Yakuza: Like A Dragon

After all this time writing about my look at certain games, I ought to write about some of the games I have been playing. While I have several in mind, today I shall write about what makes this particular game work for me and what did not work. 

The game in question is:

This is the latest entry in the long-running Yakuza series and what is new about it aside from the new main character is the gameplay which was previously a beat-em-up with RPG elements to a turn-based RPG. Despite the change, I had plenty of fun with the game and feel that this is a close second in my personal rank for the games. For the record, 0 is my favorite but to be fair, I have not played Yakuza 3, 4 and 5 due to lack of time from my actual job. As the remastered collection is available on the Playstation Store and later in the year, Steam, I may get to those games. So for now, these are my thoughts. 

For the record, I played this on the Playstation 4 as the game is not available on Steam my region due to some kind of exclusivity deal. It does prevent me from enjoying the perks of a SSD to speed up load times.

What works:-

Characters

First point to address is that the main protagonist of the series up to this point, Kazuma Kiryu, is no longer the playable main protagonist in the series due to the events of Yakuza 6 (and that is all I will say about Kiryu for now). Our new protagonist of the series is one Ichiban Kasuga and let me just say it now: I love the guy and feel that he is a worthy successor as the leading protagonist moving forward.

Yes, he looks like Japanese Eric Andre. That joke has been made a million times by now

Unlike the stoic brooding bad-ass with a heart of gold and burning inner passion that is Kiryu, Ichiban is a good-natured expressive, optimistic, passionate and an all-around bombastic idiot, the kind of person who charges forth to help those he trusts and befriends with minimal thought to consequences but as the game depicts, can be competent and is savvy with the business practices of the yakuza life and soapland lifestyle. While I like Kiryu as he is, Ichiban's charisma and good nature often comes across throughout the game which wound up making me like him a lot as the main character of this game.

Part of Ichiban's background is that he is a gigantic Dragon Quest fanboy (yes, THAT Dragon Quest) to the point where it influences the way he fights and slight more significantly, introduces how he has a party of like-minded people accompanying him throughout the game. Yes, as a turn-based RPG, Yakuza: LAD introduces actual party mechanics to the series and for me personally, I am glad it did so.

While the outfits are DLC outfits, this is one of the few pictures I found online that has the business dimension's party member present.

Ichiban's party consists of the Hero, the tank, the mage, the healer, the assassin, the monk/martial artist(?) and the bonus ninja aka Ichiban Kasuga, Koichi Adachi, Yu Nanba, Saeko Mukoda, Han Joon-gi, Zhao Tianyou and Eri Katamaki (who is also voiced by said voice actress in the Japanese dub). One of the best parts of being part of a party is how the members interact with each other like a gang of friends who like to tease and fling shit at each other but will maintain camaraderie with each other and share opinions. The character writing in their banter during party chats found in the overworld are often a highlight and the fact that they join you for certain group activities is a nice touch (and yes, they do join in the karaoke).

How are the individual members? For me, they were fine individually though I had more fun with their banter and interactions with each other. A recurring element of these characters are how they are outcasts of society, except for business dimension's Eri, and probably due to that, they form a tight-knit camaraderie with each other that allows them to get through the adversities of life in the Yakuza/Ryu Ga Gotoku setting. Overall, they are a charming gang to adventure with.

Fun fact, Masumi Arakawa is voiced by George Takei. Oh my, indeed.

As for the major side-characters, I would say they are up to the standards of the series which is to say there are some stand-out characters, some average characters and some that seem to exist for the sake of having a hate sink (Looking at you, Kume you sack of fecal garbage!). Masumi Arakawa is a stand out character though does not have a lot of screen time in the actual story, outside of flashbacks, due to story reasons while the major antagonists are proper antagonists with little sympathetic traits, save for perhaps a select few. The other side characters in the side content serve their purposes and do well to highlight & flesh out the kind of person Ichiban is.

Overall, I enjoyed the characters along with their writing and look forward to see more of them. 

Side-Activities

One part of the Yakuza games that fails to disappoint are the side-activities. While certain open world games have a lot of side content, there is something about the Yakuza games that add on a touch of silliness to the whole thing and that is not including the actual silly side content. The usual gambling mini-games, Western and Japanese, are back here along with brand new ones like Dragon Kart (think Mario Kart except with adults in adult bodies firing rocket launchers at each other), can collecting (think Pac Man but more vagrancy) and business management. Ichiban's bombastic glee at some of these mini-games adds some extra charm to the activities.

The only thing more bizarre than the chicken who assists in battle is that pun.

As for side-activities like sub-stories, Yakuza: LAD does not disappoint in the slightest. While Kiryu reacts to the silliness in the setting with stoic bewilderment which makes for a nice contrast, Ichiban's expressiveness makes for funnier reactions to the bizarreness and hilarity of the setting. In order to maintain the viewer's curiosity, I will not describe any of the sub-stories but I will say that Yakuza: LAD is probably the most bizarre sub-stories in the series by a good margin, which in itself is bizarre given the series.

Story

I will not go into details about the story but I will say this is the most I have gotten into a Yakuza game's story since 0. While I generally enjoyed the stories of these games, I never did find myself motivated to continue playing for the story. Here, the crime story and the schemes surrounding it is compelling and I did not find myself rolling my eyes at certain plot points and events (looking at you, experimental rubber bullets). While there are plenty of contrivances like any main Yakuza story, I found myself being able to tolerate them due to the characters.

You can tell this part is going to be short seeing as I do not want to spoil anything so overall I will say this is a pretty good story that is propped up by the characters.

Gameplay

Fun fact for readers, the gameplay in the current game was a result of the unexpectedly positive reception that the studio received for their April Fools' gameplay video. Prior to this, the game was supposed to be the usual fare but said reception caused them to scrap most of their work and rework the game to its current state. While this has left some issues with the game which will be discussed below, it has created a game that is more accessible to those not used to the beat-em-up gameplay of the prior Yakuza games.

Fun-fact, the English version of the menu spells out S.E.G.A.

While the dynamic nature of the combat from previous games is not present, the turn-based system does allow for a degree of thoughtfulness in-game as you attempt to determine weaknesses, resistances, area-of-effect potential, status effects, weapon type, tag team abilities, summons to use, job exclusive abilities, inherited skills gained from levelling up certain jobs etc. There is quite a bit of thought put into battles which gets tougher as you progress in the story. Jobs play a huge role in this thoughtfulness as the further you level up a job class, the more abilities you can unlock for use which includes, as mentioned earlier, certain skills that can be used by all job classes (Here's a tip: Unlock the Foreman job class as soon as you can. There is a vital skill that is usable for overworld exploration).

Enemy placement is also relatively important as area-of-effect attacks are more effective if enemies bunch up together, Ichiban can use nearby items  (i.e the standard bicycle) to beat a particular enemy with and certain items can be kicked at an enemy if said item is in the way of the playable character and their target. Playable characters can also knock enemies onto the road where they can then be hit by passing traffic (Yes, in Yakuza: LAD, traffic hits you!).

Yes, this is a job that Ichiban can use.

One part that I found amusing throughout is that every turn-based battle in-game are actual fantasies that Ichiban comes up with every time which in turn ends up justifying how bizarre these fights get. In a cutscene you encounter early on, Ichiban and crew end up acknowledging the fact Ichiban is not seeing the same things they are seeing in dialogue but decide to play along with his fantasies if it motivates him.

An example of a random battle in this game is Ichiban fighting a group of men dressed up as trash bags while Ichiban is dressed up as a rapper and if the situation got desperate, Ichiban could summon a crayfish who then poisons your target for you. He could also be joined in battle by Nanba dressed up as a fortune teller, Adachi dressed up in riot gear and Saeko dressed up as an idol.

I am not making this up, these are actual features of the turn-based gameplay. 

Overall, I think this is an admirable first effort into this gameplay and while I do not mind them going back to the original gameplay of the previous games, I am open to them returning to the turn-based gameplay as long as they can improve it further.

What does not work:-

Gameplay

As I mentioned before, the RPG gameplay was a result of the development team scrapping their work due to the positive feedback received for their April Fools' video. That combined with how this is their first actual turn-based RPG results in what is an admirable first effort but at the same time, is still clearly a first effort. 

Fights with random enemies in the overworld tend to get repetitive and drawn out especially at lower levels. While there is an item that prevents enemies from spawning to mitigate this, running into low level enemies even when you out-level them can be tedious (especially on the PS4). 

Another part that does not quite work is the item interaction that I mentioned earlier. While the characters are able to interact as described, the player has no control over the party's positioning in the level. Due to this, many item interactions never actually work and more often than not, area-of-effect attacks may miss other enemies due to the enemies freely moving about while the player is unable to adjust their positioning. 

Grind tedium

While I did mention the battles do get tougher as the story progresses, certain boss fights may end up being too tough if you have been relying on experience gained from beating story enemies and bosses, meaning that grinding experience and job points in the overworld may not suffice. As such, the game can be grind heavy even with the right items equipped to boost experience gain.

While there are locations that provide significant experience gain, some readers may view this as a band-aid for a rather significant wound. I found the grind especially tedious when preparing myself for the game's bonus dungeon (which to be fair, is only available after completing the game's main story so there is that).

Final thoughts:

Overall, I had a far more enjoyable time with this game than I thought I would when I first saw the initial trailers. The fact that the Western release removed the New Game Plus DLC that was used in the original Japanese release is also a major point of praise for the game and Sega's Western division. I only ended up playing a few 2020 titles (Doom: Eternal, Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Wasteland 3) so out of those games, Yakuza: LAD stuck with me longer than the rest. 

I would not mind having a crack at this game in New Game Plus in the future but for now, I will be waiting for Disco Elysium: Final Cut. 

(VOICE ACTING PERSONALITIES FTW!)

What makes it work:

Characters

Side Activities

Story

Gameplay

What breaks it:

Gameplay

Grind tedium

Digimon Adventure tri - Bokura no Mirai

Well, the last film of the tri series came out a while ago. My thoughts: I think 02 was a better product than these films.

Before the reader proceeds to pursue me with an angry mob, hear me out. If the reader enjoyed the film and the series overall, more power to you. I am just expressing my own thoughts on the film from what I saw and as much as I want to be positive about it, doing so would be dishonest.

For this film, I will list out the positives for this film in particular before listing out the negatives. 

Positives:
The ending song. It's Butterfly except with the cast of the Digidestined singing the song with Koji Wada. It is a good song.

The death scene. I will not spoil on whose death it is but it is a pretty good scene simply due to how there are no verbally spoken parts for it.

Omegamon Merciful Mode. A new variation of Omegamon is always nice to see. Personally I prefer how Omegamon was introduced in Our War Game but this is tri and the former was a better movie. So I will take what I can get.


Negatives: (Yeah... There were only three I can safely say were positives)
No conclusion. For a finale for a movie series, there is a lack of conclusiveness to this film. After everything that has been going on for the last couple of movies, this one only wraps up the plot surrounding Meicoomon while leaving everything else dangling for future sequels. In fact, I will spoil the ones I am bothering to recall as I am pretty sure readers would have found ways to see the film by now (or want to know how this train-wreck will continue): 

Himekawa in the Dark Ocean, Dark Gennai still on the lose, the reason for the 02 kids being attacked, returning Digimon enemies as teased by Dark Gennai.

The fates of the 02 Digidestined. Well, this film finally reveals what happened to the 02 kids (and recalls that they existed). There were injured and locked away in tubes with the real Gennai in some location in the Digital World. That's it... Pretty lame for all of the build-up towards their fates. They don't even get proper shots of the 02 kids, just silhouettes.

Pacing. Again a recurring problem, this film has to move quickly to reach its conclusion. Events flow by quickly that certain facts or threads can or will be missed or have less emphasis placed on it. Case in point, the 02 kids. This could be remedied by having the plot slow down at points but aside from the quick pacing, the film also has filler at places. For instance, recurring scenes of military fighting the rogue Digimon in the real world or Digimon battles that all end the same way (even if there is sense for all that in-universe) throughout the first two-thirds of the film that all end the same way. 


Conclusion:
I admit that there are more faults and positives present but the film bored me so much that I could not be bothered and that to me, is the worst part of this film. It was just plain boring. If it was bad, I could rattle off point after point but for a film to leave me so bored out of my mind, it has to be a special kind of bad. Not awful bad but insignificant bad. I cannot even find the words to keep writing like I usually do and I doubt I would be able to write out my initial thoughts during my first viewing.

The worst thing about all this is that Toei is setting up a new animation project based on this series, meaning that most of these films were nothing more than teasers for the new project. It was nice to see the Digimon Adventure crew again but these films are a good reminder as to why good things have to end and stay that way. Better to end on a relatively, though divisive, high than to spoil it with nostalgia pandering.



As for actual films to watch, well Infinity War is pretty good. If the reader has not seen it, go ahead. It is an entertaining watch and the ending is a pretty decent break from the Marvel formula. 

Next time, either more of Mark Flavian, Anna Valerian or Crariewan's story. Flavian is reaching the end of his tale at least.

Digimon Adventure tri. 5: Kyousei

While I know it is tradition for me to write up a full post on these films due to previous installments, this movie did not grab me like prior films. In fact, I got easily distracted by other things. What movie you ask, O reader who did not read the title of the post?

Digimon Adventure tri. 5: Kyousei

Rather than do my usual points on what makes or breaks the film, I will mention what little I liked and disliked from the film due to how little it grabbed me. I am not opposing you if you did like the film, reader, I am stating why I did not find the movie engaging (unlike the excellent No Game, No Life Zero which you should be watching if you are in a country where it is released officially, reader).

Liked:

Unpredictability - The film's story was somewhat unpredictable with how it would go. While the previous film brought up a name familiar to fans of the Digimon series (that includes the various other materials it had), there were new elements (like a certain ocean) brought into the film that made it difficult to predict how the story would go. On the other hand, these new elements do add on questions that may end up being unanswered since at time of writing, I have been made aware that the next film will be the last of these films.

Digimon - Again, the Digimon were among the parts of these films I continue to like. Mostly because of how adorable they are and how amusing my nostalgic mind becomes when witnessing their antics. With the amnesia issue mostly a non-problem at this point (aside from lacking familiarity on certain things that they used to know), the Digimon are virtually similar to their pre-amnesia selves.

Characterization - One thing I did notice on my watch is that the characters appear to be adhering to the lessons they have learnt from previous films. Things like Tai's rational hesitance (rather than outright emo hesitance) and Joe's loyalty to friends did pop up from time to time. While part of me thinks that I probably noticed these traits because I was looking for something like that, it is nice if it was intentional as it does indicate adherence to advancing the character's growth.

Disliked:

Pacing - This has been a problem for these films due to being limited to average film lengths which means that at times, the story seems rushed. This film did seem rushed at times (even more so than previous films if the reader can believe that) in my viewing with events progressing fast that I found myself wondering how did the characters end up in one situation and then another. The time spent by the characters in the Digital and real world seemed rather rushed and unevenly paced.

Lack of Hikari - As posters seemingly indicated, the movie is supposed to be centered around Hikari and Mei which based on the end of this film does make sense (not going into that part because of wanting to avoid spoilers). The problem is that Hikari does not get any focus or character arc for the film. In fact, more attention is placed on Mei's angst over Meicoomon and the fact that Meicoomon may need to be put down. As a result, the end of the film lacked impact for me as Hikari barely got any focus to establish her character prior to her reaction towards the events of the ending.

Lack of a character dilemma - Part of these film's premise is how the characters would face a dilemma that they have to confront in order to mature and grow. The second and third film had those developments which made them watchable for me while the first set up the dilemma. The fourth, while placing less emphasis on this, did have a character dilemma for the characters centered upon (or rather one of them) which made it watchable for me too. This film did not have one, or rather had too much focus on Mei's plight that has continued from previous films. While her plight and angst is something one may face if placed in the same situation, it does mean that there are no character arcs or dilemmas to confront which made the film less enjoyable for me.

Lack of 02 -  Okay, now I am quite miffed about this. It is one thing for fans to disregard characters as non-canon out of preference (nothing wrong with that as long as those views are not brought out in official capacity or used to undermine the materials through misrepresentation) but it is another for the actual production to flat out ignore the characters of an official season entirely for 5 movies at this point. Where the heck are the 02 character at this point? Again, no clues are given and aside from an antagonist's usage of the Digimon Emperor's visage, there are no indications of the 02 team existing. In fact, the characters do not seem to acknowledge the 02 group nor do they wonder, at any point, where the group is.

Conclusion:

At this point, I am wondering if I should even watch the final film lest I encounter disappointment at left-hanging plot threads or excessively rushed pacing for the ending. I may watch it out of principle but I am not sure if I would enjoy the upcoming film. Here is hoping that I am proven wrong.

Digimon Adventure tri - Sōshitsu (Loss)

Well, this opinion post of mine is rather late. So here are my thoughts and opinions on the latest installment in Digimon Adventure tri.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/thumbnails/max1000x1500/cms/news/107644/digimon.jpg

Overall, I thought the film was okay. Not great but not bad either. It hits the right marks in some places and does not hit some in the others. Let me list out a couple of aspects I think the film got right and some that the film does not.

What makes it:

The amnesia - This aspect is peculiar here because on one hand, there are parts where the amnesia works well and others where it seems underdeveloped. I will be discussing what was done well. 

Unless you have not watched the previous film (in that case, why are you even here, reader?), let me bring you up to speed: Due to events in the previous film, the Digimon have lost all their memories of their human partners.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/62/Amnesia-The-Dark-Descent-Cover-Art.png

Unfitting image aside, what I did like is that none of the Digimon gravitated towards their partners right away and were somewhat intimidated by said partners who claimed to know them. It made for a unique situation where the human partners would have to earn the trust of their amnesiac friends rather than have the humans immediately gain the adoration and respect from them (a contrasting situation to how the DigiDestined first met their adoring Digimon). 

I also appreciated that the Digimon did not take the words of their partners at face value and that they actually doubted the veracity of their claims of friendship. After all, would anyone immediately trust a person who claimed to know them? This results in the DigiDestined needing to use differing approaches to earn back the trust and friendship of their partners (one that Takeru/T.K manages to figure out to his credit). Part of the charm here is watching the Digimon regain their trust and affection for their partners as they begin to understand and empathize with their respective partners, rebuilding bonds thought fragmented through a hard reset.

The battles - Or rather battle. It was decently animated (compared to the first installment of these films).

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f7/Digimon_Battle_Logo.jpg

The opponents here are a pleasant surprise to see since they were from the original series (hint hint) but they seem under-powered in comparison to their actual selves in the aforementioned series (then again, the main cast has matured and grown stronger far more at this point).

Mega evolutions - Seraphimon finally shows up and actually participates in a legitimate fight. And it. is pretty good. Nothing revolutionary but after the so-called movie (or rather Hurricane Touchdown), it is great to see Seraphimon in an actual fight. As for Phoenixmon, the build-up to it was decent as well since part of the film's focus lay on Sora and her relationship with her Digimon partner. Also, WARGREYMON'S BACK, FUCK YEAH!!!

http://www.zerochan.net/WarGreymon

Ahem... as the observant reader can tell, I am a huge fan of WarGreymon and will always feel elation at seeing that humanoid beast of perfection appear on screen in battles. So that's one bonus point for the film.

What breaks it

The amnesia - Now for the downside of the amnesia plot: Some of it feels under-utilised or like wasted potential due to the movie format of the show. With the amnesia, a lot of character moments and insight could have been made like how the humans would have felt from being unable to reconnect with their partners initially, how the Digimon would have felt about their partners and their claims, how frustrating it would be for some of the humans who can no longer discuss or reminisce with their amnesiac Digimon.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/Amnesiaamachineforpigscoverart.jpg

Sora's story with her own Digimon partner is the only part that actually explored that dynamic with a partner who attempts to distance herself from the former due to initial disassociation with her pre-amnesia self. The rest simply regain their affection for their partners rather quickly (though a nice touch is separating the pairs and mixing them around at one point which allows other characters to provide their own descriptions the Digimon's respective human partners). 

Lack of 02's presence - Okay, now this is starting to bug me. It is the fourth movie already and there is still no clue of the 02. While 02 has a bad reputation, it is starting to get annoying with how little they reference them. From the presence of the D3 Digivices and Ken's existence, it is clear 02 exists in continuity (ship sinking notwithstanding). They better have a big revelation for the next film.

Rushed pacing - My biggest problem with these films, and this one included, is the rushed pacing. What I mean by this is how quickly this film goes from the beginnings of a new adventure with new dilemmas to battling the antagonists. The sudden change in situations and plot points is one that often throws me off when watching these films. This is not a problem with the story of the films (in fact, the dilemmas faced by the protagonists are decent) but rather the format of these series of films. If tri was a regular animated series like the original series, pacing would not be an issue since there can be episodes dedicated to world-building, character establishment, setup for potential conflicts and more. In fact, gradual build-up was something that the old show did and as a result, the impact was greater and left a stronger impression. However, since tri are a series of movies, a lot has to be crammed into a relatively shorter run-time. Hence, pacing issues and subsequently, less build-up with less impact. While this is something others may be able to overlook, I feel that this is the one thing that drags these series of films down.

Summary:
Overall, it is alright. Not great but not bad, just a solid C+. I did not enjoy as much as the previous film though the revelations and the parts with WarGreymon were enjoyable. I do not recommend the film now since it ends on a cliffhanger as always plus it may be better to watch it once there is resolution to that cliffhanger.  

Some thoughts while watching:

• Okay, new Digimon film. Time to watch it!
• Hmm... good. They are pursuing the amnesia aspect of the story decently.
• Good approach to dealing with Tokomon, TK.
• Interesting... The story's focus is clearly on Sora.
• Interesting revelations on the Digimon Sovereigns.
• There's that name! I wonder if it will go All Out in the ending.

Doctor Strange.

To atone for not posting in one week of October, I will be releasing this post earlier than usual. This is also due to the fact I have already seen the latest Marvel film recently and so I need to write it all down before I forget. What is the latest Marvel film that came out? Why it is none other than:

Doctor Strange.

Full disclosure: I have no real knowledge of Doctor Strange so if some of my notions and thoughts on Doctor Strange seem uneducated or outright wrong, reader, you now know why this is the case.

What makes it:

Cumberbatch's acting. One part of the film I remember enjoying was Benedict Cumberbatch's performance as Doctor Stephen Strange.  In the film, he manages to portray the various states of life Strange is in a convincing manner, where we can see the arrogant high profile surgeon, the broken shell of a man, the naive but willing initiate, the know-it-all student, the reluctant hero and eventually, the experienced intermediate sorcerer in all of Cumberbatch's performance. The broken shell aspect was quite well done to me as it had the right amount of emotion put into it without seeming too unrealistic. What helps with my enjoyment of his performance is his own sarcastic jabs and remarks throughout the film but I presume my own enjoyment of those are a result of having seen Cumberbatch in Sherlock as the eponymous character and due to enjoying his performance in it, resulting in some bias. 

Decent effects. As the trailers indicate, there are plenty of special effects in the film. Then again when magic is involved in a film, some form of special effects are to be expected. The magic on display for the most part look nice while the reality shifting parts are quite nice to look at. The effects in a certain part are quite a sight to behold. The only problem is that the reality shifts are nothing too grand or have been done before i.e Inception. Still as far as features of this film go, the effects were decent.

The solution to the final conflict. To avoid spoilers, I will not say anything directly about the aforesaid solution but to me at least, it was a rather smart and creative approach when using certain kinds of magic. I do like it when magic of that nature is exploited correctly.

What breaks it:

Forgettable side characters. Aside from Cumberbatch, none of the characters struck out or were memorable to me. Somehow with all the discussions on magic and multiverses accompanied with tension and emotion, I never  gave any regard about any of the characters. The Ancient One was an average mentor type that served her purpose, Mordo did not register as anything more than a companion, Wong was simply present and Palmer was the token love interest that acts like a basic everyman. I get that the film is supposed to be the origin story of Doctor Strange but did it have to make the other characters forgettable and lacking in additional shown depth? It is a basic rule; show, don't tell. One should show the complex and thought-provoking aspects of a character rather than simply talk about it like with Mordo's background and the Ancient One's feats.

One nice thing to note here is that unlike most Marvel films, here the token romance ultimately fails. It might seem like a minor point to like but after watching so many Marvel films with token romances that pop up like crazy, it is somewhat refreshing to see a film where the protagonist does not get the love interest.

Forgettable antagonist. Along the lines of forgettable side characters is a forgettable antagonist like Kaecilius. While there are mentions of his tragic backstory and how it may have motivated him (which the viewer will have to pick up by themselves), he does not impress me as a villain and left little impact on me. His feats are standard villain fare with boosted powers from a darker source, his motivations are rather basic & shallow, and his underlings barely registered as characters. In fact, I could not even differentiate the underlings save for one who only stood out because of his death. Plus there is one more fact that I hesitate to state outright for fear of spoilers but I will say that it is linked to one type of chess piece. While the actor's performance was adequate for the most part, the villain here felt underwhelming as a whole.

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/o7MtfYoRvxo/maxresdefault.jpg and https://www.comicbookmovie.com/comics/marvel_comics/what-is-the-marvel-studios-formula-a133104

Recycled Marvel formula. While I am capable of excusing Marvel's recycled formula for making superhero films due to their entertainment value (i.e prologue with villain's feats shown; introduce protagonist and status quo; create situation that brings protagonist into fray; some form of training or character moment; action with protagonist's side not winning; some sort of sacrifice; protagonist rises up to the challenge; protagonist wins etc.), this film makes it difficult to ignore said formula. The film felt predictable to me with every progression of the story being something I could predict with little inaccuracy. It got to a point where I could predict plot twists and revelations of certain characters which usually does not bode well for most films.

In fact if I were to compare this film to another Marvel film, I would compare it to the first Thor film. In fact, this film and Thor left me with strikingly similar feelings of underwhelming satisfaction and entertainment. What does not help is that both films have similar plot threads like a haughty protagonist being brought down to their lowest, being allow to discover traits like virtue, the protagonist being called to handle a world-threatening crisis and the protagonist succeeding. While the formula may be an effective and safer approach to making Marvel film stories, it can result in the overall film's story becoming more predictable and less exciting. The formula here left me feeling only a little satisfaction as the entertainment value was not as high as previous Marvel films (like Civil War).

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PacingProblems

Pacing felt rushed. Another problem I had with the film is how fast the film felt. While there was time dedicated to showcasing the result of Stephen Strange's accident on himself and his personal life, the rest of the film felt rushed. After a rather brief training sequence, the film suddenly escalates to the point where Strange and Kaecilius finally meet and do battle. That part is then rushed through quite a bit to reach the point where the mentor performs a heroic sacrifice and after a rather brief inspirational talk with said deceased mentor, Strange proceeds to the film's final battle which is resolved fairly quickly too.

Parts that would have involved Strange learning about the type of magic used by the other sorcerers in detail feel like they were cut out, leaving a viewer like me with mixed feelings. While some training sequences in films can overstay their welcome in terms of length, it is advisable to go into some detail on these training sequences especially where magic, with its own set of rules, plays a major role in the film. The rest of the film just felt rushed as though the film could not stay put in a particular moment for too long. By the end of the film, I was quite surprise when the credits began to roll since it felt like the film only reached the halfway point.

Final thoughts:
The film, while competently made and watchable for the most part, was not as entertaining as the Marvel films prior to this one. As a result, I do not think that I would recommend giving the film a watch. While I was somewhat entertained by parts of the film, it was not a fulfilling experience even for a superhero film. While it did not bore me, it felt like watching a run-of-the-mill superhero flick like the first Thor film. Others have compared this to the first Iron Man flick which I can understand since this is another superhero origin film.

Digimon Adventure tri. 3: Kokuhaku

With all of my recent posts being about Vampire the Masquerade - Bloodlines, regular readers may be wondering what happened to my postings on anime and movies. As for new readers, I also do make posts about anime and movies at times. A while ago, I made some postings on the new Digimon movies expressing my thoughts on them. Due to a busy schedule and waning interest after watching the previous installments, I did not pay much attention to the release dates so I almost forgot about this one. Whoops.

Like before I will primarily use the Japanese names of the characters but may slip up from time to time in order to use the English names (plus some of the English names sound more fitting).

Anyways, here are my rather fresh thoughts on Digimon Adventure tri. 3: Kohuhaku along with what makes or breaks this film:

https://myanimelist.cdn-dena.com/images/anime/8/79511l.jpg

What makes it:

The serious tone. While I have criticized the angst of the previous film, this time I can praise it. With Meicoomon's murder of Leomon in the previous film and the events going on in this film along with the repercussions of said events, the serious dramatic tone that this film uses now feel appropriate. The teens are now aware of the increasing danger to their world and the presence of a virus that shifts Digimon behavior  which results in them finally acknowledging the severity of what they are facing.

• Refreshingly, Tai is no longer being overly angst ridden and acts more like a person than in previous instalments. He is still worried about the situation and is aware of the consequences but this time, he does not need to be dramatic about it and is able to confront the problems they face like his old self. There is even a nice call back to his original outfit.
• Koshiro's more colder and obsessed approach to solving the issue feels natural here due to the escalation of the situation. While he was harsh towards Meiko when interrogating her about the virus, the harshness is sensible as the infection could affect their trusted partners. At the end, he shifts to a more optimism-filled approach which is healthier for the character (though he may need to fix his Oolong Tea addiction before the inevitable epilogue).

The Digimon were a highlight to me in this particular film. While their interaction with their human partners are as adorable as ever, the film gives their interaction more poignant by having the virus slowly infect them as the film progresses. Unlike Takeru, once Patamon becomes aware of his own infection, he does the smart thing and warns the other Digimon about it while telling them to keep it a secret from the others as Takeru would want.

• The way they interacted with their partners after learning such a fact is reminiscent of people who are spending their last days with loved ones as they ask about their partners' lives  and futures (or in Agumon's case, confessing the truth to Taichi). Doing so builds up the tragedy when the Digimon finally lose their minds to the virus and eventually once fragments of their minds are restored, trap themselves in the distortion once the Digital World reboots itself. I am mature enough to admit that I felt a twinge of sadness during that part.
• Overall, I thought the Digimon were the highlights of this film and that the viewer would probably be more invested in them.

The battles (or rather battle) here actually got me invested unlike previous films  (where the only one that really caught my attention was Alphamon vs Omegamon). It helps that I got invested in the Digimon's situation as they struggle against the ever-progressing infection.

• Meicoomon's evolved form being able to take on almost all the champion forms was nothing special to me (I presume this is Diaboromon all over again where Meicoomon evolved to a Mega level of sorts) but what I did pay attention to was the Digimon turning on each other as the infection took hold. As per the norm, the uninfected Digimon are unwilling to hurt the infected but as a result, the infected are free to attack. Greymon evolving into MetalGreymon was nice for me since I have always been a huge fan of the Greymon line and it made sense in a tactical manner (MetalGreymon is an Ultimate unlike the rest who are just champions). I do question why Agumon did not evolve into WarGreymon to handle Meicoomon though.
• The animation here is alright.The animation was more fluid during the clashing and the models were not as off-model when compared to fights in previous films. As a whole, it was alright. Nothing great but getting a pass at least.

What breaks it:

The human characters here feel weaker and less memorable. While Taichi has improved from being filled with angst, the downside is that there is less focus since screen-time is dedicated to each of the characters rather than dedicating time for the featured characters, Takeru and Koshiro. As a result, the film feels unfocused when it came to handling the stories and developments of the human characters.

• With Takeru, there is a good attempt at characterisation as he breaks down over the realisation that Patamon is infected, calling back to his established trauma from Patamon's first death. While I was peeved that he decided to not warn anyone about this, the film did find a way to add it to his character when Meiko finally confesses about knowing more about Meicoomon, Takeru is able to remain calm and  understand why she maintained her secrecy.
• With Koshiro, it is not as well done. While there is a shift to how he approaches the problem, the change is not as visible and feels more like an informed attribute rather than actual change. There is a slight difference as the last part of the films indicate and his bond with Tentomon was well established.

The lack of any proper 02 revelation. This particular aspect of the films is bugging me even more now since this is the third film but there is still little mention of them. All that is done is a token attempt to investigate Ken Ichijouji that only takes up a couple of minutes before this plot point is ignored once more. After the previous film, I got the impression that this film is the one that goes into detail about what happened to the 02 crew but again, the film does not delve into the matter.

• Fans invested in 02 will probably find this lack of acknowledgement to be frustrating as a result. Personally, I am getting annoyed by the lack of acknowledgement at this point and hope that the next film actually addresses this issue. Even if the reader dislikes 02 (I personally care nothing for it so I neither like nor dislike it), continuity should be acknowledged at least.

Summary:

Compared to the previous two films, I actually liked this film. There are a lot of good parts here with not as many glaring flaws as before.

Thoughts (Spoiler-filled):

• Looks like Meicoomon is acting a lot like Diaboromon (or rather Keramon/Infermon) by disrupting electronics. Good on the pilots for making a successful emergency landing.

• Looks like the teacher (Daigo) is not complicit with that lady's (Maki) secret plans for Meicoomon.

• Nice to see that the effects of the previous episode is still on the minds of our protagonists. Betrayal and abandonment are not easy things to brush off.

• I always figured Meicoomon to be a Virus-type Digimon seeing how she reminds me of Guilmon. Hence, her turning evil was not as surprising to me.

• That is a rather depressing start.

• Now to finally get back to addressing the elephant in the room: What did happen to the 02 team? One other thing: Darn it, Ken! Stop putting on shades if it makes you turn evil!

• Also, some ship teasing because Takari shippers, still mourning over the ship not succeeding, needs more salt in their wounds.

• And now a reminder that the best characters of the show are still here. I like how Agumon is the only Digimon unaware of how inappropriate Tentomon was being when he brought up Meicoomon.

• Looks like there is some sort of super virus altering Digimon behaviour out there. Perhaps a derivative of D-Reaper that is attempting to assimilate rather than destroy?

• I know I have stated my opposition against dark, angst-ridden moods (especially from Taichi) that appear for no apparent reason but here, it makes sense that everyone would be down, cynical and moodier. The DigiDestined took a serious blow and watched someone's fellow Digimon turn evil before it killed a known ally of theirs. They are now aware of the gravity of the situation and have become more serious (unlike the previous parts where Taichi needlessly became filled with angst).

•  Yamato... do you have something to tell Taichi? That whole "darkness" aspect of the prophecy is making me think that the darkness they must delve into is the darkness of adult life.

• Looks like there is a dead zone in that airport... Way to enhance my own fears of flying there, movie...

• Ah... one cannot trust anything Maki says here with her implied hidden agenda in mind. Also, the movie managed to remember to portray Daigo as an unwilling participant in Maki's plans.

• Whoa... a lot of those kids are missing...

• Things sure are depressing for the DigiDestined... Meiko becoming a hikikomori and Koshiro overworking himself... It is not helped by all that rain.

• Team Sora to Meiko! With a decent call-back to Taichi's blunder with SkullGreymon.

• Team Jo to Koshiro! Nice to see Jo acting like a more mature version of his past self again. After his own depression with all of his stress, it is a relief to see him back to his old self once more.

• Looks like there will be an arc for Koshiro in this film.

• Looks like the infection does occur in real time when the Digimon are in the real world. I do hope Takeru becomes genre savvy enough to warn the others about it and not do the usual 'hide dangerous condition until it is too late' shtick. Then again, the writers in 02 did not really know how to handle Takeru's behavior with the trauma of Patamon's first death in mind so maybe they will be doing something more concrete here...

• Looks like Takeru will be causing this episode's conflict. This one at least has its roots in the trauma Takeru presumably suffers from as a result of Patamon's first death.

• It's like Old Yeller all over again... This will not be easy...

• Damn it, Takeru! Hiding such important situations from people never ends well in any situation in fiction!

• Looks like Sora's being established as the team's mother of sorts. Perhaps this is building up to her own arc in the future?

• A threat issued by an antagonist. Government agents tailing the Digmon. Hikari being possessed by something again. What else could happen?

• Ah... Nice to see Patamon is taking the more reasonable approach and actually telling his fellow Digimon about his infection.

• Hikari is giving out more exposition... Whoa, I'm so surprised.../s

• Quantum physics and multiverses! Too bad I am an amateur when it comes to quantum physics so I cannot comment on the veracity of what they are saying!

• Once again, Maki is presenting a solution, reboot, but remember, she has a hidden agenda too. Also, Homeostasis is a god? I always imagined the god of the Digital World to have a more unique name like Yggdrasil or something.

• Aw... the Digimon are treating their time together as their last day before things go wrong.

• Let battle be joined! All Champions (and Ultimate for Gatomon) converge!

• Called it! I knew Meicoomon was the source of the virus.

• That is heart-breaking to watch. The animation was acceptable in this film but it is sad to watch the Digimon turn on each other as the virus progressed within each of them.

• HerculesKabuterimon! Though I have to wonder what did form of darkness did Koshiro confront to allow for such an evolution...

• When did MetalGreymon become WarGraymon?

• I felt a twinge of sadness there. Watching the Digimon seemingly regain enough of their minds to allow HerculesKabuterimon to shove them back into the distortion for the reboot is quite heartbreaking for anyone who grew up watching them. Well done there movie.

• The inevitable skip of time takes place and despite what Maki says, the DigiDestined may not be able to completely forget their Digimon partners.

• I was right. Time for a new Digimon Adventure! In the Digital World!

• After a confession from Meiko to Takeru. While it is a little sad, I do appreciate how Meiko still bears guilt over what happened since she acknowledges that she should have warned them about Meicoomon's origins and special abilities rather than brushing it off.

• Now to open the Gate and perform equivalent - Oh wait, wrong show. It is nice to see the crests again though I have to wonder where Maki obtained a D3. A black one... The kind Ken used.

• Good to see the Digital World again even though it is just the foliage at the moment. Based on how they feel something seems off, I suspect the reboot may have added something to the world.

• Alphamon is back! Fighting a Digimon I do not recognize (Jesmon, a fellow Royal Knight according to the wiki). Nice that Koshiro recognises that something is wrong since the two are still at full power despite the reboot resetting the Digital World.

• And we have... amnesia!

• Okay, that was a nice call back to the first episode of Digimon Adventure. This time it is the humans who know that the Digimon are their partners but the Digimon do not. An inversion of positions from that first episode where it was the Digimon who knew who their human partners were but the humans did not.
  • Kudos to the writers for doing this. I do hope that the memory recovery is gradual rather than immediate. It would be interesting to watch as the humans make new memories with their partners during the recovery before the old ones return and allow for the aforesaid memories to merge with those old ones.

• I knew Maki's hidden agenda would pop up again and phew, Ken did not turn evil. Instead, Gennai's (or a program resembling Gennai) involved?! Why am I getting the feeling that the real villains are attempting to reshape the Digital World to suit whatever plans they come up with?

• Looks like Tai decides to be honest about knowing them before this and Meicoomon survived the reboot. I guess the virus will return in some form again (most likely as part of Maki and this Gennai's plan).

Captain America: Civil War

Well, new Marvel movie out and I saw it recently so you know what that means. An opinion on:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/53/Captain_America_Civil_War_poster.jpg

Captain America: Civil War for those who need to validate the picture borrowed from Wikipedia. I will say that this is a pretty good film and while it does have some of the Marvel formula, it does its best and can earn a solid grade on its report card. Not an A+ but a solid B- at least.

What makes it:

https://www.geek.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Captain-America-Civil-War-Spider-Man-Shield-Official.jpg

Spider-Man. This is probably the best Spider-Man action on the cinema screen to date. The action involving Spider-Man is a highlight to the film as we finally see a Spider-Man who fights like his comic book self, combining his super-strength, agility, web-swinging, wall crawling and heightened reflexes in a single combat style that confuses typical opponents. He still does the whole talking in battle like the comic version does which does distract opponents in the main fight he is in. Despite his young age, this particular Spider-Man is able to go toe to toe with his opponents (and even beat some of them) in the film as he utilizes his abilities and intellect to their fullest though he loses some fights due to his lack of experience against seasoned fighters and their tech (though not without putting them in a situation necessitating different tactics). The fact that this Peter actually made his own web-shooters like in the comics is also a nice touch I appreciated since it does remind the viewer that Peter is an intelligent person (though not wise if One More Day is to be considered). As Peter Parker, there is enough subtle emotion in the actor's voice that shows the pent-up regret in letting Uncle Ben die (again) though there was not enough scenes with Tom Holland for me to make a judgement call on Peter Parker. So I will approach the new Spider-Man film with more cautious optimism than I usually have with superhero films.

http://cdn.collider.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/captain-america-civil-war-concept-art.jpg

The actual conflict and the extent it is explored. In this film, the Civil War is due to the events of previous Marvel films and the recent mishap in this film that results in the implementation of oversight by the United Nations over the independent Avengers. Two factions form in the group with Tony Stark along with James Rhodes, Vision, Natasha Romanov and guest character T'Challa on one side supporting the oversight while Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, Clint Barton, Wanda Maximoff, Scott Lang and guest character James Barnes on the other opposing the oversight....[I'll wait for the reader all to finish googling all those names].............................................................................................................................

Initially I came in with leanings towards Captain America's side on how too much oversight can be dangerous (and obtrusive in their line of work) but as Iron Man's side began to highlight the problems of having no oversight, I began to lean back and forth between the two sides as the film showcases the arguments put forth by both side. The fact that the film show the inability for a middle ground due to outcry against the Avengers makes the conflict justified and grounded. Both sides of the coins are shown with Tony's side being able to showcase the problems of Captain America's side but later on, the problems with Tony's side begin to appear (though not enough in my opinion to really convince people of Steve's position). The film does not lose itself in too many branching plot threads that go nowhere but instead, maintains focus on the main conflict even in the more lighthearted scenes which is appreciated since the tension between the two sides builds as the film goes on. Due to personal stakes and differing opinions, the tension builds up to a peak for the characters (with a few in particular continuing to build up even after the big fight ends). The tension created from the conflict eventually builds up to a point which has severe consequences for the Avengers when the tension finally reaches its peak at the film's climax which is rather intense and exciting to watch.

http://pmtips.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/action.jpg

The action. The highlight of the film is the airport terminal battle that has appeared in the trailers which is probably where the viewer will get their money's worth. Black Panther and Spider-Man were highlights in terms of action with Black Panther being skilled enough to go up against the likes of Bucky and Steve with martial arts (and his vibranium-weave suit) while Spider-Man needs no explanation (since I already did so before). Even before the fight, Black Panther already leaves a strong impression with fast-paced combat that establishes Black Panther as a dangerous adversary against his adversaries. The action looks good for the most part without feeling too exaggerated and the characters do use their abilities creatively (with one being quite the pleasant surprise). 

SPOILER WARNING! THERE WILL BE SPOILERS! SCROLL PAST "SPOILER END" TO READ MORE

The impact of the story on the status quo. One thing I hate about comics is the fear that the executives have in changing the status quo whereby characters grow up, develop or change (for better or worse, depending on the circumstances). This is why I swore off Marvel and DC comics as a whole with One More Day (a piece of shit comic that should never have been made) and the New 52 reboot (which basically tried to be more 'dark' but with less depth). This film however does shake up the status quo of the Marvel Cinematic Universe on Earth whereby the Avengers are no longer a group anymore. The conflict, the hostilities and the emotions riled up throughout the film along with a certain revelation winds up breaking up the group. While the Avengers will inevitably reunite for Avengers: Infinity War, the reunion will probably be a tense one (as long as Joss Wheadon can resist using his usual style of writing with the characters). One thing I did not really like about Avengers: Age of Ultron was how easily the group got back together despite the hostilities they showed towards each other in the film, making it seem that the status quo was unbreakable. Now this film has come and it has finally shaken up the status quo of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This, I feel, is a good way to break the formulaic approach Marvel has taken with its films which can already be observed since Age of Ultron (and several movies back) since it presents new premises and relationships future films will have to keep in mind.

"SPOILER END"

What breaks it:

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TokenRomance

Another token romance. I have got to start keeping score of the number of token romances that Marvel films has. It's like every single main character in the film needs to have a romance that comes out of the blue (unless there is some tie-in comic I am not reading). In this film, the viewer is reminded that Peggy Carter has a niece (first seen in Captain America: The Winter Soldier) named Sharon Carter. Within the span of the film, the two start out as friendly acquaintances to being able to kiss each other while ignoring how quickly they have moved into such territories a short time after Peggy's funeral. At least it does set up a rather amusing gag and it does not overstay its welcome (unlike Kili and Tauriel from The Hobbit trilogy which I recall soured my opinion of the films immensely when the films attempt to set up this romance). Still, token romances should be avoided by future films lest these romances prove the existence of the Marvel film concept cheat sheet that their films appear to be using. A quote by Yahtzee of Zero Punctuation sums up the flaw of a token romance nicely: 
"The trademark sense of isolation is another point the game misses like a champ when you're given a spunky female sidekick. This is another peculiarly American habit that seems to always go unchallenged: why does a love interest subplot have to be shoehorned into everything? Imagine if there was some kind of parallel universe where every game and movie, regardless of genre, was required to incorporate at least one line dancing competition. We'd think they were all raving lunatics!"

http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/marveldatabase/images/2/20/Helmut_Zemo_(Earth-616)_from_Captain_America_Vol_6_1.JPG/revision/latest?cb=20120529194815

The antagonist. Spoiler alert: Zemo is nothing like the Zemo of the comics. In fact,he could even be an entirely original character for the sake of the film. I actually do not know a lot about Zemo but from what I have read, he has a lot of significance. Here, he's simply someone who did not attend proper anger management classes and relies on a lot of contrived coincidences to move his plan forward. It was a shame since even though I did not read the comics, I am aware of Zemo's infamous reputation from the comics and his significance. In my opinion, it may have been better to make an original antagonist (indirectly based on some antagonist from the comics) since Zemo in Civil War is only Zemo in name. The background of this Zemo could apply to anyone else who fits in that role which I will not spoil here even if I spoiled his resemblance to the comic Zemo. While Zemo is not quite the intimidating villain like he appears to be in the comics, he is not horrible (like Iron Man 3's villains) because he does actual damage to the Marvel Cinematic Universe which may carry over into future films.


Summary:
While there are probably more elements to the film that could make or break it, I doubt I would be able to articulate all of them with my sleep-deprived mind. I am sure that more seasoned reviewers will be able to pick apart the flaws in this film or explain the good elements better. I will say that Civil War feels like what Age of Ultron should have been with better writing, better build-up to the fights and a better ending to change the status quo. The entertaining parts of a Marvel superhero is still there with its action, characters and lighthearted jokes but this time, there are instances of decent writing in the film and better decisions being made in production to result in a decent movie. Overall, I can give it a recommendation for having enough substance to warrant the ticket price. The fact that I am going to re-watch the film again soon does mean that the film is either doing something right or that I am a master of procrastination.

What makes it:

Spider-Man

The actual conflict and the extent it is explored

The action

The impact of the story on the status quo

What breaks it:

Another token romance

The antagonist

P.S: Is it just me or is Aunt May rather young in this film? The actual actress is apparently 50 years old and all but....

http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTUwMjA3OTc3N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNTA1MzY1Mw@@._V1_UY317_CR12,0,214,317_AL_.jpg

Yeah... I'll be waiting for the memes to flood in soon. At least it kinda makes sense in-universe since Peter Parker is still a teenager in high-school and all.