While I have never been a fan of M. Daze Shamarama, finding all of his previous works yawnworthy, the trailer for the live action version of The Last Airbender looks really good. I also enjoyed the award winning animation series it is based on, Avatar: The Last Airbender. And yes, I do watch select programs on Nickelodeon, and the Cartoon Network as well; I don’t want my inner child to evaporate from lack of sustenance. So I will be parked in front of a 3D big screen this weekend (doesn’t that trailer just scream 3D?) in the belief that they didn’t use up all of the interesting footage just to entice me to buy that ticket. If it really is as good as the trailer indicates it might be, I will even start identifying the director by his actual name, since he may have finally made a movie that doesn’t put me to sleep.
All forms of audio/video/text storage
There are a number of good choices this week, starting with one of my favorite TV shows: Eureka Season 3.5. Another good show from the same channel has its season 1 release as well, Warehouse 13. This is just in time to catch up with the previous season before the new seasons launch on July 6th and 9th, but also on the 9th they are launching a new Steven King TV series on Syfy, Haven.
While it wasn’t a traditional TV series but more of a Machinima, I am excited to note that Red vs Blue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles is being released this week as well. This box set DVD includes the complete first 5 seasons of this very funny and combat intensive program.
There are some good selections from the world of live action movies. Kicking off a new franchise that hopes to pull from the ranks of the Harry Potter phenomenon, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief was thoroughly enjoyable. Like Potter, the movie was based on the first of a series of books, so there is the promise of more fine adventures to come. Another good film is Hot Tub Time Machine, which surprised me in the theaters. I went in expecting just some silly fun, but there was a bit more depth than the trailer would lead you to believe.
On the Anime front, Gintama 2 continues the story of Edo-era Japan invaded by aliens who installed a spaceport and modern city in the 17th century. They also made it illegal for Samurai to use their swords, and put the majority of the population into sweatshops working for the alien masters. Our protagonists are a Samurai named Sakata Gintoki and his companions in the Yoruzuya Gin-chan odd jobs shop, taking any job from finding lost pets to saving the world to try to pay the rent. Also this week, the re-release of the Basilisk Complete Series box set Viridian Collection, making the classic Ninja Shogunate supernatural martial arts epic affordable again.
Out of the imported live action choices, Nine Girls and a Ghost appears to be a rather uneven high school wish fulfillment presentation that should entertain anyone in that age range. Likewise Samurai Avenger: Blind Wolf is targeting a limited demographic, the Samurai Cowboy Zombie Gorefest crossover fan base. It actually looks like it might just be campy enough to be entertaining, though. I can’t say the same thing for Ultimate Machine Girl, a release so underwhelming that no one at Rotten Tomatoes even bothered to review it.
When the original Green Hornet TV series used to air, in Japan and China it was rebroadcast under the title The Kato Show, because as far as everyone in Asia was concerned, Bruce Lee was the star of the program. Looking at the trailer for the new Green Hornet Movie it looks like they might be going down that same road again, with Jay Chou as Kato this time. Jay has made a number of excellent films in Hong Kong (including the frustrating Curse of the Golden Flower, where the only character left alive by the end of the film was the one guy you wanted to see dead from the beginning), but I believe this may be his first venture in an American move.
Welcome Back, Futurama! Last night they ran the first two brand new episodes, and I have to say they were every bit as funny as ever. That makes sense, since they are now part of the Comedy Central family of programs, which they alluded to right off the bat at the beginning of the first episode with some really bad puns.
While it has twice before been turned into TV Miniseries (one noticeably superior to the other), this time around Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles is being adapted for the big screen. Word is that John Davis, who had a hand in “Alien vs. Predator” and “I, Robot,” has optioned the film rights to the classic short story collection. While optioning the rights is not at all the same as actually making the movie, it is at least one of the first steps in that process, so I will be keeping my fingers crossed.
Some of the best movies going are graphic novels (comic books if you prefer) turned into film, and another great one is coming down the pike. Red was a 66 page graphic novel written by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner that will be hitting the big screen around October 15th. It has an amazing cast playing the retired CIA bored people out looking for a little excitement. Check out the trailer and mark your calendars.
Luc Besson strikes again! I still haven’t gotten to see his Les aventures extraordinaires d’Adèle Blanc-Sec, although the fact that clicking on the British flag on its home page gives you English subtitles on the trailer and web site encourages me that it might get released here soon. But in the meantime he will be releasing the third film in his Arthur series, Arthur 3: La Guerre des Deux Mondes, in October. These are a mix of 3D animation and live action children’s stories that started with Arthur and the Invisibles. Nothing groundbreaking here, but an interesting offering that demonstrates just how versatile Besson really is.