Author: Julian Cannon

Super Mario 3D All Stars Is A Power Down From A Poison Mushroom

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When Nintendo announced that a collection of the best Mario 3D platformers would arrive on Nintendo Switch, I was excited. That is, until I found out that it would be an extremely limited run. It boggles my mind that Nintendo decided to do this for Super Mario 3D All Stars because after March, there will not be a way to get a copy, or download this game.

Super Mario 3D All Stars consists of Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, Super Mario Galaxy, and the official soundrtack for all three titles. What is great, is that you can play these as you remembered them when you were younger. But that comes with a cost. More specifically, Super Mario Galaxy.

Galaxy’s original release was on Nintendo Wii in 2007. At that time, motion controls was the standard and it is required for some of the controls of Super Mario Galaxy. You can play it with your joycons as if you played it on your Wii.

But if you use your Pro Controller, the gyro motion will distract you from playing the game.When the pointer is out of focus, you will have to press the R trigger button to center it. It gets really annoying when you have to do that every few seconds especially when you are on a boss battle.

Super Mario 64 plays the same exact way as I played it on the Nintendo 64. The controls felt very respinsive as I was playing. It seems like this version of Super Mario 64 is the version that patched all of the glitches from the original version.

I am fine with that since I am not a speedrunner. I only care to finish the game with 120 stars. Something that I wish that was supported for this version, is for full screen support. This was possible on the Wii Virtual Console port of the game, but not here. I still love Super Mario 64!

The last game of the collection is Super Mario Sunshine. For some reason, this version of Sunshine kept all of the glitches that were found on the original Gamecube release. You would think that Nintendo would patch all of these issues, but they did not do that. Another problem I had with Sunshine, is the clunky controls, and the upscaled brightness that will make your eyes burn like you are taking a look at the flash from Men In Black. There are also textures that I noticed that are in the wrong place when I am using FLUUD. If you want your ears to bleed too, it will pick up most of the sounds at the wrong time.

Whoever was in charge of porting these three games into one package, needs to get their license for porting video games revoked. This is Mario’s 35th anniversary and there should have been more effort to making this collection mean somethimng. Don’t get me wrong, I love all three of those games when they were first released, but the technical issues outweigh over what was supposed to be a celebration.

The lack of Super Mario Galaxy 2 in this collection is also puzzeling since that is the sequel to the first title.Mario’s party for Super Mario 3D All Stars has finished faster than a mini game on Mario Party. And Luigi did not have to do anything to win this time.

But when you take those negatives out, you can play this collection and it is for all ages whether if you are a veteran, or a newcommer. What the Mario franchise has done to bring generations together for many years will continue for years to come. Let’s hope when the 40th anniversary comes up in five years, their next celebration collection will be better than this collection.

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Interview: On The Set of The Walking Dead: World Beyond With Nicolas Cantu

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Nicolas Cantu as Elton – The Walking Dead: World Beyond _ Season 1, Episode 1 – Photo Credit: Zach Dilgard/AMC

Nicolas Cantu plays as Elton on The Walking Dead: World Beyond. Elton is the youngest of the group of main characters and he is interested in observing everything that is outside the walls of the community. But there is more to Elton than his bright personality and Nicolas Cantu is here to talk about the character.

Myself and other journalists got a chance to speak with Nicolas Cantu during the set tour of The Walking Dead: World Beyond and here are some of the highlights of the interview I will share. Also to note, Nicolas was accompanied by his mother and dog as these interviews took place.

Nicolas on his audition on the show and his initinal reaction

Nicolas: “When I saw the audition and it said ‘TWD3’ (at the time), my mind flipped out. Then I realized that it had nothing to do with the main show. So I had to play this character, but they could not spoil anything of the story elements. So it was a very weird audition to do that. But then I did the audition and I thought it went well. Then I got the callback and I thought that things were getting closer. A month later, I got the call that I will be joining the cast and I jumped on my couch. I was so estatic! It was so crazy.”

Nicolas on his character Elton

Nicolas: ” Elton is a very analitical, 14 year old boy. He is an old soul and is obsessed with this discovery with the world around him. He grew up in this fortified community and he has done all of this study behind the walls. Now it is time to get visceral with this study. Elton’s quest is to go out to the world and seeing how nature and these ’empties’ have affected the way people live outside of these walls. He is obsessed with discovery.”

Why are the walkers on this show called empties?

Nicolas: “In the main show, there is no zombie media so you could not call them zombies. In different parts of the world, people call them different things. We call them empties because they are empty inside. They are a shell of a person now. That is what I think of the thought process is. They are very distinct from the walkers on the main show. They are very affected by the enviornment and you can see how nature has taken both physical places and the bodies of these people.”

Nicolas on if Elton has a weapon of choice

Nicolas: “Elton’s weapon is karate, the knowledge of martial-arts, and his brain. Instead of actively going out to fight these empties, he knows that it is way more effictive and efficent to try to deter them or not engage at all. Every second you are fighting an empty, you also have every second of dying. If he ever comes face to face in a grim situation, he would rather deflect than try to completly demolish the threat.”

Does Elton have a special connection with anyone in the group?

Nicolas: “Elton is an orphan child in the community and he has not had a family in a long time. He and Silas get close together in the pilot. He also gets close with the girls of the group. Elton is building this family that he has not had in a long time. It is a very special thing for him and it is what he cherish the most.”

How does everyone that is younger find out about the empties?

Nicolas: “From inside the university, there are people doing research on the world out there. Elton would read books in the library to study up on what people know and documented on the outside. There are also clases to try to fight these empties. When the time comes, you would know what to strike, what to target, and what to avoid. They do know a lot about it. They have not seen these horrors first hand, but they know of them. The empties lurk outside and the security dispatch them like it is nothing.”

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Interview: On The Set of The Walking Dead: World Beyond With Alexa Mansour

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Alexa Mansour as Hope – The Walking Dead: World Beyond _ Season 1, Episode 1 – Photo Credit: Zach Dilgard/AMC

The Walking Dead World Beyond, The second spinoff in The Walking Dead’s long running franchise is set to debut in a matter of weeks. The show will focus on a younger group of individuals that are seeing the world outside of their community for the first time.

One of the main characters of the series is Hope. Hope is played by Alexa Mansour and Alexa had a lot to say about the character during my set tour on The Walking Dead: World Beyond. I will have to add a disclaimer, that I can only give highlights of this interview as there are a few questions that was answered about the current episode that was being filmed that I cannot share at this moment.

Alexa on getting casted on World Beyond

Alexa: “I hadn’t gotten a job in such a long time. I know a lot of people can’t say this but I was ready to quit. I was going on three auditions a day for months. So when you keep hearing, ‘She’s great, but she’s not right for the role,’ you’re kind of like, all right, I need to do something else. But I auditioned for this role back in April. My mom drove me to the audition because I had a long night before the audition day. She is waiting for me inside and I go inside and do my audition, and I remember that I had a band shirt on that belonged to my sister. The shirt had a drawing on it and it is probably something that I have not worn to an audition. So I put it inside out and I went in that audition with the tag sticking outside of my shirt. And I walked out and I looked at mom and told her that I screwed up and that there was no way they were calling me back. Flashforward to June and I got a call for a meeting with Scott Gimple and Matt. I went there, and I saw a bunch of actors that used to watch on television in the waiting room. The second I walked in, I thought that there is no way that this is going to happen. I spent about three hours talking with Scott and Matt. After the meeting, I called my agent and I told him that if I do not get this, I am done. Got a call a week later, and I was told that I was going to be tested for the pilot. They wanted to make sure I was edgy to do it. After the test which was the last part of the audition, I had another audition and I aced it. Then, I was flown to New York to meet with Aliyah Royale , who plays as Iris. Then the night before the 4th of July, I found out that I got the part. The first thing I said is “yay, I can fix my windshield!”

What was the drawing on the shirt?

Alexa: “It had a penis on it (laughs). But it was a band shirt and I can’t remember the name of the band. Before I walked into that audition, I remembered that the character is 16 years old and I can not walk in there with this showing (laughs).”

Alexa Mansour as Hope – The Walking Dead: World Beyond _ Season 1, Episode 1 – Photo Credit: Zach Dilgard/AMC

How can you describe Hope in your own way?

Alexa: “Hope is such an angsty teen that does not give a s*** about anything or anyone. Hope does not think that she will live very long and she wants to have fun and do whatever she wants. Then she has to face a serious task with her sister and she gets her act together to do that. She is going through a lot of stuff that she does not want to show on the outside.”

How old is Hope when the apoclapse happens?

Alexa: “I want to say about 10 years old when Hope was watching everything happened. And Hope had to grow up knowing everything that she has seen when she was younger.”

Alexa on Hope and Iris’ bond as sisters

Alexa: “Their bond is unbreakable. They love eachother to death. Iris is the responsible one and Hope would be the one to make booze in her dorm.”

Alexa on her life changing now since she is part of The Walking Dead Universe

Alexa: “It’s one of those things where you can’t believe it until you see it. That also comes with people stopping you or knowing your name. That’s one thing, I have a lot of people know my name recently and I am not used to that. When we went to New York Comic Con, AMC had everything arranged for us. The hotels, the drivers, and all that stuff. I went to get lunch across the street and I walk back to my hotel and I never seen these people in my life. They were saying how much they are happy to have me back. I look at them like ‘how do you know my name’ (laughs). How do you know what I look like. So if someone came up to the street, I would probably freak out!”

If there was a real apoclapse, where would you go and what would be your weapon of choice?

Alexa: “I would go back to my house that I grew up in Los Angeles. It is completly gated with trees all the way up. No one can see or hear you. It was built in the early 1940’s and there is a bomb shelter underneath. My weapon of choice would be Daryl’s crossbow because you would not have to make contact with whoever you are aiming at. I wanted to go with a gun at first, but I was told that it would attract more of them to me.

Do you have a dream crossover character that your character would like to meet?

Alexa: “Yes! Daryl and Carol. I look at Carol and I would look at the epitome of a strong female character and I love her. And Daryl, I have a big crush on him to be honest!”

Did everyone in the community grew up there or were some of them transfered there as time went by?

Alexa: “From what I know, we all grew up there. I know that every character has a different story on how they ended up there. Iris and Hope grew up there. Huck has a long story of what she went through which I do not know 100% of what she went through. Felix was taken in by our dad. He was part of our family when we got there and he is like the big brother to us. Elton grew up there. Silas was brought in.”

What is your favorite episode you have been part of so far?

Alexa: “I do not remember the number, but it is called ‘Blades of Glory’ It was one of the hardest episodes we had to shoot because it was very hot out there and we were wearing jackets and there is a huge fire that we had to pass. It is the most emotionally and physically taxing episode. In the trailer, you can see a little of that episode. After watching that, it makes it all worth it. Even though it was the hardest, it is my favorite.”

The Walking Dead: World Beyond premieres on October 4th, 2020

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I Seen The First Two Episodes of The Walking Dead World Beyond and Here are My Non-Spoiler Thoughts

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Alexa Mansour as Hope, Aliyah Royale as Iris, Hal Cumpston as Silas, Nicolas Cantu as Elton – The Walking Dead: World Beyond _ Season 1 – Photo Credit: Jojo Whilden/AMC

Last year, it was announced that a second spinoff of The Walking Dead franchise was in development. From that point on, we were given little details over the months of 2019 until the first trailer was revealed at New York Comic Con.

At the beginning of 2020, the name of the series became known to the public as The Walking Dead: World Beyond. I have watched the first and secondepisode of World Beyond and I will give you my non-spoiler opinions about the two episodes and what can everyone expect from the series.

World Beyond’s first episode gets straight to the point of the mysterious CRM group within the first few minutes of the first episode. You will also get to know a little more about what do they do in other states and why they are there in that community.

At the end of the episode however, you will find out why they arrived at that community to begin with. The main focus of the first episode are the two sisters Hope and Iris. They both went through a crazy event over a decade ago that kept them together, but they are both curious to why CRM is very secretive.

Iris stood out to me more than the entire cast of the episode as she feels that she has to be the one to give her all to the community while not focusing on herself as a person. There will be more to this when she speaks to a particular person.

Iris and Hope also seems like the most affected members of that community to what happened 10 years ago as they both still struggle mentally to live their lives in a safe community. You will also see that there is an unexpected connection with Iris, Hope, and Elton too and Elton is a fun, easy going person who is also curious to see what the world outside their community is like.

Nico Tortorella as Felix, Annet Mahendru as Huck – TWD: World Beyond _ Season 1 – Photo Credit: Jojo Whilden/AMC

Felix is the head of the security of Campus Colony and it shows since his jacket with the CRM emblem is a different color than everyone else. Felix is also the first LGBT character on World Beyond as he told a story of his ex-boyfriend to one of the characters on one of the scenes.

He also acts as a big brother to one of the characters too especially on a particular scene where he had to temporary arrest that character. Felix’s authority is believable due to the fact that he is the oldest of the main characters.

The other security guard that is part of the cast is named “Huck” (played by Annet Mahendru) and we do not know her first name yet. She has a bond with Felix and also with Hope. But on the second episode, we see her and Felix spend a lot of time together and they both get to know more about eachother.

The main plot of the first episode is that they are celebrating a holiday to remember what happened a decade ago. Also during the episode, there will be a particular reason to why the group goes out of the Campus to adventure the world. There is a motivation behind it and it will not be too long to find out why.

The second episode revolves around the first adventure the group goes on, and a backstory on Felix. Felix’s past made me really feel for the character because he went through so much. You would have not thought that the head of security at that community had a tragic backstory when you see Felix on the first episode. Nico Tortorella stated on Talking Dead not too long ago that his character was kicked out of his house when he was younger due to him coming out as gay. That will be expanded on this episode.

Another thing about Felix’s past during this episode, is that it also haunts him in a disturbing way to his mental state.

What is also interesting, is that when you hear the main characters interract, you will learn that they all have had a bad past which brings them all closer together. This is showcased during the episode even though it also shows that they are inexperienced dealing with taking down empties.

Life outside of what they are used to will take time for these characters to get adjusted to because it gets tough out there for them early on. There were many times that I rememberd that this is their first time outside the walls to see the world.

Elton also really shined on this episode too and he questions if they can survive outside of where they lived, and if they would one day become one of the empties. There is a particular reason to why Hope and Elton are connected and once you find out, your mind will be blown.

The second episode does end in a minor cliffhanger, but it is the character development of the characters in a swift time that makes this one stand out.

I will have to say that it was werid to see everything so normal in that Campus like nothing even happened at first from an outsider looking in as there are school classes, karate classes, and much more. But they realize that the dead, which are called “empties” on this series, is still out there. There is more to the cast other than them being young ten years into the apoclapse and you will get to know who everyone is little by little.

Also, bonus points to Silas as he reminds me of one person I knew in high school!

I was optimistic and curious of the second spinoff since it was announced and when I went on the set tour last fall (That article will be coming soon), I got to learn about more of the show and how it will tie into the unannounced Rick Grimes movies. Especially since CRM is more than just trading people for supplies.

There is a strong cast and I am looking forward to the rest of the season. But it will take time for the general audience to grow with the characters because many will most likely tune in just for the lead up to the Rick Grimes movies than the characters itself.

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The Walking Dead Season 10 Finale Non-Spoiler Preview

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After the announcement that the season 10 finale of AMC’s The Walking Dead would be delayed until a further date due to the pandemic, the entire community of The Walking Dead was hearbroken. It would not be until San Diego Comic Con at Home that the date of the finale would be revealed.

Ahead of the October 4th airdate, I got the chance to watch the long-awaited season finale. Here is my preview of the season 10 finale of The Walking Dead!

A Certain Doom is the same name of issue number 167 of the comic book series, and the name of the volume 28 story of the same name.

Although there are some moments that were adapted from this story, The Whisperer War (volume 27), and Lines We Cross (volume 29), there are big moments from two of the three stories that did not make it on screen and I wish they did.

I would first like to say, that the VFX team did an amazing job on the special effects. The wait was fully worth it for the episode’s post production process to be finished and I totally understood why the delay was necessary. It was not only the the great effects that stood out, but the sound and the music too especially one scene involving Judith as she is getting away from Whisperers. That scene also starts with a bang so keep that in mind.

Something that also caught my attention during this episode is the little hints of what will set the motion of the untitled Carol and Daryl spinoff series that will premiere in 2023. Those small hints are seen and heard throuought the episode between the two characters especially towards the end of the episode.

Michonne is also brought up early on in the episode as Carol and Daryl are talking about her. I will not go into detail of what they said about her, but it is something to think about when you see this scene for yourself.

The main plot of this episode is for the group to escape the hospital that they are in so they can retrieve the horse wagon. But the problem is, Alpha’s megahorde that is being controlled by Beta and The Whisperers has surrounded the entire hospital and the group has to escape through the horde. The way this is planned, is that they divide into smaller groups so they can all go through.

I will not say who is paired with who, but during that long sequence, it gets bad for one person in the group. Also, the way that the walkers devoured on the few people in that megahorde is gruesome and you may want to turn away if you do not want to see anyone’s body parts gets disassembled.

Watching that, made me feel more claustrophobic than I did when I watched “Squeeze” and I had to remember that Carol is claustrophobic. But this time, it seemed like she was not bothered by it. Later in the episode, there is a battle between the group and The Whisperers and it had me on the edge of my seat when I seen it.

Negan on this episode is very good. To me, his redemption arc has come full circle from the start of the season. However, there is something that puzzled me the entire time when I seen him with everyone else. But I believe that will be expanded on the extra six episodes in 2020. That, along with Maggie’s return which is brief on this episode too. Her reunion with one character however, is a sight to see.

The masked person that is with Maggie had only one action scene. But the way he appeared to save one character got me excited to see more of the person. I compare the masked indiviual to Marvel’s Blade in terms of how swift and quick his or her attacks are. The mysterious person does not unmask on the episode, nor does the person speak. So that person’s idenity is really sealed.

Beta is really awesome on this episode as he is still hearing voices of the walkers. But what is interesting about Beta on this episode, is how his “end of the world” chant he did with Alpha caught up with him. Here is a teaser I can say. There is a Beta vs Negan fight. I cannot go into detail of who wins or loses. But another character gets involved in the fight too. But I feel disappointed on how fast that fight was especially since everyone included myself could not wait for this showdown to be adapted from the comic to the screen.

One of the best scenes of this episode, and for this season involves Carol and Lydia. It is very poetic when you watch it. I was not really sold on the dynamic on the two characters when they first started bonding earlier in the season, but this scene really got me into their dynamic. The way this scene was shot makes you believe one of the characters will do something tragic, but it does not go how you expected it and I love the way it was shot.

And by the end of this beautiful scene, I believe that the entire fanbase will agree on how masterful it was shot and acted. I am not kidding when I say that this scene will be a memorable one. It also made me think that Carol feels that she is finally relieved of everything Alpha put her through.

I did not forget Eugene, Yumiko, Ezekiel, and The Princess. Their journey of meeting Stephanie is only showcased a small amount of time on the episode, but comic readers will be excited at the end of the episode. Also, Princess says a very hilarious line towards Eugene and I could not hold my laughter at all when I heard her say it and when everyone else reacted.

Overall, I love this episode. It is the best season finale since season 5 and it made you look forward to the next season. Every major question is answered on this episode including an unexpected return. There were a few things that disappointed me on this episode especially when we did not get any major comic book deaths adapted to screen, but there are deaths on this episode. This episode will be universally acclaimed by the community of The Walking Dead when they see it on October 4th.

P.S: Gabriel’s story on this episode is damn great.

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The Walking Dead Will Have a Twitch Channel Coming Soon Called The Walking Dead Universe

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AMC has announced that they have partnered with Twitch to create The Walking Dead Universe channel. This channel will serve as the main place for fans to interract in real time from the start, to finish. What is more exciting, is that it will be done every sunday starting at 7:30pm and it will continue untill midnight.

This was created so Twitch and AMC will have one central place for The Walking Dead fans to come together and talk about the latest news and episodes under one platform that is outside of Twitter and Instagram.

The schedule is the following as AMC stated on the press release:

7:30pm Recapping Dead Pre-Show – Hosts dive into recaps of the previous week’s episode, explore theories and give their best predictions and speculations before the new episode premieres on television.

9:00pm Live Watch Party – During the episode, TWDUniverse will keep streaming on Twitch to create a live second screen experience for new episodes in The Walking Dead Universe with behind-the-scenes info pop-ups, interactions from the community and live host reactions.

11:00pm After Show – Following the premiere of Talking Dead, fans can continue the discussion in a more informal, interactive space on Twitch, taking a deeper dive into the new episodes.

With four hours of content and a place for everyone to join and talk about everything with The Walking Dead, Fear The Walking Dead, and Walking Dead: World Beyond, this is too good to pass up. Twitch has brought people together and The Walking Dead has too and with these two together, the best that will come out of it is a growing community!

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Danai Gurira Recieves Gracie Award For Actress in a Lead Drama

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The Alliance for Women in Media has held their 2020 edition of The Gracies Awards virtually this year as they reconize the work and dedication of women in the television and entertainment industry. The Gracies has been honoring women for over 20 years and this year, former The Walking Dead star Danai Gurira has won the award of the Best Actress in a Lead Drama.

Danai Gurira has played as Michonne on The Walking Dead from season 3, to her exit on season 10. Danai has left many memorable memories as Michonne ever since her entrance on the show and her performance on season 10 has been critically acclaimed by the fans and critics.

When Danai had her time to give her acceptance speech for the award, she said this on the video below:

“I am very blessed to be able to play as Michonne. I loved her and I love the show and the beautiful family that I got from the experience. This is a serious blessing to have it on top of all of that. Thank you so much to The Alliance for Women in Media Foundation which is a very important thing. So I defently and deeply appreciate this. Thanks so much.”

Danai Gurira has also had highly praised roles within the last few years such as Tupac Shakur’s mother Afeni Shakur on All Eyez on Me, Okoye on Marvel’s Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame. In 2020, it was announced that Danai will be the executive producer of HBO’s Americanah which is based on the 2013 novel of the same name.

It will be great to see what the future holds for Danai Gurira and she will always be a central member of The Walking Dead family!

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Breaking News: Season 11 Will be The Last Season of The Walking Dead

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Ross Marquand as Aaron, ,Christian Serratos as Rosita Espinosa Josh McDermitt as Dr. Eugene Porter, Dan Fogler as Luke – The Walking Dead _ Season 10, Episode 11 – Photo Credit: Jace Downs/AMC

For ten years, The Walking Dead has graced our screens with our favorite characters, moments, stories, and even the walkers itself. Within those ten years, we got two spinoff shows (Fear The Walking Dead, The Walking Dead: World Beyond), video games, conventions, and more content of The Walking Dead franchise for the fans. But today, is the day that we all did not want to imagine happen.

AMC announced that the upcoming 11th season of The Walking Dead will be the final season. For this season, it will be 24 episodes instead of the normal 16 episodes. That is with the exception of the 10th season in which it will have six additional episodes after the season finale airs on October 4th. The 11th season will end sometime in 2022.

The other news that came with that announcement, is that fan favorite characters Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and Carol (Melissa McBride) will have their own spinoff series focusing on the characters which will premiere in 2023.

The Walking Dead:World Beyond is stated to last for two seasons and it is also supposed to lead up to the upcoming Rick Grimes films. Fear The Walking Dead’s first half of the sixth season will begin airing on October 11th and as of right now, there is no word if we will have a seventh season.

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Movie Review: Is Mulan Worth The $30 Price?

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Photo Credit: Disney

The ongoing pandemic has made Disney to make an unfortunate decision to premiere Mulan on Disney+ on September 4th. Mulan has been highly anticipated ever since the reveal trailer has been released last year and I was also looking forward to the film as well since I am a fan of the original animated film. I knew going into this version of Mulan that it would be more adapted from the novel. Here are my thoughts of Mulan and whether if it is worth the $30 purchase, or to wait until December of this year to watch it without premium access.

The scenery and cinematrography of Mulan is breathtaking. I love how the locations were brought to life from the animated film. The battle scenes made me feel like I was watching an episode of Game of Thrones especially the avalanche scene. The tone and setting of the live action version of Mulan feels more of a war movie this time around. I also want to praise the music too and there were tunes that I reconized from the animated film during the sequences of Mulan and I think that this worked better and made this version of Mulan flow better as I feel that I was not interrupted when I wanted to digest a scene that I was looking at while I heard the music in the background.

For what I praised, there are also rough points and critiques I had in my head as the transition from animation to live action was not handled as good as I thought it would be. On the animated film, all of the characters had personality and their own characteristics that made them all stand out. On 2020’s Mulan, I did not feel the same way as I was watching how they all interracted with eachother. I also feel that the character Mulan should have not been seen in the public as a person born with all of these superpowers and abilities and rather be seen as this person who is smart, strong, and also bright.

Mulan’s father was not convincing enough for me to believe that he was very strick towards Mulan and her lover Chen Honghui barely had enough screentime for me to think that him and Mulan could build chemistry even after the reveal. In fact, there were many moments in Mulan that felt like it was over way to soon as they started that that was my issue with the rushed pacing of this film. As wonderful as Mulan looks, there is no denying that the story is way too fast.

Xian Lang is the best character developed in Mulan and she is a new character that is specifically made for the live action version of Mulan. It pains me to write this, but watching Xian on screen made me feel that she is a complex character that is also broken, hopeful, and fragile. Everything that I felt for Xian, I should have felt for Mulan and I did not during the entire time I watched her on screen. And I love the costume design of Xian Lang! But when you break it down, Xian was not needed for the overall story as Xian was a storybuild just for that final scene at the end of the movie.

The film’s villain Bori Khan is too one dimensional for me as his story is that he wanted revenge on The Emperor for killing his father. Just like Mulan’s father, I just could not buy him as a threat as Mulan was just too overpowered by the time they had their fight towards the end. I also did not feel engaged at all when his presence was known and I did not care to see him defeated. Jason Scott Lee tried, but there was little to no substance of the character.

In my eyes, I think it is worth watching Mulan when it is free for Disney+ in December. I totally understand why it is priced and I feel for the entire marketing team, script writers, and production crew members that poured their time, effort, and money to make this film possible. There has been an outrage over this when it was first announced and if you think that price is too much, think of how much Black Widow will be if it heads the same direction of availability that Mulan did. Of the Disney remakes, I rank this higher than all of the other Disney remakes so far. Especially since this follows the original story. Mulan felt like a brand new movie, but it falls flat more than it shines and I wish it could have been better.

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My Tribute to Chadwick Boseman

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Credit: Marvel Entertainment

The news of Chadwick Boseman passing away last night shocked the entire world. Even on social media as everyone shared their memories about him and how he has impacted their lives. This ranged from actors in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, athletes, professional wrestlers, musicians, and even comedians. The way Chadwick has brought together so many lives in different forms of the entertainment industry and fans worldwide, can never be taken away or forgotten as his performances and roles in films such as 42, Get On Up, and Black Panther has done exactly that.

This news really hits home for me because I loved him as an actor when he is on screen, and as a person outside of when he is playing a character. Chadwick Boseman will be missed and I would like to give my tribute to this iconic actor.

My first exposure of Chadwick Boseman was on the film 42. Me, my brother, and my dad watched it at my father’s house on Father’s Day and we were really impressed on his portrayal of Jackie Robinson. We also talked about Jackie Robinson because my father told us stories of our grandfather going to the games that he played at that time.

42 is a powerful film and I also recommend everyone to watch it because of Chadwick’s performance and to see a story of what was it like in the MLB for Africian Americans at the time.

Chadwick has also played as James Brown on Get On Up and when I seen that film at the time, I thought to myself of the many possibilities of Chadwick portraying influential Africian American entertainers, politicans, and athletes from black history that can bring more awareness in the mainstream level. I always felt like black cinema never gets the attention that is deserved and it was very frustrating to have those feelings for the longest time. By the time that Black Panther was announced to be part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a change was coming.

Chadwick Boseman made his debut as Black Panther in the Marvel Cinematic Universe on Captain America: Civil War. I can also personally say that it is my favorite film in the MCU and I was excited to see that he was going to portray Black Panther. Chadwick was the right person for it and the world wanted a Black Panther film and we would finally get it over a year and a half later.

The atmosphere was different for this film since Black Panther is the first black superhero and the character was created during the height of the Civil Rights Movement. I remember when I seen it in the theater, there were many people dressed up as Black Panther.

But what caught my eye, was the attendees dressed up in African fabrics, or clothing that was part of the Black Panther Party and the Black Lives Matter movement. This was an unique experience I witnessed and everyone in the theater cheered for the attendees that had that clothing on.

This also meant that this was more than just a superhero movie, but it is a cultural statement that needed to be out in the open. The fact that this is a superhero film with a strong black cast and that there were online groups trying to review bomb this film made me upset. But that did not stop the majority of reviewers to praise the film’s acting, story, VFX, music, and cast as it is universally loved.

When I seen Black Panther in the theater, I noticed the smiles and the cheering from the younger audience from different backgrounds for the majority of the film including the climax battle between Black Panther and Killmonger. That is what mattered the most in my eyes as younger fans who view this movie, have a black superhero to believe in, and to look up to. Also to note, the amount of charaites and celebrities that paid for a lot of tickets for black children and teenagers to see the film is heartwarming. That has never been done for a film with an entire black cast to this degree before Black Panther and since then, it has happen in various genres of black cinema.

I know that the majority of fans of the MCU will say that there are other characters to look up to, but it is entirely different with Black Panther as he is relatable to the black culture. Years from now, those same children and teenagers will tell the story of that day and how it impacted them. They are not going to care about what the critics said, or who is the better super hero. They will talk about the day that they have went to the movies to see a black superhero film and how much it meant to them, and how much it meant to their family that took them to see it. The opening weekend of Black Panther will be remembered as a cultural event and I am happy that I got to witness it all.

Personal note too, My mother recently watched Black Panther for the first time and she has never seen a superhero film before. She loved it because of what the film represented and how much the black actors meant to her. And my grandmother, Doreatha Brown Rahming passed away in early 2020 due to her cancer coming back.

And she did not tell anyone until a few days before her passing. I could understand why she did not want to to tell anyone at the time and I understand and respect why Chadwick did not want the public to know since he would be getting messages and calls every day about it in my opinion as the media would only focus on his appearence over his work if he told the world that he was battling colon cancer a few years ago.

Chadwick Boesman also acted in these films while he had colon cancer and nobody knew it at the time. That right there takes a huge amount of strength and determination and heart when you think about this. Chadwick has also been involved in a huge amount of charities around the wolrd since Black Panther as he touched the hearts of many children who are sick, and the many that wanted to meet him too at the convention scene. Chadwick Boesman will never be forgotten and his work in the industry has cemented a legacy in film and in black cinema.

I also want to add that I seen this minutes after the news broke about recasting for Black Panther 2. That should not be on anyone’s mind right now. Everyone needs to grieve and mourn Chadwick and have those discussions when the time is right.

Rest in Power Chadwick Boesman! Gone but never forgotten.

Follow me on Instagram and Twitter @julianexcalibur for more content. Contact me at julian@alternativemindz.com