Movie Review - Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero

   Dragon Ball Super - Super Hero sounds like it's trying to cash in on the superhero bandwagon by having the characters use of the familiar comic book trope of fight-and-team-up. This isn't quite true. Goku (and various anime protagonists) has been fighting then befriending his enemies for years and years. And anime has already put their twist in the superhero culture with the personal heroic school studies and the single hit guy adventures.

   What Dragon Ball Super - Super Hero is more of the usual for the Z Fighters, which is facing an overpowered threat with overpowering force. The mythos of Dragon Ball spans hundreds of episodes and (apparently) the flick doesn't give a catch up for the clueless. The previous movie, Broly, gave an origin flashback at least. This one (apparently) just drops the viewers in the middle of a revenge scheme, including a side story continuing from the aforementioned Broly movie and the regular series. 


   So what is a casual watcher do? Simply enjoy the explosive and destructive action scenes. Granted the CGI doesn't have the punch that traditional animation achieved (even the Broly movie had the unbelievable, hard-hitting, reality-breaking slugfest) but this, at least, is bloodless and practically family friendly (for modern kids).  


   It's not all just wall-to-wall fights though. Long time fans of the franchise can pick up on the callbacks and cameos. There's also laughter to be had at universal jokes, from putting down the bald comic relief to the vanity of the female gender. 


   While there isn't enough actual traditional comic book superheroics in the film, it is not actually expected, as Dragon Ball Super - Super Hero has already moved beyond the superhuman ages ago.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Wait of the World

Image
Dear Survivor,   It’s been a year and a half away from you. Minutes apart by distance yet still out of reach. Though I see and hear you every day through digital means, the underlying ache after each farewell leaves me wistful for the times before. Even actual physical meetings in public places leaves me wanting. Fleeting touches are discouraged and conversation is stunted by range and obstruction. The worldwide affliction is truly a curse.   Is being in your presence more important than our well being? In fiction, yes. Hollywood narrative lends to comforting notions of emotion conquering all. But reality hits harder in black and white dripping red as evidenced by statistics. Safety is paramount. The reminders of sterilization are frequent and checks on protective gear are often.   I feel your concern but, sometimes, during the dark and lonely hours, would that I could feel more. Longing, yes, not distance measured but time seemingly stretched to relative infini...
Read more

Movie Review - Godzilla x Kong - The New Empire

Image
Godzilla might have top billing but, same as last time, he feels like a guest star in a King Kong movie. King Kong gets the bulk of storytelling focus as he is made relatable with feelings of loneliness, paternal leanings and even a toothache. Godzilla remains a practical force of nature and except for that instance of cat napping, he is still treated as an enigma. It's been a few years so details about the scientist, her adopted daughter and the humor relief are largely forgotten. But we're just around for the slugfest. As fun as the wrestling moves are, the antagonist seems like a letdown after Ghidorah and Mecha Godzilla. His whip work was amazing and he does have an aura of charismatic dislike but he doesn't feel like a threat worthy of Godzilla absorbing tons of radiation to fight. Same with Kong getting a mecha fist. Still, The New Empire is an enjoyable romp. They could just drop the pretenses and just make a straight Kong movie, really. 
Read more