Month: January 2023

Yesterday, there was some absolutely heartbreaking news that came from the people involved with the hit YouTube channel called Schaffrillas Productions. James Phyrillas, the head behind Schaffrillas, his friend Chris Schaffer, and his brother Patrick Phyrillas, were all involved in a car crash in Leigh County. While James survived and is in absolute critical condition, Chris and Patrick unfortunately passed away at the ages of 25 and 22. Chris and Patrick both played a big part in the success of Schaffrillas Productions and leaving a major impact in the YTP, Animation, and the overall YouTube community. This tragic news was first broken by Twitter account, @PerfectCutPoop.

I have some very sad, unfortunate news to deliver.

Yesterday, James Phyrillas aka Schaffrillas, his friend Chris Schaffer, and his brother Patrick Phyrillas, were all involved in a car crash in Leigh County.

Chris and Patrick have died, and James is in critical condition.

— Perfectly Cut YouTube Poop Moments (@PerfectCutPoop) January 30, 2023

Chris and Patrick were 25 and 22, and together they all formed the Schaffrillas name, leaving a major impact in the YTP, Animation, and overall YouTube community

— Perfectly Cut YouTube Poop Moments (@PerfectCutPoop) January 30, 2023

First off, I’ll say that I do not watch Schaffrillas Productions. I’ve seen a handful of clips of their reviews through Twitter and such but never took the time to watch a whole video of theirs. I was however well aware of their existence and the impact they have had on film criticism and animation. The only connection I had from them was when I reference James himself on Twitter in my Strange World piece. However, the main reason I wanted to write this doesn’t have to do with the content of Schaffrillas Productions as a whole but how what has happen is a giant wake-up call in life that should not be glossed over in the slightest.

First off, having your life being taken away at the ages of 22 and 25 is far too young. No good noble person deserves to lose their life at that age. That is an age before someone even has the chance to peak with their live, just when they about to scratch the surface of a very promising future that awaits them. It’s cruel, unfair, and shows this is no video game world we live in. This is in fact the real world!

Secondly, no matter if James is able to recover physically and mentally from this terrible accident, I really hope fans of his do NOT take the time to bug him about future channel content. Let the man take all the time he needs to heal from all of this! By not only losing members that help made his channel a success but also his own brother and dear friend, things will never be the same for him again. There may even be a big chance he might never get over it and may decide to stop making YouTube content all together because two people that help his channel grow is now gone. Regardless, even though all of this should be clearly obvious to anyone with a human brain, this is something that should be stated nevertheless.

Thirdly, let this be a reminder of how short life can be and never take the time you spend with the ones you love for granted. You NEVER know when someone you love will be gone. It could be today, it could be tomorrow, or even 20+ years from now. Everyone will had to die at some point in their lives, you just never know when. The next time you interact with someone you care deeply about, let them know how much they mean to you. Even if it may not seem like a big moment right now, it will surely last in the future when the unthinkable happens and they are now a part of history. Always treasure every moment with the people you love because you never know when it will be your very last spend with them.

To finish this off, I’ll end this by saying that I wish James Schaffrillas the most speedy recovery imaginable. What happened to his brother and friend is absolutely horrible and I surely hope that the too of them rest in peace! You should feel proud with what the three of you were able to achieve as content creators in YouTube and I only hope the impact that Schaffrillas Productions has had continues to grow and inspire others for the better. If James is able to make it through all of this and is still breathing, then I encourage him to take all the time that he needs to recover and do what he thinks is best for himself for the future. Don’t feel the need to force yourself to do something because you think you have to do! Do what you think is right for yourself! That’s the best that any of us could ask for!

Once again, RIP Chris Schaffer and Patrick Phyrillas!

Last week, the Academy listed the nominations for this spring’s upcoming Oscars. And just like every time that these award nominations gets announced, there is usually some controversy and debates about most of the movies nominated, warranted or not. However, I don’t think there has been two movies that have had the biggest form of controversy and debate surrounding it than that of two animated movies that have been nominated for Best Animated Picture with Turning Red and Puss In Boots: The Last Wish.

With Turning Red, this was already a movie that had debates and discourses surrounding it basically since the very first trailer for it released. Even taken out the 9/11 memes, there was already discussions surrounding the film’s content, such as a girl going through puberty and having her “red panda” moment, along with the animation which many found was too expressive, obnoxious and just plain “in your face”. Despite the film’s overall positive reviews it received from critics, the audiences reactions were much more divided because of elements like that.

With Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, it got the complete opposite reactions from the majority of people that saw it. While it was mostly a movie that slip through many people’s radar before it’s release, as it was a sequel that no one was really asking for and coming from a franchise that hasn’t had a new installment in over a decade, it arrived to near universal claim from both critics and audiences alike. There might have been some discussions as to whether or not the film was appropriate for kids with the mild swearing and tackling more adult/mature themes, there really wasn’t much that folks took issue with the movie. It’s been a big success thus far that it has potentially breathed new life into the Shrek franchise, so much so that we might even seen a Shrek 5 sooner rather than later.

In hindsight, I can see why certain folks would want to raise the pedestal with Puss In Boots: The Last Wish rather than Turning Red. After all, this is the award for Best Animated Picture, an award that over 90% of the time goes to a Disney or Pixar movie basically by default. Regardless if that film itself is any good or that other ones that go nominated were just overall better, that just seems like an award from the Academy that is made strictly for Disney and Pixar so they don’t always have to nominate them for the overall Best Picture every year. People being against Disney and Pixar winning an award for Best Animated Picture when other great animated films released that same year is nothing out of the ordinary. However, I still find this debate rather dumb because it involves two films that both deserve to win Best Animated Picture in their own rights.

Turning Red and Puss In Boots: The Last Wish are both two movies that while different from each other in a lot of ways, is able to achieve their goals in ways that are quite similar. Both films are animated features that dare to tackle more mature, grown-up-like subject matter that majority of “kids” films out there wouldn’t dare to tackle, dives into the inner turmoils of their main protagonists through animal-like figures, and uses a distinct and unique animation style that is absolutely “out there” for it to tell their multilayered stories. Both films are just as much as different as they are similar with each other. Which again makes me wonder why anyone would be opposed to either one of these winning for best animated pictures?

It’s not like if Turning Red wins for Best Animated Picture that it would be the worst example of the Academy showing bias towards Disney or Pixar. Need I remind you of the time that Brave won over Frankenweenie or ParaNorman and when Big Hero 6 won over The Boxtrolls, How To Train Your Dragon 2, and Song of the Sea (Not to mention, The L.E.G.O. Movie which didn’t even get nominated). Heck, you didn’t see me raging last year when Encanto won for Best Animated Picture over my favorite film of 2021, The Mitchells vs. the Machines. There’s been worse examples of this with much worse or at least lesser movies and there’s no need to act like if the inevitable happens, that Turning Red winning should act like some sort of exception.

The Academy Awards is just an awards show that is losing more and more credibility in each passing year. From constantly refusing to nominated horror feature films to always trying to change the formula with the way the show is run just to appeal to folks who will never like their show, it’s mostly become something to watch over the years just for the lols and memes rather than the thrills and anticipations of seeing the winners. Becoming more of a popularity contest than one that is actual rewarding the very best in film of it’s respective year. It’s like watching a car accident happening before your very eyes, it’s awful and terrible but you can’t help to look away and only see it through to the very end.

There is plenty of things wrong with the way the Academy is run and how they deal with the Oscars but whether or not Turning Red or Puss In Boots: The Last Wish wins for Best Animated Picture is not one of them. These are two great, wonderfully crafted animated pictures that both deserve a fair chance of taking home the Oscar for Best Animated Picture. Would it be nice for Puss In Boots: The Last Wish to win and let DreamWorks take home the Best Animated Picture for once (something which the company haven’t done since Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit)? Absolutely! Would it also be nice for Turning Red to take that award, a Disney/Pixar movie that is actually deserving of it? Absolutely as well! Regardless, I promise you either one of these two pictures winning won’t be the biggest “WTF” winner for this year! Especially when Austin Butler will likely win for Best Actor over Colin Farrell and Brendan Fraser.

If you’re someone that likes to compare these two movies just to claim which one you like more and just for the fun of it all, then that’s fine. For anyone that saw my Best-Of-The-Year list, you would know that I ranked Puss In Boots: The Last Wish and Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio over Turning Red. Even so, I still did really like all three of those animated films, so much so that I had all three of those movies on that list. That was because, animated or not, I thought those were three of the best movies I saw in 2022. However, when I made that list, that was never under the assumption that I believed at least two of these movies would be match together as to which one is better than the other. I put them both on the list because I felt both movies deserved some love. And even a month later, I still do.

You can like what you like and dislike what you dislike but there’s no need for silly debates like Turning Red vs Puss In Boots: The Last Wish because there’s really no need for it. The Academy has enough problems as it is with how they are run but there’s no need to make a certain problem of it that it really doesn’t have. There’s plenty to complain about with the nominations this year but with what is nominated for Best Animated Picture is not one of them. If anything, that was one of the things it got right. Which is why it’s best to turn our attentions to the ones they got wrong and leaves the ones they got right well enough alone. Hopefully then we can avoid another instance like say, Zack Snyder’s Justice League taking home an award based off some Twitter poll.

There are very few gaming franchises out there that is as interesting, complex, frustrating, and contains such an incredibly passionate fanbase than Kingdom Hearts. The mere idea behind the series sound as silly and awesome as you could imagine. Not only providing a new and unique spin on the traditional tale of good vs evil but it’s also basically the equivalent of someone’s own self-insert fanfiction of classic Disney movies and the Final Fantasy series. That might sound ridiculously cringe but trust me, that’s actually a big part of the appeal of this franchise and why I enjoy it.

At it’s heart (no pun intended), this is a series that can be seen through many different perspectives. There’s the fans who has been with this series from the very beginning when they were kids, the fans who got into this series around the time of it’s ultimate peak between the releases of II and III, and those like me who are relative newcomers to the series that have been able to play these games in any order they want without having to wait many years for long-awaited sequels and playing through multiple different side games along the way. That in of itself is why ranking these games is quite tricky. Not only because of how long someone has followed this franchise but also what they look for in a Kingdom Hearts game.

There are those that play Kingdom Hearts for the story, characters, and the lore. There are those that play Kingdom Hearts for the traditional combat gameplay and RPG elements. And there are even those that play Kingdom Hearts just because they want to play around in these Disney worlds with potential Final Fantasy characters thrown into the mix. For me personally, I look for just the right mix of all these elements and based my rankings on which ones were able to do it better than the others.

Regardless of what you think about Kingdom Hearts as a whole and the way that Square Enix has handled it over the years, there’s always a sense of warm, comfort, and even nostalgia whenever you visit this series. As we approach the four-year anniversary of Kingdom Hearts III (Can’t believe it’s already been four (!) years!) and await the inevitable Kingdom Hearts IV (Which hopefully doesn’t take another 13 years to make), time to take some time to rank all of these games from worst to best.

There are a few disclaimers. First off, I’m leaving off all the mobile games because I never played them and for what I understand, they have been shut down indefinitely. Secondly, with the exception of Re:Coded and 358/2 Days, I only played the version of all the pre-Kingdom Hearts III games that were included in the Kingdom Hearts: Story So Far Collection and I’m mostly going off my experience with that. Thirdly, this ranking is coming from someone who has just gotten into the series in recent years and have been able to play these games in a timely manner with not wait or anticipation between any of them. I know I’ve already brought that up but it’s important to notify this as you know where I’m coming from with this franchise. Lastly, I’m not including the Kingdom Hearts X Back Cover movie, but if I did, it would either be at or near the bottom of the list as I found it to be completely dull and forgettable, especially for a so-called “origin” movie.

All of that being said, let’s not waste any more time and get straight to the list!

10.) Kingdom Hearts: Re:Chain of Memories

If I’m gonna be honest, I didn’t finish this game. As a matter of fact, I only played it for like an hour. That in of itself might make it unfair to rank on this list since I’ve never actually completed it or even played it for more than an hour. However, if I have no desire to continue playing a game, then I think that says more about the game itself than it does for me.

The original Chain of Memories was already considered an oddball of the franchise. It was the first spin-off game in the series, taking place between the events of I and II, that was originally for the Game Boy Advance and later ported to the PlayStation 2 and then again to other next-gen systems. It wasn’t very well received by fans in it’s original form and was even more panned with it’s ports. When playing the game for just an half and hour, it’s easy to see why.

It’s not just that Re:Chain of Memories has multiple different problems (which is still does) but it mostly comes down to one big flaw that brings the whole game down, the convoluted card system. It’s awkwardly implemented, confusing to control, poor to handle, constantly gets in the way of the combat, and is just an absolute mess all around. It also didn’t help of having to know the exact card to open the exact correct door with in order to advance in the story despite having multiple different cards to choose from and it being hard to tell which one is suppose to go where. This is a game you could clearly tell was made for handheld devices and absolutely NOT for main consoles. Re:Chain of Memories is easily the low point of the series and one I have no intention of going back to try to beat anytime soon.

9.) Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days

The first of the Kingdom Hearts series to be on the Nintendo DS and put a major focus on not strictly Sora but his “nobody” in Roxas. This would also be the final game to feature the late great Wayne Allwine as Mickey, who passed away just before the game’s release in Japan. It’s just a shame that the game itself doesn’t rise anything above “meh”.

It attempts to introduce new elements to the core formula that Kingdom Hearts is known for, particularly a mission system that feels rip straight out of Monster Hunter, but in so doing so leads to very middling results. The moment-to-moment can be a slog that is plagued with rather clunky controls that makes the game a bit of a chore to play through. This is also when the series would fall into the storytelling trappings that it would later become infamous for. There is a HUGE emphasis on the lore and the in-and-outs of the Kingdom Hearts universe that it’s difficult to get invested in this suppose tragedy that the characters are going through because of how convoluted the plot itself is. And even if you are able to keep up with what is happening here, you will likely have a hard time caring.

There are a handful of interesting ideas here, most notably putting an emphasis on the main antagonists of the series Organization XII and another main character other than Sora, but this is when the franchise still hadn’t cracked the code on how to make it stand out outside of the traditional big three that carries the main installments. A notable effort but not one worth getting to deep into.

8.) Kingdom Hearts: Re:coded

Here’s another port of a game that I played in it’s remastered version. The original Coded began as a mobile game released split into episodes until it go re-released on the Nintendo DS, making the second KH game released on that device. If anything, it’s certainly a better port in Re:Chain of Memories and works better as a DS game than 358/2 Days.

The gameplay works much more smoothly this time around with better controls and elements that work quite well for an Nintendo DS. The story itself is also much more scale back and straight forward despite it certainly feeling like one of the more inconsequential tales ever told in the series, even if it does take place almost entirely in a parallel data world. Even then, there’s not much about this game that stands out as it’s own. Most of it feels like a retread of prior games with not much new things to offer or features that are improved on. It’s just kinda there.

You can do a coin flip between which is the better of the two DS games in the series but I go with Re:Coded because of the more fluent gameplay and I did at least feel more invested in the story this time around as oppose to 358/2 Days. Even so, you’re better off just watching the cutscenes of both DS games in the PS4 collection if you really need to know how the story progresses.

7.) Kingdom Hearts (3D): Dream Drop Distance

The first one in the series I had any experience playing with it, mostly from the demo that was available on the 3DS e-shop. On paper, Dream Drop Distance feels like it should be the most interesting side game of Kingdom Hearts. It puts a focus on Sora and Riku’s early days where they work their way to become keyblade masters as they must pass their Mark of Mystery exam under Yen Sid in the wake of Xehanort’s return. This is also one that puts the most focus on Riku as a side main character and give him the most playing time out of any of the games thus far. And then there’s the dream drop mechanic that’s introduced.

It’s definitely at it’s most engaging when it puts the focus strictly on Sora and Riku’s journey as we get more exploration of their friendship and how they work to achieve goals to become one with the Keyblade. The gameplay at it’s core is also about as good as the main series installments with the right mix of combat, upgrades, RPG elements, and Disney worlds that make these games as fun as they are. It’s just unfortunate that the main Dream Drop gimmick itself, or strictly known as Dream Eaters in the game, doesn’t really offer that much to the experience and can honestly take away from it. The whole “one character sleeps and then the other character wakes up” element is rather redundant and gets old very quick.

The main core problem of Dream Drop Distance is that of the actual dream mechanic itself. It doesn’t feel needed and mostly only exists to provide a different “spin” to the series. An enjoyable experience overall and one that was (surprisingly) quite well translated from the 3DS to the PS4 but it could have reached greatness if they just ditch its useless gimmick entirely or at least made better use of it.

6.) Kingdom Hearts 0.2: Birth By Sleep- A Fragmentary Passage

The one that has the most confusing title and placement in the entire series. This is as the point where the series got so ridiculous with it’s lore, universe building and going back-and-forth between the timelines of each new game that it has almost become a self-parody. This was also the one that mostly became part of the collection titled, 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue. However, putting all of that baggage aside and looking at it as it’s own thing, A Fragmentary Passage is actually pretty damn good.

This put a major focus on the fan-favorite character known as Aqua as we basically check in on her after the secret ending of Birth By Sleep. It’s able to provide more depth to Aqua than before and give you even more reasons to care about her. It also gave a taste of the kind of gameplay that we would get later on in III that is absolutely fun and fluid. Even so, it’s a very brief installment that can be beaten around two to three hours tops. So much so that it’s mostly comes across as a tech demo for Kingdom Hearts III rather than it’s own game.

A Fragmentary Passage was when Square Enix was fairly cut and dry of their intent to milk this franchise as much as possible until they were finally caring enough to give us the next big chapter. From a cynical standpoint, this should be much lower. However from an objective standpoint of the game, I couldn’t help but enjoy getting to spend more time with Aqua. I guess I’m part of the problem.

5.) Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory

The music has always been a strength of Kingdom Hearts. Whether it’s a remix of a well-known Disney track or it’s own original sound, these games tend to have absolutely beautiful music that is always a treat to the ears. Because of that, why not create a rhythm game that acts as a nice trip down memory lane and showing off the franchise’s most iconic piece of music?

It’s here we see a re-telling of the story of the Dark Seeker Saga through the eyes of Kairi. Because of that, we go through just about every notable level through every Kingdom Hearts game to date and get reminded along the way of what an outstanding soundtrack this franchise has tended to have. Every notable character from the Kingdom Hearts series is playable and divided into four main party grouping with Team Classic, Team Days, Team 3D, and Team BBS, along with playable Disney characters that are a part of their respective worlds/franchises. Think of this as the Sonic Heroes of Kingdom Hearts except less clunky and repetitive.

There’s not much here that pushes the series forward in any way except for the final cutscenes that give a potential hint towards the future, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t have a blast revisiting the ups and downs of this franchise to date in song form. Melody of Memory doesn’t try to sell itself as anything but what it is. Because of that, it’s able to succeed perfectly on it’s own distinct merits.

4.) Kingdom Hearts III

The first ever Kingdom Hearts game that I played all the way through involves the follow-up that was 13 years in the making. The long-awaited mainline sequel that is Kingdom Hearts III finally arrived in 2019, proving that Square Enix is not afraid of the number three. Everyone has an opinion on it but I think everyone would agreed that this certainly was an experience.

If we are talking STRICTLY in terms of gameplay, this might ranked even higher on the list. The gameplay itself is INCREDIBLY fun (at least once I actually know what I was doing) as it has never been more of a pleasure to fight enemies, collect items, and upgrade your weapons to be as powerful as you and your amigos, Donald and Goofy, can possibly be. The Disney worlds, while have less than the first two main games, are much bigger, brander, wider in scope, and perfectly resembles the original worlds from which movie it came from that is a treat to explore. It also very gorgeous to look at with great music throughout and hysterical banter between the characters. It’s just unfortunate that the story and pacing get in the way quite a bit. Certain cutscenes drag on for way too long, the Disney worlds themselves don’t impact the core story, there’s not much progression until the last third of the game, and has an ending while bittersweet, leaves quite a bit of loose ends solely designed to set up the next main saga of the series. I also could have gone without hearing Let It Go for the 900th time. While the gameplay is as fun as it has ever been, it’s elements of the story that dragged it down.

I believe your reaction to Kingdom Hearts III will likely depend on how long you have been a fan of the franchise and what you look for in a Kingdom Hearts game. For those that come for the core gameplay and playing through Disney worlds, they will probably be more than satisfied. For those heavily invested in the story and lore, then they may feel that the game left a bit to be desired. Even then, I don’t think it would be a true Kingdom Hearts game without some imperfections. Can this game be described as a mess? Perhaps. But does it remain a fun, engaging, and lovable mess that I really enjoyed playing. Absolutely!

3.) Kingdom Hearts

The one that started it all and launched one of the most iconic franchises in gaming history. Providing a unique spin on the good vs evil tale with the main conflict of the series between the heart and the heartless while also introducing characters from the Disney and Final Fantasy series along with being able to explore many of their worlds. If you ever imagine yourself wanting to fight alongside the likes of Hercules or Aladdin and play a part in their stories with your own avatar character, this is basically what you get.

Sora himself is a very likable and interesting protagonist that is more than convincing to be fighting alongside Donald and Goofy. His relationship with Riku and Kairi is engaging, giving him the perfect motivation that anyone can get behind and relate too. The gameplay itself, while clunky at times, is able to find that rare combination between action and role-playing that would become a staple of the series. The Disney worlds themselves are a pleasure to explore and mix well with the Square elements thrown into the mix. And who could ever desire to diss the pitch-perfect score from the great Shimomura? I could have done without the gummi ships though. At least for this game.

While there are features that are undeniably dated and did introduces flaws that would become carry over to other games (the parry attack is absolute garbage), but it also introduces plenty of strengths that would be expanded and even improved upon in latter games that help make Kingdom Hearts stand the test of time. With a game that has a concept so bizarre and silly, it’s quite astounding how simple and clean the whole experience is.

2.) Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep

This was Square Enix’s second attempt to make a game that took the focus away from Sora and put three new characters in the spotlight, with the former only showing in a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo at some point in the secret ending. Unlike with 358/2 Days, it actually succeeds this time out and making it one of the very best games in the franchise.

Story aside, this is probably the best of the entire franchise and possibly the most personal. Terra, Ventus, and Aqua are all very engaging characters with stories and conflicts that are very easy to get invested in. Unlike with 358/2 Days, it never goes too overboard with the lore and complexity of it’s story that it ruins the investment. You are able to plays as all three characters in any way you want and see a unique perspective of each one of their stories. So much so that I enjoy following these characters just as much as I do with Sora, Donald, and Goofy. The gameplay is still as fun and air tight as the best installments in the franchise are, even if it can become repetitive with playing similar stories three times over but just done in different orders, with Aqua in particular standing out as one of my personal favorite characters to play in any of the games. The only downside is that the Disney worlds themselves, while not bad, don’t stick out as much or is as fun to go through as some of the other entries.

Before Birth By Sleep, it was hard to imagine caring about a Kingdom Hearts game that didn’t focus strictly on Sora and his pals. Now, if by some chance, Square Enix decided to take the main focus away from Sora and apply to any one of these main characters in this game, then I might be quite on board with it. I guess anything is truly possible.

1.) Kingdom Hearts II

And the one that stands proudly above all is no other than Kingdom Hearts II itself. Okay, yes, it does have an admittedly overlong prologue that take too long to get to the point despite having some of my favorite moments in the game. Yes, it sucked you basically had to suffer through Chain of Memories, in a time where you couldn’t just look up the cutscenes on YouTube, to even have a clue of how this game starts. Once you get those two issues out of the way, KH II stands as the best Kingdom Hearts game, one of the best RPGs, and even one of the best gaming sequels of all time.

This has the right mix of everything I look for in a Kingdom Hearts game and has the best versions of many of the things I’ve come to love about the series. The story is darker and more engaging, the characters are all fun and worth investing in, the controls and gameplay are even better than the first game, the combat and RPG elements work wonders, the Disney worlds (save for Atlantica) are more properly implemented and serve even more purpose to the story, and the soundtrack is one of my absolute favorites in any game (The House of Dragon being the main stand out for me!). Heck, even the Gummi Ships are actually tolerable this time out. Even the prologue I mention at the beginning which most folks like to complain about, has it’s moments (Twilight Town is just magical!).

When it comes to which Kingdom Hearts game is the best one, I feel is all about the one that has the proper balance. The game that is able to blend it’s story, characters, world, universe, and of course, gameplay together beautifully without any end of the spectrum that gets left out. There are certain games in the series I feel suffer from that but Kingdom Hearts II absolutely does not. If you have ever wanted to understand the appeal of Kingdom Hearts and why it resonates with so many people, all you have to do is play through this game and you can totally see why.

And there you have it! As Square Enix has stated, there are more Kingdom Hearts content in the works, with Kingdom Hearts IV on the rise. And whatever comes next will be the first chapter to a brand new saga for the series. Will it work out? Who knows but for those that are still around, it will surely be intriguing to find out together. Let’s hope for the best!

Also, Mickey is the worst king ever! Just saying!

Last weekend saw the very first episode of the brand new series, The Last of Us, dropped on HBO Max. A series premiere that fans and critics have fell in love with. It has gotten strong reviews all around and was watched by 4.7 million viewers on it’s first day, the second-biggest viewership for HBO since 2010. While I still haven’t seen it myself since I don’t own HBO Max anymore and I’m not gonna pirate it, that looks to be the general consensus as far as I’m aware. However, when there’s an adaption of a video game that is transition into a show or movie, the big looming questions is always asked from articles everywhere. The kind of questions that have honestly become redundant because of how inaccurate it is.

Those questions being whether this certain adaption will finally be the one that breaks the so- called video game adaption curse and whether this will be the first actual “good” video game adaption? Even when an adaption gets positively received by fans or critics, this question always tend to get asked every time, almost as if the previous ones that people were raving about never existed at all? It’s a never ending repetitive cycle that constantly rewrites history. It also doesn’t help that Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann utter that exact same phrase when promoting the series.

I once stated in my Uncharted movie review last year that there’s basically two ways which an adaption of a video game can work well. 1.) It has to be a medium that is not exclusively based off a video game but it’s ultimately ABOUT video games. 2.) It has to be a medium based around a certain genre or sub-genre that the games are based off of instead of being strictly a faithful adaption of the games. However, there is one more way I forgot to add that is arguably the most important one. 3.) They have to work as more than just games but also as compelling stories in their own right. These are reasons why prior video game adaptations has failed and why more recent adaptions have worked as of late. So much so that I think it’s time to stop implying about this video game adaptation curse saying and see that these can work with the right property and right material to back it up with.

As much as there are plenty of folks that are gonna praised The Last of Us series as being the Batman Begins or Iron Man of video game adaptions, as in the one that will kick the doors open for plenty other video game studios to try to give their successful IPs a try on the big screen or on a streaming service, I would argue this is when they will reach their peak. A peak that is actually been building up for a few years now that I think it’s fair to take notice of and give credit where it’s due. What exactly has been that build up do you ask? I said you have to go back to six to seven years ago.

I would argue that 2016-2017 was the last truly bad time for video game adaptions with the releases of Angry Birds, Warcraft, Assassin’s Creed, and especially Resident Evil: The Final Chapter. Although it was arguably the time where studios were trying to take their video game adaptions a little more seriously and make them work in movie form, all four of these failed to even come close to meeting a single one of the three definitions I previously mentioned of what makes a good video game adaption. They either went too far in one direction or too far in the other to completely failed as adaptions or even just stand-alone pictures. What might have been seen as the nail on the coffin for video game adaptions, it honestly was more of the beginning of the end of lackluster video game adaptions.

2018 saw the releases of Tomb Raider and Rampage, two adaptions that were FAR from perfect but was mostly a step in the right direction for video game adaptions. Even if it suffer from trying to pull too much from the source material, they were entertaining enough where it work as simple popcorn entertainment. It shows a glimmer of how video game adaptions these can work. Mostly if you just play in the right sandbox of other successful genres/sub-genres and carry enough material from the games, then that might just enough to carry a feature film. This ended up being just a glimmer to a much birther picture ahead.

2019 was even better with the likes of Pokemon: Detective Pikachu and Angry Birds 2, the first two video game movies to be given a fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. These were 100% proof that these adaption can work outside of it’s core fanbase or being necessarily “critic” proof, they can work (somewhat) as critical darling or as mainstream audience entertainment as well. You don’t have to sacrifice one end or the other. They were sweet, funny, heartfelt, and was able to take elements of the source material that is able to work in movie form while (mostly) leaving out things that didn’t work. Not slam dunks but another step in the right direction. Of course, this wave of success would only continue the next year or even the next few years after that, mostly thanks to a little blue hedgehog and his furry friends.

After being delayed due to backlash over the character designs, Sonic the Hedgehog finally made his way onto the big screen in 2020. It made just enough money and warrant enough praise from fans and critics that a sequel got greenlighted, which would come out just two years later. A sequel which many would argue that not only was it better than the first one but possibly the best video game movie ever made. One that was able to add in fan-favorite characters such as Tails and Knuckles along with corporating more elements from the game such as the Chaos Emeralds and still have it work as it’s own things that both fans and mainstream audiences could enjoy.

This had to be a sign that the video game adaption curse is now a myth. Sure, other adaptions that came out recently such as Monster Hunter, Mortal Kombat, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, and Uncharted might have been met with a middled to negative response but even then, 1.) those were all either in development hell for years or was rushed out so quickly that they had a very slim chance of working and 2.) the success of the Sonic movies was so big for video game adaptions that it ultimately didn’t matter. However, there is one more adaption that it’s worth mentioning. A series on Netflix that has been so well acclaimed from just about anyone that has watched it. A show which as of right now, has a perfect 100% approval critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an audience score right around the mid to high 90s.

While Netflix also has had another successful video game adaption series with Cuphead, there hasn’t been one great than that of Arcane. A series that even at the time it came out in 2021, was automatically declared to be the best adaption for a video game to date. It was able to bring the things that fans loved about the games such as the character, lore, and world building and make it worth not only as a faithful adaption but also one that can work greatly for those who are unfamiliar with it’s source material. A series which set the record as Netflix’s highest-rated series at the time within a week of its premiere, ranked first on the Netflix Top 10 Chart in 52 countries, and ranked second on the chart in the United States. It also became the first ever streaming series to win a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program and even won an Annie Award for Best General Audience Animated Television Broadcast Production.

That right there is good enough to declare this curse for video game adaptions over. While there have been bad ones along the way and more will come our way, the ones that are good will stand strong and should not be overlooked for how successful they are. In recent years, with the amount of quality video game adaptions we are receiving, it might be time to stop doubting and instead give these kind of adaptions the benefit of the doubt. It didn’t start with The Last of Us series, it has been working it’s way for the past few years and at long last, has been finally able to climb to the very top of the mountain.

Don’t take this piece as me trying to devalue the success that The Last of Us series will clearly have along with it’s impact that it will have on future video game adaptions. What I’m trying to say is that it’s okay to admit that an adaption of a video game in movie or show form can actually be good. It’s okay to give credit where it’s due to the good ones of these and not just bluntly ignore them because of the inevitable bad ones that has and will come along the way. Let’s not just give all the credit to The Last Of Us or Arcane while giving zero to all the others that came before them because it’s top tier in these forms of adaption.

The point I’m trying to make in all of this is that I think it’s time to admit that this so-called video game adaption curse is broken and we shouldn’t have needed The Last Of Us to confirm that. The proof was right in front of us the whole time. Perhaps now the discussion isn’t shouldn’t be on whether or not that the video game adaption curse is broken but more on whether or not it has fully reached it’s peak thanks to The Last of Us. That is a discussion about video game adaption that is well worth having.

Now, bring on the Super Mario Bros movie!

My very first Cinema Sins video I ever watched was not actually from Cinema Sins itself. That video came from a review of the video game, Sonic Adventure 2. During that review, there was a section that the reviewer went into great details of the plot of that game and counted the number of bugs, plot holes, inconsistences, convivences, etc. that the story itself contained. This was not meant to be a rip off of Cinema Sins itself. As a matter of fact, that review actually got uploaded on YouTube just ONE day AFTER Cinema Sins released their first ever video. Unless that reviewer was able to crave up an entire half-an-hour long review overnight after watching Cinema Sin’s first video and being able to submit it through YouTube just one day later, that was strictly meant to be it’s own thing that the reviewer just came up with without any influence involved. Little did I know that video would ultimately be a foreshadow has to not just the rise of Cinema Sins but also the fall of it as well, at least when it comes to losing their appeal to me.

Cinema Sins has been going on for ten years now, just coming off their ten-year anniversary last month with they released their first video titled Everything Wrong With The Amazing Spider-Man, which was uploaded on YouTube on December 11, 2012. Since then, I think it’s fairly safe to say that they have had a big impact on the way that people on social media critiques feature films. While I’m sure that was not the intention from the beginning and the folks behind those videos just wanted to have some fun, their influence has become clear the more time passes and each new video that they uploaded. The kind of critiquing that goes beyond simply cherry picking certain things you didn’t like or notice about a movie initially but more of opening the flood gates to the most insane nitpicking and grasping through straws imaginable. Creating these one-note mindsets to always trying to find some sort of overarching flaw that makes the movie one is critiquing as “objectively bad”. Two words I am sick and tired of seeing come together for just about everything.

I’ll admit during their early years, mostly between 2012-2015, I was actually a big fan of them. I thought it was a neat idea to finding the most pointless nitpicks just for shits and giggles while seeing how much “sins” they could actually find in the shortest span of time possible. I found it to be nothing more than pure entertainment with discovering the kind of extras or random things that I didn’t recognize before on a first viewing and mostly getting a chuckle out of it without it changing my overall opinion on each film in a big way. I would never recommend their videos to anyone who wanted to hear in-depth arguments as to why a certain film is bad or flawed but more to those that want to pass their time by watching someone point out random or pointless things they didn’t notice when they first watch said movie. Sure, some of the puns and jokes can be a bit tasteless and even at times, misogynist (*scene does not contain lap dance*), but it’s a fun idea involving movie discourse that is not meant to be taken that seriously. However, as time went on, it seems as though that those involved with Cinema Sins didn’t seem well aware of this and have gone WAY overboard with the thing that they created. So overboard that they have become the thing that they likely did not attend to be.

Even taken out the awful impact that Cinema Sins itself created, their videos now are such an absolute drag to sit through. The videos are now longer, more tedious, less self aware, extra nitpicky, and seems to miss the point of their original intention they hard when they first made their videos. It’s now gotten to the point where it’s the little things that take you out of their videos. Things such as the sins they find mostly don’t make any sense, their jokes are forced, constantly drawn out, and aren’t very funny, and even key features such as the movie sin timer feel pointless as they don’t seem to add to the pace and length of each video. Instead of keeping things short, sweet, and simple like they did in the beginning, it’s now long, sour, and overly complicated.

I’ve been thinking for months just how I can find the perfect example as to what I’m talking about and how Cinema Sins itself has changed for the worse for the better part of a decade. It was then I found out that they have not begun to go back and “re-sin” the films that they did when they first started. These mostly consists of big movies that came out in 2012 such as The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Hunger Games, and Prometheus along with other big movies that were highly requested for them at the time by their viewers. I don’t think there is a better example to see how far that Cinema Sins itself has fallen in terms of quality or entertainment value than comparing two sinful videos they did of the same movie. The example I’m gonna use is the previously mentioned The Amazing Spider-Man.

First, here is the original video that they did of it back in 2012.

Now, this is the kind of videos that I enjoyed from Cinema Sins. The ones that were quick, snappy, funny, and got straight to the point. Not only does it perfectly display the clear intent of just poking fun and finding things I imagine most folks didn’t notice the first time around, but it move at just the right pace where it doesn’t feel like a chore to sit through. Regardless of what you actual feel about the movie itself, the creators of Cinema Sins were showing that this is clearly being made for entertainment purposes and not to show the world how smart and clever they are with critiquing films.

The best part about it all is how each one of the features that they included here actually serves a purpose. There’s the sin counter which is to help keep track of how many sins they could find within the movie. There’s the timer which is to show how much time it took to find as many sins in the movie as they could find. Then there’s the sentence which is basically to give the verdict on each movie largely depending on how many sins it actually contained. This is all basically like the equivalent of a game show where there comes the part where each team is trying to score as much points as possible in the limited amount of time that they have. It’s that exact pace and intensity that made their earlier videos more enjoyable to watch. It wasn’t trying to too hard or doing too much in too little time. It was just there to be entertainment and show off things no one else was mentioning with whatever film they are discussing.

Now, let’s get to the one that they recently uploaded of the same film. The one which they “re-sinned” that is pretty much the exact opposite of the true intentions as the original video.

I’m not going to go into every little detail as to why this sins video is flawed as hell but you can definitely see there is a clear difference between their original one and this one. Where as the original video was quick, quippy, snappy, and movie at a fast clip, this one feels much slower, more tedious, very forced, and constantly drags. It’s the things pointed out in the first minute that take you out of it such as referencing Ready or Not, a movie that came literally SEVEN years after this movie did, or sinning the movie because it (or any other Spider-Man movie) didn’t have Chameleon. Or how there are sins being made mostly because it didn’t make the narrator’s fan theories for the movie come into fruition and not really actuals sins of the movie itself. That’s not even mentioning how the original was able to find 53 sins in the span of just two minutes, but here only EIGHT of them are found in the first two minutes and takes almost 10 minutes before even getting to 53 this time around. All of this is and more is a perfect example of the absolute downgrade in quality that Cinema Sins itself has had as time moves on.

What makes it stand out more is how pointless some of the key features are now, most notably the movie sin timer. What’s even the point of keeping track the certain amount of time it takes you to find the number of sins? Especially since you are now in no rush and you simple take your sweet ass time critiquing and finding the most bizarre nitpick you can think off that you think can qualify as a sin. You might as well get rid of it altogether as it doesn’t seem to matter to the amount of sins you find over it’s overall verdict that it receives.

The funniest thing of all is that I’m not even a fan of The Amazing Spider-Man or every single movie that they sin but even I know, that most of it is just completely nonsensical nitpicking that doesn’t really make any sense. All of this could be fine if it was funnier, moved faster, or was at least more self aware that it’s not meant to be taken seriously. But, that doesn’t seem like the intention here.

It comes off more as one of those obnoxious youtubers who make 10+ hour long reviews that are somehow much longer than the actual films they are critiquing. Just constantly finding the most random little things to get upset about and act as if they are smarter than the people who made the movies. The ones that loves to use the term “objectively bad”. I’m not saying that is the actual intent from the creators of Cinema Sins nowadays but it just comes across as that with these newer videos.

Instead of feeling like a race against time, it now feels as slow as a tortoise. Instead of being funny, it’s being cringe. Instead of getting to the point, it’s now feels the need to drag itself before getting to the point. Instead of laughing at the random things pointing out, you know are just puzzled and wonder why those things were even pointed out in the first place. Instead of feeling like entertainment, it now feels like a waste of time. Instead of finding a way, it has now lost it’s way.

I do want to make something clear that all of this is NOT meant to take a hit on the creators of Cinema Sins themselves. I’m sure they are all nice people that are just happy to be able to do this as their main job. If they still enjoy providing their own form of entertainment to their millions of subscribers, then good for them and I hope they continue to enjoy that in the near future. This is more on why I can’t stand to watch them anymore and how far they fell when it came to what I believe was their true intent when they first started their YouTube channel.

Perhaps this might have to do with the folks at Cinema Sins fallen to the same trappings that most big YouTubers tend to suffer them once they become more famous. Things such as feeling that they are bigger than they first thought they were, believing they have to live up to a specific ego, or seeing the inspiration they caused and now have the mindset to be just like them because that’s what they think they actually are now. I don’t know if any of that is true but I wouldn’t be surprised if any of that was the case.

When thinking about the run of Cinema Sins thus far, I go back to that one line that Tony Stark said at the end of Iron Man 3, “You start with something pour, something exciting. Then comes the mistakes. The compromises. We created our own demons.”

I imagine that might be the reputation that most sees Cinema Sins as and even the one that even the folks behind Cinema Sins might agree on one day if they haven’t already. Inspiring to be a positive force to movie discourse only to end up being a negative force of it. You start off with a fun idea that becomes successful which only aspires multiple copycats that ultimately took the wrong idea of what you originally intended to do. I don’t know if any of that is the case but that’s just the way I see it and why I believe Cinema Sins has feel hard and completely lost it’s way.

And just for the heck of it, here’s that Sonic Adventure 2 review that I mentioned at the beginning of the video.

For anyone familiar in the film industry, you would know that January is usually never the brightest month for movies. After the holiday blockbusters and Oscar nominated films being released at the end of the prior year, it leaves a time to where studio is practically given free realm to dump whatever movie they have zero faith in quietly onto the big screen in the hopes of not losing too much financially from it. Every once in a while you’ll get a Kung Fu Panda 3, Split, or Scream (2022), but for the most part, it’s usually a month in the dump for movies and always gives early nominations for critic for Worst Movies of the year, which they usually tend to forget until they got to make their end-of-the-year lists. While a legit good new movie to come out January is rare, a legit good movie in the very first weekend of it is even more rare. Yet here we have M3GAN, which is here to say, let’s kick off this new year in the best way they can and get us excited what 2023 has to come for films. While I can’t say M3GAN is a great movie overall, it’s a damn good one. As it’s own thing, that’s awesome but for a January movie, it’s sensational.

Premise: A roboticist/inventor named Gemma (Allison Williams) is developing a new artificial intelligence for her toy company called the Model 3 Generative Android, M3GAN for short. This AI is created to be a lifelike doll programmed to be a companion for a child and a big help towards a parent. After a terrible tragedy occurs for her little niece Cady (Violet McGraw), Gemma wants to use the M3GAN prototype in the hopes to help her heal and mourn during these troubled times. Little does anyone working on the M3GAN program know that the AI is created to be too self-aware and be massively overprotective to their child’s counterpart, so much so that it can lead to her kill and harming anyone that gets in her way. Can Gemma find a way to make the proper version of M3GAN to save herself, her niece, and the rest of the world or is it simply too much of a good thing and needs to be shut down for good?

Horror movies with the premise involving toys and AI are nothing out of the ordinary. It’s clearly done as a means to create an unrealistic threat to provide some genuine scares and brutal kills to keep the audience on their toes the whole way through. These mostly tend to provide surface level entertainment with not much commentary or unpredictability thrown into the mix. Despite it being a familiar premise, M3GAN does actually put more thought and effort to it than you would think.

While yes, M3GAN herself is clearly there in the hopes of being a new horror movie villain icon to provide the most memorable lines, laughs, moments, and especially kills, she does also exist to be at the center of a human and surprisingly heartfelt story the movie provides. She exists to be a companion to Cady in the wake of a horrific life changing event that will mentally scar her. While M3GAN is certainly the friend Cady needs now, is she really the one that should guide her for the rest of her life? Eventually she will have to put her tragic past behind her and blaze her own path. When that happens, should M3GAN still be there for her or should she be cast aside kinda like when a kid grows up and give away his toys? The movies goes into lengths of that commentary a bit more than most of these movies do.

M3GAN might be special but she is still deep down a form of technology and not a real person. No matter how hard one might work hard to create a real person through technology, you will never be able to capture the complete heart and soul of a human being. Technology is important and A.I.s can be as well but going too far with either one of those could result in replacing actual human beings. It’s then that makes the characters in the movie wonder whether special projects like M3GAN are actually worth it in the end.

Even if you are not fond of all the commentary with the relationships between human and technology, the movie does provide enough entertainment on the surface value. It’s take a while to get going as the first half-hour take it’s time to set up the human drama for the characters along with getting a bit too bogged down in exposition but once, M3GAN arrives at her new home, it starts to take off. It’s then we see the way that M3GAN interacts with her new family along with others that she believe might cause harm to them. We see her responses to that in ways that are funny, touching, scary, and especially brutal.

While no doubt M3GAN is going to open the floodgates for the most glorified memes in the upcoming days, she is sill quite entertaining and an engaging presence whenever she appears on the screen. Even if most of her actions from scene to scene are ones you can predict, hers ways of doing it and the timing off it are what will keep you off guard. It also helps that Jenna Davis provides a unique voice that helps gives the character the small sense of humanity that she deep down doesn’t have.

There are times where the tones can collided with each other a bit too much as there are certain scenes that feel like they should be funnier than they should while other scenes feel like they should be scarier than they should. It has a ending that feels rather abrupt, mostly so the final shot can give a hint at an upcoming sequel. And just like with the majority of these kind of movies, I don’t think you will be all that surprised where all of this will lead too.

Allison Williams is able to hold the whole movie on her shoulders with her captivating performance, able to balance being an ambitious creator but also being forced into being a mother figure for her nephew. She’s not quite as good her as she is in Get Out but she just might be a new lucky charm in the horror genre. Violet McGraw is admittedly a bit flat in certain scenes but is engaging enough to make you care enough. And as I mention, Jenna Davis works wonders as M3GAN, helping the character stand out in a very unique way.

I’m sure a question someone will have reading this is whether or not M3GAN would be judge differently if it came out in any other month. My answer would be Yes and No. While the flaws here are more forgiving than other films that usually come out this month, there is a certain warmth and heart here with some meaningful messaging that doesn’t feel forced or phony that helps make the picture stand out. Sure, it’s uneven and not the most unpredictable, but it definitely makes for a fun, engaging time. If movies can stand out quite well like this to start the year, than 2023 will definitely be a year to look forward to for movies.

Other comments:

• During my early advance screening of this, the promo actually spoke during it. I will definitely be seeing that in future advance screenings.

• I sure can’t wait for all the memes from this movie in the next few days.

• The marketing for this movie has been genius btw.

Last night saw an incident that was absolutely scary and heartbreaking to witness. During the Monday Night Football match-up between the Buffalo Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals, young Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field and went into cardiac arrest.

This came after delivering a tackle, which sources said felt very routine and nothing out of the ordinary. Following the play, Hamlin immediately got up on his feet only to completely collapse to the ground a split second later. As trainers and paramedic raced onto to the field less than ten seconds after it happened, they gave the kid everything they could possible give him at the moment before getting him to the hospital. CPR, defibrillation, oxygen and a IV. After that, Hamlin was taken to University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center at around 9:25 EST. He’s been reported to be in critical condition and was intubated. The game was suspended immediately after this incident occurred but was only postponed by the league about a full hour after he had collapsed.

As much as I want to take this time to go on about how poor the NFL is when it comes to taking care of their own players and of the health and safety of them, I want to talk about something else. While, yes, NFL deserves to be called out by fans and press everywhere of how it should not have took them this long to call the game, I want to put the spotlight on strictly Damar Hamlin itself. Because, no matter what happens now or how he is able to get through this process, I think there remains a good chance he had played his last ever NFL game.

Damar Hamlin is just 24 years old. He’s only played in his second season in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills after playing five seasons of college football with the Pittsburgh Panthers. He’s played a part of two very good Bills teams thus far, a core group that has potential to be Super Bowl favorites. He is also a very well respected individual off of the field, with him starting his own GoFundMe in 2020. That charity was an organization designed to organize annual Christmas toy drives in his hometown of McKees Rocks. With being a core piece to a potential elite Bills squad for years to come along with the great work he has done off the field to those who need it most, the kid seemed like he had a great, bright career ahead of him. That was until what happened last night.

As a sport fan from Missouri myself, this awful situation feels too similar to what happened to former St. Louis Blues defenseman, Jay Bouwmeester. For those who don’t know, Bouwmeester was a hockey veteran when he came to the St. Louis Blues. He was loved by fans, players, and coaches and he helped play a role in helping the Blues win their first ever Stanley Cup in 2019. However, his career came to a depressing end after collapsing on the bench and going into cardiac arrest in a game against the Anaheim Ducks on February 11, 2020. It was an incredibly scary situation to witness on tv and one that I do not wish on anyone, not even my worst enemy. While Bouwmeester was thankfully able to survive all of that, he would never play another professional hockey game again as he would miss the rest of that season and announce his retirement nearly a full year after going into cardiac arrest. All of this sounds too similar to what has just happened to Damar Hamlin.

Now, I don’t want to get into the question right now of if he should play another football game or not. What matters now is that Damar is able to make through this process and make a recovery in some form. However, this just shows the scenario of how quickly one’s career in sports could end just like that. It’s bad enough when it happens to a respected sports veteran but when it happens to a young kid who has the potential to be a breakout-star, that is just as soul crushing.

Sport athletes are never guarantee safety in the sport they play no matter how hard they try to avoid injuries. Whether the harm comes from the other team or a situation like this where the person themselves collapses on the field, a career in sports can end just as quickly as it can begin. A life-changing injury can come at you fast and ruined the one great you have worked your entire life to accomplish. That’s why we should always feel grateful to those players that are able to overcome injuries to continue playing until they decide they are done and feel nothing but sorrow whenever players’ careers end because they just couldn’t get past it. As much as sports is suppose to be entertainment, it should never come at the expense of the life of a single player no matter what game they are playing.

Right now, I just want to take this time to say that I wish nothing but the fastest recovery imaginable for Damar Hamlin and his family. I can’t imagine how scared and worried they are right now after witnessing such a scary event. No matter what happens for the rest of Hamlin’s playin career, I really hope this will all lead to some sort of light at the end of a tunnel. I just hope he is able to carry on to be the respectable individual he has made himself to be and be an inspiration of others to power through after a life-changing experience. We can only hope and pray now but hopefully, God is on Damar’s side.

Other comments:

• Between this and what happened with actor Jeremy Renner this weekend, we really need to learn not to take any famous person for granted and remember these are real human beings. No one is invisible or is guarnteed safety.

• It has been reported that after the in-game collapse, the GoFundMe campaign for his 2020 toy drive, which had an initial goal of $2,500, had received a massive influx of donors, which now has raised over $3 million in donations. That is absolutely incredible! It really shows how great the world can be when we all come together to try to make a significant difference. Massive respect to anyone that donated!

• Here’ an announcement directly from Damar Hamlin’s family that just got released:

Announcement directly from Damar’s family: pic.twitter.com/MdzgxUmVfg

— Jordon Rooney (@jordonr) January 3, 2023

2023 is looking to be a big year for movies! Whether it’s for the big franchise blockbusters or the smaller indie flicks, this looks to be a year that will have something for just about anybody that loves movies. As new year begins and we approach our very first weekend of movies for 2023, set to be kicked off by M3GAN, why not share the movies that I am looking forward to the most this year.

How I’m going to arrange this is that I will first put my ten honorable mentions in the exact order of their intended release date. Then, I will have my top ten most anticipated movies in the order that I’m most looking forward to.

Also, just to let you know, you are probably going to see mostly movies, particularly sequels, from well-known franchises/IPs on this list. Sorry if there’s not enough original movies for you but it’s usually hard to build up anticipation for those because we usually know little to nothing about them at the beginning of the year aside from the names involved with it. I do have a few mentioned here but that’s mostly based on the talent involved with it and not so much based off of trailers, marketing, and such. So, fair warning on that part.

Let’s not waste any more time and start off with ten honorable mentions (in order of release date):

Knock At The Cabin (February 3rd)

Say what you will about M. Night Shyamalan (and I can sure say a lot) but no one does films like he does. His latest entry based off the 2018 novel, The Cabin at the End of the World, seems like it will be one of those psychological horror thrillers that is “so bad it’s good” or be an engaging/intense ride. I don’t know which half it will be but I’m definitely curious to see how it turns out. Also, it’s nice to see Dave Bautista continuing to grow as an actor.

Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania (February 17th)

I think most folks don’t realize how big of a movie this is going to be for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not only will this most likely help set the stage for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars but it will also established the Ant-Man movies as being perhaps among the most important in this universe. While the first two movie were relatively self-contained and somewhat inconsequential, Quantumania will give Peyton Reed the chance to make an epic in-scale Ant-Man adventure that will surely give Marvel fans a taste of what is to come. Let’s see how round three goes with Paul Rudd!

Cocaine Bear (February 24th)

This mention is mostly based off it’s surprisingly amusing trailer that came out recently. Based off a true story of the actual “Cocaine Bear”, Elizabeth Bank is looking to add a black comedy spin to this real-life tale. With a solid cast and a premise this crazy, this could be a really fun time. I just hope this is something where the true events don’t feel insultingly done or that this is a story that is worth poking fun with/at. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see!

Creed III (March 3rd)

The upcoming entry in the Rocky franchise has gotten under the radar from a lot of people. The first two Creed movies were a textbook example on how to do these kinds of legacy sequels right but this one looks as though it will have to forge it’s own path. With this being the first installment in the series to not have Stallone’s Rocky in it as his story seemed to have wrapped up nicely in the last one, this will see Michael B Jordan in the complete forefront, both in front of the camera AND behind the camera, where he will make his official directing debut. It’s undeniably unfamiliar territory for this series but let’s see how it turns out.

Scream VI (March 10th)

A year later and we already got another Scream movie, which will release just 14 months after the last one. You can definitely argue that this series has worn out it’s welcome but if this remains as entertaining as last year’s entry was, then I won’t have a problem with seeing more. The big downside here is that the face of the franchise Neve Campbell won’t be returning as Sidney after being insultingly lowballed by executives. We’ll see if these younger stars will be able to carry the baton they are given now to make this another entertaining installment. At least, Hayden Panettiere as Kirby will be back though.

Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts (June 9th)

2018’s Bumblebee was a nice and welcoming surprise for the Transformers franchise that gave it another leash on life. Despite the initial low box office numbers, it has apparently gained enough popularity since then for there to be a follow-up. With this one taking inspiration from the Beast Wars storyline, Steven Caple Jr. is looking to continue what Travis Knight started with the last one and crafting a Transformers live-action flick that best resembles the brand. Let’s hope there is even more Transformer focus and action than before!

Elemental (June 16th)

I am always curious to see what Pixar does with a new movie. I’m even more curious to see what they do with it involves an original idea. While this does sound like an odd premise that I’m not entirely sure can carry a whole film, I will definitely be there in theaters to see how it turns out. Hopefully this doesn’t turn out to be another The Good Dinosaur.

The Marvels (July 28th)

I honestly think this has a chance to be a legit surprise for many people. While the first Captain Marvel got a quite lukewarm reaction, I think the ingredients are here for a better follow-up. We’ll get to see Brie Larson as Carol Danvers team up with Iman Vellani’s Kamala Kahn and Teynoah Parris’s Monica Rambeau to save the world. If those three end up having the right chemistry together and if Nia DaCosta’s directing skills is up to the task, then this could potentially be to Captain Marvel what The Winter Soldier was to Captain America and what Ragnarok was to Thor. Of course we have to see for ourselves but I got quite a good feeling about this one.

Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom (December 25th)

With what is looking to be the finale to whatever we are suppose to call this DC movie universe for the last decade, Jason Moama and James Waan will be back for one last ride together before James Gunn and Peter Safran hit the reset button. I’m not entirely sure what to expect but no doubt we will be gifted with a beautiful, action packed spectacle just like last time around that might be good enough to distract you from everything else going on in the world. Regardless how it turns out, it should at least provide some much needed escapism for the holidays.

Killers Of The Flower Moon (TBD)

I’m not gonna pretend I know anything about this movie or the book that it’s based upon. All I do know is that Martin Scorsese is back in the director’s chair with Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro returning by his side so that’s good enough for me. Can we just please not ask Martin anymore about Marvel movies? Pretty please!

Here we go with the main top ten!

10.) Barbie (July 21st)

Yeah, yeah, I see you laughing but hear me out! I do think this has a chance to be legit good. It has a tremendously talented cast and crew and there’s plenty of fun things you can do with this absurd premise. If the correct approach is used when tackling this material and they are able to find the right balance of humor, meta, and self-awareness, this could be like a live-action equivalent of The Lego Movie. You might find that insane but it’s got the right people to make that happen. Great Gerwig has a near-perfect track record thus far and I believe she’s gonna step it up big time with this one. Also, it will have Margot Robbie in a swimsuit. How can any of us lose?

9.) Shazam: Fury Of The Gods (March 17th)

While we awaited the inevitable outcome of the beginning of the end of this DC universe, we will at least be blessed to see another Shazam! movie before that occurs. The original Shazam! was a refreshingly fun and heartfelt superhero flick that felt like the kind of comic book flick I imagined myself wanting to make as a kid. With Fury of the Gods, it’s looking to expand on the themes of family that the first one provided even further along with giving more screen time for the family in their super forms. I don’t expect this to be my favorite movie of the year but this should still make for some more nice time spend with this lovable group of superheroes.

8.) The Super Mario Bros. Movie (April 7th)

On the surface, this movie should have several red flags attached to it. It’s being made by Illumination Animation who is known for making below average and forgettable kids movies that are always somehow a big box office success. It’s also a movie adaption of a video game series which should also raise some level of concern despite recent success with it. However, with what we have seen so far, the Mario movie seems to be hitting all the right notes. The animation is jaw dropping, the aesthetics and music feel like they are ripped straight out of the games, making Luigi the damsel in distress instead of Princess Peach is absolute genius, and holy smokes it will even have Mario Kart in it! Yes, we’ll likely still have Chris Pratt trying (and failing) to pull off a convincing Mario voice but if the rest of the movie can deliver, then we can live with it. Let’s-a-go!

7.) Dune: Part Two (November 3rd)

Denis Villeneuve returns once again to finish what he started by giving closure to the original story of Dune. We will see the majority of the cast members from the first one return here along with a couple of new faces. This is looking to be another sci-fi tale of revenge and vengeance as Paul Atreides will look to avenge his family from the conspirators. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee. Part One ended on an intriguing cliffhanger, hopefully Part Two is able to stick the landing. If it does, then perhaps we even see even more from this world of Dune and these movies will be looked upon as being some of the finest accomplishments in sci-fi history.

6.) John Wick: Chapter 4 (March 24th)

It’s another John Wick movie! I don’t need to say anything else!

5.) Guardian Of The Galaxy Volume 3 (May 5th)

Our favorite galactic band of misfits is finally coming back to the big screen with what is looking to be their last adventure together. After watching The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special back during the holidays, it made me realize just how much I love these characters and how much I will miss them when they are gone. With what is looking like his final work with Marvel Studios, James Gunn is looking to finish his trilogy on a high note delivering the perfect amount of character, humor, heart, and emotion that he provided with his first two Guardians movies along with something extra. I don’t know if I’ll be ready to say goodbye to these characters but no doubt I’ll be ready to watch this once it hit theaters in May.

4.) Oppenheimer (July 21st)

Similar to a few directors I’ve already mentioned, Christopher Nolan is a director whose movies I’m always curious to check out regardless of what I thought of the previous one. The man just has the kind of distinct vision and grand mindset that very few directors have. Here, he will lead a cast filled with just about every notable star in Hollywood (seriously go look the cast up) about J. Robert Oppenheimer, the American theoretical physicist credited with being the “father of the atomic bomb” for his role in the Manhattan project. Like with Nolan’s prior movies, this will no doubt be worth the IMAX experience and one you’ll at least want to see in any kind of theaters. Between this and Barbie, July 21st will likely go down as being the most interesting weekend of movies in 2023.

3.) Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny (June 30th)

What can I say? I’m a sucker for a new Indiana Jones flick! I love them all, even the one that everyone says it’s bad I actually kinda like. There’s plenty to be curious about with this one. How will a new Indy movie fare without Stephen Spielberg as director and George Lucas as writer/producer? How can Harrison Ford still be believable in his iconic role when he is now in his 80s? Will the de-ageing effects be at least more real than say Luke Skywalker or Grand Moff Tarkin? Those are all questions I’m extremely interested in seeing answers to. These movies are just a blast to watch and I’m definitely game for at least one more. If it’s good, then we get another great Indiana Jones movie. If it’s bad, then we can just pretend the third (or fourth one) was the last one.

2.) Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning- Part One (July 14th)

The beginning of what likely will be the end of Tom Cruise’s run with these movies. I can’t think of a franchise that simply refuses to peak like this one. Ever since Part III, they just seem to get better and better with each new installment. Somehow always finding ways to top themselves in terms of action, stunts, stakes, and the impossible missions. With Part One of what is supposed to be the final story of Mission Impossible, Christopher McQuirre and Tom Cruise are looking to save the best ones for last, making the impossible even more impossible by being able to top themselves after Rogue Nation and Fallout. Will they succeed? Who knows! However, no doubt it will be really fun to watch them try.

1.) Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse (June 2nd)

If you know me, you would have most likely guessed that this would be number one. Into the Spider-Verse was my favorite movie of 2018 along with one of my favorite superhero movies ever and I have been desperately been looking forward to a sequel ever since. For what we’ve seen, this is looking to deliver everything that people loved about the first one in even grander fashion. The animation looks more beautiful and creative, the Spider-Verse looks like it’ll be even more fun to explore, the relatable themes from the first one will likely carry over, the actions looks even more epic and packed, and anyone’s favorite version of Spider-Man will get their moment to shine here. The wait for this movie has been killing me but I got a good sense it will all be worth it by the time it comes out. Spider-Man is one of my personal favorite characters and I will always look forward to seeing him on the big screen. With Across the Spider-Verse, it’s looking as if I will get exactly that and even more.

In regards to other notable movies that didn’t make the list:

• M3Gan could be fun and scary but it’s a January movie.
• I’ve never seen a Magic Mike movie before but a new one is coming out in February for those that are interested.
• Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey will probably be an unintentional comedic masterpiece.
• I’m burnt out on Fast & Furious movies but a tenth one is out in May that I may check out if I’m bored.
• The Little Mermaid will likely be another massively inferior Disney live-action remake.
• The Flash is……the Flash (and Ezra Miller *shivers*).
• Not the biggest Wes Anderson fan but I might give Asteroid City a chance.
• I’ve lost track on the Insidious movies so I will likely not check out Fear The Dark.
• Hopefully Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem will be the first legit good TMNT movie since TMNT (2007).
• Blue Beetle exists I guess.
• The Equalizer 3 and The Expendables 4 also just exist.
• Kraven The Hunter is getting his own movie believe it or not. Hopefully, it’s another Morbius.
• A tenth Saw movie is coming out as well. I’ve lost track of that series as well.
• I was indifferent to the Hunger Games movies aside from Catching Fire but The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes could be a new fresh start for the series.
• I’ve never got around to the Trolls movies so I won’t see the third one.
• Wish is the new Disney Animation movie but we know nothing about it yet.
• I surprisingly don’t have much interested in Wonka but Timothee Chalamet is perfect casting and I can see Paul King surprise us all once again like he did with Paddington.
• The Color Purple feels like yet another unnecessary remake.
• I didn’t care much for Ghostbusters: Afterlife so I don’t think it’s sequel will do much for me. I’m also not the biggest Ghostbuster fan in general.