Time for another News Round-Up! Again, I'm sorry I haven't been posting a lot; I shall try harder! To kick things off, reports are coming in about a Finding Nemo sequel. Oh boy, looks like I will have to write a post about sequel crazy studios! For example, I just saw Ice Age: Continental Drift and it wasn't that good! Sequels dry up great movies and run them into the ground. Making a sequel to one of the best animated films around is kind of setting them up for failure. Andrew Stanton is slated to return to direct and Victoria Strouse is set to write the script based on Stanton's idea. While Stanton has tweeted not to believe everything you read, I still think this is in the works.
Lot's of news coming from DreamWorks Animation. First off, they released a new trailer for Rise of the Guardians and it looks fantastic! There is just something about this trailer that makes me extremely excited for this film! The magic of all our favorite holiday characters is put in an action like film with beautiful, mystical worlds and lovable, funny characters! It brings the imagination of our childhood to the screen in an amazing action movie and looks like it is going to be one of DreamWorks best! If you have not seen the trailer for yourselves, check it out below.
Some more news has finally been coming out about which studio DreamWorks Animation is going to be partnering up with to distribute its films next year. There deal with Paramount ends with Rise of the Guardians and it appears that Sony Pictures. Personally? I think that is a big mistake. Sony already has there own animation studio and they have partnered with Aardman Animations. They don't need to juggle another animation studio, they would just be competing with themselves!
DreamWorks Animation Logo
It's been reported that DreamWorks has also been talking to Fox and Warner Bros. I think that Warner Bros. is their best option because Warner Bros. hasn't been doing well with animation at all. DreamWorks would have a company that wouldn't be competing with them and Warner Bros. would finally have an animation studio. There is also the option of Paramount continuing their deal, or for DreamWorks Animation to self distribute.
Casper the Friendly Ghost logo
In even more DreamWorks news, it appears that they will be making quite the acquisition by buying Classic Media. Classic Media owns suck properties as Casper The Friendly Ghost, Felix the Cat, Dick Tracy, Archie, and many more famous cartoon characters. I would love to see a studio like DreamWorks Animation take all these old characters and introduce them to audiences today. I think they are just the studio to bring life back to these famous icons and would handle them perfectly. They have reportedly offered $150 million for the studio and is reportedly more than anyone else has offered, scaring away competitors.
Thought the DreamWorks news stopped there? Think again! Recently at Comic-Con, Madagascar 3 director said that the studio was working on a Penguins of Madagascar film for 2015. I find this really interesting, and while I am excited as a fan of the penguins, I am worried how it will tie into the other three films. Bill Damaschke, Chief Creative officer, also announced that Kung Fu Panda 3 was in the works. I am a huge fan of the Kung Fu Panda films and I can't wait to see where the third one takes us!
The Me and My Shadow logo
Also at Comic-Con we got some more information on Me and My Shadow. Alessandro Carolini will be directing the film about Stan, a shadow who longs for a more exciting life than being attached to a wallflower named Stanley Grubb. When a crime in the shadow community puts both of their lives in danger, Stan is forced to take control of Stanley, thrusting both of them into an adventure featuring a dark villain, who intends to lead a rebellion to take over the human world. Stan, the shadow, will be voice by Bill Hader while Stanley, the real flower, will be voiced by Josh Gad with Kate Hudson voicing Stanely's love interest.
A drawing of American Dream theme park
I think the film sounds really interesting and I am excited to see more! The film will be a mix of CG and hand-drawn animation so I am especially excited to see what the film looks like! I think everything about the film is turning out great so far! Finally in DWA news, it looks like they are getting ready to build there own theme park titled American Dream! It would be indoors and located only 10 miles west of New York City, featuring the characters of DWA films.
Everything sounds pretty cool, but I'm not too thrilled about anything. I would never travel all the way to New York to go there as right now it doesn't sound to interesting. I really do see why DreamWorks Animation needs a theme park, it seems kind of like a cash grab to me. I guess we shall see more as development continues!
A Spiritual enemy in Book 2: Spirits
In other news, The Legend of Korra has been picked up for 26 more episodes! That brings us through four seasons and 52 episodes total! I am extremely happy to hear this news as I absolutely love this show. It definitely deserves all of these episodes and I can't wait for the show to return in Book 2: Spirits. Book 2, as the title suggests, will heavily involve the spirit world, even featuring villains from it. It will also show more locations besides republic city and introduce new characters to us! I can't wait to hear more about it.
Finally, Sony Pictures Animation has signed a deal with Hotel Transylvania director Genndy Tartakovsky to have him develop and direct his own projects at Sony Pictures Animation, including Popeye. I think it's great that he has finally found a new home where his wonderful contributions can be enjoyed at one place! I am really excited to see what he comes up with next.
Well I think that is all of the most recent news! I hope I didn't miss anything, and if I did I will post another news post! In the meantime, look for reviews of both Brave and Ice Age: Continental Drift! A lot of exciting things are happening in the world of animation, and everything is looking fabulous! Again, I'm sorry for the lack of posts lately and I will really try to get on top of things! "Go, confront the problem. Fight! Win!"
I know I haven't posted in a while, life caught up to me this past week! But now that I have a little down time I can't wait to share all the great news! Quite the hub-bub has been going on in the animation world and it's very exciting! However some of it is pretty worrisome; Big Hero 6, I'm looking at you. Disney has confirmed to be adapting a Marvel comic series into an animated film. I am not excited for this project at all and I really hope that Walt Disney Animation Studios is not handling this project; I can't protest this enough!
The story is basically X-Men in Japan; a group of heroes who were assembled by the Japanese Government. If Disney re-worked it quite a bit, then maybe this film could turn out alright. But it just doesn't feel right; Walt Disney Animation Studios has been putting out amazing work lately from Tangled to Winnie The Pooh. This just doesn't seem to fit and I would be much more okay with this project if it were headed by DisneyToon Studios, who handle all the direct-to-video movies.
Luckily, although the film is confirmed to be in "early stages of development", Disney has not commented on which animation studios will be making the film. Not only does that mean this film could be canceled, but it also means that DisneyToon Studios could be the company making the film. Then I would be completely fine with this film, I just don't think it's right for the Walt Disney Animation Studios. I know there have been reports that this is there 2014 film and that Don Hall is directing, but I really don't want it to happen and I am still holding out hope. I would much rather see The King of the Elves come back into development!
Good old Popeye
In other news, it looks like Sony Pictures Animation was happy with director Genndy Tartakovsky's work on Hotel Transylvania because he is now attached as the director of Popeye. David Ronn and Jay Scherick, the writers of The Smurfs, are also attached to write the script. One of Sony's many upcoming films, this is one of the ones I am most excited for and I hope it continues to move along quickly.
I think it would be extremely fun to see Popeye return to the screen for today's audience! Although it has the writers of The Smurfs, which makes me nervous, I really hope Sony Pictures Animation can do this film justice. It should be reminiscent of the old cartoons but updated for the screen. Hopefully it isn't aimed just at little kids and will be something everyone can enjoy!
Posters up around San Diego for Comic-Con
Comic-Con is coming up, and hopefully we will get more news on Big Hero 6 seeing as it is based off of a comic! If not, we will be getting some panels from two other Disney animated films! Both Frankenweenie and Wreck-It Ralph will be a part of the Walt Disney Studios panel.
Held on July 12 from 2:05-3:05, Tim Burton will be holding a Q&A for Frankenweenie while director Rich Moore and voice cast members John C. Reilly and Sarah Silverman will be there to talk about Wreck-It Ralph. Marvel Studio's panel is on July 14 from 6:00-7:00, hopefully including some announcements regarding Big Hero 6! It's less then ten days away and I really hope we get some great news!
In smaller news, Laika has released a video titled "Making Norman". It's an extremely cool look at all the tedious work that goes into making one stop-motion character. Check it out for yourselves!
There hasn't been a lot of news regarding DreamWorks Animation's Rise of the Guardians lately so I thought I would take the time to post the character posters that were released a while ago. Although they are a little bit old, they are still extremely nice to look at and dissect!
The Easter Bunny
This poster has to be my favorite out of all of them. I think the artwork is absolutely beautiful and stunning. The character design for The Easter Bunny is extremely cool, yet familiar to our childhood imaginations. The world behind him looks extremely fantastical and well thought out. I absolutely love the look of his world and hope the rest of the film is as incredible.
Jack Frost
This one is one of my least favorites. His world looks very typical and human, much like his character. It loses it's sense of imagination and wonder that these fantasy characters are known for. It makes him... normal, and non of these characters are normal. That's why this one is really disappointing and I hope he turns out to be better than this.
The Sandman
The Sandman's character design is very beautiful and imaginative. He looks a lot better than other interpretation's of his character and it's nice to see DreamWorks Animation making The Sandman a more recognizable fantasy being. We don't get to see much of his world but I really hope it is inspired by the rolling mountains in the background as dessert sand dunes would be beautiful to see.
Santa Clause
This is one that I am a little worried about; Santa with tattoos. Now I appreciate that they are taking the Santa character where no one has before, but I feel like they might be going a little over the top. Hopefully that is just the trailer as his world looks to be a beautiful Christmas land that we are used to seeing him in.
The Tooth Fairy
Another character that appears a little over the top is The Tooth Fairy. I think her world is beautiful and as far as animation she goes, she looks great; it's her character design that worries me. I think she looks too weird and like an awkward hummingbird-human mix that no one wanted to see. I feel like they could have mixed up the idea of a fairy in a much more creative way.
Pitch
Finally we have Pitch and why his name isn't The Boogieman, I haven't the slightest. His world looks extremely dark and adds a great contrast to the bright, fantastical worlds of the other fantasy characters. The horses look especially sinister and creative, much more so than Pitch himself. While I think Pitch's character design is great, it could have been better. They captured a more human yet scary Boogieman here than most stories do, but I think they played it a little safe. Pitch could defiantly use some of the eerie design that the horses behind him got, just to make him a bit more scary and dark.
A beautiful still from Paperman
At last we come full circle to Walt Disney Animation Studios. EW has an amazing look at their upcoming short, Paperman. The film looks absolutely beautiful and I cannot wait to see more of this new hand-drawn art style. The combination between hand-drawn and CG truly is seamless and looks beautiful.
While I would love to see more of this in upcoming hand-drawn films, I still want some classically animated hand-drawn films as I feel like they are still beautiful. Please check out the article for yourself, it gives great insight into the story and process of merging both animation techniques.
And that's it for today! The next post will be the Brave review, and I'm so sorry I haven't posted it already! I have been really busy lately and the blog just got pushed aside for a while. These next couple of days are still a little busy so bare with me here as I try to keep the blog updated! "Busy, busy, busy!"
Well we got three trailers today! We already knew that the Frankenweenie trailer was coming today, but we got a second trailer as well! The trailer for Blue Sky Studios "Epic" was released today and it look fantastic! The other one is a week or so old, but I just found it! It's a teaser for Escape From Planet Earth. Let's start with the trailer for Epic. Wow. The film looks absolutely beautiful; from the character designs to the amazingly animated world everything is stunning. Blue Sky has made such a magical world and I can't wait to see more from this film.
I love how the trailer was put together, with very little dialogue and only an amazing song to accompany it. With just the song playing we really got to enjoy the beautiful art work all the animators have crafted for us. The film looks to be action packed and full of suspense! The action scenes looked extremely awesome and well executed and I am already in love with the film. The humor at the end of the trailer didn't quite work, but the film is a year away, we haven't seen practically anything yet! I have extremely high hopes for this film! Check out the trailer below.
The second trailer of the day was for Frankenweenie. This one is more or less the same as the previous trailer but shows off more of the other characters. It's really fun to see all of the characters that are based off of classic horror movie creatures. It looks like it is going to be a very fun film with lots of hilarious dark humor. The film feels as if it were an episode of "The Twilight Zone", which is great! The original short also had that sort of film and it's really fun to see it come to life in animation. All of the character models look superb, especially the Igor kid.
The climax of the film looks to be the best part of the film, even though we only got a glimpse of it in the trailer. The film appears to go from heartwarming tale of a boy wanting his dog back, to crazy antics of other kids bringing their animals back, and then finally ending with the boy and his dog tale again as Victor fights the town off to protect his dog. Check out the trailer for yourself and share your thoughts in the comments!
Rainmaker Entertainment has a teaser from their first film, Escape From Planet Earth. It doesn't show off too much, but I am starting to like the character Scorch. The animation looks pretty good and this film has the potential of being funny. The character designs are okay to awful, and I wish they would have been a little more creative. Of course we have only seen one photo so I can't judge to harshly. Hopefully this film doesn't turn out to be more kiddie material that gives animation a bad name. This year and next look to be amazing for animation, so hopefully this isn't a stupid film. It's shaping up to be alright, so here's hoping!
Merida from Brave
In other news, Brave had a very strong opening weekend with $66,323,594 and has now earned $75,271,765 domestically. This surpasses the four day totals of both Wall-E and The Lorax. Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted also pulled in a good $19,712,315 this past weekend. It's great to see both films doing so well even though they were released extremely close to one another. What does this mean for Ice Age: Continental Drift? We shall see!
Concerning the new Lego movie that is coming out, we have found out that Superman and Batman will be in the film. Will Arnett will voice Batman and the directors are trying to get Channing Tatum to voice Superman. Chris Pratt is also attached to the film as the "main character". The film, Lego: The Piece of Resistance, will apparently be a hybrid of live-action and Lego-based animation. Dirceted by the directors of Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the animation will also presumbly be directed by Chris McKay.
The Lego logo
Speaking of the animation, it is being done by Animal Logic, who are well known for their Happy Feet and The Legend of the Guardians films. I personally am a bit disappointed that the film will feature live-action as well as animation. I was really hoping that we would be immersed in a wholly animated Lego world. At least we are getting Lego characters based off of actually properties! It should be interesting to see more from this film! It doesn't come out until February 28, 2014 so who knows what will happen by then!
Colider also has an amazing behind the scenes set visit of ParaNorman with 30 beautiful screens and a wonderful in depth look at the making of ParaNorman.
Well that's about it for right now, perhaps we will get a new trailer for Rise of the Guardians? Here's hoping because that film looks great and I would love to see more of it! So far this has been an amazing year in animation and next year is shaping up to be great as well. I really hope that ParaNorman is successful because Laika is an animation studio that needs to survive. Otherwise we wouldn't be getting very many stop-motion films! What do you think of the upcoming films? I think "It's gonna be great, it's gonna be great, it's gonna be greeeeaatt!"
The review of Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted is finally here! Released on June 8, 2012 by DreamWorks Animation Studios, Madagascar 3 has already earned $365,486,037 worldwide at the box office. With a reported production budget of $145,000,000, the film is still on it's way to a great financial success. The film also received mixed to positive reviews, but why should we care what critics say? Characters and Story:Let's keep this simple and spoiler free shall we? As you know from the trailers, our main cast of characters has found their way to Europe and use a circus to get back to America, all while attracting the attention of the world's best Animal Control Officer, Captain DuBois. The film actually starts out in Africa and shows how badly Alex misses New York and the fame that came with it. It was nice to finally see our cast of characters actually express sadness over there lost home; although I wish we could have seen a bit more sadness from Alex because he had to leave his parents.
How on earth did they get to Europe you ask? I have no idea. One moment they are in Africa, the next they pop out of the water in Monte Carlo. However, as discussed in the second film's review, that's just the kind of quirky humor Madagascar has and you just have to learn to laugh at. After a bit shaky start, the story finally picks up when our characters join the circus. Here we are introduced to many new characters that are extremely loveable. Overall, the entire film is your basic Madagascar fun with unrealistic antics that are funny if you choose to laugh.
The new circus characters
The biggest problem of the entire film's arc is that our characters don't really grow in this film at all. And outside of Alex, the other main characters hardly even speak that much. Although Alex is normally the center character in the series, the second film proved that equal amounts of time can be given to other characters and allow them to grow. The problem with the third film is that it does give time to other characters, just not Marty, Melman, or Gloria. The new circus animals get the bulk of the attention and it's all about how meeting Alex and the gang changes their lives. They all go through character developments, but no one else really does.
While seeing these new characters change was necessary and welcome, the film needed much more screen time from the original four main characters. Far too much time was spent in Monte Carlo when DuBois was chasing them. In fact, I feel like there was too much DuBois in general. While watching her avoid everything the penguins throw at her was really funny, it was unnecessary. There were so many scenes with her in it that it became a little too much.
The ever hilarious and evil, Captain Chantel DuBois
Not only did DuBois get too much screen time, but so did King Julien and his new love interest, Sonya the bear. While it was fun to watch them on their date, it just took too much time. If DreamWorks Animation were to have trimmed some of the scenes with DuBois and Sonya, we could have seen more time with Marty, Melman and Gloria. However these are just small wishes because in the end, everything did end up flowing well and it's not as if these characters were completely ignored. The film still managed to tell a story about discovering your talents all while managing some very crazy situations in a very humorous way.
Visuals and Soundtrack:The Madagascar films have always had an amazing soundtrack, and when the film opens it plays the title theme we all know so well. This made me very excited for the soundtrack, but in the end the film has a soundtrack that disappears in the background. Not to say that it was a bad soundtrack, it was actually great! It just wasn't featured as heavily and I wanted to hear more striking pieces from Hans Zimmer. Instead we got a great soundtrack that blended into the background perfectly. Not only that but an entire sequence used Katy Perry's "Firework" rather than orchestration. However, this scene was my favorite scene in the whole film and the song did compliment it rather nicely.
A small glimpse of the beautiful
Cirque Du Soleil type performance
The scene was also the most beautiful sequence in the entire film. With the help of Alex, the circus animals finally put together an amazing show after the likes of Cirque Du Soleil and boy was it fantastic. The rest of the film, while beautiful, didn't have a very striking art style. The previous films were absolutely beautiful, using African influences in the art style. However this film doesn't use any African art styles and instead goes for the typical photo realistic look.
Monte Carlo, although beautiful, is just Monte Carlo, Rome is just Rome, and New York is just New York. It was really disappointing to see the previous films bold and beautiful art style disappear. The Cirque Du Soleil scene changes all of that though, and offers a few minutes of visual eye candy. From neon lights and rings to the painted circus animals the entire thing was bold and beautiful. We do get to see some of it in the other circus scenes as well, which was an extremely nice addition. Also, all of the character animation for the new characters were perfect and amazing; each had their own circus look to them. I really loved every scene of the circus, performing and otherwise, that we got because it added a colorful and fun flare to the visual style.
The crazy characters we know and love are back
and better than ever
Conclusion:In the end, the film is still amazing; rivaling the second film as the best in the series. Although it had its small faults, these really are just minor complaints. The entire film was absolutely wonderful and a joy to watch. All of the humor and loveable characters are back, with plenty of new and fun additions!
This film does take these characters on the journey they have been waiting for since the first film. We see them all come together and help others to accomplish their goals. They realize that friendship is everything and they learn to appreciate the adventures they have had. It was really great to see the film come full circle, with plenty of nods to the first film. Although it doesn't have the most bold visual style or soundtrack, and three of our four main characters don't get as much attention as I would like, the film is still amazing and is in no way inferior to the others. I loved almost everything about the film and was entertained every second! This film is most definitely "Crackalackin!"
I know I said I was going to post the Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted review today, but I got distracted by another project, The Legend of Korra! Having finally been able to watch the season finale, I can't keep my mind off it! I can absolutely promise you that the Madagascar 3 review will be here tomorrow and Brave's shortly after that! If you think I am on review overload, I'm sorry. After the Brave review it should calm down until Ice Age: Continental Drift comes out. But as for right now, on to The Legend of Korra! The Legend of Korra premiered on April 14, 2012 on Nickelodeon to critical acclaim. For those of you that don't know, The Legend of Korra is actually a sequel series to Avatar: The Last Airbender. If you only know that name from the M. Night Shyamalan film, forget everything. That movie does not even begin to do the show justice. It is a phenomenal show with amazing artwork, hilarious jokes, beautiful action sequences, and characters you'll love. The original series starts out aiming at a more childish audience, but fear not; the show quickly matures. Characters and Story:As for The Legend of Korra, the show starts out at an amazingly mature level. The show focuses primarily on an equalist revolution led by a man Amon. He wants to rid the world of all benders and make everyone "equal", so he rallies the support of non-benders around Republic City. Korra, the new Avatar, has to cope with this uprising while trying to learn Air Bending and dealing with her complicated love life. The idea of all being equal and a city revolting are some pretty mature themes for a "kids" TV show, however this is what makes The Legend of Korra so great. Animation on television is normally made really cheap, or done for a very young audience, but The Legend of Korra changes all of that. Just like how the original series was beautifully animated and kept a mature storyline, The Legend of Korra improves on both of those fronts, making this one of the best TV shows around.
Korra is more than just an amazing fighter
Of course all of this is made possible because of our characters. Korra is an amazing lead character who almost all viewers can identify with. She's a teenager who now has to grow up, and struggles with the responsibilities of not only becoming an adult, but by being the Avatar as well. She struggles with love and has a problem following her heart because people keep telling her no. All of these things make for a very identifiable character and not some unrealistic ruler over everything.
However it's not just the lead that is amazing, Korra is surrounded by many more amazing characters, heroes and villains alike. Tenzin, who is Avatar Aang and Katara's son, is also Korra's Airbending trainer. He is very wise and calm, unlike the headstrong Korra. Tenzin is a councilmember for Republic City and is constantly trying to do what is best, which isn't always what the other councilmembers think.
Tenzin and his family
Tenzin also has a family, his wife, Pema, and three children, Jinora, Ikki, and Meelo. For most of the season, Pema is pregnant with a fourth child. The entire family adds a lot of laugh into the mix with the innocent kids always having fun. They make for a great comic relief, but also give Tenzin the responsibility to protect them. There is a lot of interesting plot twists with Tenzin's character as a little bit of his previous love life is revealed with non-other than Chief Lin Beifong! I really like Tenzin and his family; the characters add a lot of fun to a show that can use all the comic relief it can get.
Speaking of Chief Beifong, what an amazing character! Toph's daughter, Lin is one of the coolest characters on the show. When it comes to action sequences, Lin has some of the best moments on the show. She is a Metal Bender, like her mother, but is a bit cold to Korra at first. Tenzin and Lin used to have quite the relationship until Pema told Tenzin how she felt about him.
Chief Lin Beifong
Ever since, Lin has closed all emotions towards Tenzin and anything to do with him, including Korra. All of that soon changes as Tenzin and Lin make amends, to the point where Lin gives everything to protect his family. It was so great to see here character change from being a rude cop to a sweet heart who sacrifices everything to protect those she loves. In the end, Lin is a character we are deeply emotionally attached to, which is proved in the end when tragedy befalls our beloved hero.
Along the way, Korra also encounters two Pro-Bending champions, Mako and Bolin. Not only does Korra join there Pro-Bending team and help lead them to the finals, they become her best friends. Mako is a more quiet and reserved character. At first he doesn't like Korra joining the team out of nowhere, but soon gains respect for her. Bolin on the other hand, is quite the opposite. He loves the spot light and is always trying to show off; he also loves Korra and is constantly trying to impress her.
Mako and Bolin
Bolin offers most of the series comedic relief, and he does an excellent job at it. It's great to see these characters grow so much, Mako becoming more relaxed, yet still protective, and Bolin a bit more responsible and willing to help. Not only do these characters offer so extremely cool bending, each of them serves as love interests to Korra. Bolin has always like Korra, but from the moment she saw Mako, she knew that he was for her. As if the brother rivalry wasn't enough, Mako gets into a relationship with another girl named Asami.
Mako and Asami meet in a chance encounter on the street when she crashes into him. Asami is a beautiful young girl who is also the daughter of Hiroshi Sato, the inventor of the Satomobile (cars). Mako and Asami quickly hit it off and before you know it they are dating, but of course this makes Korra jealous and drama ensues. I really like all of the love triangles that were going on, and it was nice to concentrate on romance for a while. Asami's charcter is extremely likable. She is sweet and kind, even though she has some of the biggest problems in the series.
Asami
Her mother died when she was young and because of benders and because of this her father becomes an equalists. Then while Asami has to deal with fighting against her own father, she finds out Mako and Korra not only kissed a while ago, but that he still has feelings for Korra. Asami stays strong to the end through all of these problems. A character that we were originally unsure and suspicious of becomes one of the most liked character in the series.
No series would be complete without a memorable villain, and boy does The Legend of Korra deliver. Amon is not only terrifying in looks, but his power is beyond that of anyone we have ever seen. He has a strong political influence on the people of Republic City, and he has an army of Chi Blockers who can fight benders with ease. Not only that, but Amon is an amazing Chi Blocker himself and can then take away people's ability to bend.
Amon
Amon has everything under control, and no matter what happens it appears that it was all part of his plan. Amon is one of the best villains I have seen in animation; his motive is actually a good idea but he is an extremist, and he also has immense power. There are many people and situations in our world today that are just like that, making him even more terrifying. He is smart, mysterious, and clever, not just a guy who has a maniacal laugh.
We don't find out who Amon really is until the season finale, but it was perfectly executed. At the end of the season we also got another character, General Iroh. While we didn't get to see much of him, I am in love with his character. From his fighting styles to his similarities to Zuko, he is a great addition to the show. I just hope we get to see a lot more of him next season. Everything that had happened in the show led up to that episode and it paid off. All of the characters grew over the course of the season and earned a place in our hearts. The story for season one was fantastic and never stopped amazing me. It introduced to all of the characters perfectly and I can't wait to see the show take them even further in the next season. It was really fun to see the descendants of characters from the original series, and I love how mature this show really became. Visuals and Soundtrack:Following in Avatar: The Last Airbender's footsteps, The Legend of Korra has both amazing visuals, and one of my favorite soundtracks of all time. The soundtrack to The Legend of Korra is so great, that I specifically want to listen to the entire thing on my iPod. The orchestration fits perfectly for each scene and the Asian influence goes perfectly with the art style. Jeremy Zuckerman really out did himself with the soundtrack and I cannot compliment it enough.
Concept image of Republic City
Besides the story, the biggest improvement over the original series is the visuals. The Legend of Korra is absolutely beautiful to look at. From the design of Republic City to the characters, you never want to take your eyes off of such great artwork. Not only is the character design unique for each character, watching them in action is so flawless its jaw dropping. The action in this series really was executed so well and the animation on it is great. I particularly love the design for Amon, powerful and extremely creepy.
Four of the main characters from The Legend of Korra
Conclusion: The Legend of Korra is an amazing series. Even if you haven't seen Avatar: The Last Airbender, you should most definitely watch The Legend of Korra and check out the original series as well. I can't recommend this series enough; from its amazing characters to its phenomenal plot and art style this show has it all. Love triangles, action, adventure, what more could you want?
With only one more season of The Legend of Korra announced, it is my deepest wish that we get more. I don't want this series to end! We are just getting to know the characters and now you can take them where ever you want! This season's plot was concise yet epic. We had great character development from everyone and if anything the show is just beautiful to look at. This is the best animated TV show that I have ever seen. After all, "Only the Avatar can master all four elements and bring balance to the world."
The final film review before Madagascar 3's, which arrives on Sunday. Will that film be able to top the amazing original sequel? Only time will tell! Released on November 7, 2008 by DreamWorks Animation with a production budget of $150 Million, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa earned $603, 900, 354.Reviews for the film were mixed as were the original, however this time they were more positive than negative! I really feel like critics are a bit to harsh on the Madagascar films, but luckily these films are a success regardless! With good reason too, as these films really are great hilarious adventures. Like any good review, let's delve in and dissect the characters and plot! Characters and Story:All of our favorite characters from the first film are back, which is great because DreamWorks Animation created some of the best characters in modern animation! Each character is full of their own unique personality, and each add great elements to the film. Alex most certainly takes center stage this time around as he finds his long lost parents.
Melman as a Witch Doctor
Just because the film's plot mostly revolves around Alex, fear not! Unlike the first film, Melman and Gloria get so much more time to develop as characters. Early on in the film, Melman confesses his love for Gloria, unfortunately she was asleep. As Melman finds the other giraffes, he discovers they just go to hole to die when any little disease effects them. It was fun to see that other giraffes have the same out look on sickness as Melman did. Now we get to see Melman come full circle, finally having over come his fear of getting sick, he becomes the Witch Doctor for the other giraffes. It was really nice to see his character finally grow, not only adding many more laughs as the Witch Doctor, but finally adding more depth to this character. Along with him being the doctor, they film makers added even more depth to his character by adding his love for Gloria. This was a great plot device that help Melman's character grow as well as Gloria's. We find out that Gloria wants to sign up for the breeding program when the return to the Zoo, causing jealousy in Melman. Later when they are in Africa, Gloria meets Moto Moto while hanging out with the other hippos.
Gloria and Moto Moto on a date
Gloria is extremely attracted to Moto Moto as is super excited when he asks her out. Of course when she tells Melman and the others, Melman gets so jealous that he leaves in a hurry. All of this drama creates such a great plot for Melman and Gloria and really helped their characters grow so much. I'm really happy that we got a lot of more screen time with both of these amazing characters; it really helped add to the film. However, like I said earlier, the bulk of the plot is actually centered on Alex. He was originally born in Africa, but when some poachers take him he ends up in New York, thus landing in the Central Park Zoo. Finding his family is extremely exciting for Alex, especially since he has vauge memories of his old life. Alex wants to rejoin the tribe and make his father proud, who thinks he is a King. The evil Makunga doesn't want this to happen because he wants to be Alpha Lion, so he takes advantage of Alex being new and naive. All of this causes Alex to make a fool of him self when he starts dancing during a fight with the biggest lion in the tribe, Teetsi. It doesn't end well with Alex being banished from the tribe and his disappointed father and mother leaving with him, making Makunga Alpha Lion.
Alex meeting his parents
As you can see, all of these things happening to Alex creates so much more character for him. Where as before his character growth involved him having to overcoming his selfishness and be there for his friend, Alex now has a family and has to emotionally grow and try to become a responsible lion like his parents always wanted for him. It really turns Alex into a more believable character with more adult problems and it's great to see him mature.
Of course Marty gets the least amount of time on screen, but he still has some growth. Marty doesn't fell special in Africa because all of the zebras are just like him! It doesn't help when Alex talks to a zebra thinking it's Marty, and Marty listens in shock. It adds a little growth for Alex and Marty, giving them another trial to test their friendship. It's a nice little addition that helps us see some of Marty's emotional concerns as well.
Which one is Marty?
Our other ensemble characters have their own little adventures as well. King Julien and Maurice parade around as Julien claims himself as the African King. Julien also helps Melman pull himself together and go after Gloria, which was fun to watch, however he also makes Melman believe that if he jumps into the volcano as a sacrifice, the Gods will bring the water back. Mort is trying his hardest to catch up to King Julien and Maurice, but keeps getting chased by a shark. The penguins are up to their usual spy shenanigans, this time stealing tour jeeps to get parts for the construction of the airplane. Of course this causes the people of the tour bus to fend for themselves in the wild, my only problem with this film.
Crazy old Nana
The grandma that beat Alex up in the first film is back, and she is still kicking. She leads the stranded group of tourists into the jungles of Africa where they build a fire, shelter, and a damn for water. Now, why would these characters go into the jungles of Africa at night? How on earth is that safer than staying on the road where people will find you! The grandma beating up Alex gag was never my favorite anyway and an old lady would never really beat up a lion. Alas, these are only small gripes as it is all just a funny cartoon anyway. That's the thing about the Madagascar films, they have more of a cartoon short feel to them. A shark can follow Mort on land all the way to the volcano and it's funny! Although I feel the tourists and the shark were a little much and kind of broke you out of this film, reminding you it was an animated cartoon film, they are all in good fun.
Overall this film is extremely funny, adding so much to each of our main characters. The plot was fantastic, and it was fun to see Alex's family. Aside from it's sillier moments, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa improves on it's predecessor in every way and is an amazing film. My only concern is that I am happy with them in Africa. I don't understand why they want to get back to New York so badly and I was glad they had stayed at the end. I guess we will see how the third film addresses this issue.
Concept art from Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
Visuals and Soundtrack:Yes, the soundtrack. I can't believe I forgot to comment on how wonderful the soundtrack on the original film was. Hans Zimmer created such an amazing soundtrack for the first film and this one. Every piece works perfectly and the title theme is fantastic. If you read my review for the the first film, there isn't much to add to this one as far as visuals go. Madagascar 2 did receive a beautiful update in it's visuals, and looks leaps and bounds better than the first film. Some of the shots of Africa are almost breath taking and everything looks fantastic. Character design is top notch, per usual, and the African inspired art style is spectacular. It separates this film from so many other computer generated films and is a blast to look at.
The ensemble of Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
Conclusion:All in all, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa is a much better film than the first. The film continues with the hilarious laughs from the first film, while managing to bring so much more depth to all of the main characters. The film is absolutely beautiful with an amazing soundtrack to compliment it. Even with it's quirkier moments, this film shines as some of DreamWorks Animation's best work. The film works as a cohesive whole and is definitely a must watch. Even if you haven't seen the first one, the film recaps for you at the beginning and is a great introduction to the film. A lot of people, and adults in particular, may find the film "unrealistic, but cute." That's the thing about animation, you just have to except that these films are trying to be fun and do things other films can't. If this movie still isn't for you and "In case of a loss of oxygen, please place your masks over your faces to hide your terrified expressions from the other passengers."
