Some time ago, it was confirmed that director Kevin Tancharoen’s indie effort with Mortal Kombat: Rebirth has borne fruit with an all-new 10-episode web series that will fit into the MK canon. Hand in hand with the announcement was that Michael Jai White will be reprising his role of Jackson ‘Jax’ Briggs from Rebirth into the upcoming webisodes. Well, now we get his partner as well. Through her verified Twitter account, actress Jeri Ryan has confirmed that she’ll playing Sonya Blade for the web series, which is now shooting. This is great news, indeed. Having both actors from Rebirth return should go a long way to keeping at least some of the flavor of Rebirth that fans latched onto so readily into the new MK series.
UPDATE: Apparently Ian Anthony Dale has also confirmed via Twitter that he will indeed reprise his role of Hanzo Hisashi for the web series. Oh, wait… Hanzo Hisashi is dead… his name… is Scorpion.
Lion-O and company get the anime reboot treatment.
I don’t know how many of you guys out there are old enough to remember or have enjoyed the classic Thundercats cartoon. It came from Rankin/Bass productions, and was one of the iconic adventure series back in the mid-80s. It was all about the last surviving people of the Planet Thundera- Thunderans, AKA Thundercats, and their battle to survive against various enemies and threats while making their new home on the strange world of Third Earth. It had magic, tech, combat, weird creatures, warrior women, mutants, Big Bad Mummy Villains and the token cute mascot, and it was pretty cool.
I have to say though, that the series has its iffy aspects. While the Thundercats Intro OP is EASILY one of the finest animated sequences I’ve ever seen (much in the same way the original Soul Edge Intro still remains awesome to this day), the actual show’s animation didn’t measure up to the masterpiece of action and acrobatic awesomeness of the opening (probably because the intro had a big budget and was probably made in Japan, while the actual in-show animation done elsewhere, with a far lower budget…).
Also, Thundercats has some of the WORST voice acting I’ve ever heard- or at least, worst voice characterizations. To be fair, the show only had two voice actresses for all the female characters appearing in the series (pulling double-triple or quadruple duty). This problem persisted in a lot of Rankin/Bass cartoons, as far as I can remember.
ANYWAY, the ‘Cats are gonna have a revival later this year- a new Thundercats cartoon is in production from Warner Bros., and it will have everything from bad-ass anime-esque character designs, an edgy storyline and lots of cool action you’d expect from shows like the DC Comics cartoons, Avatar the Last Airbender and more. The pic above is an official image from the show, and I have to say I like it (even if Cheetara seems a bit too waif-ish). I guess this is finally the chance fans have been waiting for given that the T’Cats movie never really materialized. I’ll surely be on this like a cat- er, a hawk. This should be pretty awesome.
Remember Mortal Kombat Rebirth? Of course you do! It was that awesome short film directed by Kevin Tancharoen and starring actors like Michael Jai White, Jeri Ryan, Ian Anthony Dale, Lateef Crowder and others. It was supposed to be a pitch for an all-new reboot of the MK saga, but despite garnering a gazillion hits over it’s short reign over the web, it didn’t exactly do that. HOWEVER, it did bag for Director Tancharoen an actual MK project- not a new movie, but a 10-episode web series (webisodes, natch) that will tell the Mortal Kombat series like you haven’t seen yet. So far, the new show will retain Michael Jai White as Jax, and will have characters like Shao Khan, Liu Kang and more appear in the various chapters.
But that’s actually all old news. The latest on this subject is that Warner Bros. (who own the rights to MK) has just announced that the upcoming web-series will be 100% canon! Here be the press release:
Warner Premiere today announced development of a live-action digital series based on the best-selling Mortal Kombat videogame franchise. Directed by Kevin Tancharoen, known for his popular unofficial fan short Mortal Kombat: Rebirth which garnered over 10 million views online, and in conjunction with the upcoming Mortal Kombat videogame, this action-packed, digital series will take gamers deep into the history of warriors they know and love such as Scorpion, Johnny Cage and Liu Kang. Shooting for the digital series will take place in Vancouver starting in early February.
Well, I can’t wait to see this series given how great Rebirth was. Let’s hope that somehow Mr. Tancharoen still manages to keep the spirit of his energetic MK ideas into this somewhat new rendition of this fighting game story.
Just before I signed off for the holidays from work, I was able to watch Tron Legacy at the cinema. I saw the first Tron as a kid and remember it with fond memories. However, watching it today makes it look thoroughly dated, with not-really-that-great action, lots of techno-babble that went over my head and a long part in the middle that just went on forever. Well… at least this series is consistent.
1. First off, why did it take 20 years for Sam Flynn (Garett Hedlund) to figure out his dad was trapped in The Grid? The guy’s a genius, knows about The Grid and seemed pretty driven to find Flynn after his disappearance… he never thought about investigating that route? Also, nobody ever checked the arcade seriously? I mean, Sam found the ‘secret’ door after about a minute.
2. Villain CLU (a CG de-aged Jeff Bridges) actually looks very real during his first scenes. He only really becomes totally obvious CG at the very end, when his face almost splats into the camera.
3. Why, if CG was used to de-age Jeff, couldn’t the same effort be done with Bruce Boxleitner? I mean… the movie IS named TRON. It would have made more impact on an aspect of this movie that you could probably miss if you go on a bathroom break at the wrong time.
4. Need to improve/update a movie series’ signature action schtick? Just add acrobatics and fancy tumbling.
5. A big gripe I have with the one Light Bike battle was that I couldn’t really tell what was going on- hell, I couldn’t tell if the blue guy being hit was Sam or just a red shirt Blue Guy.
6. For something that should be incredibly epic, all the action scenes seem so small scale- enemies only come in small bunches every single time. I guess they took their training from Galaxian.
7. That very first Derezzing scene is the best one in the whole movie.
8. Kevin Flynn gets to indulge in his secret hobby- Star Wars cosplay. He even acts out a skit using a Jedi Mind Trick.
9. Castor (Michael Sheen) kinda reminds me of The Merovingian from The Matrix. ‘Cept he speaks in an English accent, not French.
10. The final Battle was… not a battle at all. Really, not even a good ol’ sock from Sam on smug CLU’s face..? Oh, he’s got his hands busy with something, er, someone else…
All in all, Tron Legacy wasn’t a waste of time, but it certainly wasn’t the big, sophisticated action/sci-fi fantasy I was expecting. As a sequel to a nostalgic favorite, it kinda delivers by at least being as good as the original film at least. If only as much effort was put into figuring out proper pacing as was put into the visual style, this movie would have been much better. Now, expect the tons of prequel stuff to come…
WHOA! I never heard anything about this, but apparently Square-Enix has just released Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light on the appstore. Both an iPhone and iPad version (HD) will be available by tomorrow (Dec. 16), though New Zealanders already have it. I haven’t seen any vids yet, but supposedly the iOS version is a dual-stick shooter, which the platform does pretty well. Anyway, I’ll almost surely be getting this as soon as I can, along with a bunch of other releases coming on the morrow.
It’s pretty cool to have Lady Croft on my iDevices, but how about a port of Tomb Raider Underworld as well? Just asking…
UPDATE! I got me Lara Croft game installed on the iPad, and well oh, well! Aside from a pretty consistent crash during an early cutscene, the game controls, looks and plays quite smoothly and well. Actual animated cutscenes have been reduced to comic-style panels, but otherwise, this seems the real deal. If you’re an iGamer who’s hankering on having Lady Croft gracing your iPhone or iPad, this is it. I’ll try to post a vid and perhaps a review soon.
The January issue of Game Informer has landed the scoop on the next Tomb Raider, with a cover image of the all-new, rebooted but apparently pretty worse for wear (and slightly plain-looking) Lara Croft. Along with the cover spread, the mag will have 10 pages devoted to the upcoming game, so anyone interested in the latest info on TR, grab the issue if you can. The game’s described as a ‘journey like no other’ and tells gamers to ‘forget all you knew about Tomb Raider’… which is a freakin’ BUMMER since I actually really, really liked the last three (TR Legend, Anniversary and Underworld) games, which were, as I remember, already a reboot of the previous incarnation of the franchise already. Well, at least that Lara had her run for a good while… sigh.
Anyway, this new Tomb Raider will star a young and fresh Lara- supposedly without any of the usual trappings (her trademark dual pistols? Big boobs? Eh?) and will have the fledgeling heroine trying to survive both physical hardship and ‘mental trauma’ after she’s shipwrecked.
So what does this mean? Lara Snake Eater? Lara ala Bear Grylles? Will we have sessions where we have to keep Lara from shutting down and going into a fetal position from mental stress? Of course, there will be enemies as revealed in the more early snippets of this game, as the island Lara gets marooned on will not be totally deserted.
Even if I am really peeved at the previous Lara being put on the backburner, at least the new game’s still being developed by Crystal Dynamics, so perhaps there will be some form of continuity with the past (future) Lara- or better yet, maybe after this ‘reboot’ we can go back to our veteran Lara, and renew her catfights with Amanda Evert and find some new adventure after the long Natla arc. I hope. Anyway, as always, I’m guaranteed to get this Tomb Raider game, though I probably won’t ever finish it either. More as I get it then.
Despite the really unsatisfactory Shyamalan movie, I am still a die-hard fan of the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender. It’s great that I have something in this franchise to look forward to in the next year that’s not from the overrated director of The Sixth Sense. It’s The Legend of Korra, a sequel mini-series to ATLA that tackles the adventures of the next Avatar, a female waterbender with a big chip on her shoulders. So far this is what we know about this upcoming awesome show.
It’s as yet a 12-episode mini-series, not a full show like the previous Avatar, but if it proves popular, who knows?
Korra, the hot-tempered and angry new Avatar, is natively a Waterbender, but she’s already mastered both Earthbending and Firebending. The series apparently concerns her trying to find an Airbending Teacher.
The prospective Airbender teacher is Tenzin, who is apparently the son of the previous Avatar, Aang. From some posts online, Tenzin apparently resembles his father at least in terms of hairstyle- or general lack of hair.
Korra will be set in a more modern version of the Avatar world, primarily in a place called Republic City, which is rife with anti-Bender sentiment and other issues. It will be darker but generally still have the same humor and feel of the previous series.
Since this is about a new Avatar, it’s pretty much a given that Avatar Aang has shuffled off… in fact, Korra is set about 75 years after the events in ATLA. So we probably won’t see the old crew back in the flesh, but perhaps in flashback. There are strong links to the previous series, so fans shouldn’t be too disappointed. Perhaps Aang will be a spiritual advisor to Korra just like Avatar Roku was to him. If that happens, I hope it’s still the young Aang and not an older version that appears.
Dante Basco is voicing a new character who is very much connected to his previous character in ATLA, Prince Zuko.
Voice Director Andrea Romano has mentioned that three episodes of Korra have already been recorded. Korra will also be using the same music producers of the previous show.
Sifu Kisu, the martial arts director for ATLA, is also involved with the Korra series. Expect even more authentic moves and awesome fights to come!
Korra looks upon the expanse that is Republic City…
Legend of Korra is currently set to debut in November 2011.
Man, Avatar is still my all-time favorite animated series and this sequel should continue the elemental awesomeness. Gadzooks, I can’t wait! For updates on LOK, you can check out the forum topic over at AvatarSpirit.net.
Hey there, everyone. It’s the Witching Hour here, so I should get some shut-eye soon… but darn, I’m still wide awake after playing a couple of hours of Red Dead Redemption. That’s the regular RDR mode, albeit I’ve already installed my newly-purchased Undead Nightmare DLC. Strange is, I only got RDR recently, and now I’m enjoying playing it. Heck, I may just have to play through a lot of it in regular mode before I switch to UN. I mean, there’s a lot of referential stuff that you’ll probably enjoy more in UN if you play through RDR first. The good news is, it’s not really a chore at all- living life through John Marston’s boots is pretty awesome. It’s literally living every Western Movie I’ve ever watched.
Anyway, I’m enjoying the long weekend break. Should be able to play a lot more games before the good times end. Everyone, enjoy yourselves and stay safe. Happy Halloween!
Here’s the trailer to the upcoming hack-and-slash-and-shoot fantasy action-adventure flick The Warrior’s Way, starring Geoffrey Rush (that’s Barbossa from Pirates of the Carribbean), Kate Bosworth and South Korean superstar Jang Dong Gun. The film is being produced by Barrie Osborne, who also produced the Lord of the Rings trilogy, so it’s sure to look pretty slick.
The trailer is hot stuff, with armies of flying ninja, gun-toting cowboys, surreal landscapes, and slow-mo swordfights. This came out of nowhere and looks pretty fantastic. Hopefully there’s a strong narrative to back up the great visuals and action.
Jang Dong Gun stars as Yang, a master warrior-turned-renegade who comes to the American badlands in order to flee his past. In a ramshackle town he meets an old drunk (Rush) and a circus knife-thrower (Bosworth), both of whom aren’t what they first appear to be.
Intriguing and exciting- even if it kinda has a similar vibe to the also upcoming Priest (must be the cowboy hats). I’ll be sure to check this one out. This is due out in December.
…haven’t really gotten that far yet in the adventures of Chuck Greene in Fortune City. Just got Katie her first dose of Zombrex. Now I gotta go find me some survivors.
… safe house guy gives me the key to the maintenance room, so now I can make combo weapons. Nail + Bat turns into the Spiked Bat. Much stronger than just the bat. Or the nails. Nice for crowds.
…MAN does Chuck run slow or what? Hopefully as he levels up, he runs faster. Or at least gets a lot more stronger than he is now.
…I find some vandals messing up a nearby store. They call me an old man. Then they attack. Someone sprays some weird crap in my face. Then, blackness. What the hell?
… Chuck wakes up in the comfort room, wearing just his boxers (white with hearts, of course). DAMMIT! Those looters are gonna pay.
… Hmmm… flashlight… there’s surely a use for this… where’s that jewelry store?
… Should I go with the yellow tracksuit? Or the thong bikini..?
… GODDAMIT, can Chuck run any slower? AAAAUGH a zombie bites me in the groin. Chuck needs creamer… badly!
… so many things to use as weapons! Ooh. I just wanna go around and try stuff. But my phone’s ringing. Stacy the CURE girl wants me to save someone trapped in some store. Oh well…
… Apparently zombies don’t care if you’re on the phone or not… one starts chewing on my throat in the middle of a conversation. AAAAAUUUGHHH…
… Just one life square left. Finally reached the survivors holed up in a knife shop. I pick up a cleaver and start helping them clear the shop. As the last zombie dies I get ready to talk to the older dude when he guts me and everything goes red. What the hell…
So I had to reset. Still, it was pretty fun, and it’s continually a learning experience. Gotta get used to the areas, gotta learn to make use of the map and find some short cuts. But there’s so much to do, so much to see and discover, I just can’t wait to dive back in. I think I’m gonna be spending a lot of time in Fortune City.
This page is now just an archive. Get the Latest in Hardcore Casual Gameblogging, Fighting Game Love and Fan Service Talk over at TheLoneGamer.Net! Seeya there!
The Lone Gamer 