The Wolverine: A Wolverine film worth watching

Though the first three X-Men movies were pretty hit and miss, the best decision the people behind those movies made was to cast Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. No matter what else was going on in those movies, Jackman as Wolverine was always worth watching. He walked the fine line between being likable and being badass, and between being a superhero and being believable. I liked the character, so naturally I looked forward to the first Wolverine movie. I was completely disappointed with it. For weeks afterward I found myself wondering when I would finally get to see the Wolverine movie, because my mind had not yet processed that, yes, I had seen it, and yes, it really was that bad.

If I had known at the time, I would have skipped over the first Wolverine movie and seen the second one in theaters instead. The second Wolverine movie isn't perfect, but it is good, and it gets my recommendation.

There are some spoilers under the cut.

I watched the Teen Titans Go! TV series and it was better than expected

DC Comics have always made good cartoons: Batman the Animated Series, Justice League, and the first season of Young Justice are all excellent. These shows have exciting action, fun adventures, and interesting character arcs. A worthy entry in that lineup is the 2003 Teen Titans animated series, which ran for six seasons. This is not a review for that series.

Instead, this is a review for the current series that re-imagines the Teen Titans as a bunch of slapstick, self-absorbed slackers. The new show makes no attempts at character development, plot arcs, or an underlying message.

And yet, I still kinda like it.

My disappointment with the Legend of Korra, Book Two

I loved the first book of Avatar: the Legend of Korra, so I didn't have to think twice about ordering the second book on iTunes. Unfortunately, the second book fell flat in many ways. There were some good moments, but overall the second book was a disappointment.

Spoilers below the cut! They're lengthy. Sorry, I needed to get this off my chest.

Movie Review: Frankenstein's Army

As you probably already know, I am a big fan of the Weird War concept. This setting combines World War II, the most iconic conflict of all time, and adds in elements of the supernatural and/or science fiction. So when I first heard of Frankenstein's Army, I was intrigued. After all, who wouldn't want to watch a horror movie about Frankenstein creating dieselpunk zombie monsters for the Third Reich?

Warning: This review contains spoilers, and also includes a fairly disturbing movie poster and trailer below the cut.

Thoughts on Thor 2: Would I rather be Thor or Iron Man?

A week ago, my lovely wife and I saw Thor: The Dark World. We also saw Iron Man 3 back when it was in theaters, and seeing both films brought back a question I have asked myself from time to time: who would I rather be, Thor or Tony Stark?

Both films are similar: the main character has grown as a person since we first met him, has established a romantic relationship with the other main character, and, perhaps most significantly, has recently saved the Earth from an alien invasion. I also find the differences between the characters fascinating. I can compare the two of them, but it's hard to pick a favorite, except for in one definite area where the leader clearly emerges.

Let me explain.

(Contains spoilers for both movies)

Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search goes right where The Promise went wrong

In my review of the previous Avatar: the Last Airbender comic series, The Promise, I hoped that the next series, The Search, would do better. I am happy to say that it did! Where The Promise had too many characters, too many storylines, shifts in tone, and characters acting out of character, The Search told a tighter story with fewer characters, a better narrative, and better writing.

And of course, The Search answers the top question asked by fans of Avatar: the Last Airbender: what happened to Zuko's mother? I won't spoil the answer, but it's worth picking up the comics just to finally know.

(This review does contain some minor spoilers, though, but probably nothing you couldn't pick up from the covers.)

Happy N7 Day

Today is N7 Day (because it's November 7, so N-7), so today is a day to celebrate Mass Effect. There's only one problem: Mass Effect 3 came out on March 6, 2012. The final DLC, The Citadel, was released March 6, 2013. So it's been a while since we've had anything new to talk about.

So I was sitting at my desk, wanting to post something Mass Effect-related for N7 day, but unable to think of anything new to say. MLW suggested I write about why I love Mass Effect, and why I'm still so into it. I tried to think of what to say that I had not said before in my many posts about Mass Effect, and then MLW asked me if I had seen the N7 Day video above. I had not, so I watched it, and I knew what I wanted to write about.