The Animation Lover

  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/62/My_Adventures_with_Superman_%282023%29.png Episode four marks a departure from the typical Superman story beats, and into the show’s more individual narrative. Chief among its contributions is introducing Professor Ivo, yet another character I didn’t actually know about before (though I know of his creation, Amazo). Ivo as portrayed here technically draws from a number of millionaires and media types. He has some traits similar to classical versions of Lex Luthor, while his appearance resembles a cross between Tony Stark and Jacksepticeye. Compared to Leslie and Intergang, Ivo definitely left a bigger impression on me villain wise. He’s brilliant and smooth, but also unfiltered, condescending and increasingly self destructive. His spiral into greed fueled egomania is legitimately threatening, but at the same time, I find it believable that he could charm or coerce a crowd. After all, his initial role is the star of a lavish gala, att...

  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/62/My_Adventures_with_Superman_%282023%29.png Episode two begins with a rather emotional sequence - maybe the most powerful scene of the show’s first half. A young Clark is led to the craft he arrived in by Ma and Pa Kent (Kari Wahlgren and Reid Scott, respectively). The boy touches the jagged metal designs of the vessel, which triggers a blue light and a projection of what we can logically assume is Jor-El. It should be a wonderful moment of discovery for Clark, but through the eyes of a child, it’s terrifying. Strange machines hover around him, Jor-El speaks in a language he doesn’t understand, the earth shakes so much that his adoptive parents are nearly injured. The boy quickly buries the craft, rushes into the arms of his mom and dad, and breaks down crying. The innocent curiosity in Clark has been replaced by fear of the unknown, both externally and from within. From there, we take a short break at the Daily Planet, where Lois lau...

  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/62/My_Adventures_with_Superman_%282023%29.png Well, so far I’ve reviewed a DC animated property, and some Anime related films. It’s fitting that my next chain of posts combine both genres. Just recently I completed a watch of 2023’s “My Adventures with Superman” - and like many viewers, I have a multitude of thoughts. A single review wouldn’t encompass all I could discuss about the series, but a breakdown of each episode might. So right out the gate, I will be issuing a spoiler warning for those who haven’t seen the show, or want to watch it organically.  Before I begin reviewing the pilot, however, I did wish to make some general observations first. Personally, I love the direction the showrunners are taking with Superman here. Many newer depictions of Clark Kent’s story have shown him in a, quote-on-quote, “grittier” light. The Zack Synder films largely attempted to showcase this angle, both conceptually in Superman’s personality...

  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/bc/Nausicaaposter.jpg “Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind” is another interesting film for me, since I was certainly familiar with the English dub in my youth. Even then, I only knew about a few isolated lines and moments. This was my first time seeing the entire film at once, and also my first exposure to the Japanese version. The 2005 dub contains many recognizable actors (Patrick Stewart, Edward James Olmos and Uma Thurman, to name a few), but it was also released 20 years after the film itself. Therefore, I feel a little more justified separating it from Hayao Miyazaki’s original vision. I’ll also be clear: I’m not fluent in Japanese, nor am I the best at evaluating a vocal performance in a language I don’t understand. I can, however, recognize cadence, inflection, rhythm, passion…key components to any actor’s ability and skill set. That definitely helped with watching the authentic cut of a well known Anime movie, and I’ll dispel a...

  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/43/DBZ_THE_MOVIE_NO._14.png Me and “Dragon Ball” have an interesting relationship. Although I possess a lot of second hand knowledge, specifically the feats of high tier characters, I’ve watched very little of the franchise personally. Oddly enough, one of my main sources for information is the Youtube show “Death Battle”, which has scaled the heroes and villains of “Dragon Ball” to frankly ludicrous power levels. Versus debates aside, how does that lack of knowledge impact my thoughts on this film? 2013's “Battle of Gods” certainly requires some previous exposure to understand many details. How did the Pilaf gang become so young? Why would Majin Buu and Hercule Satan be eating together? I don’t know the answers to these questions, but fortunately, they are less crucial here. The opening montage covers the bare minimum of Goku’s reputation, and how he’ll react to his current hurdle. Some context was lost on me, sure, but I still felt th...

  That’s right…the photo above shows my personal copy of this film. That won’t be the case for every animated property I look at, but I wanted to include it here regardless. The cover alone is a talking point, honestly: Batman standing alone, determined, defiant. Meanwhile, a looming presence engulfs the city, a being shrouded in a red mask, his piercing gaze fixated on Bruce Wayne and his place in Gotham. That describes the DVD artwork of 2010’s “Batman: Under the Red Hood”, which in my opinion, stands as possibly the DC animated universe’s finest hour. The film begins with a particularly brutal rescue mission. Robin AKA Jason Todd is at the mercy of the Joker…and by mercy, I mean a crowbar and Joker’s lack thereof. He receives a vicious beating, including several broken bones and a collapsed lung. Batman is racing to save his young partner, and 95% of the time, the caped crusader is successful in rescuing those in need. Unfortunately for young Jason, this is the other 5%. The jok...

Greetings everyone,  My name is Mitchell. Introductions have never been my strong suit, but in general I'd consider myself a fairly normal guy. My interests are relatively broad, in that I consume history, geography, science, language, media and other areas of study with glee. Like many people, though, I also enjoy my fair share of animated properties and serialized cartoons. I like them so much that I've decided to create a blogspot purely for the discussion and analysis of such media. My purpose with this website is creating an outlet to express my love of animation - and by extension, sharing that fondness with other individuals. I don't intend for this site to be the source of toxicity, and any questionable or non-cordial discussions will be dealt with. Nonetheless, I also intend for this blogspot to have open minded and fair critiques of a given show, film or other such media. Not everyone will agree with my personal assessments, and that's absolutely the point; To...