Author: Josh Jackson

Josh is a long time video game, anime and wrestling fan. As a proud XboxWii60 gamer and beyond, there's not a gaming subject that he shies away from. Follow him on Twitter @InuJoshua for your fill of opinionated goodness!

Tips For Starting ‘Persona 5 Royal’

by Josh Jackson

Persona 5 Royal is a massive game. If you’ve never played it before or even if you’re a returning member of the Phantom Thieves, the amount of information thrown at you within the first few hours can be overwhelming. But fear not! We compiled some tips that will make starting out a little easier as you build up your Palace infiltrating reputation. 

Create an original Persona 5 save file. 

Games will often reward you for having save files for other games in its franchise, and Persona 5 Royal is no exception. If you can get your hands on a copy of the original title and create a save file, you’ll be rewarded with some useful health items and 50,000 yen. While not much in the grand scheme of things, that early cash boost can help you in a big way as you start your career as a Phantom Thief when it comes to a certain physician. More in that in a bit… 

The Palace can wait. 

Sure, he’s a scumbag. But allowing him to sit for a few days won’t hurt.

Once the admittedly lengthy opening sequence ends and you can finally enter your first dungeon, you might be eager to take down the arrogant gym teacher who’s terrorizing your school. But what’s the rush? Sure, expulsion and prison are hanging over your head, but don’t you want to hang out with your friends first? The more you build up your relationships with your confidants, the more abilities you and your party will unlock that makes navigating the Palace easier, helping you aim for that important goal of finishing the palace in as few days as possible. If no one is free, build up your social stats, which play a vital role with progression later on. Keep in mind though, that one stat is particularly important early on. 

Boost guts! 

Social stats are aspects of Joker’s personality that open up more conversation options as you advance through the game. Each one is equally important as you’ll eventually be locked out of events if your rating in one of the five stats is too low. However, Guts in particular need to be increased as soon as possible as the most important early game Confidant is locked out until it’s at least at level 2. Do so early on by watching movies, reading books or renting the Royal exclusive DVD’s. 

Build Takemi confidant to rank 5 and buy the SP Adhesive 3 

Strange medical experiments are worth a lifetime of boundless energy.

Tae Takemi… the local goth doctor that totally has a thing for high school kids. If that wasn’t enough of a reason to visit her, she has one of the best items in the game for sale once she’s reached Rank 5. You can’t talk to her until your Guts get past level 1, but the grind is worth it as her SP Adhesive 3 replenishes 7 SP for every turn that the equipped party member uses in battle. It’s a pricey 100,000 yen, but that 50,000 yen bonus we mentioned earlier goes a long way here. SP is what allows you to cast spells, and since elemental weaknesses are so prevelent during combat, you’ll need as much as you can get. Your party is also sure to get hurt as you travel, so having an unlimited stream of healing will ensure that you can finish dungeons in as little as a single day. Later perks are more efficient when it comes to maintaining SP, but Takemi is easily the most important early game confidant for these reasons. Make sure to take advantage of her shady clinical trials. 

Focus on your party during the day / the maid at night 

Persona 5 Royal’s calendar system separates most days into a day and night cycle which divides who you can interact wit hduring your free time. Once Takemi has been built up to level 5, building up your party is the next important daytime task. As they grow closer with Joker, they’ll eventually learn valuable skills in and out of battle, culminating with their Persona evolving and increasing their chances of dodging attacks that they’re weak to. Ryuji in particular grants you the ability to instant kill weaker enemies, which becomes invaluable for grinding EXP and money. At night, you’ll eventually meet a familiar maid who also needs a high Guts rating to contact. Level 3 Guts will allow you to call her to take care of some chores, but maxing her grants a special massage that will let you act at night when you normally couldn’t. Typically, exploring a dungeon during the day leaves you feeling too tired to act at night, but these massages will significantly increase the amount of free time you get. 

Ryuji went from dud to daddy real quick.

Create lockpicks 

When you have the occasional night where your friends can’t hang out and you couldn’t stand to read another word, why not create lockpicks? Dungeons will often have powerful items and equipment stashed within locked treasure chests. Lockpicks allow you to access their contents, saving you a lot of time and money while raising your Proficiency social stat in the process. Palaces disappear after they’re completed and cannot be re-visited, so having them on hand as you find the chests will save you some last minute headaches as you approach the Palace ruler.  

Don’t buy weapons or armor 

For all the reasons mentioned regarding lockpicks, buying armor and weapons is often a waste of valuable early game money. Locked chests often have the same or better gear than what’s available in the store, and there’s no better punch in the gut more painful than finding the expensive weapon you just bought for free. This applies throughout the game as Personas can eventually be turned into some of the best gear in the game. And it’s often free! 

Keep Eiha, then fuse first treasure demon ASAP for elemental coverage. 

The game forces you to give away your cool devil thief, Arsene, early into the game. Fusing Personas gives you the freedom to create whatever layout of abilities you want among the spells each original one had available, but keeping Eiha, Arsene’s Curse elemental attack, is almost necessary to capture the first treasure demon. Once obtained, this demon can be fused again to unlock spells that you won’t get until much later in the game otherwise, namely Psy, Nuke and Bless elemetal skills. Joker’s strength is his versatility, so giving him access to as many abilities as possible are keys to succeeding throughout the game. 

Stepping into the role of a Phantom Thief can feel daunting at first, but these tips should help reforming society seem a little more manageable. Are there any other tips you think we missed? Do you have examples of how these tips helped? Let us know in the comments! 

‘Sakura Wars’ Combat Is Overhauled In New Trailer

by Josh Jackson

As much as I enjoyed the characters and social aspects of Sakura Wars: So Long My Love back when I reviewed it on the Wii far too many years ago, one of its weakest aspects was its slow paced turn based combat. As excited as I was about the return of romance, the combat half of this hybrid style franchise was what I have been most worried about. We got a glimpse of what looked to be a faster combat system in the debut trailer, but based on this new combat focused video, it looks like we’re headed into full action RPG mode.

Set up as an arena style team based game, the Flower Division is set to go head-to-head against other mutli-waifu teams at the Combat Revue World Games. Fighting in three person teams against squads from around the world, they’ll do battle against side enemies and each other in a 3 round struggle to accumulate the most points. Seijuro will have to choose his best two girls to get the job done, building relationships along the way.

At first glance, its action focus is a step in the right direction in terms of sheer excitement. At the same time, the huge departure from its past games is definitely a gamble. We can only hope it will pay off.

What do you think? Check out the trailer below and tell us what you think of the drastic changes in combat! Then keep an eye out for more details as its April 28 release date looms ever so closer.

How To Woo Your Waifu In Latest ‘Sakura Wars’ Trailer

by Josh Jackson

Last time we talked about Sakura Wars, the reboot of Sega’s tactical RPG / dating sim hybrid, we got a look at what to expect from the game’s main story. But in between the intense mech based battles and rebuilding a theater troupe, we all just want to be loved. The game’s latest trailer goes over its social mechanics while we help you discover your next best girl.

As in most games of this type, lead character Seijuro Kamiyama will get numerous opportunities to get to know his harem team better. During this down time, players will engage in various conversations and activities with the girls, with certain responses guiding them towards some eventual romantic feelings. If it’s anything like past games, your performance on the battlefield will also affect how the girls feel about you, so fighting alongside your favorites is a great way to impress them.

The five girls you’ll work with all have their own backgrounds and personalities that you’ll need to understand if you want to make any headway with them. They include:

Sakura Amamiya, the least experienced member of the troupe who idolizes Sakura Shinguji from the original series.

Satsusho Shinonomoe, an aggressive shrine maiden who can always be depended on in a fight.

Clarissa “Claris” Snowflake, a Luxembourg brainiac who’s curiosity is unmatched.

Azami Mochizuki, a martial arts and weapons expert who descends from a ninja clan.

And lastly, Anastasia Palma, a Greek star who’s traded in the European spotlight for her shot at the Tokyo revue.

Which girl are you leaning towards? Or are you limiting yourself to one? Check out the trailer to make your decision a little easier and let us know what you think in the comments!

Geekscape Games Reviews ‘Sega Ages: Puyo Puyo 2’

by Josh Jackson

It’s not often that Puyo Puyo gets recognition as its own franchise here in the West. Often taking other forms such as Kirby’s Avalanche and Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine, it wasn’t until recently that it was embraced for the weird Japanese puzzle game it is. Thanks to Sega Ages, Puyo Puyo 2 is here for the Switch. This arcade port of what many feel is the best game in the series might be a little too faithful to its original release, but makes up for it with some modern additions that work with varying results.

For those who are deeply invested in the plots of their puzzle games, Puyo Puyo 2 puts you in control of Arle, who is tasked with climbing a tower filled with a variety of demons in a quest to take down Satan himself. There might have been more going on, but I wouldn’t know. The in game text is untranslated, so unless you can read Japanese, be prepared to mash the A button whenever text pops up.

How does Arle hope to do take down the ultimate evil? Through the power of Puyo! Best described as a cross between Tetris and Nintendo’s Puzzle League series, two multicolored interlocked blobs descend from the top of the screen. Rotating them in certain positions allows you to stack them in ways to set up combos that builds up hard to break trash blocks to send to your opponent’s field. When thee or more Puyos of the same color connect, they disappear, destroying adjacent trash and collapsing anything on top of them. The name of the game is to create large combos to flood your opponent to the point where they can’t respond. Fill up their new block spawn zone and you’ll send them packing. 

Each stage consists of multiple opponents, where a roulette selects one at random. Arle builds up points depending on performance with a certain goal in place. If she reaches it before all the opponents are defeated, she’ll skip them and move on to a new set. If not, she’ll come face to face with a boss once everyone else is gone. If she STILL hasn’t gotten the points, it’s a game over.

Sound cheap? Believe me, it is. This game constantly reminds us that it was originally an arcade game, with lightning fast AI, the EXP mechanic and trash that always happens to find that one spot to fall that will screw up that big combo you’ve been building up towards. And that’s in the early stages. This game is punishing and you will die A LOT! It was designed to eat your quarters and it shows.

Alongside the standard mode are the marathon and time reverse modes, with the former putting you against the entire enemy roster as opposed to having an EXP requirement to bypass a stage. The latter can be used in any single player mode and allows you to rewind to previous turns and correct mistakes. The biggest new feature however, is its online mode, which pits two players against each other with various settings. The options are appreciated, but each of my games were noticeably laggy. In a game where fast reaction time is vital, it makes its potentially best feature moot.

Ultimately, it’s tough to recommend Puyo Puyo 2. It’s a perfectly acceptable port, but its insane difficulty serves as a reminder of how arcade games were essentially microtransactions before the term was around. The untranslated story makes it hard to get invested in the campaign and the side modes don’t do much to extend the game’s life. Local multiplayer is where this game really shines, but playing online is hurt greatly by lag issues that kill a fast paced game like this. At its core, it’s a great game. There’s a reason why the series has endured for three decades. Thankfully, that means there are three decades of games that play much better and are more worth your time. But when it comes to Puyo Puyo 2, while the good narrowly outweighs the bad, its supplemental modes ultimately let it down.

Final Score: 3/5

Geekscape Games Reviews ‘Sega Ages: Sonic The Hedgehog 2’

by Josh Jackson

There’s a reason why Sonic 2 is considered by many to be Sonic’s peak. It introduced so much that is considered a series staple, from the addition of Tails and Robo Sonic to the iconic spin dash, the unlockable Super Sonic and flashy stages like the Casino Zone. It’s no wonder why it’s been released on nearly every console imaginable in one form or another, with the Switch now joining that massive list. As part of the Sega Ages series, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 arrives with some extra bells and whistles to make it a more worthy purchase, but is it enough to warrant another spin (dash)?

During its time, Sonic on the Genesis stood out as a game that focused on speed and style as opposed to the precision that other platformers typically build themselves around. Sonic 2 still holds up as the game that refined this gameplay style. Taking place across 10 stages that are divided into two or three acts, every one is completely unique, constantly introducing new mechanics, obstacles and enemies to keep you from stopping Dr. Robotnik, (or is it Eggman? Does a port override that?) The good doctor faces you himself at the end of each stage, with progressively difficult fights that make it harder to hold on to your rings. Get hit with no rings and you’re dead.

Thankfully, with the addition of Tails, fighting the good fight can be made a little bit easier. Sonic 2 was the game’s first attempt at multiplayer, where a second person can control the two tailed fox independently from Sonic, (but can never move beyond the screen’s borders without getting moved back). Acting as a conduit for endless punishment, the sidekick can gather hard to reach items without fear of death, even being able to take down Eggman with little to fear. When playing solo, Tails follows closely behind Sonic and tries his best to mirror the hedgehog’s moves. The AI isn’t as helpful as a person, but landing a stray hit or collecting an accidental ring are welcomed side effects. 

But as great as Sonic 2’s main game is, the bonus stage is one aspect that has never left my memory, serving as the best mini game in the series as far as I’m concerned. Running down a 3D half pipe, (which was the coolest thing in 1992), Sonic and Tails aim to collect a certain amount of rings as they avoid bombs that drop their total. Accomplish this seven times to collect the Chaos Emeralds and you get Super Sonic, a ring depleting form that gives Sonic super speed, limited flight and invincibility. It’s incredibly rewarding to beat these tough mini games and be allowed to plow through the bad guys for your troubles. In the past, this would have to be accomplished in a single run, but thanks to save states, you can try (and fail) as many times as you need until the emeralds are yours. Modern technology really is good for something!

Other additions include a 100 Ring Challenge, where players race to meet the clearly stated goal as fast as possible and share their scores on worldwide leaderboards. Other challenges include a ring streak challenge, where you try to collect as many rings as you can without getting hit, and the entire Knuckles campaign that was exclusive to the magic of “Lock-On” technology once upon a time. Knuckles with his gliding and climbing abilities make it feel like a different game, giving you two ways to play for the price of one!

This is essentially a perfect port of Sonic 2 that runs as smooth as always in either handheld or TV modes, so if you want to fall back in love with peak Sonic alongside his feature film debut, than this does its job exceedingly well. The addition of the Knuckles campaign was a welcomed surprise, allowing us to play twice with a completely different approach. With that said, if you want more than just the second game, there are more cost effective ways out there to get the whole series, while those who wanted some extra incentive to buy the game again won’t find a whole lot if they’re not into leaderboards. But if you wanted that nostalgia trip on your Switch or you’re a new player who wants to discover what all the commotion was about before the days of Warehogs and being best friends with Mario, then you’ll want to run to the eShop at sonic speed.

Final score: 4.5/5

‘Sakura Wars’ Sets Up Its Comeback In New Story Trailer

by Josh Jackson

A few weeks ago, we talked about the surprise announcement of the fast approaching Sakura Wars reboot. Not ones to keep us waiting for long, Sega released a new trailer highlighting the story that brings all these actors turned mech pilots together.

As Seijuro Kamiyama, a former Navy captain who will likely be able to woo a small army of attractive warriors despite his dry personality, (as is usually the case in games like these), he’s tasked with helping reestablish the Flower Division of the Imperial Combat Revue. Leading double lives as both stage actors and mech pilots, there doesn’t seem to be much going on in either realm, with Seijuro hoping to turn that around.

Perhaps being a self-referential acknowledgment of the franchise being built back up from its mostly forgotten state in recent years, there are some interesting things in this brief overview trailer. If the characters look familiar, it’s probably because Tite Kubo of the once mega popular Bleach manga is handling character designs this time around. The all Japanese voice cast has star power of its own, with Ayane Sakura, (Ran Mitake in BanG Dream!, Ochaco Uraraka in My Hero Academia and my personal favorite, Eleonora Yumizuri in Tokyo Mirage Sessions: #FE), taking the lead role as Sakura Amamiya. And based on the very short peak at the game play, this one looks more action focused compared to the grid style turn based combat of past games.

Looks like there’s a lot to be excited about! Keep an eye out for more updates as they surface, but until then, check out the trailer below and tell us what you think! Sakura Wars is scheduled for an April 28 release exclusively for PS4.

Geekscape Reviews ‘Sonic The Hedgehog’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

Geekscape Reviews Sonic The Hedgehog In 4DX

You know, the journey leading up to the resale of Sonic The Hedgehog: The Movie was an odd one. For all intents and purposes, this movie should have been bad. I doubt it would have been given a second look and it would have faded into mediocrity if its holiday 2019 release had come to fruition. But ironically, its initial trailer and design were received so poorly that the studio redesigning the iconic Sega mascot accumulated seemingly endless goodwill with the fan base. I know I fell into the mindset of almost feeling obligated to see it as a thank you for listening to feedback instead of dismissing it as “hating” or whatever word we’re using these days. That aside, Sonic The Hedgehog is an uneven love letter to the 30 year gaming star. While glimpses of love for the character peek out here and there, the overall product ends up as a barely serviceable take on the blue blur.

In an attempt to flesh out Sonic’s backstory, the film starts in a beautifully rendered CGI version of Green Hill Zone, where a young hedgehog is being raised by an owl? Okay. So anyway, when a tribe of echidnas, (foreshadowing?), hunt the child for his speed force, his guardian hands him a bag of rings that can link to other worlds. It’s here that Sonic finds himself on Earth, studying humanity in his boredom as he lives a secluded life away from his hunters. But eventually, his loneliness gets the better of him, setting off a chain of events that forces him and the local sheriff, (played by a two eyed James Marsden), to take a cross country road trip. With the government sending its Dr. Robotnik, their smartest, (and most detested), scientist to study and capture the hedgehog, danger is hard to outrun. 

If this sounds bleak for a Sonic movie, you wouldn’t be alone. Sonic’s signature character trait is being an arrogant, smarmy dick who happens to be an environmentalist. Let’s be honest, if he wasn’t trying to save helpless animals, he’d be kind of an asshole. Anyway, seeing him being portrayed as a naive, lonely and unsure child is a strange direction to take. It makes the middle portions of the film a bit of a slog as Sonic’s signature speed is sidelined in favor of a buddy cop road trip film. Sonic rarely worked in a car in video games, so the film carries on this tradition. Furthermore, if you were expecting the kind of family film that has jokes for both kids and adults, this isn’t it. Sonic flosses and farts, things a longtime fan would likely never want to see the character do.

With that said, it almost feels like two different teams worked on this at times because of how often the movie feels like it was made by longtime fans at the beginning and end. Seeing Green Hill Zone was a highlight, as was the nods towards future characters. The ending sequence is straight out of a 2D boss fight or the good parts of Sonic Adventure. My inner child was celebrating the sight of Robotnik and Sonic fighting a high speed battle actress countless environments. Easter eggs are scattered throughout the film that reference some deep history, (including some from unofficial sources and memes). 

While Jim Carrey feels more like he’s reviving Ace Ventura than playing the good doctor from the games, that doesn’t stop him from carrying the movie every time he’s featured. I was never a big fan of his 90’s Schlick, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love it after being given time to miss it. Plus, his over the top comedy fits in perfectly in a world where anthropomorphic blue hedgehog can exist. Unfortunately, Marsden is the opposite and has to play it completely straight, which is part of the reason why the middle drags so much. He did his best with what he had, but it’s hard to create a touching family narrative out of a cartoon with eyes that take up half of his head. Plus, Sonic is kind of unlikeable. Not in the dickish way I mentioned before, but in a petulant way that makes it hard to root for him. It turns around eventually, but those scenes were tough to get through.

While Sonic is under the microscope, I’d be remiss to ignore his design, which for the most part is a massive improvement over the initial footage. Some angles, especially from the side, can come off a little rough, but shots where he’s facing the camera are pretty close to perfect. Seeing some of his abilities in action like his spin dash put some muscle behind the special effects, complimenting Robotnik’s crazy robots well. And while these two get plenty of spotlight, franchise fans will have even more to look forward to. Let’s just leave it at that.

Speaking of the action scenes, for a game known for its breakneck pace, fights are few and far between. It’s because of this that the 4DX effect added very little to the experience, with the moving chairs rarely being used. Now that Sonic’s backstory is established, I’m sure future sequels will take better advantage of both the character and 4DX. But for now, you’d probably do well to pass on the premium ticket price.

Ultimately, Sonic The Hedgehog: The Movie is just serviceable enough to be enjoyed while still falling short. The nods to Sonic’s history and some of the scenes are a 90’s kids’ dream come true and Jim Carrey fits much better than expected as Robotnik. The special effects and Sonic’s redesign are all mostly well done, but are failed by a meandering plot and little use of his abilities. Some juvenile humor, odd writing choices and a plot that takes itself too seriously at times almost makes the character feel misunderstood while simultaneously setting up the foundation for what he should be. You hardly need to dash to the theater to see this, but it’s a fine way to spend 90 minutes. Which is much more than first impressions suggested.

Final score: 3/5

‘Sakura Wars’ Brings Love And Anime Back To The PS4

by Josh Jackson

A lot has changed in 15 years, some for the better and some… not so much. If there’s one thing that the last decade and a half has been missing, it’s cute anime girls in mechs, which have been sorely missing since Sega’s long running Sakura Wars franchise went on haitus. 2005’s American focused So Long My Love for the Wii and PS2 was the last time this series took the stage, but aside from cameos and supporting roles in crossover games like Project X Zone series, it seemed like one of the original RPG / dating sim hybrids was to become a longing memory.

Suddenly, that’s about to change. Sega has announced that not only is Sakura Wars returning to the PS4, but it’s only a few month away! Blending a harem anime with strategic RPG game play, we’ll once again take the role as… some dude as we lead and woo an army of attractive female samurai who happen to pilot mechs. How did this franchise disappear for so long!?

Launching in 1996 for the Sega Saturn, Sakura Wars was an ambitious cross-genre title that sought to blend different styles of game play with a steampunk samurai setting that fit this goal. Since then, it has enjoyed much success in Japan, with multiple sequels, manga and anime adaptations. Get a taste of what this reboot has in store in its announcement trailer below, and keep an eye out for physical editions that include a reversible cover and a sticker set when the game releases on April 28.

Geekscape Reviews ‘Bad Boys For Life’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

I’ll be honest. Despite being a big fan of the original Bad Boys films, I was heading into Bad Boys For Life with low expectations. It felt like a sequel that was far too late, hitting theaters 17 years after its predecessor, (which came out nearly a decade after the original in its own right). Its leads don’t carry the same star power either, with Martin Lawrence largely being out of the mainstream while Will Smith’s drawing power being hit or miss as of late. Explosion expert and car wash enthusiast Michael Bay was away from the director’s chair, replaced by the duo of Arbi and Fallah of Black fame. To make matters worse, cynicism towards these nostalgia sequels was at an all time high after dreadful attempts by the Rambo and Terminator franchises. I mean it’s named after a 20 year old song! And you know what? I was wrong! Bad Boys For Life doesn’t miss a beat, feeling like a natural progression from its prequels as opposed to feeling like a yesteryear cash grab thanks to its charismatic leads.

Bad Boys For Life follows Miami detectives Mike Lowrey (Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Lawrence) as they approach the twilight of their careers. Happy with his life with his growing family, Marcus is ready to hang up the holster. Mike on the other hand, has only grown his legend in the years between films as the quick witted, bombastic and reckless detective who refuses to admit that his age is starting to catch up to him. This difference between the partners creates a rift, with Mike wanting Marcus to ride with him until the end. Unfortunately, neither ends up having a choice when a ghost from the past begins an assassination spree targeting people related to Mike’s arrests. It becomes a race against time both figuratively and literally as the titular bad boys need to track down the younger, faster and stronger assassin before he gets to them first.

To further the theme of the inevitably of aging comes AMMO, a new police task force designed to take down the most dangerous criminals before they have a chance to become a threat. Led by Rita Secada, (Mike’s ex girlfriend played by Paola Nunez), the technologically advanced squad is rounded out by the exceedingly attractive trio of Dorn, Kelly and Rafe, (Alexander Ludwig, Vanessa Hudgens and Charles Melton). Naturally, the two sides clash when it comes to Mike’s guns blazing style of police work compared to the new tech focused group, but thankfully, any distension between the two doesn’t last long and is quickly replaced with mutual respect, creating an interesting dynamic between the characters involved. One of my concerns going in was that the cliche of the veterans versus the upstarts was going to drag down the film. This never happens, with each cast member having enough time to shine without becoming overbearing.

But make no mistake. Despite the heavy involvement of AMMO, this is still a Bad Boys movie. Which means Mike and Marcus are all over it with their trademark banter and over the top action. As mentioned, Michael Bay is not directing, but you couldn’t tell from how wild the scenes get, (aside from a few not-so-subtle nods that I won’t spoil here). The film features so many high speed car chases, city spanning gun fights and explosions that it almost feels like they were making up for lost time. Watching it in 4DX amplified this experience, with me feeling like I’d be thrown from my chair thanks to the aggressive motion through the seats. There weren’t many other effects used aside from the occasional smoke or spray, but they really weren’t needed when the action scenes maximized their effectiveness. There are long stretches where the effects aren’t used, but when they are, you’re definitely getting your money’s worth.

Lawrence and Smith feel right at home, reminding us why we fell in love with this duo in the first place thanks to countless laugh out loud moments between the two. But the film ends up being surprisingly touching, showing the bond they have developed after nearly two decades of being partners. This idea of bonds and legacies extend to the villains, who have more depth than the typical over the top comic book antagonist we’ve come to expect from movies like this. That’s not to say there isn’t a fair share of campyness to the bad guys, but their ties to Mike end up being a driving force of the narrative. This leads to a high stakes climax that manages to be as emotional as it is action packed. It took me from thinking the movie would be unnecessary to wanting to see this franchise continue. They prove throughout that there’s more life in this series than we gave it credit for.

Ironically, despite leaving us wanting more, the film’s biggest flaw is that it gives too much this time around. Clocking in at over two hours, there are long stretches of the film that don’t add much to the plot and were seemingly put in to pad its run time. If it was going to be that long, they could have used the time to better bridge the gap between films given that there are some important characters who are barely mentioned or hand waved in passing. Lastly, the epilogue feels unearned, forcing an excuse to develop a sequel as opposed to showing us why it’s needed. Well.. aside from the obvious need to turn everything into a cinematic universe these days, but that will be a discussion for another time.

With that said, Bad Boys For Life is a pleasant surprise that will surely please both fans of the prequels or action loving audiences who want to turn their brain off for a few hours. Lawrence and Smith steal the show once again, proving why they were both considered box office superstars of the 90’s while the new elements built around them only added to the film. With a deeper than expected plot, some strong twists and more action than we could handle, (especially in 4DX), the third Bad Boys has the distinction of being the first big surprise of 2020.

Final score: 4/5

‘High School Musical: The Musical: The Series’ Is Way Better Than It Should Be

by Josh Jackson

Full disclosure: I’m a huge High School Musical fan. I even wrote a list ranking the songs for its 10th anniversary and consider holding the world record for the highest score singing I Don’t Dance in High School Musical 3: Sing It. Just like most fans, I was eagerly awaiting news on the troubled fourth film, but with every delay, rewrite and empty promise, it seemed like we were being forced to abandon the Disney Channel phenomenon faster than you can say Ted Bundy.

Meet the new Wildcats!

Then one day, when creating my account for The Mandalorian App, I saw a peculiar banner for an original show that didn’t take place in a far away galaxy. Titled High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, the absurd name caught my attention while the teenagers with attitude greeting me from the ad made me approach with caution. A whole show based around the admittedly cheesy films that faded close to a decade ago that’s now far outside of my age range? With a new cast and a teen sitcom vibe with none of the original crew on board? Surely this would be terrible. So like any highly skeptical viewer would do, I dove in with an open mind, but with tepid expectations that would surely become something to hate watch. The first episode came and went… and I liked it? Forgoing the lighthearted, over the top vibe of the films in favor of a more grounded, realistic cast of characters made this feel less like a revival and more of an homage, becoming the start of something new while using the familiarity of the films as a backdrop for these new characters.

When it comes to HSMTMTS, think a strange teen smoothie blending High School Musical, Glee and The Office, following a new drama teacher and her students at the “real” East High in Salt Lake City, where the most iconic trilogy in theater was filmed. Using a mockumentary style presentation, the show follows the class as they put together the “first ever” production of HSM at the school where it originated. At the center of this developing musical is Nini, an acting up-and-comer who manages to land the lead roll of Gabriella, Ricky, her skater ex-boyfriend who somehow is cast as Troy while attempting to get his girlfriend back despite having no interest in theater, EJ, Nini’s new boyfriend and all-around all-star who becomes Ricky’s understudy, (much to his detriment), and Gina, the “triple-threat” who doesn’t take the idea of being Nini’s understudy lightly. This creates a situation that’s clearly ripe for drama between the cast, and that’s aside from the Robotics teacher, Mr. Mazzara, having it out for the Glee Clu… I mean the drama department after Ms. Jenn’s production threatens to take away funding and students from his program.

The will they / won’t they dynamic between Nini and Ricky is a central conflict.

Admittedly, the show doesn’t do a whole lot that I’d call unique. As I joked about above, it takes many of its beats from the shows that came before it, with all the teen conflict you’d expect from a high school love triangle. But what makes it stand out above its premise, (and the original films in some ways), is how multi-dimensional it makes its characters. While the characters in Glee or HSM rarely rose above the stereotypical archetypes they were based around. With the show being up to episode 7 as of this writing, every character is vastly different from who they were in episode 1, with reasonable motivations explaining why the characters act the way they do and logical change that stems from their experiences from week to week. The cast constantly has lapses in logic, emotional outburts and moments of clarity, all of which feel not only earned, but more human than we’d expect from a show of this kind. What we’re left with is a show that’s easy to go along for the ride with instead of disliking any direction each student or teacher is going through. Because even at their best (and worst), we know why they’re at the positions we find them, making it easy to root for everyone involved.

Naturally, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the music, which shines brighter than I expected. Sure, it has its rough moments, (I’m looking at you, A Billion Sorrys), but the original music in particular shows how effortlessly talented this new cast is. Much of the singing on the show is performed live and written by the actors themselves, which would be impressive enough without them constantly blowing the vocals away. Fun anthems like Born to be Brave steal the show while Wondering will surely make you jealous over Olivia Rodrigo and Julia Lester’s excess talent. Naturally, old songs return with new twists, with each version putting its own spin on the classics that are sprinkled throughout each episode. Sometimes the hardest part about waiting each week is wondering how the new songs will turn out.

Rivalries take center stage.

The cast is exceedingly talented, the nostalgic soundtrack surprisingly is taking a backseat to some excellent original compositions and the show has enough twists and turns that not only keep me in anticipation from week to week, but has me declaring that each episode is my new favorite like clockwork every Friday. With a season 2 already green lit and the end of season 1 on the horizon, let’s hope that this new class of Wildcats continues to surprise us.

‘Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[cl-r]’ Introduces Londrekia

by Josh Jackson

As if the winter chill and the looming threat of Christmas wasn’t enough to send a shiver down your spine, it was announced that Londrekia would be the 21st character to join the growing roster of Under Night In-Birth.

Originally set to be part of the original cast before ultimately being given the axe, Londrekia made his first official appearance in the game’s second version, Exe:Late[st] as a non-playable character. Touted as one of the greatest warriors of the all-male Ritter Schild organization, he uses his Dare Glacial ability to command ice both offensively and defensively.

Developed by the legendary indie fighting game wizards at French Bread, Under Night In-Birth has steadily gained a dedicated following after its 2012 debut. Channeling its Melty Blood roots by serving as an accessible, yet deep, fast paced fighter, its reputation has only grown thanks to prominent appearances in BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle and being featured as a main stage game during EVO 2019. Exe:Late[cl-r] is the third version of the growing title, promising nearly a dozen modes, a much lauded training mode to get players of all skill levels up to speed and over 600 frames of fluid 2D animation in an increasingly 3D market.

Check out Londrekia and the rest of the cast when Exe:Late[cl-r] releases on the PS4 and Nintendo Switch on February 21.

Geekscape Reviews ‘Frozen 2’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

Back in 2013, Frozen unexpectedly became a worldwide phenomenon and audiences refused to let it go. Disney had a new cash cow on their hands, keeping the property alive over the last six years through animated shorts, Broadway plays and video game tie-ins to keep Anna and Elsa active in the public consciousness. Despite this, an eventual follow-up would have some pretty big snow boots to fill with the task of somehow building on what many feel to be a transformative approach to Disney’s princess stereotype. Much like the original film however, Frozen 2 manages to subvert expectations once again by being more than a simple cash-in. Let’s be honest; Disney could have released anything with the Frozen name attached and surely could have rode off into the sunset with hundreds of millions of dollars in hand. Instead, Frozen 2 grows up with its audience, treading the path of a completely different genre while tackling some pretty dark themes, showing that the house of mouse isn’t afraid of gambling with one of their most popular franchises. And the film is better off for it.


Anna and Elsa find themselves on a new adventure away from their kingdom.

Taking place about three years after true love between siblings put an end to the kingdom of Arendelle’s eternal winter, Princess Anna, Queen Elsa, Anna’s boyfriend and official ice salesman of the kingdom, Kristoff his reindeer Sven and Olaf, the living snowman / walking toy advertisement have spent that time living openly as a family. While Anna hopes this period of freedom with her sister and the rest of her loved ones will never end, inevitable change is on the horizon. Kristoff is trying and failing to find the right time to propose to the princess while Elsa can’t help but feel like something’s missing in her life, which is only complicated by a mysterious spirit that echoes in her ear. The echo leads her to an enchanted forest with deep ties to the kingdom’s past, inadvertently puts the kingdom in danger, (something Elsa is seemingly making a habit of), when a group of elemental spirits is accidentally released. To right this wrong, the royal family decides to lead by example by traveling deeper into the forest and bringing balance back to nature. But will Arendelle’s past catch up to its royalty, what ties does it have with their parents’ accidental death and will their connection to Elsa’s powers once again separate the sisters?

If the original Frozen could be called a modernized fairy tale, Frozen 2 takes a completely different route as a full on adventure movie. Taking us out of the kingdom and into the larger world both increases the scope of the story while allowing the characters to take on some exciting new roles throughout the course of the film. Elsa’s plot is the most familiar, who once again finds herself trying to right the wrongs that she inadvertently created, but with the theme of self discovery constantly hovering in the back of her mind. While she had her own message of acceptance in the original movie, she finds herself constantly struggling with the idea that being comfortable isn’t necessarily what is right. As her journey towards the truth behind her powers comes closer to its conclusion, the looming idea of her having to choose her true self over the family she’s grown to love is an inevitable cloud that adds gravity to the narrative as the film progresses.


Elsa’s journey of self-discovery compliments some of the best 3D animation put to film.

Anna on the other hand, was separated from her sister for so long up until the end of the first film that now she never wants to be away from her sister’s side to the point where it’s clear she’s clinging way too hard. When the deep love they share for each other breaks down into co-dependency, the younger sibling is constantly in over her head in her attempts to prove she’s just as capable as her sister more out of fear of losing her than doing what’s best for herself or her family. This constant need to stay by her sister eventually alienates her would-be fiance, who was a constant, mostly equal partner in the first film. Finding himself routinely ignored and cast aside, the question as to whether or not there’s enough room in Anna’s heart for him begins to weigh down on the mountain man. This is all while Olaf’s own coming of age begins to shape, with him absorbing as much information as he can, (and being sure to recite it), while learning that perhaps grown-ups don’t have all the answers.

All these plot points are tied into some incredibly adult and increasingly dark themes, ranging from self discovery and learning to let go, (no pun intended), to the breakdown of relationships, the death of loved ones, crippling depression, (to the point where a character contemplates being ready to die, no joke), and learning to live for yourself instead of in the service of others. Even Olaf isn’t afraid to grow up with the audience, surely mimicking many a child who went through the phase where they’re questioning everything between the two film’s release dates. All of these concepts are neatly wrapped in a fun adventure story, with some of the best 3D animation I’ve seen to date. From the effects with each of the elementals to the breathtaking Show Yourself musical number, the animation here blows the first movie out of the water, which is impressive since I think it still holds up pretty well. The sheer emotion on the character’s faces make you feel for them so deeply at a human level, (a hard task to accomplish when their eyes are about half the size of their heads.)


Scenes like Elsa’s battle with the Nokk highlight an exceedingly beautiful film.

This blow away animation is only further enhanced by watching the film in 4DX, which I found added greatly to the immersion factor thanks to its various effects. Snow is a given, with points where the theater would be sprinkled with flakes whenever the ice queen herself shows off her power. With the elementals coming into play however, water and wind especially stand out throughout the film’s run time, helping you feel like you’re on this adventure with the cast. If you decide to go this route, bring a jacket. The effects manage to emulate the film’s namesake by making the room noticeably cold thanks to the water and wind.

As expected, Frozen 2 doesn’t lack in huge musical numbers helmed by its talented voice cast. With Evan Rachel Wood joining in as Anna and Elsa’s mother in flashbacks, Kristen Bell, Adele Daz… erm… Idina Menzel and Josh Gad all shine once again. Even Jonathan Groff, a musical veteran in his own right who was woefully underused in the first film, makes up for it this time with an incredible power ballad that manages to be both hilarious and heavy at the same time. With that said, if you’re a fan of musicals, you might be disappointed in the fact that the film is really top loaded with music. The pacing feels noticeably off, with the first half hour constantly bombarding you with music, followed by the latter portion of the movie foregoing its musical roots in favor of the adventure story, which still ultimately feels rushed once it reaches its conclusion. Certain plot threads, namely Kristoff and Anna’s relationship troubles, are also lost in the shuffle, being largely forgotten about in the second half until they’re resolved in a way that feels completely unearned. It’s crazy to say this since the film is already lengthy for an animated film at about 1:45, but it really could have used another 10 minutes or so to flesh out its ambitious to-do list.


Anna showing off her Z-Crystal collection.

Is Frozen 2 as good as its wildly popular predecessor? Only time will tell how audiences react to it after it has time to settle. For my money, it’s a hard question to answer since the sequel is a vastly different movie in its own right, which Disney should be commended for when this could have easily been a success without taking any risks. What I can say is that this follow-up is a visual marvel, an emotional roller coaster and a musical triumph that finds a different way to subvert all expectations with heavy themes and self-referential humor throughout. Certain plot points aren’t fleshed out as much as they should be and the pacing feels off at points as it rushes towards its conclusion that feels a little too neat compared to its increasingly bleak narrative, but overall, it’s safe to say that we have another hit on our hands. Now get ready to get those songs stuck in your head all over again. The Panic at the Disco cover is a banger.

Final Score: 4.5/5

Geekscape Reviews ‘Terminator: Dark Fate’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

The Terminator franchise has had as many form changes as a T-1000 over the three decades its been around, oftentimes being ill received. After the first and especially the second film became pop culture phenomenons, helping solidify Arnold Schwarzenegger’s position as an action movie icon in the process, future projects failed to gain ground regardless of quality. From the critically panned sequels to the highly rated but never watched Sarah Connor Chronicles TV show, the next attempt at reviving the series is looking to pull from its most successful period. As a direct sequel to T2, Dark Fate brings back Arnold’s Terminator and Linda Hamilton’s Sarah Connor with a new cast to defend against the latest time traveling threat. On paper, the idea has potential, but unfortunately, Dark Fate manages to feel like the biggest retread yet, with questionable decisions that risk bringing down the series’ best films in the process.

Picking up a few years after Terminator 2, Sarah and John Connor are still on the run from potential Skynet threats, but are living in relative peace now that the impending Judgment Day has come and gone without incident thanks to the events of T2. However, that doesn’t mean the future is safe, with a new threat called Legion rising to take Skynet’s place as the cause of the technological apocalypse. In the present day, a new savoir who leads the fight against Legion in the future, Dani Ramos, (Natalia Reyes), is being hunted down by the Rev 9, (primarily in the guise of Gabriel Luna). This Terminator that takes on the liquid properties of the T-1000 while having a skeleton body like the T-800, both of which can act independently. With Grace, an augmented soldier sent from the future, (played by Mackenzie Davis) as well as a battle hardened Sarah Conner arriving to protect Dani from this advanced threat, its a renewed battle between man and machine as the fight for the future begins again.

If that premise sounds familiar, than it’s because it’s almost beat for beat the plot of Terminator 2. Outside of the first five minutes, an event that will surely be seen as the most shocking and divisive moment of the two hour run time, you can probably guess what’s going to happen before the scene hits the screen assuming you’re an avid T2 fan. Replace John with Dani, Grace with the T-800, the T-1000 with the Rev 9 and early 90’s Sarah with 2019 Sarah, and you’re pretty much getting the same film. When we heard the movie would be a direct sequel to the franchise’s best film, surely no one would have expected it to be an inferior xerox copy of it. But yet, here were are.

That’s not to say that the movie doesn’t have its fair share of highlights, especially in 4DX. Dark Fate does a great job using technological advancements to create some very innovative battles that are visually pleasing to boot. While never reaching the tension that the T-1000 did in the past, the Rev-9 does a great job of being terrifying, creating a sense of dread as he gets closer to his target. In 4DX, the audience really feels the action as the seats rock with every destroyed set piece, smoke rose with every explosion and every impact landing right in their backs. The performances all around are strong, with Linda Hamilton in particular bringing weight to this latest version of the hero that kicked the franchise off. You can hear the determined, yet weathered and tired tone of her personality at this stage as she struggles to find meaning in a life without Judgment Day. Not surprisingly, when Arnold eventually joins the cast, he highlights each scene he’s featured in with an interesting take on this version of the titular character. Without spoiling it, audiences should be pleasantly surprised with how charming a killer robot from the future can be.

With those highlights aside, it’s hard to find much enthusiasm for Dark Fate as it not only feels pointless, but renders the plot of the past films as irrelevant as well. What was the point of developing a plot that’s so close to its predecessor? What was the point of protecting John and Sarah all those years ago if a near identical future was going to play out anyway? What are the odds of ANOTHER tech company creating ANOTHER AI that goes rogue AGAIN and decides to send ANOTHER robot to the past to kill ANOTHER savior in the past? These are the questions I found myself asking after I walked out of the theater. It’s enjoyable aspects aren’t strong enough to offset the fact that it manages to both be a pointless addition to the franchise while also rendering the best parts of it moot. It’s impressive in a twisted kind of way.

All in all, Terminator: Dark Fate is destined to join the long list of sequels that would be best forgotten. Its controversial opening scenes set the tone for what was surely meant to be a hard reboot to carry the franchise into the future, but ends up destroying what people loved about it to begin with. Strong performances from Hamilton and Schwarzenegger and some impressive action choreography aren’t enough to save it from its own extinction, sending the once beloved franchise reeling back to the drawing board. Like its protagonists, the future isn’t looking bright for this one.

Final score: 2/5

Work Together With Your Goo Friend In ‘Luigi’s Mansion 3’

by Josh Jackson

Coming out of E3 this year, Luigi’s Mansion 3 might have been the biggest surprise of the show for me. The obvious level of improvement from an already fantastic second game was immediately apparent, partially due to the inclusion of Gooigi, Luigi’s gooey clone. Used to solve puzzles that Luigi can’t access himself, having this unexpected partner adds an extra layer to the complexity of the game. But perhaps more important is the ability to play the game side-by-side with another player. We had a chance to extensively play through some of the game’s co-op features as we dug deeper into the haunted halls of Luigi’s latest adventure.

Attempting to climb a seemingly endless set of stairs in pursuit of an evil gardening ghoul, Luigi continuously has his bravery put to the test. Outside of the ghosts using the environment to their advantage with different possession tricks, the mansions of the past were typically static. That’s clearly not the case this time around, as the haunted plant begins to tear through the staircase that everyone’s second favorite plumber is attempting to climb. Usually, his tools from the previous games such as his ghost sucking Poltergust, his stunning flashlight and his ability to barely hold himself together are enough to push through. However, there are times where doing so would be impossible alone, which is where Gooigi comes into play.

When trying to find alternate routes through the hotel, Gooigi’s assistance is invaluable. Generally, the second player can shorten the time it takes to clear a room, whether its smashing broken objects to reveal treasure, tag teaming powerful ghosts or working on separate opponents to lessen the workload. Other times though, important pathways may be blocked by a gates or drains that a person of a solid consistancy wouldn’t be able to push through. As if Gooigi was born for this very purpose, his permeability allows him to squeeze into areas that Luigi can’t get to, helping our hero advance further than he could on his own. Ultimately, Luigi’s still in charge, so he can call back Gooigi to his backpack at any time and is the only one that can open doors. What, did you think he’d be outshined in his own game?

Allowing the story mode to be played completely in co-op adds a whole filmy layer of excitement to a game we were already thrilled about. Are you planning on tackling Luigi’s next adventure on your own or with a jiggly pal? Let us know in the comments as we anxiously anticipate Luigi’s Mansion 3‘s October 31 release.

‘Fire Emblem: Three Houses’ Makes Death Mean Something

by Josh Jackson

Warning: Minor Three Houses spoilers! Turn away if you want to go into this three month old game blind.

It can’t be said enough. Fire Emblem: Three Houses is one of the best games of 2019, if not the year’s finest. It serves as a true evolution of the franchise, adding a slew of social mechanics such as a calendar system, more ways to interact with the supporting cast and more side activities than you’ll care to take part in. This is on top of the game improving on the battle mechanics set forth by the fantastic Shadows of Valentia while presenting three different story paths that offer drastically different outcomes. But while the decision to make the main character a professor at a military academy seemed like a risky one on paper, this is where the soul of the game shines through. Because the opponents you fight aren’t just your run of the mill bad guys; they’re your students.

Despite the game forcing you to choose a house fairly early, which determines the student body you’ll teach as well as the story paths available to you, taking advantage of the social mechanics allow you to get to know and even recruit most of the kids from the other houses. Even if you don’t end up luring them to your class, getting to know them opens up a series of scenes where you can have heart-to-hearts, giving you the chance to learn about their motivations. On occasion, students from other houses may even assist you on missions, appearing with advanced classes that show their growth as soldiers. Even though Byleth, your self-insert main character, doesn’t have a direct hand in teaching them, it’s still rewarding to see them grow alongside your own students, who you’ve likely developed a strong attachment to at this point. This is only furthered by anonymously acting as a counselor to help them through their insecurities, having lunch with them at the dining hall, hosting or attending seminars with them or standing side by side during school festivals. While school life is dangerous as you take on thieves and bandits every month, these days feel like bliss as you learn from your kids as much as you teach.

Sadly, in typical Fire Emblem fashion, a catastrophic event at about the halfway point of the story shatters the foundation of the school, plummeting the region into a war that pits the titular three houses against each other for the right to rule over their shared land of Fodlan. While the academy sections still exist, the tone is drastically different. What used to be classroom lessons have become war room meetings, devising strategies meant to develop the skills needed to crush their enemies. What used to be mock battles have become fights to the death, as each of your wide eyed kids have now grown into battle hardened fighters who you’ve trained to prepare for days like this. Then the time comes to hit the battlefield, and as your opponents arrive…

They’re your former students from the other houses. They’re the professors you once stood on the same faculty with. In one path in particular, they’re the students from the house you once took under your wing. They’re no longer nameless, faceless bad guys that you won’t think twice about killing for the greater good. And when it comes time to clash on the battlefield, it’s absolutely gutting.

During my Golden Deer playthrough, I did my absolute best to avoid former students, wanting to avoid killing the people my Byleth shared so many memories with. War doesn’t afford that luxury, because while it is possible to complete main objectives without killing students in some cases, more often than not, the students would attack us before we could avoid them. Slaying these kids one by one as their leaders mourn their deaths alongside the player gives these fights the gravity that is usually lacking in even the most pivotal Fire Emblem moments. It brings no pleasure to win these fights, with the victory music upon leveling up almost feels like it’s mocking you as if killing those close to you is worthy of praise. Even the students at your side will lament on the horrors of having to oppose those they once called friends, often leading to some heartbreaking moments. For example, Dorthea, a Black Eagles student that I had recruited to the Golden Deer, shared this bit of dialogue after her former classmate, Ferdinand, was killed in the previous battle.

In fact, Dorthea might be the best example of the effect the war has on the player. This happy-go-lucky girl who’s biggest concerns are being able to sing and finding a suitor turns into a defeated, melancholy young woman who is being crushed under the weight of her sadness. This is the drawback of only being able to recruit some students, since you’ll inevitably be faced with pitting classmates against each other. This naturally leads to many more scenes like Dorthea’s, showing your students coping with death in their own way. With so many different combinations, it creates scenarios that feel unique to your individual story, making it common to see players sharing agonizing experiences that others never saw. Moments like these that brought a sense of dread to the story that I couldn’t look away from, which is why the game has stuck with me long after finishing it

There are ways to avoid this fate to an extent. Recruiting students to your house before the war breaks out keeps them with you, removing opportunities to kill them in the future. However, due to the nature of the recruitment system, it’s impossible to save everyone you want during a single run. If you have a strong enough relationship with students you never recruited, you might be able to speak to them on the battlefield and have Byleth convince them to defect without unnecessary bloodshed, but the characters that this is possible with are few and far between. Even then, there are some that are too closely tied to the conflict to convince, making their deaths necessary to advance towards victory. Others never appear during the war to begin with, implying that they had died long before having the chance to reunite. It sucks.

Oddly enough though, this is what drove me to keep playing after my initial Golden Deer run was complete. I led Calude and his band of misfits to the Fodlan throne, but I didn’t want them to be the only ones who got a happy ending. Despite sinking close to 70 hours into the game for a single run, I gladly set out on my next 70 to see what directions Byleth’s leadership would take Dimitri and the Blue Lions, the house that was unceremoniously dispatched my first time around. Only this time, I can carry over my relationships from before, allowing me to save my Golden Deer kids long before they’re ever in danger. It’s this attachment that makes Fire Emblem: Three Houses so powerful. Enemies are former friends and you have the power to ensure that they can find a happy ending when any other game in the series would make you see them as battlefield fodder. Even Fates, a game with a similar premise where your enemies are characters close to you, didn’t allow much interaction with the opposition once you choose the side of the war you’ll stand on. Not only does Three Houses allow this, it sets it up for the first 35 hours of the game, making the last 35 hours so much richer as a result.

What aspects of Fire Emblem: Three Houses stood out to you? Were there any characters that you refused to kill, or that sunk your heart when it was time to fight them? Or do you just want to discuss the game as a whole? Let us know in the comments!

Geekscape Reviews ‘Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

I’ll admit, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the original Maleficent. Despite a fantastic performance by Angelina Jolie, the half remake, half rewriting of the animated Sleeping Beauty often felt like a film caught between two masters. And yet, trying to both recreate the Disney classic while creating its own sympathetic portrayal of one of the company’s most purely evil villains ensured that it didn’t succeed at either goal. Even then, I was optimistic heading into Mistress of Evil. With the remake aspect out of the way, the filmmakers have the chance to craft their own story with this unique portrayal of the titular character without any surprise changes to her characterization getting in the way. It ultimately does a good job of continuing the story of this heroic evil mistress, (however that works), but clumsily stumbles on its way to get there.

Taking place five years after the death of King Stefan, Maleficent has crowned her adopted human daughter, Aurora, (reprised by Elle Fanning), as the queen of the Moors. As the land where all manner of monster, fairy and magical creature presides, the new queen has no problem with coexisting with her subjects, all of which are under the watchful eye of her overprotective mother. Her parental instincts kick in at full force when Prince Philip returns (in a manner of speaking since Harris Dickinson is taking the reigns from Brenton Thwaites), with a marriage proposal. With Aurora accepting, Maleficent reluctantly agrees to the union despite maintaining a strong distrust for humans. Proving her right is Michelle Pfeiffer’s Queen Ingrith, who is using this marriage bonding the human world and the Moors as an opportunity to further her own dark ambitions.

Like the original, Jolie shines as Maleficent, who manages to maintain an air of fear and respect around her despite being shown as a big sweetheart by the end of the first film. In a film named Mistress of Evil, she never does anything to earn her the title as one of the characters who is completely altruistic throughout its entire run time. Despite being understandably wary of the intentions that her human counterparts have for her and her daughter, she never acts in a way that isn’t justified, making it easy to sympathize with her need to protect her land and family. When things inevitably go south for her leading up to the second and third acts, there wasn’t a time where I wasn’t rooting for her to get back at the bad guys, which is largely in part to Pfeiffer’s performance. Queen Ingrith is easy to hate.

What’s odd about this film though, is that Maleficent is strangely absent for a large portion of it. This story is mostly about the relationship between Aurora and Philip and the political ramifications of their union. These characters are fine for what they are, but they’re both held back by a case of “stupid character syndrome”, where they make obviously questionable decisions for the sake of moving the plot forward. I didn’t buy for a second that Aurora would trust complete strangers, one of which was obviously antagonizing her mother, over the woman who raised her for most of her life. Just like I didn’t buy that it would take so long for the creatures of The Moor to realize something was shady with Queen Ingrith considering the events that took place in the first act of the film. I can’t give too many examples without going into spoiler territory, but one of the most frustrating parts of Mistress of Evil was how contrived the process felt when moving from one plot development for another. What’s even more confusing is that this movie goes out of its way to explain how Maleficent was given her reputation as an evil being, essentially calling the animated Sleeping Beauty a lie spread to sully her reputation. But you know who should believe that lie least of all? Probably her surrogate daughter.

However, as frustrating as the plot developments can be, nothing was worse than the underground society of fairies that aid Maleficent in her time of need. Their leader, Conall, (who commands the screen thanks to Chiwetel Ejiofor’s performance), expands the world even further by explaining the history of Maleficent’s kind and how they were driven into hiding by humans. But before these revelations can go anywhere interesting, it’s thrown aside almost as quickly as its introduced, leaving us with wasted potential as the fairies inevitably march off into battle against the humans. What ensues is an extended battle scene where some shocking developments, but ultimately falls flat when the conclusion in no way fits the events of the war. Topping it off is Jenn Murray’s Gerda, Queen Ingrith’s right hand woman. I’ve never seen someone be so stoic while overacting so much, which distracted me throughout the film, but her final scenes are so over the top that I couldn’t wait for her to be gone.

One major positive of the final battle, and the movie as a whole, was the use of 4DX. The effect did a great job of immersing the audience in this world with its abundant use of aroma, bubble and water effects throughout, bringing this magical world to life. Even though the love story takes center stage, there’s a surprising amount of action throughout, making good use of the format. It creates an experience that’s easy to become immersed in as the fantastic costume design, set pieces and visual effects pop even more thanks to the physical interaction that 4DX provides.

All in all, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil is an improvement on the original that comes across its own share of stumbles. Jolie commands the screen as expected, but her character is oddly absent through most of the film in favor of Aurora’s love story, which isn’t nearly as compelling. Some glossed over story beats, annoying antagonists and an unsatisfying conclusion take away from the overall package, but the Maleficent character carries the movie well enough to make up for its flaws when she’s on screen. Overall, fans of the first will get their money’s worth, but it’s nothing you need to rush out and watch. You might be better off catching up on a few z’s until the home release.

Final Score: 3/5

Geekscape Reviews ‘Zombieland: Double Tap’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

When 2009’s Zombieland first released, it caught audiences by surprise with its dry humor, quick wit and charismatic cast. Or maybe it’s because it managed to find humor in the ultra violent horror subgenre that often takes itself way too seriously. Regardless, both fans and its creators longed for a sequel. 10 years and a slew of Oscar nominations and wins later, Zombieland: Double Tap brings its original cast of Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin together to pull us back into the zombie apocalypse. But are they able to capture the same magic that the first one did amidst all the blood splatter?

Stone and Eisenberg return as unlikely love interests. Spoiler alert: relationship drama abound.

Taking place in real time, Zombieland: Double Tap reacquaints us with Tallahassee, Columbus, Wichita and Little Rock ten years after we last saw them. After becoming squatters in the abandoned White House, the group has lived comfortable, relatively normal lives, (or at least as normal as you can get when surrounded by zombies). However, the only thing worse than the fear of immanent death is complacency as Little Rock begins to feel smothered by her surrogate father and longs for life with people her age. Meanwhile, Columbus’ attempt to marry Wichita, (an odd priority during the zombie apocalypse), gives her a case of cold feet, so her and her sister hit the road in search of something new. Wichita eventually returns when she gets the same ghosting treatment from Little Rock, so the three remaining survivors leave the safety of Washington DC to bring their youngest friend back to safety… But not without Columbus’ new fling, Madison, (Zoey Deutch).

As soon as the film starts, it’s clear that the actors haven’t missed a beat. It’s easy to see how much fun the stars are having playing off each other while gunning down waves of zombies, and thankfully, the script gives them plenty to work with. Eisenberg’s Columbus plays to his strengths as a nerdy, uptight and lovable dork who constantly reminds anyone who will listen of his list of rules to survive the zombie apocalypse. As the anchor of the cast, the majority of his screen time is shared with Harrelson’s Tallahassee and Stone’s Wichita, who’s respective southern machismo and cynicism bounce off surprisingly well with Eisenberg’s performance. Yet, it’s Madison, the newcomer to the cast, who steals the show here. The dumb blonde trope is played out to death, but Deutch’s performance makes the most out of what she’s given, with her stereotypical airhead persona turned up to 11 in the face of the death and destruction that only a zombie wasteland can deliver. From the moment she says she survived by hiding in a Pinkberry freezer, it was obvious that she was going to be a standout.

Zoey Deutch’s Madison steals every scene she’s in.

What’s really great about Double Tap as a whole is its seamless ability to blend horror and action within a comedic frame. While laughs are the main goal for the film, it’s not without its tense, even scary moments that makes you fear for the safety of these characters who might otherwise be one note archetypes, largely because they’re able to elicit a reaction nearly the entire time they’re on screen. Whether it’s the lovable badass vibe Tallahassee gives off to the tension between Wichita and Madison that goes way better than anyone would have expected, it doesn’t take long to develop a bond between the characters and the audience. Even Little Rock, who was the weakest character of the group, draws sympathy for wanting something resembling a normal life, even if she makes some dumb decisions while pursuing that goal. Even then, she, nor the rest of the cast cease being the seasoned survivors that they are. Between all the laughs, each character gets a fair share of action, reminding you that they’ve developed into seasoned zombie killers over the last 10 years.

Knowing that, this movie is still a comedy first and foremost. The pace felt a little off, especially in the exposition heavy first half where it felt like nothing of importance was happening for long periods of time. Eventually, the jokes about rules or how dumb Madison was started to wear a little thin, but never enough to take me out of it. Magnifying these pacing issues was a long gag with Luke Wilson and Thomas Middleditch that goes on way past the point of where the joke stops being funny, which was only mildly amusing to begin with. While never too disappointing, the film would’ve improved with some more fat trimming in the middle.

The showdown between Tallahassee and Luke Wilson’s Albuquerque is one of the weaker parts of Double Tap

What was disappointing however, was that due to the nature of this pacing, the 4DX was rarely used. Outside of a few big fight scenes towards the end of the film that last long enough to almost make up for its scarce usage, it felt like I was watching a standard showing. Even when used, the variety of the effects was lacking considering there’s very little that can be done with a literal wasteland as the environment. We got a short burst of snow at the very beginning, smoke, seat movement and water spray to simulate zombie blood, (which was admittedly a creative use of the effect), but considering how few action scenes used the features, I wouldn’t go out of your way to see it in a format outside a standard screening… Even if a 4DX joke in the film had our screening roundly laughing at being mocked for smelling the film.

Zombieland: Double Tap delivers in every way that the original did, with its fair share of action, well scripted drama, plenty of heart and a little bit of suspense to round out its comedic nature. Those looking to make the most out of the 4DX format might be a little disappointed by the limited action scenes, while some drawn out gags make the film feel a little longer than it should, but overall, this sequel is everything it should be. Carried by its talented leads, it offers so much while always staying funny, which is more than can be expected from a movie of this kind. If you want a fun, lighthearted zombie flick in time for Halloween, then your first rule should be to go see Double Tap!

Final Score: 4/5

Wrestling Recap: AEW Dynamite 10-16-19

by Josh Jackson

The third episode of Dynamite is looking to be its biggest one yet, with two tag team tournament matches, a women’s title match and an AEW championship match to close out the show. Plus, with Mox and Omega finally coming to blows, it’s looking like this is going to be an explosive show… Pun slightly intended.

SCU Vs. Best Friends

Before the match even starts, The Lucha Bros ambush Daniels and Kazarian before they can hit the ring! Penta hits a Packaged Pile Driver on Daniels on the ramp, but before Fenix can do any more damage to Kaz, Scorpio Sky runs out for the save! The refs are throwing the X up, so it looks like Daniels is out of the match considering he’s being stretchered out. Maybe he’ll pop right up with a Mandible Claw? Can a match end in DQ before it starts? I think I’m sensing how Jurassic Express beats the Lucha Bros later tonight assuming my prediction is correct.

To avoid having the match called off, Sky takes Daniels’ place. Best Friends quickly take over the confusion by maintaining control of Sky while neutralizing Kaz. Trent and Chuck Taylor are showing much more aggression compared to their previous matches, with a foot bite being followed up with a standing double stomp to the outside on Sky’s back. Kazarian tries to escape their corner, but is met with a Stacked Superplex for his troubles. Sky finally gets the hot tag, hitting an impressive athletic flurry despite fighting in slacks and one shoe. Chuck stops a dive attempt, but has his own countered when Sky pulls Trent in the way. Sky hits his own dive to both opponents before throwing his only shoe into the crowd. The crowd throws it back for some reason, then erupts in what sounds like a “We got a shoe!” chant. Kaz returns to hit a double team DDT before tagging back in, but Best Friends gain control briefly. Their signature hug spot gets broken up by Sky, getting SCU their first boos of the night. Best Friends retaliate by knocking Sky off the apron, then resume their beatdown on Kaz. Trent goes for a Piledriver onto the apron, but Sky returns to pull Kaz’s legs down, allowing them to hit a backdrop on Trent. Kaz and Sky then hit a sloppy looking Powerbomb / Dropkick combo for an anticlimactic finish to an otherwise great match.

I’m surprised to see SCU win here given the pre-match angle. It’s cool that the confrontation from the first episode between them and the Lucha Bros is going somewhere, but it also made the segment kind of pointless in retrospect since Sky opted out of being in the tournament initially. With SCU winning, the experience argument that was meant to exclude Sky proved to be ultimately pointless since they won with the “weaker” combination. Still, the pieces seem to be falling into place, allowing my picks, the Jurassic Express, to win the whole tournament. I’m guessing SCU attacks the Luchas during their match, then the favor will be returned when SCU loses in the next round.

Santana and Ortiz vs. Local Talent (John Silver and Alex Reynolds)

History is being made here as AEW’s first jobber match. The screen in screen during the commercial was dedicated to showing the local talent coming down to the ring, which I doubt was effective in keeping anyone from changing the channel unless watching people walk is your idea of entertaining TV. This is a total showcase for The Inner Circle’s resident tag team, showing off their athleticism and aggression as they dominate their opponents. Ortiz pops the crowd with some odd claw poses before hitting the age old Back Rake, then the two hit their Doomsday Device / Blockbuster combo for the win.

Chris Jericho is shown backstage and cuts a promo putting over his team, issuing a challenge to The Young Bucks on behalf of Santana and Ortiz at Full Gear. Citing them as the most dangerous team The Bucks have ever faced, you can comically hear Ortiz screaming “The Best!” repeatedly in the background. The promo was good, but it was a little hokey between the background screaming being almost as loud as Jericho and being able to see the camera man in the reflection of Jericho’s glasses. Is this why WWE has their wrestlers stand crooked during interviews?

Next, we get a documentary style video package focusing on Cody’s singular focus on becoming the AEW Champion. The gist of it is that he’s checked out of his Executive duties because of his focus on validating his decision to go independent by becoming AEW champion, but he still has his attention divided more than Jericho does. Despite that, his unparalleled drive makes him a threat so strong that it can make him a legend. It’s time to shelve the executive persona and become the wrestler he was always meant to be. Promos like this are one of AEW’s biggest strengths, and this was an example of why. In less than five minutes, it told you everything you needed to know about Cody’s chase for the belt, making Full Gear seem like a really big deal.

Britt Baker vs. Riho for the AEW Women’s Championship

Huge Riho chants to start. The two exchange a variety of holds and counters before Britt tries to use her weight advantage to pin Riho. The two break and seem a little lost, then a second lock up results in a Lock Jaw attempt by Baker. Riho rolls to the outside as they begin fighting on the apron. The two fight for positioning on the top rope, ultimately resulting in Riho landing a cross body. Britt rolls it into a pin, which is broken when Riho slides out from under and lands a low Dropkick. Riho hits her Roll Up into a Double Foot Stomp, forcing Britt to regroup in the corner. This gives Riho the chance to hit her Double Running Knees. She climbs the turnbuckle and goes for a top rope Double Stomp, but Britt moves and hits a Slingblade to take control. Britt’s running boot turns into a few roll up attempts from the champion, but a third roll up is revered into a Fisherman’s Neckbreaker and a Superkick for the closest two-count you’ll ever see! My heart almost jumped out of my chest for a second! They exchange strikes, then Riho ducks a Ripcord Elbow Strike into a Northern Lights Suplex, which then transitions into a Half-Crab / Ankle Lock combo! Britt reaches the ropes, but Riho wastes no time as she runs to the corner to hit her top rope Double Stomp for a 2 count! Britt refuses to stay down as Riho lands another Double Knee Strike to the back of her head, then one last attempt results in the champion running straight into the post. Baker hits her Ripcord Elbow and Neckbreaker, then hooks Riho in her her Lock Jaw submission. Riho refuses to open her mouth, but right as Britt hooks her fingers into the champion’s mouth, Riho rolls Britt into a tight pin for the win! A disappointed Baker stares down Riho before offering a handshake in a show of sportsmanship, with the announcers emphasizing that Britt will be back down the road.

This match started off a little sloppy, but once it picked up, it never slowed down. Riho is an incredible performer and while I’ve found Britt to be hit-or-miss, tonight showed why she’s been put in such a prominent position so early into this promotion’s life. I’m surprised Bea didn’t make an appearance to continue her feud with Britt, but that might just be me being used to TV title matches ending in DQ’s or interference spots. It’s nice to see definitive winners.

Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy and Marko Stunt) vs. The Lucha Bros

Wait… Luchasaurus isn’t in the match? The announcers are reporting that he’s suffered a thigh injury, completely killing the enthusiasm for this match for many I’m sure. Nothing wrong with Marko, but Luchasaurus is the clear star of the team. It’s going to be hard to accept these two beating a team like Penta and Fenix. My anticipated SCU interference better be convincing.

Seeing Marko go face-to-face with Penta is the first time time I’ve ever seen the latter look like a giant. Penta bullies him early, but Marko responds with his Floss taunt. Marko bites Penta’s fingers when the luchador does his Cero Miedo taunt, then the Jurassic Express hits some unbelievable double team offense, including some high impact DDT’s on both Lucha Bros, an outside dive and a Packaged Slam into a Splash. Jungle Boy tags in and hits a 619 / Suplex combo, but when Marko tags back in, both younger opponents are wiped out with some disgusting Superkicks. Fenix tags in and takes out both opponents with an unbelievable armdrag / top rop enziguri combo. Marko is left in the ring alone with Penta, with the smaller Stunt being slammed with a giant Pump Handle pinning combo. Marko kicks out, leading to Penta arguing with the referee repeatedly. We head to commercial as Penta continues to chop down Marko with a flurry of leg kicks.

Both Lucha Bros take turns slaughtering Marko during the break, including Penta pressing Marko over his head with one arm before throwing him into Fenix for a mid air Superkick. There’s something odd about listening to a pleasant voice try to sell me medication while a child is being mauled in the next screen over. With the way the announcers are talking, it sounds like the Luchas are heels, flying in the face of their popularity. Marko finally manages to squeeze in some offense with a Sunset Roll-Up around the corner post, then tags in Jungle Boy. “Jungle Jack Perry” as JR calls him shows off his surprising strength by suplexing Fenix all over the place, then tags in Marko to go for their double team finish. The Lucha Bros cut them off, with Marko being spun around by the hair like this was a Cesaro match. Penta breaks Marko’s arm, then hit the Double Stomp / Package Piledriver combo for the win.

Well… My prediction died a fiery death. The match was really well done from a moves standpoint, but while Jurassic Express were impressive, there was rarely a moment where you thought they might win. Couple that with Marko immediately tagging back in after getting beaten down for almost 10 minutes straight, and you have a situation where the action doesn’t match the events of the fight. Still, I enjoyed it overall, I’m just disappointed that Luchasarus is either really hurt or given a kayfabe injury to keep him from eating the loss.

PAC and Jon Moxley vs. Kenny Omega and “Hangman” Adam Page

This will be an interesting match since PAC and Moxley don’t seem to like each other all that much despite being on the same team. After Kenny’s incredible match against Joey Janela on AEW Dark from last week, it’ll be great to see him finally gain some momentum.

Mox cuts a pretaped promo dismissing both PAC and Omega while reestablishing the pecking order in AEW, declaring that he’s hunting his Elite opponent heading into Full Gear.

Once The Elite hits the ring, the pairs of wrestlers split off into their respective feuds, with the legal men starting consisting of Mox versus Omega. The crowd quickly switches from a “Happy Birthday” chant for Kenny to a “Fuck em up Moxley” chant within about a minute, rivaling The Big Show for the fastest turn in wrestling. PAC tags himself in and gets in a few shots on Omega before tagging Mox back in for some double team offense in the corner. For two guys who don’t like each other, they seem to work together really well!

Omega is able to create some distance and tag in Page. He takes on both opponents, springboarding into PAC to knock him off the apron, then hits a flying lariat on Mox. Moxley escapes a Deadeye attempts, but when Page climbs the corner for a Moonsault attempt, PAC distracts him, which allows Moxley to knock him to the outside with a brutal back bump onto the apron. As we head to commercial, PAC hits a dive over the top rope as their team shifts their focus to Omega.

We come back from commercial with Moxley continuing the assault on Page’s back with a Clover Leaf. Omega breaks it up, but PAC quickly throws him out. Page misses the Buckshot Lariat, then tries to hit a standard clothesline that Moxley no-sells. Mox takes him down with his own, which results in a brief double-down before both legal men tag in their partners. Omega dominates PAC with his signature Fireman’s Slam into a Moonsault, then nails Mox with a Dragon Suplex when he tries to cut off the momentum. Omega lands his dive to the outside on PAC, but when Omega tries to capitalize, Mox hits both his opponent and his partner with a running dive. Page sees his opportunity to hit his Moonsault, taking out his opponents in the process. PAC is thrown in the ring and hit with a series of fast paced double team offense, but Mox breaks up the pin attempt with a Dropkick to Page’s head. Page begins working on Mox, but PAC hits a series of brutal boots. Page quickly turns things around as he throws PAC to the outside and lands a Suicide Dive that King Cuerno would be proud of. That leaves Moxley and Omega in the ring alone, leading to them flat out brawling. The two both go down when they take each other out with a running knee / lariat exchange, but the match begins to go off the rails as Omega and Mox grab their barb wired broom and bat from last week. Mox gets the better of the exchange, but PAC breaks up the fight and throws the weapons out of the ring to avoid the DQ. Mox flips him off and hits his own partner with a Paradigm Shift DDT, then storms off into the back! PAC is all alone, allowing Page to get a measure of revenge for the last few weeks with a Buckshot Lariat. Omega hits a running V-Trigger into a Deadeye from Page for the win.

This match felt like it was executed as well as it could have been, with every story layer being addressed across the 15-ish minutes that the match went on for. PAC and Moxley eventually imploded, while Mox is established as someone who’s more interested in inflicting violence on his enemies than winning. PAC on the other hand takes pride in his win record and doesn’t want his partner to ruin that for him, all while Omega and Page managed to work together without letting their personal grudges get in the way of getting the win. It teased us with what we can expect from the eventual encounter between Omega and Mox while adding a wrinkle to PAC’s championship storyline, all while creating a new feud between PAC and Moxley. Just well done all around.

Next week will feature Private Party vs. The Lucha Bros, The Dark Order vs. SCU, Britt Baker’s homecoming, The Young Bucks in action and PAC vs. Moxley. They don’t waste time at all, do they?

Darby Allin vs. Chris Jericho in a Philadelphia Street Fight for the AEW Championship

I’m sure I’m not alone in seeing Darby as a real revelation on the AEW roster. Riding down on a deck declaring himself as the next AEW champion, I’m hoping Jericho makes him look like a million bucks, although we’ve seen he has no problem doing that himself.

Darby starts off hot, out-brawling the champion before hitting him with an incredibly fast dive under the second rope. Jericho lures him back into the ring and kicks down the young challenger, then begins wearing him down with some offense in the corner. Darby rallies back with some lightning quick offense before working Jericho down into a Canadian Destroyer that he really had to work for. Jericho slows him down with a Clothesline and begins to taunt his opponent, then throws Darby through the ropes into the corner at full speed, resulting in a nasty bump to the outside as we go to the last break of the night.

As the break ends, Jericho beats Darby down with a Kendo stick, eventually smashing Allin in the ribs. Jericho tries to hit him with it from the top rope, but Allin lands a punch to the gut. He reverses a lariat into a crucifix pin, then gets some revenge by smashing Jericho in the back of the head with the kendo stick after the kickout. Allin then transitions into a crossface submission, but Jericho powers out and turns it into the Walls of Jericho. Darby gets the ropes, but there’s no break since it’s a Street Fight. Despite that, ref Aubrey Edwards forces the break (?), leading to Jericho arguing with her as Draby recovers. Allin hits a cross body off the top, but Jericho goes for a pin that’s broken up by the ropes once again. Jericho then goes for a chair and begins dismantling his pain loving foe. The Painmaker props the chair into the corner and goes for a Lawn Dart, but Darby turns it into a Stunner! Jericho overpowers him once more and goes for the Walls of Jericho a second time, then sinks it in deep before Darby reaches the ropes once again. The crowd begins turning on the match, chanting “it’s a street fight” due to all the rope breaks, and to be honest, I don’t blame them.

Jericho’s desperation begins to show as he duct tapes Allin’s hands behind his back. Allin is ragdolled around the ring as the announcers tease a referee stoppage, (lol), but Darby rallies with a Lionsault and a suicide dive with his hands taped behind his back! He hits a spinning moonsault off the top rope for a two, again, with his hands behind his back. The crowd is back into it with a “this is awesome” chant, but Jericho kills his momentum by powerbombing Darby into his skateboard. Darby kicks out at two with less than a minute left to go… Could we be going to a time limit draw!? Jericho swings and misses with a chair shot, then Darby dropkicks it into his opponent. He goes to the top for a Coffin Drop, but Jake Hager uses the no DQ rule to his advantage by knocking Allin off of the corner. Jericho goes for the Walls of Jericho one more time, with the ref calling the match for the submission win. The show closes with The Inner Circle coming down to the ring to celebrate with a little bit of the bubbly.

Continuity issues aside with the rope breaks, that was a fantastic match between a focused underdog and an arrogant veteran who was completely overlooking his hungry opponent. This show made a star out of Allin, Scorpio Sky and to a degree, Marko Stunt, putting on a really good show that flew by before I realized it. It left me eagerly awaiting Darby’s next shot, where Moxley goes against PAC and what will happen when the Lucha Bros and SCU eventually clash, which is the type of anticipation you want as your show comes to a close. Apparently, Luchasaurus is really hurt at the worst time possible, but I’m sure Jurassic Express will be back in a big way .They’re too popular to ignore.

All in all, that was another solid showing for AEW! What were your favorite parts of the show? Any highs or lows you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments!

Wrestling Recap: AEW Dynamite October 9 2019

by Josh Jackson

Last week was fun, so let’s run it back one more time! Tonight is looking to be even bigger than last week’s monster debut, which pulled in about 1.4 million viewers. Not bad for a brand new promotion! With the first match of the tag team tournament to crown the first AEW tag champs, Moxley making his in-ring debut against Shawn Spears, and Jericho’s new stable getting some shine against a vengeful Hangman Page and Dustin Rhodes, it’s looking like they’re on their way to maintaining that momentum.

Tag Team Tournament Quarterfinal Match: Private Party vs Young Bucks

The match starts strong with The Bucks taking control early. As the heavy favorites as both an incredible tag team and EVPs within the company, it would be safe to expect a huge showcase for both them and the young, up-and-coming Private Party.

After a standing flip reversal out of a double suplex, Marq Quen tags in and hits the ring like a house of fire, hitting some superhuman dives over the top rope on Matt and Nick, before bringing the action back into the ring with a picture perfect 450 splash. After a springboard dive attempt, we get our first double Superkick, leading to the Bucks isolating Quen after Matt Jackson powerbombs Isiah Kassidy onto the stage. A powerbomb / sliced bread #2 combination takes Quen down, leading to the pair taking turns working on the young star. Huge “tag team wrestling” chant breaks out as Quen repeatedly tries to mount a comeback before being cut off by the Bucks. A vicious knee to a double foot stomp combination drains the life out of Quen as the crowd begins to get behind Private Party. Isiah finds his way back to the apron, but Nick yanks him off right before Quen creates enough space to leap for the tag.

Isiah finally gets the tag and rallies with a double top rope drop kick and a double hurricanrana, all the while selling his back from the previous stage powerbomb. Matt stops the momentum by throwing Isiah out of the ring, then counters his attempt at re-entering with multiple Northern Lights Suplexes, the fourth of which is hit on both members. The end seems near as Nick takes out Quen with a superkick as Matt applies the Scorpion Death Lock to Isiah. Nick hits a springboard X-Factor just as Isiah is about to reach the ropes. Matt pulls him back to the center of the ring, but Isiah fights through to grab the ropes! I’m not sure if I like him being in that move for so long. Unless Private Party is winning, an isolated submission for that long should signal the end.

Quen gets the tag and gets rid of Nick before hitting Gin and Juice on Matt! (Gin and Juice is a top rop hurricanrana into an RKO and needs to be seen to be believed). Matt reverses Quen’s offense into a Meltzer Driver attempt, but then Isiah pulls Nick off the apron while Quen rolls up Matt for the win! Private Party pulls off the upset!

Overall, that match was phenomenal. My only nitpick was the long Scorpion Death Lock spot where Isiah looked unstoppable after essentially grabbing the ropes twice and fighting through the attacks of two men. Other than that, it was an amazing showcase for a largely unknown team, while the Bucks made sure to put the best of both teams on display.

That brings up a growing concern for me though. I understand that they want to avoid accusations of favoritism as EVP’s, but they all are legitimately some of the best wrestlers in the world. Aside from Cody, the entire crew is suffering from a losing streak. While it’s great to be selfless and give some shine to new talents, doing so for too long will take the shine off of the best wrestlers in the company as they continuously lose. In this case, it happens to be the guys the company is named after. Let’s hope they find a way to balance this in the weeks to come.

Chris Jericho Introduces His Stable, The Inner Circle

Jericho takes credit for last week’s massive rating, which is “The largest premiere in TNT history”. A “thank you Jericho” chant breaks out before Chris tells them to shut up and sit down. He then highlights the rest of his group, with Sammy Guevara, who he calls a “heartthrob” and a “god”. Santana and Ortiz, the former LAX, are next, with Ortiz seemingly having trouble keeping his tongue in his mouth. Jericho closes his intro with “viva la raza”, which is appropriate considring today is Eddie Guerrero’s birthday. When he gets to Jake Hager, Jericho silences the “We The People” chants, calling it “dead and buried” and “an idea from bad creative”. He then calls him the most feared MMA fighter in the world, with an undefeated record that makes him the most dangerous person in wrestling, (which is kind of funny since he’s only fought two people, both of which looked more like punching bags than actual competitors). Jericho declares that the group is his Inner Circle, then turns his attention to Cody. He says he’s been entitled his entire life, while he hates his entire family, including his brother and father, who he thought was a jerk. On November 9, Jericho promises to “beat the everliving SHIT out of him”, filling their one shit per show quota. Promising to celebrate with a little bit of the bubbly, the group poses as the announcers plug that Inner Circle shirts have just gone on sale at shopaew.com.

Spoiler: The website crashed as soon as this promo concluded.

Jimmy Havoc vs. Darby Allin with the winner challenging Chris Jericho for the AEW Championship next week.

Havoc starts with a pre-taped promo, declaring that the last 15 years of pain and violence have led up to this, but he loves the pain and will make Darby feel it on his way to defeating Chris Jericho. Darby won the last time these two men fought, but it was in a three-way where the third man was pinned, so it’ll be interesting to see where it goes.

Darby opens up with a handshake, but Havoc tries to turn it into a punch. A series of reversals lead to a high springboard arm drag from Allin before Havoc regains control by biting his opponent’s fingers. It doesn’t take long for this match to go off the rails as Havoc hits a Falcon Arrow from the apron to the floor. Havoc keeps working on Darby’s arm, continuously biting his fingers when Darby tries to come back as the ref struggles to regain control. Darby rallies briefly with a series of splashes in the corner, but Havoc turns one into a sleeper hold where he lifts Allin off the mat as if he’s hanging him, (shades of Minoru Suzuki vs Hiroki Goto’s Wrestle Kingdom match, one of my personal favorites). Allin rolls outside as we head to commercial.

Havoc hits a spinning punch as soon as the commercial break ends, followed by a death valley driver into the corner. With increasing frustration, Havoc hits a tiger driver 98, but they were too close to the ropes as Allin breaks the count. A frustrated Havoc almost gets caught with a crucifix pin, leading to him to begin stomping Allin’s head out of anger. He goes for the Acid Rainmaker, but Allin takes a move out of Havoc’s playbook by catching his fist with his mouth, biting down on the hand and forcing his opponent to release his grip. As Havoc recovers, Allin hits a flipping stunner over Havoc’s back. Seeing his chance, Allin climbs to the top rope and hits the Coffin Drop for the win!

It was always going to be hard to follow that tag match, but this was still a very good match! It highlighted the pain threshold of both men with an emphasis on the resilience of Allin, following up on the seeds planted when he took Cody to a draw a few months ago. I would’ve liked Allin to get some more offense in through the middle since Havoc dominated a large majority of the match, but it was well done overall with the right guy winning. I’m still confused as to why PAC isn’t getting a shot at the title considering he’s undefeated against two of AEW’s top guys, but then again, it’s too early to be feeding PAC to anyone, and we know Jericho isn’t losing.

BEA PRIESTLEY & EMI SAKURA vs. Britt Baker and Riho

Riho is still incredibly popular after her big championship win last week. The pairing of Bea and Sakura is a weird one, with the ultra-excited Freddy Mercury cosplayer fighting side-by-side with goth incarnate. The growing feud between Bea and Britt is the underlying story going into this, with obvious championship implications with Riho involved.

Starting with a teacher versus student showdown, Emi, the former mentor, overpowers Riho briefly until the champion slides out of a pin and drops Sakura with a drop kick. Sakura regains control and performs the infamous Divas hair pull into her corner as Bea gets some cheap shots in for good measure. Sakura shows off with a Surfboard submission on her much smaller opponent as Bea and Britt begin fighting into the crowd. Sakura eventually helps double-team Britt outside, but taking her eyes off of Riho proved to be a mistake as the AEW Women’s Champion hits a top rope crossbody to the outside on both of her opponents.

We come back from break as Sakura is breaking up a pin attempt to Bea from Britt following a DDT. Sakura drags Bea into the corner and tags herself in, then gets a We Will Rock You chant going to build up momentum for her corner cross body. Britt kicks out of a Vader Bomb pin attempt, then regains control with a cutter out of nowhere, (no pun intended). Sakura tries to charge at Britt, but Riho intercepts with a surprise roll-up into a double stomp. The two fight for dominant positioning until Britt surprises Sakura with a spinning elbow, leading to a Paige Turner and a Double Arm Crossface / Mandible Claw combination for the win. After the bell, Bea attacks Britt, forcing officials and Riho to keep the two apart.

The match overall was pretty good, although I didn’t feel like it was anything special when Riho wasn’t involved. Her quickness and technique are fun to see, but I’m hoping the rest of the women’s division can keep up and truly live up to their potential.

We’re then greeted with a brief video package of the Best Friends hugging in a field. When the interviewer asks the duo what they think of the developments in the tag tournament so far, they say to ask Orange Cassidy’s opinion, who gives a half-hearted thumbs up in the crowd.

Shawn Spears vs. Jon Moxley

As a big fan of Spears during his Tye Dillinger days, I love seeing him treated as a big deal in AEW. His entrance where the lights went out, only to shine a spotlight on him at the top of the ramp sitting in his trademark chair while flanked by Tully Blanchard immediately makes him seem like a star.

Moxley runs straight into the ring and gets in Spears’ face. Blanchard pulls Mox away while Spears uses the distraction to gain control early. This is short lived as Moxley overwhelms Spears with some wild brawling followed by a series of ground based attacks. Meanwhile, PAC takes a seat at commentary and complains about how he’s being overlooked while Moxley should thank him for saving him from a beating by taking his spot against Kenny Omega at All Out. The match spills to the outside, with Moxley abusing Spears with the barricades. Mox runs in and out of the ring to break a count-out despite the referee not counting, but when Moxley returns to the outside, Blanchard grabs him, allowing Spears to cut Mox off. Spears hangs Mox on the top rope, giving Tully the chance to throw Mox into the stairs while the referee is distracted. Spears takes a page from the last match and hits a running DVD into the corner of the barricade, proving he could hang with the former king of the deathmatch.

We come back from the break with Spears still firmly in control, turning a pin attempt into a half Boston Crab. After a brief brawl outside the ring, Moxley regains control with a flurry of offense capped off by a running knee. The two go back and forth with a series of strikes, but Mox gets the better of the exchange after hitting a huge lariat. Spears goes for his own clothesline, but Mox turns it into a Paradigm Shift attempt, which Spears in turn transitions into an Ushigoroshi. Spears makes the fatal mistake of taunting Mox with his old 10 pose, but Mox pulls him in and hits a nasty headbutt. Spears tries another ushigoroshi, but Mox lands on his feet and turns it into a Paradigm Shift to close out a very good match.

After the match, Kenny Omega walks down the ramp with a barb wired bat and broom. He hands Mox the broom, but before they can resume their unfinished business, PAC hits Omega in the back with a chair. He signals to Mox letting him know that Omega is all his, but being the good guy that he is, Jon refuses to attack a downed rival and walks off with his bat in hand.

The match was solid and made Spears look great in defeat, but the post match angle was really interesting. Establishing Omega and Moxley as two guys who hate each other, but still having a sense of honor between them was cool to see. PAC pointing out that he’s being overlooked despite his win record shows that the oversight I mentioned earlier is playing into a story, and seeing how The Bastard is being integrated into the company’s hottest feud is an interesting direction to take. I’m excited to see where this all goes!

Dustin Rhodes and Hangman Adam Page vs. Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara

Sammy makes his way to the ring in a leather jacket, so RIP panda hood I guess.

Dustin and Sammy start things off as the youngster taunts the veteran before quickly tagging in Jericho. Dustin immediately throws Jericho outside and lands some brutal punches outside, eager to get revenge after the beating he took last week. Jericho is thrown into the crowd, but before Dustin can continue his beatdown, he interupts Sammy’s attempt to break up the beating. Dustin tags Page, with the two hitting consecutive corner clotheslines. Hangman is firmly in control, turning a Crossbody into a Fall-Away Slam, then tossing the smaller Sammy after avoiding a kick. Dustin and Page are working really well together despite never teaming together before! The two exchange a few tags, leading to some impressive double team work that culminates in a running Shooting Star Press by Page. Jericho breaks up the pin, but Page continues to dominate until one last Jericho distraction allows Sammy to lift the much larger Page before being dropped on the corner in an impressive display of strength!

As the final commercial comes to a close, Jericho is choking Page out on the middle rope. Hager has been a non-factor so far aside from standing outside and looking snazzy in his polo shirt. Jericho misses a running knee, giving Page the chance to tag in Dustin, but Sammy tags in first and cuts off his opponent before he can tag. Page fights off Sammy briefly, but the solid teamwork between The Inner Circle shines through as Jericho tags back in as soon as his new protege is in trouble. A Lionsault attempt is counted when Page gets his knees up, but wrestling logic kicks in as Page pretends to not be able to reach Dustin while he waits for Sammy to interrupt one last time. This flub pays off when Page hits a massive lariat that turns Sammy inside out, before Dustin finally gets the hot tag. It’s hard to believe that this guy has been wrestling for over 20 years with some lightning quick offense on both opponents, capped off with a top rope spinning crossbody. Page won’t let the bad guys breathe as he follows Sammy outside with a crossbody of his own, but Hager finally makes his presence known by taking out Page as the ref is distracted. Dustin hits a Canadian Destroyer on Sammy while setting up Jericho for Shattered Dreams. Sammy tries to interrupt, but is hit with a picture perfect snap Power-Slam for his trouble. Despite this, Sammy grabs the referee while on the ground, allowing Hager to hit the ring and take out Dustin, allowing Jericho to hit the Judas Effect for the win.

The post-match segment shows shades of last week, with The Inner Circle beating down Dustin and Page. Hager gets a chair thrown into his face, taking him and Page out of the picture as they brawl into the back. The lights go out, with Cody appearing in the ring when they come back on! He hits Cross-Rhodes on Sammy, then prepares to take on Jericho as he takes off his tie. Santana and Ortiz jump Cody from behind, but MJF hits the ring with a chair in hand. Once again teasing Cody’s “best friend” turning on him as Jericho holds Cody up for the unprotected chair shot, MJF instead takes out the former LAX and Jericho before basking in the cheers of the crowd. His celebration is short lived as Jericho hits him with a Codebreaker, but The Young Bucks even the odds by taking out Santana and Ortiz. As Jericho walks up the ramp with his belt, Darby Allin rides his skateboard down the ramp and ollies into Jericho! Allin takes down his opponent for next week with a series of punches before beating Jericho down with his deck. This is wild in the best way! Darby gets in the ring with The Elite as The Inner Circle is sent packing as the second show goes off the air.

This closing angle made me incredibly excited for Darby Allin versus Jericho next week. In just two weeks, they’ve done a great job of setting up so many angles, from PAC versus Omega and Moxley, Allin’s big opportunity for the title, making Private Party into the hottest tag team in a single night, establishing Jericho’s stable and setting up a women’s title contender with the announcement of Britt Baker versus Riho. The pacing felt much better this week, with neither matches nor promos overshadowing one another, and they gave us something to keep us hooked for next week.

What did you think of the show? Who were your standouts and what could be improved? Let us know in the comments!

Could ‘Ring Fit Adventure’ Be 2019’s Best RPG?

by Josh Jackson

I know, when people think of video games and fitness, the Pavlovian response is often to retch at the thought. Usually when one thinks of the genre, they think of poorly made games with a ton of bulky equipment that barely works, or games that treat the exercise aspect of the game as secondary like Dance Dance Revolution. Even Wii Fit, easily the most successful blend of fitness and gaming, was a hard sell to gamers who saw it more as an exercise simulator than a video game despite the unlocks it offered. After Nintendo had largely dropped out of its fitness experiments six years after the commercially disappointing Wii Fit U, the company dropped a surprise announcement that a new fitness game was headed to the Switch less than a month after its unveiling. That game was Ring Fit Adventure.

At first glance, Nintendo’s latest fitness foray seemed to adopt the worst of the genre, with a large ring required to play that led to some ridicule from skeptics. Yet, as someone in the exercise field, the potential of its concept never escaped me as long as the execution delivered. After getting a chance to try out Ring Fit Adventure for myself, not only does it seemingly go above and beyond what a fitness game can offer, but it shows signs of becoming a truly memorable RPG that is carried by its unique mechanics, resulting in a hybrid experience that hasn’t been seen before.

Exercise is easiest to perform when it’s disguised as something else. Oddly enough, fitness games have had trouble emphasizing the game aspect over the workout without compromising either. Ring Fit Adventure changes that by creating a role playing quest that uses exercise as a means of exploration, combat and defense thanks to the innovative use of its titular ring. The game does have traditional exercise modes if you want to get in a workout without all the frills and mini games that test your physical prowess in a variety of ways, but the adventure mode is what brings it all together.

After calibrating the ring’s resistance to match one’s own strength levels, one joycon is placed in the ring while another is placed in a leg strap that goes around the player’s thigh. Once the game starts, the user takes control of a legendary fitness expert who is tasked with using the ring to defeat an army of demons. Traversing the map is done on-rails, with the player running in place to move forward. Twisting aims your ring while squeezing it together shoots a burst of air. Pulling it apart creates a vacuum used to pull in loose items, which help power up your player as the game goes on. If you’re reading this and thinking, “I live upstairs! I guess a game asking me to run in place will be a fast track towards eviction”, then fear not! A special setting can be toggled allowing you to replace running with squatting. You’ll have those massive hammies in no time! Other forms of movement in the demo included rowing by twisting from side to side, offering a full-body workout without realizing it!

Eventually, you’ll run into demons that must be dispatched in a traditional turn based combat mode, but with a special twist, (both literally and figuratively). Each monster is assigned a color which signifies a type of exercise they’re weak to. For example, one color may be weak to abdominal exercises while another may take more damage from yoga. Selecting the appropriate attack type deals more damage, with each rep weakening the opponents further. When its their turn to attack, holding the ring against your core and tightening your elusive six pack defends your character. Whether attacking, defending or traveling, you’re always moving.

Outside of what promises to be a lengthy story mode, a series of mini games can be enjoyed while giving you different ways to work out. If a traditional workout is more your thing, a standard exercise mode is also available, which prompts you to use the ring for a variety of fat burning movements. Among the options I tried however, my favorite one has to be a feature that strengthens you further when you’re away from the game. Say you’re stuck at a desk job for eight hours and can’t work out… You can attach a joycon to your ring and perform resistance reps whenever you can squeeze them in. Sure, you might get looked at a little funny, but each rep equals one experience point that will then be loaded onto your adventurer the next time you start the game up. Let’s see who’s laughing when the world needs saving and you’re the only one at the office with the biceps to get the job done!

I was thoroughly impressed with Ring Fit Adventure and can’t wait to see what the full version has in store. In the meantime, let us know what you think of Nintendo’s latest fitness experiment in the comments below!

‘Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020’ Is More Than Just Its Namesake

by Josh Jackson

Over the years, the Mario and Sonic Olympic series has gone through progressive change to make it more video game focused and less of a straight simulation. This was especially apparent with this year’s E3 demo, with events like skateboarding and surfing playing like a Tony Hawk-lite as opposed to the traditional sports we’ve come to expect from an Olympic themed game. Some recent hands-on time with the full version of the game takes this idea a step further, taking inspiration from video game history to provide a variety of activities that go above and beyond the scope of the Games.

Previous games had Dream Events, mini-games that put some fantastical spins on Olympic events. 2020’s edition already feels much more fleshed out, offering Dream Events that allow the standard games to be played in completely different ways. Take skateboarding for example. While a trick exhibition is expected, what we didn’t think we’d see is a racing event that plays like Mario Kart and Sega’s Top Skater arcade had a beautiful, digital child. Set on a futuristic track that wouldn’t look out of place in an F-Zero game, participants barrel towards the finish line on a downhill slope, grabbing Sonic themed item boxes to disrupt the competition. Popping an ollie at the edge of a ramp activates tricks, which give you an extra boost of speed as you fight for first place. Motion controls help simulate the skateboard feel, but I’m finding the traditional control stick option to be more stable. However you play, this mode alone is shows the versatility of 2020, establishing a fun, fast paced mode that could be its own game with enough content.

Taking this concept a step further, the Tokyo 1964 events put a retro spin on the Olympics. Highlights include the track and field events that play eerily similar to Konami’s 80’s classic of the same name. Playing as characters ripped straight from the NES version of Super Mario Bros and Sonic the Hedgehog on Genesis, these simple yet addictive games test your timing and button mashing skills in hilarious fashion. Seeing the two art styles side-by-side is absurd as it is, but watching characters like the lanky Eggman crash and burn on a high jump is something to behold.

These events are a core aspect to the game’s story mode, which we’re still working our way through. From what we’ve played so far, 2020’s take on this dream mashup is shaping up to be the series’ best so far. Keep an eye out for our full review in the weeks to come, and let us know what you think about the game so far in the comments below!

Wrestling Recap: The AEW Dynamite Debut!

by Josh Jackson

The show opens with a hard hitting opening followed by a huge pyro display. Hearing JR’s voice as a full building goes crazy with signs as far as you can see is giving off huge 90’s wrestling vibes. Alongside Excalibur and Tony Schiavone, we head into the AEW debut match!

Cody vs Sammy Guevara

Cody’s rises from the bottom of the stage alongside his wife Brandi. Let’s see if the rising stage is a constant thing of if Cody gets the Triple H entrance every week. Good to see they had the foresight to leave Pharoh in the back this time. Seeing how big Cody is feels rewarding to watch considering this all happened because he dared to bet on himself.

Sammy Guevara looks like a small child, especially with that panda hood on. He impressed in Lucha Underground, so I’m expecting him to hold his own against AEW’s EVP.

Huge “Sammy sucks” chants. This crowd is giving this match a big fight feel already. Hopefully this translates to Sammy being popular in his own right. Both guys are showing off their strengths, as Cody focuses more on traditional wrestling and Sammy relies on his agility. Guevara shows off his lack of sportsmanship with a slap, followed by Cody responding in kind before pulling off a figure four. Sammy gets the ropes as the crowd erupts in a “let’s go Cody” chant. Cody overpowers Sammy in the corner with a series of open hand chops, then follows up with a delayed front suplex. Cody lets his arrogant side show with some Scott Steiner style push-ups. Sammy rallies briefly before Cody hits a springboard cutter for a two-count. Sammy hits a springboard cutter of his own from the apron with similar results. The announcers are heavily emphasizing the importance of wins and losses, emphasizing the importance of every match. Good move on their part!

As Sammy rolls out of the ring, Cody goes for a toupe before his opponent pulls Brandi in the way. Huge “asshole” chants from the crowd. Sammy then takes control, missing two moonsaults before hitting a standing shooting star press. Guevara gets knocked onto the middle rope, allowing Brandi to get some revenge by slapping him. Cody hits a Disaster Kick that turns Sammy inside out, but only results in a two! The two climb to the top rope, leading to Cody hitting a reverse suplex, also for a two! Both Cody and Brandi are selling the urgency of the match as we enter its last 10 minutes, with Sammy being pushed as a resilient dickhead. Cody climbs again, but Sammy leaps up to the top rope and hits a top rope Spanish Fly! Sammy climbs to the top one last time for a top rope Shooting Star Press, but gets the knees up and turns it into a cradle for the win! An unexpected, but earned finish. I probably would have made Cody look a little more dominant by hitting his move for the win, but I liked the creativity of the finish! Hopefully this means that the weekly show will have some unexpected, avoiding formulaic approaches to the matches.

Tony Schiavone enters the ring to interview an emotional Cody, but Sammy pulls him in before reaching for a handshake. This supposed show of sportsmanship ends up being a distraction as Chris Jericho hits the ring and beats Cody down before holding his belt up high.

Interesting note: When the angle ended and the first commercial started, the commercial played in a slightly larger window while the replays and footage during the commercial continued to play off to the side. This is a great way to stand out, since while WWE will do the same during a match, AEW is letting us see what home audiences would typically miss during breaks. Let’s hope this is a constant thing! It gives the home audience a reason to stay on the channel while live audiences won’t be forced to sit in the dark for 3 minutes while the wrestlers stand around pretending not to move.

The break ends as Jericho powerbombs Cody onto two chairs. This is a REALLY long beatdown! Jericho walks away and cuts a promo introducing himself with his Bubbly shirt in full view, (nice touch with the Bubly commercial by the way).

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Brandon Cutler vs. MJF

The Twitter D&D feud comes to a head after Maxwell Jacob Friedman became the biggest heel in the nerd-verse after saying he doesn’t play it. MJF is quickly met with his own “asshole” chants as he introduces himself to the viewers. A brief exchange ends with Cutler backflipping over MJF followed by a disrespectful slap. He then hits what I can only describe as a Canadian Sunset Flip before MJF thumbs him in the eye and takes control. The fight spills to the outside with Cutler hitting a toupe followed by some mounted punches. Apparently, Cutler hurt his knee from the dive and loses his balance at the top rope. He charges into the corner, but MJF holds the referee in the way. He takes Cutler down, slaps on the Salt of the Earth, (an armbar variation), for the tapout. The finish felt like it came out of nowhere and didn’t play into the injured leg at all. Also, Cutler’s knee injury came off as him just losing his balance, making the finish fall flat. Good overall, but nothing special.

Turns out the dual screen commercial breaks is an occasional thing. We’re back to full screen commercials after that match.

Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes being interviewed about the Jay and Silent Bob reboot starring Jericho! I hope he got a thank you out of it!

Jack Evans and Anjelico interrupt them and mock Morris Day and the Time. Mewes points out that they should run their mouths less and focus on winning a match. Private Party comes to the actors’ defense, surely setting up a match down the line.

SoCal Uncensored cuts a pre-taped promo pretending to be Obama and the Secret Service, (who would have known Scorpio Sky can do such a great Obama impersonation?), before declaring, as expected, that DC is “The Worst Town They’ve Ever Been In!” Tony then interviews them, where Scorpio announces that Christoper Daniels and Frankie Kazarian will be representing the group in the upcoming tag team tournament, giving them the experience edge. The Lucha Bros interrupt, declaring that they’re the greatest tag team in the universe. Pentagon Jr declares they have “Cero Miedo” as the two teams begin to brawl.

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Hangman Page vs PAC

We’re finally getting the match we were supposed to get at Double or Nothing! Page gets the pyro treatment, as all cowboys should. By the way, there’s something hilarious about PAC being announced as “The Bastard”, even if it’s his actual nickname.

After the latest commercial break, PAC slides into the ring from the outside and hits a head kick. The two go back and forth with progressively powerful strikes before Page finally takes PAC down with a huge lariat. A huge “Cowboy Shit” chant breaks out as Page beats PAC down outside the ring. Page hits a suicide dive and throws PAC into the ring. PAC eventually regains control after hitting a quebrada to the outside. A springboard splash only gets a two, leading to PAC going for the submission that he beat Kenny Omega with at All Out. PAC goes up top, but Page follows him up before landing a top rope fall away slam. PAC launches Page as hard as possible into the post as we go to our second screen-in-screen commercial break. The actual match is still going as the commercial plays, so my sentiment about not missing the action during commercials is already a wash. Let’s just hope PAC is still in control when the break ends so it wouldn’t have created a situation where you miss the momentum shift.

And good! PAC is still in control as the show comes back from break. Page rallies with a spinebuster and rolls through as he attempts the Deadeye, (in a way where it looked like PAC reversed it into a Sunset Flip and gave up halfway through). Page counters a top rope attack with a discus forearm, which leads to a moonsault to the outside and the Buckshot Lariat. As Page looks like he’s closing in on the win, PAC pulls Earl Hebner in the way and hits him with a low blow. PAC pulls in Page to the corner and hits the Black Arrow on Page on the back before winning with the Brutalizer submission, closing out a very good match!

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Britt Baker comes out for commentary as we head into our first ever AEW championship match between Nyla Rose and Riho. I hope Britt appearing doesn’t give away the ending of this match, with the babyface commentator confronting the victorious heel, (Nyla), in the post-match segment. Match introductions are being handled like a big championship match, which is always cool to see for the women.

Riho takes control early by using her speed to out-maneuver the much larger Rose. Riho slides out from under a pin and goes for a double stomp, but Nyla stands up with Riho on her back, leaving Riho looking scared at the idea that her offense isn’t working. Nyla overwhelms Riho with a series of slams and a delayed suplex. Nyla hits a brutal looking spinning elbow into the ropes, but when she goes for another one, Riho hits a pair of Kenny Omega-esque knees. Riho climbs to the top and dives onto Nyla, but Rose caught her low in an impressive display of strength! Then… Nyla goes for a chair? Why? If she hits Riho with it, she’ll be disqualified and lose the title match! The ref saves Nyla’s chances by stripping the chair from her, but now Nyla is piling chairs ont the floor. Isn’t this still going to be a DQ? Riho better let Nyla hit her with them. But of course… Nyla goes for a Senton and Riho moves, sending Nyla crashing down to her own chairs. Riho nails a double stomp of of the stairs as the competitors climb back into the ring. Riho hits one more stomp to the back for a two count, which the crowd seemed to have bought as a false finish. The crowd is coming alive with a Riho chant as we go to our third picture to picture break of the show.

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During the break, Riho has Nyla in a crossface submission and goes for a crucifix before Nyla reverses it into a Samoan Drop. Riho gets hung up on the top rope, then Rose hits a violent knee drop from the corner for a two. This is the opposite of the last two breaks where important developments are taking place during the break. That’s a page from WWE’s book that you DON’T want to take.

Riho goes for a backdrop on her opponent, (that weighs over double her size), but collapses under the weight. Kind of a scary spot that they really didn’t need to try. Riho keeps trying to rally, but Nyla keeps stopping her. A great looking roll up convinces the crowd that Riho won the match, but Nyla kicks out at 2.99! The crowd is losing their minds as Riho continues to fight back. Nyla climbs to the top rope, but Riho chases after her. Loud “AEW” chants in the crowd! It’s really picking up here. Riho hits a Northern Lights Suplex from the top rope for a 2! Riho misses a knee to the front, but spins around to hit one to the back followed by double knees to the front for the win! Riho becomes the first ever AEW Women’s World Champion in the best match of the night and one of AEW’s best in its brief tenure! I thought this was an incredible underdog match that was rough at points, but the story that it told was fantastic. The last five minutes in particular was an incredible back and forth battle, making Riho’s win feel earned.

Michael Nakazawa runs into the ring to interview Riho on behalf of the Japanese fans, but Nyla hits the ring and hits Nakazawa with a Double-Clutch Liger Bomb, (which was probably them covering for Nyla almost dropping Nakazawa). Rose tries to brutalize Riho, but KENNY OMEGA RUNS OUT FOR THE SAVE! Is this setting up a Kenny versus Nyla feud? That would be incredibly intriguing, if not a bit problematic. We’ll see where this goes, but Nyla’s feud with Riho seems far from over.

We’re heading straight into the main event with a Being The Elite themed entrance!

The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho and LAX

Kenny’s getting his cardio in after running out, back, then out again! Also, I’ll never not laugh on Jericho using nicknames he made up in New Japan against opponents he finished feuding with months ago. Anyway, the match gets underway, with a tease of Jericho versus Omega before Santana gets tagged in. Jericho sneaks a tag and goes for the Walls of Jericho on Kenny, but the Bucks immediately hit a double superkick before doing a double dive to the outside. Kenny prepares for a dive, but Moxley runs in from behind! Kenny knows something is up, but it’s too late. Moxley starts beating down Kenny and drags him into the crowd. The Bucks are now in a three-on-two situation, but the focus has completely left the match and is following Mox and Kenny. Omega fights back with a mop after wiping down the floor, (as The Cleaner. Get it!?) Moxley soon gets control of the fight, which spills into the VIP area. Moxley then… hits the Paradigm Shift DDT through a glass table!? That explains the staph infections.

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We come back from the last break with LAX in control of the Young Bucks. It’s safe to say we won’t see Omega anymore for the rest of the night. Nick is swept off the apron as Matt goes for a tag, then LAX hits a series of combination attacks for the two. Jericho tags in but is taken down by Matt. Ortiz tags back in and takes down Nick as he climbs back onto the apron. Matt hits a corkscrew stunner out of the corner, but Santana tags in and once again stops the tag. Matt hits the multiple Northern Lights Suplex on Ortiz, then ducks Santana’s attack into a double Northern Lights! Nick gets the hot tag and runs wild on all three opponents, including a soccer kick, a dive and a double stomp in the span of about 10 seconds. Nick tags in Matt, but Jericho gets the blind tag and lands a sudden Codebreaker. LAX hit Matt with one more double-team attack, then throws Matt into Jericho for the Judas Effect for the win.

LAX and Jericho beat down the Bucks after the match, but Cody runs down for the save! He fights off Jericho and LAX, but Sammy Guevara runs down and shrugs before hitting Cody with a low blow! Dustin Rhodes, (complete with face paint, just in case you need to suddenly run in to save your younger brother), runs in for the second save, but then Jake Hager, (the former Jack Swagger, or as JR referred to him, “Jake Hager of Bellator fame)”, keeps the odds in the heels’ favor. Loud “We The People” chants break out as The Elite are decimated. Dustin is hit with a painful looking gut wrench powerbomb through a table that doesn’t quite break! With the heroes destroyed, LAX, Sammy, Jake and Jericho stand tall as the first episode of AEW Dynamite comes to an end.

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Final Thoughts:

At the end of the first match, I said I hoped Sammy didn’t get lost after that debut. I’m so happy that it looks like he’s going to be in a top heel stable alongside Jericho. Everyone knows about MJF’s bright future, but I’m stoked to see where Sammy goes from here.

I joked about Cody’s special entrance, but he ended up being the only one to get one. Not that I mind, but it will surely amplify the naysayers calling this Cody’s vanity project. Not that they’d be likely to be convinced by anything.

The matches tonight were on point. PAC and Page delivered big, as did Cody and Sammy. The final tag match was insane in an old WCW kind of way. Hopefully this won’t be a constant thing or it might wear thin, but as the end of a debut episode, it was fantastic insanity.

The match of the night though, had to be the women’s match. It had its issues, mostly due to the nonsensical attempt to use a blatant chair shot, but when the match picked up, there was not a person in the arena in their seats. Riho winning was a shocker, and the teased angle between Nyla and Kenny will give us something to think about in the weeks to come. My only worry with that is with the influx of transphobic hate thrown at Nyla as it is, moving her into a feud with a man so soon into her run will surely raise eyebrows. We’ll see where this goes.

Who would have thought that Jack Swagger of all people would be the big surprise as a new major promotion went off the air? And that people would be losing their minds over it!? Let’s hope that “Bellator’s own” will shine in ways that he wasn’t allowed to in the past, much like Cody himself.

Overall, this show had a real Nitro / Raw Is War feel in the way that there was constant insanity. The pacing was off a bit, with the first half being promo heavy and the second half being match heavy, but with some fine tuning, AEW could find itself at the top of its game so soon into its TV run. Especially when you compare the improvements of this show compared to some of the shoddy production during the online shows.

That’s a wrap for the debut! Let us know if you enjoyed the recap, as we’ll continue to follow this show on a weekly basis.

Geekscape Reviews ‘Abominable’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

Following in the footsteps of a movie as popular as How to Train Your Dragon is a tough feat. Following the conclusion of one of Dreamworks Animation’s biggest film franchises, Abominable tries to capture its own brand of magic with a heartfelt coming of age story that’s brought to live by the immersive 4DX format. Thankfully, it mostly succeeds as it treads familiar territory rounded out by some of the best visuals I’ve seen in an animated film this year, making it a worthwhile film for kids and kids at heart.

Abominable follows Yi, (vocied by Chloe Bennet of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fame), a teenage girl who is having trouble coping after the death of her father. Drowning herself in multiple jobs to save money for a trip around the world that she never got to take with her dad, she finds herself distancing herself from the rest of her loved ones, including her mother, grandmother and her childhood friends Jin and Peng. This is fine by Jin, who grew up to be more obsessed with his self image than maintaining his friendships, leading to both becoming estranged. Elsewhere, an animal testing lab has lost track of a yeti that they had under captivity, which eventually seeks refuge in Yi’s secret hideout. After protecting the newly named Everest after its home, from its captors, Yi embarks on a journey with her friends to return the yeti to its mountain, reminding the kids about the importance of familial support along the way.

Plot wise, Abominable manages to hit all of the beats you would expect from a movie of its kind. By managing to tug on the heart strings without ever becoming too much of a downer, it does a good job of presenting the difficulty of coping with tragedy around the idea of drifting apart from the people you need the most. This is driven home by strong performances from Bennet and Tenzing Norgay Trainor’s Jin, with Albert Tsai’s younger Peng keeping the group together with his lighthearted comic relief. Surprisingly, none of it becomes overbearing and manages to come off as natural as a road trip with a yeti can be, even when the jokes don’t always hit as well as you’d like. Even though the movie rarely surprises, it still has its moments of subverting expectations by teasing cliches before going in the opposite direction, which was very much appreciated when family movies often can be telegraphed from the very early moments of the film.

Another example of subverting expectations is with Abominable‘s villains, made up of Burnish, (Eddie Izzard) and Dr. Zara, (Sarah Paulson). The former is a disgraced explorer who wants to restore his reputation by proving the existence of yetis at any cost, acting like an evil version of Hugh Jackman’s character in Missing Link while the latter is a Zoologist under his employ who wants to make sure the animal is treated humanely. Yet, as the movie progresses, these characters are progressively given both subtle and not-so-subtle wrinkles to their personalities that give them more depth, providing one of the bigger surprises of the movie. Even then, seeing the villains on screen is almost always a treat since the goons have some laugh out loud scenes.

But naturally, the star of the show is Everest, who’s journey home takes center stage alongside Yi’s personal growth. Without saying a word, the yeti manages to show so much emotion throughout as its bond with the kids continues to grow. Its fear, trust, loyalty and eventual confidence feel earned, helping the audience attach itself to the bond these characters create. With that said, the highlight of the movie is when Everest performs its nature bending magic, creating some of the most visually striking moments I’ve seen in a film this year. From the silly giant blueberry scene seen in most of the trailers to the breathtaking ride on the wave of flowers, moments like these are almost worth the price of admission alone. The fact that a touching story with some heavy themes without ever getting too dark comes with the package really helps Abominable stand out.

Abominable is visually striking at times.

These effects are even more immersive once the 4DX format comes into play. Admittedly, the screening was in a smaller theater than normal, but the effects seemed stronger than in any film I’ve seen before, all of which for the better. Wind and cold were used to their full potential, making me wish I had packed my winter clothes as the characters climbed Mount Everest. Snow rained down on the theater once in the mountains while the room was engulfed in a flowery smell as the characters raced through fields. We could feel the action and chase scenes as our chairs rocked with each big bump and turn, helping the movie reach an extra level of immersion that improved the movie more so than any other I’ve seen in the format. If you have the option to see it in this way, then I can’t recommend it enough, which feels like an experience in itself.

Abominable‘s only glaring flaw is its lack of cohesiveness with its setting. Not many films of this kind take place in Shanghai, but from the way it’s presented, you might think it was Times Square or any other major metropolitan city, (complete with a visible McDonalds in the background). The film quickly abandons the city for smaller villages as the kids globe trot on their way to Mount Everest, but we never get the feel of exploration that we should normally get with a plot of this nature. Aside from that and the predictability of the plot, these are small nitpicks in what is otherwise an excellent animated film.

Abominable manages to stand on its own as an animated film that goes above and beyond its expectations, providing a predictable story about family and loss that plays up its story beats as well as they could be, all while throwing in a few surprises here and there. Visually, the film is an achievement, further enhanced by the immersive 4DX format. Ultimately, the movie is only held back by a lack of cohesiveness with its settings, but as a whole, I can’t recommend it enough. Whether or not Abominable is the next big Dreamworks franchise is yet to be seen, but I’m hoping to return to this world if it can manage to be as fun as it was the first time around.

Final Score: 4/5

Geekscape Reviews ‘Rambo: Last Blood’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

The first Rambo film was kind of a revelation for me. I didn’t jump on that bandwagon until late, so the only thing I knew about it was that it starred Sylvester Stallone mowing down bad guys with giant machine guns. When I finally got around to watching First Blood for myself, I was shocked to find how the franchise would eventually abandon the heart of the first movie and lean into the ultra violent stereotypes of war veterans that the original was trying to warn against. Nevertheless, the sequels were mindless fun if nothing else, and I expected no more from Last Blood, the latest in Stallone’s greatest hits tour after building up good will with audiences through the Creed films and to a lesser extent, 2008’s Rambo. But even with these lenient expectations, Last Blood ended up being pointless at best and disheartening at worst, with a bloody finale that fails to make up for the dreary bulk of the film.

Back to basics.

Some time between the fourth film and now, John Rambo seems to finally have found peace. Now living on his father’s ranch with its caretaker and her granddaughter, Gabriela, he’s spent the last 10 years as a surrogate father to the girl while handling the typical ranch chores. You know, training horses, tending to the land, building underground death tunnels… It seems like after so long, the combat veteran finally has his chance to live a simple life. That is until Gabriela tracks down her absentee father and decides to sneak away to Mexico for answers as to why he left, which goes about as well as one would think. When she ends up kidnapped by a cartel, it’s up to Rambo to use his expert tracking and combat skills to rescue the only family he has.

Don’t get me wrong. At no point would I consider Last Blood a good movie per se, but the first half definitely landed in the “so bad it’s good” category. The overly telegraphed foreshadowing held up by an incredibly campy script was only made better, (by which I mean worse), by the often dry performances by the actors. This was amplified by some hysterically strange cinematography that felt straight out of the made-for-Redbox bin, (just try not to laugh when Gabriela confronts her father). But again, Rambo hasn’t been a serious movie since its early 80’s debut, and the camp just made the wait for the eventual violence spree even more sweet. Aside from some gruesome stealth scenes leading up to the big rescue, the movie strays away from the action the series has become known for for most of its run time. But that’s okay, because the bag guys are established early as terrible people that you want to see punished, so when Rambo finally comes face to face with the gang, you know it’s about to go down.

Sergio Peris-Mencheta as Hugo Martinez, one of the few highlights and an expert at making you want to see his shit kicked in.

Except… It doesn’t. It’s impossible to illustrate how much of a downturn this movie takes without spoiling its biggest twists, so if you want to completely avoid spoilers, just know that you can shut off the movie half way through, fast forward to the last 20 minutes and know that it’s peaked. Being as vague as possible, Rambo, a character who’s known for his meticulous planning, puts himself in a position to completely fail. And fail he does, completely sucking the air out of an already thin film. Going from bad in a campy way to just bad, the joyless twist renders the rest of the movie pointless. We see Rambo films to see him mow through armies of bad guys, not go completely brain dead for the sake of the plot. When he finally gets his hands on the bad guys, there’s no reason to care. And the fact that it ultimately ends with the implication that there might be another film renders the “Last Blood” portion of the title as meaningless as the second half of Stallone’s latest.

Admittedly, the climactic action scene is fantastic, even if it’s too little too late. Viewing the film in 4DX made the scene come alive even more, feeling every explosion, gun shot and trap as it happened on screen. Serving as a mix of classic Rambo, Saw and Home Alone, watching the cartel mindlessly run to their deaths in so many creative ways helped the film deliver on its reputation of over-the-top action. At times, it was hard to tell how they were even killed, but it was so wild that I can’t knock it for that. Figuring out how it was playing out was part of the fun! Prior to the climax, there was some creative uses of the 4DX medium, such as scents curing breakfast or ranch scenes alongside the typical bumps while characters drove, but the effect didn’t stand out until the end where it made sure you felt everything the characters did in powerful ways.

Rambo and Gabriela (Yvette Monreal) having a moment.

It’s hard to recommend Rambo: Last Blood considering how much of a drag it is. By taking a hard turn from campy fun to a cynical, over-dramatic narrative, it makes it nearly impossible to find enjoyment from a film that was not that good to begin with. Even those who are just in it for the action are going to have to wait until the last 20 minutes to see that promised delivered, which doesn’t make up for the hour-plus before that. If you’re going to see it just for that, you might as well go all out with 4DX to distract yourself from the plot, but for those who wanted a proper sendoff for the character, what you’ll end up with is a pointless entry that fails at following up on the story focused original AND the action heavy sequels. If nothing else, it serves as an exercise showing how to use 80 minutes to advance absolutely nothing about this character. Rambo deserves better, but like Last Blood‘s finale, it might be too little too late.

Final Score: 2/5

Are You Okay!? Fighting Game Icon Terry Bogard Is The Next ‘Smash Bros’ Fighter

by Josh Jackson

After rumors ran rampant over who the next addition to the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate roster would be after Nintendo UK accidentally let it slip that it would be an SNK character, it was revealed during the latest Nintendo Direct that Fatal Fury protagonist Terry Bogard would be coming to the all-star brawler in November.

As a fighting game icon in his own right, Terry originated in Fatal Fury: The King of Fighters. His no-nonsense, in your face fighting style has become as memorable as his instantly recognizable look and catchphrases, being one of the more charismatic characters in the genre. Despite his franchise taking a backseat to the crossover team game, The King of Fighters, Terry has remained a mascot for the company who has seen it through its most prosperous and trying times. While not as prominent in recent years, Terry has a rich history in both fighting games and SNK as a whole. Now with SNK back on the upswing with games like The King of Fighters 14, the upcoming 15, and the recently released Samurai Showdown, this welcomed surprise couldn’t have been timed any better.

But perhaps even bigger was the announcement that even more DLC will be on the way. Who do you want to make the cut? And who do you think the last character in Fighter Pass 1 will be? Did you catch all the references in Terry’s reveal trailer? Check it out below and tell us what you thought!

Geekscape Games Reviews ‘Catherine: Full Body’

by Josh Jackson

Originally released in 2012, Catherine reached cult hit status thanks to its unique combination of action-puzzle game play mixed with an enthralling narrative driven by the player’s values. As a man caught between an expected marriage proposal, facing his unknown future and the other woman who woke up in his bed, the narrative kept us coming back, even when the platforming stages became increasingly difficult. Returning and rebuilt using the Persona 5 engine, Catherine: Full Body is here to make life even more complicated, with new modes, over twice the amount of stages compared to the original, numerous quality of life changes and a new love interest to steal our hearts. But is it worth checking out again?

About last night…

Like the vanilla version of the game, Catherine: Full Body puts us in the role of Vincent Brooks, a man in his early 30’s who’s feeling lost in life. An over-spender, heavy drinker and constant smoker with little money to his name after just finding employment, he’s not the most reliable guy in the world, a fact that his girlfriend of five years, Katherine, is sure to remind him of. When expectations of marriage begin to surface, Vincent’s life becomes even more stressful. Yet, that’s nothing compared to the nightmares he’s been having where he’s forced to climb a seemingly endless tower to avoid falling to his death. Rumors say that unfaithful men are the only ones who have these strange dreams, with some of them dying in their sleep. Once Vincent wakes up next to a strange woman that is definitely NOT his girlfriend after a night of drinking, will the rumors prove to be true and eventually claim his life? And what role does Rin, the amnesiac who has moved in next door, play in this mystery?

As suggested, Full Body redefines the original game in a number of ways. The core game play remains largely unchanged, which is split into two sections. The puzzle stages are the meat of the game, where Vincent will have to push and pull a variety of blocks to build pathways that allow him to climb his way to freedom. As the stages progress, new types of blocks are introduced that keep players on their feet, such as exploding blocks, ice blocks that make other blocks and characters slide and spiked blocks that will kill you if stepped on for too long. Each stage is timed, with the bottom of the tower slowly collapsing, so there’s rarely much time to think about your actions before you move. However, after a certain point in the story, Rin can show up when the tower is about to collapse and slow its decent by playing her piano, buying the player a little more time.

The fast pace nature of the game could lead to some frustrating moments in the original game, but Full Body has improved on the game play immensely thanks to some small changes that make a big difference. Hanging on edges now displays a lit path showing where Vincent can shimmy across other blocks, something that was unclear originally. When climbing behind the tower, the camera now swings directly to the back of the stage rather than having to fight with an unresponsive camera. Some item properties have changed, namely the white block, which went from placing one block in front and above Vincent to creating a 3 x 3 platform surrounding his position. But the biggest and best change has to be the reworking of the lives system. What could make the first game tedious at times was that dying led to a lengthy game over screen before being sent back to either a checkpoint or the beginning of a stage. If you ran out of lives, you would be kicked out of the game altogether and have to re-load from your last save, placing you at the beginning of your most recent tower while losing your checkpoints. Now, the lives are tied into your “undo” allocation, which allows you to reset your last block movement. This cuts down on time while allowing you to maintain your train of thought, rather than being reminded of your failure multiple times a stage. All these quality of life changes made the game much more manageable, increasing the fun factor of a game I already enjoyed thoroughly, especially when considering the Remix Mode, which adds new types of blocks for veterans who want a unique challenge. Though I found the game to be significantly easier, (although I can’t be sure if it’s because of the updates, the fact that Remix mode’s long blocks allowed for less room for error or due to me finishing the original game recently), those who still have trouble have the choice to either allow the CPU to recreate their movements before their most recent death to bring them back to where they left off, select Safety Mode to let the CPU play for them completely so they can enjoy the story while studying their techniques, or even skip the stages altogether.

The second portion of the game is the social simulation portion of the game, which takes place both in the nightmares and in the real world. In the nightmares, Vincent can talk to the sheep that occupy his dreams, (including two new sheep unique to this game), most of which correspond to people he knows in real life. Sharing climbing techniques, listening to them vent about their problems and calming their nerves as they all fight for their lives can help determine whether or not they live or die while simultaneously helping to shape Vincent’s moral compass. As each climbing stage is completed, Vincent will be asked a variety of questions regarding his values on relationships. Each choice helps guide the player towards one of its 13 endings, (five of which are new), using a morality meter that ultimately determines his outlook and which love interest he will choose. New choices unique to this remake might even let you break the meter to allow for new possibilities…

Outside of the nightmare, Vincent spends most of his time at the Stray Sheep, a local bar where players can get to know Vincent’s friends, the friendly bar staff, his new neighbor, Rin, who works as a pianist, and the local patrons who have strange resemblances to the sheep in his dreams. Here, players can talk to the patrons, drink a variety of alcoholic beverages that help Vincent move faster in his dreams, (each of which result in some fun alcohol trivia when the drink is finished), listen to some familiar tunes, play the Rapunzel mini-game that houses hundreds of extra puzzles, answer phone calls and reply to text messages. Those who are extra salacious can even check out racy photos of their homewrecking mistress. Each conversation takes up a limited amount of time at the bar, so missing important dialogue can prove to be detrimental to the survival of your peers, making every action count both in and out of the nightmare. Thankfully, if you mess up and want to see what the other choices result in, that’s much easier to accomplish now thanks to the skip feature. Originally only possible in stages that you’ve received a gold medal on, it’s now possible to skip any stage on any difficulty that has already been completed. This makes extra runs to collect all the endings much easier to finish.

Each game play section is broken up by lengthy cutscenes that show the fallout of the nightmares and Vincent’s affair. Much like the in-game visuals, the cutscenes look much better thanks to the visual bump the remaster has received. More importantly, the new scenes help flesh out the story immensely, giving more context to the relationship with Katherine that was sorely missing from the first one. Originally coming off as a well meaning, but naggy and slightly condescending love interest, Katherine now feels like more real, making it easy to see why Vincent fell for her to begin with. Catherine also gets some new scenes, showing in more detail how she was able to seduce Vincent at the bar instead of being a near silent patron until she was in his apartment. Even if the game play doesn’t hook you, (and why wouldn’t it?), the game’s story is still one of the most gripping tales you’ll find in a game, with twists and turns that will have you sweating bullets right alongside Vincent.

Perhaps most importantly, the game tackles some pretty heavy themes such as infidelity, regret, the fear of commitment both in and out of the realm of romance, how scary finding one’s path in life can be, same sex marriage and transitioning one’s gender. While games can often stumble hard when tackling such subject matter, (including Atlus’ own Persona series), Catherine largely presents it from a place of understanding and acceptance outside of a few potentially problematic scenes, (one of which is an infamous portion of one of the original game’s endings, with another feeling wildly out of character). All in all, the core story mode has taken an already great mode and made it easier to play, navigate and enjoy without taking away the challenge.

Speaking of challenge, progressing through the story unlocks stages in the returning Babel mode, a set of four incredibly difficult stages that can be played either by yourself or with a friend in co-op using the game’s colorful cast. The Colosseum lets two players compete across 11 stages against each other to see who can reach the top first, (or at least not fall). Each of these modes can be played online, which is unique to Full Body, and are available to an extent from the start of the game rather than having to unlock them. To tie everything together, each mode also has an introduction that gives them its own narrative spin.

Cathrine: Full Body manages to be one of the few games to justify its remaster, retaining and expanding on everything that made the original one of the best games of last generation as far as I’m concerned. Games will often ignore story for game play or treat game play as a chore in between the next cool cutscene, but Catherine blends both so well that each aspect drives the other to create a cohesive whole in a way that most games struggle to achieve. This leads to a strong attachment to the cast, the danger of the puzzles and truly caring about how Vincent’s fate will eventually turn out. With so many twists and turns, anyone who hasn’t played Catherine before definitely needs to give Full Body a shot. Veterans would do well to give this old fling a second chance too, with so many quality of life changes that virtually eliminates every flaw the original had. My only nitpick would be its characterization of Vincent during a certain scene, but with more story, twice the amount of stages, an incredible soundtrack, countless improvements and a visual bump that helps the game stand out even further, there’s no better game to wake up to.

Final Score: 4.75/5

Celebrate The Art Of ‘Persona 5 Royal’ & ‘Catherine: Full Body’ With Lead Artist Shigenori Soejima

by Josh Jackson

Atlus and Gallery Nucleus have announced that an art exhibit celebrating the upcoming Persona 5 Royal and Catherine: Full Body, complete with a panel and autograph signing with lead artist Shigenori Soejima.

Based in Alhambra California, Gallery Nucleus routinely showcases artwork from video games, movies and film, including past events for Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse, Final Fantasy and Naughty Dog. The impending release of the Catherine remaster, (which thoroughly impressed us at E3 this year), and the updated version of one of the best RPG’s of all time in Japan with Persona 5 Royal mean that this is the perfect time to give these titles the Nucleus treatment.

Originally released in 2011 partially as a technology test to set the stage for Persona 5‘s engine, Catherine is a puzzle platformer / visual novel hybrid where your character, Vincent Brooks, fights for his life in his sleep while he struggles with choosing between the married life with his longtime girlfriend or staying with the mysterious Catherine, who he had a drunken affair with by day. Praised for being a creative, mind bending puzzle game that masterfully integrated the game play experience with the engrossing narrative, there has yet to be a game that has matched its boldness. It’s easy to see why many people consider it one of the best games of the PS3 and Xbox 360 generation. With more puzzles, new challenges and a third love interest, Full Body is the perfect way to experience Catherine for the first time or to fall in love all over again.

Persona 5 followed suit in 2017 with a stylish, engrossing tale of a group of high schoolers who gain the power to change the cognition of criminals to force them to confess their crimes. Hailed as one of the best games of the RPG genre, this title especially has launched the once niche title closer to the mainstream that it has ever been thanks to spin-offs, anime, films and a shocking appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. With a game that already had hundreds of hours of content, the beloved game will be receiving an updated version later this year in Japan, while the West will get their hands on it in 2020.

Some of the exclusive merchandise made for the show.

The gallery will be on display from August 17 to September 1 with exclusive prints and merchandise up for sale… Assuming any of it lasts beyond the first day. During opening day, Shigenori Soejima will be present for an autograph session and panel, which will have a pre-registration period starting on August 2 at 10 AM PST. Door prizes will be given out while supplies last, so make sure to sign up, get there early, hang out with like-minded fans and enjoy celebrating these two unforgettable games.

Further details can be found at the Gallery Nucleus event page.

Geekscape Reviews ‘The Lion King’ In 4DX

by Josh Jackson

So far, the live action Disney remakes have been hit-or-miss. It seemed like the house of mouse may have hit its stride after a remake of Aladdin back in May that was better than it had any right to be. Two short months later, one of the most beloved films of the Disney Renaissance era, The Lion King, would be next to get the “live action” treatment in the form of a CGI adaptation aiming to make the animals look as real as possible. Like its protagonist, this version had some huge expectations to live up to. Yet, it never quite reaches the heights it needs to if it wanted to take the crown.

Cub Simba is way too adorable.

Opening with a shot-for-shot remake of the Circle of Life sequence from the animated film, we’re quickly dropped into an African Pride where young Simba learns the ins and outs of life from Mufasa, his father and current ruler of Pride Rock. While the cub may live a carefree life leading up to his eventual role as the next king, his birth threw a wrench in the plans of Scar, Mufasa’s jealous and conniving brother that would have been next in line if not for his nephew. Once plans are set into motion for Scar to usurp the throne, Simba must learn what it means to be king as he finds his role in the great circle of life.

If you’re coming into this film expecting it to be true to the 1994 original, then you should be happy with what the film presents. The remake rarely deviates from the beats of the film its based off of, from some dialogue being word-for-word to every major aspect of the story being intact. Despite this, these scenes often feel like they’re being given new life thanks to what might be the best CGI I’ve ever seen. If someone were to mistake these animals for the real thing, I wouldn’t blame them. If they weren’t moving their lips while talking, it would be easy to confuse this film with a nature documentary with voices dubbed over the real animals. Unfortunately, the dubbing is where the problems start with this latest take on the story.

Timon and Pumba are rare highlights in the voice acting department.

As a cartoon, the original film had the benefit of allowing its animals to show human emotion when necessary, which is part of the reason why the movie is so beloved to this day. While the CGI may be incredible, what we lost in the process with the remake is the emotional aspects that the story constantly calls for. Since real animals don’t emote, it eventually became distracting about half way through the movie when the most impactful points of the narrative fall flat when the emotionless faces of the characters don’t match what the voices are conveying. Even then, the voice acting rarely elevates above being simply “okay”, with Beyonce’s take on Nala and shockingly, James Earl Jones’ reprisal of Mufasa being shockingly bad. Both actors have no life in their delivery and sound like they’re reading off of a script, making an emotionless take on the story feel even more lifeless. With so much of the film being exact copies of the 1994 version, they might as well have plugged Jones’ lines into Mufasa from that film and it would have been better off. Donald Glover’s Simba and Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Scar are planted firmly in the middle while the side characters are the only ones to really shine. Even then, while Billy Eichner and Seth Rogan make Timon and Pumba their own, I couldn’t help but feel like Zazu came off as John Oliver playing Zazu as opposed to believing Zazu was his own character, even though the Last Week Tonight host did a technically sound job.

While most of the film was a direct adaptation, there were aspects that were changed with mixed results. Giving Scar more of a backstory regarding his jealousy over Mufasa’s marriage and referencing a past attempt at taking the throne helped develop more of his resentment towards his brother, while the villainous hyenas are given more of an independent role in the story. Now led by Shenzi, (with Florence Kasumba taking the reigns from Whoopi Goldberg as another voice over success story), the pack is much more dangerous than they were previously portrayed. Acting as accomplices with Scar as opposed to henchmen, it gave the former comic relief characters much more gravity than they had in the past. Timon and Pumba live with Simba as part of a community of outcasts rather than being a three person group, adding a layer of complexity to Simba’s struggle towards finding himself when the other animals never get as used to having a predator around compared to the meerkat and warthog.

Can you feel the love today?

On the other side of the praise, some of the changes that are made are completely baffling, with the biggest offender being Scar’s famous Be Prepared musical number. With the song reportedly being absent from an early cut before fans caught wind of it and demanded it be re-added, having nothing at all might have been better than what we got. Less of a song and more of a spoken word monologue with sound in the background, this was a rare change that I thought made the film actively worse. Another offender is Rafiki’s reduced role. When you consider the mandrill didn’t have a very big role in the original to begin with and you’re left with one of the most pivotal scenes in the movie feeling incomplete. This feels even more jarring when new scenes can result in nothing but mass confusion, like what must have been a five minute fur journey through places I never want to visit in a film again. Even then, some slight alterations play with the idea that most of the audience has already seen this movie in some form, leading to some genuinely funny moments. Let’s just say you shouldn’t expect every song to play out the way you’d expect.

Viewing the film in 4DX enhanced the film during some of its most action packed scenes. Notably, the wildebeest stampede and elephant graveyard scenes came to life as the seats rocked with the chaos surrounding Simba. Steam would double as smoke and dust while blasts of water would surprise us as characters slid through puddles and lakes, adding some energetic atmosphere to the upbeat songs that are all performed with much more energy compared to the speaking scenes. Outside of these sections though, much of the effects felt out of place, with water sprays seemingly shooting for no reason or the seats swaying when nothing was happening. 4DX is best when the immersion matches what the characters are experiencing, but unlike a film like Spider-Man that got the most out of the effect through restraint, The Lion King finds itself on both ends of the spectrum. When it fits, it absolutely enhances the experience. Every other time, it takes you out of the film when you’re wondering why you just got sprayed for the third time.

The hyenas and Scar get some of the best and worst of the film’s changes.

Overall, The Lion King is an enjoyable, flawed adaptation of an all-time classic that should have played it safer in a film that already plays it incredibly safe. A handful of solid additions to the plot get bogged down by some truly baffling decisions that even when ignoring the original, don’t stand very well on their own. To generously put it, some uninspired voice acting matched with a lack of emotion on the characters, (a byproduct of the realistic art style), make the events of the film feel almost disingenuous. Even when at its best, Jon Favreau’s efforts rarely feel as strongly as they should, leaving us with a well made, gorgeous film that feels ultimately soulless. If you want to spend a fun night out with the family or experience an updated version of a childhood favorite, The Lion King is worth seeing for the jaw dropping visuals alone. Just don’t expect to enjoy it as much as you remember.

Final score: 3/5

SDCC 2019: ‘Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3’ Is Adding Cyclops And Colossus For Free In August

by Josh Jackson

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 may be launching tomorrow with a whopping 36 characters in its base roster with three DLC packs on the way, but that doesn’t mean there were no other surprises waiting in the wings. At the Marvel Games panel at San Diego Comic Con, it was revealed that Colossus and Cyclops, two X-Men mainstays that were considered guarantees for the upcoming X-Men DLC pack, would be made available for free on August 30.

Free content aside, this news is especially exciting because this opens up the possibilities of what the X-Men pack will contain. If the four character roster that makes up the Marvel Knights pack is any indication, it’s safe to say that we can expect the same amount. Considering this series started as an X-Men franchise with Legends, it’s easy to see why this section of the Marvel universe is getting so much attention. But now with the no-brainer characters off of the table and other popular members like Wolverine, Storm and Magneto being part of the main roster, the question is who will make the cut? Iceman? Gambit? Rogue? Phoenix? Or a dark horse that we’re all overlooking?

Who would you like to see make the X-Men pack? How about the Fantastic Four set? I’ll give you a guess as to who will be in that one. Until then, keep an eye out for a full review of the game after its July 19 release. If you enjoy the game as much as we did at E3, then look forward to even more content, as extra costumes for every character will be released in the first quarter of 2020.

SDCC 2019: ‘Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3’ Introduces Blade, Punisher In The Marvel Knights Pack

by Josh Jackson

A day before Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, the first game in the action RPG published by Nintendo and developed by Team Ninja is set to hit shelves, we learned about the first four newcomers emerging from the shadows. During Marvel’s games panel at San Diego Comic Con, it was revealed that Moon Knight, Punisher, Blade and Morbius would be making up the Marvel Knights DLC pack, the first of three scheduled packs set for the game’s post-launch future.

Fans will have plenty to be excited about with these reveals. Moon Knight and Blade are both returning from past games. Blade has been largely out of the spotlight since becoming the first Marvel movie poster child in the late 90’s while Moon Knight has never really had the spotlight at all, so it’s great to see them coming back. However, with Blade being one of the few exceptions, the past games generally strayed away from showcasing the more violent heroes of the Marvel universe, which is why seeing Punisher and Morbius in the game is a welcomed surprise. Morbius in particular has a movie right around the corner, so this can be a great way to acquaint audiences with The Living Vampire before it releases.

The Marvel Knights pack leads the Expansion Pass content priced at $19.99 and includes the previously announced Fantastic Four and X-Men packs. Alongside Loki being shown as part of the base roster, Cyclops and Colossus were also revealed as free DLC in August. This opens the doors wide open as to who might be featured in the paid packs. The Fantastic Four pack on the other hand… Not so much. Still, we’re thrilled to see these characters join the 36 character cast, some of which impressed us when we got to play the game at E3. This is looking like a brawler that Switch owners won’t want to miss.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is launching exclusively for the Nintendo Switch on July 19.