Redline will blow your doors off!

Not that long ago I did a review for "5 centimeters per second". In that review I commended the film for having some of the most impressive visuals I'd seen from Japan in a long time. After watching Redline however, this compliment seems almost laughable. I don't say this as an insult to "5 centimeters per second", but rather because Redline (which is also Japanese) has the best traditional animation I've seen in the last decade.

The story of Redline is pretty simple, but at the same time kind of hard to explain. Basically there is a car race called Redline where the best drivers from various species pilot insanely tricked out vehicles to compete in a no-holds-bar battle to win the coveted tittle of champion. The location of this race can be on just about any world imaginable and it just so happens that this year's Redline is on Roboworld, a planet populated by militant cyborgs who want nothing to do with the popular sporting event and set out to stop Redline by any means necessary. Our main character is Sweet JP, a talented human driver who has been to jail for fixing races. The cause of this dishonest behavior however, is JP's best friend Frisbee, an alien race car designer who has gotten in over his head with a mafia syndicate. Rounding out the cast is another human driver, the beautiful woman Sonoshee. Though younger than most of the other competitors, Sonoshee is one of the most determined racers in the field, a quality JP cannot help but be attracted to.

In terms of a narrative, Redline is just nuts. There are so many outlandish characters (drawn from a variety of archetypes) and over the top action sequences that it would be very easy to get overwhelmed as a viewer. Yet the simple and straight forward nature of the movies three main characters (JP, Frisbee and Sonoshee) somehow keeps the whole movie from collapsing into an orgy of nonsensical craziness. It's this very recognizable story about a would be great racer (JP) and his lifelong engineering partner (Frisbee) that keeps the film grounded despite its insane setting. Couple this with the inspiration brought about by Sonoshee and you end up with a surprisingly engaging plot.

To give you some idea of what I mean, let's talk about the short - but very effective - flashbacks used in Redline. In these sequences we learn a lot about the movies three stars. We find out the motivation for JP to become a racer, the mean streets that JP and Frisbee grew up on as well as the origins of JP's affection for the ever driven Sonoshee. These brief glimpses into the simple motivations of JP, Frisbee and Sonoshee are the perfect counterbalance to the outrageous and slightly schizophrenic events that surround their participation in Redline.

That's not to say that Redline doesn't have any writing problems, because it does. For one thing, some of the foreshadowing is overly telegraphed, especially in regards to the necklace worn by Sonoshee. Additionally some of the craziness taking place durning the Redline race itself can be a little hard to follow with some of the events never really coming full circle. Then of course there's the lack of anything resembling a deeper message. While I personally found the story of Redline engrossing, I'll be the first to admit that there's nothing insightful or intelligent to be taken away from it. I wouldn't go as far as to say the movie is just "dumb fun" but I believe it fair to say that it's your eyes that will be getting a work out, not your brain.

When it's all put together though, I really liked the story of Redline. The characters are charming, the setting is outrageously fun and the visceral personalities of JP and company really help this movie work. True, there's no subtly or subtext to Redline, and while I openly praised the simplicity of characters like Frisbee I have to admit there's plenty of room for more characterization. Yet despite these shortcomings Redline still manages to work somehow. While not for everyone, I have a hard time imagining anyone outside of the most pretentious action-adventure animation fans not enjoying this story.

Something that all animation fans should enjoy are the visuals in Redline. With some of the boldest art direction I've seen in a long time, Redline manages to create a truly unique looking film, something we shouldn't take for granted considering how homogenized Japanese anime can get at times. In particular I loved the heavy black shadows used throughout the movie. Instead of using transparent shading to give characters volume and dimension, Redlines director Takeshi Koike went with a high contrast look that reminds me of something you would see in a black-and-white comic book, but with color. There's almost a European sensibility about it, but I can't point to any particular example to back that up. Regardless the art direction and styling found in Redline is amazing.

Besides the film's design, Redline also features expertly crafted traditional animation. Apparently this movie saw some delays during production, and while I don't know that the cause of this was the enormous number of hand drawings required to make the film (reportedly it took 100,000) I will say that the end result was definitely worth the wait. While taking for granted that the movement here is completely fluid, what impressed me most about Redline's animation was the way the artists could transition scenes of realism into exaggerated and stretched out moments of near surrealism (this usually happens when JP uses his car's boosters). Visually epic in scope and near perfect in execution, it is no wonder this film took seven years to complete.

Purely from an eye candy perspective, there are very few films that can top Redline. But while history has seen plenty of animated movies that look great only to then drop the ball in the story department, Redline also manages to tell an engaging - if somewhat shallow - tale about visceral characters competing in an outrageous race that makes Speed Racer look like a go-cart driver. So basically if you like car races, action-adventure or just want to see some mind blowing animation then you should check out Redline.

GI Joe the animated movie - Not my American heroes

With huge success in both the TV animation and toy market, it should come as no surprise that an animated feature film staring everyones favorite action heros (and by everyone I mean adolescent boys) GI Joe was put into production in the mid 1980s. Released in 1987, GI Joe the Movie was originally supposed to appear in theaters. Unfortunately the poor box office returns from other films based on popular toy lines (namely Transformers and My Little Pony) led to a change in plans by Hasbro. Instead of being distributed into theaters, GI Joe the Movie was shown as a TV special and given a direct to video VHS release. Though it was intended to be a jumping off point for the next season in the series, the GI Joe film ended up being the last installment for this particular incarnation of the franchise; thus capping off one of the most successful action-adventure cartoons of the 1980s (Dic would actually bring back the GI Joe cartoon several years later, but most people consider the end of Sunbows run with the GI Joe movie to be the finale of the original series).

I remember watching this movie on TV as a kid, or at least half of it. I actually had to turn the film off because my baby sister was being put down for a nap and my parents didn't want her waking up. It would be an additional 13 years before I was finally able to rent a VHS copy of the film in my early 20s. Now, another 13 years have passed and here I am watching this story once again on DVD as the big finale to my complete GI Joe series footlocker set. In all that time, I have to admit I never really thought this movie was all that impressive. Sure the visuals were a big step up from the TV series, but the characters and story just don't do much for me; and while I understand what the creators of this film were trying to do, I just don't appreciate the way they did it.

The story behind GI Joe the Movie goes something like this. GI Joe has devised a new machine that could solve the worlds energy crisis (don't ask me why an elite combat squad created to fight Cobra is working on such a device, it's probably Obama's fault). This potentially world changing piece of technology is known as the Broadcast Energy Transmitter - or BET for short (yes, it has the same initials as Black Entertainment Television, I laughed too) - and is being tested somewhere in Antarctica or something (again, I have no idea why). As one would suspect, Cobra also wants this device, but not for the reasons you might think. Turns out Serpentor (Cobra's Emperor who usurped Cobra Commander as leader of the terrorist organization) has allied himself with an ancient civilization that despises the inorganic technology mankind has developed over the years. This race is known as Cobra-la and it is they who want the BET (snicker) for the purpose of energizing some spores they are planning to launch into space. Once hatched these spores will fall to earth and force mankind into a state of devolution so that Cobra-la can reclaim the planet for themselves. There's a little more to it than that, but I think you get the idea.

From a writing standpoint the GI Joe Movie is an interesting mix of both familiar and unfamiliar ideas. While Cobra's plan to steal the Broadcast Energy Transmitter and use it for nefarious purposes fits very well within the GI Joe formula, the overall objective to de-evolve mankind and destroy our civilization has never really been the goal of this terrorist organization. Cobra has always wanted to rule over mankind, not ruin it. Of course Cobra-la is the real driving force behind this apocalyptic plan, but I was still surprised at how quickly villains like Destro and the Baroness accepted the idea. Compounding the oddity of this plot was the obvious anime influence. Though I cannot say for certain, I really got the impression that Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind was a huge source of inspiration for this film, and I'm hard pressed to figure out why anyone would think that an environmentally based story like Nausicaa would serve as a good basis for a GI Joe movie. Still, given the number of doomsday scenarios presented by Cobra over the years, I can see why a new direction was necessary for the series. So I guess the unusual nature of this story - though somewhat distracting - was not necessarily a bad thing, and I'm willing to write it off as no harm no foul.

What is harmful to this story however, is the poor use of characters, specifically GI Joe characters. Taking a note from what they did with the Transformers movie, GI Joe's producers decided to use their animated film as a vehicle to introduce a new cast of characters to the series. So instead of getting healthy doses of Scarlett, Flint, Snake-eyes, Shipwreck etc. we get Falcon, Jinx, Tunnel Rat and of course Big Lob (I'll have more to say about Big Lob later). That's not to say that all the GI Joe mainstays got ignored. Duke gets a lot of screen time, as does Roadblock and the horrendous Sgt. Slaughter (who I never liked). Still, the crux of the story clearly revolves around Falcon (who is Duke's half brother) and the other new Joe recruits as well as Sgt. Slaughter's Renegades. The problem with this is that fans of the series (even young ones) would much rather watch a film where their favorite characters are the driving force behind the story. Instead the GI Joe movie not only pushes these characters into the background, it continues to follow the Transformers model and actually tries to kill one of them off! To be fair the character (spoiler alert) - who is Duke - doesn't actually die in the film, but if you watch the movie closely you will see that the story actually called for him to do so. Apparently the reason Hasbro reneged on the original plan to off Duke was the hugely negative fan reaction they got when they killed Optimus Prime in the aforementioned Transformers movie. To change this for GI Joe they added dialog (usually by offscreen characters) that makes it clear that Duke isn't actually dead, but instead in a comma (one from which he awakes, but not onscreen). If you watch the character reactions from this life or death scene however, it is very clear that Duke does indeed die.

To be clear, I do not take umbrage with the initial decision to kill Duke in the GI Joe movie. It's the reasons behind his unfulfilled demise that bother me. Duke isn't being killed because it's the right thing for the story you see, it's just a way for the company to kick out the old and bring in the new. Hasbro wanted to sell us new toys while at the same time ushering in a new direction for GI Joe. So to do this they thought it best to symbolically "kill" the old show by killing Duke, a decision that was decidedly corporate. Though the GI Joe cartoon is really nothing more than a long line of merchandise based decisions, seeing this cold corporate planning on display in a full fledged movie just didn't sit well with me (a reaction that was echoed by Transformers fans when Optimus Prime received the same treatment).

Making the situation worse was the sobering reality that continually adding new Joe members to the shows lineup was leading to some pretty ridiculous characters. Over the years GI Joe has had some ups and downs with regards to their new recruits. For every character that fit well within the series setting (for example Lady Jaye) there were characters that came across as ridiculous by contrast (Quick Kick). Unfortunately this trend only continued to worsen with the GI Joe movie. Characters like Jinx, Big Lob and Chuckles just didn't work all that well as Joes. Whether it's their less than military backgrounds, the egregiously cliched inspirations (gee Chuckles, you ever watch Miami Vice? You would love it.) or the horribly outlandish outfits of the characters, these new recruits come off looking like a band of circus performers rather than elite soldiers. Fortunately Falcon and Tunnel Rat do look more in line with what I expect from GI Joe members, however I still found Falcon (arguably the central character of the film) insufferable when on screen.

Why do I hate Falcon so much? Probably because he's the most selfish and irresponsible GI Joe solider - not named Shipwreck - I've ever seen. But while Shipwreck's less than stellar behavior was a source of comedic relief for the show, Falcon is actually supposed to be an officer with leadership potential. Yet here he is trying to impress a chick by taking her into a classified area, after which he allows fellow soldiers to be injured because he's absent from his post hitting on - once again - another woman. Now obviously the movie introduced these character flaws so that Falcon could over come them, thus maturing him into the man he's supposed to be. That kind of characterization however, just doesn't belong in any Joe leader. I mean, how does a guy like Falcon even get promoted to Lieutenant? During his court martial General Hawk makes it abundantly clear that Falcon's military record is rife with poor conduct and gross dereliction of duty. So why hasn't he been busted down to private yet, or discharged altogether? And what's up with the command structure at GI Joe anyway? Duke is only a sergeant, yet he's technically in command of officers? I may not be an expert on military rank but that just seems odd. Anyway, I have to admit my issues with Falcon are a little personal. Though characters like Duke and Flint are kind of carbon copy, cookie cutter hero types - with no real flaws to speak of - I prefer characters you can aspire to. These are supposed to be the military elite, the best of the best of the best. I expect to see over the top perfection from the guys calling the shots, I should be in awe of their stalwart dedication to duty. Instead I found myself looking at Falcon with disgust, both as a child and adult (I have similar issues with todays popular Ben 10 character, but that's a rant for another time).

Then of course there's Big Lob. As I previously mentioned there is no shortage of "ridiculous" GI Joe characters to be found in the 1980s. Of all of these, however, Big Lob is definitely worst. The reason I crown Mr. Lob with this dubious honor is that Big Lob is supposed to be a former basketball player turned Joe recruit. While this may not sound any worse than say Quick Kick being a stunt man turned GI Joe, you need to understand that Big Lob's entire skill set is based around his basketball abilities (so for example he throws grenades as if he were shooting a jump shot). Though that's pretty outrageous in and of itself, the funniest thing about Big Lob is that whenever he is in action he speaks in the third person and calls his own plays like a cliched sports announcer. Let me repeat that, Big Lob narrates all of his life or death struggles as if he were playing in a sporting event. Even worse the character constantly confuses his basketball metaphors with football plays, thus the entire idea - which was bad enough to begin with - is not even handled in a consistent way. Honestly, the only other character that even comes close to matching this level of obnoxious would be Quick Kick who - along with his stunt man background - does horrible celebrity impressions during the first season of GI Joe. Still, I have to give Big Lob the title of "Biggest Dud" when it comes to these GI Joe misfires. A conclusion that I believe Hasbro shared since they did not even release an action figure of the character during the 1980s.

Overall the writing of the GI Joe movie just doesn't work very well. Though the producers tried to rightfully up the stakes with the introduction of Cobra-la, this dramatic change to the GI Joe mythos felt strangely odd and perhaps a little too foreign for the franchise. Likewise, the blatantly corporate addition of new - and mostly bad - GI Joe characters like Falcon, Chuckles, Big Lob etc., did nothing to help the movies misguided premise. Compound this with the irreverent manner in which classic Joe characters like Duke where handled, and you have a story that lacks both substance and heart.

On a more positive note, the visuals from GI Joe the Movie are pretty good, in particular the film's intro. Set to some cheesy (but fun) music, the opening title sequence of this film features an attack by Cobra on the statue of Libirty. Naturally GI Joe is there to defend our favorite present from the French (than again the Louisiana Purchase was practically a gift in and of itself), and do so with some very feature film worthy animation. What's doubly nice about this is that the entire sequence uses plenty of fan favorite Joes (seriously, you get more Snake Eyes here than in the movie itself) and none of the newer, lamer Joes that make up the rest of the story.

Unfortunately, the occasionally excellent visuals found in the rest of the film can be somewhat sporadic. What I mean is that there is an obvious distinction between the "A" team animators - who did most of the action scenes - and the "B" team animators who did the more pedestrian scenes. While the overall look of the characters are consistent, I could immediately tell when the film switched between animation units and was disappointed that the movie wasn't done entirely by the better of the two. It's hard to say exactly why the "A" teams animation stood out so much, but off hand I would say that the staging was more unique, the color pallet appeared darker and I think the frames per second was a little higher. Of course it's entirely possible that this was a result of the film's switch to DTV as well. If the movie was only partially finished when this major change was made, I imagine that cuts to the animation budget would have been inevitable and thus inconsistent quality was introduced. I have no real knowledge regarding the movie's production however, so this is purely speculative.

Taken as a whole, I thought the visual side of GI Joe the Movie was solid, as long as you acknowledge the fact it was technically a DTV from the 1980s. Had the film been a theatrical release - like Transformers - I wouldn't be cutting it nearly as much slack and would have to hold it to a higher standard. And when you consider that GI Joe's cousin program Transformers featured some of the best feature film animation of the decade (I'm not kidding, the animation from Transformers the movie was masterful) I'm afraid GI Joe just wouldn't have been up to snuff. As it is however, I liked the overall look of the film and feel that it's the best part of the movie.

In terms of voice acting I really don't have all that much to say about GI Joe the Movie. All the regular actors and actresses from the TV series reprise their roles and do a decent enough job. Of course none of these individuals has a "big" name to splash across the opening credits, so the films producers got Don Johnson to be the movies headliner by voicing Falcon. Personally, I felt the addition of Johnson did nothing to help or hurt the film, though if I'm completely honest I was very aware that I was listening to Johnson and that can be a bad thing when watching animation. Other than that the only thing worth noting is the "one step forward, two steps back" situation regarding Serpentor's dialog. What I mean is that Serpentor had some really silly dialog during the second season of GI Joe. In particular there was his oft used phrase "This I command!!!" which was delivered with such over emphasis that one could not help but cringe. In the GI Joe movie, however, the characters voice actor (Richard Gautier) dials it down a notch and somehow delivers this same phrase in a more believable manner. Unfortunately, whatever gains achieved by this refined delivery where completely lost when Serpentor starts using his new battle cry "Cobra-la-la-la-la-la" (think Xena Warrior Princess). Anyway, I was neither impressed nor displeased with the voice over work in this film. Basically it was about what I expected, and it's pretty much par for the course when it comes to DTVs like this.

Musically I'm afraid that GI Joe the Movie was very lackluster. Outside of the cheesy opening song (which does have some charm) the rest of the film appears to just recycle the same score and musical cues from the television series. Once again, this may be a result of switching the films release from theatrical to DTV. Often times a movies soundtrack is one of the last things done, so if the production budget got cut then it's very possible that the films score suffered. Obviously this is just speculation on my part and I really don't know if this was the case or not. Regardless, the musical score from GI Joe the Movie lacks ambition and is far too generic to be memorable.

As is far too often the case, GI Joe the Movie is very average. The story was unimpressive (the characters even more so), the animation solid (at times even excellent ) and the voice acting/music gets by. The only people I would really recommend this film to are those who have fond memories of it, or people who are completists (like myself). Otherwise there just isn't anything here you need to bother with. If you are interested in picking up a copy however, you have two options. One: you can buy the Blu-ray/DVD combo or Two: you can just get the regular DVD. Personally, I went with the standard DVD since the movie was simply remastered and not restored. That means the picture quality - while good - is not nearly nice enough to warrant a hi-definition release. Additionally, both releases are in widescreen. This is important because the film has only ever been available in full screen (like all DTVs up until the turn of the century), so one of the best things about this new release is that fans can see the movie as it was originally animated.

5 Centimeters Per Second doesn't go the distance

Recently I've been on a bit of a "slice of life" anime kick. While seeking out various films and series of the genre I came across "5 centimeters per second". Being that the movie was well reviewed on Amazon - and had even won some awards - I figured I would give it a chance. What I got was a visually amazing piece of work that sadly falls flat in the end.

The story of "5 centimeters per second" is basically the tale of unfulfilled love between two youngsters named Tōno and Akari. Their story is broken up into three chapters and begins in the couples pre-teen years and ends in young adulthood (probably early 20s). While spending a great deal of time together in their youth Tōno and Akari develop a strong bond with one another, a bond that turns into young love as the two prepare to enter junior high (though neither confesses this love to the other). Unfortunately these youngsters are separated when Tōno's family has to move and the two begin communicating through letters. For me to detail the story any further would ultimately spoil it, so I'll just say that this movie likes to spend a lot of time dwelling on the more heart wrenching aspects of love as well as the difficulty of moving on with life because of that.

While I enjoyed the first two chapters of "5 centimeters per second" immensely, it's the films third and final chapter that falls completely on its face. I don't say this out of some misguided American need for an "happily ever after" ending, but rather because the ending theme just isn't all that profound. I don't want to give anything away but when this film concluded the only real discernible message is "Stop living in the past, it's bad for you". While there is a lot of truth to this I don't think a full fledged animated feature is needed to get that point across, additionally I expect stories like this to be a little more insightful.

Unfortunately it's this somewhat deflating finale that keeps "5 centimeters per second" from truly succeeding. Though the film's buildup had me very curious as to what the stories final insights into love, life and the circumstances that come between the two might be, the movie just doesn't manage to say anything very meaningful. There's no payoff, no soul. Don't get me wrong the film tries very hard, and manages to be poignant in the process, but telling a sad story should not be mistaken for telling an honest one. Instead of profound and heart wrenching insights into modern relationships told with the wisdom and experience of time and reflection, "5 centimeters per second" concludes with a blunt and pragmatic message that reminds me of something a stern parent would say, like telling a kid to eat their vegetables.

Perhaps the problem lies with me though. With repeated viewings - or a more pretentious outlook - maybe I could recognize the stories deeper subtext regarding regret and the chances we never take, or that we should keep our hearts open even when the person we want is a million miles away, heck I may have just mistook what was meant to be a bittersweet ending as bleak and disenchanted. Regardless, if there is a deeper message to be found in "5 centimeters per second" the director needs to do a better job of bringing it to the surface. Of course it doesn't help that similar subject matter has been covered far more effectively in other anime films, most notably the late Satoshi Kon masterpiece Millennium Actress. Where "5 centimeters per second" ends somewhat abruptly with no sage thoughts to offer the viewer, Millennium Actress tells an equally poignant tale where unfulfilled desire leads to some insightful views on the importance of true love's ideal along with the chase to find it. Of course it's probably a little unfair of me to compare Makoto Shinkai (5 centimeters director) to Satoshi Kon (one of the best animation directors of his generation) but given the similarity in subject I feel that such a thing is both appropriate and inevitable.

Fortunately the visuals found in "5 centimeters per second" share none of the stories shortcomings. In short, this movie looks gorgeous. With incredibly detailed backgrounds, perfectly staged scenes and fluid animation, I can think of no way this film could look better. Though lacking in "flash" due to the limitations of the subject matter, "5 centimeters per second" is visually one of the strongest animated features to come out of Japan in recent years (the collected story was released as a feature in 2007). Despite the stories failings, fans of traditional animation should still enjoy this film for the visuals alone (I certainly did).

Overall I found "5 centimeters per second" to be a beautiful, but flawed movie. Though the stories first two chapters do an excellent job of conveying the intensity and heartache that can come with young love, the film's final chapter doesn't manage to capitalize on any of those strengths and ends with an audible thud. This is due in large part to the awkward amount of ambiguity contained in the story. Had this film had a more focused theme - like the aforementioned Millennium Actress - I think it would have helped greatly. Conversely if "5 centimeters per second" had actually used more ambiguity - like Sylvain Chomet's recent masterpiece "The Illusionist" - it would have allowed for a more interruptive viewing experience. Unfortunately this film falls somewhere in-between and its story is worse off because of it. Thankfully the animation found in "5 centimeters per second" is so good that fans of the medium should still enjoy watching it. Though I would not recommend the film as a buy, animation lovers should give it a rent (or people who enjoy tragic love stories).

The Powerpuff Girls movie - Sugar and Spice and nothing new

The Powerpuff Girls was a great show. Conceived by the brilliant cartoon director Craig McCracken in 1998, this program was a must see for me; despite being a guy in his mid-20s. I wasn't the only fan either, the Powerpuff Girls was a huge hit for Cartoon Network and ran 78 episodes before its conclusion. The series was also a good fit for merchandise with tons of video games, backpacks, t-shirts and other paraphernalia being omnipresent throughout the US during its run. Being the biggest hit Cartoon Network had ever enjoyed up to that point, it was only natural that a theatrical film starring Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup would be put into production.

Released in 2002 the Powerpuff Girls movie was a flop. The film barely managed to recover its production budget (11 million dollars) and only grossed 16 million dollars worldwide. Adding to this disappointment was the fact that the film itself received mostly lukewarm reviews and was quickly forgotten. As for me, well I didn't even bother to watch this movie when it was released in theaters; in fact I didn't even see it at all until a few days ago (almost 9 years after its release).

For anyone who doesn't know, the premise behind the Powerpuff Girls goes something like this. While mixing the formula for the perfect little girl (Sugar and Spice and everything Nice) Professor Utonium accidently added an extra ingredient to the concoction ... Chemical X. The result of this mysterious chemical was an explosion that birthed not only three perfect little girls, but three perfect little girls with superpowers. Powers that Blossom, Bubble and Buttercup now use to protect Townsville and its citizens. Thus the Powerpuff Girls were born.

Now I said before that I was a big fan of the Powerpuff Girls back when it was on the air. Yet with the release of the Powerpuff Girls movie I not only didn't bother to watch the film in theaters, I didn't even check it out on home video for almost a decade. I mention this because my lack of urgency with regards to viewing a movie based on a show I enjoyed isn't just an amusing contradiction; it's the end result of the film's greatest flaw. Put simply, this story is an unnecessary prequel. Set just moments before Professor Utonium's fateful accident, the Powerpuff Girls movie retells the origin of Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup, and then shows us how they became Townsvilles most beloved superheroes. While this may seem like a good idea at first, the truth is any fan of the show already knows everything that is going to happen in the film; thus there was really no reason to be in a hurry to see it. I already know that JoJo is going to become Mojo JoJo, I already know that the people of Townsville will embrace the Powerpuff Girls, I already know ... well everything. And the things I don't know - like the origin of the girl’s names - really don't require a theatrical movie to be told. Ultimately this superfluous story may have worked fine as a TV special, but if you expect me (or others) to fork out cold hard cash to watch this, you had better bring something new to the table. Not just an obvious origin story with a little fan service and no surprises.

It's not all doom and gloom mind you. The film's pacing is solid, the humor is mostly funny (though occasionally labored) and the fan service mildly cute. But while the writing of the Powerpuff Girls movie itself isn't technically bad, it struggles greatly within its prequel boundaries and tries way too hard to be a belated introduction to the source material. One example can be found during the moment of enlightenment where Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup realize that they can beat up their opponents to save the day. Though the movie wants us to get excited over the idea of the Powerpuff Girls embracing their powers, the story illustrates this point by having them punch and kick people (or monkeys in this case). While this was simply done as a way to marry the movies social conflict (the people of Townsville don't want the Powerpuff Girls to use their powers) to the girls behavior in the TV show (the Powerpuff Girls are always fighting crime with their fists), the scene can easily come across as "violence solves everything". Personally I didn't have all that much of a problem with the questionable way this plot point was driven home - and I have no issues with my own children watching the film (which they have done on numerous occasions) - but others criticized the Powerpuff Girls movie for being excessively violent. Had the movie not been a prequel, perhaps the story wouldn't have needed to show us the "origin" of Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercups ferocity; and maybe (just maybe) this controversy could have been avoided (though to be fair violence and the Powerpuff Girls do go hand-in-hand).

Other writing problems include the need for a slower buildup of friction between the people of Townsville and the Powerpuff Girls, as well as more exploration of secondary characters. These shortcomings culminate in a contrived climax where convenient changes of heart regarding the Powerpuff Girls take place so that the movie appears to segue into the original show. What I'm trying to say is that this story lacks the bold characterization, heart and story grandeur one desires from feature film animation; and the biggest reason for this is that the writers couldn't do anything that would go against their source material. This is not a poorly executed script; it's a poorly conceived script. It all comes back to the prequel thing. When you take a TV property like this and try to bring it to the big screen you need to up the stakes and push the story and characters to places they've never been. Instead the Powerpuff Girls movie handcuffs itself to the past, and tells us a story we mostly know while limiting itself to superficial character development that doesn't conflict with its TV origins. That's the problem with prequels like this, they don't offer anything new.

On a more positive note, the visuals in this film are fantastic. Though the TV show uses very simple designs, the Powerpuff Girls movie takes that streamlined look and polishes it beautifully for the big screen. Staging, layout and shading are all pushed further than the TV show and look very feature film worthy. Don't get me wrong, the movie still retains all of the visual charm of its TV counterpart, it just looks a lot more refined. Complementing this excellent style is some amazing color design as well. From the more washed out and monochromatic scenes (usually meant to emphasize emotion) to the colorful battle sequences, this film's color pallet is perfect.

From an actual animation and action choreography perspective, the Powerpuff Girls - once again - impresses. Supervised by Genndy Tartakovsky (Dexter's Laboratory, Samurai Jack and Symbionic Titan) this movie benefits greatly from both the experience and "cool" factor Tartakovsky brings to animation. The film also manages to do something other - more realistic looking - animated features of this time couldn't. It perfectly merged computer generated images to traditional animation. Thanks to the heavily stylized and simple design work done on the Powerpuff Girls movie, CGI constructs like the giant mirrored ball and Mojo JoJo's doomsday machine fit naturally into their traditionally rendered surroundings; an achievement that we take for granted today, but was far too rare an occurrence in the early 2000s.

Overall I would have to say that the best thing about the Powerpuff Girls movie is its looks. The production and character designs are awesome, the color pallet inspired and the animation flawless. Had the story been better, I think this film could have potentially become a modern classic.

Voice acting and music are solid all around as well. While neither would be considered exceptional, I think the film does a good job of balancing both new and familiar sound. All the voice actors from the TV series reprise their roles in the film (or at least it sounds that way); and the music - while recognizable - has enough new beats to let the audience know this is more than just an average Powerpuff Girls story (I only wish the writers had gotten that same memo).

Taken as a whole, the Powerpuff Girls movie is just okay. While the visuals are everything I could have wanted - and the sound solid - the overly familiar story, predictable events and flat characters prevent this film from ever being anything special. From a DVD standpoint I'm afraid that - once again - I was very disappointed. Though I had no issues with the extras or packaging, the decision by Warner Bros. to use a pan and scan full screen version of the film was ridiculous. Sure, 4:3 TVs may have been the norm in 2002 (barely), but not including a widescreen option in the US is totally unacceptable (and yes, the film was animated in widescreen). This is doubly bad because - as I previously mentioned - the Powerpuff Girls movie has amazing staging and design; cutting away almost half of that fantastic artwork to give people a full frame video is just criminal. Anyway if you're a fan of the Powerpuff Girls then this movie is worth a watch; even if it's just to see the amazing visuals. As for younger viewers it might even be a good idea to start them out on this film before moving them on to the regular show (at least that's what I did with my kids).

Galaxy Rangers – 80’s action-adventure that doesn’t suck

Over the last couple years I've re-watched a lot of the 80s action-adventure cartoons that I grew up with. In that time I've found myself occasionally crowning certain shows - like GI Joe and Dungeons and Dragons - the best of the worst. This is because the cartoons from that time period are horrible by today's standards, but some part of me still wants to ascertain which of those programs stood out as exceptional when compared to its peers. Now, after having watched all 65 episodes of Galaxy Rangers, I would like to declare that not only is this show one of the best of the worst, it's the bestest of the worst.

Premiering in 1986, Galaxy Rangers was not a big success here in America. Despite coming in at the height of the Toy/Cartoon merchandising craze that consumed my generation, Galaxy Rangers had a hard time finding a toy company to produce action figures for their show. This, along with the producers refusal to write cartoons based solely around introducing new toys, led to a lot of time slot shifting and eventual obscurity within the already over saturated action-adventure cartoon market. Interestingly enough, the same principles that made Galaxy Rangers a failure here in the US resulted in the show finding significant success overseas in countries like Germany (apparently European counties liked that the show wasn't a soulless merchandising machine, go figure). Personally, I remember liking this show a lot as a child. It had a good time slot (for a while anyway) on weekday afternoons, and I found myself enjoying the somewhat darker and more mature stories. Twenty-five years later - after watching every episode of Galaxy Rangers on DVD - I'm pleased to report that this show holds up amazingly well.

The story of Galaxy Rangers goes something like this. In the year 2086 two peaceful aliens came to Earth seeking our help. In return for this assistance they provided us with the plans for our first hyperdrive, thus mankind was finally able to open the door to the stars. To help maintain law and order throughout this new frontier, a group of unique individuals called the Galaxy Rangers was formed. Greatest among these brave men and women are four elite Rangers who have received "Series-5" enhancements. Their names are Zachary Foxx, Niko, Walter "Doc" Hartford and Shane Gooseman. Together, this team of courageous heroes must uphold the highest ideals of truth and justice while protecting mankind and its allies from the dangers of the universe.

The characters of the Galaxy Rangers themselves are a mishmash of archetypes and homages to various film personas. Zach is the stalwart leader of the group who likes to do things by the book. The creators of the show liken him to a John Wayne type commander, which makes sense even though the character looks nothing like Wayne. Visually speaking, Doc was obviously modeled after Lando Calrissian. The hair, mustache and general look of the character were clearly meant to invoke this comparison, but beyond that Doc is a lot more comedic than Lando (complete with eye rolling one-liners) and an expert in computers (something Lando never was). Niko falls into the somewhat overused archetype of "lone female of the group with psychic powers". While I thought this would limit Niko at first, I was pleased to find that the show's writers gave the character a decent amount of background, such as her passion for archeology. Gooseman ... well Goosman is pretty much just Clint Eastwood, both in appearance and attitude. He's got that wild, "play by my own rules" attitude made popular by Eastwood in a number of westerns and Dirty Harry movies, all of which were inspiration for the character. So obviously this isn't the most original cast of characters to ever make their way into a cartoon. But while the general appearance and personas of these heroes may come off a little cliché at first, they do grow on you and the writers provide some solid characterization as the series progresses.

That's actually one of the most impressive things about Galaxy Rangers, the writing. While most action-adventure cartoons from this time have very little good, a ton of average and far too many bad stories, the Galaxy Rangers had mostly good and even some great episodes by comparison. The biggest standouts would probably be "Galaxy Stranger" and "Psychocrpyt". Both of these stories featured emotion and character development rarely seen in other 1980s cartoons, especially "Psychocrypt" which I would consider on par with the quintessential Dungeons and Dragons episode "Dragons Graveyard". Though other installments lack this same writing excellence, Galaxy Rangers' lesser stories are still pretty good for their time. In fact I would say that at least 35-40 episodes in this series fall into the Good to Great range (the other 25 would be either average or poor). Of all the shows I've watched (ThunderCats, GI Joe, Defenders of the Earth, Transformers, C.O.P.S.) none of them even come close to having this kind of quality control. A fact that becomes even more impressive when you consider the whole show was done in an eleven month time span!

Another superior aspect of Galaxy Rangers was that the show had solid continuity and was consistent with its characters. Though the series was episodic, some of the characters had overriding storylines - like Gooseman's Super Trooper background or Zach's kidnapped wife - that carried over throughout the show. Character dynamics - such as the budding romance of Gooseman and Niko - are also well represented and consistent in presentation (unlike the confusing romance of Rick and Jedda from Defenders of the Earth). In short, this series had producers, writers and editors that cared; people with a sense of personal and professional pride lacking in far too many of their contemporaries.

Still, Galaxy Rangers did have its faults. For one thing the aforementioned storyline concerning Zach's kidnapped wife never gets resolved. This is doubly unfortunate since the show's best episode - Psychocrypt - does such a great job of conveying the tragedy of the situation. Then there were the stories that just plain sucked. From the shoehorned setup of "Showtime" (which featured circus slavery) to the horribly dated "Battle of the Bandits" (it was inspired by the music videos of a then young MTV) to the insanely surreal "Mothmoose" (that's right, it's an animal that's part moth and part moose ... I kid you not), Galaxy Rangers did churn out its fair share of crap. Fortunately, these stories were few and far between, and considering the overall excellence of the writing, they are forgivable.

It's also worth noting that Galaxy Rangers - like most action-adventure cartoons of that time - featured a number of episodes with "moral" messages. The bulk of these were actually environmental in origin, but others included ideas like not playing with guns. Unlike other shows of the 1980s, however, Galaxy Rangers actually does a good job of not forcing the moral into the story and rarely preached at their audience. This is a nice change of pace from the - all too often - heavy handed morals found in other programs like Captain Planet.

To say that I was impressed with the writing of Galaxy Rangers is kind of an understatement. The show had more attention to detail, character development and gumption than any other action-adventure program at that time. The fact that the show's creators actually respected their audience, and wanted to create a series they could be proud of is obvious, and the end result reflects that. True, the action-adventure standards we've come to enjoy today still make Galaxy Rangers look inferior, but this disparity in quality is not nearly as large, or frustrating as the other shows from my youth.

Visually speaking, Galaxy Rangers is - once again - a huge success. This is due in large part to the work of Japanese animation studio TMS. Turns out TMS was looking to get into the lucrative syndicated cartoon game that was so popular in the US back in 1986. So when Galaxy Ranger creator Robert Mandell came calling they jumped at the opportunity to animate the show. What's funny about this is that TMS had no idea what to expect from a mass-produced program like Galaxy Rangers. When Mandell and company would ask them to render unique aliens, environments and costuming in almost every episode, TMS didn't realize that other studios would have said no or looked for a compromise, they just did it. I'm sure this was huge burden for TMS, but the results are fantastic. Though the series had its fair share of recycled imagery, the overall variety found in Galaxy Rangers was astounding. Couple this with the beautifully detailed and fluid animation done by the studio's top artists, and you got one of the better (maybe the best) looking cartoons of the time.

Complementing the superior work of TMS was some of the best production design I've ever seen in a 1980s action-adventure show. Courtesy of Ray Shenusay, everything from the character to the weapons to the starship design looks phenomenal in this program. Given the quality - and cool factor - found in this show's hardware, it's hard to believe that toy companies weren't falling all over themselves to turn this stuff into toys.

Of course, given the large number of episodes produced - as well as the short timeframe in which they were created - not everything could look great. Like most studios TMS had A, B and C units for animation. The A unit was obviously amazing, but unfortunately the C unit was pretty awful. To be fair, the lackluster looking episodes of Galaxy Rangers really aren't any worse than the poorly animated episodes of ThunderCats, but that said, it's still a noticeable step down in quality. Fortunately, the producers of the Galaxy Rangers always requested that the best scripts be worked on by the A unit. That means stories like "Psychocrypt" and "Galaxy Stranger" not only have the best writing, they have the best animation as well. This may seem like common sense, but I've seen plenty of action-adventure shows from the 1980s ruin their best scripts with poor visuals, a mistake that was never made here.

Honestly, I could spend all day gushing over the visuals from Galaxy Ranger, but I'm guessing it would be best to spare you that. Sufficed to say, this show looks fantastic. The animation is mostly fluid, backgrounds are amazing and the design work is top notch. Yes, the production value of this program is still being graded on a curve due to the time period in which it was created. That said, the overall presentation of Galaxy Rangers is a cut above its peers and has nothing to be embarrassed about.

While not as strong in execution as the writing and animation, the voice acting in Galaxy Rangers is still decent. The main characters all sound good, though I did notice some stiff delivery from time to time. Secondary characters are unfortunately weaker with Robert Mandell's brother providing many of the voices. They're not bad mind you; it's just that Henry Mandell didn't have the range necessary to pull off what he was trying to do. Still, I thought the acting in this show was at, or above the standards of the time, and a far cry better than ThunderCats and C.O.P.S..

Rounding out my evaluation of Galaxy Rangers is the show's music. Normally the action-adventure cartoons of the 1980s would use a lot of recycled in-show music to set the tone for certain scenes. So, for example, whenever an episode of GI Joe would switch over to the Cobra villains the show would cue up the same Cobra "music" over and over. This repetitive use of an already limited musical score is one of the more frustrating things about cartoons from my youth, and I fully expected Galaxy Rangers to continue this pattern. So imagine my surprise when this series chose to purchase a music library of songs and then work them into the show. True, the program still had some pretty obvious repetition, but it also provided a lot of unique scores to go along with it. Don't get me wrong, Galaxy Rangers is no musical masterpiece, but much like the writing and animation, this show's creators went above and beyond the conventions of the time to create something far more ambitious and impressive.

I’ve never given a full recommendation to a 1980s action-adventure cartoon … and today will be no different. That said, I’m sorely tempted to do just that with the Galaxy Rangers. This show had excellent writing, beautiful animation and some of the best music you’ll find from a cartoon made during the Regan years. So if you’re a fan of 80s action-adventure cartoons – especially those with anime influence – you should definitely check out the Galaxy Rangers. All 65 episodes are collected in two wonderfully packaged sets, and feature some fun extras including commentaries and interviews. Hands down the best action-adventure cartoon of the decade.

Quest for Camelot gets lost along the way

I've always loved the mythology of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Much like Greek Mythology, my first exposure to the subject was through popular films of the 1980s. In the case of the latter it was "Clash of the Titans" that captured my imagination. As for the former, it would be "Excalibur" that would spark my lifelong love for Arthur, Lancelot, Gawain, Galahad and the other knights of Camelot. After my introduction to the literary works that spawned these features, I found myself craving more films based in Arthurian legend. Well, like the old saying goes "Be careful what you wish for".

Quest for Camelot was an animated feature created by Warner Bros. in 1998. It was (sort of) based on the book "The King's Damsel" by Vera Chapman, and featured the singing talents of Céline Dion, Bryan White and others. Unfortunately, the respectable talent gathered for this film couldn't overcome its troubled production, and Quest for Camelot ended up being a commercial and critical failure.

As you can probably surmise from my opening statement, I was actually looking forward to Quest for Camelot back in the day. Though Disney's Hercules was a source of mixed emotions for me, I still enjoyed the studios animated take on Greek Mythology (despite its numerous liberties) and welcomed Warner Bros. venture into Arthurian lore. Sadly, the story - and characters - of Quest for Camelot were far too conventional and its themes far too shallow for the film to work.

The story of Quest for Camelot goes something like this. Kaylee is a happy young girl who wants nothing more than to follow in her father’s footsteps and become a knight of Camelot. Even after the death of her father - by the traitorous Sir Ruber - Kaylee continues to dream of the day she will be knighted, despite being stuck at home doing chores. Ten years later, everything changes when Ruber sends his griffin to steal Excalibur from Arthur, a task he partially succeeds in when the fabled sword is lost in the Forbidden Forest. Things only get worse when Ruber forces Kaylee's mother to hide his magically altered soldiers in her wagons so he can gain entry into Camelot undetected and storm the castle. Faced with this pending invasion, Kaylee makes the difficult choice to seek out Excalibur within the Forbidden Forest and return it to Arthur. Fortunately our young heroine finds help in the form of Garrett, a blind hermit who has uncanny survival skills and a silver winged falcon. Together these two would-be knights must brave numerous dangers and return Excalibur to Arthur before Ruber finds the sword himself and destroys Camelot.

In and of itself this story works fine as an animated feature vehicle. The journey to retrieve Excalibur for King Arthur before Ruber seizes control of both the sword and Camelot is all well and good. Unfortunately, the characters that make up this movie fail to draw the viewer into the story, and thus the plot neither engages nor interests its audience. Let's start with Kaylee. Kaylee is one of those "plucky" young heroines who's determined to prove herself by chasing her dreams and just so happens to fall in love along the way. Besides the fact that this was an incredibly overused archetype in animation during the 1990s; Kaylee doesn't really ever "prove" herself at all during her journey. Time and time again, Kaylee finds herself captured or in need of help to escape danger while rarely contributing anything of value to her comrades; her incompetence even gets Garrett hurt at one point in the story. It's only during the film's climax that Kaylee really does anything right; and even then it seems like her success stems more from serendipitous luck than it does actual skill or cleverness. Compare this to Disney's Mulan - which was released that very same year - and you'll see just how pathetic Kaylee really is. In Mulan you have a very naive girl disguised as a solider growing into a strong woman capable of holding her own against anyone, both intellectually and physically. It's Mulan who stops the Hun army, it's Mulan that comes up with a plan to save the Emperor of China, it's Mulan that takes down Shan Yu in one-on-one combat. By contrast, Kaylee just looks clueless and weak.

Garrett fares better thanks to his background as a blind hermit; but whatever characterization gained through these character traits is negated by the underdeveloped emotions created by them. What I mean is Garrett's handicap doesn't really hamper him all that much in the film, so his frustration and bitterness seem very misplaced when used. Had the story done more with Garrett's flashbacks - like showing how difficult it was for him to adjust to being blind at first, or reveal how others saw him as a burden - it could have really solidified the characters emotional state and driven home the film's theme of acceptance. Instead the story glosses over the subject and a lot of character building opportunities for both Garrett and Kaylee are lost.

Secondary characters are no better either. The two-headed dragon Devon and Corwall - as well as Bladebeak - are horribly contrived forms of comedic relief. Kaylee's mother is completely bland. Arthur and Merlin barley show up in the story. Even the film's villain Ruber lacks convincing motivation and shifts between silly and menacing far too often to be taken seriously. Basically, none of the characters in this story work in their current forms. That's not to say that they couldn't work - in fact I'm pretty sure a good rewrite of this story would fix many of the problems I've mentioned - but as it is now, Quest for Camelot's characters are a joke.

Additional writing issues include way too many pop-culture references to other movies, and a very forced romance between Kaylee and Garrett. In short, Quest for Camelot's writing is a hodgepodge mess of half-baked ideas and studio "tinkering". Instead of trying to tell their own story, the people running this film were clearly attempting to ape the Disney model without understanding it. The end result is a shallow, formulaic story bursting with fluff where there should be substance.

From a visual standpoint, Quest for Camelot has a number of problems as well. Though the film has some quality moments, much of the character design just doesn't work and the CGI can be downright awful at times. Take - for example - the design work done on many of the male characters in the movie. Outside of Ruber and his henchmen - who are hulking brutes - most of the men in this film have very awkward builds. Instead of looking nimble and strong, the knights of Camelot - as well as Arthur and Garrett - have large heads, thin waists and strangely proportioned hands and feet. The problem with this somewhat gangly appearance is that it prevents these heroes from ever looking very heroic. I'm not saying they should all be muscle-bound supermen mind you, just lay off the Popeye-esque forearms a little. Fortunately, the female character designs - while a little generic - don't repeat this mistake.

Another issue with the films look can be found in the computer generated images. Given the time period in which this movie was created, one should expect to find some pretty bad CGI. That said the computer animated ogre in Quest for Camelot is one of the worst looking CGI constructs to ever grace a theatrically released animated feature. Completely different in style than its traditionally animated surroundings, this creature shatters the visual illusion necessary for animated films to work, and completely takes you out of the moment. Thankfully, the movies creators were more fastidious with the use of computer generated imagery throughout the rest of the film. Outside of the aforementioned ogre, only the CGI trapdoor at the end of the story looks out of place.

On a more positive note, the traditional animation in Quest for Camelot is mostly smooth and pleasing to watch; there are even some nice ideas like the revealing of Kaylee's face when Garrett touches it. I also liked the films background design and execution. While the illustrations done for the environments in Quest for Camelot don't even come close to what Disney was doing at this time, they still manage to look feature film worthy, and have a nice Celtic feel appropriate to the story. The movies color pallet, however, is a bit of a mixed bag. Some of the environments have a lush and vibrant color scheme that can be attractive at times. Unfortunately, these same backgrounds can also become over saturated and even garish on occasion.

Ultimately, I thought the visuals of Quest for Camelot - while occasionally good - looked inconsistent and rushed. Though I don't have any insider knowledge regarding the films production, I think the movies creative staff would have benefited greatly from a stable, well thought out production plan. Instead, the visuals - much like the story - appear to be underdeveloped, uneven and hurried.

As for the films voice acting only Gary Oldman really stands out in a positive way. His portrayal of Ruber - though occasionally over the top - was very distinct and energetic, qualities that were sorely lacking in the stories other main characters. Performed by Jessalyn Gilsig and Cary Elwes, I found the voices of Kaylee and Garrett both mundane and forgettable. It's not that the actors were bad - because they weren't - they just didn't bring any energy to their roles, like they were just going through the motions. Given the problematic situation regarding the film's writing, these underwhelming performances do nothing to help Quest for Camelot.

Since this film - and many others - sought to imitate the Disney animated feature formula, it should also come as no surprise that Quest for Camelot has a plethora of songs. While I've never been a big fan of musicals, I must admit that a couple of these numbers actually work pretty well. My favorites would be "I Stand Alone" performed by Bryan White and "Looking Through Your Eyes". Both of these songs provide more characterization for Garrett and Kaylee than most of the films lackluster dialog. Strangely enough, "The Prayer" - a song performed by Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli during Kaylee's initial escape from Ruber - was nominated for an Academy Award, despite being incredibly misplaced in the film. I say this because the intensity of the chase onscreen feels like it should be set to an orchestra. Instead, we get a very soft and calming number that in no way matches the excitement, and desperation born from Kaylee's flight to freedom. Otherwise, I think the soundtrack to this movie holds up pretty well, despite - once again - falling well short of what Disney was doing at this same time.

When you put it all together, Quest for Camelot just isn't a very good movie. Though the music is mostly solid, the characters are either cliché or underdeveloped and the animation is sadly uneven. Obviously children won't have a problem with most of the issues I've detailed in this review, but I suspect older viewers will find themselves bored and uninterested with the films story and execution. Given the plethora of quality animated family features from just the 1990s alone, I don't really see a single reason for anyone to bother with Quest for Camelot.

Superman Doomsday isn't the end of the world

After the conclusion of Justice League Unlimited (in my opinion, one of the greatest action-adventure cartoons in television history), it was announced that Bruce Timm and company would start working on direct-to-video features starring the heroes of the DC universe. Personally, I was very excited by this, but at the same time I clearly didn't know what I was going to be getting. I thought that the DCAU (the DC Animated Universe containing Timm's original Batman, Superman, Batman Beyond and Justice League cartoons) might still be used, but transitioned into DTV format. Upon viewing the lines inaugural film Superman Doomsday, however, I quickly realized I was very wrong.

The story of Superman Doomsday is based on the original "Death of Superman" comic books, and subsequent "Rebirth of Superman" story line that came after. I've heard some people refer to these series as "graphic novels", they are not. This was an ongoing comic book story line that crossed over multiple titles with various writers and artists contributing, not a finite series with a single creative team like Watchmen. Anyway, the DTV version of this material (Superman Doomsday) does not seek to adapt directly from its source material, instead it cherry picks certain elements and creates a more streamlined - and coherent - narrative. Gone are the multiple Superman replacements (Steel, Cyborg Superman, Superboy and Eradicator) along with the crossovers into other character stories (Green Lantern). Instead, Bruce Timm and company take the "essence" of this bloated story and create something much more bite-sized and far less gimmicky. Does that make this DTV story good? Well, I wouldn't go that far, but I do believe this film is better than what most people give it credit for, even if it doesn't live up to the work that came before, and in some cases after it.

One of the first things you'll notice about Superman Doomsday is that it is decidedly PG-13. This is mostly a result of the implied violence used throughout the film. Though most of the onscreen action was intense, I wouldn't consider it graphic. The implied violence, however, was surprisingly nasty and was clearly meant to distance the film from its television predecessor. Personally, I don't have an issue with this, but I will say that a number of scenes in this movie felt gratuitous and unnecessary (Luthor killing Mercy, Doomsday snapping a deer’s neck). Though the transition to PG-13 was a successful one with Superman Doomsday, I think that the tone could have been handled a bit better. An occasionally lighter touch - for example - could have been very beneficial to this story.

Another example of Superman Doomsday trying a little too hard can be found in the melodramatic sequences involving Lois Lane. From her arguments with Superman regarding his level of commitment to their relationship (they are actually dating in this story), to her tearful breakdown with Martha in Smallville, you could really feel how badly the writers wanted this story to be mature. Unfortunately, these scenes all too often drag down the film's plot and give the movie an unwanted "chick flick" vibe (coincidently, this same problem would occur in the live action Superman Returns film as well). Don't get me wrong, I appreciate what the writers of Doomsday were trying to do. Hell, I'll even applaud the effort. I'm just saying that the end result - while not completely wrong - wasn't quite right, and the story feels a little labored because of it.

Then, of course, there are the obvious similarities between the DCAU Superman series and Superman Doomsday, similarities that make the later feel ... uninspired. Though some may deem it unfair to take a DTV set outside of the DCAU TV universe and shackle it with comparisons to said precursor, the truth is this movie has far too many familiarities to do otherwise. From the character designs - which are decidedly DCAU - to the choice of subject matter - which was already covered in the original Justice League series - Superman Doomsday just doesn't feel like a "new" story, more like a retread. I'm not sure why Bruce Timm chose to adapt material that had already been covered in one of his previous shows, or why he kept the character designs so familiar (though they were tweaked). Perhaps it was to ease the fans transition from TV to DTV, or maybe the lack of a strong visual style in the source material dictated it. Regardless, this was probably not the best decision. Sure, going with a popular character like Superman was a must, but I think a better, fresher, story and visual style could have been found to work with.

Overall, I think the story of Superman Doomsday manages to hold together pretty good though. As I've pointed out, the film's writing does show some growing pains with the move to PG-13, and the need to distance itself - both gently and forcibly - from the aforementioned DC cartoons preceding it. That said the story works within the context of its DTV format. The pacing is solid, the scope is correct and the plot points are properly introduced, developed and concluded without fail. Considering the very average source material being worked with here, I'm comfortable with the story developed for Superman Doomsday.

Visually speaking, I've already mentioned that this film's character designs are very similar - if ever so slightly different - in appearance to the ones found in the DC animated universe. Truth be told, this is probably the weakest visual element of the movie. Superman looks just like he did in the Justice League cartoons, only with more defined cheekbones. Lois is a little more "hip" and sexy, but outside of the tighter outfits and hair style, she still retains a lot of her DCAU appearance. Doomsday looks ... well he looks like Doomsday always looks, so nothing new there. And while the secondary characters designs of Lex Luthor, Jimmy Olsen and Mercy are strikingly different than their television counterparts, I'm afraid only Jimmy's is an improvement (both Luthor and Mercy's new designs are downgrades). This same sense of familiarity carries over to the rest of the world in Superman Doomsday as well. From the city of Metropolis, to the armed forces trying to stop Doomsday, to the on looking crowds, I just couldn't shake the feeling that I was watching a high end episode of Justice League Unlimited, not a film set in a completely different reality.

Fortunately, the actual animation in Superman Doomsday is superb. Movement is fluid, the staging is excellent and the action choreography epic. I was especially impressed with the fast paced battles between Superman and his various enemies. It's always nice to see the big blue Boy Scout go toe-to-toe with opponents who are his physical equal. The ensuing slugfests are just so grandiose and intense I can't help but love them. Thankfully, Bruce Timm's people always seem to deliver on the potential stemming from these choice matchups, and Superman Doomsday is no exception.

Though it suffers from some derivative design, Superman Doomsday is a good looking DTV. It may not be a visual masterpiece - and there are certainly better looking DTVs out there - but this film still has some solid execution. I was not disappointed with the movies visuals.

I was disappointed, however, with the voice acting of Superman Doomsday. In another attempt to distance itself from the DC television cartoons, the creators of Superman Doomsday chose to cast different actors for all of the main characters in the film. Sadly, every one of these performances was a step down from what fans were used to. By far the worst is Adam Baldwin as Superman. Though his work improves as the film goes on, I found Baldwin's powerless voice incredibly frustrating to listen to. The first 20 minutes or so of the movie are especially bad and quickly hi-light what a mistake the casting of Baldwin was. Other actors such as Anne Heche (Lois Lane) and James Masters (Lex Luthor) turn in better performances, but neither has the unique voice - or experience - of their predecessor (Clancey Brown and Dana Delany). Now it may seem like my displeasure with the acting choices of Superman Doomsday stems from my affection for the original TV actors, but I don't believe this to be the case. Admittedly, I was very taken aback the first time I watched this movie in 2007, but since then I've seen plenty of DTVs with different actors portraying these same characters. Yet, when I went and re-watched this film just last week, I still found Heche to be mediocre, Masters outmatched and Baldwin unbearable. Then again, maybe the visual similarity to the TV series has something to do with it, I don't know, either way I did not like the voice acting in this movie one iota.

Taken as a whole, I thought Superman Doomsday was a decent movie. Not good, not bad, just decent. Looking back over all the DC direct-to-video films from the last couple years, I think Doomsday falls somewhere in the middle. Better than the Jeph Loeb disasters Batman/Superman Public Enemies and Batman/Superman Apocalypse, but nowhere near as good as Batman Under the Red Hood or Wonder Woman. If you're a fan of the original Death of Superman story line, you might get turned off by all the liberties taken by this film. Since I wasn't a fan, however, I had no problems with the changes made by the Doomsday's writers. Sure, the story has problems - and honestly it's not all that interesting of a concept to begin with - but the plot and pacing work, the action is good and the production value is there. As long as you can get past the poor voice acting from the main character (and again, it does get better as the movie progresses) I would recommend Superman Doomsday as - at the very least - a rental.