Category: Editorial

What’s Next for the Penguins of Madagascar?

Skipper has a secret not only in The Penguins of Madagascar cartoon series, but also the film…

The Penguins of Madagascar

Skipper has a secret in The Penguins of Madagascar, and it involves some kind of covert operation that has him in trouble with Danish authorities. Throughout the series, references to this mysterious past of the leader of the Penguins has been made. He was declared Public Enemy Number One in Denmark. This tease is not the only reason to keep viewers coming back for more, but instead, its their crazy slapstick antics that keeps this series fresh. This style of storytelling has managed to keep this Nickelodeon series going for three seasons, and as for whether or not a fourth will happen, that may be stalled whilst a theatrical movie, is being developed by Dreamworks Animation.

Hopefully the big screen treatment that’s tentatively scheduled for a 2015 release will not be a mirror of the television series. Sometimes,the humour wears itself thin because the shorts are more in league to an Animaniacs moment. But when the world of the penguins is expanded to include the lemurs from the animated movies, the diversity is great. That managed to carry the Madagascar films until it got worn thin. Alex the Lion’s journey is over and someone (most likely Marty the Zebra) has to take his place.

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Tron Legacy. The Franchise and The Future in Jeopardy

TRON Legacy expands the original’s digital mythos, exploring the dangers of perfectionism, the consequences of creation, and the search for meaning within a machine-made world. Beneath its dazzling neon visuals lies a story about legacy, responsibility, and the human spirit coded into every program.

Tron Legacy new IMAX PosterThe most enduring gift TRON gave pop culture is its glowing, neon aesthetic. Its CGI style still looks sleek today, and back then, who didn’t want to toss a glow-in-the-dark Frisbee? TRON Legacy takes that iconic look and pushes it even further.

Original creator Steven Lisberger tapped into the same space-fantasy energy that fueled a Star Wars generation. Swap out lightsabers for identity discs, and you’ve got familiar thrills. This sequel puts the spotlight on Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) and his long-lost father, Kevin (Jeff Bridges). When a mysterious page appears on Alan Bradley’s (Bruce Boxleitner) phone, Sam is pulled into the Grid—and straight into his father’s unfinished business.

Inside the digital world, both Flynns wrestle with pride and the fallout of trying to play God. Kevin set out to build a perfect system, only to unleash chaos—a Pandora’s box of his own making. His creation isn’t just rebelling; it craves recognition.

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Disney’s Gargoyles Season Two Volume Two is Hot! BUT….

Disney Movie Club is offering to their members the ability to purchase the much desired volume two release of season two of Disney’s Gargoyles!

Gargoyles DVD CoverSome fans of Disney’s Gargoyles can rejoice and others will lament. Disney Movie Club is offering to their members the ability to purchase the much desired volume two release of season two. But only residents of the United States can purchase this three-disc set at $19.99 USD.

The program is similar to Columbia House’s Music Club from a previous era, so let the consumer beware—more items must be purchased to fulfill this contract. While no date has been set for The Goliath Chronicles (Season Three), that may well take just as long, depending on how well sales go.

But if this company is going to limit the accessibility to this current video release by making this set an exclusive, they are only putting the proverbial nail in the coffin. Much like the cartoon about a clan of gargoyles seeking freedom and desiring to find a place to belong, this title is being tightly reigned. Some viewers might see this fine cartoon as an inspired epic in the same vein as many of Shakespeare’s historical and fantastical plays with a touch of Braveheart mixed in.

Show creator Greg Weisman reported back in 2006 that the video release for season two-volume two was cancelled due to lack sufficient sales of volume one. The initial season was short, but it helped establish the mythos that is of this world, where Oberon is the king of a third race–the faerie kind–and the Gargoyles are like Veritas, believers of truth and warriors of justice. The humans, well, they are hard to understand, much less trust.

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A New “Evolution” for Transformers Prime Beast Hunters?

These characters are better off posed to appear in the movie than the Transformers Prime series.

urlSpoiler alert

Just how many factions exist the Transformers universe? Originally, there were the Autobots and the Decepticons in a battle over which is the right way to herald a new Cybertron, but now with an ancient class of beasts resurrected, the Predacons might take center stage. That’s only if Megatron or Optimus Prime lets them.

In “Evolution,” Predaking shows that Darwin is right. The survival of the fittest is the only way to dominate, not rule. Megatron has lived by that adage for far too long. After Shockwave reveals the next stage of Project Predacon is well along the way, the Decepticon hierarchy fears reprisal when the dragon shows his true colours. The nameless dragon has finally taken a name, Predaking, much like how Megatron did in the Transformers: Exodus novel.

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The Struggle with Pac Man and the Ghostly Adventures is Real

Pac Man and the Ghostly Adventures is an update which may blink out much the same way. The title alone does not sound all that thrilling.

Pac Man and GangSpoiler alert

This year marks the return of Pac-Man, an iconic video-game character from the 80’s, in both animated and video-game form. While this character had his own cartoon back then, which was like a blip in the radar of animated cartoon history, Pac Man and the Ghostly Adventures is an update which may blink out much the same way. The title alone does not sound all that thrilling.

The episodes are being broadcast now on Disney XD in a bid to generate interest to buy the game that’s scheduled to be released sometime during the Fall of 2013. It will be available across all platforms, the Wii, Xbox 360, PS3 and 3DS.

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Star Trek: (Getting Deeper) Into Darkness, A Movie Review

If only Star Trek: Into Darkness was edited differently, it could have been a tale about Spock’s heroic journey.

Star Trek: Into Darkness PosterSpoiler alert

Star Trek: Into Darkness is a film that will no doubt have many fans wanting to make comparisons once the spoilers are known. By now, nearly everyone knows who the true villain is. This movie’s title card is enough to suggest the tone and direction. It’s to explore what drives men to do what they do. Sometimes that territory needs to be ventured into. And just where should the line be crossed?

The Prime Directive may be more than just a mandate to not interfere with fledgling civilizations, but in how culture gets developed. The intro is very Indiana Jones when Kirk and Bones are running away from some primitive tribe for reasons unexplained. Part of it may well do with causing a distraction so Spock can enter a volcano to save this tribe. But the plan has a few problems, and Kirk has to violate the Prime Directive to save his science officer.

In a plot that develops in one direction, the swing it makes is not necessarily politically driven. Some viewers may well read plenty of left-wing messages into this piece, but the way this film ends speaks for itself. Gone are the colorful suits the Federation that the classic and later TV series defined. When on duty, the standard red, blue and yellow are seen, but as for when they are presenting en masse, for the public to see, some viewers may well wonder what’s with the drab dark grey? Could J.J. Abrams version be a look in the mirror darkly? The first movie established the Spock from the original series universe does in fact exist. He chose to stay out of interfering in this canon’s timeline. As for what that means in this reboot as a whole, even this universe’s Spock is perplexed.

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