Thundercats 2011: My Personal Thoughts

Thundercats are on the move, Thundercats are loose...once more. After waiting nearly 30 years for the resurrection of Lion-O and the rest of the residents of Thundera, the new Thundercats television series  delivers a lot of nostalgia and glory to many cat fanatics, however, some are left with a bit of a saturated feeling inside, feeling the show just doesn't live up to the original Rankin Bass cartoon it was based upon. But what are my thoughts regarding the rebooted Thundercats universe currently running on Turner's Cartoon Network? Was it good, was it bad? Well, to be honest, I really enjoyed the one hour premiere, although it was far from perfect, however, this is of course the inception of the series, and there is no doubt in my mind that the series will get better and better overtime, giving us that "Thundercatty" goodness we all know and love and admired from our youth. And this certainly isn't the first time we have seen a "start from scratch" take on a classic 80s TV show. He-Man and the Masters of the Universe got a fresh new look way back in 2002, although it was unfortunately cancelled after just a few seasons, and that is truly a shame because that was a pretty badass remake, and a perfectly example of how something from older days can be reinterpreted for a fresh new audience who never even heard of the original. I surely hope the new Thundercats doesn't share the same fate, because I really think this new series will build on the Thundercats universe much more and bring in new elements, new mythology, new characters nobody, not even Thundercats fans have seen before. Grab your cat nip and Meow Mix and let's get going!



They're all intact. Lion-O, Tygra, WilyKit, WilyKat, Cheetara, Snarf, they are all present in this fresh new series, although it is quite obvious that Snarf has been rid of what many people considered annoying on the original television series, his corny voice and his chanting of "SNARF, SNARF SNARF" whenever something terrible was going on. In my opinion, Snarf has been turned into more of a household pet rather than the comic relief he was beforehand, and he has definately been "cutzified" for the newer audience, who will instantly fall in love with the little critter and wish they had one of their own. In conclusion, the new Snarf puts Gizmo from Gremlins to shame, but that's just my opinion. The famous Panthro, voiced by Earle Hyman (Russell Huxtable) on the original series, finally came along in the most recent installment of the series, now fit with a white scar across his left eye and wrist gauntlets with huge spikes upon them, possibly giving Mumm-Ra's henchmen a bit of a scratchy job in the coming episodes. I really like how they pulled off Panthro in the latest episode of the series, showing him at the very end of the episode when you least expected it, and no doubt the youngsters got excited when they saw a new, exciting, and buff character join the Thundercats team, because it simply wouldn't be Thundercats without the nunchuck wielding Panthro. That's like Masters of the Universe without Man of Arms. And it just occured to me, if they make another Masters of the Universe series, Orko will be without the ability to speak and will be more of Prince Adam's pet, similar to Snarf in the new Thundercats television series.

It also would not be Thundercats without the menacing, the manacle, the sinister Mumm-Ra, who is even more sinister than his 80s counterpart in this new series. This Mumm-Ra the Everliving is much more cunning, swift, and resourceful as he attempts to bring down the planet Thundera in order to obtain the jewel from the Sword of Omens' hilt. A major change from the old Mumm-Ra to the new Mumm-Ra is that the new Mumm-Ra's weakness is sunlight, as opposed to the old Mumm-Ra's weakness of his own reflection. His pyamid base has also gotten a bit of a makeover, appearing much more darker than it was on the original show, showing how certain elements of vintage series can be toned down a bit, made comtemporary and much more grittier. After all, this is a new generation of fans with a darker, grittier Batman and possibly a darker, grittier Spider-Man. Gee, I can't wait for The Amazing Spider-Man! Mumm-Ra's henchmen, the Reptilians, have also joined the dark side, filled with much more anger and villainy than their somewhat goofy, clumsy original forms. And I thought it was interesting to see quite the conflict the Thundercats go through with the Reptilians, the Reptilians helping in Mumm-Ra's evil reign, turning Thundera into a desolate, apocalyptic world where no where is considered safe. I thought the designs of Thundera and Mumm-Ra's dimensions were much more vivid, much more detailed and interesting to look at than their original forms, which were much more appropriate for the 80s time period. Thundera reminded me a lot of Asgard from Thor, a world filled with colossal palaces of glass and steel, and villagers dressed in the most unusual clad, clad we would get beat up over in the real world. After Mumm-Ra's raid, Thundera kinda looks like Krypton, burning and fiery ed, terrifying for all the pussies living on the world. It's up to Lion-O and his minions to stop Mumm-Ra and restore their kingdom, otherwise Mumm-Ra turns all the Thunderians into flesh eating zombies that will make kitty chow out of one another. Nah, I'm not sure about that! I have to say, I'm not a total expert at Thundercats, however, I have seen a few episodes of the original TV series, produced by Rankin Bass, the company we all know for bringing us those iconic Christmas stop motions.

The original Thundercats are said by few to not hold up in this day in age, however, I think they hold up quite flawlessly, bringing in that 80s goodness that many cherished during that decade. I think that children who are captivated by this new Thundercats television series will one day go back and observe this series, for the episodes I have observed were pretty innovative and had a mythology, a mythos far different from other shows that jumped into pop culture around the same time like Masters of the Universe and of course, Transformers. Larry Kenney is solid as the voice of Lion-O, once you hear his legendary THUNDERCATS HOW, you immediately know it's him and his voice really compliments Lion-O's character and personality in a similar manner John Erwin's voice went along well with He-Man's character and personality. They are both tall, bulky fellows that kick the butts of all enemies that try and bring them down and they both wield an all powerful sword, a sword with unnatural abilities, magic far beyond their very dreams, and they must both raise their swords in the air to get the power they need, to use the abilities of the sword. I'd like to see these two get into an encounter, no doubt He-Man would win, for he is the most powerful man in the universe of course, but it surely would be intriguing to see how Lion-O fights to keep himself alive, maybe he would claw He-Man right across the face.

And before I forget, Larry Kenney voices Lion-O's father, Claudius, in the new Thundercats televisions series, doing his very best to sound different, sound abstract from the original Lion-O, but we all know that's him in there, that's the original Lion-O baby! And boy do we love him! It's almost as great as when they got Adam West to voice the Grey Ghost in an episode of Batman: The Animated Series entitled "Beware of the Grey Ghost". We all know it's the original Batman in there, and that adds to the beauty of the entire thing, helping us reflect on our fond memories of watching the 60s Batman on television. The same thing goes with Thundercats, hearing Larry Kenney's legendary voice helps us reflect on the roots of the franchise, helps us realize how far the franchise has come. It's like Kenney is passing the torch onto a new Lion-O, voiced by Will Friedle, and he is the wise old mentor looking over the new Lion-O's progression, perhaps giving Friedle a few pointers on voicing the character and making the character reminiscent of his own interpretation. So far, Friedle is incredible as the new Lion-O, very similar to the original, yet bringing something new and delectable to the dinner table in the form of a more fiesty, more fierce and ferocious Lion-O that children can relate to and pretend they are as they might very well pretend they are Thundercats and defend their backyard from the forces of Mumm-Ra. I know that my brother and I pretended we were X-Men when playing in the backyard of our old home. Gee, I miss the good old days!

Speaking of play time, did you see the new Thundercats toys from Bandai? They look incendiary! The scalp and the paint job on each figure is surely something to write home about, and no doubt new Thundercat gurus will jump for them, for they will surely vanish from the toy store pegs fast. In the end, I enjoyed the beginning of the new Thundercats television series and I am at high hopes that the series will get much, much better as the years go by, perhaps ranking up there with Batman and X-Men as one of the greatest animated television shows ever! And hey, the original Thundercats is on that list as well, for it is just as good, in many ways better than the new Thundercats, and the new Thundercats will no doubt pay homage to the original series in later episodes, maybe they will get some of the original voice actors to voice some of the characters. That would really make my day, because I really do like Thundercats and all the incarnations it has to offer.Now if you don't mind, I am off to explore some of the Thundercats comic books by Marvel Comics! They may be badly printed by today's standards, but they are surely fascinating to check out if yo are a Thundercats buff!

May the Sword of Omens protect you! Snarf! Snarf!

What I Love About The Star Wars Prequels Part 3

What I Love About The Star Wars Prequels Part 3

I recall something said by Tom Hodges at the “Why We Love The Prequels” panel at Celebration V last summer.

“I do art expos for children and you ask them what their favorite Star Wars film is, nine times out of ten it’s going to be one of the prequels. This is their generation of films. If you look at it from that standpoint, and think about when we were kids, it’s the same thing. If The Phantom Menace came out in ’77, it would have had the same impact.”

That is one of the very many quotes that motivated me to write these three essays displaying the brilliance and wonder of all three prequel films. These films, that are put down by many original Star Wars fans around the globe, have had a critical impact on the minds of the youth and have captivated their minds just as the original trilogy captivated the minds of the original fans. If you saw the prequels at a young age like I did, you would have certainly been sucked into all it’s great mythology and universe like no other films before it, allowing you to indulge yourself in the whimsical world Mr. Lucas and his team have worked so hard to conceive. These films, like them are not, have not only gotten me into Star Wars, but many other young children of the decade as well, allowing us to experience the groundbreaking original films that defied cinema years earlier. The CGI in the films blew us away like the stop motion spaceships and puppetry blew the original fans away. History repeats itself but in a different manner. The lightsaber duels and Clone Wars battles knocked us off our seats like the AT-AT battle and Death Star Battle knocked the original fans off their seats. You see, no matter how much a film is put down, there will always be those who see the films at a young age and are amazed in all it’s glory. For Star Wars has things that adults like and children like, things within both epic trilogies. Yes people, some fans actually do like Jar Jar Binks, for he was meant to be the comic relief and humor during some of the darker moments of each film. Star Wars has things all people can relate too, things people can enjoy within both trilogies. The stellar starships, the planets and their mechanized enviroment filled with the most outlandish of creatures, and the stories, stories of the characters, stories that would lead into the classic films.

Let’s go back to 1933 with the release of one of my all time favorite films, King Kong. It took them many months to render all the stop motion, superimpose the film and even get Kong to roar like he did in the film. None of it happened overnight. This would inspire many stop motion artists like Ray Harryhausen to do the same in many ’60s epics like “Jason and the Argonauts.” And it wasn’t easy for Mr. Lucas to do all the crazy special effects and imagery in the original films. As said by many historians of the original trilogy, everything on the set of the original Star Wars was falling apart, nothing was working, and even the original landspeeder chase scene through the dune sea was a horrible projector effect. But after all that hard work, they got the job done right, and got it the way Mr. Lucas wanted it. Now you are probably asking yourself what all this has to do with the prequels. Well, the CGI characters and surroundings aren’t very easy to make and render either. You have to design the characters, use silicon material through a computer device, and all of it could cost hundreds, thousands of dollars. It could even take several days just to make a character’s mouth move. All of this groundbreaking art, displaying in all 3 prequels, helped other filmmakers following in Mr. Lucas’s footsteps. Just think of all those exemplary characters in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films or the Harry Potter films. They are all done by CGI and most of the backgrounds and settings are through green screen or made within a computer as well, but people seem to rave more about them more than they do the Star Wars prequels. Y es, sure, the special effects in the prequels aren’t the best special effects since sliced bread, and believe me, they are not that realistic either, but they revolutionized the special effects companies like ILM and and all their luminosity. The effects in the prequels, in my opinion, aren’t meant to look the best, but that’s the point. You have to use your imagination. You have to expand your craniums and make these effects look dazzling, just as the original fans did with the effects in the original trilogy.

It’s all through the power of imagining and being sucked into a certain story that makes it really good to someone. What might be the best film ever made to some might be a travesty to another. Heck, some people might think Batman and Robin is a masterpiece and think The Dark Knight is a dog turd and vice versa. And like I said before, the prequels will continued to be despised even when I am done with this essay, but along with haters, there are lovers, ones who can analyze the films, break them down into tiny bits and point out what was really remarkable about them. The prequels did have some of the most remarkable moments, not only in the Star Wars saga, but films in general. It’s all how you look at it. I enjoyed and will continue to enjoy these films, no matter what the RedLetterMedias of the world say about them, for along with dog doodoo, as some people point out about some of the elements in the prequels, there is gold, shining moments, moments that myself and other people will say, made the prequels stand out and make them truly remarkable films that defined a generation. One scene in the prequels, in particularly, I thought to be not only compelling, but very unique, showing how one man ultimately turns into the villain we love to hate in the classic films. The scene on Mustafar where Anakin Skywalker burns at the end of the lava river, in my opinion, symbolizes the death of Anakin’s humanity, the death of Anakin Skywalker himself, the death of the rebellious, kind loving jedi we seen through the first two films and the Clone Wars series. When Anakin burns, he ultimately becomes Vader, no longer a nice guy, a tyrannical monster, sadistic in the suffering of others in his quest to kill the Emperor and take the galaxy as his own. That scene alone, made the entirety of the prequels worthwhile for me, that was the scene that ultimately made me love the prequels. Yes, sure, it was a gruesome, horrifying scene, but it answered the very question I wondered from the very start I saw Anakin in Episode 1, recalling how he would become Vader. How did a nice guy like Anakin get into that black suit? That was not only a question that stuck out in my mind, but many other people’s minds as well. And it, along with many other questions were answered in the prequels. The prequels are meant to explain things, as all prequels are. They are meant to open the doors and show why one thing is the way it is or why somebody is the bad guy. The Star Wars prequels, and all prequels in general, help make the story more a whole, more like one film, so when all the films are released, we can watch the films, starting with the very first of the prequels and work our way up, ending with the last of the original films. Then, my friends, the story makes a hell of a lot more sense than it did before. The Star Wars prequels tackled this perfectly. They made me appreciate the original films a lot more.

I am proud to be a fan of Star Wars because of the prequels. These films, as the original films did, made me relate these stories to the stories of the Bible, mythology, folklore, even other films that me and many other film nuts have come to cherish. It is with the prequels that the morals and values of the original films are more powerful. The scene where Vader kills Obi-Wan in Episode 4 was more powerful. It was through the prequels that we understood who Obi-Wan really was, the true master of Anakin Skywalker and one of the pivotal heroes of the Clone Wars. When he dies, and speaks to Luke through the rest of the film with the power of the Force, it makes Obi-Wan more than the average old mentor to the main antagonist. With all his character development through the prequels, we see his experiences as a Jedi, a Jedi Master, all his teachings and motives, something he teaches to Luke, which allows him to continue his ways as a Jedi, to help redeem Vader and bring and end to the Empire. This would also help Luke become the founding Jedi Masters of the New Jedi Order in many expanded universe novels, because of what he learned from Obi-Wan, and we get to see how Obi-Wan got to the point he did in Episode 4 through the prequels. The death scene of the redeemed Anakin Skywalker was also saddening at the very end of “Return of the Jedi.” With his backstory in the prequels, we see Anakin and all that he went through, AS WELL AS THE SCENE WHERE IT IS EXPLAINED WHY HE WAS IN THE SUIT TO BEGIN WITH. Through the entire saga leading up to that point, we seen Anakin’s battle, for power, revenge, and in the end, redemption. He won this battle, though he died in the end, but he died with dignity. His death meant something more, because we knew who Vader really was. He wasn’t Vader at all. He was still that podracing whizkid from Tatooine. He was a character trying to find his place in the universe, was manipulated by pure twisted evil, and had to find himself again to overcome this evil. You could just cry when Anakin died in that scene. With the prequel films, we know who he really is, not just a bald headed guy within a life support suit. He was a character with a rich and tragic backstory. Adding Episodes 1, 2, and 3 makes the character of Darth Vader less of a bad person, just a person fighting a never ending battle against true evil, trying to rise from the ashes of his previously fallen self. And those aren’t the only scenes in the original trilogy that are enhanced with the developing noir in the prequels. Seeing Luke and Leia being born in Episode 3, really was a sorrowful scene, but at the same time, bittersweet. Seeing the characters we know and love from the original films being born from a character we know and love from the prequels films, really made the biggest difference, for we now know where Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia came from, we know who their mother is. We know why they grew up not knowing of each other’s existence. You see, with a great character, there is a great backstory to that character, showing how the character got to the point we know and love him as, and in my opinion, the prequel films are filled with just as many rich and prominent characters as there are in the original films. The Star Wars saga in general has many glorious characters from Quinlan Vos, Darth Revan, Darth Bane, Cad Bane, Bane Malor, Aurra Sing, Asajj Ventress, Jaxxon the Rabbit, all with a story to tell, all with meaning. Even the great icon in Han Solo has an interesting backstory, showing he is more than your average ordinary smuggler that shoots Rodians and calls kids cocky.

And if you think the prequels aren’t that iconic and didn’t leave an impact, then why do you think people do parodies of them on such hit shows like Robot Chicken? Why do you think people make tribute videos of the prequels or music videos showing many of the prominent scenes of the prequels? Why do you think people dress up like Darth Maul, or Jango Fett or Clone Troopers at the release of the latest Star Wars films and comic conventions? I see a lot of brilliance within the second trilogy, things that not even the original trilogy could topple. There were things that I thought blew my mind when I first saw these films, things that I have never even seen on film before. I though the prequel films were astonishing when I first saw them thoroughly, for they were the thing that made me a Star Wars buff. However, after a while, I became aware of the controversy and poop that was thrown at them by many fans, expecting epics just like the original films. Their ranting and raving really made me debate whether I actually still liked these films, and if they really were the monstrosities the critics made them out to be. When the new Star Trek movie came out in 2009, a visual and illuminating masterpiece that made me a die-hard Trekkie, a lot of people compared this prequel/reboot to the last three Star Wars films.

“I enjoyed this a lot better than the last three Star Wars films” said many critics and movie buffs alike.

But then, ironically, I came across this site, a site where people could talk about the diversity and wonders of the Star Wars prequels, showing that they really were great films and left an impact different from the first trilogy. It wasn’t until the release of RedLetterMedia’s reviews of the prequels that I decided to let it all out about why I liked these films and why I think they stand out from all films in general. It was through writing these 3 essays that I came back to my senses and my love for the prequels returned. The stories were great, the acting was science fiction (what do you want sci-fi romance to be like), and they had just as many memorable moments as the original films did. Those who don’t remember much about the prequels probably didn’t watch the films that many times, for when you watch them again and again and again, they can really grow on you, and that is when things can really begin to stick out. The characters of Qui-Gon Jinn, Darth Maul, Jar Jar Binks, Shmi Skywalker, Mace Windu, Count Dooku, Padme Amidala, General Grievous, Jango Fett, and the many other characters in the trilogy are diversely eminent images in the Star Wars universe, and the many worlds and spaceships seen in the films make the galaxy far, far away more appealing, more outreaching, more epic. It was through the prequels that I learned to love films, films with a good story, good characters, and morals and lessons that can inspire a lifetime. Basically, the prequels not only got me into Star Wars, but also science fiction, fantasy, and worlds that were originally conceived in people’s minds, worlds that we see develop in all sorts of different motion pictures. And the prequels inspired me to make my own stories, stories of great warriors and treacherous villains wanting to overthrow the protagonists and his allies, perhaps take over the world and start a crippling empire. Someday, I hope to make a Star Wars story of my own, with new characters for people to relate too, new settings for people to be blown away by, and a story that people will come to love and enjoy. It’s amazing what a person can tell through the art of storytelling and making movies. I have come enjoy what I love to do today, I enjoy making stories and gallant characters wanting to bring balance to society, because of the impact Star Wars has had on my life, the impact of the prequels. The impact of films and media as a whole.

What I am trying to get out with these essays is that you don’t have to like the prequel films, but you have to admit, they did a lot of things right as they did wrong. They did things that the original films did not, as the original films did things that the prequels films did not, that is what makes it all the better, makes the stories displayed in Star Wars unique and expressive. Look into these films more and you can see things you never seen before, perhaps things will make better sense to you overtime. The prequels films did things that other film makers never even dreamed of, things even George Lucas didn’t even dream of up until that point. Like Carrie Fisher said, they relate Lucas to himself, as we see the primitiveness of the original films evolve to the sweet “erraticness” and astonishment of the prequel films, as George Lucas is able to do things he wasn’t able to do before, the exact reason he made Star Wars the way he wanted it to be in 1997. Look at these films in greater detail and you can really see the hard work and dedication that actually went into them, the character development and the struggles that will lead to the struggles in the original trilogy. There is plenty to love about the prequels, things that really distinguish them from the classic films. These films are what made Star Wars one of the most beloved science fiction tales ever told. With the prequels, we see things unfold, things that will make us want more, things that will make us enjoy Star Wars much more. Like Mr. George Walton Lucas himself said, “We were always dreaming of how it was going to be.” In other words, they did it the way they wanted it to be done. Lucas envisioned Star Wars the way it is from the very start. It was overtime that he developed the sci-fi fantasy into the way it is today, as all storytellers unfold their awesome storybooks of different perils and conflicts. And hate George Lucas all you want, but either way you put it, he did leave an everlasting impact on film, not only with Star Wars, but with other fields he worked so hard to incept. We wouldn’t have films the way we do today if it wasn’t for George Lucas, sound systems like THX and special effects companies like Industrial Light and Magic making us go deaf and making our eyes bleed everytime we go to see a blockbuster movie. He also made this impact with the prequels, inspiring others to follow in his storytelling footsteps. Maybe films like The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Avatar, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, the Spider-Man films, the X-Men films, Iron Man, Abrams’ Star Trek and Christopher Nolan’s Batman films would have never been made if it wasn’t for Lucas’ contribution to film with the prequels. He inspired others to make stories just as good, make prequels as well, make films that will leave an everlasting impact. Films that can influence the individuals of tomorrow. Among us might be the next Steven Spielberg, or James Whale, Robert Wise, or Stanley Kubrick, slowly building up stories that will make all people bite their nails and scream in theaters for generations to come. The Star Wars prequels, no matter how you look at it, had something to do with that.

Thank you for listening to my opinion on these films, for I truly believe the Star Wars prequels are more than three dog turds. They are films, rich in universe and divergence, and I could watch them over many other films out there today. I enjoy them and will continue to enjoy them, and they will inspire me to write the many stories I want to write in the near future, stories of futuristic material and the most intrepid of fierce heroes and creatures. I have the prequels to thank for getting me into Star Wars, getting me into science fiction, getting me into film. I take these films seriously and believe them to be underrated, deserving a lot more credit than they get. Surely, they are not the best films ever made, but they are far from terrible. They are far from decent. They are groundbreaking and make the original trilogy shine more. May the Force be with these prequels. Always.

What I Love About The Star Wars Prequels Part 2

What I Love About The Star Wars Prequels Part 2

Stories come in all sort of shapes and sizes. They sometimes tell the tale of one man trying to find what he was put on the Earth to do. They sometimes tell the tale of one man trying to kill another, to take out revenge on another individual. They sometimes tell the tale of one man’s struggle to return to the light, for redemption. That is the epic lesson George Lucas was trying to tell with Star Wars. The Star Wars saga as a whole is the tale of Anakin Skywalker, his struggles for more power, his manipulation through the cunning Palpatine, which ultimately leads to his downfall and transformation into Darth Vader. The original Star Wars films focus on Anakin’s thirst for overthrowing Palpatine, but in the end, he comes to realize the horror and misery he has caused in the process, which allows him to return to his former self, save his son, destroy the Emperor and fulfill the ancient Jedi prophecy, and save the galaxy from a horrible fate, though it costs him his own life. What knowledge of what Vader once was and what he once dreamed of would we have if the Star Wars prequels were never made. Through Episodes 1,2,and 3 we see Anakin go from the sweet, podracing youth wanting to help the galaxy and become a jedi to a children slaughtering psychopath, wanting to become the most powerful creature in the galaxy and eventually rule the galaxy as his own. The story of the prequels are, as I said before, not meant to have the greatest visual effects or the greatest characters like in the original 3 films, but to explain things, explain why things are the way they are in the films which defied cinema decades earlier. Anakin Skywalker has had a profound impact on the galaxy, the Star Wars galaxy, and our own galaxy if you think about it. He has many struggles which many people have struggled with in history. He carries on traits reminiscent of Julius Caesar, Adolf Hitler and mirrors the devil himself, a once benevolent force what goes from being with the power to being against the power, which ultimately leads to his descending into a living hell. It is also worth pointing out that Anakin’s downfall is also driven by love. He sees visions of his wife’s death in childbirth, just as he did his mother back in Episode 2.He loves his wife so much, and he wants to become a powerful jedi and learn the powers of Darth Plagueis so he can save her and the twins, and he would give up anything or do anything to get to that sort of rank, even go against the very thing he was destine to destroy. And it isn;t until after she is dead that he realizes that it was all part of Palpatine’s plan, to bring him to the bad side, and he has to go through living agony serving the Emperor.
Luke realizes that Vader turned for love in Episode 6, “There is still good in him”, so he decides rather than kill him, try and help him dig deep within himself, return as Anakin Skywalker. And when the Emperor tortures Luke, Vader decides that he will not allows Palpatine to take another loved one. It was love that allowed Anakin to pull through and save Luke from the Emperor, and fulfill the prophecy of “The Chosen One”, to bring balance to the force. That is why he was a force ghost at the end, that is why he was young. It was because that his contribution was so strong, it allowed him to return to the way he was before he became Vader, to pick up his life as Anakin Skywalker in a Netherworld of the Force.

Looking at the entire Star Wars saga, from Phantom to Jedi, we see Anakin Skywalker’s character development from good to bad and the struggle to takes to get back to good by the end of Return of the Jedi. It’s an amazing story, and something people who despise the prequels often overlook. Star Wars isn’t about the best looking starships or the most appealing characters or the best stories that make sense, it’s about corruption and betrayal, and how we pick up the pieces and go up against crippling forces like the Galactic Empire. Anakin Skywalker can be related to the Old Republic, a prominent, well known society, driven to the point of darkness by the ruthlessness that is Palpatine. He had an excellent, yet cunning plan. The whole point of the Clone Wars was to drive the Jedi Order apart, to drive the Senate apart. He wanted Count Dooku to die, and he wanted Anakin to do it. He wanted a clone army for one purpose, to dispose of the jedi which know that he was corrupt and possible Darth Sidious. All of this was his way of getting to the emperor’s throne, to bring sith rule back to the galaxy. This epic tale, displayed in the prequels, isn’t meant to make the best of sense, it’s meant to be thought about. That is why there is the EU, that is why there are Clone Wars TV shows. That is why novels are written to coincide with the prequel films. It is all meant to explain the controversy that lies within the Republic and Jedi Order, and with all that back up material, the story of the prequels does actually make sense. Sometimes, films on their own can’t tell the complete story, that is why books and other media are made to help fill in gaps and explain things. That is why there are sequels, to further the story and touch up on things the previous film left behind.

All three Star Wars prequels are flawed, but if you really think about it, aren’t all films flawed. Aren’t the original films filled with just as many errors and inconsistency as the prequels films. Heck, aren’t all films inconsistent and different from one another. That is what makes a story good, something to ponder on and lure you into the realm and universe which was all thought of in someone’s mind, in this case, in the mind of George Lucas. The Star Wars films, prequels included, pulled this off perfectly, filled with mystery and dazzling nature. What do you think made films like The Wizard of Oz and 2001: A Space Odyssey some of the most beloved motion pictures of all time. It’s not all about special effects or comparison to the previous films, it’s all about what these films can do. People who dislike the Star Wars prequels most likely wanted films that were primarily identical to the original films, filled with the same characters, same places, same story art. They never gave the prequels a chance rather than to just constantly bastardize what they disliked about it like Jar Jar Binks and the acting. The prequels were meant to be different than the original films, to have an impact of their own. And if you think the prequels didn’t leave an impact like RedLetterMedia said, then why do you think some people think that Revenge of the Sith was the best film of the saga, or why some people’s favorite character is Qui-Gon Jinn or Darth Maul, or why some of the iconic elements of the prequels were lampooned on the several Star Wars themed episodes of Robot Chicken. The prequels are made of a lot. The story is rich, the characters are full of personality, and they have just as much excitement and wonder as the original films, it was just displayed and distributed in a different manner.

 The point I am trying to make is that stories, especially prequels, don’t always have to follow the blood and bones of the original story exactly. People can reinterpret and reanimate things the way they want it for the better of one’s character development and the story, that is what George Lucas did with the newer Star Wars trilogy. He wanted to make things a little bit different because it would have a profound impact on what occurs in the original films. And don’t forget, the prequels were written and directed by the same gentleman who brought us the very first Star Wars film, the film that started it all. It is often said that George Lucas made the prequels the way he did because that is what his children wanted. Well, isn’t that the way it should be. Doesn’t family, friends and love always come first. The prequel films could have been done a different way and still most likely would have been panned by critics and RedLetterMedias everywhere, but still would have left an impact all to their own, an impact that certain people are able to come across and piece together themselves. What is wrong with the prequel trilogy is something I can never really understand (George Lucas gave us three dog turds with these new Star Wars films) because it’s not that hard to understand, and like George Lucas says “Star Wars is for everyone, not just adults”It’s every epic story rolled into one, and without the prequels, well, we just wouldn’t get the whole picture. You should try looking into that RedLetterMedia. The prequels were a success, not a success at being terrible movies as many people would put it, but as allowing us to get the whole story straight. Star Wars doesn’t suck because of the prequels, it was made a hell of a lot better because of the prequels.

What I Love About the Star Wars Prequels Part 1

Hey everyone. Here is a set of essays I wrote about the Star Wars prequels quite a few months ago, a set of essays for the Star Wars Prequel Appreciation Society. I spoke of why I loved the films and why they left such an impact on me, for they were one of the many things that got me into Star Wars, got me into observing films and science fiction. I bring up many things in these essays, even RedLetterMedia and how the people often react towards the prequels, but my overall view of the prequels remains positive, for they have just as many iconic moments and characters as the original trilogy does, and they have left an impact in their own right, inspiring other film makers to make the films of their dreams, make films with out of this world creatures and myth, make prequels and backstories to some of the greatest stories ever told on film. The prequels have attracted a new audience and have made many people hard core Star Wars fans, people adoring some of the characters, some of the prequels' settings and the plot elements that many critics and film historians bash. So with that being said, I hope you enjoy these essays, for I have worked very hard to right all three of them, and I did enjoy righting them, so sit back, get comfortable, and read my overall view of the newest Star Wars trilogy George Lucas has put before us.

What I Love About the Star Wars Prequels Part 1

Everyone who is familiar with the Internet has probably heard of a guy called RedLetterMedia. He has recently posted reviews on all three of the Star Wars prequels on his website. I am plain up going to tell you right now that I enjoy his reviews, they are funny and are very intriguing to watch. But some of the things he has said about the prequels are in my book, very harsh and uncalled for. He says that all people who like the prequels are drooling idiots and children and says that the prequels failed to carry on the same impact as the originals. As a reviewer of this material, I can honestly say that the prequels did not carry on the same impact, but rather, an impact of their own. It’s quite fine to like these films because there is nothing really horrific to dislike about them. Sure, Jar Jar was a bit of a nuisance but if you look at the prequels as a whole, and what was really brilliant and exciting about them, they were just as fascinating and breathtaking as the classic films, carry on the same message and impact that was just distributed in a different matter.
All people who nitpick about these films mainly focus on what they didn’t like about them. Jar Jar, the midi-chlorians, the bad acting, the “crappy and unrealistic” special effects, it has all been said several hundred times by all critics spanning the internet and television. But the prequels, like the originals, had a lot of moments with tension and suspense, and has a lot of people wondering what will happen next. The lightsaber duel with Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Maul was probably the best lightsaber duel in the entire saga. The stunt work that was pulled off in that classic scene had me on the edge of my seat, and never had me suspecting that Qui-Gon Jinn would be dead at the end of that duel and Darth Maul sliced in half and tumbling down a reactor pit. Seeing Yoda pull out his own lightsaber and take on Count Dooku had my jaw on the floor. To see a classic character fight in such an erratic manner really was exemplary, especially considering that fact that Yoda is a very old jedi master that shouldn’t even be fighting with a lightsaber because of his health. It’s interesting and unique stuff that has never been done on film before, not even in the originals. And I would be a fool not to mention that I absolutely loved the podrace with Young Anakin Skywalker in Episode I. Sure, it was fast and predictable, but that is what made it good. I never knew Anakin was a mechanical and racing genius in his early days. The gungan battle at the climax of Episode I was also interesting. To see the dim witted gungans clumsily take out battle droids and droid tanks, it was exciting and hilarious at the same time.



RedLetterMedia states that the characters in the prequels are less memorable than the characters in the originals. If that’s so, than why do people get excited when a character from the prequels, like Darth Maul, Qui-Gon Jinn and Shmi Skywalker , appear on the Clone Wars TV show. Once again, the characters of the prequels don’t leave the same impact as the original characters, but an impact of their own. Who doesn’t like Darth Maul? He is a very iconic and well received character even if he was killed off quite quickly. Who doesn’t look at Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and see Luke Skywalker? Who doesn’t like iconic jedi characters like Mace Windu, Kit Fisto, Ki Adi Mundi, Aayla Secura and more. I can’t help but see the characters of the prequels mirroring the characters of the originals. They are briefly shown on screen and developed in a different way, but they still stick out in our heads, and a lot of SW fans’ favorite characters are from the prequels. The characters are also developed differently than the characters in the originals. Anakin Skywalker, we see throughout each of the three films, becomes very powerful to the point where he wants to become the most powerful jedi ever and save people from dying. It is quite similar to the story of Luke in the original trilogy, although, as we all know, Anakin’s story would become very tragic. Seeing Anakin’s thirst for prominence and manipulation by Palpatine turn him into the mechanically breathing maniac we all know and love in the originals was a very powerful moment that left such a powerful impact. A lot of people say he is too whiny, but that’s the point. In order for Anakin to ultimately turn to the dark side, he has to become arrogant and angry inside, that’s the way all great villains start out. They are heroes that are blinded and guided in the wrong direction which ultimately leads to their downfall.

The whole point of the prequels is to explain things. They are meant to take the same ingredients that made the originals the most well acclaimed movies all of time and re render them to explain why things are the way they are in the classic films. People think George Lucas rushed through the scripts of the prequels and just wanted to make “crappy” special effects on his computer. That’s not the case. George Lucas developed the prequels right around the same time he did the originals, If George Lucas released the prequels first, this is how he would have done, and I can almost guarantee you that Star Wars would have still made the same impact. The prequels are laid out and worked on for a very long time. Why do you think it takes 3 years for a new Star Wars film to see release. The story of the prequels does make sense, you just need to look at it from a different perspective, not the mention that some of the stories in the original films were also intriguing, but still just as brilliant. The impact of the originals is what makes the impact of the prequels. To see Anakin build C-3P0 was mind boggling and to see the Death Star plans in Episode 2 makes the prequels just as memorable, and who can forget Chewbacca’s unforgettable appearance in Episode 3. These appearances of things from the classic films tie the 2 trilogies together, and in my opinion, and in a lot of other people’s opinions, it makes the original films even better. Now we know who is within that Darth Vader suit. Now we know why the Emperor has a face like a gorilla’s behind. Now we know why Yoda is living on Dagobah. It’s all because of the stories told in the prequels.

And the SW prequels still take elements from other films and roll it into something new just as the original films did. They even take elements from the original films themselves, something RedLetterMedia talked about in his review. But’s that is what makes it good. That is what makes the Star Wars Prequels the Star Wars Prequels. SW fans can immediately compare the scenes to the scenes in the originals, and once again, it makes the originals all the better because it proves that the physics and dynamic abilities as well as the Force are all part of the same universe, and that the characters are quite identical to each other. Padme wears white just like Leia wore white. C3-P0 is broken apart just like he was in Episode 5. Luke looses his arm just as Anakin lost his arm in Episode 2. It’s like two tellings of the same story with different endings, and like the originals, I can help but see the stories of the Bible, mythology and other classic material within the prequels. The settings, the space ships, the species, the character development, it’s all just as good in the prequels as it was in the originals, you just need to look into it with an open mind to understand it. And the main reason why I think the prequel films are vastly underrated is what I will explain next.

I got into Star Wars because of the prequels. I remember when Episode I came out and how big it was. There were fast food promotions, action figures, contests, even a Jar Jar Binks sippy cup. It was a major release in motion picture history. But the hype of the film proved too much for the film to handle, and the film was met with a lukewarm response. Myself on the other hand, loved the film, and I still do. It was the first Star Wars film I ever saw and I was just blown out the window by it. The special effects, the lightsaber duel with Darth Maul, the acting, everything I enjoyed, and this is what motivated me to continue my exploration of the Star Wars films in the near future.It wasn’t until the release of Revenge of the Sith that I really settled down and watched the original films thoroughly for the first time, and from watching the prequel films first, I could come to enjoy the original films even more. And the fact that George Lucas restored the original films with references from the prequels really made the SW films one whole story. I thought it was brilliant to see young Anakin at the end of Return of the Jedi, and it makes sense. Anakin Skywalker, redeemed or not, died when he became Darth Vader, and since he killed the Emperor and fulfilled the ancient Jedi prophecy, he was rewarded by spending eternity in the netherworld of the force as a young man. It makes perfect sense why George Lucas would do that, for George wanted to make the prequels and than use the actor who played Anakin as the force ghost at the end of Return of the Jedi, something else that would make the whole Star Wars saga one whole story. It was amazing to see what I saw in the prequels in the restored originals, for it proves that the characters are all the same characters, and the settings are all the same settings, and who cares if George replaced some of the scenes with CGI, that is what makes the universe more consistent and imaginative. Watching all six films in order really is an amazing experience, because you can understand what Star Wars is all about, and you can come to understand the mythology and ethics George Lucas was trying to get out to the world.

And put it this way. If we didn’t have the Star Wars prequels, Star Wars would have become a thing of the past.The prequels is what made Star Wars the prominent franchise it is today. It kept the universe alive just the Star Trek: The Next Generation kept the Star Trek universe alive, and the brilliance of the prequels is what inspired an infestation of EU material, including both Clone Wars TV shows which further made the prequels better in a lot of people’s books. It set in stone what Star Wars really is, a universe full of treachery, wisdom and temptation. And this is Star Wars for a new generation of viewers. There is no question in my mind that with the SW films being released in order in 3-D next year, it will continue to captivate many more children and adults alike with it’s wonder and glorification. “The appeal of Star Wars has become greater than I have ever imagined” quoted George Lucas, and he is absolutely right. And it’s all thanks to the beauty of the prequels, the films that ultimately defined Star Wars and made it the ultimate franchise it is today. These films relate to real life and the struggles humanity faces everyday, in politics and relationships, as well as the morals and lessons taught with in the Bible like temptation, redemption and how to cope with certain perils. As a Christian man, I can see the tales of the Bible through Star Wars and relate the characters of the Bible to characters of the Star Wars universe. Anakin is in many ways like Jesus, a person of virgin birth who has to one day fulfill a prophecy (Anakin was conceived by the Force, Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit). And who can’t look at Palpatine and see the Devil, tempting people to turn to the Dark Side just as the Devil tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread in the forest. It’s every epic story in the Bible rolled into something new and original, and if you ask me, this is prominently seen within the Star Wars prequels, tales of betrayal and deception. That my friends is why I like them so much because it shows that all people, even people in a galaxy far, far away have issues, and it will take some drastic measures and sacrifice to get through these horrible times.

The Star Wars Prequels did change cinema, very different from the impact of the originals, but still very prudent. And I honestly feel great sympathy for George Lucas, who is constantly panned by many critics for these last three films, because they simply can not see what he was trying to get out with these prequels. And surely, these films will still be horribly panned for many years to come by RedLetterMedia and many other critics, but it’s good to know that there are those who can understand why these films were made and see what they were trying to get out to the world. Thank you, George Lucas, for keeping the SW universe alive, and inspiring many other film makers, like J.J. Abrams to release several epic stories that would captivate the lives of millions. And many years from now, we can look back at the onslaught of films that have come throughout the years and say, “The Star Wars Saga, the prequels, they started it all!”

SDCC 2011 Thoughts

It's all over. The gathering of nerds and comic nuts alike comes to a close. But that doesn't mean the fun and excitement stops. San Diego Comic Con 2011 was surely exhilarating and unexpecting as we ruthlessly anticipated greatly for to what was to come in the upcoming months, from movies to TV shows, and of course, toys. As a huge collector, I could not help but labor in envy over the toy previews and photos of all the upcoming merchandise, from Star Wars, to Thundercats, to the Marvel Universe, there were surely a lot of toys that caught my eye and I for one cannot wait to get my hands on one particular item. What item you say? Well, it's no surprise that I am a huge fan of Spider-Man, and I am awaiting with high hopes for the upcoming The Amazing Spider-Man movie, set to hit theaters July 2012. A lot of people are against this film, saying that it is too early for a Spider-Man reboot and that they are not too fond of the darker, grittier path Spidey is going down. But I think it's going to be an incredible movie, the Spider-Man film I have been waiting for. Sure the Sam Raimi films were good, and Spider-Man 3 has grown on me quite a bit ever since I wrote my Superhero Films That Disappointed Me list, but I have waited in great anticipation for a Spider-Man film that followed the comics in vain, bringing the legendary story of Peter Parker, the story I am so familiar with, the story I have grown up with to the silver screen at last. It will be quite an experience next summer, and if 2012 is the end of the world, we can die knowing that such a great set of Spider-Man films were made, films that really made the wall crawler more than just a superhero, but a symbol of hope, a symbol of bravery and defense in our befuddled lives.

But enough talk about that, let's talk about the Spider-Man action figure that was put on display at San Diego Comic Con this year. All I can say is that I am really looking forward to picking this guy up, for he looks to be one of the greatest Spidey figures yet!



I love the look of the Spider-Man suit, it's very different than the version we are all familiar with, but it's still awesome as a golden Cheeto. And the radical new Spidey suit, which looks more mechanized and resoureful, is perfectly shown throughtout this impressive figure, which stands in the 3 3/4 inch scale, the same scale as the Marvel Universe figures, as well as the Star Wars figures and GI Joe figures. But the thing that sticks out the most to me is the color on this figure, it is surely a lot more vibrant, a lot more brighter than the color of Raimi's Spider-Man action figures. And it looks like you will be able to pull off a variety of stellar poses with this Spider-Man figure, after all, he is Spider-Man and you gotta be able to pull off a variey of poses in order to climb walls, shoot webs and swing from building to building. Overall, I am pleased with the prototype of the Amazing Spider-Man action figure, and next year, when the movie is on the verge of being released, I will be looking forward to picking up this figure and adding him to my collection, which I plan to pass on from generation to generation.

San Diego Comic Con 2011 was a blast, and all the major announcements were very interesting to hear. I loved to see the coming episodes of the new Thundercats television series and how The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises, and The Man of Steel take off into pop culture, for they will surely be blockbuster thrillers at the time of their release. And the best part of the convention was the toys, for there is no greater way to bring home the experience of movies, comics and televisions than through toys. Kids love them, collector love to buy them and put them on display on their shelves, and I love them. The Star Wars figures, the Marvel figures, even some of the He-Man figures. They surely are awesome, and awesome to play with!

Can't wait to see how the Clone Wars Chewbacca and Savage Opress turn out, they look to be some incredible additions to any Clone Wars collection.

Cowboys and Aliens Review

Two genres unite! The slick, unexpecting style of cowboy and western films merges with the oddball, phenomenal nature of the sci-fi genre in this summer's blacksheep of summer blockbusters, Cowboys and Aliens. This film brings together James Bond, Han Solo, and Quorra from TRON: Legacy in an epic struggle against some of the most terrifying, the most deleterious, the most cunning of intergalactic demons ever to enter our atmosphere. Where's ET and A.L.F. when you need them? Cowboys and Aliens is far, far from the other comic book flicks we have seen this treacherous summer of ticket sales, far from those films in a good way. It is surely something different, something unique and stunning, stunning in a much different way than Captain America, Thor, and even Transformers, but I really, really enjoyed it down to it's final moments. I know a lot of people have come to despise this film like Battlefield Earth and Batman and Robin, but I for one, think this film had a lot going for it, had a lot of visually "eye popping" attention grabbers and special effects that were far beyond silicon material. The spacecrafts, the gunships, even the aliens themselves looked like something straight out of War of the Worlds, now if only they could get a CGI animated Orson Welles in this film and the circle would be complete. And this is one of the films where Harrison Ford was at his finest. Even if he is over 69 years of age, he still has that Harrison Ford essence to him that makes him, well, Harrison Ford. I couldn't help but see Han Solo, Indiana Jones, Rick Deckard, and Dr. Richard Kimble in his character, for the character he played in the film, Woodrow Dolarhyde, carried so many of those characters' distinctive trademarks, and Ford even pulled off that classic Ford smirk quite a few times, which I always think of as a plus. But oh, my friends, we are only at the beginning of talking about how incredibly remarkable this film was, for it wasn't the best film ever made, but it was far fro atrociously awful, and I just loved the overall feeling to the film, the overall appearance of the film, making it one of the most thrilling, the most dazzling motion pictures of the entire summer.



Now we can really bite into this cake further without adding a little frosting first. Cowboys and Aliens was based off of a 2006 graphic novel of the same name, a graphic novel written by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, Fred Van and Andrew Foley. The story of the novel was quite different from what you saw in other acclaimed graphic novels like Watchmen or V For Vendetta, although the artwork by Dennis Calero and Luciano Lima is off the hinges. It is exotic, but exotic in a good sense, and has a cartoony, yet comic book appropriate style to it, giving us unique character designs and locations that really fit in well with the story being told. I think it's a great series of comics, and I highly recommend it to someone looking for something different, yet interesting and exciting, because in today's world that is usually dominated by things like Marvel, DC and Manga, there are surely a lot of outlandish, out of this world stories that people love to read, love to obsess over and read over and over again when they get the chance. Cowboys and Aliens is certainly something I could read over and over again, because it clashes together two genres I really love, western and science fiction, and the novel blends these two genres together flawlessly, just as the recently releashed movie does as well. And so I went into the movie not knowing what was going to be placed before me. Was I going to get a generic, low budget, wooden flick with special effects straight out of Santa Claus Conquers The Martians or was I going to get a cutting edge, suspensive thriller filled with so many possibilites? Well, to be honest, I got neither. I GOT SOMETHING EVEN BETTER THAN THOSE TWO COMBINED! Because Cowboys and Aliens left me with a feeling not knowing what to think of it, that's the whole beauty of the entire thing. It left me wondering as to which category of film this actually falls under, what place it serves on the Best Film of All Time-O Meter and what impact it will leave on an audience 500 years from now. For Cowboys and Aliens had so much to offer and so much that really stuck out in my cranium, things that still vividly linger inside my head to this very day. It could very well be one of my favorite John Favreau film because of that. That's right, I actually think it's up there with some of his other films like Iron Man and Iron Man 2, for as it did leave me with quite a mixed impact, it still had the overall feeling, the zing of a comic book movie thriller, and that is exactly what I look for in films of this genre, things that make me feel like I was sucked into a comic book or reading a comic book moving straight off the panels. And Cowboys and Aliens is also a great example of how perfectly a graphic novel can be handled on the big screen, for it had all the elements that made the original good, all the elements that made blockbusters like Watchmen and 300 so popular at the time of their release. It's too bad others don't see what I see, because I actually thought this film was better than those two films, honestly.

The opening of the film has you asking yourself hundreds of questions. It's almost like that feeling you had with Super 8 where something strange, unlikely occurs, and even though you don't see them, you know something "alien" is going on. But that doesn't mean this film hasn't got that Fistful of Dollars, The Good The Bad and the Ugly Feeling to It. Even in the first few minutes of the film, we are given some high quality action scenes straight out of those classic western films, cowboys beating the daylights out of one another and pointing guns at one another. Even a girl gets involved in the chaos, knocking the main character, Jake Lonergan, to his feet. Daniel Craig, who has been known these past few years as one of the many incarnations of James Bond, steps away from the Connery shoes and plays a relentless cowboy of destruction. His acting is pretty much what you would expect from Daniel Craig, although I must admit he had his golden moments, particularly towards the end of the film where he and several other prepared to take out the aliens and their command ship. The actions scenes Craig was involved in where also top notch, Craig delivering some Bond like stuntwork and kicking alien butt with some pretty shabby pieces of weaponry. Olivia Wilde was also quite good as the female lead, Ella Swenson, a girl that's not like most female characters in comic book movies. She is a tough warrior, fighting prominently alongside her companions, although there are times where it ultimately costs her. She is wounded quite a few times throughout the film, although towards the end of the film, she ultimately sacrifices herself to stop the alien race that is threatening the village, and Wilde gives it all her best, similar to the way she did as Quorra in TRON: Legacy, tough, but often getting overpowered by her enemies, loosing an arm but having it regenerated moments later. I think all the actors in the film were spewing their heart and soul, taking their respective roles quite seriously, but no one, repeat no one, spews their heart and soul quite like Harrison Ford. Need I say more?

He played some of the most iconic, influential movie characters of all time, and it seems like all of these roles were reflected in Ford's portrayal of Woodrow Dolarhyde. He fights so dirty, yet so classically, giving us sarcastic and serious dialogue we all love from Mr. Ford, and like he did in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, he took part in some badass action sequences. I like Ford's style, he proves that you don't need to be a lean man in his 30s to kick extra terrestrial behind, putting his best foot forward and delivering that Ford fighting style he always delivers, for he can be charming, yet so dirty and slick, and he always knows how to take out enemies in exciting, resourceful ways. Just look what he did in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, he took out the entire bridge when he was outnumbered by Thuggee swordsmen! And if that's not badass, then I don't know what is! And since this is a Favreau film, we can some top notch action scenes as well as some top notch comedy and humor. That's common in his recent films like Elf and of course, the Iron Man series, but the humor in Cowboys and Aliens really went well with the story in my opinion, just like the humor in Iron Man really went well with the story. It got a laugh from me quite a few times, and it really lit a light of hope in some of the film's more darker, grittier scenes. I especially liked the humor given off my Ford and even Daniel Craig had a few funny lines, proven that all the main characters in action films can be intimidated, yet lighthearted and funny at times. By the way, did anyone see the Jimmy Kimmel Show the other night. Harrison Ford was a guest star. He was in his dressing room when all of a sudden, Chewbacca came to pay him a visit, Ford humorously stating "I'M DONE WITH THAT STAR WARS CRAP AND I'M DONE WITH YOU! I'M IN COWBOYS AND ALIENS

The Next Best SNES Classics

You may recall that I did a sequel blogpost to my Top 10 Favorite NES Games List. So, to keep in that tradition, we are going to be having a look at another horde of classic SNES titles, the next series of SNES games that I feel deserve some spotlight. As I said before, the Super Nintendo Entertaiment System is my favorite gaming console of all, the reason is because it was the console I grew up and the one I have the most fond memories of playing in my youth. My cousins had a Super Nintendo, my uncle had a Super Nintendo, and I now have a Super Nintendo to call my own, because it is one of the greatest elements from my childhood and no other gaming system can compete with it, not even the mighty Nintendo Entertainment System or the SNES' mortal nemesis, the Sega Genesis.



GENESIS! I WANT IT!

So let's fire up the grill, shall we? Chewy, fasten your seatbelt, we're making the jump to lightspeed. This is the Next Best SNES Games ever grace the face of the Earth.

Super Adventure Island



Hudson Soft has brought Adventure Island to the SNES in a different, yet bitterswett manner. Super Adventure Island is one of the most whimsical titles ever to be shoved into the SNES' dusty slot, and it was one of the many games I got a glimpse of as a wee little lad. I remember seeing Master Higgins fly at the tv screen, and I was quite scared of the game ever since, fearing that I would have to see that terrifying sight once more. However, many, many, many moons later, when I developed into a hard core gaming guru, I found this game, gave it a go, and it is to this day one of my all time favorites. Sure it's nothing groundbreaking like Donkey Kong Country, but it had edge, edge like no other video game before. With that clunky, up beat Hudson Soft music playing in the background and enemies flying at you at 65 miles per hour, this game had a lot of tension, and as all this tension was going on, you had to make sure Master Higgins was getting his essential dosage of fruits and vegetables, because if he doesn't get his good, wholesome food, he kicks the bucket. How BLOODY unfortunate. Next thing you're going to tell me is that Pit turns into a giant eggplant with legs! But Super Adventure Island is a classic in it's own right, and helped the famous Adventure Island series progress into the 16-bit world, which was quite the craze in video gaming back in those days. While the game reached extremely difficult proportions, it was also a lot of fun at times, and you couldn't help but go back and play certain levels over and over and over again, getting better and better and better every time you played them. The challenge was reasonable, the characters are quite memorable in my eyes, and the enemies are just so darn funny! As a matter of fact, all the enemies in the Adventure Island games are quite hilarious! Pink snails, blue octopi, you might even encounter a couple anthropomorphic pigs every now and then. It's a lot better than the average koopa troopas and octorocs isn't it? Anywho, Super Adventure Island is a game I hold at such high levels, and I enjoy it's unique setup and gameplay everytime I plug it into the gray box, for it has an appeal like no other game I took part in. It's, oh, how do I put it, super mega awesome wow! That just about sums it up, right?

Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest



Donkey Kong Country will always remain my all time favorite game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, for it's graphics and gameplay were unlike any other game in history. But Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest can go to the grave as an almost perfect sequel, a sequel that doesn't completely desecrate the grounds set before it. The game differs greatly from it's predecessor, kinda like how Super Mario Bros. 2 differed greatly from it's predecessor, featuring new gameplay enemies, and entirely new theme and setup, and new playable characters that could appeal to many boys and girls who were interested at the game at the time of it's release. The acclaimed Diddy Kong returns, this time with his girlfriend, Dixie Kong, as the two embark on a perillous journey to rescue Diddy's uncle, Donkey Kong, from the clutches of Kaptain K. Rool. The characters carry the classic attacks from the first game we are all familiar with, but they also have some new abilities. Diddy Kong can run a lot faster than he did in the first game, and Dixie Kong can glide in the air by using her ponytail. There are also a considerable amount of new Animal Buddies in this game as well, such as Glimmer the Anglerfish, Rattly the Rattlesnake, Clapper the Seal, and my personal favorite, Squitter the Spider. Rambi the Rhino also makes a triumphant return from the previous game, along with Enguarde the Swordfish and Squaks the Parrot, carrying their trademark powers along with them. And using these guys couldn't be more fun. Using the animals' abilities to get from beginning to end can really add to the challenge but also make things a heck of a lot easier, for you can take out enemies much quicker and get across dead ends faster and more efficiently. But it's without a doubt that Donkey Kong Country 2 is much better when you are playing with another person, for there are areas of the game where you wish you had a good buddy nearby to assist you, areas like treacherous pirate ships, gigantic bee hives, fierce volcanic pits, an life scarring roller coaster rides from HELL! I have many, many horrifying memories of playing through that roller coaster level as a child, and I think it's safe to say it's up there with the underwater level from the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles video game (Oh Ninja Turtles, we'll get to them soon enough). But when all is set in stone, Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest is one of the very few sequels that actually lives up to the original, the sequel taking everything that made the first game good and refreshing it, spicing it up a bit, making it something new and different, but also fun and enjoyable.

Prince of Persia



Of all the different variations of Jordan Mechner's Prince of Persia, the SNES version, produced by Konami, has to be my favorite. A lot of people spit at the sight of this version, and to be honest, I don't really understand why. Maybe it's that this version has 20 levels when the original had 13 and that some of the boss battles require a significant amount of dodging, but in my humble opinion, this version of Prince of Persia enhanced the original by a milestone. The graphics were quite eye popping for a SNES game at that time, and even though they were 16-bit, they still captured the very essence, nature, and balance of the graphics from the original game, adding in a couple new and improved features every now and then to make this version of Persia the blacksheep of all the remakes. As I said earlier, this version of Persia took the original and ultrafied several times over. The game has the original 13 levels we all know and love with 7 new levels for the future prince to surpass in a matter of minutes, but do not worry your little behinds off, even though this version of Persia has 20 levels, it does not mean that you are limited to an hour to rescue the princess from her captivity. The people at Konami were nice enough to add an extra hour to the time slot of this game, meaning that you have exactly 120 minutes to escape deleterious dungeons, fight vicious skeleton warriors, take a twirl with the Vishnu God, dodge your way across boiling hot lava rivers and take on the Vizier Jaffar himself, now equipped with magical spells and a sword that spells trouble. Gee, this version of Jaffar makes Jaffar from Aladdin look like the Reluctant Dragon. But the thing that makes this version of Persia stick out the most is the incredible music. Konami has a reputation for making games with head banging music, but this has got to be one of the best. From the opening title screen to the closing credits, the music for this game is fitting for each level you play through, pumping you up to take on any enemy that stands in your way, for you can use your mighty sword to turn any of Jaffar's men into shish kabob. Jake Gyllenhaal can take lessons from the original Prince of Persia, for he surely knows how to work with a blade! Anyway, the SNES version of Prince of Persia is simply the best, the graphics are crisp, the music is phenomenal and the game still carries the embodiment of the original, making this one of the very few video game remakes that actually works!

Super Star Wars



Before there was Knights of the Old Republic, there was Super Star Wars. Before there was The Force Unleashed, there was Super Star Wars. Before there was Super Bombad Racing, there was Super Star Wars. And a very special game Super Star Wars is. It was perhaps one of the very first movie based video games to actually get it right, differentiating from the film greatly, but still capturing what made the film great, giving us all the elements, plot points and scenary that we love from the film as well as adding a couple twists. You can play as three characters in this game, the innocent farmboy, Luke Skywalker, the cocky smuggler, Han Solo and everybody's favorite furball from Kashyyyk, Chewbacca. Each characters' abilities differ greatly from each other, Han's shooting ability with the blaster pistol more effective and efficient than Luke's shooting ability with a blaster pistol, although Luke is much better at jumping and Chewy is a lot faster when dodging platforms and elevators. There are also a considerable amount of power ups and weapons you can retrieve throughout the game that can make things a heck of a lot easier, Luke even able to activate his daddy's classic blue lightsaber when the time is right, sending Stormtroopers to their doom. But hands down the best levels out of this game are the flight simulator like levels towards the end of the game. In these levels, you take control of an X-wing as you attempt to knock out the Death Star, blasting TIE Fighters to pieces and fighting off laser torrents along the way. In the game's final level, you find yourself traveling down the Death Star's trench, going up against the Dark Lord of the Sith himself, Darth Vader.After defeating Vader, Obi-Wan Kenobi will tell you to "use the force" just like he did in the movie, and Luke will fire the ion torpedos that ultimately wipe out the Death Star. The ending ceremony of Yavin 4 is even at the end of the game, making this a truly authentic game that follows in the movie's footsteps smoothly. And the game was such a huge success that it spawned two sequels, Super Empire Strikes Back and Super Return of the Jedi. Super Empire Strikes Back is a considerably hard game, and I think everyone is with me when I say that it's the hardest of the Super Star Wars, particularly in the Cloud City stages that require to take out enemy troops and cloud cars in your path. But it's still a very good game and a worthy successor to the flawless Super Star Wars game, which ranks as one of the greatest Star Wars games ever made. Super Return of the Jedi is also very good as well, for you get to play as Princess Leia and even Wicket the Ewok, but not even that game can be considered as good as the first. Super Star Wars is a sight to behold, a great movie based game with intriguing graphics, sound, and challenge that motivates you to keep on playing. It very well might be my favorite Star Wars game of all time, maybe I'll be proven wrong when the long awaited Star Wars: The Old Republic hits store shelves in a few weeks. That surely looks like a masterpiece. My only wonder is how the Star Wars prequels would have turned out if they were made into Super Star Wars games. Jar Jar Binks as a playable character, anyone?

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time



It is no surprise that I am a huge fan of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and when it comes to the green teens, there are a slew of games that deserve some recognition. But the Ninja Turtles game that sticks out the most to me, sticks out even greater than Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Arcade Game is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time. Based upon the acclaimed arcade game of the same name, Turtles in Time showed how flawlessly an arcade game could be transferred over to a home console, delivering that same appeal and gameplay that was so very identical to the arcade version, it was like you were playing the arcade game right in the comfort of your own home. Now, don't get over excited, don't loose your head, the game does have many significant differences from the arcade version, particularly in some of the level designs and the gameplay, and some of the iconic animations from the arcade game are not present in the SNES version, replaced by a Mode 7 level called "Neon Night Riders". That doesn't mean the SNES version is inferior to the arcade version, for it is a very good game and would allow those who couldn't go to the arcade to experience the game, even without some of the arcade game's prominent features. As you would expect in a Ninja Turtles game, you get to play as the four principal turtles, Leonardo, Raphael, Michaelangelo, and Donatello, each using their signature weapon and carrying the ability to launch a "super duper" attack every once and a while. They are also put up against classic TMNT foes such as Bebop and Rocksteady, the Rat King, Krang, even Tokka and Rahzar, straight from their appearance in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Secret of the Ooze. The gameplay is what you would expect if you have played TMNT 2 and 3 for the NES, althought it is much more fluent and proportioned in my opinion. Now, you can pull off attacks a lot easier and take out enemies more swiftly, using your weapons in a variety of new ways. It's quite interesting what you can do with the attacks in this game, you can even throw a foot clan soldier right at the television screen. Sure that was in the arcade game too, but for those of us who haven't played the arcade game, it was pretty mindblowing to see that in a SNES game, for it showed how badass the turtles could be towards theire enemies. They were kick butt on the television show, and they are kick butt in this game, and even though there are times where I just wanna hurl all over my SNES, I still love to play this game to the very end, because even the final battle with old Shred Head can be a whole lot of fun, and that's the key word for this game, fun, for that's what the original TMNT is all about, right? COWABUNGA! PIZZA TIME!

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars



I'm not an RPG kind of guy. Whether it's Final Fantasy or Pokemon, I really am not big on them just simply because I wasn't raised on those type of games. I am much more of a side-scrolling adventure video gamer, and I'm not saying that there isn't any adventure in RPGs, I just prefer the adventure of classic side-scrolling games like Super Mario Bros or Castlevania. But if there is one RPG that I have grown quite fascinated with in recent years, it's Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, the first role playing game in the Mario series. Like most other RPGs, Super Mario RPG requires you to travel to certain areas, collect certain items, and battle different foes, all with a catch. They are all Mario themed, and very appropriate for a Mario Bros like atmosphere, showing that even though the game is an RPG, it can still be just as appealing as all the side-scrolling Mario classics that have come before it. It has the intensity quite common in a Mario game and requires you to take part in some somewhat jarring situations, however, if you are like Mario and his friends, you will always have a useful, yet hilarious way of getting out of it, gaining more power that can come in handy down the road ahead. The layout and overall design of this game is quite lovely. I love to look at the forests and the palaces of this game, for they surely have a lot of depth and dimension to them. It's almost like you are wearing 3-D glasses at times, and controlling Mario and his Mushroom Kingdom couldn't be any easier. You move them about just like you would any character in an RPG, and each one of them can unleash a certain attack or restore health with a certain object. You can find objects and useful material by looking just about everywhere, for just about every area of the game is bound to have something that can help you blow enemies to kingdom come. And believe it or not, the villain of the game is not Bowser, he is replaced by a new enemy, a cyborg named Smithy, who bids to do the casual bad guy routine of taking over the world. But do not fear, Bowser is not laid to waste in this game, for Bowser joins Mario in his quest to stop Smithy along with his previous hostage, Princess Peach, a tadpole named Mallow and a puppet named Geno. But wait, where's Luigi? Why is he always getting tossed aside like a year old rump roast? Other than Luigi's absence, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars is as good as gold, and one of the RPGs I would love to play when I'm in that "RPGish" kind of mood. Samus Aran and Link also make cameo appearances in this game, and when Samus Aran and Link are in games, they are guranteed to be good.

Top Gear



This is one of the first games ever to hit the SNES, and a fine racing game it is. With controls and graphics similar to Mario Kart, and music that blows the ears right off your head, this game really rings of the 90s, rings of my early childhood, rings of the golden days of when I would play this game at my uncle's house early in my youth. You see, I didn't have a SNES back in the day, the only time I would get the chance to play it was when I would go to visit my cousins or my uncle, for they had a SNES for many years beforehand, and played the games until their fingers bled. One of the games I played for the SNES when I would come to visit was this game, Top Gear, a title quite suitable for this racing game masterpiece, based upon many of the acclaimed racing games that have come beforehand like the Lotus series, produced by Barry Leitch for the Commodore Amiga. As a matter of fact, a majority of the game's soundtrack consists of remixed tunes from the Lotus series, the title theme for Top Gear the ending theme for Lotus Turbo Challenge 2, although the tune sounds much better on the SNES in my opinion. The game is what you would expect from a racing game at the time, giving us easy grab and go controls that are easy to comprehend and methods that can make each race easier each time you play it. The game also has a bit of a catch, for like the Lotus series before it, it requires you to stop for gas in order to continue racing, for when you are out of gas, you are unable to continue with the race and you will most likely come in last place. That's quite creative actually, making it seem like a real race as opposed to a race with cars with an ultimated amount of gas. It adds to the challenge factor and really makes the game a whole lot worth wild, for you never know what might happen, You might be in first play and then all of a sudden, you run out of gas, and boo hoo, you come in last place. How crummy. Or, let's put it this way, let's say you haven't played this game before, and you play in one player mode. As the race starts, you look at the bottom screen, which is all the way up to sixth place. You think it's you, although in reality, you are the car at the top, and you haven't even started your car, so by the time you start the car, the race ends, and as you would expect, you come in last place, no surprise. It's quite hilarious if you think about it, but that all adds to the fun factor of Top Gear, for had it been just a average, generic racing game, it probably wouldn't have caught on the way it did. It did things no racing game had ever done before, and opened the gateway for many more Top Gear sequels to come in the future, sequels that would follow the first game in vain, although they would sometimes bring new and exciting features to the table, making the games far different from one another and much more worth wild! Buckle up your seatbelts, for my Sidewinder is libel to go through the roof!

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers



Go Go Power Rangers! Dah nah nah nah nah!!!!! Oh, ah, sorry about that! I had to get that out of my system! The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers are such a huge part of my childhood, and hands down my favorite MMPR video game is....the Game Boy game. Yeh, I'll be quite honest and say that that game is my all time favorite, but if I was to pick a second favorite, a game that is dangerous close to being my favorite MMPR video game, it would obviosly have to be the Super Nintendo game, released around the same time as the Game Boy game in 1994, the year I was born! Oh like you care. Unlike the Sega Genesis Power Rangers game, this game had no Tommy Oliver, aka the Green Ranger, which was a bit of a bummer, but the SNES is a quadrillion times better just for the simple fact that it is a side scrolling beat'em up game, the Sega Genesis version was a fighting game, similar to Street Fighter. In my opinion, I think the Power Rangers work a lot better in a side scrolling atmosphere, each ranger starting off as their respective alter ego and turning into their respective rangers half way through the level. And when you are a Power Ranger, you are powerful as all heck. You can unleash special attacks that can wipe out several enemies at a time, and each ranger can fight with their respective power weapon, using the weapon in a unique and different manner, although Kimberly the Pink Ranger uses her bow in quite an inappropriate way. I mean, how many archers do you know that use their bow like a sword? But what made this one of the best Power Rangers games ever is that it tat THEY GOT THE POWER RANGERS THEME RIGHT. The Power Rangers theme in the Sega game sounded OKAY, but the SNES version of the theme sounded all most like the original, well, in a clunky 16-bit kind of way. The fact that you can choose what Power Ranger you wanna play in each level can really make the game challenging and easy all at the same time, for some Power Rangers work a lot better than others in certain levels, and it might be just me, but I think that some of the rangers' "super duper" attacks are more effective than other rangers' "super duper" attacks. For example, Jason the Red Ranger's "super duper" attack is somewhat of a firely flame attack, while Zach the Black Ranger's "super duper" attack is a bunch of boulders falling from the sky and crushing the enemies into pulp. But hey, all the "super duper" attacks work just fine when taking on vicious villains of destruction, and this game is packed to the brim with bloodthirsty villains who want to eat the Power Rangers for dinner. There's Bones, the villain that takes on three different forms throughout the boss fight, the Gnarly Gnome, a teleporting little son of a gun that drove me nuts the first time I encountered him, the Eye Guy, who I always thought looked more like Michelin Man's deformed twin brother with one eye, Genie, who is exactly what the name amplies, and the Dark Warrior, a green ninja like dude that has some pretty swift moves with a sword and a chain with blade. You also take on the the adversaries that are Mutitus and Cyclopsis, IN MEGAZORD MODE! HOW FREAKIN AWESOME IS THAT! If I was not able to play as the Dino Megazord in this game, this game probably wouldn't have been on this list. You know what, screw it, it still would have been on this list, for even without the mea cool megazord stages, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers for the SNES is a "morphinomenal" masterpiece with cool and unique playable characters, awesome side scrolling effects, and "super duper" attacks that turn Putty Patrollers into Muddy Patrollers! Get it? Okay, now I'm just being idiotic, let's just some this up before I start talking about Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie for the SNES. MMPR is an incredible game, awesome graphics, awesome music, and ending credits that make you wanna get up and dance! I'm serious, check this game out yourself to see what I mean!

X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse



You take Mega Man and Street Fighter, mix it in with a little X-Men, and you get X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse for the SNES. I lot of people consider this game "tricky dicky" and I am proud to say that I am one of those people. Why else would I consider this one of the hardest games ever made in my Hard Games: X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse review? Yeh, this is a game that can not be beaten in a single shot, and to be honest, I was tempted to blast this game to smitereens quite a few times, right before I decided to calm down and try again, eventually getting a whole lot better at the game and even getting past levels I couldn't get past the first time, levels like the Apocalypse boss stage and the Brood Cave stage. Is it just me, or do Broods have quite an appetite for mutant blood? X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse is based off one of the most popular X-Men stories in the comic books at the time, the Genosha saga, a story in which Apocalyspe captures mutants and imprisons them on the island of Genosha,Wolverine, Cyclops, Beast, Psylocke, and Gambit having to infiltrate Genosha order to rescue them. As I said before, the gameplay is very reminiscent of Mega Man and Street Fighter, Wolverine's wall crawling ability similar to Mega Man's and Psylocke's cosmic punch somewhat identical to Guile's SONIC BOOM! Even the graphics are similar to Mega Man and Street Fighter in their own right, Magneto's lunar base, Avalon, looking somewhat identical to Sigma's evil base in Mega Man X and the Danger simulation level with Juggernaut and Omega Red bares a striking resemblance to the many fights found in the Street Fighters game. And who doesn't look at Beast and see Blanka, for the two share similar attacks and can walk on the ceiling! How resourceful! And like many of the Marvel games I have previously examined, this game features that uncanny style in the characters, similar to the artwork of the legendary Jack Kirby and Jim Lee. The characters look exactly like they did in the comics of the time, and the posture of each avatar is just remarkable. It's almost like you are watching an action packed episode of the hit X-Men television series, which was at the top of it's popularity at the time of the game's release. But it's the controls that really make this game a real gem, and Marvel Superheroes: War of the Gems would follow in this game's footsteps when it was released 2 years later. Although you might find yourself flying off the edge at times, the controls are managable and you can do some pretty sweet moves with each player, my personal favorites being Wolverine in Gambit, for Wolverine can do some pretty snazzy things with his adamantium claws and Gambit uses his stick like his life depends on it. And that makes things much more easier than they already are. X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse is surely up there with Konami's X-Men video game, for it had such a similar style and game features far more advanced than the dreadful style and game features in LJN's X-Men games for the NES. Don't even give those games a try, you'll wanna punch the Stay Puft Marshmallow right in his sweet spot! You can however try out X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse, for even though the game is hard as a rock, it still is a lot of fun and would glorify the X-Men's popularity even more, making each playable character favorites to many, characters that would signify the X-Men era of the 90s.

And the next best SNES Classic is....

Street Fighter 2



MY FAVORITE FIGHTING GAME OF ALL TIME, and for many reasons. Street Fighter 2 was not only one of the most popular arcade games of all time, it was also one of the greatest video games ever to grace the Super Nintendo, and remains to this day one of the highest grossing games for the console, selling several million copies and captivating the minds of those who love a good game where men shout HADOUKEN and throw killer power balls of death! Street Fighter 2, the many versions of the game released for the SNES, had all our favorites, from Ryu to Ken to Chun-Li, there was a character for everybody to play as and a character that the player can relate to, a character that can become the player's all time favorite. My personal favorites are Blanka, Vega, and Balrog, for they have the most prominent moves in my opinion and can really take a good chunk off the enemy's health bar. Ryu and the others are okay too, Ryu and Ken's HADOUKEN coming in handy in the battles against enemies like Zangief and M. Bison himself, who does this weird cosmic head butt attack which I find quite annoying at times. And the pure beauty of Street Fighter 2 is that you can set the difficultly. Sure, you may not get such good ending credits if you play the game on the easy mode, but if you are in a light-hearted kind of mood, you might wanna turn down the difficultly quite a bit, and if you are in the mood for some hard-core street fighting, turn the difficulty to sky rocketing high and you are in for a real treat. Each version of Street Fighter 2 is quite similar to one another, although they have quite a list of significant differences, particularly in the cut scenes and ending credits, although it was Super Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers that really took things in a different direction, introducing an onslaught of new characters like Dee Jay, T. Hawk, Fei Long, and M. Bison's dreamgirl, Cammy. I also find the new characters' abilities far more advanced than the old characters' abilities in many ways, the new characters' attacks much more swift and managable, although you can still find yourself playing as the older characters quite a lot in The New Challengers, I know I do. Street Fighter 2 was a major improvement over the first Street Fighter game, and introduced a lot of things that would become common in later Street Fighter titles, such as the most recent Street Fighter 4. Capcom even sold the Street Fighter rights to big movie companies who made quite a few Street Fighter films, such as the animated Street Fighter 2 movie from 1994, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li starring Michael Clarke Duncan as Balrog, and the infamous Street Fighter movie starring John Claude Van Damme as Guile. I liked all of these films, even the film with Van Damme, although it's the Street Fighter games that remain superior. They have such a unique style and layout to them that really makes them different from other fighting games like the Mortal Combat series and Killer Instinct, although without a doubt, the best Street Fighter game of the bunch is Street Fighter 2. I thoroughly enjoy each version of the game, and even though some of the rereleases are just simple upgrades, they still have major appeal to them, and Street Fighter 2 remains one of the most famous games ever produced by Capcom, giving us cutting edge action and drama and story far beyond any game in the same genre. There is no game out there with a story like Street Fighter 2, it's surely something straight out of a great sci-fi/action thriller, and I really like it, I like it a lot.

All good things must come to an end, and this list has reached it's end. I hope you all enjoyed having a look at the Next Best SNES Classics, because it was surely a lot of fun analyzing and making this list, and do not fear, because I will be back to talk about even more video games in the not so distant future, so stick around, I don't know what I will talk about next or when I will get a chance to talk about it, all I can say is that it will be good, very good, super mega ultra good, for I just can't help but talk about some of my all time favorite pixelated electronic masterpieces. It's surely something I could talk about for hours and hours and hours without end, I love it that much.

Good day!