Thor

Thor, Marvel's Mighty God of Thunder finally hits the big screen. I should say it finally hitted the big screen on May 6, 2011. Again, I'm a bit late on the reviews but, if you haven't already seen Thor, I recommend checking it out when it comes out on disk. A lot of people compares it to the first Iron Man movie since Thor seems to be the 2nd watchable Marvel produced movie (not wanting to acknowledge Iron Man 2). Thor is not just watchable. It is also fun, aesthetically pleasing and at points deep. I was worried at first that Thor will be another Iron Man knock off when watching the trailers. There were one-liners in the trailers that made Thor seem more like a smart ass than the arrogant Norse God. Also, after reading about how the Asgardians were treated as aliens really worried me. Especially after how Iron Man 2 was rushed out to be so formulaic and boring. I guess under Kenneth Branagh's direction, J. Michael Straczynski's and Mark Protoevich's screenplay things worked out. The material was kept as close to Marvel's cannon as much as possible. In fact, the way the Asgaridians were handled reminded me of Jack Kirby's take on the Norse Gods and even DC's New Gods. The way the Asgardians traveled in this movie using the Bifrost reminded me of the Boom Tubes that the New Gods used. It looked really cool. There were a few awe inspiring scenes in Thor. The one that sticks out the most for me is when Thor and his small army rides across the Rainbow Bridge in Asgard on his way to fight the Frost Giants. Asgard was a very good looking set. I'm not sure how much of it was CGi. Thor was a super arrogant ass in the beginning of the movie to the point where it almost got him and his friends killed. It is because of this Odin (Anthony Hopkins) strips him of Mjolnir and kicks him out of Asgard and down to earth powerless. While in the background, with Thor out of the way, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) plots to become the Ruler of Asgard. On earth, powerless but still having some supernatural arrogance and strength, Thor bumps into a crew of scientists searching for Extra Terrestrials. At first they think that Thor is an alien but the movie shifted towards the Norse legends more, which made me happy. Honestly, I think the scientists can be replaced by any actor and the movie would not suffer. Two of them has some star power being Natalie Portman and Stellan Skarsgard. The third scientist or rather assistant is played by Kat Dennings. With that said, portraying Thor, Chris Hemsworth does a great job being the asshole Asgardian who learns the ways of humility. He was almost overshadowed by Tom Hiddleston's Loki. Living under Thor's boastful shadow and personal tragedy, Tom Hiddleston's Loki is tormented with choosing between what benefits him and doing the right thing. Of course, he wouldn't be the villain of the movie if we agreed with him. Thor is very entertaining movie which follows some formula. The love interest and the hero losing his powers for example but both of the these things were handled well. I guess a love interest is a way for an immortal to grow an attachment to a lesser realm. I said earlier that Natalie Portman is replaceable but, her presence is definitely more than welcome and she's a fine actor (same goes for a certain prequel trilogy). Chris Hemsworth charismatic performance made up for the low key action of a depowered hero. Also, even without Mjolnir, Thor didn't just moped around the whole time, he still had his fighting abilities, strength and heroism. The lead up to Thor getting Mjolnir back was pretty rewarding. Be sure to stay during the credits for a hint of more Loki and Stellan Skarsgard in the upcoming Avengers movie. Check out Thor. There are some artistic liberties towards the Mighty Marvel Hero but in my opinion they are not glaring travesties. This is definitely the best Thor rendition Thor-Trailer RATING: 3/5

Doctor Who Series 6 Part 2 Tonight!

"My Time Is Running Out" Doctor Who Series 6 Part 2 will be airing on BBCA in a few hrs... well... actually, a bit more than a few hrs. Tonight, August 27, 2011 at 9pm EST. But really, who's counting? How does one kill time before "Let's Kill Hitler" premiers? You can watch the clips below or click on my "Doctor Who" tag below this post and check out the videos I have in my previous posts. Enjoy! And remember, always bring a banana to a party. Be sure to bring one or two... and I guess you can bring a Jaffa Cake too for the Youtube videos after the "JUMP!":

Zombie March New England

Hello Youtubes! This time on "Hello Youtubes!" I want to talk about a local Boston, MA event. There is an event that has been happening in the past 7 years in my city that I did not know about! The Zombie March has been happening for 7 years! 7 years! Being a huge zombie fan, I have no idea how I missed this the last 6 years. It's not like it's a small event. I'm talking about a huge horde of zombies. Miles of zombies and it disrupts (not complaining) the city of Boston for an entire day. I'm not talking about just one section of Boston. The march route starts from South Station. It goes through Downtown Crossing, Boston Commons, the Public Garden, Newbury St and to the Prudential. From there it goes through the Prudential Mall, back to Boston Commons and congregates at Government Center for a huge battle between the undead and the living. Miles of zombies! It's an amazing sight and loads of fun. There's no agenda or political subtext, it's just plain fun. The living dead were not the only ones marching. There were zombie hunters (Umbrella), survivors, Ghostbusters, super heroes and even Mr. T. Here's info on: Zombie March Boston VIII (2012) Be sure to click on "JUMP!" for more Undead goodness:

Doctor Who: Space and Time

"Imagine a Banana" For the 2011 Red Nose Day Charity on BBC, Stephen Moffat once again wrote up another interesting Doctor Who special. How can he possibly top the other specials? Especialy, the one with the 10th Doctor (David Tennant) meeting the 5th Doctor (Peter Davison)? The answer is simple (for me at least), TWO AMY PONDS IN SKIRTS! Why do you think Rory refuse to stay dead? Oh yeah, and the special talks about something or another about time and relative dimensional in space... Also, a little more than a week left until Series 6 part 2. Doctor Who: Space - Red Nose Day 2011 Special part 1 Doctor Who: Time - Red Nose Day 2011 Special part 2

Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling - Episode 1: Arrival

The Prisoner As some of you might know, I'm still migrating certain posts from my Livejournal site, Groggy Robot. This is one of those posts that I must migrate and has to be mentioned more than once. Local Boston Band, Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling's video for their song, EPISODE 1: ARRIVAL, pays homage to the 1960's U.K. show, the Prisoner. The video is an amazing shot-for-shot remake of the show's opening filmed by Michael J. Epstein (bass) and his crew. What makes this video extra awesome for me is that all the settings are filmed locally, here in the Boston area. It's pretty uncanny how the Boston shots are similar to the original U.K. setting. The star of the video is the vocalist and drummer of the band, Sophia Cacciola. Which today happens to be her birthday! So, feel free to pop onto the Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling's Facebook page and wish Sophia a "Happy Birthday!" You can wish Michael J. Epstein a "Happy Birthday" too if you want. Facebook: Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling Youtube: TheMotionSick Website: donotforsake.com And if you are in the Boston area tonight (8/19/11), Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling is playing at T.T. the Bear's Place, 10 Brookline St, Central Sq, Cambridge: T.T. the Bear's Place Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling - Comparison of Arrival Music Video

G.I. Joe: The Movie - Liberi Fatali

Hello Youtubes! This time for "Hello Youtubes!" I am doing a self promotion. One day while sitting around (probably grinding exp during Final Fantasy VIII) I thought, "Liberi Fatali" will work with the G.I. Joe the Movie intro!" So, I played the video along side the music and they matched up pretty well. A couple of years later, my editing savvy brother cut the 2 together and uploaded it onto Youtube. It's not only "Liberi Fatali", other music intros works well with the G.I. Joe the Movie intro. The Ren and Stimpy intro music works as well but it cuts short. "Liberi Fatali" works without any video editing because it has the same running time as the G.I. Joe the Movie intro. The Ren and Stimpy music works well with the Cowboy Bebop intro though. I guess all intro tends to have the same editing and the same kinetic pace in music. In any case, that's enough talking. Check out this collaborated creation from my brother and I. G.I. Joe The Movie - Liberi Fatali Here are both of the original intros: G.I. Joe The Movie Intro Final Fantasy VIII Opening

Doctor Who: Time Crash

Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey! About 2 more weeks until the 2nd part of Doctor Who series 6 begins but... really, who's counting? Being human, we tend to experience time in the linear plane... If I can free myself from that perspective I had already and still watching the ending of series 6 as the second part premiers. Stephen Moffat often likes to practice this concept and an example of that is his teleplay for "Time Crash" for BBC's Children in Need 2007 special. Directed by Graeme Harper (a big time Doctor Who veteran), "Time Crash" takes place right after the Doctor drops off Martha Jones at the end of Series 3. The TARDIS goes wibbly wobbly and the 10th Doctor's and the 5th Doctor's timelines converge.... Doctor Who - Children in Need Special: 'Time Crash' 2007