Since his explosive debut in May 1962, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s gamma-irradiated Jade Giant has been one of their most recognisable and successful characters thanks, in large part, to the Incredible Hulk television show (1977 to 1982) catapulting the Hulk into a mainstream, pop culture icon. Hulk has been no slouch in the comics either, being a founding member of the Avengers, joining teams like the Defenders, and has gone through numerous changes over the years that have added extra depth to the green-skinned behemoth and made him one of their most versatile and enduring characters.
Released: 20 June 2003 Director: Ang Lee Distributor: Universal Pictures Budget: $137 million Stars: Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly, Sam Elliott, Josh Lucas, and Nick Nolte
The Plot: After being bombarded with gamma radiation in a lab accident, Doctor Bruce Krenzler (Bana) finds himself transforming into a giant green-skinned creature known as the “Hulk” (Ang Lee) whenever stressed or emotionally provoked. Relentlessly pursued by General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (Elliot), he is forced to face his traumatic childhood when his biological father, Doctor David Banner (Nolte), reveals Krenzler’s true identity as Bruce Banner and attempts to harvest his alter ego’s gamma-induced super healing.
The Background: Created by Marvel Comics legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby after being inspired by the story of a hysterical mother exhibiting superhuman strength and classic movie monsters, the Hulk initially struggled a bit to find an audience with Marvel readers. After a series of backup features helped him regain a solo title, the Hulk shot to fame thanks to his popular television show. Although The Incredible Hulk was followed up by three made-for-TV movies, development of an all-new Hulk feature film can be traced back to the early nineties, when producers Avi Arad and Gale Anne Herd commissioned a script from writer Michael France for production with Universal Pictures. Jonathan Hensleigh was initially attached to the project, which entered pre-production in 1997 and would see the Hulk battle man/insect hybrids. David Hayter was then brought onboard to rewrite the script and include a number of Hulk’s more recognisable enemies before director Ang Lee joined the project and chose to focus more on Banner’s psychological issues. Unlike the TV show, the Hulk was a digital creation of Industrial Light & Magic, with Lee himself providing motion capture for the creature, something that Bana felt reduced his screen time. Although Hulk’s worldwide box office gross of just over $245 million was relatively profitable, it was met with mixed reviews; the less-than-stellar critical response quashed plans for a sequel and, when the rights reverted to Marvel, Marvel Studios instead opted to produce a complete reboot.
The Review: I’ve always had a soft spot for the Hulk; I grew up watching The Incredible Hulk’s TV movies, the 1982 and 1996 cartoons and reading stories published in the seventies, and I remember being pretty excited to see his big-screen debut thanks to how heavily Universal Pictures promoted the film. Billboards, trailers, TV spots, and merchandise was everywhere for Hulk, which sold itself as this big, action-packed blockbuster in the making but was actually a far more cerebral and poignant story about nature, nurture, the sins of the father and the dangers of science.
David’s efforts to improve his limits alter his son’s DNA and get him locked up for thirty years.
Right off the bat, Hulk makes a few alterations to the Jade Giant’s origins; in this film, he owes a great deal of his existence to the research of Dr. David Banner. Much of this is recounted in the film’s opening credits, which play over a montage showing that David has spent most of his scientific career trying to improve the human body’s ability to regenerate. Although close to a breakthrough, he is denied clearance from a young Ross (Todd Tesen) and, like any good mad scientist, tests his formula on himself. Although he exhibits no noticeable effects, the same can’t be said for his son, Bruce (Michael and David Kronenberg). David’s excitement over this development soon turns to horror, however, and Ross’s continued aggression drives him to take desperate measures to try and find a way to reverse Bruce’s condition.
Having repressed his childhood trauma, Bruce is a boiling pot of conflicting emotions.
When we catch up with the now-adult Bruce, he has no idea of his true parentage or nature thanks to having witnessed his father kill his loving birth mother, Edith (Cara Buono), and spending his entire life repressing this memory. A genius scientist in his own right, Bruce finds himself unknowing working in the exact same field as his father, only Bruce favours gamma radiation in his experiments with “nanomads”. Bruce has recently broken up with his co-worker, Doctor Betty Ross (Connelly), after his tendency to be emotionally distant and closed off pushed her away (though they maintain a generally friendly relationship despite this) and, like his father, he has a tumultuous relationship with the military, especially Glenn Talbot (Lucas). Talbot sees the potential for Bruce’s work to be weaponised, which brings him into conflict with Bruce’s more pacifist motivations.
Transformed, freed, by the gamma radiation, the Hulk personifies Bruce’s repressed emotions.
Clearly a complex and tormented individual, Bruce nevertheless willingly sacrifices himself to shield their lab assistant, Harper (Kevin Rankin), from a burst of gamma radiation; initially attributing the improvements in his physical condition to the nanomads, Bruce is pushed to the edge following pressure from Ross and a visit from his birth father. When his emotions get the better of him, his rage literally explodes out of him, transforming him into a mindless, green-skinned beast of pure unbridled fury. The Hulk is characterised as being the unapologetic, mutated physical expression of Bruce’s repressed trauma and memories; although Bruce barely remembers his time as the Hulk, he is terrified by the appeal of the Hulk’s uninhibited anger and power, but the Hulk just seems grateful to be out in the world and free from the trappings of his puny human self. Despite being a largely silent character, the Hulk is given a great deal of characterisation through his facial expressions and body language; he has a child-like quality to him and is quick to fly into a rage when provoked or upon seeing Betty in danger.
Betty cannot help but be drawn to the emotionally unstable Bruce and cares deeply for his welfare.
Betty finds herself irrevocably drawn to Bruce; she feels an empathy and attraction to his intelligence, emotional instability, and his mysterious past that he adamantly refuses to discuss at every opportunity. While they both share a love for science, they also share a bond in their unresolved issues with their fathers; Ross has successfully managed to ostracise his daughter with his officious and militaristic demeanour and Betty is enraged when he pursues Bruce with a stubborn vendetta. Seeking to protect Bruce and standing by him through her father’s persecution, Betty is nevertheless both captivated and terrified by Bruce’s transformation into the Hulk; this compels her to turn to Ross for help but, when she sees how insane David is, she does everything she can to try and help Bruce piece together his fragmented memories and come to terms with his violent childhood.
David Banner makes for an absolutely reprehensible and deeply personal villain.
Initially appearing to be a devoted scientist and loving husband and father, thirty years in confinement have driven David to near insanity. The film goes to great lengths to explore the depravity of David’s motivations; the cold-hearted disdain he shows towards Bruce makes him positively reprehensible. David’s obsession with improving himself, gaining power, and avenging himself against Ross and the world makes him a hermit-like, bat-shit crazy mad scientist who cares nothing for his son and wants only to harvest his gamma cells. David’s mockery of Bruce in the finale, followed by his enraged outburst, are a perfect example of just how disgusting, twisted, and very personal he is as a villain since he purposely withholds information from Bruce regarding his birth mother. Having lived half of his life blaming his violent actions on others (specifically Ross), David is willing to manipulate, torment, and attack anyone with his gamma minions to attain his goals, to say nothing of exposing himself to Bruce’s blood and research in order to augment his physical form.
A stubborn military man, Ross launches a vindictive crusade to lock Bruce up.
General Ross is probably one of the most stubborn, pig-headed, and aggravating characters ever put to screen. A loyal patriot, Ross has spent his entire career putting his work before his family; hiding behind his uniform, Ross justifies his actions out of his genuine desire to protect Betty from Banner’s dangerous nature. To that end, he pursues Bruce without any evidence that he’s actually guilty of anything and is fully prepared to lock him up just for being his father’s son. When Ross witnesses Banner’s transformation, he sees the culmination of David’s obsession brought to startling life and throws everything he has at the Hulk to try and subdue him. Still, it’s obvious that he deeply cares for Betty but his method of protecting her is mainly to purposely and officiously keep key information from her and to rage at Bruce for doing nothing more than existing. Ultimately, Betty is able to convince Ross just enough to arrange for a face-to-face between the two Banners but, even then, Ross is fully prepared to electrocute them both to death if they show signs of being a threat.
The Nitty-Gritty: Ang Lee’s decision to incorporate split screens, dissolves, and multiple camera angles into the same scene is definitely a unique one. While many of these make for some unique and entertaining shots, and they do make the film visually interesting compared to others, it can’t be denied that they are used way too often and become quite distracting at times. One thing that Hulk definitely has going for it, though, is the quality of the actors; Sam Elliot is a notable standout and makes for quite the vindictive interpretation of General Ross by exuding authority and bringing a gravitas to the film in every scene he’s in. However, while far from the longest film I’ve ever seen. Hulk does seem to drag a bit in places; Hulk’s more methodical pace means that it’s not really the sort of film I throw on casually or can just have running in the background.
Hulk is a surprisingly cerebral film and takes a deep dive into the character’s psychology.
This is because, unlike the vast majority of superhero films, especially at the time, Hulk is a much more cerebral film; rather than make a mere monster movie or an action-packed extravaganza, Ang Lee explores Bruce’s emotional and psychological trauma, both of which are portrayed as just as important to his becoming the Hulk as his anger and gamma exposure, which is also true of the character in recent Marvel Comics storylines. A slower, methodical film than many were expecting thanks to the trailers and the general understanding of the character, Hulk in many ways seems to be the exact opposite of what makes the character appealing and yet tackles the route of Banner’s complex psychological profile head-on. To me, this makes for a very interesting character study; even I, a big Hulk fan, never really thought about how complicated Banner’s emotional stability was until this film and Lee does a wonderful job of making the Hulk’s appearances a big deal in the film. When Bruce gives in to his anger (masterfully portrayed by Bana’s intense facial expressions), it is presented as a veritable explosion of repressed emotion rather than merely being an action scene for the sake of having one and the film does a surprisingly good job of delving into the traumatic psychology behind Banner and the Hulk to make the character more than just a mindless monster.
Despite some dodgy CGI shots (…and dogs), the Hulk generally looks pretty impressive.
For the most part, the Hulk is quite an impressive digital character; it’s difficult to bring a character like the Hulk to life and not make him appear cartoonish because of his green colouration and immense size but Hulk set a pretty decent standard. Obviously, some shots and sequences are better than others; thanks to poor lighting and deliberate framing, Bruce’s initial transformation is quite impressive…until the Hulk walks into frame and we see him unimpeded. Lee has the Hulk increase in size and stature as his anger grows, just like in the comics but, at times, the Hulk’s green is a little too bright, his skin a little too smooth and unnatural as well, with the scene of him being encased in expanding foam probably being one of the worst shots of the film. Of course, even the worst shot of the Hulk can’t really compare to David’s gamma dogs; no amount of darkness can hide how terrible these slobbering, cartoonish beasts appear and I can’t help but feel it would’ve been better to save some money and give David just the one dog and focus a bit more on the Hulk’s battles against Ross and his military forces.
Sadly, the finale is a confusing mess of wonky CGI and blurry shots.
When out in the desert battling with tanks and helicopters, the Hulk looks amazing and exudes menace and character with the way he toys with the vehicles attacking him. Similarly, his rampage through San Francisco and the way he “melts” down into Banner are equally impressive, especially as this entire sequence is shot in full daylight. It’s disappointing, then, that the finale takes place under murky darkness; having gained the ability to absorb and take on the properties of things he touches, David transforms himself into a creature of pure, ever-transforming energy in a bid to absorb the Hulk’s great strength. Sadly, this robs us of the power and allure of Nolte’s performance since he transforms into a gigantic electrical beast, a rock monster, and a big…bubble…thing. Unfortunately, this final confrontation is absolutely ruined by being too dark and blurry and confusing, which makes it all but impossible to figure out what’s going on. While it probably would’ve been equally disappointing for David to transform into a grey-skinned version of the Hulk, at least that fight might have been a bit easier to follow; instead, it’s a bit of a bewildering and anti-climatic ending as Bruce manages to overload his father with his rage and is then assumed dead in the aftermath, only to wind up treating the sick in South America.
The Summary: It’s not easy to defend Hulk, to be honest. Many of the character’s best aspects are set aside in favour of a methodical, psychological thriller rather than focusing on action or excitement, and I can totally understand why the film’s slower, more cerebral approach to this of all superheroes would put some people off. However, for whatever reason, I often find myself enjoying this film. The actors all put in great performances, bringing a legitimacy to the source material in a way others might not, and the Hulk himself looks, for the most part, very impressive. Some shots don’t work, some of the CGI hasn’t aged well, and some of the stylistic decisions might be a bit questionable but there’s no denying that Hulk is a visually impressive film, and quite a unique take on the source material and the genre. More of an introspective character study rather than a bombastic action film, Hulk definitely suffered from poor marketing and I feel is well worth revisiting, especially now when superhero films are bigger and more popular than ever. As much as I enjoy Marvel Studios’ interpretation of the character, which basically erased this movie from continuity, I would have been happy to see a direct sequel to Hulk back in the day and still like to set aside a couple of hours and really get to grips with the film’s character study of the Jade Giant.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
Are you a fan of Hulk? Did you enjoy the film’s slower, more cerebral take on the character or were you put off by the psychological aspects of the film? What did you think to the CGI and the film’s portrayal of the Hulk? Would you have liked to see a sequel to this film or do you prefer the Marvel Studios interpretation? What is your favourite Hulk story, character, or piece of media? How are you celebrating the Hulk’s debut today? Whatever your thoughts on the Hulk, go ahead and leave a comment below and check in next Wednesday for my Hulk content.
Gillian Church posts regular Writing Prompts on her Horror Prompts Instagram account and I like to take part with a few snippets and pieces of flash fiction. This time, I asked my followers for suggestions and put together a short piece based on what they offered.
The Prompts: Sacrifice, Carousel, Lips, Superfluous
The Submission: Time was running short. It wouldn’t be long until it caught up with them, and Johnny knew that there was nothing he could do; any attempt to resist would be superfluous, and he’d seen far too may torn limb from limb in failed attempts to negotiate of fight against it.
Still, he didn’t want to worry Sonya; the girl had already watched her mother dissolve from the inside out with a smile on her face, and the last thing he wanted was for her to see the carnage unfolding around them.
He bundled her into the back of the car, stroking her face and making soothing sounds, and drove to the park as quickly as he could. “Daddy, what’re those people doing?” she asked, glancing out the window.
“Don’t you worry about that, Peanut,” Johnny quickly admonished. “Just play your game and don’t look out there.” She didn’t need to see those winged demons carrying away her friends and neighbours, or the burning blood raining from the sky.
He hurried her over to her favourite place in the entire world; the carousel. It drifted lazily in the wind, stained from blood and scorch marks, but thankfully free from corpses or the shambling dead.
“Go on now, Peanut,” he encouraged kissing her on the lips and watching, with tears filling his eyes, as she giggled and rotated on that same chipped and ugly looking unicorn.
A dark shadow fell over them; black, broiling clouds crept over the sky and a blazing red eclipse burned in the sky. Johnny felt his skin grow deathly cold as a hand, skeletal and dripping, caressed his shoulder. He took one last look at Sonya, happily enjoying her ride, and steeled himself; perhaps if he acted swiftly enough, he could save her. His sacrifice could mean her survival, even if just for a few more precious seconds of simple joy. He whirled, fist raised, and felt all the breath blow from his body as he locked eyes with the eternity of the Black and dropped dead, ashen and crumbling, as the darkness swept across the world.
What did you think to this piece? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church and Horror Prompts to take part in the Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
In September 1961, DC Comics published “Flash of Two Worlds” (Fox, et al), a landmark story that brought together two generations of the Flash: the Golden Age Jay Garrick and the Silver Age Barry Allen thanks to the concept of the multiverse, an infinite number of parallel universes that allowed any and all stories and characters to co-exist and interact. Marvel Comics would also adopt this concept and, to celebrate the release of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness(Raimi, 2022) this month, I’ve been both celebrating the Master of the Mystic Arts and exploring the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s (MCU) equivalent of the multiverse every Sunday of May.
Air Date: 11 August 2021 to 6 October 2021 Network: Disney+ Stars: Hayley Atwell, Chadwick Boseman, Samuel L. Jackson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Ruffalo, Michael B. Jordan, Chris Hemsworth, Ross Marquand, and Jeffrey Wright
The Background: As a big comic book fan, it’s been absolutely amazing seeing the MCU become a multimedia juggernaut and some of Marvel Comics’ most beloved characters and concepts come to life on screen. Although Marvel Studios dabbled in television ventures with the likes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013 to 2020) and their Netflix shows, they really doubled down on TV productions for the MCU’s fourth phase to produce content for their parent company’s streaming service, Disney+. With MCU head honcho Kevin Feige behind them, the Disney+ shows aimed to maintain and expand the ongoing continuity of the MCU, but I don’t think anyone could have predicted that Marvel Studios would delve so deeply into the multiverse that we’d seen an adaptation of What If…?What If…? began life as a semi-consistent series of hypothetical, often light-hearted (or downright dark), stories that presented Marvel heroes and storylines with subtle (or major) changes. The Disney+ show followed this format and recontextualised the premise as an animated anthology series that would explore what the MCU would be like if characters or events had unfolded differently. The show’s animation was headed by Stephan Franck and sported a cel-shaded design that emphasised hyper-realism; as the MCU was officially exploring the concept of the multiverse, episodes could be part of the franchise’s overall canon and many recognisable faces, names, and voices returned to put a new spin on their iconic roles; however, although voice recording was able to continue remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic, this production sadly marked the final performance of the late Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa/Black Panther. What If…? was received extremely well and the series was praised as a love-letter to the fans; despite some reservations about the format and presentation, reviews were primarily positive and spin-offs were quickly announced as either being in production or on the cards. Crucially, the multiversal scope of the series would be revisited in the live-action MCU films and characters and concepts from the show even seem set to cross over into the main MCU canon going forward.
The Plot: From beyond the multiverse, the cosmic being known as Uatu the Watcher (Wright) observes as the events of the MCU unfold differently, resulting in Peggy Carter (Atwell) becoming Captain Carter, Doctor Stephen Strange (Cumberbatch) becoming a force for evil, a zombie infection running rampant, and T’Challa (Boseman) becoming Star-Lord. However, when a version of Ultron (Marquand) acquires the Infinity Stones and threatens the entire multiverse, the Watcher must break his oath of non-interference to assemble a heroic force capable of fending off this threat.
The Review: Because of the nature of the series, I think it’d be much better to look at each individual episode, what they do and how they work by themselves, and then talk about some overall themes and give my opinion on the entire concept down in the summary. The first season of What If…? is a nine-episode series of animated adventures that examine familiar characters and events in the MCU but change things about in subtle, or major, ways to create entirely new stories as part of the MCU multiverse. These alternate realities are observed by the enigmatic Watcher, a cosmic being bound only to observe and never directly interfere, and who acts as the narrator of the show. The Watcher’s opening narration explains the basics of the multiverse; as we were told in Avengers: Endgame(Russo and Russo, 2019), time and reality in the MCU is not a single, linear, fixed path. Instead, multiple timelines and alternate universes exist, with the deviations occurring from different decisions being made at key moments in time, however big or small. In this regard, time is less like a line and more like a river, with an infinite number of paths trailing off all over the place, and the Watcher acts as our impassive guide to this vast multiverse. The Watcher also serves as our narrator, quickly catching us up on the events preceding the episode and explaining when, where, and how each divergent timeline was created; however, he has taken a solemn vow to never interfere in the events he witnesses, no matter how gruesome or extreme they are.
Peggy takes Steve’s place and is forced to make the ultimate sacrifice to stop Hydra’s interdimensional beast.
The series kicks off with “What If…Captain Carter Were the First Avenger?” (Andrews, 2021), essentially a retelling of Captain America: The First Avenger (Johnston, 2011). Unlike in the original timeline, Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) Agent Peggy Carter chooses to stay and watch on the ground as skinny, ill-bodied Private Steve Rogers (Josh Keaton) prepares to become a super soldier. However, when the Nazi sleeper agent attacks the experiment this time around, Peggy manages to keep him from escaping with a sample of the serum but Steve is wounded, so Peggy ignores the orders of her commanding officer, John Flynn (Bradley Whitford), and voluntarily becomes enhanced to the peak of human physical conditioning before the experiment is lost forever. Promoted to head of the SSR, Flynn is outraged at the result; disgusted that the super soldier serum was wasted on a woman, he refuses to allow Peggy to actively participate in the war, much less on the front line, out of sheer prejudice, much to her chagrin and fury. As before, Hydra figurehead Johann Schmidt/The Red Skull (Marquand) seeks to usurp Adolf Hitler and claim victory for himself with the mysterious and all-powerful Tesseract. Flynn, however, is unimpressed by the threat and unwilling to risk even one man, let alone an entire platoon, on recovering the cube; luckily, inventor Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper) believes so strongly in the Tesseract’s threat that he furnishes Peggy with a striking Union Jack-style costume and a familiar Vibranium shield so that she can single-handedly recover the Tesseract from Schmidt’s Hydra colleague, Doctor Arnim Zola (Toby Jones), decimating an entire convoy of Hydra’s soldiers with efficiency and glee and earning herself an official promotion to “Captain Carter”. Although he lost his best shot at fighting alongside his friend, Sergeant James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Steve is fully supportive of Peggy’s newfound strength and abilities and only too glad to pilot Stark’s Tesseract-powered “Hydra Stomper” armour. However, following an action-packed montage, Steve is apparently lost during a familiar assault on an armoured train; though grief-stricken, Peggy forces information out of Zola and leads an all-out assault against the Red Skull’s fortress, where they find Steve alive but are too late to stop the Red Skull from opening a dimensional rift with the Tesseract. The tentacles of a gigantic, interdimensional, Lovecraftian creature breach the portal, killing Schmidt and threatening all life on Earth; Peggy and Steve fend off the beast as Stark tries to shut down the portal, but Captain Carter is forced to sacrifice herself to the unknown by physically forcing the creature through the rift. The story then skips ahead to find the Tesseract being reactivated, spitting Peggy and the remains of the beast’s tentacles out into a Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division (S.H.I.E.L.D.) facility where she meets Director Nick Fury (Jackson) and Agent Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and learns the bittersweet news that the Allied Forces won the war but she is now seventy years in the future, and thus forever cut off from her friends and loved ones.
T’Challa is a galaxy-renowned force for good who has a positive influence on even the Mad Titan!
While the first episode arguably played things a little safe, we really see the potential of a What If…? series with the second episode, “What If…T’Challa Became a Star-Lord?” (Andrews, 2021), which wildly deviates from the story of Guardians of the Galaxy(Gunn, 2014). Young T’Challa (Maddix Robinson) longed to explore beyond Wakanda but was shielded from the chaotic outside world by his beloved and overprotective father, T’Chaka (John Kani), only to be abducted due to a mistake by Yondu Udonta’s (Michael Rooker) subordinates. Surprisingly, he was excited at embarking on adventures throughout the cosmos with the Ravagers and, while T’Challa doesn’t possess the Black Panther’s near-superhuman abilities, he sports all of Peter Quill’s (Brian T. Delaney) gadgets in addition to his Wakandan fighting prowess. His greatest assets, however, are his charisma, diplomacy, and reputation as a Robin Hood-type figure. Indeed, T’Challa is far more competent, notorious, and respected than his mainstream MCU counterpart; not only does Korath the Pursuer (Djimon Hounsou) know who he is, he views sparring with Star-Lord as the greatest honour and willingly joins his crew. T’Challa’s positive influence means the Ravagers put their skills towards helping others rather than for personal reward, thus sparing Drax the Destroyer’s (Fred Tatasciore) family and even convincing Thanos (Josh Brolin) that his destructive aspirations weren’t the answer to the galaxy’s problems! Touched by T’Challa’s mission to save others after the presumed destruction of Wakanda, Nebula (Karen Gillan), now a far less violent and far more beautiful woman, proposes a heist to steal the Embers of Genesis, a cosmic dust capable of ending galactic hunger, from Taneleer Tivan/The Collector (Benicio del Toro). While sneaking around the Collector’s museum, T’Challa finds a Wakandan spacecraft and is angered to find that Yondu lied to him about Wakanda in order to help him realise his true calling as an adventurer. The two reconcile in the best way possible: by teaming up to fight with this much more formidable version of the Collector, who is enhanced by weapons, technology, and items retrieved from some of the MCU’s most powerful and prominent individuals and races. Thanks to their teamwork, the Collector is disarmed and left at the mercy of his captives, and T’Challa forgives Yondu’s deception before reuniting with T’Chaka and his people in Wakanda, bringing his two families together in celebration over their mutual friend. Across the world, however, a greater threat awaits when Ego (Kurt Russell) comes looking for his son, here a mere Dairy Queen employee.
Pym is revealed as the culprit but, after he’s apprehended, Loki usurps his threat and conquers the world!
“What If…the World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?” (Andrews, 2021) takes us back to the middle of Iron Man 2 (Favreau, 2010) and Nick Fury and Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow’s (Lake Bell) latest effort to recruit Tony Stark/Iron Man (Mick Wingert) to the Avengers Initiative. Fury is horrified when his attempt to stave off Stark’s palladium poisoning apparently has the unexpected side effect of killing the would-be Avenger; this tragedy is quickly followed by Thor Odinson (Hemsworth) being accidentally killed by Hawkeye’s errant arrow and the archer later being found dead while locked in an impenetrable S.H.I.E.L.D. cell. Fury suspects that his recruits are being targeted by an unknown party, and charges Natasha to escape Brock Rumlow’s (Frank Grillo) custody and make contact with Doctor Betty Ross (Stephanie Panisello). Though initially distrustful of Natasha due to her association with those who’ve hounded her friend, colleague, and former lover, Doctor Bruce Banner/The Hulk (Ruffalo), Betty is convinced to take a closer look at the injector used on Stark and theorises that a microscopic projectile fired from the needle killed the superhero. Hungry for blood after learning of Hawkeye’s death, Natasha agrees with Fury’s theory that their killer is targeting Avengers recruits; unfortunately, General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (Mike McGill) arrives looking to arrest Banner and sparks his transformation into the rampaging Hulk as in his solo film. However, the seemingly immortal Green Goliath also falls victim to the mysterious killer when he violently explodes from the inside out, and things escalate even further when Loki Laufeyson (Tom Hiddleston) arrives looking to avenge Thor’s death. Fury manages to buy himself one day to solve Thor’s murder on the promise of delivering the culprit to the God of Mischief and, when Natasha finds that a dead agent’s credentials were used to access S.H.I.E.L.D.’s database, she’s brutally beaten to death by an unseen assailant, and only able to tell Fury that all the deaths are relating to “hope”. This, however, is enough to piece together the perpetrator’s true identity: Doctor Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), who targeted Fury’s recruits in the guise of the size-altering Yellowjacket after his daughter, Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), died while working for S.H.I.E.L.D. A broken, bitter, twisted old man, Pym blames Fury and has become a deranged killer due to his grief and anger. However, Pym and his tech are outmatched when Fury is revealed to be Loki in disguise but, after Pym is defeated and taken into Asgardian custody, Loki double-crosses Fury and declares himself ruler of humanity. To combat this threat, Fury gets back to work assembling his super team, starting with calling Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (Alexandra Daniels) back to Earth and uncovering Captain America’s frozen body.
A grief-stricken Dr. Strange finds he cannot save his love no matter how much he alters the past.
The show shifts over to the world of magic and mysticism for “What If…Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands?” (Andrews, 2021), which presents a world where Dr. Strange and Doctor Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams) are still a couple in a loving relationship. Fully supportive and enamoured by Dr. Strange, Christine encourages his ego and his skills as a surgeon, but sadly her influence doesn’t extend to his driving skills. However, in this world, Dr. Strange is relatively unharmed from the car crash that took his MCU counterpart’s hands but is left grief-stricken when Christine dies as a result of his negligence. In a bid to fill the void in his life, and his heart, Strange travels the world and, once again, ends up studying the mystic arts at Kamar-Taj under the tutelage of the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton). Like his mainstream counterpart, Strange becomes the Master of the Mystic Arts after the Ancient One’s death and successfully bargains with the Dread Dormammu (Cumberbatch), but remains preoccupied with the mistakes of his past and the promises offered by the Eye of Agamotto’s time-bending abilities. Haunted by memories of happier times with Christine, Strange ignores the warnings of the Ancient One and his manservant, Wong (Benedict Wong), and uses the Eye to place his current consciousness into the body of his past self. Unfortunately, the tragedy still occurs no matter how safely he drives, which route he takes, or even his refusal to go to the award speech as Christine dies again and again whether he’s there or what he does. Dr. Strange’s anguish at being unable to save Christine isn’t helped by the Ancient One’s explanation that her death cannot be averted as it would create a potentially universe-destroying time paradox (if Strange prevents her death, he won’t become a sorcerer and be able to go back and save her).
Strange Supreme saves Christine, but only briefly and at the cost everything that ever is or was in his reality.
Refusing to believe that Christine is fated to die, and angered at the Ancient One’s refusal to help him break this “absolute point” in time, Dr. Strange uses the Eye to flee from the confrontation and consult the ancient tomes of the Lost Library of Cagliostro. There, he meets O’Bengh (Ike Amadi) and learns that one can potentially gain the power he requires by absorbing magical beings; thus, Dr. Strange conjures a variety of demonic, Lovecraftian, and magical creatures (including gnomes, familiars, dragons, and even the octopus-like creature Captain Carter fought). When they won’t willingly share their power, he resolves to forcibly take it, and quickly becomes obsessed with gaining more and more magical power from these entities over the course of centauries to become “Strange Supreme”. As he does so, he grows increasingly monstrous and takes on more of their attributes, but is shocked to learn from O’Bengh that he’ll never be powerful enough to achieve his dreams due to the Ancient One using magic from the Dark Dimension to split him in two and create two concurrent timelines. His other half, who took Wong’s advice and moved on from Christine’s death, is charged by an echo of the Ancient One to oppose his dark doppelgänger before his ambition erases all of reality. When Strange Supreme’s attempts to coerce his other half into joining his cause are rejected, a magical battle ensues that spans multiple dimensions. Despite Wong’s protective spells and Strange’s efforts to talk down his dark half, Strange Supreme’s centauries of basking in the powers of countless magical beings makes him the superior and he’s ultimately able to absorb his missing half. Finally whole again, Strange Supreme succeeds in undoing Christine’s death but is transformed into a demonic being by the effort this requires; understandably, she is horrified by his nightmarish appearance, and he’s left helpless to stop the time paradox from devouring all of his reality. Desperate to preserve the world, he begs the Watcher for help but he refuses to get involved, despite wishing to punish Strange Supreme’s reckless arrogance, and the once Sorcerer Supreme is left alone, despondent, and remorseful in the tiniest pocket of reality with nothing but his grief and regret for company.
Banner is horrified to find the world, and many of its heroes, infected by a zombie virus.
One popular, recurring storyline in Marvel Comics in recent years has been the Marvel Zombies spin-off (Various, 2005 to present) that tells of a devastating zombie plague overwhelming the Marvel universe (and beyond). A version of this reality is explored in “What If…Zombies?!” (Andrews, 2021), which finds the Hulk crash-landing into the Sanctum Sanctorum as in Avengers: Infinity War (Russo and Russo, 2018) only to find it, and the streets of New York City, deserted. When Iron Man, Dr. Strange, and Wong arrive to take care of Ebony Maw (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor) and Cull Obsidian (Terry Notary), Banner’s elation soon turns to horror when the three are revealed to be vicious, flesh-eating zombies who tear Thanos’s children to shreds, instantly infecting them in the process, and Banner is only saved from the same fate thanks to the timely intervention of Dr. Strange’s Cloak of Levitation, a swarm of ants commanded by Hope van Dyne/The Wasp, and Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Hudson Thames). Spider-Man’s amusing orientation video shows that the MCU’s zombies largely confirm to the “rules” commonly associated with their kind; they’re decomposing corpses with a voracious hunger who turn others with a single bite and can only be killed by removing the head or destroying the brain. However, they’re not as mindless or shambling as traditional zombies; they’re intelligent enough to co-ordinate their attacks and utilise tech like the Iron Man armour and magic like the Sling Rings. In a change of pace, the Watcher reveals a definite origin for the zombie outbreak by relating how Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) became infected with the virus while stuck in the Quantum Realm; when she bit Hank Pym, he brought the virus back with him and the entire world was quickly overrun once the Avengers were turned.
The survivors narrowly escape Zombie Wanda, completely unaware of a greater threat waiting in Wakanda.
Banner joins up with the few uninfected survivors and learns from Okoye (Danai Gurira) of a possible cure at Camp Lehigh, New Jersey; the group travel to the Grand Central Station, where they’re attacked by zombified versions of Sam Wilson/The Falcon (Anthony Mackie), Hawkeye, and Captain America. Although they lose Harold “Happy” Hogan (Jon Favreau), the group is able to get the train working and fend off the zombies thanks to Okoye and the Wasp. However, the train is attacked by Zombie Cap, who infects Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) and forces Bucky to end his undead existence, retrieving his shield in the process, but Hope is also infected from a small cut she receives after disposing of Sharon. Although Peter tries to remain optimistic that she’ll be cured before she can turn, Hope sacrifices herself to atone for her part in causing the outbreak by carrying the group through a horde of zombies and dropping them off at Camp Lehigh. There, they find the zombies refuse to breach the camp thanks to the presence of the Mind Stone in the Vision’s (Paul Bettany) head; he and the severed head of Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) reveal that the Mind Stone’s properties can reverse the zombie virus, and the group is excited to spread the cure throughout the world from Wakanda. However, Banner learns that they’re not the first to respond to the Vision’s beacon, and Bucky is horrified to find that the Vision has been feeding parts of other survivors (including T’Challa) to a zombified version of Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) since she’s proven resistant to the Mind Stone and he’s been unable to kill her due to his love for her. When Wanda breaks free and proves uncontrollable due to her powers and hunger, the Vision rips the Mind Stone out of his head to atone for his actions and the group’s escape is covered by Bucky and the Hulk, who finally emerges from Banner’s psyche and is able to resist the zombie’s bite and hold back Wanda so the others can take off. The one-legged T’Challa, beheaded Lang, and shellshocked Peter console themselves with the knowledge that they’ll be able to save the world once they reach Wakanda, completely unaware that the nation has already succumbed to the infection and is under the rule of a zombified Thanos and his partially-completed Infinity Gauntlet!
Killmonger rescues Stark and becomes his most trusted confidante to kill his way to his birthright.
We then go back to where the MCU all started in “What If…Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?” (Andrews, 2021), which recreates the opening moments of Iron Man(Favreau, 2008) with one key difference: right as Tony Stark is about to be injured by one of his own missiles, he’s saved by N’Jadaka/Erik Stevens/Killmonger (Jordan), who fends off the Ten Rings soldiers looking to kidnap Stark and thus means that the genius, billionaire philanthropist never learns the humility or courage that led to him becoming Iron Man. Instead, he remains a conceited, arrogant, self-serving glory hound who believes that he needs to build bigger, better weapons to protect America’s interests. To that end, he drafts in Killmonger, who wastes no time in publicly outing Obadiah Stane (Kiff VandenHeuvel) as the man who bankrolled the Ten Rings’ attack on Stark, and Stark is so grateful to his saviour that he quickly promotes Killmonger to his new Chief Operations Officer, alienating Virginia “Pepper” Potts (Beth Hoyt) in the process. Killmonger swiftly becomes Stark’s closest friend and confidante and, together, they create robot drones, the “Liberators”, based on Killmonger’s fandom for anime. Killmonger pushes Stark to use Vibranium as a power source for the Liberators, and Stark sends in Colonel James “Rhodey” Rhodes (Don Cheadle) to steal some from Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis). However, the Black Panther attacks the meeting to recover stolen Vibranium, only for Killmonger to reveal his true intentions and kill T’Challa with one of Stark’s weapons. He chastises Rhodey for wearing the uniform of his oppressors and kills him with the Black Panther’s claw to make it seem like they killed each other; thanks to Just A Rather Very Intelligent System (J.A.R.V.I.S.; Bettany), however, Killmonger’s actions are revealed to Stark. Stark tries to avenge his friend’s murder using a Liberator, but Killmonger easily bests the drone and kills Stark with a Dora Milaje spear, which escalates the tensions between the United States and Wakanda into all-out war. General Ross assumes control of Stark’s assets and the Liberators are pushed into mass production; Killmonger then kills Klaue in order to deceive the Wakandans, then seizes control of the Liberators to lead his people in “defeating” the invading army. His victory and battle prowess wins over his uncle, T’Chaka, and earns him the mantle of the Black Panther; however, T’Challa’s astral warnings of Killmonger’s impending defeat are left a distinct possibility not only due to Ross’s obsession with continuing the war but also when Pepper and Shuri (Ozioma Akagha) agree to work together to expose Killmonger’s deception.
This Thor just wants to party, but his good time is spoiled by Captain Marvel and Jane blabbing to Frigga.
“What If…Thor Were an Only Child?” (Andrews, 2021) lightens things up a bit by retelling the events of Thor(Branagh, 2011); in this version of the story, in the absence of a brother to grow up alongside, Thor is little more than a lackadaisical, party-loving frat-boy who, despite still being worthy of Mjölnir, is far more interested in wasting time revelling with his friends than following his mother, Frigga’s (Josette Eales), instructions to behave or becoming a bore like his father, Odin Allfather (Anthony Hopkins). To avoid the all-seeing gaze of Heimdall (Idris Elba), Thor and his drinking buddies head the Midgard, the most backwater, insignificant world in all the Nine Realms, and invite guests from all over to join them in a massive, nonstop party. Tracking the cosmic disturbance and fearful of an alien invasion, Doctor Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) investigates and is both disturbed to find that Thor’s parties are so out of control that they can kill planets and won over by the Thunder God’s otherworldly charm. Jane and her intern, Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings), join the party, quickly being swept up in all the intergalactic chaos and merriment on display; Darcy even marries Howard the Duck (Seth Green), and Jane and Thor get matching tattoos, but soon wake up to massive hangovers and the arrival of S.H.I.E.L.D. Acting Director Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) is deeply concerned that Thor is leaving a trail of destruction as he takes his party on the road, and calls in Captain Marvel to assist with the perceived threat. Thor’s reunion with fellow party animal Prince Loki of Jotunheim is interrupted by Captain Marvel’s arrival; Thor brushes off her demands that he leaves, and a fight ensues that sees the two battle all across the globe. Despite Thor’s petulant, childish nature, the two are seemingly equally matched in terms of power and durability, but Carol’s forced to hold back her full power to avoid damaging the world or endangering lives. Since Jane disagrees with attacking or eliminating Thor since she’s so enamoured by him, she uses her tech to contact Heimdall and literally tells on Thor to Frigga. As Hill prepares an all-out nuclear strike against Thor, he’s terrified by Frigga’s impending arrival and begs his guests to help him clean up all evidence of their shenanigans. Despite Thor’s best, most frantic efforts to put right all the anarchy he and his friends had caused, she sees through his deception; however, rather than being mad at Jane for selling him out, he thanks her for teaching him a lesson in humility and asks her out…only for he, and the Watcher, to be stunned by the sudden appearance of an alternate version of Ultron!
This alternate version of Ultron is such a threat to the multiverse that the Watcher is forced to intervene.
This cliff-hanger is explained in the following episode, “What If…Ultron Won?” (Andrews, 2021), which presents a post-apocalyptic world where Black Widow and Hawkeye are the only Avengers left to oppose the all-powerful Ultron. In this world, Hawkeye not only sports his ridiculous mohawk and a mechanical right arm, but Ultron successfully fulfilled its goal to cause an extinction-level event by claiming the Vision’s body as its own, killing Iron Man, Cap, and Thor, and launching a worldwide nuclear attack that decimated humanity. When Thanos arrived looking to retrieve the Mind Stone, Ultron split him in two with one shot and claimed the Infinity Stones for itself, becoming a God-like being capable of laying waste to entire worlds and Realms with its endless supply of drones. Asgard, Ego, Xandar, and countless others all fall before Ultron’s power and even Captain Marvel is unable to oppose it; having eradicated the vast majority of life across the universe and ascended to a higher pane of existence, Ultron not only sees but also hears the Watcher. Although the Watcher previously considered intervening in Dr. Strange’s story, he held true to his vow of non-interference since he deals in a cosmic balance beyond the lives of mere mortals, even ones as powerful as the Master of the Mystic Arts. However, Ultron’s threat is so terrifying even to this cosmic observer that the Watcher is sorely tempted to assist Natasha and Clint in their efforts to coerce Zola’s artificial intelligence into helping them. The Watcher is pleased when their perseverance pays off but, although Zola is able to possess one of Ultron’s drones, he cannot shut down Ultron’s hive mind as Ultron is outside of the known universe, meaning Clint is forced to sacrifice himself so that Natasha and Zola can escape. The Watcher is aghast when Ultron not only does the impossible and breaches his cosmic observatory but is also able to match even the Watcher’s cosmic power. Their battle sees them literally smashing the dimensional barriers into numerous alternate realities and sees Ultron devour a whole universe and force the Watcher to flee. While Ultron prepares to lay waste to the entire multiverse, the Watcher is forced to turn to Strange Supreme for help in opposing Ultron’s threat.
The Guardians of the Multiverse join forces to end Ultron’s threat.
This story, and the entire show, comes to a head in the final episode, “What If…the Watcher Broke His Oath?” (Andrews, 2021), which sees the Watcher recruiting Captain Carter, T’Challa Star-Lord, Killmonger, Party Thor, and a previously unseen version of Gamora (Cynthia McWilliams) to join Strange Supreme as the Guardians of the Multiverse. He enlists each of them right as they’re in the middle of tying up loose ends from their respective episodes and emphasises that every one of them is needed to protect something even bigger than their individual lives or concerns. Captain Carter immediately recognises the gravity of the situation, while Strange Supreme sees this as his chance at true redemption, and, despite the odds, they all tentatively agree to work together to combat Ultron, steal his Soul Stone, and destroy it using Gamora’s “Infinity Crusher” device. While Strange Supreme struggles to contain the dark magics within his body, Gamora is troubled by Killmonger’s obsession with Ultron’s technology, and Thor accidentally attracts Ultron’s attention, but the group is thankfully shielded by Strange Supreme’s protection spell. Following Captain Carter’s lead, the Guardians are able to launch a co-ordinated attack that allows T’Challa to swipe the Soul Stone; when Ultron makes short work of Zombie Wanda and follows the Guardians to its home reality, it gets summarily pummelled by the Guardians’ repeated attacks and Strange Supreme’s ability to counteract both Ultron’s Time Stone and match its enlarged form with his monstrous magic. Although they’re stunned to find the Infinity Crusher ineffectual because it and the Infinity Stones are from different realities, Ultron’s threat is ended when Captain Carter helps Natasha avenge Clint and fire an arrow containing Zola’s consciousness into Ultron’s armour, erasing its sentience once and for all. In the aftermath, Killmonger claims Ultron’s armour and proposes using the Infinity Stones to “fix” their universes; when they refuse, he attempts to destroy them and they’re saved by a Zola-controlled Vision, who tries to take the Infinity Stones for himself. Before they can properly get into a potentially devastating battle over the gems, Strange Supreme freezes them in time and seals them within a pocket dimension, ending their threat once and for all. The Watcher trusts Strange Supreme with watching over the two, and returns everyone to their proper place and time; since Natasha’s world was left lifeless by Ultron, the Watcher sends her to help Nick Fury overthrow Loki, and then alters his vow of impassive observation to a pledge to protect the multiverse when needed.
The Summary: At first, I wasn’t too sold on What If…?’s animation style; the slick, computerised cel-shaded look has never been a favourite of mine, but I was quickly won over by it due to how closely each character and episode mirrors their live-action counterparts. Everything from the recreation of certain shots, to the musical cues, to the costumes and likenesses perfectly emulates the source material each episode is based on, meaning we get the brown-hued colour scheme of World War Two for Captain Carter, the barrage of bizarre cosmic colours for Star-Lord, and the industrial, high-tech grey of Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D. facilities. Although some notable names from the MCU didn’t return to lend their voices to their iconic characters, What If…? employs the services of some incredibly gifted soundalikes and even goes the extra mile in presenting a version of Bruce Banner that resembles both Edward Norton and Mark Ruffalo, which is fitting considering we encounter this character between his solo film and his first big MCU crossover. Animation also means that What If…? is theoretically able to do absolutely anything it desires, regardless of budget, and is limited only be the imagination of the animators; thus, while things are a little on the safe side with slightly different retelling of Captain America: The First Avenger, Thor, and other MCU films, it’s not long before we’re seeing massive Lovecraftian creatures, a whole host of Marvel heroes interacting in ways we’ve not really seen before, an additional taste of the cosmic madness of the universe (and multiverse), and a wide variety of both horrifying and oddball concepts to really test the waters of what the MCU is capable of going forward.
Captain Carter and T’Challa Star-Lord are just as competent, if not more so, as their MCU counterparts.
I really liked that, despite their reversed roles, Peggy and Steve still have a mutual attraction based on mutual respect and their respective struggles; Peggy faces an uphill battle due to being a woman in a male-orientated world (and war) that constantly weighs her down even after she’s enhanced by the super soldier serum, and of course Steve has been overlooked and undervalued his entire life due to his gaunt frame and sickly nature. While everyone else is either incredulous due to her being a woman or impressed by her fighting prowess because she is a woman, and she must prove her worth through her deeds to win them over, Steve admires the person that she is and her fighting spirit; he’s the only one that doesn’t judge her for her gender and who doesn’t need convincing that she’s the right person for the job and is only too grateful to be an active combatant alongside her in the Hydra Stomper. Peggy is also quite different in the role; like Steve, she attacks it with a sense of duty and honour, but she also takes far more joy in her newfound abilities. There’s a sense that she’s finally able to let loose, that she’s been given the physical gifts to realise her full potential, and she literally dives head-first into making the most of that opportunity. T’Challa’s characterisation as a galaxy-wide force for good is a fitting tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman; unlike Peter Quill, T’Challa is a well-respected and competent space mercenary, and I loved the running gag that he’s somehow able to convince even the most maladjusted individuals to give up their villainous or tyrannical ways simply through presenting a convincing argument. Korath is only too willing to change sides simply out of his worship of Star-Lord, and his crew follow his lead into doing good deeds simply because he was such a positive influence on them. Unfortunately, he’s not able to have the same influence on the Collector, who’s not only blinded by his position in this universe, but also driven by his inherent greed and given a major power boost thanks to his artefacts. However, while threats still remain in this timeline, on the surface it seems to be a far more peaceful and united universe simply thanks to T’Challa’s positive influence on others.
What If…? isn’t afraid to get very dark and show twisted or corrupted versions of these popular characters.
Things take a turn to the dark side once the Avengers (especially Stark) start getting killed off; What If…? is a self-contained show within the larger MCU multiverse, meaning literally anything can happen to anyone, and seeing the franchise’s core six heroes be so brutally murdered really hammers that home. It also gives Hank Pym, someone introduced later into the MCU, a chance to be a more prominent player in this sandbox; seeing him active in the MCU’s first phase is a great way of fleshing out the world in a unique way, especially as he’s become a murdering psychopath. This is a Pym whose neuroses and paranoia have been pushed to breaking point, which deftly showcases just how much of a threat a guy with Pym’s intellect and technology can be to even the most superhuman individuals. Of course, the epitome of dark character turns is the tragic tale of Strange Supreme; it’s absolutely heart-breaking to see Dr. Strange left so desperate and despondent by Christine’s loss that he fell deeper and deeper to the darkness. His frustration and anguish at being unable to change the past see him become obsessed with gaining more and more power, to the point where he is fixated only on being reunited with his love. This makes him blind to all pleas, even those of his uncorrupted counterpart, and it isn’t until all of reality is about to be erased forever that he realises the error of his ways. Sadly, by then, it’s much too late for him to undo anything; Christine once again dies in his arms and everything that ever was is unravelled due to his time paradox; even the Watcher judges his heinous actions, and the once mighty Strange Supreme is left alone and repentant in the tiniest slither of reality. It’s a poignant and gut-wrenching take on the snarky, stubborn, and arrogant Sorcerer Supreme, one that shows just how dangerous a threat he could be if he lost his strong moral compass, and it’s a testament to the show that the character remained a tragic and relatable figure right up until the end rather than simply being a malevolent antagonist.
What If…? showed characters are their grimmest and worst and also at their most carefree.
Easily the darkest tale is the inclusion of zombies; never before has the MCU veered so closely towards traditional horror and I really appreciated the bleak, gory change of pace. It was fantastic seeing the MCU’s most powerful characters reduced to animalistic ghouls, forcing the few survivors to battle their lifelong friends and making painful sacrifices to ensure the safety of others against overwhelming odds. This was also a prime opportunity to show a new side to the Vision; him luring in survivors just to feed his love is a haunting glimpse at the darker side of his cold, calculating logic. We’ve seen such behaviour, this overpowering sense of denial, in zombie films before and, here, it served as a gruesome reminder of just how close to the brink this alternate reality is to total collapse. This continued in Killmonger’s welcome reappearance, with his alternate tale basically showing what could have happened if he had succeeded in his goals of reclaiming his Wakandan birthright; Killmonger was always one of the MCU’s more driven and dangerous antagonists and his episode showed just how truly vindictive and sadistic he really was. He had no qualms about deceiving or using anyone and any resource at his disposal, and even incited an all-out war just so that he could get himself into a position of trust and power, which serves as a stark reminder to just how ruthless a villain he really was. The party-loving version of Thor is the polar opposite; Party Thor cares little for battle or being a king and just wants to enjoy himself. He revels in being the centre of attention and throwing the biggest, most outrageous parties in all the Nine Realms and is lauded amongst his guests as being the wildest party animal around. Thor is a consummate free spirit and a friend to all; alien races, Gods, and recognisable beings from all across the cosmos cheer his name and share in his revelry, making for some of the most light-hearted and amusing moments in the entire series as Surtur (Clancy Brown) tries it on with Lady Liberty and Frost Giants deface Mount Rushmore. This episode also leads to one of the best fist fights in the series as Thor and Captain Marvel trade blows, but he delights in the fight as much as he does in enjoying himself with mead, and only the disapproval of his mother finally shakes Thor from his apathy and pushes him to make amends for his reckless merriment.
The Watcher is forced to take action for the first time in his long life in order to defend the multiverse.
Of course, things come to a suitably dramatic and action-packed conclusion with the final two episodes, which finally force the Watcher into action. Up until then, the watcher existed outside of the normal universe, powerful and cosmic enough to remain completely undetected, but Ultron’s sentience and force grows to such an extent that it’s able to sense the Watcher, breach his observatory, and begin a maniacal campaign to conquer and destroy the entire multiverse. Untold aeons of quietly observing the multiverse haven’t exactly dampened the Watcher’s power cosmic, but in the face to Ultron’s might, enhanced by the six Infinity Stones, the enigmatic onlooker is forced to do the one thing he has never done and ask for help, calling upon the characters he has been observing and asking them to intervene where he cannot. Seeing these wildly different versions of these characters interacting was a blast; they arguably got on the same page much faster than the regular Avengers (which is no doubt due to the short length of the episodes) and were able to launch a united attack on Ultron as a result. Indeed, Ultron kind of got a bit shafted in the last episode; it went from going toe-to-toe with a cosmic being to getting battered about by a handful of mortals and Godlings simply because the Guardians were able to keep the pressure on and keep Ultron from activating the Infinity Stones. Realistically, Ultron could’ve just “snapped” them all away, but then that wouldn’t be anywhere near as exhilarating for a final battle now, would it? Seeing Killmonger claim the gems and just the idea of what his twisted imagination would use them for was a cool moment, as was the idea that he might someday escape his trap to threaten the multiverse again, and just about the only issue I had with that last episode was the random inclusion of a Gamora when they could’ve maybe employed Zombie Wanda instead. Overall, though, I thoroughly enjoyed this series; the presentation, the humour, the fun twists on established characters, and the bizarre stories were all really fun and engaging and I can’t wait to see more from this as the MCU continues to expand into more and ore obscure concepts.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Fantastic
Did you enjoy What If…?? Which episode was your favourite, and which of the alternate characters did you like the most? Did you enjoy the Watcher’s inclusion and characterisation? What did you think to all the cameos and the animation style? Did you enjoy seeing Ultron as an all-powerful force and what did you think to its battle with the Watcher? Were you also disappointed that Gamora didn’t get her own episode? Are you a fan of the What If…? comics and, if so, which was your favourite? What other hypothetical scenarios would you like to see explored in a future season? Whatever your thoughts on What If…?, sign up to drop a comment down below and check back next Sunday for the final instalment of Multiverse Madness.
To commemorate, the culmination of their long-running and successful X-Men movies, 20th Century Fox declared May 13th as “X-Men Day”, a day to celebrate all things Mutant and X-Men and celebrate Marvel’s iconic collection of superpowered beings who fight to protect a world that hates and fears them. After exhausting all of their storylines with their original cast, save for Hugh Jackman, 20th Century Fox began producing a series of loose prequels centred on younger X-characters and, to commemorate X-Men Day this year, I’m spending the next few weeks looking back at the first three entries in this “Beginnings Trilogy” to see if they still hold up today.
Released: July 2015 Originally Released: May 2014 Director: Bryan Singer Distributor: 20th Century Fox Budget: $200 to 220 million Stars: Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Peter Dinklage, Nicholas Hoult, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, and Anna Paquin
The Plot: By 2023, Mutants and their allies have been hunted to near extinction by the mechanical Sentinels. Desperate to avert this dystopian future, Professor Charles Xavier (Stewart) has joined forces with his long-time adversary, Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto (McKellen) and opt to use Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat’s (Ellen Page) time-bending abilities to send the consciousness of Logan/Wolverine (Jackman) back to 1973 to team up with their younger selves (McAvoy and Fassbender, respectively) and keep Raven Darkhölme/Mystique (Lawrence) from causing the eradication of Mutantkind.
The Background: Having been an integral part of Marvel Comics since their 1963debut, the X-Men went on to have success in numerous videogames, cartoons, and a financially successful franchise under the banner of 20th Century Fox. After three blockbuster movies and two successful spin-offs focusing on breakout star Hugh Jackman, Fox opted to bring in a younger cast and shine a spotlight on the early days of the X-Men. With X-Men: First Class (Vaughn, 2011) planned as the start of a new trilogy, development began on a sequel that same year; however, rather than develop Vaughn’s ideas for a more grounded and fitting sequel, series producer Lauren Donner and returning director Bryan Singer set writer Simon Kinberg to work penning an adaptation of the classic “Days of Future Past” (Claremont, et al, 1981) storyline that would see the older original X-Men actors sharing the spotlight with their younger selves thanks to its time travel plot. X-Men: Days of Future Past is, for me, one of the better X-Men sequels and I actually rank it quite high despite my dislike for the dodgy timeline these prequels created, a belief shared by many as the film was met with a generally positive critical response that was matched by its box office gross as the film made over $740 million worldwide, the highest of out any X-Men movie to date (apart from the Deadpool (Various, 2016 to present) spin-offs). A year or so after the film’s release, Fox released The Rogue Cut, an extended version of the film that includes an entire excised subplot concerning Marie D’Ancanto/Rogue (Paquin); as I consider this the definitive version of the film, this will be the cut I am reviewing here.
The Review: In best Terminator (Cameron, 1984) fashion, Days of Future Past opens to show a dystopian future, a war-torn wasteland where Mutants, Mutant sympathiser, and those who may one day produce Mutants, are relentlessly hunted and killed by massive, fearsome Sentinels. Those that survive are either constantly hounded, unable to defeat this terrifying foe, or experimented on by the very worst of humanity. It’s a bleak and depressing future, one that is decidedly at odds with both Xavier’s dream for human/Mutant cohabitation and Magneto’s dream of Mutant superiority. It is into this hellscape that we are reintroduced to a whole new team of X-Men, many of whom are comprised of old and new faces alike. The purpose of many of these characters is simply to die in horrific ways as the Sentinels carve through stone and metal, incinerating them, ripping them to pieces, skewing them, and constantly adapting to their abilities.
Kitty uses her newfound abilities to help allies and former foes escape the unstoppable Mutant hunters.
Luckily, though, Kitty has…somehow, it’s never actually explained exactly how in the film…developed her powers of intangibility to the point where she can project a person’s consciousness into their younger self. This power, alongside the heightened senses of James Proudstar/Warpath (Booboo Stewart) and the portal-hopping powers of Blink (Fan Bingbing), has allowed the X-Men to stay just barely one step ahead of the Sentinels. However, when they finally reunite with Xavier, Magneto, Logan, and Ororo Munroe/Storm (Halle Berry), they learn of the true origins of the Sentinels; they were created back in the seventies by a scientist named Boliver Trask (Dinklage) and put into mass production after Mystique executed him on public television. Believing that keeping Mystique from killing Trask would erase their future from history, Logan volunteers to make the trip back into his younger body (as only he can survive such an extended trip) and bring the younger Xavier and Magneto together to steer Mystique away from her dark fate. The concept of Days of Future Past is past meets future; however, fans of the newer, First Class cast should be happy to find that the returning cast members from the original X-Men films don’t overshadow their younger counterparts. The older actors bookend the film, and are peppered throughout, but the majority of the film’s runtime is devoted to the new, younger cast and Logan’s interactions with them to prevent a nightmarish future. As a result, most of the older cast exist solely to deliver exposition or to shock us with their gruesome death scenes; once again, Peter Rasputin/Colossus (Daniel Cudmore) is dealt a shitty hand compared to returning characters like Storm and Bobby Drake/Iceman (Shawn Ashmore), who at least have a few lines and play a semi-important role in defending the X-Men from the Sentinels. The new characters follow the same blueprint we’ve seen from nearly every X-Men movie in that they look cool and have cool powers but we no nothing about them and they exist simply to be slaughtered by the Sentinels.
Though Xavier and Magneto are finally united in the future, the young Xavier is a disillusioned addict.
The focus is thus placed on Xavier, who drives the desperate dive into the past, Magneto, who has completely set aside his grudge against Xavier and is now despondent at all the years they wasted pointlessly fighting each other, and Kitty, whose powers anchor Logan in the past. They really sell the desperation and futility of their situation and seeing them all right at the end of their tether is an affecting moment that really helps to motivate Logan in ways we haven’t seen before. Awakening in the past with his bone claws, Logan inexplicably finds himself in America rather than causing waves over in Vietnam; travelling to Xavier’s mansion, he finds the young professor walking but at his wits end. Having fallen into a deep depression after the events of First Class and the outbreak of the aforementioned war, Xavier has become addicted to Henry “Hank” McCoy/Beast’s (Hoult) magic serum, which suppresses his powers and allows him to walk and sleep but has transformed him into a broken shell of his former, and future, self. This positions Wolverine in what is, for him, an uncomfortable position; with the clock ticking against him and frantic to prevent the future he has seen, Logan is forced to guide Xavier back towards his true self. Generally, this take the form of Logan’s trademark tough love but, when he begins to see just how far Xavier has fallen, he allows the younger professor to connect to his mind and converse with his future self in a fantastically poignant scene. Jackman gels really well with the First Class cast, portraying Logan as a blunt, war-weary soldier who has also matured and grown into a role of responsibility and duty. The knowledge that he is the only one who will remember the bad future is haunting as he is fully aware that he will remember seeing all the death and destruction even if their mission succeeds, basically sacrificing his own inner peace for the sake of the world.
While Xavier’s forced to confront his demons, Magneto seems ready to accept his destiny…
McAvoy continues to show new sides to Xavier; he ended First Class taking his first steps towards becoming the mentor and father-figure he is destined to be but begins this film as little ore than a disillusioned junkie. Logan’s mission forces him to overcome those demons and also to do something even more difficult: reach out to his childhood friend and true to pursued her to veer from her path and join forces with his former friend, Erik Lehnsherr. At this point, Xavier feels nothing but hatred and resentment for Erik for not only inadvertently crippling him and turning him into the man he has become but also for taking Raven away from him. This is, of course, completely irrational as Xavier told Mystique to go with Erik at the end of First Class but this is actually the point; Xavier’s emotions, anger, and despair have clouded his mind and motivations, blinding him to his own failings. Erik, however, is more than happy to remind Xavier of these failings; once again, Fassbender is a magnetic (no pun intended) presence, dominating every scene he’s in thanks to his cold, calculating countenance and his ominous charisma. In an emotional outburst, Erik chastises Xavier for hiding and cowering in his mansion when their brothers, sisters, and teammates were captured, tortured, and slaughtered by Trask’s experiments, which really sells the idea that Erik is all about protecting and defending all Mutantkind, even those who would oppose him. As I mentioned before, however, Magneto’s story arc is almost exactly as it was in First Class; he begins the film as an ally, turns on his friends, and ends the film as a fully-garbed Magneto ready to enact his will on the world…only for the very next film to find him a doting family man who has retired from his war. It’s a shame, really, and I feel like the script could have been tweaked so that Erik is the one who is destined to kill Trask that solidifies his position as an all-out villain; it’s not that I don’t like Erik’s moral ambiguity and the conflict Fassbender brings to the role, it’s just frustrating to see him end up looking so much like Magneto with such promise for the next movie only to have to go through it all over again.
The battle for Mystique’s soul is as much a part of the plot as Trask and his Sentinels.
After First Class, Jennifer Lawrence shot to superstardom and thus plays a pivotal role in this film; having been working alone to free Mutant prisoners and campaign for Mutant superiority, Mystique uncovers Trask’s experiments and plans for the Sentinels and believes the only logical course of action is to execute the man responsible for so many Mutant deaths (including those of her friends from First Class). Now much closer to her bad-ass, emotionally closed off future self, Mystique rejects both Xavier an Erik when they attempt to stop her and the crux of the movie really becomes a battle for her soul as much as the future as all parties try to keep her from taking her first life and dooming them all. I’m still not a fan of Lawrence, and quite how her power to assume the form of others leads to Sentinels that can adapt to any form of attack is beyond me (Armando Muñoz/Darwin’s (Edi Gathegi) powers would have been more fitting), but her story arc here is quite engaging and she sells the character’s conflicted nature really well. Fulfilling the resident, Mutant-hating human antagonist role is Bolivar Trask, a scientist who views Mutants as a threat to all humanity that can unite the warring nations in a way never seen before. Dinklage is great in this role, portraying Trask as a man of conviction who both admires and fears the potential of Mutants and their threat to humanity. Like every good villain, he is completely convinced that he is in the right and is motivated by a sense of duty and patriotism but there is a sadistic side to him as he has been relentlessly experimenting on and killing Mutants. He is juxtaposed by, who else, but Major William Stryker (Josh Helman); rather than being a military scientist who wants to round up and experiment on Mutants (or being played by Danny Huston as he should have been considering where the character was at this point), Stryker is more like Trask’s muscle. In many ways, it feels like Trask has usurped Stryker’s usual role, which makes Stryker’s inclusion pretty pointless save for causing Wolverine to freak out. Of course, the film’s big selling point is the inclusion of the Sentinels; these massive Mutant hunting machines were hinted at (as was this entire storyline) in X-Men: The Last Stand (Ratner, 2006) but it still blows my mind that we got to a point where an X-Men movie would not only use time travel and the “Days of Future Past” storyline but the Sentinels as well. They appear in two forms here, the sleek, super-adaptive, semi-mimetic poly-alloy, relentless killers of the future and the large, bulky, more comic-accurate machines of the past. Personally, I prefer the latter and feel like an army of those would have been just as pressing a threat and would have negated to need to focus so hard on Mystique’s unique X-Gene, but the threat of the Sentinels is a very palpable one as we see how unstoppable they become in the future. Of course, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense that the government would either not put them into mass production for some fifty years or that they would not reactivate the program when Magneto emerged as a real threat but the comic book nerd in me finds their presence very exciting nonetheless.
The Nitty-Gritty: Well, while McAvoy, Fassbender, Lawrence, and Hoult all get a good innings and time to shine, other characters from First Class aren’t so lucky; with the exception of Alex Summers/Havok (Lucas Till), who returns in a brief cameo, all of the Mutants from the previous film have died between movies, victims of Trask’s experiments. This is quite a kick in the teeth as we could have seen these characters actually develop and progress but, instead, they are unceremoniously killed off to fuel Mystique’s lust for vengeance and Magneto’s desire for Mutant supremacy. On the other hand, though, it does mean that the film does a far better job of juggling its cast of characters, putting the focus on Xavier, Erik, and Mystique with Logan along for the ride to remind us of the stakes.
Quicksilver is a breath of fresh air for the franchise who needed a far bigger role.
Of course, it wouldn’t be an X-Men movie without the gratuitous introduction of a brand new Mutant and, in this case, we get one of the best and yet more disappointing inclusions yet: Peter Maximoff/Quicksilver (Evan Peters). A superfast kleptomaniac, Quicksilver is an energetic ball of fun in a film that is generally quite serious due to its stakes. His powers also allow for a fantastic scene in which he travels so fast that the rest of the room appears to be stationary, a sequence that, perhaps, rivals the opening of X-Men 2(Singer, 2003). Unfortunately, though, so great are Quicksilver’s powers in this film that the movie would be over too quickly if he were to play a larger role so, after helping break Erik out of his special prison, the film promptly ditches Quicksilver with the weakest of explanations. Like, I get it but he’s such a cool, fun, and interesting character that I would have much preferred the writers find a way to incorporate him rather than just taking the easy, lazy route out.
Rogue takes over after Kitty is injured, reuniting with Logan in the process.
Still, at least Quicksilver made it into the film; Rogue was reduced to a mere cameo in the theatrical cut but, here in The Rogue Cut, plays a pivotal role when Logan’s violent thrashing critically wounds Kitty, forcing Iceman and Magneto to go off on a side mission to rescue Rogue and have her take Kitty’s place. It’s nice to see the footage cut back into the film and helps to remind us of the stakes in the bad future but I can kind of see why it was cut as it is kind of unnecessary. They could have simply replaced one of the new future X-Men, like Sunspot (Adan Canto) with Rogue and had the best of both worlds but at least it leads to a tender reunion between Rogue and Logan.
Logan awakens in a good future that is, sadly, destined to also end in ruin…
Probably the biggest missed opportunity of Days of Future Past, however, is that the filmmakers don’t use the time travel plot more to their advantage to explain the discrepancies in the time line. They try to but only in relation to the future events rather than those of established canon, and Logan’s journey to the past clearly creates at least two new timelines (one for the younger cast and one for the older cast that, despite appearing idyllic, eventually turns just as bleak and dour as the Sentinel-ruled future), but they could easily have used this as an excuse to correct the existing continuity as well. Instead, we find Logan not in the middle of fighting alongside Team X or Xavier and Erik not working together at the school; in fact, the film’s ending goes out of its way to basically erase X-Men: The Last Stand and The Wolverine(Mangold, 2013) from continuity, which is actually quite lazy as The Wolverine proved there was still a lot of mileage to be made in dealing with The Last Stand’s ending, and although it refers to X-Men Origins: Wolverine(Hood, 2009), it pretty much pretends like that film didn’t happen and right when it ends with the ominous implication that seventies-Logan ends up in Stryker’s custody it’s revealed it’s actually Mystique posing as Stryker…despite the fact that Wolverine does end up Stryker’s prisoner in the next film.
The Summary: X-Men: Days of Future Past successfully brings the two X-Men casts together in one era-spanning action/adventure; the stakes have never been higher and the calibre of acting never more affecting as two generations of X-Men seek to prevent a nightmarish future. It doesn’t do much to correct the existing canon; in fact, it actually screws up way more than it fixes with the new timeline it creates and repeats quite a few of the things I disliked about X-Men: First Class as well as making a few new ones (such as killing characters off-screen and dramatically expanding on Mystique’s importance). Yet, like X-Men Origins: Wolverine, there’s just something about this film that I really enjoy. It’s bombastic and action-packed at times but there’s more a sense of ominous foreboding, that the future is an inevitable tide the characters cannot fight against, that lends a lot of weight and urgency to the plot. Jackman’s interactions with the younger X-cast are fantastic, placing his character in an uncomfortable position where he finds himself having to inspire his future mentor and fighting against an enemy that he can’t just slice to ribbons with his claws. Is it a perfect movie? No, of course not; it’s an X-Men film and those rarely manage to be perfect because of one reason or another. Do I think it was too early to do this storyline and mash these casts together? Absolutely. And yet, this is easily in my top five (maybe even top three) X-Men movies purely for the thrill of seeing the past and the future collide, the presence of the Sentinels, and the fact that it ties up one storyline while setting up an entirely new timeline of events.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Fantastic
What did you think of the Rogue Cut of Days of Future Past? Do you think it is superior to the theatrical cut or do you, perhaps, not care for its additional plot points? What did you think of integrating the old and new X-Men casts together? Were you also a bit confused about Kitty’s sudden ability to time travel? What are your thoughts on the “Days of Future Past” storyline from the comics? Which X-Men storyline would you like to see adapted to film one day? Whatever your thoughts, feel free to leave a comment below, and pop back next week for one last X-Men review.
The first issue of Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) was published in May of 1984. Since then, the TMNT have gone on to achieve worldwide mainstream success thanks not only to their original comics run but also a number of influential cartoons, videogames, and wave-upon-wave of action figures. Even now, the TMNT continue to be an influential and popular commodity, proving that some fads don’t die out…they just get stronger!
Released: 22 March 1991 Director: Michael Pressman Distributor: New Line Cinema Budget: $25 million Stars: Brian Tochi/Mark Caso, Adam Carl/Leif Tilden, Laurie Faso/Kenn Troum, Robbie Rist/Mark Caso, Paige Turco, David Warner, Ernie Reyes, Jr., and David McCharen/François Chau
The Plot: Having defeated their nemesis, Oroku Saki/The Shredder (McCharen/Chau), the TMNT begin to grow restless about being hidden in the shadows. When their friend, reporter April O’Neil (Turco), does a report on Techno Global Research Industries (TGRI), she uncovers a possible link to their past through the mysterious mutagenic “ooze”. However, the TMNT are in for the fight of their lives when Shredder returns bent on revenge and uses the ooze to create mutant minions of his own!
The Background: As I’ve explained before, the TMNT were originally a violent pastiche of comic book troupes created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird who were catapulted to mainstream success by the unbelievably popular 1987 cartoon. Perhaps inevitably, this led to a live-action feature film; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Barron, 1990) was a technically impressive financial success that went on to become a cult favourite. Interestingly enough, though, as much as I love that film, I actually saw its sequel first. Produced on a budget nearly twice that of the original, TMNT II featured a few cast changes and Eastman and Laird using every piece of their influence and creative control to ensure that Shredder’s henchmen from the cartoon didn’t appear in the film. Although TMNT II went on to receive mixed reviews due to it being dumbed down compared its predecessor, it stillmade over $78 millionat the box office (though this was significantly less than the first film). However, despite TMNT II’s less-than-stellar reputation, I have an incredible amount of nostalgia for it and prefer to think of it as an under-rated entry in the franchise.
The Review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze picks up an unspecified (but presumably short) period of time after the end of the last movie; with the Foot Clan all-but eradicated following the Shredder’s apparent death, New York City has settled down quite a bit and it appears that all of its inhabitants have taken to stuffing their faces with delicious pizza rather than causing trouble to their fellow man. Sorry, did I say all? Well, that’s not quite true as we find our new audience surrogate, Keno (Reyes, Jr.), stumbling upon a late-night robbery while out delivering (you guessed it) pizza. Though a bit of a little bastard (he body shames a couple of girls when they turn him down despite the fact that they look pretty fine to me), Keno’s a good kid just trying to make his own way so when he finds a group of low-level scumbags robbing a mall, he doesn’t hesitate to intervene using his impressive martial arts skills. While his intentions are good and he’s more than capable of holding his own, Keno is hopelessly outnumbered but, luckily for him, he’s saved when the TMNT intervene. Since their old sewer hideout was compromised in the last film, the TMNT and their mentor and father-figure, Splinter (Kevin Clash), have moved into the new apartment of their human friend, April O’Neil, and have filled their time by mostly ordering pizza.
The TMNT grow restless after the victory and befriend an awe-struck pizza delivery boy.
You may be wondering what happened to Casey Jones (Elias Koteas) between movies and, sadly, this answer is never provided; instead, Keno bonds with the TMNT after discovering them on one of his many trips to April’s apartment with their pizza and specifically forms a fast friendship with the similarly hot-headed Raphael (Faso/Troum). Essentially, the TMNT remain very much the same characters as in the last film, although their more childish characteristics have been dialled up quite a bit; all of them, even field leader Leonardo (Tochi/Caso), are far more prone to spouting quips and surfer talk during fights and are growing incredibly restless with having to hide from the outside world, especially after saving the city. As before, it is Raphael who most strongly embodies this; when Keno finds that the Foot are actively enlisting new recruits, both characters explicitly disobey Splinter’s direct order not to investigate and Raph ends up captured as a result, apparently having learned nothing about the value of teamwork from the last movie. Of all the TMNT, it is Michelangelo (Rist/Caso) who again best encompasses the TMNT’s buffoonery; he’s the first one to spout a pop culture reference, lapse into tomfoolery, or incur a punishment from Splinter for his foolishness, and yet, despite all of that, he actually ends up being instrumental in defeating the Shredder’s mutant goons.
The TMNT are disappointed to find that their creation was a simple industrial accident.
The TMNT’s immature and restless nature is of considerable aggravation to April, who is torn between enjoying the company of her strange friends and finding their laziness and untidiness irritating in her cramped apartment. Similarly, Splinter tries to emphasise that his “sons” cannot ever hope to be a part of normal society and most devote themselves to the life of ninjas, hiding in the shadows in order to protect them from reprisals. When April’s news report on TGRI promises to answer lingering questions about their past, the TMNT are excited to investigate further, especially Donatello (Carl/Tilden). However, Donnie is disheartened to learn from Professor Jordan Perry (Warner) that their creation was simply a mistake caused when one of TGRI’s canisters of mutagenic ooze was lost down a sewer some fifteen years ago.
Shredder is enraged when his mutant minions turn out to be little more than super strong babies!
With the Foot in disarray at the start of the film, Tatsu’s (Toshishiro Obata/Michael McConnohie) hopes of taking the reins are almost instantly supplanted by the returning Shredder, who pulls himself from the wreckage of his defeat, crafts himself a far more fearsome-looking armour, and specifically sends the best of his few remaining men to follow April in order to enact revenge against the TMNT. In the process, the Shredder acquires the final canister of the mutagenic ooze and arranges for Perry to be taken hostage so that he can use the substance to create mutant minions of his own. The results are not the more familiar Bebop and Rocksteady but are, instead the infantile Tokka (Frank Welker/Kurt Bryant) and Rahzar (Frank Welker/Mark Ginther) who immediately (and amusingly) imprint on Shredder as their “Mama” and pose a significant physical threat due to their sheer size and ferocity.
The Nitty-Gritty: While I can understand people lamenting that the sequel adopts more of the kid-friendly archetypes from its animated counterpart than the first film, I don’t really feel like this is a detriment to Secret of the Ooze; the presence of additional jokes and gags doesn’t diminish from the film’s darker elements (the Shredder, in particular, cuts a far more intimidating figure thanks to his new armour). Additionally, having more slapstick elements doesn’t mean the film isn’t entertaining and amusing; if the first film was a compromise between the comic and the cartoon, the sequel is a pretty close live-action approximation of the cartoon and also delivers one of my favourite exchanges in the entire franchise (Mickey’s “Yeah, a little too Raph!” line is just golden!) The film also greatly benefits from its increased budget, which not only results in the TMNT’s impressive new lair in an abandoned subway but also far more exterior scenes in and around the city and even an appearance and song by rapper Vanilla Ice.
While cartoonish action is the order of the day, the suits and fighting are still impressive.
Additionally, and crucially, the turtle suits still look fantastic and are, arguably, better than in the first film. The film also features bigger and more elaborate fight scenes and the martial arts are still incredibly impressive considering how hot and heavy and uncomfortable the suits must be, though it can’t be denied that the action has been significantly dumbed down. Unlike in the first film, the TMNT never actually use their weapons in combat, which is startlingly emphasised in the opening fight scene where they dispatch each of the robbers using slapstick shenanigans and improvised weaponry from the mall. Cartoonish sound effects punctuate a lot of the fights and actions in the film but they are used relatively sparingly and to amusing effect and one of the standout sequences sees Raph and Keno sneaking their way into, and attempting to fight their way out of, the Foot’s new recruitment centre.
After disposing of Tokka and Rahzar, the TMNT must do battle with the Super Shredder!
The addition of mutated antagonists for the TMNT to fight is a welcome one; while I would have much preferred Bebop and Rocksteady, Tokka and Rahzar are a more than suitable substitute thanks to their savage appearances. As you might expect, given how the film leans more towards the comedic than its predecessor, the two are also the source of much comedy; being “intellectually inferior” by Perry’s design to try and render them less of a threat, the two are easily manipulated by Shredder. Despite having the numbers advantage against Tokka and Rahzar, the TMNT are continuously overpowered by their greater strength and are forced to turn to a more scientific solution to defeat them and reduce them to harmless, regular animals. With his minions taken out of the picture, and driven to the edge by his numerous defeats and humiliations, the Shredder opts to drink the last vial of ooze and transforms himself into the hulking “Super Shredder” (Kevin Nash). The resulting finale is a far less technically impressive contest between the TMNT and their archenemy as, rather than making short work of the TMNT with his superior martial arts and skills like in the first film, the Super Shredder is little more than a silent, monstrous foe who goes on a self-destructive rampage on a pier. Though outmatched by Super Shredder’s incredible strength and unrequited rage, this ultimately doesn’t matter since Shredder ends up destroying himself for an ending that is a sadly anticlimactic end for their most famous enemy.
The Summary: Even now, considering my unashamed fondness for the first film, I still find Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze a thoroughly entertaining watch in its own right. In many ways, the film is the perfect bridge between the original Mirage Comics and the popular 1980s cartoon since it has just the right blend of cartoonish buffoonery and action and dark, poignant moments. Sure, it’s disappointing that the TMNT don’t use their weapons offensively but it’s not like they were cutting their enemies up into bits and pieces in the first film and anyone who’s watched the cartoon would be more than used to this depiction of the TMNT by this point. The addition of mutated antagonists was a welcome one; while Bebop and Rocksteady would have been my first, preferred choice, it was a natural way to escalate the conflict from the first film. Featuring a bunch of genuinely amusing gags and moments, some fun action, and incredibly impressive practical suits and animatronics, The Secret of the Ooze has plenty of appealing features to it that make it a more than worthy follow-up to the last film and I will defend it until my dying day as being an entertaining experience in its own right that deserves far more attention than it gets.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Great Stuff
Are you a fan of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze? How do you think the film holds up against its predecessor and the other TMNT films? Which of the TMNT is your favourite and why? What did you think to Tokka and Rahzar and would you have preferred to see Bebop and Rocksteady instead? What did you think to the increased emphasis on comedic slapstick compared to the last film? Would you like to see another live-action TMNT film using modern technology to create more practical versions of the TMNT? How are you celebrating the TMNT’s debut this month? Whatever your thoughts on the TMNT, leave a comment down below.
In September 1961, DC Comics published “Flash of Two Worlds” (Fox, et al), a landmark story that brought together two generations of the Flash: the Golden Age Jay Garrick and the Silver Age Barry Allen thanks to the concept of the multiverse, an infinite number of parallel universes that allowed any and all stories and characters to co-exist and interact. Marvel Comics would also adopt this concept and, to celebrate the release of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness(Raimi, 2022) this month, I’ve been both celebrating the Master of the Mystic Arts and exploring the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s (MCU) equivalent of the multiverse every Sunday of May.
Air Date: 15 January 2021 to 5 March 2021 Network: Disney+ Stars: Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Kathryn Hahn, Teyonah Parris, Kat Dennings, and Evan Peters
The Background: Without a doubt, the MCU has become a nigh-unstoppable multimedia juggernaut that has brought some of Marvel Comics’ most beloved, and obscure, characters to life on the silver screen. Although Marvel Studios had dabbled in television ventures as well with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013 to 2020) and their Netflix shows, they really upped their focus on TV productions for the MCU’s fourth phase and to coincide with the release of their parent company’s streaming service, Disney+. Spearheaded by MCU head honcho Kevin Feige, the Disney+ shows focused heavily on maintaining and expanding the continuity of the MCU going forward, and the first of these announced was a spin-off that would focus on the previously underutilised characters of Wanda Maximoff (Olsen) and the Vision (Bettany). WandaVision was a curious venture that aimed to explore new areas of the MCU, and the multiverse, by placing the characters in different decades and parodying popular sitcoms throughout the years. Feige aimed for the show to shed new light on Wanda’s potentially dangerous powers and to lay the foundation for the MCU’s fourth phase by dabbling in the multiverse. Inspired by both classic sitcoms and notable comic book storylines involving both characters, the show was framed as a surreal and bizarre mystery that would weave in aspects from outside the MCU and build to a dramatic finale that fundamentally altered Wanda’s character. Released in weekly episodes that sent fan speculation into a frenzy, WandaVision received widespread critical acclaim; critics praised the show from breaking away from the usual MCU formula and its emotional and dramatic themes, though some criticised the finale and the show’s overall pacing. Still, WandaVision was highly successful and its story arcs continued in a later spin-off.
The Plot: Three weeks after the events of Avengers: Endgame(Russo and Russo, 2019), Wanda Maximoff and the Vision are living an idyllic suburban life in the town of Westview, New Jersey, where they conceal their true natures. However, things are not as they seem as their surroundings begin to move through different decades and they discover that they’re being manipulated by a malevolent supernatural force.
The Review: Thanks to the inclusion of super cringe, super appropriate jaunty theme songs and opening titles at the start of each episode, WandaVision quickly catches us up with the two Avengers and the general theme of the show; somehow, Wanda and the Vision have gotten married and settled down in Westview, a quiet little town where they hope for a fresh start amongst normal, everyday people. To achieve this, the two keep their extraordinary abilities hidden; however, when in the privacy of their own home, Wanda freely uses her magic to perform household chores, such as tidying and cleaning, and the Vison walks around in his default synthezoid form without a second thought. Outside of the house, the Vision alters his physical appearance to pass as human and works at Computational Services Inc.; while he is naturally incredibly efficient and hardworking, neither he nor his co-worker, Norm (Asif Ali), has any idea what the company actually does. Although Wanda and the Vision seem perfectly happy in their new life, with all its quirks and eccentricities, WandaVision shows hints towards a darker side of their lives right from the first episode; while entertaining his boss and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Hart (Fred Melamed and Debra Jo Rupp), neither of the main characters can recall where they came from, when they got married, or how they even got there. Wanda is so confused by her inability to answer such simple questions that she simply sits, perplexed, while Mr. Hart chokes to death on a piece of food and Mrs. Hart is locked in an agonising loop where she can only say “Stop it!” with good humour. Eventually, Wanda sees how serious the situation is and asks the Vision to step in and the whole incident is laughed off as a gag, but it’s a disturbing moment made all the more intriguing when the episode ends with its events being watched by another within the show, providing our first hint that WandaVision is a show within a show.
Wanda’s concerns over her family are superseded by strange events and imposters in her quaint life.
Still, despite this incident, the two are determined to fit in with their quaint little suburban community; the Vision joins the neighbourhood watch, Wanda joins the planning committee for the local talent show, and Wanda is keen to take the family trick-or-treating later in the show. Essential to helping her to fit in is Agnes (Hahn), Wanda’s “neighbour to the right”, who constantly drops in on her at the most convenient of times to offer friendly advice about how to deal with the local social committee or to help her out of awkward situations. Agnes takes a special interest in Wanda and the Vision’s sex life (apparently because she is under-sexed and under-valued by her unseen husband, Ralph), and continuously probes Wanda for intimate details about her life and offers Wanda advice about how to spice up her sex life. Right from the off, Agnes is dropping hints about the two starting a family, and this is only exacerbated when Wanda feels detached from the community because she doesn’t have children like Dottie Jones (Emma Caulfield Ford), the head of the committee and a prominent figure in Westview’s social elite. After their magic show is a smash hit (despite the Vision being inebriated due to gum clogging his systems and Wanda frantically using her Chaos Magic to explain away her husband’s superhuman feats, and the fact that there are no children in attendance for show), Wanda is overjoyed when she spontaneously becomes pregnant and so angered by the strange appearance of a beekeeper’s outfit emerging from a manhole that she literally rewinds time to return to her happy moment.
Pregnancy throws Wanda’s powers out of whack but Geraldine incites her wrath by mentioning Ultron.
Wanda’s pregnancy is explored through the third episode, “Now in Color” (Shakman, 2021); while she is delighted to find that she is already four months pregnant and happy to busy herself using her magic to decorate and prepare a nursery, the Vision begins to find himself disturbed by the strange goings on in their lives and around Westview. Every time he stops to consider why his neighbours are acting so strangely or how Wanda’s pregnancy is progressing so fast, Wanda gets closer and closer to popping, replacing his concerns with the dual emotions of happiness and anxiety at the thought of becoming a father. Wanda’s pregnancy sends her powers all out of whack and causes a neighbourhood blackout; when she worries that Westview will suspect she’s the cause of it, this strikes a chord with the Vision but, again, Wanda causes an abrupt jump cut to keep him from following his thoughts through any further and he’s soon rushing off to retrieve Doctor Stan Nielsen (Randy Oglesby) to help deliver the baby. Although she tries her best to hide her condition using bowls of fruit and to wish away a stork she randomly brings to life, Wanda eventually succumbs to her pregnancy but, luckily, her new friend Geraldine (Parris) is on hand to help out. Thanks to Geraldine, Wanda successfully gives birth to Baby Tommy and then she and the Vision are shocked at the arrival of his twin, Baby Billy. While thanking Geraldine and cooing over her babies, Wanda is reminded of her own twin brother, Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnson); this seems to snap Geraldine out of her trance and, when she accidentally reminds Wanda of her brother’s death at Ultron’s (James Spader) hands, Wanda becomes enraged and forcible ejects Geraldine from Westview, which is revealed to be encased within a translucent energy field not unlike television static and monitored by government agents.
While Monica, Woo, and Darcy try to help Wanda, Hayward is convinced that she’s a threat.
This is the perfect way to transition to some actual context for the show as, after three episodes of intrigue and mystery, “We Interrupt This Program” (Shakman, 2021) goes a long way to explaining just what the hell is happening by following Geraldine after she is restored to life by the second snap of the Infinity Gauntlet. It turns out that she’s not a native of Westview at all and is, in fact, a grown-up Monica Rambeau, which is relayed in a harrowing sequence where Monica stumbles through a hospital thrown into disarray by people suddenly returning from being disintegrated and culminates in her receiving the heart-breaking news that her mother, Maria (Lashana Lynch), succumbed to cancer while Monica was lost to the snap. Monica is a former fighter pilot captain in the Sentient Weapon Observation and Response Division (S.W.O.R.D.), an intelligence agency founded by Maria and now run by Director Tyler Hayward (Josh Stamberg) that monitors and responds to threats posed by robotics and artificial intelligence. Monica is assigned to assist the Federal Bureau of Investigation (F.B. I.) with a missing persons case in Westview and liaises with Jimmy Woo (Randall Park), whose investigation has stalled because no one seems remember Westview or its inhabitants and the entire town is sealed within an odd temporal anomaly referred to as the “Hex”. After Monica’s drone disappears inside the Hex and Monica is sucked within shortly after, Hayward brings in Doctor Darcy Lewis (Dennings) and a number of other scientists to help. Darcy then recognises the patterns of cosmic background radiation and discovers that they are akin to old analogue broadcast signals, successfully tunes into WandaVision, and becomes invested in the show. Woo and Darcy ascertain that WandaVision’s “cast” is comprised of Westview’s missing residents, and that Monica and everything that breaches the Hex is assimilated into the show to become part of the cast a harmless toy, or a beekeeper. Their attempts to contact Wanda using radio signals only unnerve Wanda and injure Dottie, and Wanda is enraged at Monica trespassing in Westview; their confrontation is so traumatic for her that her sitcom demeanour falls away, and she’s briefly horrified by an apparition of the Vision’s mangled corpse.
While the twins adore their uncle, Wanda is confused by Pietro’s altered appearance and personality.
From then on, WandaVision routinely switches between the ongoing drama within the show and the efforts of those outside the Hex to try and figure out what’s happening. Wanda and the Vision’s struggles to calm their crying children are skipped over when the twins spontaneously age-up to five years old; Billy (Baylen Bielitz) and Tommy (Gavin Borders) adopt a stray dog, “Sparky”, and then age-up another five years to be “old enough” to keep him. Sadly though, Sparky goes missing and is found dead by Agnes; Wanda struggles to comfort her boys, hypocritically asking Billy (Julian Hilliard) and Tommy (Jett Klyne) not age-up any further so they can face the natural reality of Sparky’s death. However, having seen what their mother is capable of (she soon decides she’s “tired of hiding” and openly uses her magic in front of Agnes), they implore her to use her powers to “fix the dead”, a feat that she believes is beyond even her and yet she’s stunned when “Pietro” (Peters) shows up on her doorstep, alive and well but sporting a new face and personality. The twins quickly become close to their fun-loving, free-spirited uncle; Pietro still has his superspeed, here depicted very similarly to his MCU counterpart, and is very much the freeloading man child archetype. Pietro causes havoc on Halloween night and is generally a bad influence on the twins, which he claims is what Wanda wants from him. Wanda doesn’t fully trust or understand his appearance, however, and is confused by their differing memories of their childhood; he relates a fuzzy memory of being shot to death and then hearing her calling for him and expresses an awareness of Wanda’s influence on Westview. Rather than judging her, Pietro is impressed at how far her powers have progressed but, just as she begins to feel comfortable enough to open up about how alone she has felt, Wanda has a brief vision of Pietro’s bullet-riddled corpse dead and strikes him with her powers when he makes a glib remark about the Vision’s death, which is enough to cause her to distrust him from then on.
The Vision is angered to discover that Wanda enslaved Westview, but equally determined to help her.
Despite Wanda’s best efforts, the Vision’s concerns about Wanda and Westview continue to niggle at him; he’s aghast when Wanda brazenly uses her magic in front of Agnes and horrified when he learns the townsfolk are being manipulated by Wanda’s powers. When he confronts her, Wanda tries to walk away from the heated argument, and even rolls the credits, but the Vision persists, desperately trying to talk sense into her and infuriated that he’s being controlled, though Wanda insists that she’s not in control of what’s happening and is simply trying to make the best of it. Still, Wanda is troubled by the Vision’s behaviour towards her and his increasing tendency to go “off-script”; the Vision finds residents locked in (and pained by) endless, repeating loops or frozen in place at the edge of town and is stunned when Agnes reveals that he’s not only an Avenger…but also dead, two things he has no memory of. When he attempts to breach the Hex, he begins to disintegrate before Darcy and Hayward’s eyes, distressing Billy so much that Wanda expands the Hex to cover an even greater area and causes Darcy and several other S.W.O.R.D. agents to become assimilated into WandaVision. This only encourages Hayward’s belief that Wanda is a significant threat to Westview; already antagonistic towards superpowered individuals thanks to the struggles he lived through during the Blip, Hayward believes that Wanda is an aggressive terrorist and routinely clashes with Darcy, Woo, and Monica when they champion Wanda’s heroic actions and frame her as a victim of oppression and experimentation rather than aggressor, despite her recent actions. However, Hayward is unconvinced and even manipulates security footage to suit his agenda when, in reality, he’s reconstructed the Vision’s physical remains into a weapon under his direct control.
It turns out that Agatha Harkness was behind (almost) everything in a bid to steal Wanda’s powers.
When Monica successfully breaches the Hex using a 1980s drone, Hayward attempts to assassinate Wanda, so she leaves her idyllic fantasy land to deliver a warning against him trying to interfere in her life. This, and expanding the Hex’s influence, causes Wanda’s mental state and control over Westview to begin to deteriorate as the show jumps ahead to the late-2000s; the house and town glitch and switch between eras and Wanda jumps at the chance to take a personal day while Agnes watches the twins. However, her confusion over her unpredictable powers soon turns to dread when she discovers an ominous, gothic lair in Agnes’s basement and her magic is rendered useless by a series of runes. This is when Agnes reveals (through a jaunty musical number) that she’s actually a malevolent witch named Agatha Harkness and has been behind everything happening in Westview (including Sparky’s death!) all along. While this is a fun reveal and definitely changes the context of the show, it does fall a little flat as many watching (including myself) would have no real idea of the significance of the name “Agatha Harkness”. Still, WandaVision tries to make up for this with a flashback to 1693 Salem, Massachusetts that shows Agatha being condemned by her fellow witches for practising dark magic from the forbidden tome known as the Darkhold and revealing that she’s capable of draining the magic and lifeforce of other witches to increase her powers. Drawn to, and envious of, Wanda’s power, Agatha desires to learn the secret of Wanda’s natural affinity for magic and forces her to relive some of her most traumatic memories to understand how the Avenger could possibly be the fabled “Scarlet Witch”.
Agatha forces Wanda to relive her worst memories, while the Vision reconciles with his counterpart.
Wanda witnesses a childhood memory of how she and her family would regularly watch old US sitcoms to bond and practice their English. It was during young Wanda’s (Michaela Russell) favourite episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961 to 1966) that their home was bombed, killing her parents and trapping her and young Pietro (Gabriel Gurevich) and actually the first instance of her using her Chaos Magic to affect the probability of the missile exploding. A subsequent memory of her volunteering to be a part of Hydra’s experiments with the Mind Stone shows that the Infinity Stone simply amplified Wanda’s natural magical abilities rather than causing them, as the MCU first suggested. Wanda also remembers a time when the Vision offered her comfort after Pietro’s death by suggesting “grief [is] love persevering”, and the truth behind her visit to S.W.O.R.D. headquarters after his death; contrary to Hayward’s earlier footage, Wanda was denied custody of the Vision’s expensive and potentially dangerous remains but was allowed to see for herself that he was truly gone. Grief-stricken, she visited Westview, where the Vision had intended for them to start a life together, and exploded in a burst of Chaos Magic; empowered by her pain and loss, her powers not only swept through Westview, transforming it into its original 1960s sitcom setting and enslaving its citizens, but also reconstituted an exact replica of the Vision for Wanda to settle down with and alleviate her anguish and she willingly lost herself to this fantasy world. Essentially a magic vampire, Agatha takes power from those she deems unworthy, and is far more adept at wielding dark magic than the more emotional and naïve Wanda; Agatha mocks Wanda for wasting the powers of the Scarlet Witch in such a way and goads her into a battle by threatening her children so that she can take that power for herself. Wanda is saved by the intervention of Hayward’s reconstructed Vision; cold and ruthless, White Vision attempts to kill Wanda as per Hayward’s orders, but she’s saved by the Vision. As both Visions prove to be equally matched in terms of powers and abilities, the Vision is able to subdue his counterpart by hypothesising that neither are the “true” Vision by using the philosophy of the Ship of Theseus to show that they are simultaneously both the Vision and not the Vision. The Vision then restores White Vision’s memories and personality, releasing him from Hayward’s control and ending his threat as he darts off the an uncertain future.
Wanda outsmarts Agatha, frees Westview, and isolates herself to better understand her powers.
Hayward’s efforts to bring Wanda down lead Agatha to condemn him and his S.W.O.R.D. troops as being little more than the modern-day equivalent of witch hunters, but Wanda protects them regardless and Monica reveals that repeated exposure to the Hex has granted her superhuman abilities that allow her to shield the twins from Hayward’s attempt to gun them down. Darcy then rams his jeep to keep him from getting away and, thanks to Woo’s subterfuge, Hayward’s plot to emerge a hero from the whole affair is exposed. Agatha reveals that the Darkhold foretold that Wanda’s power is destined to not only rival the Sorcerer Supreme’s, but also to destroy the world, and forces her to face the consequences of her actions by releasing Westview’s citizens from her spell. Wanda is distraught to learn that those she thought she was protecting were in such physical and emotional pain, to the point where they beg her to let them go…or die to be free from their torment. Wanda creates a gap in the Hex so that the citizens can finally leave in order to both atone for her actions and to reject Agatha’s claims, but quickly reseals the Hex to keep Billy, Tommy, and the Vision from being erased. Forced to choose between saving her family or saving the town, Wanda ultimately accepts that she is the legendary Scarlet Witch and manages to outsmart Agatha by first overloading her with her Chaos Magic and then turning Agatha’s trick against her by casting protective runes that render Agatha’s powers inert. Wanda punishes the defeated and despondent Agatha by forcing to reassume her “role” as Agnes as recompense for her actions, and finally dispels the Hex, restoring Westview and the surrounding area to normal. Wanda and the Vision head home with the twins and reassure them that they’ll always be a family, before the two share an emotional last moment together where she admits that he was a product of her love and hope as much as her sadness and promises that they’ll see each other again. While Monica knows how much Wanda sacrificed to restore Westview and understands her pain, Wanda’s faced with the judgemental eyes of those she inadvertently hurt, so she heads out to understand her power in isolation at a remote cabin, where she studies the Darkhold in her astral form.
The Summary: At its core, WandaVision is a story about grief, loss, and the extremes one goes to after having suffered through some of the worst traumas both imaginable and unimaginable. Hayward’s concerns over Wanda’s threat, while radical, are well founded as, in a moment of anguish, she effectively manipulated the minds and wills of an entire town and forced them to bend to her desires just to make herself feel better. However, it’s clear that Wanda hasn’t done this out of any animosity or aggression; she’s simply suffering and in a great deal of pain, but has caught many innocent souls in her web as a result. Even the Vision is disturbed to see what Wanda’s influence is doing to Westview’s citizens; by touching his fingers to their temples, the Vision is able to free them from Wanda’s control and is met with only hysteria and pleas for help and to get Wanda to stop. When he confronts Wanda, the Vision is enraged at her actions and yet hoping that she didn’t tear families apart and hijack people’s lives out of any malicious intent…however, even Wanda begins to question her intentions and motivations, and her tendency to lash out and the uncertainty about the true nature of the Scarlet Witch certainly raises questions about her character.
The show’s visual style and presentation change as the characters jump through different sitcom eras.
WandaVision wonderfully separated itself from other MCU productions with its production style, format , and overall presentation, which becomes very metatextual and is full of homages to both the source material (the family dress up in comic-accurate costumes for Halloween) and a wide variety of American sitcoms. The first few episodes are presented in black and white, using an older aspect ratio, and clearly drawing inspiration from the sitcoms of the 1950s and 1960s, particularly the likes of Bewitched (1964 to 1972) in not only its premise and setting but also the filming techniques used (the special effects are achieved using practical, in-camera effects and of-the-time methods to give it that authentic fifties feel). The Bewitched influences are even more explicit in opening titles of the second episode, “Don’t Touch That Dial” (Shakman, 2021), which are directly influenced from that show, and we see this again as the series progresses, particularly in “Breaking the Fourth Wall” (ibid), which emulates the opening titles of Modern Family (2009 to 2020). The series is injected with a wash of colour at the conclusion of “Don’t Touch That Dial” and jumps into the vibrant brightness of the 1970s from “Now in Color” (ibid) to evoke groovy, jaunty, sitcoms like The Brady Bunch (1969 to 1974). With each new era, the character’s wardrobes, hair styles, and the show’s furnishings are all updated accordingly, and the focus quickly becomes about depicting the growth of Wanda’s family unit. Initially, episodes feature a canned laughter track to accompany the many sight gags and double entendres; this laughter track remains even when odd or disturbing events are happening onscreen, such as when characters are in danger of going “off-script”, and is ultimately replaced in favour of characters directly breaking the fourth wall or being filmed in a mockumentary, as was the style of late-2000s sitcoms.
A bunch of weird events, moments, and character quirks sent internet speculation running wild!
WandaVision certainly got people talking when it first came out, and it’s easy to see why; every episode is peppered with gags, double meanings, and vague hints about what’s really happening in Westview (Agnes refers to Wanda as “The star of the show!”, which is another double meaning as she’s the star of the talent show and her own actual show). Many of the episodes end with false commercials for products and services that act as metaphors for Wanda’s suffering and anguish: The Stark Industries ToastMate 2000 is a metaphor for her sex life (and emits the same ominous beeping as the Stark missile that threatened Wanda’s life as a child, alongside the slogan “Forget the past, this is your future!”), Strücker watches directly reference the man who experimented on Wanda, Hydra Soak bath powder promises an experience so relaxing that it’ll make bathers forget their troubles and unlock the “Goddess within”, Lagos paper towels are tough and absorbent enough to clean up any accidental mess, the claymation Yo-Magic yoghurt is delivered to a boy stranded on a desert island who struggles to open the lid and wastes away to a skeleton over the course of several days and nights, and Nexus antidepressant pills offer a reprieve for those struggling with the weight of loneliness, guilt, and the feeling of life moving on without them and desperate for some relief. As if these odd commercials weren’t enough, the early black and white episodes are often punctuated by bursts of colour that disturb Wanda and allude to things being not quite right; Wanda is confused to find a toy helicopter that matches Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey, Jr) colour scheme and a tense discussion between Wanda and Dottie quickly turns bizarre when Woo speaks directly to Wanda through the radio, briefly causing Dottie to snap out of character and cutting herself to reveal red blood against the monochrome surroundings. Furthermore, there are numerous allusions to a greater threat looming in the background, one many assumed to be Mephisto; Dottie states that “The Devil’s in the details” and Agnes lends Wanda her rabbit, Señor Scratchy, but ultimately the threat proved to be much closer to home and hiding in plain sight.
A poignant tale of grief that gives some of the MCU’s supporting characters a chance to shine.
Overall, I can see why so many people were impressed by WandaVision; the show is practically the definition of variety, featuring a lot of humour, heart, and drama to keep you invested throughout its run time. No two episodes are the same, even those set within the same time period, and the show evolves as we learn more about what’s going on, splicing in more of those familiar MCU elements while giving returning side characters like Darcy and Woo more time in the spotlight to shine as interesting personalities in their own right. WandaVision also introduces a new superhero to the MCU in the form of the grown-up Monica Rambeau, who ends the series altered at a cellular level and with the prospect of her own space adventure ahead of her with the Skrulls. Of course, there are some things that don’t work; it’s a bit of a tease to bring in Evan Peters only to have him revealed to be an actor with a ridiculously suggestive name who was manipulated by Agatha rather than actually being the Quicksilver from the X-Men movies (Various, 2014 to 2016). Agatha’s reveal didn’t really work for me either, as mentioned, but I did enjoy her as a villain and puppet master; however, it can’t be denied that reducing WandaVision to a big light show battle did kind of go against the deeper themes explored throughout the previous episodes. I think it might have been more effective to leave the Visions to handle the heavy combat in the finale and have Agatha and Wanda engage in a battle of wills rather than tossing fireballs at each other, but it was a colourful and intense end to the series. I enjoyed the chance to explore these characters in more detail, the new introductions to the MCU, exploring the effects of the snap from a different perspective, and the introduction of Wanda’s children and the expansion of her powers. WandaVision definitely tries something new and, for the most part, manages to stand out through its unique presentation; when it’s exploring Wanda’s complex trauma or paying homage to classic sitcoms, it’s really at its strongest, but there are a few missed opportunities spliced in there that may put some viewers off.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
Did you enjoy WandaVision? What did you think to the themes of grief and loss explored in the series? Did you enjoy the exploration of Wanda and the Vision and the additional spotlight given to some of the MCU’s side characters? What did you think to the use of different colours and filming techniques? Were you also caught up in the speculation, and were you suspicious of Agnes at the time? Did you find Evan Peters’ inclusion disappointing or were you excited to see him included? What do you see happening next for these characters and are you excited to see more from Monica and White Vision? Whatever you think about WandaVision, let me know below.
To commemorate, the culmination of their long-running and successful X-Men movies, 20th Century Fox declared May 13th as “X-Men Day”, a day to celebrate all things Mutant and X-Men and celebrate Marvel’s iconic collection of superpowered beings who fight to protect a world that hates and fears them. After exhausting all of their storylines with their original cast, save for Hugh Jackman, 20th Century Fox began producing a series of loose prequels centred on younger X-characters and, while X-Men Day coincided with Friday the 13th this year, I’m going to spend the next few weeks looking back at the first three entries in this “Beginnings Trilogy” and see if they still hold up today.
Released: May 2011 Director: Matthew Vaughn Distributor: 20th Century Fox Budget: $140 to 160 million Stars: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Rose Byrne, Nicholas Hoult, Lucas Till, Caleb Landry Jones, Zoë Kravitz, and Kevin Bacon
The Plot: In 1962, right in the middle of the Cuban missile crisis, newly-graduated Professor Charles Xavier (McAvoy) meets Erik Lehnsherr (Fassbender) for the first time. United in their search for the Mutant terrorist Sebastian Shaw (Bacon), the two join forces with the United States government in forming the first team of Mutants and working to avert World War Three.
The Background: The X-Men have been an integral part of Marvel Comics ever since they debuted back in 1963. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the X-Men offered, through their Mutant heritage, an easy excuse to introduce multiple new superheroes with minimal effort. Since then, the X-Men, and all of Mutantkind, have existed as a metaphor for a variety of social issues and seen much success outside of the pages of Marvel Comics thanks to a number of action figures, cartoons, and videogames. After purchasing the film rights, 20th Century Fox profited greatly from the franchise; the first three X-Men movies (Various, 2000 to 2006) alone brought in over $600 million and they had seen similar financial success with a spin-off movie centred around the franchise’s breakout star, Logan/Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). It was during the production of X-Men 2(Singer, 2003) that the idea of a prequel revolving around younger versions of the X-Men was first proposed; after X-Men: The Last Stand (Ratner, 2006) effectively ended the series, with most of the main cast either dead, depowered, or having exhausted their story arcs, Fox returned to the idea of producing prequels with plans for a spin-off focusing on a young Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto (Ian McKellen). Perhaps shaken by the mediocre critical reception of X-Men Origins: Wolverine(Hood, 2009), Fox abandoned any further ideas of individual spin-offs and ordered a rewrite of the script to focus on Erik and Charles’s early years and the formation of the original X-Men. Although Bryan Singer, who had helmed the first two X-Men movies and very much set the tone and standard for Fox’s franchise, was unable to direct, he returned as a producer and Fox hired Matthew Vaughn (who had previously dropped out of directing the third film) to direct and the idea for the prequel began to take real shape. X-Men: First Class released to strong reviews, a warm critical reception, and eventually made over $350 million in worldwide gross; for many who were disappointed with X-Men Origins: Wolverine, X-Men: First Class represented a step in the right direction for the franchise but, for me, it represented the first sign that Fox were playing it fast and loose with continuity.
The Review: X-Men: First Class begins with a shot-for-shot recreation of the opening from the first X-Men movie: that is, a young Erik Lehnsherr (Bill Milner/Brett Morris) first discovering his ability to control metal in a Nazi death camp. The purpose of this scene is blatantly obvious and two-fold; the film wants you to remember Erik’s tragic and complex beginnings while also wanting to course-correct back on track to align with Singer’s original vision for the franchise. Oddly, as I’ll get into later, this desire to shift the franchise back towards that quasi-science-fiction, grounded approach is at odds with the direction First Class’s script wants to take its characters so, for me, opening with this scene was more of an insult than a welcome homage.
Lacking Erik’s troublesome childhood, Xavier works to raise awareness of Mutants.
The film could easily have just began with Erik in the office of Nazi scientist Doctor Klaus Schmidt (Bacon); this scene extends that of Singer’s original, impactful opening to show how Erik’s powers were a source of fascination for the Nazis and does just as much to setup his motivations for the remainder of the film. Schmidt, a Mutant himself, forces Erik to use his powers by first threatening and then executing his mother, which would be the driving force for Erik’s lust for revenge and hatred of humanity. At the same time, a young Charles Xavier (Laurence Belcher) meets and befriends Raven Darkhölme (Morgan Lily) and, honestly, this should have been the first clue that these new X-Men movies were not going to concern themselves with things like logic or continuity. While X-Men: First Class gives some much-needed backstory to Raven (who, when she goes up to be Jennifer Lawrence, eventually takes the name “Mystique”), it does so at the cost of the continuity of the original trilogy as Xavier never once mentions that he had this brother/sister relationship with Mystique (Rebecca Romijn) nor does the older Mystique ever use this relationship to her advantage in those films.
Michael Fassbender steals the show from the proto-X-Men with his complex, seething menace.
Still, we continue, giving the film the benefit of the doubt, when these characters grow into James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender, respectively. Rather than the wise, all-knowing father-figure of the original X-Men films, Xavier here is a young, post-grad student who downs alcohol and uses both his knowledge of Mutations and his mental powers to pick up chicks in bars. With his long, thick hair and sixties sensibilities, Xavier is a far more “hip and groovy” character but the moment he meets Moira McTaggert (Byrne) and learns of Schmidt’s (now calling himself Sebastian Shaw) plot to incite a third world war, he’s all about assembling his own team of Mutants and working alongside Moira and the CIA to build better relationships between humans and Mutants. It’s an interesting look at the character’s early years but it’s nothing compared to the far more interesting story involving the future Magneto; desperate to hunt down Shaw and make him pay, Erik has spent his entire life tracking down those responsible for his incarceration, torture, and the deaths of his family and people. Fassbender excels in the role, bringing a tortured, focused edge to the character and shines in every scene he’s in; his quiet, seething vengeance is tempered somewhat when he meets and befriends Xavier (another contradiction to the original films as Xavier is clearly not seventeen in this movie…) but their relationship is destined to fail based solely on Erik’s desire to kill Shaw, to say nothing of his own conflicting desire for Mutant prosperity. Still, once the two begin working together, they are introduced to Henry “Hank” McCoy/Beast (Hoult) and, thanks to his prototype Cerebro technology, begin recruiting a team of young Mutants to help oppose Shaw’s own club of misfits. In true X-Men fashion, this means a whole bunch of characters are suddenly thrown into the mix with little to make them stand out beyond them all being young and sexy and having cool-looking powers. Of them all, it is, thankfully, Hank who gets the most screen time and development thanks to his immediate attraction to Raven, his awkward, quirky characterisation, and his desire to develop a serum to suppress his more unattractive physical qualities. Though it seems he and Raven are united in the desire to appear “normal”, she ultimately comes to embrace her unique appearance and, when Hank’s serum actually accelerates his Mutation, he is forced to do the same.
Despite it literally being his Mutant power, Darwin is unable to adapt to survive Shaw’s attack.
The other members of this proto-X-team aren’t so lucky; Sean Cassidy/Banshee (Jones) does alright, being the amusing comic relief of the team, but Alex Summers/Havok (Till) is little more than the “moody bad boy” of the group who, with very little motivation, comes to accept the team as his friends and surrogate family. Angel Salvadore (Kravitz) randomly decides to defect to Shaw’s side when he offers them the chance, with no real explanation or reason beyond the deal apparently sounding better than being mocked by the CIA, but the real slap in the face is the ultimate fate of Armando Muñoz/Darwin (Edi Gathegi) who, despite literally being able to “adapt to survive”, is unable to keep himself from being blown to pieces by Shaw. I mean, we’ve seen that he is able to spontaneously grow gills and armour-plating but it’s apparently too much to find a way to resist Alex’s concussive blasts. Yet at least these proto-X-Men get a neat little training montage to show off snippets of their personalities and powers, however this loses quite a bit of its impact when it’s revealed that they trained and mastered their powers in one week, which honestly isn’t quite as bad as the fact that Xavier found it perfectly acceptable to use this time in this way even though the threat of war is literally hanging over their heads. It’s almost as if the film has too many characters and should have just focused on Xavier, Magneto, Beast, and Mystique as the primary protagonists but this is, of course, only exacerbated by the fact that Shaw has his own evil team of Mutants.
Shaw’s little club all look cool but are painfully under-developed as characters.
Similar to Magneto’s original Brotherhood, the sheer number of characters and the pace of the film demands that these antagonists simply look cool and not much else, with the exception of Emma Frost (January Jones), who also looks sexy and has a slightly bigger role as she is Shaw’s right-hand woman and a telepath. Azazel (Jason Flemyng) has a great look and is clearly meant to be evoking Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler (Alan Cumming) but we learn absolutely nothing about him; no seeds are planted for a relationship between him and Mystique that might lead to Nightcrawler’s birth and he gets only one line. Still, it’s one line more than Janos Quested/Riptide (Álex González), who says nothing the entire movie and simply whips up a few mini tornados (or twisters, whatever) and causes some minor inconveniences for the team. Again, it’s almost as if Shaw’s team should have been scaled down to four characters rather than five. Luckily, though, Shaw gets plenty of screen time and Bacon is clearly relishing the role, chewing the scenery and portraying Shaw as an unhinged sociopath who lays much of the groundwork for the villain Erik is destined to become. Able to absorb and redirect energy to maintain his youth, Shaw is a near-unstoppable antagonist, even more so when he acquires a special helmet from the Russians to protect himself from psychic attacks. His motivations are simple to grasp; like Erik, he’s seen the lengths of man’s inhumanity to man and wishes to use a full-scale nuclear war to cleanse the Earth and bring about an age of prosperity for Mutantkind and, as such, he’s a despicable character through and through with an undeniable amount of charisma, making for a fitting challenge for these proto-X-Men.
The Nitty-Gritty: X-Men: First Class has an interesting premise and does a decent job, for the most part, of fleshing out the early years of Xavier and Magneto. However, despite its pacing being far better than that of X-Men(Singer, 2000) and X-Men Origins: Wolverine, it suffers from trying to cram everything into its runtime despite the fact that a sequel was clearly set up and going to be produced that would have allowed some of these storylines to play out at a much more comfortable pace.
Desperate to cram everything into its runtime, the film inexplicably ends with Xavier paralysed!
As a result, we get numerous timeline discrepancies in the film: Xavier grew up with Mystique and meets Erik when they’re much older than first stated; Hank builds Cerebro rather than Charles and Erik, Xavier’s first students are wildly different than those hinted at in the previous films and, most egregious of all, the film concludes with Xavier being paralysed by an errant bullet and Erik assuming the role and name of Magneto. No matter how you slice it, none of this aligns with the continuity of the time as we saw a young, bald, walking Xavier, still friends with Magneto, in the opening sequence of The Last Stand and a young, bald, walking Xavier at the conclusion of X-Men Origins, both of which were still canon at this point. The film seems to be in a rush to catch up to the beginning of the first X-Men movie and, honestly, should have ended with Xavier fully-functional and planning to open his house to more Mutants alongside Erik, who would be affected and changed by his final confrontation with Shaw.
Erik eventually becomes Magneto and look ready to strike back at the world…until the next film…
There is quite a big inconsistency in this film as well, though, wider canon notwithstanding. Obviously, I touched upon Darwin being offed so easily but, for me, the main issue is how vehemently Xavier opposes Erik’s desire to kill Shaw. Xavier believes that killing Shaw in cold blood will set Erik down a dark path he won’t be able to recover from and he’s right, of course, but the inconsistency is that we’ve seen (and, thanks to reading Erik’s mind, Xavier has seen) that Erik has plenty of blood on his hands already. He describes himself as a “weapon” and this appears to be true; he’s tortured and killed numerous people in his bid to track down and end Shaw so why should one more death darken his fate? It doesn’t help that Erik’s descent into villain as told in this film is repeated over and over again in the next three sequels, all of which repeat the same arc (Erik starts off good, becomes morally grey, and ends the film fully-garbed as Magneto and ready to strike back at humanity…only to start the next film good and the cycle repeats). It’s one of those things that seems to work on the surface but falls apart when you think about it and is, again, something that could have been improved upon had the script focused on just Xavier and Erik and a slightly altered greater conflict rather than throwing in a bunch of under-developed or superfluous characters.
This brief cameo did more for Logan’s character than his own spin-off movie!
Speaking of which, the also contains a bevy of cameos; Rebecca Romijn briefly appears in a fun cameo when Mystique is randomly seducing Erik (seriously, their sudden sexual relationship kind of comes out of nowhere and is purely motivated by Raven wanting to hurt Charles and feeling alienated from Hank) and veteran actors like James Remar, Ray Wise, and Michael Ironside all randomly show up in the film’s third act but the true icing on the cake was the brief cameo by Hugh Jackman as Logan. X-Men: First Class was the first real test to see if an X-Men movie could survive and be just as successful without Jackman in a leading role and, judging by its box office and reception, it clearly succeeded in this regard but it’s still fun to see Jackman randomly pop up and tell his future mentor and adversary to “Go fuck [themselves]”.
The Summary: X-Men: First Class is a fun and engaging X-Men movie; it’s got a fantastic revenge subplot involving the future Magneto and is clearly inspired not only by Singer’s original X-Men movies but also 1960s spy thrillers, all of which give it a familiar, and yet unique, flavour within the franchise. McAvoy and Fassbender steal the show from start to finish but Bacon is a deliciously devilish villain and the acting and action sequences are pretty good, overall, with the film showing new and interesting takes on established characters and shedding more light on events only previously hinted at. And, yet, for me, Fox made a massive mistake by marketing and constructing this film as a prequel. It honestly should have just been a straight-up reboot, restarting the franchise with young actors and a whole new timeline of events rather than trying to awkwardly align with the established canon. For me, continuity is everything and you simply cannot watch X-Men: First Class as part of the wider X-Men canon because it just doesn’t fit; they should have done what the James Bond franchise did and kept Jackman but recast everyone else and started completely fresh because, when you need a convoluted timeline to explain what’s going and where things fit and it still doesn’t completely line up, you’ve kind of lost me as a viewer. The irony is that the very next movie had the perfect excuse to explain these inconsistencies and chose not to, meaning that my opinion of X-Men: First Class is decidedly frosty and conflicted, at best.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
What are your thoughts on X-Men: First Class? Were you as annoyed by its disregard for the existing canon as I was or do you think the film is able to hold up despite this? What did you think of the cast and characters and the bigger role given to Mystique? Which heroes and villains, or storylines, do you think would have worked better for a proto-X-Men team? How did you celebrate X-Men Day this year? Whatever you think, feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions on X-Men below and be sure to come back next week for another X-Men review.
Long considered to be an unlucky daydue to superstitions involving the number thirteen and religious connotations, Friday the 13th is perhaps equally as well-known as being the title for a long-running series of slasher movies. As a result, this is clearly the best opportunity to take a look at the Friday the 13th(Various, 1980 to 2009) horror series and to commemorate this unlucky and dreaded date.
Released: 1 May 1981 Director: Steve Miner Distributor: Paramount Pictures Budget: $1.25 million Stars: Amy Steel, John Furey, Stu Charno, and Steve Daskewisz
The Plot: Five years after Pamela Voorhees’ (Betsy Palmer) murder spree, Paul Holt (Furey) and his assistant, Ginny Field (Steel), reopen Camp Crystal Lake and begin fixing the place up and training a new crop of camp counsellors. However, the camp’s “death curse” lives on as Pamela’s backwoods son, Jason (Daskewisz), stalks and relentlessly kills the counsellors one by one.
The Background: Following the lead of John Carpenter’s Halloween(Carpenter, 1978), which basically gave birth to the “slasher” sub-genre of horror cinema, Friday the 13th (Cunningham, 1980) became a box office success despite many, myself included, criticising the film’s pace and narrative. Still, money talks and plans for a sequel were soon made; initially imagined as an anthology series, it was Paul Scuderi who saw a natural continuation of the first film’s story in the character of Jason Voorhees. After producer/director Sean S. Cunningham distanced himself from the sequel, directing duties fell to Steve Miner; special effects maestro Tom Savini was unable to contribute to the sequel and, while Friday the 13th star Adrienne King did return, an encounter with an obsessed fan saw her role reduced to a cameo and there were numerous accidents and injuries during filming. Though a final domestic box office of over $21 million meant that Friday the 13th Part 2 was a financial success, its gross didn’t quite match that of its predecessor and the film was met with largely negative reviews despite also being praised for its effects work and violence.
The Review: If, for whatever reason, you’ve never seen Friday the 13th (and honestly I wouldn’t blame you as it’s pretty terrible outside of some fun kills and the shock ending), you don’t really need to worry when watching Friday the 13th Part 2 as the film starts an annoying trend of beginning with a detailed recap of the finale of the first film. This is related to the viewer through returning final girl Adrienne King (Alice Hardy), who is haunted by recurring nightmares of her confrontation with Pamela Voorhees. While this effectively glosses over whether or not Allice’s encounter with young Jason (Ari Lehman) was a dream or actually happened, we later get a pretty in-depth recap of the Voorhees legend courtesy of would-be head camp counsellor Paul Holt, who retcons Jason’s supposed demise to suggest that the boy actually survived drowning in Crystal Lake and has been living in the surrounding woods ever since. Anyway, while Alice does return in this film, her inclusion serves as little more than a glorified cameo and very much the same purpose as the miscellaneous camp counsellors killed by Pamela in the opening of the first film in that she’s there to a) catch us up with the events of the first film and b) serve as cannon fodder for the film’s newest unseen killer.
I found the new crop of victims to be far more likeable and interesting than their predecessors.
The film’s newest crop of unwitting victims is then introduced, with Alice’s death only adding to the terrifying mystique of Crystal Lake; undeterred by Crazy Ralph’s (Walt Gorney) horror stories of nearby “Camp Blood”, Paul has opened up a counsellor training facility with the intention of schooling a new crop of prospective counsellors alongside his girlfriend, Ginny Field. A stickler for health and safety, Paul is a tough but fair taskmaster; he tells the group about Jason straight-up to discourage any wild rumours and encourages them to have fun when not on the job as long as they follow strict rules of conduct when undergoing his training programme. The other prospective camp counsellors include loved-up couple Jeff Dunsberry (Bill Randolph) and Sandra Dier (Marta Kober), fun-loving goofball Ted Bowen (Charno), wheelchair-bound former athlete Mark Jarvis (Tom McBride), sweet and innocent Vickie Perry (Lauren-Marie Taylor), and horny flirts Scott Cheney (Russell Todd) and Terry McCarthy (Kirsten Baker). While each of them have had some experience with counselling before (Paul has also worked alongside Scott and Mark in the past), they are just as flamboyant with their responsibilities and Paul’s rules as their predecessors; despite Camp Crystal Lake being off-limits, Sandra encourages Jeff to investigate the site and Terry commits the ultimate cardinal sin by going skinny-dipping in the lake. Still, they’re a far more memorable bunch than the kids from the first film thanks to being much more laid-back and having far more interesting characteristics: Scott is a bit of a pervy creep but not to the extent that it’s really uncomfortable as in some of the later sequels, Terry has a cute little dog, Mark is determined to get out of his wheelchair at some point, and even Jeff has his harmonica.
With her captivating smile and adaptability, Ginny makes for a strong and impressive Final Girl.
It isn’t much, sure, but they’re far more likeable than any of the cast from the first film. Later Friday the 13th and slasher films made most of the characters such complete assholes that we were actively routing for the killer to bump them off, which was fun, sure, but definitely diminished the threat of the killer. That isn’t the case here, and it’s honestly a little upsetting to see some of them (like Vickie, who genuinely seemed attracted to Mark) go out in such brutal fashion. Nowhere is any of this better realised than in Ginny, who makes an immediate impression by being a far more charismatic leading lady than Alice; with a bright, captivating smile, she delights in winding Paul up and is enthralled by the legend of Jason, feeling an affinity and pity for the boy’s plight at having been bullied, left for dead, and forced to watch his mother be beheaded before his eyes. Interestingly, unlike most “Final Girls”, Ginny is largely absent for the vast majority of the film as she, Paul, and Ted are out with some of the other, inconsequential characters have a bit of a booze-up in town. While this is one of the main reasons she doesn’t get picked off like the others, her adaptability and perseverance also play a large part in her survival, too; where Paul tries to grapple with the killer, Ginny is smart enough to use what she knows of the camp’s legend (and her knowledge of child psychology) to momentarily subdue her pursuer, something that separates her from the vast majority of her successors.
Though hidden for most of the film, it’s pretty clear that Jason is our new killer.
Like the first film, the killer is left unseen for the vast majority of Friday the 13th Part 2. However, I would argue that it’s pretty well telegraphed early on that the killer is Pamela’s son, Jason, since Pam is clearly dead and Jason’s legend is retconned to say he didn’t actually drown in the lake. Though we don’t actually see Jason properly until the finale, we do get to see his grubby hands and his presence is constantly conveyed to us through the return of the iconic “Ki-ki-ki-ma-ma-ma” theme, and there’s a lingering sense of dread concerning him thanks to characters being acutely aware of him, specifically, rather than the obscure threat of a “death curse”. Jason’s modus operandi is practically identical to his mother’s in that he stalks his victims and strikes when they least expect it but he is far more physical and aggressive in his kills thanks to his near-superhuman strength. However, while he likes to leave dead bodies strewn all over the place like his mother, Jason also employs guerrilla tactics such as bear traps to ensnare his victims. Once he is revealed to the audience, though, he freely employs more direct methods such as bashing through doors and trying to stab Ginny through the roof of her car with a pitchfork!
The Nitty-Gritty: One thing that really holds Friday the 13th Part 2 back is the simple, inarguable fact that it’s pretty much a carbon-copy of the first film; the entire execution is very much the same as its predecessor: a group of teens at a camp are stalked by an unseen killer and picked off one-by-one until the killer is revealed for the finale. Still, the film definitely benefits from a far better pace, presentation, and more likeable characters; thanks to the events of the first film adding to the urban legend of Crystal Lake, there’s much more meat on the bones here as we have the added element of Jason to help make the “Death Curse” a more tangible horror and there’s an interesting sense of mystery at work as characters openly speculate on Jason’s mindset in a way that was impossible in the first film since no-one really knew anything about the Voorhees’ until the last few minutes.
Of all the film’s brutal kills, Mark’s is easily my favourite for itssudden viciousness.
Like its predecessor and many of its successors, Friday the 13th Part 2 features an abundance of creative kills that were butchered to secure an R-rated; the film begins with a far more graphic kill than its predecessor as Alice is stabbed through the temple by Jason and special effects wizard Carl Fullerton does a commendable job filling in for Tom Savini with brutal kills such as Ralph being garrotted with a piece of wire, Scott having his throat slit, and Jeff and Sandra being impaled with a spear. When Jason’s shack is discovered by Deputy Winslow (Jack Marks), the cop gets a claw hammer to the back of his head for his troubles but by far my favourite kill of the film (and one of my favourites of the entire series) is Mark’s sudden and ferocious death as Jason whacks a machete into his face from just out of frame and leaves him lifelessly trundling down a flight of stairs.
Jason was a fantastic addition to the franchise who made an immediate impression in this film.
Because of this, it’s much more interesting seeing events unfold onscreen as we learn bits and pieces about Jason’s life in the woods without really seeing him up close or delving too deeply into it. He has a grotty little self-made shack with a disturbing shrine to his mother and his victims, which adds a lot of humanity to his character, and there’s a strong implication that he is actively killing because he sees everyone who enters his territory as being responsible for his mother’s death. When Jason is finally revealed, he’s a far cry from the hockey-masked maniac of the next film and beyond; instead; he’s garbed in a simple but incredibly effective burlap sack and shabby overalls that are very much befitting of a backwoods fiend. Jason is given a surprisingly amount of childlike, emotional gravitas when it is revealed that he keeps his mother’s decomposing head and tattered jumper in his shack; when Ginny assumes Pamela’s clothing, Jason immediately stops his rampage and listens to her every word, believing that his beloved mother has returned to life and, despite his face being obscured, his rage at the deception is as clear as day thanks to Daskewisz’s masterful physicality. When Jason’s face is finally revealed, it’s a monstrous sight that, again, serves as one final shock for the film after it appears as though he’s been defeated for good and we’re again left with a vaguely ambiguous ending that suggests Camp Crystal Lake’s nightmare is far from over.
The Summary: Honestly, it had been a while since I last watched Friday the 13th Part 2 for this review and I went into it fully expecting to rate it as “Terrible” because I remembered it being little more than a redundant retread of the first film but I was surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it, especially compared to the original. Yes, the basic story is the same (and would be for many of its successors) but the presentation and characters are far better this time around; I found myself actually interested in many of the prospective counsellors, who were much more charismatic and well-rounded despite their limited screen time and characterisation simply because I found them more interesting than any of the characters from the first film. The addition of Jason as the killer, while obvious from the get-go, really added to the film’s mystique; while his depiction is almost exactly the same as his mother’s and there’s still an element of mystery surrounding the killer, the fact that he looms over the camp and the entire film like an ominous shadow makes things much creepier, in my opinion, than a vague “death curse” and an unknown killer. Friday the 13th Part 2 takes everything that worked in its predecessor and enhances them in subtle, but noticeable, ways; while many of the beats are undoubtably the same, the pacing and presentation are a marked improvement, making for a film that’s just as chilling and foreboding but also far more brisk and entertaining rather than being a snooze-fest until the finale like in the first film.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
What did you think to Friday the 13th Part 2? How do you feel it holds up against the original and its many sequels? Which of the new characters was your favourite and why, and how do you think Ginny compares to Alice? Did you guess that Jason was the killer and what did you think to his backstory being retconned to allow for this? Which of the Friday the 13th movies is your favourite? Perhaps you prefer a different slasher film or franchise; if so, what is it? Do you consider Friday the 13th to be unlucky? Are you watching a Friday the 13th movie today? Whatever your thoughts on Friday the 13th (the movie, franchise, and day), go ahead and leave a comment down below and be sure to check in again for more horror content in the near future!
Released: 12 April 1985 Director: Lewis Teague Distributor: Paramount Pictures Budget: $7 million Stars: James Woods, Alan King, Robert Hays, Kenneth McMillan, Candy Clark, and Drew Barrymore
The Plot: A stray tabby cat (latter dubbed “General”) is beset by visions of Amanda (Barrymore), a young girl in mortal danger. However, to reach her, he must travel across the United States, where he’s picked up by a former mobster who goes to extreme measures to keep his clients from smoking, a crime boss who offers a wager to his wife’s lover, and finally must defend Amanda from a viscous little troll (Daniel Rogers) looking to steal her breath!
The Background: In 1982, George A. Romero, the grandfather of zombie horror, collaborated with my favourite writer, Stephen King, to write and direct Creepshow(Romero, 1982), a horror anthology movie that was praised for its blend of comedy and scares and became a cult classic. Potentially because of its $21 million worldwide gross against an $8 million budget, Creepshow led to the development of a similar show, Tales from the Darkside (1984 to 1988) and, no doubt, further interest in adapting King’s work for Cat’s Eye, which featured two segments based on stories from King’s Night Shift collection (King, 1978) and a third story King crafted specifically for the movie. Twelve different cats were used throughout the production, with handler Karly Lewis Miller alternating between the kitties when they were full from the treats they earned from performing, and director Lewis Teague stressed that none of them came to harm thanks to using air pressure hoses to simulate electric shocks and split screens to show the cat racing across a busy road. This was also an early role for young Drew Barrymore, who had starred in another Stephen King adaptation, Firestarter (Lester, 1984), the year before, and the film reaped a commendable $13.1 million at the box office. A favourite of mine since I was a child, Cat’s Eye was met with positive reviews that praised King’s focus on exploring phobias, the presentation and performances, and I’m pleased to see that it’s generally regarded as a forgotten gem of its era and genre. Cat’s Eye was so influential on me as a kid that I couldn’t imagine a better homage, or title, for my horror novella of the same name; as this releases next week, I figured now is as good a time as any to revisit Cat’s Eye and share my thoughts on it.
The Reviews: Since Cat’s Eyeis an anthology film made up of a framing narrative and three short horror stories, this review will be structured a little differently from my usual ones as I’ll look at each section in turn before giving my final thoughts. Cat’s Eyeis a little unique from other anthology films I’ve known, however, in that the framing narrative kind of feeds into the final segment, so I’m going to tackle the detours General takes first and then circle around to talking about his journey and the framing story when I get to the final segment.
Habitual smoker Dick Morrison is driven to paranoia by Donatti’s intimidating methods.
General begins the film wandering the streets aimlessly until a rabid dog chases him; taking shelter in a delivery truck, General winds up in New York City where, after being enthralled by a vision of Amanda begging for help, he’s picked up by Junk (Tony Munafo), one of Doctor Vinny Donatti’s (King) many underlings. Donatti heads up Quitters, Inc (which is the name of our first segment), a company so dedicated to stopping its clients from smoking that it uses intimidation and coercive techniques carried over from Donatti’s days in the mob. A habitual smoker with a wife (Cindy; Mary D’Arcy) and child (also Barrymore), Dick Morrison (Woods) is recommended Quitters, Inc by a friend and impressed to learn that they have a 100% success rate thanks to their uniquely persuasive method of having their clients constantly monitored by their thugs and subjecting the client to increasingly harsh penalties every time they stray from the plan. Morrison is horrified when Donatti demonstrates one such punishment by subjecting General to electric shocks in a wire cage, and even more terrified to learn that Cindy and his daughter will face the cage if he slips up, then Cindy will be raped and, finally, Morrison will be killed if he cannot stick to the program. Agitated by the threats and the lack of nicotine, Morrison struggles to keep it together for his family; he’s alarmed to find one of Donatti’s men in his house, and that they know where his daughter goes to school, but manages to resist lighting up even when the pressure causes him to have nightmarish hallucinations at a work function. Morrison’s resolve falters for just a second when stuck in a traffic jam, however; he finds a lone cigarette in a battered packet and, thinking he’s safe, enjoys a quick drag only to spot Junk watching him from a nearby car. Racing home to find Cindy gone, he’s forced to watch her endure the electrified cage but, much to Junk’s dismay, she forgives his infraction and they reconcile after he reveals the truth to her. The segment ends some time later; Morrison has successfully kicked the habit but started to gain weight, so Donatti “prescribes” him some dodgy diet pills. Though Morrison has built up a good-natured rapport with the two mobsters, he’s aghast to find that Donatti’s threat about cutting off Cindy’s finger should he not hit his target weight all too true when he spots his friend’s spouse is missing her pinkie!
Norris is forced to traverse a narrow ledge to appease the whims of a sadistic gambler.
When Morrison lashed out in a rage during Cindy’s torture, General managed to slip out of Quitters, Inc and hitch a ride to Atlantic City, where he’s eventually adopted by crime boss and casino owner Cressner (McMillan) in “The Ledge”. An arrogant and powerful figure, Cressner will wager on anything and sees General as a lucky talisman after the cat successfully dashes across a busy road without injury. Cressner is also an extremely dangerous and vindictive man and, after finding out that his wife has been having an affair with former tennis pro Johnny Norris (Hays), has his henchman, “Ducky” (Mike Starr), plant incriminating drugs in Norris’s car and forcibly bring him up to Cressner’s penthouse for a confrontation. There, Cressner offers Norris a wager: if he (as in Norris) cane traverse the narrow exterior ledge of the penthouse without falling to his death, the drugs will be removed, Norris will be given a big cash sum, and he will be allowed to leave with Cressner’s wife. Facing either a lifetime in jail or a death sentence at Cressner’s hands, Norris has no choice but to take the bet and gingerly shuffles around the building trying not to slip, being buffeted by whistling wind, and pecked at by a particularly annoying pigeon. While Cressner asserts that he doesn’t welsh on his bets, he does make sure to make the ordeal as difficult as possible, blasting an air horn in Norris’s face and setting a high-pressure hose on him. However, even when Norris manages to overcome all of this, Cressner screws him over by gifting him his wife’s head in a sickening twist; pushed to the edge, Norris manages to overpower Cressner, shoots his henchman dead, and then holds the gangster at gunpoint. Despite being tempted at a multi-million dollar payoff, Norris forces Cressner to endure the same trial on the penthouse ledge, but Cressner is unable to get past the pigeon and plummets to his much-deserved demise as General looks on.
General journeys to keep a nightmarish little troll from stealing Amanda’s breath.
This brings us to the final segment, fittingly titled “General”; an excised prologue would’ve shed a bit more light into exactly why our kitty protagonist has been seeing visions of a young girl but, as is, the film presents the idea that Amanda (or, at least, some disembodied spirit taking her form) is in mortal danger and General is compelled to journey to Wilmington, North Carolina in order to keep her safe. Amanda is overjoyed to discover the cat, gifting him his name and insisting that her family adopt him; however, while her father, Hugh (James Naughton), is perfectly happy with this, her strict and cat-hating mother Sally Ann (Clark) doesn’t want the cat around, much less sleeping in Amanda’s room. Sally Ann’s animosity towards the cat is only exacerbated when they find Amanda’s pet parakeet, Polly, mauled to death following a late-night struggle, and insists that the cat is to blame despite Amanda’s claims that the bird was killed by a “monster” that lives in her bedroom walls. While Amanda is at school, Sally Ann lures General into a box and takes him to an animal shelter to be put down but, thankfully, the wily cat is able to escape and race back to Amanda’s aid right as a vicious little troll tries to suck the breath from her body! What follows is a battle between the cat and the little critter that is both amusing and horrifying; the troll is a disgusting, slimy, horrifying little ghoul in a jester’s hat who wields a pint-sized dagger that he uses to wound General’s shoulder. However, General is able to block the troll’s escape and send it flying into Amanda’s box fan, shredding it to bloody ribbons, much to Hugh and Sally Ann’s stunned shock. Finally, after overcoming many hardships and a long journey, General is gifted a large fish and is allowed to sleep on Amanda’s bed, though the film can’t resist teasing that Sally Ann’s fears about the cat’s malevolent intentions are true.
The Nitty-Gritty: I like to think that there’s a lot of appeal in Cat’s Eye; not only does an adorable little kitty take centre stage as the primary protagonist and framing device, but the film tackles a variety of all-too-relatable horrors in a relatively grounded format. Anyone who’s been a lifetime smoker will know how hard the habit is to quit, and how self-destructive it can be weaning yourself off those cancer sticks; Morrison is almost immediately stressed at being denied his nicotine fix and his mental stability is only further frayed by the very real danger posed by Donatti and Quitter’s, Inc. If you’re anything like me, you’d absolutely crash and burn if forced to shuffle around a narrow ledge like Norris is; heights really aren’t my thing at all and the film does a great job of showing Norris constantly on the edge (pun intended…) of cracking and just plummeting to the street below. Finally, what child hasn’t been afraid of the monster under the bed or in the wardrobe? The decision to frame some of “General” from the troll’s perspective really adds to the sense of dread surrounding the creature and this segment always freaked me out the most as a child since the troll was such a horrifying little thing and, even now, I hesitate to dangle my feet out of the bed in case some nasty little critter like that is lurking in the dark.
Cat’s Eye‘s focus on relatable horrors and phobias makes it an intense watch at times.
Cat’s Eye utilises a very tense, haunting, and ominous score courtesy of Alan Silvestri that never fails to send a chill down my spine when some of the more nightmare-inducing sequences are happening. There’s a constant sense of dread surrounding Morrison, who jumps at every shadow and feels as though Donatti’s eyes are always on him; when at a work function, the stress, fear, and desire to smoke all become too much for him and he suffers from a horrifying (and amusing) hallucination in which everyone present (even the children and canapés!) are smoking, demonic pictures are glaring at him, and Donatti himself is tormenting him with a rendition of The Police’s “Every Breath You Take (I’ll Be Watching You)”. This surreal scene always stuck with me for how ominous it is and it really helps to sell the panic and strain Morrison is under; for him, it’s nothing compared to the realisation that he screwed up and his wife has to pay the price for that, but he ends the segment happy to be free from his addiction and even grateful for Donatti’s extreme measures since they’ve benefitted his family. That final gut-punch of seeing that severed finger, though, never fails to send a shiver running through me and is an effective way of reminding Morrison (and the audience) that his nightmare may never end. Norris is put through the wringer as well; barely able to keep his balance and with next to no handholds on offer, he’s constantly teetering on the precipice of death and it’s only through sheer force of will that he’s able to overcome Cressner’s obstacles (and such inconveniences as a massive neon sign) to complete his monumental task. As gruelling as the horror of this task is, though, “The Ledge” delivers its own gut-punch when Cressner spitefully kicks over a bag and his wife’s head comes rolling out! Hays’s horrified scream of “Jesus!” really sells the impact of this moment on the character and it makes Cressner’s fitting demise all the more cathartic as he’s unable to beg or buy his way out of Norris’s uncharacteristic wrath and ultimately pays for his abusive and sadistic ways.
The malicious little troll is the stuff of nightmares, but luckily the kitty is here to save the day!
Of course, the true star of Cat’s Eye is General himself. A resourceful and adaptable little kitty, General finds food where he can and crosses vast distances by hitching rides and stumbling into the lives of these other characters, all in his quest to get to Amanda and defend her. General certainly endures a lot throughout his journey; he’s electrocuted, nearly gets run over, gets tripped over, and watches others suffer only to be met with hostility from Sally Ann when he finally finds the girl who’s guided him this whole time. Sally Ann’s antagonism towards him seems to be based on a number of factors: one is she’s just a strict, overbearing mother who doesn’t want to give in to her daughter’s every demand; another is a concern for Polly’s welfare; and a third, as so inappropriately related by Hugh, is based on her mother’s wild belief that cats creep into the bedrooms of children to steal their breath as they sleep. Because she’s so pragmatic, Sally Ann has little time for Amanda’s flights of fancy about monsters living in her walls but she couldn’t be more wrong; the troll skitters over from the nearby woods and takes up residence in Amanda’s bedroom, coming and going through a hole in the wall and slaughtering Polly simply for the sadistic pleasure of it. Brought to life using a combination of forced perspectives and camera trickery, the troll is an unexpectedly horrific exclamation mark on what was a pretty intense horror/thriller up to that point. Seeing it shuffle about the bedroom, tittering away, and brandishing its little knife with glee may be an amusing sight but its glowing red eyes and mouthful of razor-sharp teeth make this frog-like monstrosity a pretty horrifying creature even with its little jester outfit. I really enjoy that we never learn what the troll is or where it came from; it’s simply this fantastical creature that intrudes on a normal, everyday family and tries to suck the breath from a little girl’s mouth and I recommend anyone who hesitates to let their cat or dog sleep with their children to just take a second to consider that one of these little fuckers could be lurking in the shadows!
The Summary: I’ll be the first to admit that my opinion and appreciation for Cat’s Eye is deeply rooted in my nostalgia for the film; I watched it as an impressionable youth, when I was still struggling to get into horror, and was deeply affected by some of the more terrifying sequences and moments in the film. Morrison’s hallucination, the visual of that severed head bouncing across the floor, and just the idea of this malicious little troll living in the bedroom’s walls all had a lasting impression on me and I think the film does a great job of delivering on some surprisingly impactful, nightmarish concepts. Cat’s Eye also features some pretty terrific character actors that help boost its appeal; I’m not really a big James Woods fan but I enjoyed him as a tense, increasingly paranoid family man desperately trying to quit an addictive habit and cope with Donatti’s extremist ways, Robert Hays is always a treat to see and does a great job of portraying Norris’s absolute, abject terror when out on that ledge, and Drew Barrymore is suitably adorable as the little girl in peril. The real star are the cats used to bring General to life, of course, and it’s really enjoyable seeing him take centre stage for the finale and go paw-to-claw with that horrible little troll. While some of the shots and effects haven’t aged too well and the film’s maybe not quite up to the standards set by Creepshow, Cat’s Eye is a fun and memorable horror anthology that I fear has kind of been largely forgotten. However, I maintain that it’s well worth your time if you’re a fan of Stephen King and this genre, and might even leave more of a mark on young viewers than you might expect thanks to its exploration of timeless horrors and phobias.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Great Stuff
Have you ever seen Cat’s Eye? Which of its segments was your favourite and what did you think to the filmmaking techniques used to bring their horrors to life? Did you enjoy seeing a cat take the lead role and which of the stories could you see expanded into their own feature? Were you creeped out by that little troll, and have you ever struggled to quit smoking? How would you rate Cat’s Eye against other horror anthologies? Are you a fan of anthologies and would you like to see more? Have you picked up my horror novella of the same name and, if so, could you please rate and review it? Whatever you think about Cat’s Eye, leave a comment by signing up or visiting my social media, and be sure to check back for more horror anthology shenanigans later in the year.
Released: 30 October 2007 Developer: EA Redwood Shores Also Available For: Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable
The Background: The Simpsons was created by Matt Groening as a series of short cartoons created for The Tracey Ullman Show; jumping at the chance to produce an alternative to the “mainstream trash” that was currently airing, Groening’s yellow-skinned creations soon became a multimedia sensation as “Bartmania” swept the nation. The Simpsons featured in every piece of merchandise imaginable, from action figures and comics to videogames, though the franchise doesn’t have the best reputation when it comes to videogame adaptations. For years, Konami’s 1991 arcade game was the stand out but Electronic Arts (EA) sought to change that by working closely with Groening and notable Simpsons writers on a new Simpsons videogame, whichwas written as a parody of popular videogame tropes and incorporated a cel-shaded graphical style to recreate the aesthetic of the show. The game received a mixed reception; some praised the game’s humour and appeal for die-hard Simpsons fans but others took issue with the game’s mundane combat and puzzles. While EA initially planned to produce a sequel, it was ultimately cancelled and The Simpsons eventually ended up moving to mobile gaming, but, since today is Whacking Day, I figured it would be a good excuse to revisit this title and see how it holds up today.
The Plot: In a self-referential plot, the Simpsons family (Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie) discover that they are part of a videogame world when they acquire a game guide that grants them the superpowers necessary to not only star in what they hope will be a successful videogame for a change but also defend their town from attacks by aliens and explore videogame worlds in a quest to confront their creator, Matt Groening.
Gameplay: The Simpsons Game is a third-person action game in which players explore a relatively faithful three-dimensional recreation of Springfield, which acts as something of a hub world where you can access the game’s story-based missions as well as enter certain houses, view collectibles, change costumes, and find collectibles. At any one time, you’ll control two of the titular family members; you can switch between them using the directional pad (D-Pad) and swap them out for other combinations at a number of bus stops dotted around the city. If you have a friend, you can play in split-screen co-op but, for the most part, the computer does a decent enough job of following you around, attacking enemies, and pressing switches as needed (and if they don’t, you can just swap over to the other character using the D-Pad).
Homer puts his weight to good use while Marge nags others into doing her bidding.
The game’s basic controls are the same for every character with the exception of Maggie: X punches (press three times and hit Y for a pretty basic “Power Combo”), Y allows you to interact with the environment to pull levers, press buttons, and talk to non-playable characters (NPCs), and A sees your character jump (press again in mid-air for a double jump). You can also hold down the Left Trigger to target enemies or objects, bring up your current objectives with the ‘Back’ button, and will automatically cling to certain ledges when you jump or fall down near them. However, each Simpsons character has different Special Attacks performed by both pressing and holding the B button and use of certain intractable objects and the Left and Right Triggers. Homer can stun enemies with a burb, transform into a massive Homer Ball that lets him blast along at high speeds and slam into enemies and destructible objects by jumping and pressing X, use air canisters to become the light-weight Helium Homer and float about with A or blast ahead in a burst of gas for a short period of time, and later transform into a gelatinous form that lets him toss gummi projectiles. Marge uses her megaphone to recruit nearby NPCs, whom she can direct to attack enemies, destroy targets, or clean up the environment. She can also send Maggie into special vents; Maggie is controlled through a first-person perspective and simply crawls around until you find a button or object to fire her dummy at with Y.
While Bart fires pellets and glides, Lisa blasts enemies with her sax and the Hand of Buddha.
Bart comes armed with his slingshot, which fires a number of different projectiles that change depending on your environment; Bart’s ammo, like all of the character’s Special Attacks, is limited only by your Power Meter, which automatically refills over time and can be refilled by defeating enemies or collecting dropped power-ups like food or flowers. Bart can also turn into Bartman and glide for short periods by holding RT, ride air currents in the same way, climb up vines and certain surfaces, and grapple to special hooks to reach new areas sand solve puzzles. Lisa can stun nearby enemies with a blast of her saxophone or compel them to fight on her behalf. By interacting with Buddha Statues, she can also control the Hand of Buddha to lift and drop objects, freeze, flick, and electrocute enemies, all of which is essential for creating bridges, solving puzzles, and completing story-based objectives.
The game features a few puzzles but only a handful amount to more than switches and buttons.
The Simpsons Game is made up of sixteen missions, labelled “Episodes”, indicated by beams of light around Springfield. Springfield is quite large and full of things to distract yourself with, such as collectibles and recreations of iconic locations from the show, such as the school and Kwik-E-Mart, with your opportunities for exploration opening up as you progress and unlock more of the Simpsons’ abilities. While the game only features a map on one particular mission, the levels are so linear that you won’t really need one and you can utilise a fast travel system to quickly get around Springfield if you need to. The Simpsons are relatively durable; your character’s health will slowly refill if you avoid damage for a short time and you can revive your fallen partner by pressing Y near their downed body. A series of checkpoints and auto saves help to keep you going when you inevitably slip off a ledge thanks to the game’s janky camera, which can get a bit stuck and troubled when you’re not in a wide, open area. Combat is quite monotonous, for the most part as your character’s attack range is quite short and your fighting ability is basically limited to that one combo (though each character pulls it off a little differently). Combat is made more interesting by the different Special Attacks, allowing you to pick enemies off at a distance with Bart, have Marge direct her mob to overwhelm foes, or blast them away with the Hand of Buddha, and it’s generally kept to short, sharp bursts. The remainder of the game is made up of some awkward platforming (as mentioned, it’s pretty easy to slip off ledges and jumping across platforms can be a bit tricky as your jump doesn’t take you very far and they can be difficult to judge) and some pretty simply puzzles. These mainly consist of pulling a lever, standing on pressure pads (often with both characters), and pressing buttons as well as using your Special Abilities to reach one of these intractable objects.
Gameplay is given some variety by parodying other, more successful videogames.
Occasionally, you’ll have to battle against a time limit, fending off enemies and activating switches to reach new areas, and more often than not you’ll be using your Special Attacks to progress through levels; this amounts to shooting targets, moving stuff about with the Hand of Buddha, or having Marge direct a mob towards specific targets. Invariably, gameplay is broken up with a few sections that are clear references to classic videogames; these see you hopping from logs and crocodiles across a river, fending off waves of aliens, and keeping ice cream trucks safe in clear tributes to Frogger (Konami, 1981), Space Invaders (Taito, 1978), and Missile Command (Atari, Inc., 1980). You’ll also be platforming across conveyor belts, dodging wood cutting machinery, and be joined by a recognisable NPC in a couple of missions who’ll help you fend off killer dolphins and aliens. It isn’t really until the penultimate Episode of the game that you’ll see some proper variety in the gameplay, however: here, you play through four missions parodying more modern titles, such as Medal of Honor (DreamWorks Interactive, 1999) and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Rockstar North, 2004), gaining new abilities and outfits in the process. This sees you defending a town of fantasy creatures from a two-headed dragon and navigating through both a top-down and third-person dungeon in a parody of fantasy role-playing games (RPGs), collecting flags, defending a jeep from turrets and mines, and using C4 to scale a battleship, traversing a Japanese land of fire and ice that resembles both Ōkami (Clover Studio, 2006) and Pokémon (Game Freak/Various, 1996 to present), and battling through a rundown neighbourhood of pimps and hoes. Essentially, however, you’ll encounter the same puzzles and obstacles repeated over and over but in different environments and with slightly different enemies, which is just enough to keep things relatively interesting despite how troublesome the combat and platforming can be.
Graphics and Sound: Thanks to incorporating a cel-shaded graphical style, The Simpsons Game holds up relatively well; Springfield is easily the game’s most impressive environment, being unquestionably the largest and most accurate videogame interpretation of the famous fictional town, but it is quite barren. Sure, NPCs wander around and spout lines at you and it’ll be invaded by aliens later in the game, but you can only enter a handful of the most recognisable buildings and houses and there aren’t any side quests to occupy your time beyond hunting down each character’s collectibles.
Many of the environments are decent recreations of memorable Simpsons episodes and locations.
Environments continue to shine in each of the game’s Episodes; these will load in new areas of the city that are self-contained levels separate from the overworld and are full of awesome call-backs to popular videogame franchises. These are most evident in the videogame factory, which contains parodies of Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog and enemies lampooning the Madden NFL (EA Tiburon/Various, 1988 to present) and Street Fighter(Capcom/Various, 1987 to present) franchises, and the aforementioned fantasy mission that parodies both EverQuest (Verant Interactive/989 Studios, 1999) and the Legend of Zelda(Nintendo EAD/Various, 1985 to present) franchise. You’ll also visit a number of recognisable locations from the Simpsons cartoon, such as the pier, the Land of Chocolate, Mayor “Diamond” Joe Quimby’s building and office, the Springfield Natural History Museum, and the game features a couple of Episodes based on specific “Treehouse of Horror” episodes.
The in-game cutscenes and 3D models pale in comparison to the top-notch 2D animation.
For the most part, the in-game graphics are perfectly suited to rendering these environments and the character models. Everything is very bright and light on detail, similar to the cartoon, playable characters all have idle animations and plenty to say, and the game does its best to recreate the aesthetic style of the show at every opportunity. Unfortunately, the game also features a number of traditionally animated cutscenes that stand out in stark contrast to the ugly cel-shaded, 3D models that can look distorted and disturbing when characters talk and interact using the in-game graphics. Why the developers didn’t simply use 2D animation for all the cutscenes is beyond me but ugly 3D models are expected when creating a videogame based on a traditionally 2D medium. The game somewhat makes up for this by featuring an abundance of voice acting from the entire Simpsons cast; while you’ll recognise a lot of jokes recycled from the cartoon and quickly grow tired of the same exclamations and catchphrases being spouted again and again, the game’s writing and humour is generally on-point for the show and I was mostly satisfied with the game’s overall presentation.
Enemies and Bosses: You’ll battle against a wide variety of enemies in The Simpsons Game. Well, I use the term “variety” loosely because while you’ll face lumberjacks, thinly veiled parodies of Ryu, gun-toting Scratchys, aliens wielding boards with nails in them, and killer dolphins, they generally all fall into the same predictable categories. This means that battling sumo wrestlers who resemble Comic Book Guy is very similar to fending off Groening’s army of lawyers as, beyond a handful of unique attacks for some enemies, enemies can generally be categorised as melee attackers and ranged attackers. Typically, enemies will spawn in from a central point (a porto-potty or pimpmobile, for example) and you’ll need to destroy these spawning points to clear enemies out of the area and you’ll have to battle all of the game’s enemies when you reach the game’s final mission. Easily the most annoying enemies come before this, however, as Matt Groening spawns in an infinite number of Benders and Doctor Zoidbergs to hassle you as you try and bring him down.
The game’s larger bosses require a bit of team work to bring down.
Each Episode ends in either a boss battle or something akin to it; while fighting through the Springfield Natural History Museum, you’ll run across bullies Jimbo, Dolph, and Kearny and you’ll need to take each of the three out by shooting targets to drop them or chase them away and then glide and platform across planets in the planetarium to finish off Jimbo all while dodging blasts from their laser guns. You’ll also need to blast Homer through a renaissance fayre and smash up a recreation of the Statue of Liberty to win his eating contest and use the Hand of Buddha to rescue Lenny and Carl from a giant woodchipper as Lisa and Bart. When in the “Game Engine” Episode, you’ll have to platform your way through a factory of parodies to battle a satire of Donkey Kong; the giant ape tosses explosive barrels at you and sends an infinite number of minions your way who you’ll need to flick back at him with the Hand of Buddha when he steps forward on his stage. Perhaps the most well-known boss is Lard Lad, a gigantic doughnut mascot come to life who rampages through a construction site blasting at you with his eye lasers and who sends swarms of evil Krusty dolls your way. To take Lard Lad down, you must distract him with Homer so that Bart can get around behind him and blast at the three targets on his back and butt, which briefly opens up panels you can glide to in order to rip out his wires and send him crashing to the ground.
While some bosses require a bit of strategy, Mr. Burns folds faster than Superman on laundry day.
Rather than have to battle with recurring antagonist Sideshow Bob, Bart’s would-be-murderer is restricted to, and defeated in, a cutscene, leaving you to fend off aliens in that Space Invaders homage I mentioned above and alongside Cletus the Slack-Jawed Yokel when inside their mothership. You’ll also have to contend with Snorky, leader of the killer dolphins, who stands far out of reach in the Springfield aquarium; luckily, you can send him tumbling into the water beneath him with Bart’s slingshot and then drop an electrifying jellyfish into the water three times to defeat him as the Sea Captain helps you fend off his minions. In the EverQuest parody, you’ll have to battle a two-headed dragon baring Selma and Patty’s faces; the first time you encounter this, she’s flying around a village and setting fire to houses. You need to have Marge direct her mob to put out the fires and then have Homer bash into the dragon when she hovers between one of the village’s bridges and then have the mob attack her when she’s downed. After fighting through the dungeon, you’ll battle her again in a homage to single-screen arcade games like Mario Bros.(Nintendo R&D1, 1983) that sees you bashing into her using Helium Homer while fending off the Orc Moes she spawns with her eggs. In the Medal of Honor parody stage, you’ll get to punch out multiple versions of César and Ugolin, sailor-garbed versions of Waylon Smithers, and destroy turrets before finally facing off with Private Charles Montgomery Burns…which boils down to you simply landing your combo and knocking him out.
After a fun turn-based boss and an aggravating battle with Groening, it all boils down to a rhythm game.
Things get interesting when Homer and Lisa travel to a Japanese land and have to defeat and capture three Sparklemon to awaken Mister Sparkle by battling against three very familiar looking monsters controlled by Jimbo, Sherri and Terri, and Ralph Wiggum in traditional turn-based RPG battles that are reminiscent of both Pokémon and the Final Fantasyfranchise (Square Enix/Various, 1987 to present). Although Homer and Lisa’s attack options are limited, each Sparklemon has a weakness to a specific attack so it doesn’t take much to defeat the three and, similarly, thanks to the Space Invaders-like mini game from earlier, it’s not too taxing to bring down Poochie in the “Grand Theft Scratchy” mission; simply use the Hand of Buddha to drop explosive barrels on his minions before they destroy the ice cream trucks and then have Marge direct her mob to destroy Poochie’s stage. By far the most annoying and frustrating boss is the penultimate battle against Matt Groening himself; first, you must wade through an army of high-priced lawyers to storm his grandiose mansion and then he spawns an endless swarm of Benders and Dr. Zoidbergs all while pits of molten gold sap your health and Groening tosses projectiles at you. To defeat him, you need to use Ball Homer to hit him when he’s exposed and you’ll need to have Bart glide and climb up to levers to get him into position. Finally, the grand dining table will angle up into a launching pad for you to blast up as Ball Homer to bring Groening down but the game doesn’t end there. With Springfield still under attack, the family heads to Heaven itself and has to battle every single enemy they’ve faced in the game’s previous missions and even William Shakespeare and Thomas Jefferson. While Shakespeare is easily defeated using Bart’s halos, Jefferson duplicates into smaller versions of himself when hit and can instantly kill you and your partners with his key attack, making him a troublesome foe. God himself is a complete cakewalk though; rather than require you to utilise the skills you’ve built up over the game, this final boss is a simple parody of music rhythm games like Guitar Hero (Harmonix, 2005) that has you pressing the D-Pad at the right moments to defeat him and is a bit of an anti-climatic final trial.
Power-Ups and Bonuses: As you defeat enemies, they’ll drop power, food, ammo, and other items to refill your health and Power Meter. You can also smash crates and other objects to help with this and, if you find all of the collectibles in each Episode, you’ll extend your health bar, which is a nice incentive to explore your environments. Although I didn’t play alongside a human partner, it doesn’t seem as though there are any co-op attacks you can use and the extent of your co-operation boils down to you fending off enemies or activating certain switches with your different Special Attacks.
Each character can grab a power-up to become temporarily stronger and invincible.
Each character acquires additional Special Attacks as you progress for the story but you’ll simply be gifted the remainder of them by Professor Frink after you rescue your low-pixel counterparts. Each character also has a power-up they can collect that will temporarily make them invincible and boost their attack power by transforming them further. Bart becomes Robo-Bart and shoots lasers from his eyes, Lisa and Marge become Clobber Girl and Cop Marge, respectively, which makes them super strong, and Homer eats a Guatemalan Insanity Pepper to become a burning version of Ball Homer.
Additional Features: The Simpsons Game comes with forty-four Achievements for you to earn; unfortunately, virtually none of these are tied to anything more than completing the game’s Episodes and beating the various time challenges. You’ll get a 5G Achievement just for starting the game, and a 0G Achievement when you die ten times, but there aren’t any fun ones like visiting Moe’s Tavern as Homer or the school as Bart or anything like that.
Clichés, collectibles, and time challenges add to the game’s replay value.
Every single character has a number of collectibles to collect; these are strewn across the length and breadth of the Springfield overworld and hidden in each Episode and it’ll often require your Special Attacks and abilities to hunt them down. Collecting them all extends your health bar, as mentioned, but also unlocks trophies to display in the Simpson’s house, unlocks alternate attires, and will net you Achievements. You’ll also encounter videogame clichés, seemingly at random, which will add to your overall completion score but hunting down everything will definitely require a guide and a lot of patience. You can replay any mission from the main menu at any time to hunt down anything you’ve missed and you’ll also get to take on a number of time challenges for a series of 5G Achievements. These are a bit more than just finishing an Episode quickly, as well, and have you rescuing NPCs, fending off enemies, playing some of the mini games, or performing other tasks against a time limit which all helps to add a little variety to the game.
The Summary: I remember being largely underwhelmed and frustrated when I first played The Simpsons Game on the PlayStation 3; a janky camera, dodgy controls, and lack of Trophies hurt my experience with the game but revisiting it for this playthrough on the Xbox 360 was a far more enjoyable affair. It’s a flawed game, for sure, but not quite as bad as most videogame adaptations tend to be; for one thing, it seems as though some time and effort was put into the game, particularly in its writing and presentation, and the parodies of popular and classic videogames made for some amusing moments. It’s fun exploring Springfield, interacting with recognisable Simpsons characters, and playing through new versions of classic episodes from the cartoon and the family’s different abilities are generally quite fun, if aggravating at times (though a lot of these issues can probably be solved by having a human partner to play alongside, which would cut down the back and forth and solve puzzles faster). Sadly, the ugly cel-shaded cutscenes let the game down somewhat, as does the repetitive and uninspired combat, puzzles, and platforming; it also feels like the developers played it a bit safe by doing a metatextual plot and Springfield is a little too barren at times. Still, it’s a decent enough title if you can find it at a decent price and probably the best Simpsons videogame for its attempt at variety and more fitting use of the license.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Pretty Good
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Dr. K's Waiting Room 
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