The Legend of Korra (First Impressions)

The legend continues...

I have to admit, once upon a time I totally dismissed Avatar: The Last Airbender before I even watched a whole episode. But really, can you blame me? An American cartoon borrowing crazy heavily from anime during a point when crappy faux anime was clogging up Saturday mornings may have caused me to already have doubts. Then you tell me it was done by Nickelodeon, a cartoon company best known for jokes involving slime, goo, or some other gross-out humour, and you may get why my expectations were so low for this show. So you can imagine how my expectations were thoroughly dashed once my friend actually forced me to watch the first couple episodes. Quite simply, I fell in love.  The adventures of Avatar Aang and his quest to learn all the elements to defeat an evil dictator was epic, fun and skillfully crafted to create many memorable characters and moments. The animation, the voice work, the music, the backgrounds, the humour, the choreography: all of the elements came together (pun intended) to make one of the biggest breaths of fresh air in a long time for action cartoons. And one of the best things about the series? It ended. Unlike many other western cartoons (and western television in general, actually) it didn't continue until it was unprofitable and stale. There was a set beginning, middle and end, and it all was so skillfully planned and paced. But of course since the show got so popular, Nickelodeon couldn't let go of such a hot property. So how in the world do you follow such a great show?

...with a horrible live-action movie by M. Night Shyamalan, of course!

Curse you Shyamalamadingdong!!

But ignoring that mess (and I believe that's just what Avatar: The Last Airbender creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko did) it was only a matter of time before we revisited this amazing world. And luckily that's just what we get in this sequel series, The Legend of Korra (now dropping the "Avatar" title. Thanks for nothing, James Cameron.) Taking place 70 years after the original show, The Legend of Korra feels like a wonderful jumping on point for newcomers, but for veteran fans of the show it feels just like like coming home to family. 

Korra: Badass in training

Thus far I've only seen the first two episodes: Welcome to Republic City and A Leif in the Wind. What I've noticed most about these two episodes is that it does something all good sequels should do; it should seem familiar, yet different. And familiarity shouldn't be limited to characters and setting, but in theme and tone as well. While there are many references to old character and plot points for fans, the series wisely chose to focus on the new characters such as Korra and the airbender Tenzin (Aang's son, who now has a quirky, energetic and ever growing family.) Actually, so far only one character from the original show is even present. And honestly, that's all that's needed because these new characters are so likeable and have so many ties with the old cast of characters (both actually and thematically) that they are instantly a cast I'm invested in.

Pro bending: another new addition to the world of Avatar

What I'm mostly happy to say is that this series still has the same feel of the old series, just slightly older and more mature and also (mostly) taking place in a completely new setting. There's still excellent character moments, wonderfully choreographed fights and even some oddball slapstick humour, but it's not just a rehash of the same plot with different characters. While the original series had Avatar Aang traveling all over the globe, the issues that Korra faces in this new series are much more centralized on one big city. Instead of fighting wars against nations, Korra has to fight crime and corruption. It's something new that the series hasn't tackled, and I can only imagine how things will progress. Even some of the world's style has evolved with the flow of time between shows. Having an apparent industrial revolution talking place in the past 70 years brings about a slew of new stylistic choices to the show such as having technology like radios and cars. Again, familiar because it's in the same world we know and love, but different with the progression of the world's technology.

The start of this series, in my opinion, couldn't have gone better artistically. Much like the show's tone, the art direction has only grown and matured over time, bringing to this series an even greater amount of detail in the art and animation. Quality voice actors have been thoughtfully brought in and casted (something I can't say for every Nickelodeon production.) And the music is still top notch, even having some sort of "Chinese jazz" being played in some of the city's segments. Very cool stuff indeed.

H'oh yeah. This is one good lookin' show

All in all, these two episodes left me wanting more and thinking about what's to come, which is exactly what good episodic storytelling should do. If you're an Avatar: The Last Airbender fan, I don't need to tell you to watch this. Heck, chances are you already have. But if you're new to the series, or in need of some refreshing and creative action/adventure animation, you'd be pretty hard pressed to find a show better than this one. It's a great jumping on point for new watchers, and hopefully it'll hook them enough to also go back and watch the wonder that is the original series as well. Welcome back Avatar! I greatly look forward to the adventures to come!

Highly recommended!

- Moo

The Lorax (A Review)

A feature of The Lorax, finally at last!

They're adapting a favorit book from my past!

To say I'm a fan of Seuss would be true,

I'm a master of fish counting, of both red and blue

(If you got that reference, you're a Seuss fan too!)

So I saw the flick, and it was a bad show

But to my surprise, only I thought so.

I puzzled and puzzled till my puzzler was sore.

This movie, I saw, was a total bore.

They padded the feature, yet shortened the best part!

And compared to the book, there was very little heart.

The message was muddled, the songs were a pain.

So much pointless cuteness, it damaged my brain,

To the point where I thought that I turned insane!

Yet, the audience liked it. This I cannot explain.

They liked the whole movie. They liked it a lot,

Despite the lame characters, and it's week plot,

They liked the villain, ripped straight from Captain Planet.

They even liked the obnoxiously fat bear, goddamn it!

Am I the only one who sees this as wrong?

Who's annoyed by the forcibly hip Once-ler song?

And also, The Lorax doesn't speak for the trees,

But trips to your iHop in new SUVs.

This movie was bad, but what to do now?

I must stop more tickets from selling...but how?

I have some issues with this film, it's true,

So allow me to rant in the following review

So much like the movie, I'll drop the rhyming scheme,

To better explain and show you what I mean...

Speaks for the trees, and new SUVs!

First of all, I'm not going to go into great length about the horrifically hypocritical marketing they've tied in with this film. Yes, ads have the Lorax, the spokes creature of all things environmental, advertising disposable diapers and SUVs, but I won't go into detail about that here. Instead, I'm focusing this review on the quality of the movie itself. But let me just say that if this movie does indeed speak for the trees, then they definitely need to hire a new translator.

Now for those not in the know, The Lorax is one of Dr. Seuss' less popular books, mostly because the book deals with a rather loud pro-environmental message and it does end on a bit of a downer. With those two things combined one would think a movie adaptation of The Lorax would be a bit of a hard sell, but hey! This is Hollywood! They'll adapt anything, and honestly that's not always a bad thing. Hell, when Disney adapted an amusement park ride we ended up with one hell of a nice Pirates movie. But there is a right and a wrong way to adapt things, and sadly Seuss' properties have never really transitioned all that well to feature films, with movies ranging from piss poor (Cat in the Hat) to "meh" (Horton Hears a Who, which was adapted to the big screen by the same guy who wrote The Lorax's script, Ken Daurio.)  The Lorax isn't the worst Dr. Seuss adaptation out there, but sadly it does get a bit more wrong then it does right.

One of the interesting aspects of the book is the fact that it's narrated by the story's antagonist, The Once-ler, to a blank slate of a young child, representing the reader. But since the movie needs to be lengthened to make it a respectable feature length, the obvious choice was not to expand on The Once-ler's story, but of the kid's side. So the kid is now given the name Ted (played by Zac Efron,) and his own conflicts outside of the original story. I have nothing wrong with this choice, making the actual "Lorax" story more of a story within a story. But as a result, the film creates a lot of really cool ideas with very little overall thought on how that changes the message and theme of the original.

Ted's town is designed well...maybe too well...

So about half of the movie is about young Ted, as he lives in his town of plastic and rubber, completely devoid of any actual plant life. And while it's cool to see the design of the town, and it is indeed a very cool design, I still have to ask "why should anyone care about trees?" Because honestly, this town looks bitchin' without real trees. Everyone seems to not only survive, but thrive without them in this town. The movie shows all the citizens having fun: downhill skiing, barbecuing, enjoying forgettable song and dance numbers (seriously, I'm having trouble remembering anything about the opening number.) The only downside is people in this town need to buy their fresh air "Spaceballs" style from a rich air tycoon named O'Hare (who of course is a villain who is laughably short, has a Napoleon complex, and whose major character trait is an unreasonably unquenchable greed. What? Were you expecting some sort of originality? Too bad!) And really, this air transaction is hardly viewed as a nuisance, and even further from being an actual problem. No one is having issues paying for air. There isn't an air shortage. So again, why should we care that this town has no trees?

Hey baby! I'd like to plant my roots into you anyday!

Because young Ted has the hots for his neighbour, that's why! And his neighbour Audrey (Taylor Swift)  seems to have a thing for truffula trees. But not for any environmentally conscious reasons, God no! She just...likes them...cause they look nice...and pretty...and they look good in murals. Again, the reason for needing trees is mighty paper thin. But nevertheless, wanting to score some sort of PG-rated action from this clichéd "girl next door" crush, Ted goes off to look for any news on how to get a truffula tree. Which leads him to the wasteland out of town and the old Once-ler (played with surprisingly enjoyable "shut-in" quirkiness by Ed Helms) who begins to tell him the tragic story of him and the gardian of the trees, The Lorax. Which finally leads us to the events in the book...sort of...

In the flash back, the Once-ler is somewhat changed as well. First of all giving him a face (guess it was too hard to leave him in the shadows for the whole movie,) then making him a "cool" guitar-slinging teen for the older demographic, then finally adding a one-demential overbaring mother. It mostly felt like filler to me, but then we actually got to the valley where the Once-ler first lays eyes on the tuffula trees and oh man! Speaking of filler, let's talk about the cute animals!

The fat bear eats more cuz he's fat! LOLOLOLOLOLO!!

Cuteness is a powerful tool. It can melt hearts, make you laugh, and create memorable moments. What I noticed most people mention when they say they've enjoyed this movie was "it was cute." And I won't deny the cuteness of the animals; I'm not made of stone. But there was no substance to the cuteness. It was cute for the sake of being cute, and that's it. I don't mind a little of that, but this movie, oh man, it was a cuteness overload to the point of being obnoxious. Every shot in the Once-ler's story had to have some sort of animal gag in it. Weather it be the cute squawking birds, the harmonizing fish, or the fat bear....ohhhh, how I loathed that fat bear. After two Kung-Fu Panda movies I thought animated features would be sick of fat jokes; how wrong I was. But maybe I should've seen this coming. This movie is done by the same folks that did Despicable Me: a movie (and upcoming sequel) whose whole advertising campaign consisted of frickin' adorable high-pitched yellow things being adorable. And did anyone else notice the fishes in The Lorax having the exact same squeaky voices as Despicable Me's minons? Just sayin'.

You may have noticed my review of The Lorax so far has been rather sparse on any mention of the actual Lorax (who was fittingly voiced by Danny DeVito.) That's because while the book mostly involved a constant back and forth debate between the eager corporate Once-ler and the nagging, tree-hugging Lorax, the movie mostly involves Lorax just bugging the Once-ler. Bugging, and pestering and trying an oddly cruel scheme to rid the Once-ler from the valley.  Yet the Lorax never really gives him a solid reason for not chopping down the trees. He warns that cutting down trees is bad, and he should stop doing it, but doesn't give him reasons. That's what made the book compelling! The book didn't talk down at its kid-centered audience, or try to distract them with lame animal gags; it addressed the issues of deforestation in a straight forward and creative way, letting both sides have a back and forth discourse until the situation got out of hand. Most of the events of the book (the expanding of the Once-ler's shop and the individual goodbyes to all the wildlife) happens within the course of a 3 minute song (called "How Bad Can I Be? ...very subtle movie...) I guess instead of bringing up intelligent points about deforestation and the economy, we needed more forced visual gags with the cute forest critters. The whole result seems oddly paced: padded and stretched at the beginning and end, and then rushed in the middle to get most of the book's events over in 3 minutes.

The Lorax: photoed here being mildly displeased.
I know that feeling, bro.

If you think I'm being overly critical of this movie, it's probably because I know that there is a right way to adapt The Lorax. In fact, that version was already made in 1972. It was produced by Looney Tunes veteran Friz Freleng and Dr. Seuss himself, and as a result it just felt more...well..."Seussy." The cartoon kept a lot of elements that the 2012 version seemed to scoff at, such as fun rhyming schemes and Seuss' trademark nonsensical logic. For example, the only time I heard the Lorax call the bears "barbaloots" in the 2012 version was shamefully under his breath, almost as if it was a swear. And while there was some rhyming in the 2012 version, most every time they tried to fit in a rhyming scheme the "hip" characters would shrug it off, as if this juvenile nursery rhyme stuff was beneath them.

The 1972 version: with 98% more rhymes and 20% more wah-wah guitars.

The 1972 cartoon, however, embraced the elements that made Seuss great, and to top it all off it only ran under 30 minutes, and hell, even that felt stretched with songs and such (not stretched nearly to the extent of the 2012 version.) But at least the 1972 version was faithful, keeping all the major plot points that needed to be hit. Again, I have nothing wrong with lengthening the story, giving the Ted character and his plastic town its own arc and even ending the film with a more lighthearted note, but their execution of these ideas were sloppy. Much like the Once-ler getting caught up in expanding his business that he fails to consider the consequences, it felt like the writers were in such a rush to make this movie longer that they didn't stop to think about the pacing or more importantly the impact of the film's message.

I hate to be such a downer on a movie that is actually trying to get a worthwhile message to children, and from what I'm understanding kids are getting some degree of environmental education from this film. But from where I stand, the message in this film feels neutered and only a fraction of what it could have been. Which is a shame, because when the film finally slows down from it's A.D.D. pacing and takes in a quite moment, the animation takes over for some very powerful scenes. Moments like when Ted first ventures out into the deforested wasteland, or the first and last truffula trees being chopped down. The film is great at wringing out every ounce of emotion in these parts. But those are only fleeting moments in an otherwise mucky film. This movie could have been a truly powerful force of nature, but instead it's just a very week, very soft reminder that trees are good because...well, because the film said so, that's why.

And then I thought a thought I didn't think before,

Maybe this movie sucks, because I know more.

I've seen the original and what it can do

Making my view on this film all wonky and askew.

This film has made millions, what else can I say?

The people have spoken, they're willing to pay.

I'm fine with their choices, I'll speak what I please

About this week movie that "speaks for the trees."

So what if the masses are in love with this flick,

I'm happy ranting and raving and being a dick.

2/5

- Moo

The Simpsons Reach 500!

Despite my feelings for the show over the past years, you gotta give props to The Simpsons for making it to 500 episodes. Seriously, that’s an amazing achievement that almost dazzles the mind. How was the episode in question? …meh…but hell, they even had a preemptive message for that…

Touchée Simpsons. So instead of the usual critizings I do, let me just say congrats to the yellow family. Like Troy McClure said, “who knows what adventures they’ll have between now and the time the show becomes unprofitable.”

- Moo

The Secret World of Arrietty (A Review)

Whimsical...I've really overused that word to describe Studio Ghibli films... but damn it! Seeing as how I've misplaced my thesaurus, I'll just go on and say it. The Secret World of Arrietty is one frickin' whimsical piece 'o film!

The mere fact that I see posters for this movie fills me with joy

I have so much to thank Hayao Miyazaki and John Lasseter for. Miyazaki for making such fantastical films, and Lasseter for bringing these gems to western audiences. The Secret World of Arrietty is the latest film to pop up from Miyazaki and the hard working folks at Studio Ghibli, and it's everything you'd expect from a Studio Ghibli film in terms of quality. And with Arrietty, Lasseter and Disney are making the biggest push yet for a theatrical release of a Ghibli film outside of Japan (1200 screens in the US alone.) From a producer's standpoint it might be seen as a bit of a gamble, not only because it's a foreign film, but also because it's a 2D animated film in a culture where currently CG toons reign supreme. But Disney has faith this film will do well with western audiences, and after seeing the film myself I would to. Simply put, it's up there with some of Studio Ghibli's best works yet, and that truly is saying something.


First, just a quick note about dubs. I know this film isn't exactly new, having been released in 2010 in it's original Japanese. I also know that some theatres had a choice between the Americanized dub or Japanese with subtitles. Now, normally with anime I'm a "subs b4 dubs" kind of guy, but with a limited release like this I only had the option for the dubbed version where I'm living, so that's the version I'm reviewing. That being said, Ghibli is known to put extra time and effort into quality dubbing, and the voices here (for the most part) weren't distracting and actually fit the characters quite well. Apparently there's also a dub featuring UK voice actors, and I'd be interested to see that version as well as the original Japanese in the future. Now, let's get on with the film!

This picture practically oozes whimsy!

They really couldn't have picked a better source material to push to western audiences. The story is loosely based on the much loved book by Mary Norton, The Borrowers, about a race of miniature people who live in houses and take small things that human's won't notice missing in order to survive. It's a source material many western audiences would have already known growing up, and as luck would have it, it also happens to fit Ghibli's whimsical (there's that word again) style like a glove. 

In just the couple of minutes we're introduced to our titular character, Arrietty, and she is chock full of the type of zest and charm that Ghibli is known for when portraying their heroines. Soon we meet her family: the worry-sick mother and stoic father. And again, I'm reminded of why Ghibli is just a master when is comes to characters, because I instantly love this miniature family. Ghibli knows how to combine a solid script with top notch character animation, making these characters really seem unique, quirky and special. And even though the cast is small (no pun intented) it goes on to give every character a moment to shine, like meddlesome caretaker Hara, her chubby cat, or the wild borrower, Spiller. Shawn, the human boy character was the only character who took me a bit of time to warm up to, but I think that's mainly due to the dubbing, making some of his earlier lines walk a line between charming and creepy. But hey! Without spoiling anything, it's hard not to feel for the guy by the time the end credits roll.

And everybody's jealous of Arrietty's whimsical room

The tone of the film is any interesting one. It's not exactly an "action packed adventure" like Ghibli's Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke, nor is it the graceful, daydream-like pace of My Neighbor Totoro: it's somewhere in between the two. It's a good balance that I feel will appeal to a wide range of people, having quiet moments about loneliness and friendship balanced out with a fight for survival in epic miniature proportions. All of this is wrapped up in a beautiful package. The backgrounds look painstakingly beautiful (especially when seeing the grass and plants from the miniature size of a borrower.) The music is warm and lighthearted. It makes it hard not to get sucked into this tiny world.

If it's being shown where you are, I highly suggest checking this one out in theatres, not only to promote foreign animation, but to show Disney that there is still in fact a market for quality 2D works. This is a true gem for family films. The story is wonderfully heartwarming, and it's a welcome change of pace from the onslaught of American done animated features both in terms of tone and hand drawn beauty. Every element is a joy, and it all works together to make this a charming and magical little story. (That time the pun was intended.)

4.5/5

- Moo

Valentoons

Love it or hate it, Valentines Day is here again! And what better thing to do with your loved one then to sit around Feb 14 and watch some heart warming animated goodies. 

I certainly can’t think of anything better to do. Other than going dancing, going out for a romantic walk, making a special home cooked dinner, or having seeeeee…conds of said delicious homecooked meal. Regardless, I love to love some lovely cartoons about love with my lovely lover. (Love.) So here I present some Cupid-approved cartoons for you and your hunnybun, smoochy-poo or snuggly bear to watch on this V-tines Day. No need to thank me.

Pepé Le Pew

Here’s the thing. If it wasn’t for his natural stink, I think Pepé would actually be quite a catch. I mean he’s romantic, suave, dramatic, spontaneous, and persistant….well, ok, maybe a little too persistant. Yeah, leave it to Looney Tunes to make even sexual harassment hilarious. But seriously though, if you and your partner love to watch endless flirtations and unrequited love with hilarious results, you can’t go wrong with a dashing french skunk and a cat that has a knack for getting a white line painted on her in numerous creative fashions. And hey! It’s a good lesson for the guys too. Guys, it doesn’t matter how great of a man you are; never underestimate the powers of personal hygiene. 

Great Pepé cartoons include A Scent of the Matterhorn and Little Beau Pepé.

Lady and the Tramp

True, many golden-age Disney stuff has to do with love, or finding love, or being in love, but instead of heading straight to one of the many princess movies Disney has, I’m choosing Lady and the Tramp for the most romantic. That’s right. The one with the dogs and the spagetti. Why? Well, in my opinion, it’s the most complete love story. Many of the classic princess movies have the princess long for Prince Bland (honestly, they’re pretty interchangeable) and eventually they wind up together. But Lady and the Tramp? The whole movie is about their love! You see both sides meet, start off not liking each other, then overtime their love blossoming. It’s probably the most developed romantic relationship that ol’ Walt actually worked on. Plus, who doesn’t want to accidentally kiss their sweetheart while being serenaded by a glorious Italian stereotype? That’s romance, baby!

Arnold’s Valentine

Hey Arnold was one of those shows where the main character wasn’t the reason why you watched the show. I mean, sure, Arnold’s a nice kid, but the real draw was the character of Helga. She was interesting, and also what made the show memorable. Her whole shtick was she was infatuated with Arnold (sometimes to the point of being an obsessive stalker) but didn’t know how to deal with those emotions, so she ended up bullying him. Some of the more memorable episodes dealt with her emotional conundrums, but the first one to take it a bit more seriously was Arnold’s Valentine. In it, Helga got an extreem makeover to disguise herself as Arnold’s french penpal in a hope to express her true feelings for him, while at the same time Arnold has to split his night with the disguised Helga, and a date he set up with his elementary school crush. The result is both classic sit-com hilarity, as well as a strangely mature and poignent statement about love and crushes. Especially for a kid’s show in the 90s. And for Nickelodeon. If you haven’t seen it, or it’s been a while since you’ve seen it, I say check this one out. 

WALL-E

Robots in love. Let me repeat that: ROBOTS IN LOVE! It’s hard to think of a concept for a movie cuter than that. Also happening to be one of my favorite movies of all time for it’s script, sound design, animation, as well as simply having a feature length movie with hardly any dialogue, this film also get the nod for being one of the best animated love stories of all time. It’s still too young of a movie to say, but I really do hope the “define dancing” scene from this movie goes down in history as one of the most iconic scenes in animation. Do I really need to say anymore? If you have a heart, it will be melted by the time the credits roll on this one. See it with your significant other, then get ready for some extreem cuddling. Thank you, Pixar!

Happy V-tines, all!

- Moo

Top 10 Animated Dragons

Sooo, I’m a little late on this one, but nevertheless: Happy Chinese New Year everyone!! 2012 marks the Year of the Dragon! Probably the coolest of all the Chinese zodiac signs (sorry pig and rat.) So what better way to ring in the new year for all my Chinese reader (you know who you are,) by counted down my list of the top 10 animated dragons!! 

(Honorary mention goes to Dragonite from Pokémon, photoed here being a total boss.)

10) Elliot (Pete’s Dragon)

Honestly, I always found this movie pretty dull as a kid. It was slow, boring, and pretty sappy. But I watched it anyway. Why? Because there’s a sweet-ass animated dragon that only the main character can see! Plus, Elliot here’s animated by famed animator Don Bluth before his departure from Disney. That’s pretty frickin’ cool. And honestly, what kid wouldn’t want their own personal invisible cartoon dragon? Boring kids. That’s who. The kind whose favorite ice cream flavor is vanilla and who actually enjoy the plot of Pete’s Dragon. 

9) Puff (Puff the Magic Dragon)

Originally a hippy-dippy sing-along song, later turned into a hippy-dippy animated movie. He’s often confused with our number ten spot, Elliot, but I feel Puff gets the edge over him for two reasons. One: he has a bow tie, and that’s just plain classy. And two: pretty sure he’s high, which is funny. If he’s not, then his parents certainly were when they named him “Puff.” That would also explain why his hair kinda looks like pot. 

8) Mushu (Mulan)

The first actual Chinese dragon to hit this list, Mushu here’s kind of a mixed bag. He’s a dragon, yes, but he’s also puny. He did a pretty good job being the tokin comic relief in Disney’s Mulan. I mean, he’s pretty much just Eddie Murphy as a dragon. That’s pretty cool. But on the other hand…he’s just Eddie Murphy as a dragon…hrmm… Like I said, it’s a mixed bag. 

7) Dragon (Shrek)

The dragon creatively named “Dragon” was first used as a big second act set piece in the first Shrek movie, then later as a reoccurring character in a franchise that’s slightly overstaying its welcome. She deserves a spot on this list, not just for being kick-ass, but for also reppin’ lady dragons everywhere. Although the weird thing is Dragon gets “bizz-ay” with Eddie Murphy’s Donkey character, producing three little adorable dragon/donkey abominations. Man! Eddie Murphy mustreally like dragons…ehhh, it’s probably best not to think about it too much…

6) That Dragon From Beowulf (Beowulf)

Sometimes just being really, really, really, really badass is enough reason to make it on a list. This dragon acts as the final act in the 2007 mo-capathon film directed by Robert Zemeckis. The film kinda falls into that category of looking soooo realistic at the time, but just kinda looks like standard stuff CG now (along with Polar Express and Final Fantasy: Spirits Within.) But what does hold up is this dragon and the epic fight old man Beowulf has with it. When you think about what a classic dragon should be, think of this sucker. He’s classic dragon all the way. 

5) Draco (Dragonheart)

Yes he’s old CG in a live action movie. Doesn’t matter. Wanna know why? It’s Sean Connery as a dragon… Let me repeat that again. It’s Sean Connery as adragon. Nuff said.

4) Toothless (How to Train Your Dragon)

Remember when I was talking about Elliot from Pete’s Dragon? And how cool it would be to have a personal dragon as your best bud? You know what would be cooler than that? A freakin’ kick-ass dragon who’s crazy fast, a powerful fighter, is feared by all, and let’s you ride him. And on top of that, when you feed him he acts like a kitty cat. Sign me up movie! I want to live in your world!

3) Trogdor the Burninator (Homestar Runner)

Sometimes, you don’t need to look proportionally accurate to be awesome. Sometimes all you need is a S shaped body, consummate V’s, and a big beefy arm stickin’ out of the back of your neck to strike fear into the hearts of peasants and to have kickin’ rock songs about you. Trogdor’s popularity sky rocketed during the mid 2000s as one of the internet’s earlier inside jokes, getting so popular to have his own adventure game, and his song appearing in Guitar Hero II. Way to go, Burninator. Way to go. 

2) Smaug (The Hobbit)

Ohhhh, ho ho! We’re certainly getting in to the heavy hitters now. While we still have to wait until we get a glimpse of Peter Jackson’s version of this Tolkin terror, Smaug has already had his big screen debut in the 1977 Rankin/Bass animated film. True, this isn’t exactly how I pictured this big baddy, what with the Thundercat-like face and the headlight-like eye beams, but still! With his booming voice (by Richard Boone) and all the great hype the film gives to this character, it’s hard to deny how cool he is. This is a dragon you don’t want to mess with. Honestly, there’s only one dragon that I think could give ol’ Smaug a run for his money…

1) Shenron (Dragon Ball) 

With all the fighting, powering up, grunting, yelling, and more powering up that the series is known for, it’s not uncommon to forget about the dragon that the titular balls are named for. Known as Shenron, the summoning of this dragon was the main MacGuffin of the original Dragon Ball series. And even while it was used more as a side element in Dragon Ball Z (really only being used as a means to get dead characters back into the show) you got to admit that even though the cast has summoned this guy time and time again, his presence was always a big deal. I mean, just look at the guy! Apart from being just so impossibly massive, this dragon also has the power to do…well…anything! He’s pretty much dragon God, and deserves to be number one atop this list. 

I hope you all enjoyed this list. Happy Year of the Dragon, everyone!

- Moo

Thoughts on The Oscars: 2012

Ok, just a quick thing on the Oscar noms for best animated feature in 2012. The nominations are A Cat in Paris, Chico and Rita, Kung Fu Panda 2, Puss in Boots, and Rango. 

Here’s my thoughts. First of all, let’s touch on the movies that didn’t make it. I’m glad Cars 2 didn’t slip on by this year, even with their previous Pixar cred. That movie was bad, and maybe it’ll be a nice wakeup call to Pixar. Winnie the Poohis sadly missing, which is another blow to Disney continuing hard-drawn animation. That’s a bit of a shame; I wish it took the place of one of the Dreamworks movies. Tintin is probably the biggest surprise though, having it already won the Golden Globe for animation. While lots of the animation community is happy it’s not there, stating how motion capture isn’t true animation so it shouldn’t even be considered for the category, I still think it should have been up there (again, instead of one of the Dreamworks movies.) And either way, I think it just wasn’t nominated based on it’s merit as a film, and not because of the use of mo-cap. So anti mo-cap people: you can take this as a victory if you want, but at the end of the day I’m pretty sure Hollywood’s still going to qualify this as animation. So tough cookies.

I’m glad to see 2 indie flicks on there with A Cat in Paris and Chico and Rita. I’ll need to track those down as soon as I can. But at the end of the day, usually the mainstream still wins, so my money’s on the winner being Rango. It’s not a perfect film, but it was a great blend of something new with something old, and of course it looked amazing. We’ll see if I’m right come February. 

- Moo

(Also…”Man or Muppet” from The Muppets got nominated for best song…there is some good in the world…)