Apparently, in some kind of alternate WWII scenario the forces of Hell itself invaded the material realm. Two brothers fought valiantly on the battlefield, but lost their lives to a hell spawn called Count Draculon, but right before the second brother died he vowed vengeance.
Cut to future earth where a Manborg wakes up. This future earth is now populated and ruled over by the denizens of Hell. Count Draculon, looking more jacked up than when we saw him in the prologue, is the Grand Poobah.
Common sense states I should be under duress right now, but I’m not. I’m feeling too “zen-like.” Common sense also states that what you’re reading should be a review about a movie Don Coscarelli directed titled John Dies At The End, based on the book of the same name, penned by some dude with the pseudonym of David Wong, but you better throw that notion out the window right fuckin’ now.
Marvel’s initial line of animated movies, at least for me, was somewhat of a letdown. Even though I own Ultimate Avengers (2006), Hulk Vs (2009), and Planet Hulk (2010), those are the only three I own. I have seen the rest, but felt underwhelmed by the animation styles and the storylines.
It wasn’t until Marvel started to look to anime that I began to take notice again. Partnering with Japan’s Madhouse studio, Marvel released the limited 12-part series’ of Iron Man, Wolverine, X-Men, and Blade in 2011 and 2012. Now, they have partnered with Madhouse again, this time cranking out an anime movie revolving around more of Iron Man’s exploits titled Iron Man: Rise of Technovore.
When I was growing up, there were two science fiction series that I regularly watched—Star Trek and Space: 1999. I even bought the toys made for each series. When Star Trek: The Next Generation came around, I was shocked like many others that they actually managed to make another series. I never thought it would have the endurance to continue for many seasons, but I’ll be damned if it did. It ran from 1987 to 1994 and today is pretty much considered just as much a classic as the original series.
The first giant spider movie I ever saw was Earth Vs. The Spider (1953). It aired on Science Fiction Theater one Saturday afternoon. I was blown away by it, and very creeped out. Growing up, insects and spiders fascinated me. They still do. Somewhere along the way, I also watched Tarantula (1955), and then in the early 80s I caught the schlockfest that is The Giant Spider Invasion (1975). I enjoyed the hell out of those two as well.
From the Tom Baker era (1974-1981) of Doctor Who, The Ark In Space is one of my favorites. The Doctor is heading someplace else in the Tardis, but accidentally sets down inside some kind of space station thanks to traveling companion, Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter), fiddling with controls he shouldn’t have been. He, the Doctor, and Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) slowly learn they are on a station that has collected the last remnants of humankind before the earth was made uninhabitable by solar flares. This “Ark” not only holds all kind of human knowledge in its computer banks, it also holds the last remaining humans themselves, all in suspended animation, waiting for their Ark’s alarm clock to wake them when the earth is safe to inhabit once more. Yet something has gone horribly and insidiously wrong.
Here we are, fifteen years from when Digital Video Discs first hit the marketplace and there are still movies that have yet to hit DVD. It goes without saying that this can be very frustrating to die hard collectors, especially those of us who specialize in collecting genre movies. It was long wait indeed when The Boogens (1981) finally came out last year with a commentary. Two things I thought I’d never say in conjunction with that movie. Well, mark you calendars, for on March 16 another much sought after genre flick is poised to take DVD players by storm—William Malone’s Alien inspired Creature (1984).
Vampire movies.
Who doesn’t love ‘em?
On March 19th, Retromedia will make you bloodthirsty with two cult classics about fiends that want to suck all your blood right out of your ever-loving body. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Every drop. Until you’re a corpse. Like, deader than an undead doornail.
“Shada” is an infamous Doctor Who episode from the Tom Baker era that was never finished due to a strike that shut down production. Well, back in 1992 they finished it, sort of, and released it on VHS. When the story reached a point where the missing material should be inserted the episode cuts to Tom Baker who narrates what should have been filmed. It has now reached DVD. This is the exact same transfer with no alterations.
I have always been a fan of animation. As a kid, it was mostly Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, and The Pink Panther to name a few. Hitting my teens, Japanese animation (aka anime) was introduced to me in the form of Star Blazers, Battle of the Planets, and Robotech.