Mystery Archives | Otaku No Culture

Scoob! Without the Doo?

* Spoiler Alert

It’s not tough to know what the minds behind Scoob! are up to in this reboot of a beloved franchise. This modern update is a mixed bag, designed with moments to appease long-time fans and have a plot for dog-lovers to enjoy. Plus, there are a few in-jokes that pays tribute to this series’ humble beginnings.

This film serves to reintroduce the gang and set up the fact other Hanna-Barbera properties can come in. I’m all for the shared universe and hope to see Space Ghost!

In what I miss is the completely supernatural angle of the gang busting ghosts. Hopefully later films will address this shortcoming, but as for bringing Blue Falcon and Dynomutt in, the idea is not new; they’ve teamed up before. The idea in this story is to explore man’s relationship with their beloved canine between different series. The same rule is applied for Dastardly, but where’s Muttley?

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The Case of Hana and Alice Finally Arrives Sept 17th!

This movie examines how people perceive friendships. The ties that bind The Strange Case of Hana and Alice show when BFFs are truly that.

Shout Factory! & GKIDS

Release Date: Sept 17, 2019

Just how “Hana and Alice” met from the 2004 live action film of the same name was revealed in 2015 in the anime The Strange Case of Hana and Alice (花とアリス殺人事件). Although fans of Shunji Iwai‘s original work did not expect him to produce a prequel, I’m sure this deeper look into the trials and tribulations of what these young women faced during their developing friendship is welcomed. No knowledge of the prior movie is needed in a mostly Shōjo product. I was curious because of the suggestion of the paranormal becoming involved, and a murder mystery is always great to get the attention of viewers not into this subgenre.

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[VFF2019] Beware of What 13 Dead Dreams may Come!

$13 Dead Dreams of \"Eugene\"$ Location:
Metro Studio Theatre
(Fringe Venue 3)
1411 Quadra Street

Remaining Shows:
Aug 31 05:30 pm
Sep 01 02:00 pm

13 Dead Dreams of “Eugene” could not be any more timely. Hot on the heels of the cinematic adaptation of Scary Tales to Tell in the Dark, Fringe theatre goers can have the thrill of experiencing a shadow play and trying to solve a mystery in the grand tradition of Alfred Hitchcock‘s best whodunits (the poster design is heavily inspired from Vertigo) and Man Ray‘s surrealist works. Technical spoiler alert: most of the projections are common objects that show creators Erika Kate MacDonald and Paul Strickland found in the kitchen. This duo offers a song and dance in between separate narratives such as “Water Under the Bridge” and “Mummy of Sabina, Ohio.”

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Guess Who’s Coming to Scooby-Doo?

Hana and Alice By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Available on Boomerang
Broadcasting on Cartoon Network beginning July 8, 2019

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? is out and about! This new Cartoon Network series has two episodes available and I am hooked! I’m glad the experiment known as Be Cool Scooby-Doo is finished. The stories were okay but to reimagine the gang Calarts style was not for me. I’d rather rewatch A Pup Named Scooby-Doo instead. I can hear and appreciate the voices, but it did not flow well with the visuals.

The character designs and work by Iwao Takamoto defined everything I adored throughout the decades. I believe nostalgia plays an important factor in this franchise otherwise why bother? In what’s enjoyable with the new series is that it not only is it a light reimagining of the main characters Fred, Velma, Daphne, Shaggy, and Scooby, but also the dynamics that defined many a show get a nudge too. That is, we see them react much like they did in What’s New Scooby-Doo?

Plus, this series is bringing the catalogue of past Hanna Barbera properties and celebrity friends they know, like Batman! The New Scooby-Doo Movies (1972-4) was the most memorable and Guess Who? borrows from this run.

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I Choose You, Detective Pikachu! A Movie Review

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Loosely based on the video game of the same name, Detective Pikachu is a fun romp breathing new life to the Pokėmon franchise. The eagle eyed can try identifying every pocket monster featured and the enthusiast will giggle at the Easter eggs riddled throughout. When detective Harry Goodman is believed to be dead, his 21-year-old son Tim (Justice Smith) arrives in Ryme City to settle his father’s affairs–but learns that maybe pops is not gone. When he finds a Pikachu in his father’s abode and he can talk (voiced by Ryan Reynolds), they team up to see all is not harmonious with man and pokémon.

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Morning in America, A Supernatural Tale by Oni Press

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Exclusive cover to release
at Emerald City Comic Con 2019
* Released March 6, 2019
Spoiler Alert

Oni Press‘ comic Morning in America introduces a new gang of problem solvers, The Sick Sisters, and they have to figure out what’s going on in their hometown of Tucker, Ohio. Nancy, Ashley, Ellen and Veronica are a tight group of misfits. They have plenty to worry about. If they are not careful, they can be sent to detention hall fast. High school life is rough, but the terrors they will have to soon face will be tougher.

With the first issue, monsters flit about in the night and carry away their victims to somewhere. Nancy is told this incident when selling cigarettes to another punk kid, but she has a hard time believing. Things change when she overhears the police are doing nothing when she realizes this wave of disappearances is nothing to ignore. The bigger challenge is to convince her friends to go investigate. They have a good enough reason to: all high school kids are being targeted and they fear they could be next.

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