Future Part III? How do you rate it compared to the other two films and which of the trilogy is your favourite? What did you think to the Old West setting and the pitfalls facing Doc and Marty? Were you a fan of the romance between Doc and Clara and the role reversal between Doc and Marty? Can you name a better cinematic trilogy? Where would you go if you had a time machine? How are you celebrating Back to the Future Day today? Whatever you think about Back to the Future Part III, feel free to share your thoughts below.

Back Issues [Brightest Month]: Green Lantern #59

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Although February 2014 was dubbed “Green Lantern Day” (because, by the American calendar, the date read as “2814”, the sector of space assigned to Earth in DC Comics), the significance of this date has passed as the years have changed. Instead, as perhaps the most popular iteration of the character, Hal Jordan, first appeared in October of 1959, I’ve been dedicating every Sunday of October to the Green Lantern Corps!

Story Title: “Earth’s Other Green Lantern!”
Published: March 1968
Writer: John Broome
Artist: Gil Kane

The Background:
Martin Nodell and Bill Finger’s original version of the Green Lantern, Alan Scott, was a magically empowered railroad engineer rather than a space-faring peacekeeper. However, following the successfully reinvention of the Flash in 1956, John Broome and artist Gil Kane changed the Green Lantern mythos forever with the introduction of test pilot Harold “Hal” Jordan, widely regarded as the greatest Green Lantern of all time, in 1959. Nearly ten years later, Groome and Kane revealed that Hal was just one of the potential candidates for Abin Sur’s power ring, the other being volatile Guy Gardner, who first debuted in this issue. Not only was Guy relegated to backup status, he soon found himself gravely injured and briefly trapped in the Phantom Zone. Then, he was replaced by another and developed brain damage, becoming even more hostile and egotistical, especially regarding his status as a Green Lantern. Guy is perhaps best known for his time on Justice League International, where he often clashed with his teammates, as much as his unstable temperament, which saw him kicked out of the Green Lantern Corps and wielding Thaal Sinestro’s yellow power ring. Guy’s backstory was significantly altered in the early-1990s, revealing him to be of Vuldarian heritage, before he returned to the Green Lantern Corps as one of Earth’s many emerald defenders. Whether wielding a green, yellow, or red power ring, though, Guy has maintained a vocal fanbase, despite his flaws. Though allegedly cut from the universally derived live-action film, Guy’s appeared, in some form or another, in various DC adaptations and is due to be portrayed by Nathan Fillion in James Gunn’s reimagined DC Universe movies. 

The Review:
Our story opens with Hal Jordan on Oa, the headquarters of the Green Lantern Corps and home to the enigmatic Guardians of the Universe, for an intensive two-day training course. Yes, it seems even intergalactic space cops have to endure team meetings sometimes, folks! However, rather than learning trust exercises, Hal is shown a gigantic, Jack Kirby-esque telescope that displays current events all across the universe and even keeps a record of a person’s life after they die as a “mental post-mortem”. Hal jumps at the chance to see the last thoughts of his predecessor, Abin Sur, and to learn why he, of all the millions of people on Earth, was chosen to become his successor. As in Hal’s origin story, Abin is fatally injured in a crash and tasks his power battery to find a worthy inheritor of his power ring, but there’s a twist: the battery claims that there are two equally strong candidates! One is, of course, fearless test pilot Hal Jordan and the other is the hitherto-unknown Guy Gardner, a schoolteacher who lost out on becoming Green Lantern simply because Hal was closer. After reliving Abin’s dying soliloquy over the next few panels, Hal is left astonished to learn that there was another potential candidate. Luckily, the Guardians’ incredible machine can also show Hal potential alternative timelines and, at his request, program it to show what would’ve happened if Guy had been selected instead. 

In another life, Guy became Green Lantern and embarked on a very similar superhero career.

In this version of events, gym instructor Guy is whisked away by the green energy and readily accepts the ring. However, since he’s not subjected to the same monologue as Hal, it takes Guy a hot minute to figure out how to use the ring, though he’s no less committed to using its power to battle injustice as Green Lantern. Like Hal, Guy’s first mission was confronting a group of saboteurs. Unlike Hal, who phased through walls and bullets and was dazed by a yellow lamp, Guy crashes through walls and erects an energy shield to block their bullets, hesitating to directly use his ring against them in case he “[crushes] them to a pulp”. Instead, Guy relies on his physical superiority to beat them into submission. Victorious, he also embarked on a fantastical superhero career, tackling colourful supervillains and even defeating renegade Green Lantern Thaal Sinestro. This victory saw Guy finally summoned to Oa and learning the true extent of his powers and responsibilities, but it’s in his return journey home that the biggest deviations occur between Hal and Guy’s lives. Guy was distracted by a series of intergalactic explosions that saw him detour to the planet Ghera to interject in a duel between two alien robots. Their conflict quickly turns against him, though he easily bested the two droids and learned that the planet is populated solely by human children. The robots explain that the Gheran parents created them before being wiped out by a mysterious yellow plague. This same virus kept the children from growing and, in their boredom, they programmed the robots to engage in war games for their amusement, meaning the planet is constantly in a state of conflict between the orange side and the blue side. Amazed, Guy vows to show the children that they’re walking a dark path, confident that he can teach them the benefits of peace, only to suddenly find himself completely paralysed when the children of the blue side not only sense his presence but take control of his body with their mental powers (a feature the robots conveniently neglected to mention earlier).  

Guy eventually breaks free and brokers peace, only to succumb to a fatal disease.

Thinking Guy is an advanced automaton and using their incredible psychic powers to learn his name (but, strangely, not his true purpose), they send him against their enemies. Completely under their sway, Guy has no choice but to obey and is forced to defend them against a mechanical bird the orange’s send to attack the blue’s city. Next, he’s set against the orange’s fish-like submarine, resisting its lightning attacks and scuppering it with a giant green energy hand. Impressed by his abilities, the blue’s send him to wage an all-out attack on the orange’s city. However, after besting their defences, he finds himself caught in a mental tug of war as both sides try to control his mind and body with their mental powers. Desperate to save himself, Guy summons all his willpower to break free and conjure a suit of armour to protect him from further mental attacks. This form is also enough to convince both sides to agree to a parlay; a simple suggestion for “enjoyable sport and exercise” is enough to convince the children to stop their conflict. However, it’s not just Guy’s words that sway the children; he uses his ring to subtly influence them, making them “normal” and unifying them in peace. Pleased, Guy leaves to recharge his ring (uttering an amended version of the classic Green Lantern oath), only to suddenly fall violently ill. Having contracted the yellow plague while on Ghera, Guy quickly finds himself facing certain death and wills his power ring to search out a replacement. The ring brings Hal to him and, just as in the main timeline, the stunned test pilot is gifted the power ring and the Green Lantern mantle, though he “makes up” his own oath since Guy never got to teach him it. Amazed by these visions, Hal returns to Earth to meet Guy in his civilian guise. He joins the same athletic club Guy attends and quickly becomes fast friends with him, eager to keep an eye on him out of respect for his candidacy for the mighty Green Lantern Corps. 

The Summary:
“Earth’s Other Green Lantern!” is one of those classic misleading comic books as the cover advertises the promise of a physical confrontation between Hal and Guy, one that sees the upstart Gardner usurp Hal to become Earth’s only Green Lantern. In truth, this never happens, nor is Guy’s personality anything like the cover depicts. Ironically, the cover paints Guy as an egotistical hothead, which would become his defining personality trait, but the actual story shows him to be as bland and generically heroic as Hal. Indeed, much of the narrative is geared towards showing how similar the two are, which I feel is a massive missed opportunity. Hal is excited by the idea that he wasn’t the only one considered as Abin Sur’s replacement, but Hal and Guy’s superhero careers are functionally identical save for Guy having less initial instruction on the ring and his side quest to Ghera. I have no idea if Hal went to this planet and encountered the strange psychic children, but Guy’s time there isn’t massively significant except that it sees him prematurely killed and handing the mantle to Hal, meaning this alternative timeline really isn’t all that interesting. Now, if Guy had been his later cocky, overconfident self, utilising more direct or brutal methods, maybe things would’ve been more interesting. There are hints that Guy approaches his duties slightly differently, such as being more creative with his energy constructs and being more physically capable than Hal, but there’s not enough deviations between the two to really make me care. 

The differences between Hal and Guy are sparse, and the story’s a fantasy anyway!

The story tries to say that things took a dramatic turn on Ghera but…they don’t, really, except that it sees Guy killed. It seems like it’s going in a different direction, maybe having the kids turn Guy rogue or expanding on him using his power ring to influence their behaviour and having him be reprimanded for that, but that doesn’t happen either. The Ghera sub-plot is actually quite dull. I enjoyed the Jack Kirby influences on the art and visuals of the planet, but the random mental powers came out of nowhere and their control over Guy seemed more like an excuse to show off his control of the power ring than anything else. Indeed, the whole escapade makes Guy seem secondary to Hal since it took him a while to summon the willpower to shake off their influence, and then he just ends their long-running thirst for war with a few words and subtle influences. I’ll admit that I wasn’t expecting Guy to die at the end, though I probably should’ve considering the nature of the yellow plague. Again, it might’ve been more interesting if the virus had been affecting him throughout the story, adding an extra dimension to his plight, but…again, no. In the end, this read like another of those crazy imaginary stories DC liked to publish in the Golden Age where nothing really matters because it’s all a dream or some elaborate fantasy. Sure, it led to Hal seeking Guy out by the end but even that is a bit weird. There’s no suggestion here that he befriends him in case he needs a backup, it’s more out of curiosity and respect, so I can’t help but feel like the whole issue can be skipped as it’s ultimately meaningless in the short term (and even in the long term, as Guy’s personality was eventually completely different). 

My Rating:

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Could Be Better

What did you think to Guy Gardner’s debut story? Were you shocked to learn that Abin Sur had two choices to pick from? What did you think to Guy’s characterisation here and were you disappointed by how bland he was? Would you have liked to see more differences between the two and more from the concept? Where does Guy rank in your Green Lantern hierarchy, and what are some of your favourite stories of his? There’s a comments section below, so share your thoughts there and go check out my other Green Lantern content!  

Game Corner [00-Heaven]: GoldenEye 007 (Xbox Series X)

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Click here to view my playthrough of this game.

To celebrate the release of Dr. No (Young, 1962), the first of the James Bond movies (Various, 1962 to present), October 5th is known as “Global James Bond Day”. This year, I’ve been spending every Saturday commemorating cinema’s longest-running franchise, and one of the most recognised and popular movie icons.

Released: 27 January 2023
Originally Released: 23 August 1997
Developer: Rare
Also Available For: Nintendo 64, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X

The Background:
It was tough to get any better than a game of four-player GoldenEye 007 back in the day. The endlessly accessible and enjoyable first-person shooter (FPS) was a staple at many a sleepover in my youth and was directly responsible for making me the James Bond fan I am today. Popularised by Sean Connery’s immortal portrayal, Ian Fleming’s super spy was in a bit of a drought in the late-nineties thanks to legal issues and Timothy Dalton resigning from the role. The iconic British institution came back with a bang, however, with Pierce Brosnan’s critical and commercial debut, which was followed by a tie-in game for the Nintendo 64 some two years later. Developed by British studio Rare under the direction of Martin Hollis, the game was originally conceived of as a 2D platformer for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and as a rail-shooter before the developers got to grips with the Nintendo 64 hardware. After a year of development, David Doak joined the team and implemented stealth mechanics using a radius test. Successive gunfire would attract nearby enemies and players were encouraged to spy on enemy characters using the game’s two-way mirrors. Six months before the release date, programmer Steve Ellies added the now iconic multiplayer mode, though the likeness of former Bonds and the names of certain weapons were changed for legal reasons. The developers also toned down the violence to appease Nintendo’s concerns and included a number of unlockable cheats. In a world where videogame tie-ins are notorious for being rushed, bugged, and unfulfilling affairs, GoldenEye 007 proved the exception. Not only was it one of the best-selling Nintendo 64 games but the game was met with unanimous (and continuous) praise for its gameplay, mission-based mechanics, and multiplayer. Although Rare soon lost the James Bond license, GoldenEye 007’s legacy continued to be felt not just with its spiritual sequel, Perfect Dark (Rare, 2000), and in other FPS titles, but throughout subsequent James Bond tie-in games. There were rumours and clamouring for a re-release for decades, though rights issues always saw these stall. In 2010, Eurocom released a reimagining of the title to mixed reviews but hopes were raised when leaks of an Xbox One version appeared online. On the eve of the game’s 25th anniversary, these rumours were officially announced to be true when it released exclusively on the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch series of consoles and featuring a number of enhancements. So beloved is the original game that this enhanced version of GoldenEye 007 was equally lauded, especially for its nostalgia factor, though some were disappointed that the Xbox version didn’t include online multiplayer.

The Plot:
Renowned super spy James Bond/007 in drawn into a globe-trotting adventure as he races to stop a rogue 00 agent Alec Trevelyan (now a terrorist known as “Janus”) from causing a global financial meltdown with a satellite weapon known as “GoldenEye”.

Gameplay:
GoldenEye 007 is a first-person shooter in which players are placed into the shoes of world-renowned super spy James Bond and charged with completing various objectives across eighteen stages (referred to as “Missions”) taken from the movie of the same name, and two bonus Missions that loosely adapt elements and events from classic Bond films Live and Let Die (Hamilton, 1973), The Man with the Golden Gun (ibid, 1974), The Spy Who Loved Me (Gilbert, 1977), and Moonraker (ibid, 1979). Unlike FPS classis like Doom (id Software, 1993) and rail-shooters like Time Crisis (Namco, 1995), GoldenEye 007 offers a range of movement and control options, making Bond a far more versatile and capable FPS character compared to some of his counterparts. This new version of the game improves things even more thanks to modern controllers having two control sticks, but there are a range controls available and players can even customise them if they wish. The default controls see you firing Bond’s current weapon with the Right Trigger, activating consoles, opening doors, and disabling alarms and such with A, crouching to avoid incoming fire or enter vents with B, and aiming with the Left Trigger. You can also press Y and the Left and Right Bumpers to cycle through your available weapons, or manually select them by pausing the game, which brings up Bond’s fancy gadget watch. This also allows you to read up on your mission objectives, gives you the option of switching to different control schemes (each named after a different Bond Girl and with one even allowing an awkward two-player mode where only player moves while another one shoots), select gadgets like a key decoder or Bond’s laser watch, and quit the current Mission. On the original Nintendo 64 version, strafing was accomplished with the C-buttons and allowed you to rapidly dart across environments at higher speeds. Here, you can use the left analogue stick to accomplish this same task, and you’ll also find that your aim benefits from a slight auto-aim function.

Take on the role of 007, gun down enemies, and complete various objectives.

Unlike in modern FPS games, Bond is surprisingly vulnerable and will not regenerate health when taking cover from enemy fire. In fact, most things you take cover behind will explode in your face, so it’s better to keep moving and make use of the game’s controls to peek around corners or use silenced weapons or Bond’s handy karate chop to knock enemies unconscious without raising alarm. When taking damage, Bond will react accordingly, which can throw off your aim and see you being bounced about in a crossfire. Explosions are usually an instant death sentence as well so be sure to avoid grenades, rockets, and exploding crates whenever possible. While you can’t replenish Bond’s health, you can pick up body armour strewn across the environment to add an extra bit of protection, but there are no checkpoints in GoldenEye 007 so once you see that blood filling the screen or the “Mission Failed” notification, you’ll have to start over from the beginning. The game offers three difficulty settings (“Agent”, “Secret Agent”, and “00 Agent”), with a fourth being unlocked that allows you to customise various difficulty options, and the difficulty setting you play on directly impacts the behaviour of the game’s enemies, the bonuses you unlock, and the mission objectives you’re given. For example, when playing on “Agent”, you’re generally only given a couple of mission objectives. “Runway” on this mode simply asks you to acquire a key and escape in a plane, but higher difficulties have you destroying anti-aircraft guns first. Later Missions can become extremely complex and difficult because of this. Each Mission is preceded by a number of dossiers in which M, Q, and Miss Moneypenny will explain the specifics of each objective, often with pictures, so you have to be mindful about going in all-guns blazing as you don’t want to accidentally destroy a vital piece of machinery or gun down an ally. Because of this, many 00 Agent Missions require better use of stealth, such as attacking with short bursts of fire or while unarmed, enemies will be noticeably more formidable, and you’ll need to explore more of the environment and have less access to body armour, dramatically increasing the challenge.

Each Mission and difficulty setting offers unique objectives and mechanics.

Mission objectives are quite varied, but also shared across the game;. You’ll be deactivating alarms and consoles (sometimes by interacting with them, other times by blowing them up), acquiring keys, key cards, and documents, and meeting with allies like Doctor Doak, Valentin Zukovsky, and Dimitri Mishkin. Environments are often littered with cameras and alarm systems that will attract enemies to your location or even lock you out of rooms if you’re not quick to disable them, and enemies can sometimes be holding hostages who you’ll need to free without killing the innocent. This can be easier said than done, especially on missions that require you to protect, escort, or work alongside Natalya Simonova. All of the game’s non-playable characters (NPCs) tend to run in front of your bullets but Natalia is the worst, running around in a mad panic amidst a gunfight or leaving herself an open target while messing about with computers. Things quickly become quite obtuse and tricky as you’re tasked with destroying weapons caches, calling for back-up (without destroying the radio equipment), re-aligning an antenna cradle, and wandering around a statue park to meet with the mysterious Janus. Many mission objectives require the acquisition and use of Bond’s gadgets, such as using his laser watch to cut through grates, attracting keys with his magnet, planting tracking devices, and photographing objects, sometimes while racing against a time limit. Gameplay is somewhat broken up in the two instances where you can hop into an armoured tank, with it being mandatory to barrel through the streets of Saint Petersburg in said tank while trying not to run down too many innocent civilians. If you fail even one objective, the entire Mission is a bust, but you can continue playing if you want. This can be a good way to get an idea of the layout of the environment and find other mission objectives for your next playthrough to get a faster completion time, something that’s necessary to unlock all of the game’s cheat options. In addition to your time, your accuracy, shots fired, and kills are all tracked after a Mission is completed, meaning you can always try and improve your approach to a Mission.

Graphics and Sound:  
Even back on the Nintendo 64, GoldenEye 007 did a pretty good job of recreating scenes and characters from the movie. Sure, the character models are blocky and their faces hideous and many environments are a little too bland, polygonal, and swamped with fog, but they managed to capture the essence of the film really well, expanding upon minor elements and areas, especially in the first few Missions, and making them fully-fledged locations. The only issue I had was that the developers included two versions of Surface and Bunker. I would have preferred to see a Casino and Paris stage used instead to add a bit more variety to the early game, but at least there are differences between the two stages to both differentiate them and showcase the passage of time. There are even entirely new environments that weren’t seen in the film, like Silo, Depot, Caverns, and stages based on small parts of the film (like Dam, Runway, Frigate, and Train) are expanded on with additional mission objectives and aesthetic quirks. Of course, the most memorable location remains Facility, which lovingly recreates and expands upon the opening scenes of the film and remains the quintessential map for multiplayer skirmishes. My least favourite stages were always Statue, Jungle, and Cradle as they’re quite difficult to navigate and full of dense fog and hazards, to say nothing of the tougher enemies dwelling within.

While the graphics are dated, nostalgia means the game retains its visual appeal.

Every Mission begins with a bit of an overview of the location before the camera pans around and into Bond’s head, literally placing you in the role of the world’s most famous spy. Cutscenes, in the traditional sense, are few and far between and limited to these opening camera pans and a little animation of Bond looking all cool as he exits the stage, with the majority of the game’s story being relayed through the mission dossiers and onscreen dialogue. There are occasions where you can continue on and this dialogue will still play out, but if you try and rush Janus in Statue or don’t heed his advice to holster your weapon then you’ll fail the Mission. There are some graphical limitations to GoldenEye 007 that definitely date it, as well. There’s no reloading animation (guns simply disappear and reappear with a reloading sound effect), enemies have repetitive animation cycles (though they do kneel down, roll, cross their arms when dual-wielding, and react when shot in the ass), and there can be a bit of slowdown when too many explosions fill the screen. Still, little details like bullet holes, splashes of blood on clothing, and screams of pain help to keep things very immersive. Additionally, the soundtrack is incredible; composed by Rare stalwarts Graeme Norgate, Grant Kirkhope, and Robin Beanland, the soundtrack is both recognisably Bondian and unique, harkening back to Éric Serra’s movie score and the Bond themes made so famous by John Barry.

Enemies and Bosses:
Bond’s mission is impeded by the finest polygonal soldiers and grunts money can buy. While there’s not much to differentiate them in terms of animation, the game’s enemies all don different attire depending on the Mission (sporting parkas in Surface, camo gear in Jungle, and tactical outfits in Caverns) and wield various weapons. Many carry the KF7 Soviet or Klobb, two notoriously inaccurate weapons; others bust out the DD44 Dostovei or dual-wield the ZMG (9mm). The challenge posed by the game’s enemies directly relates to the difficulty setting you’re playing on and the Mission you’re playing. Enemies are pretty clueless in Dam but wander around the Caverns carrying super-powerful US AR33 Assault Rifles and blast at you with Moonraker lasers in Aztec. Janus’s special forces, and some guards aroused by alarms, will also carry shotguns or toss grenades, and you’ll also have to keep an eye out for high-impact turret placements that can shred your life meter in seconds. Enemies are quite vulnerable, even on “Secret Agent”, dropping after a few good torso shots or a headshot, but sometimes their guns can block your bullets and the sheer number of enemy bodies can make it difficult to land decent shots, in which case it’s best to target explosive parts of the environment to send them flying.

In addition to the movie’s baddies, you’ll encounter some classic Bond villains here,

Although boss battles aren’t commonplace in GoldenEye 007, there are a few instances where you’re tasked with killing one of Janus’s henchpeople in a firefight. The first of these you’ll encounter is Colonel Arkady Grigorovich Ourumov, who cannot (easily) be killed in the first few encounters. Ourumov fires at you from a distance in Silo, you pursue him in Streets, and then you finally gun him down at the end of Train, just like in the movie. Shooting Xenia Onatopp in Train will buy you some much-needed extra time with the floor grate, but she puts up a far greater fight when you confront her in Jungle. She’s armed with both a super-powerful RC-P90 and a grenade launcher and can be difficult to hit thanks to the fog, the explosions from her grenades, and her armour-piercing shots. Your best bet is to hang back, firing from a distance, or get up nice and close and fill her face with AR33 fire. This method of staying back serves you well in the final Mission of the main game, Cradle, where you go head-to-head with rogue MI6 agent Alec Trevelyan/Janus. In this Mission, you must realign the antennae, fending off Janus’s elite guard and the sentry guns set up about the place, blasting at Trevelyan as he fires his AR33 and tosses grenades to cover his escape. Trevelyan can absorb a great deal of damage but, once you’ve hurt him enough, he’ll dash to a specific area of the map and drop down to a small platform, just like in the film’s finale, where you’re given precious seconds to reorientate yourself and deliver the final blow. When you unlock the bonus missions, Aztec and Egyptian, you’ll face off with classic Bond villains Jaws and Baron Samedi. The former carries two AR33s and is a veritable bullet sponge, though he’s a big target and shots to the face are recommended. The latter mysteriously resurrects and wields a different weapon each time as you search through the pyramid for Francisco Scaramanga’s fabled Golden Gun, which can kill any enemy, including the supernatural Samedi, in one hit.

Power-Ups and Bonuses:
Naturally, there’s quite a bit you can find throughout each Mission to aid your progress. Body armour allows you to take a few more hits and effectively acts as a secondary health bar and you can pick up any weapons dropped by downed enemies. Green crates can often be found which contain new weapons or ammo, and you’ll also be able to swipe keys and key cards from guards and NPCs alike to acquire mission-specific items or additional toys. Bond can karate chop enemies without expending ammo, but this leaves him extremely vulnerable so it’s best to use this from behind. Similarly, the sniper rifle butt can be used to hit and defeat enemies when up close. He’s also afforded numerous weapons, including his iconic Walther PPK (known as the PP7), which also comes with a silenced variant, and his trusty watch, which cuts through grates and enemies alike with its laser. Bond can also dual-wield for additional damage (and ammo expenditure) and you can even have him hold two different weapons if you’re quick at cycling through them. A variety of machine guns are on offer, from the near-useless Klobb to the simplicity of the D5K Deutsche and the burst fire of the RCP-90. You can also grab high-explosive weapons, such as grenades, grenade and rocket launchers, and three types of mines (remote-activated, proximity triggered, and timed), but be sure to avoid the blast zone. Throwing and hunting knives can also be used for a more personal touch, but I like the power and accuracy offered by the two shotguns and the Couger Magnum. The game’s best weapon is the one-shot Golden Gun and the faster variants unlocked through cheats, but you can also make use of the tanks cannon to blast at soldiers and anti-aircraft guns and zap enemies with lasers when you acquire the Moonraker laser.

Additional Features:
There are fifty-five Achievements on offer in GoldenEye 007, with twenty being awarded simply for clearing each of the game’s Missions on any difficulty setting. You’ll get three separate Achievements for finishing the entire game on each of the three difficulty settings, and 10G each time you finish a Mission in a specific time frame on a specific difficulty and unlock a cheat option. Yes, blasting through Missions as quickly as possible on each of the difficulties will unlock a wide variety of cheats, from invincibility, invisibility, all guns, infinite ammo, and even options for a hilarious “big-head mode” and to speed up or slow down the in-game action. Achievements are also earned by playing the game’s multiplayer mode. Although the Xbox version doesn’t allow for online multiplayer, you and your friends can still get together in person to battle head-to-head, or in teams, across a variety of repurposed maps.

The game’s replay value is bolstered by fun cheats, a banging multiplayer, and various unlockables.

You can battle simply for points, set limits on how many lives and time you have to play, set weapons to be one-hit kill, battle for control over the mythical Golden Gun, and play a capture the flag scenario, with each option named after a classic Bond film. All of the game’s characters, major and minor, are available to pick from alongside two classic Bond villains, Oddjob and Mayday, with the former (and Jaws) offering different challenges based on their height. Completing the game on Secret Agent and 00 Agent will also unlock two bonus Missions: Aztec and Egyptian. In Aztec, you’re placed in a fantastic recreation of Hugo Drax’s missile command centre from Moonraker and must confront Jaws, escape a rocket’s test fire, and then sabotage the Drax shuttle before it takes off. In Egyptian, you’re tasked with navigating a maze-like pyramid in search of the Golden Gun and hounded by Baron Samedi, who returns three times to cause you trouble but the biggest challenge here is remembering the sequence to reach the aforementioned Golden Gun as you’ll be cut down by sentry guns if you step on the wrong tiles. Some additional weapons can also be used when utilising the All Guns cheat, which can make it fun to revisit previous Missions, and you can even tweak the enemy behaviour, strength, and awareness when you unlock 007 Mode to make the game even easier or harder depending on your preference.

The Summary:
Obviously, nostalgia is a huge part of GoldenEye 007’s appeal. Graphically, the game hasn’t aged very well, and it’s definitely been superseded by other Bond games and FPS titles in terms of presentation, gameplay mechanics, and content but there’s something very appealing to GoldenEye 007’s simplicity. It’s nice to be placed in a surprisingly large number of polygonal environments and simply head to a goal, with additional objectives adding relay value and challenge to the game, meaning GoldenEye 007 can be surprisingly complex that more you play on higher difficulties. The game is full of fun little Easter Eggs as well, from character animations and dialogue to oddities placed in each environment, and I enjoyed how NPCs on one difficulty suddenly become vital objectives in the next. There’s a lot to do here as the game challenges you to play on harder difficulties and find the fastest, most efficient way of beating its Missions to unlock everything. There’s also a nice variety of weapons that can all be held at once, meaning you can easily mix and match your gameplay style on the fly, and a fun assortment of objectives that often encourage stealthier gameplay but give you the tools to engage in a manic firefight. The multiplayer is as enjoyable as ever, too; I’m not fussed about the lack of online functionality as I don’t play online and it’s great to be able to jump in and mess about like in the old days. After decades of GoldenEye 007 being restricted to an old console, it’s simply astounding to see it made available once again. It’d be great if more licensed games got the same treatment but I’m happy to say that GoldenEye 007 is just as much of a blast to play through now as it was all those years ago.

My Rating:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Great Stuff

Was GoldenEye 007 a favourite of your youth? What did you think to this re-release and were you surprised when it was finally announced? How do you think the game holds up today? Did you ever finish it on 00 Agent and unlock everything? Which Mission, weapon, or location was your favourite? Do you have fond memories of playing the multiplayer? What’s your favourite James Bond videogame? I’d love to know your thoughts and memories of GoldenEye 007 so please leave them in the comments and go check out my other Bond reviews.