Author: Adam

It’s interesting to see Shazam! Fury of the Gods coming out around the same time as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Not just in the sense that they both act as sequels that aim to go bigger, better, and wider scoped than it’s predecessors, which were mainly smaller scaled, lighthearted adventures. Or that both movies tend to put more emphasis on the main villains this time around that could factor into the future (or not). And of course, both movies have received a rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes, scored less than an A- from Cinemascore, and on track to perform even less at the box office than their predecessors.

It’s safe to say that we now live in that time where critics and mainstream audiences don’t seem to be overly impressed with the superhero movie sub-genre anymore. Whether it’s because they’ve gotten worse or that everyone has seen just about everything it has to offer is up to you, but a comic book movie that’s just a simple B or B+ just doesn’t seem to get a free pass anymore. And just like with Quantumania, I’m baffled that out of all the recent superhero movies to come out, that and Fury of the Gods seems to be the one to have broken the camels back. Not just because neither properties have proven to be the most successful brand (at least financially) but because they really aren’t that bad.

To be sure, Fury of the Gods is certainly better than Quantumania and, if we are going by recent DC superhero movies, Black Adam. However, I would go as far to say that Fury of the Gods itself is a pretty solid sequel that gives you most of what you would expect a Shazam! sequel to consist of. No, it’s not as good as the original but I really don’t think it’s falls short by that much. If we’re going by some of these reviews, you would assume that Shazam 2! is to the original Shazam! what Mean Girls 2 was to the original Mean Girls. If anything a better comparison would be to that of Deadpool 2 and to some extent Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. In the sense, that both sequels deliver most of the same goods as the original and it all still works but lacks that freshness and “Wow!” factor that the original had. Back in 2017 and 2018, that seemed to be acceptable but five to six years later, I guess not.

Premise: Bestowed with the powers of the gods, Billy Batson (Zachary Levi/Asher Angel) and his fellow foster kids are still learning how to juggle teenage life with their adult superhero alter egos. When a vengeful trio of ancient gods arrives on Earth in search of the magic stolen from them long ago, Shazam and his allies get thrust into a battle for their superpowers, their lives, and the fate of the world.

(Yeah, I’m not going to go too deep into the description because the movie has already been out for a few days and don’t want to delay this review any further. Even so, I don’t think there’s a ton in this movie that you won’t be able to predict except for a cameo with a certain someone that WB apparently already spoiled in the TV spots. That honestly would have been cool to not know about going into the movie but oh well.)

The main thing that Shazam! Fury of the Gods makes sure to deliver is the one thing that was teased the most at the end of the first movie, which is the family of superheroes fighting alongside each other. There are certain ones that don’t get as much screen time as others (*cough* Eugene) or get as much time in their kid form (*cough* Billy Batson) but they are no doubt fun to watch whenever they are screen. Whenever they are dealing with their own personal family dynamics in their kid forms or their everyday superhero lives in their adult forms, it’s always engaging. While a big portion of that has to do with how lovable the characters themselves are, the one main factor to it as to do with how charming the cast themselves are.

The cast who were great in the first movie are still great here. To start off with the elephant in the room that is Zachary Levi, I think he’s still fine and enjoyable here. Yes, there are times throughout the movie where he comes close to developing the personality of a full-on man child and the less said about his anti-vax views the better but he still has a likable screen presence that it’s easy to ignore whenever you are watching the movie. The downside to so much screen time given to Shazam! strictly is that Ashel Angel gets much less time as Billy himself this time around. While putting more focus on the superhero family itself was definitely the right way to go, there’s not nearly enough of a balance between the kid and adult forms this time around as there probably should be.

As for the rest of the returning cast, they all fit quite well albeit in their kid or adult-like forms. The ones that shine the most is Jack Dylan Grazer as Freddy Freeman, Grace Caroline Currey as Mary, and Meagan Good and Faithe Herman as Darla Dudley. Graze in particular is the one that gets the most interaction with the other cast members outside of the family themselves and he’s steal about every scene he is in. His dynamics in particular with Djimoun Hounsou as the original Shazam! and the other new villains are major stand-outs. Hounsou himself gets more to do this time around and definitely is where the film’s biggest laughs comes from. The other returning members do good but don’t have as many standout moments as the ones already mention.

When it comes to the new additions, particularly from the antagonist side, that’s where the movie falters. While there is more focus on the villains this time around with the daughters of Atlas, there’s not much to their characters other than they are powerful goddesses that want revenge on Shazam! and his family. The actresses are all good in their roles with Rachel Zegler being a delightful presence as Anthea, Helena Mirren being a ton of fun as Hespera, and Lucy Liu chewing up the scenery every opportunity that she gets. If anything, it’s largely the entertaining performance from the actresses that helps add the non-existent depth to the characters they were playing. As being the mere bad guys/girls of the picture, they are functional but certainly not on the list of greatest villains in superhero movie history.

When it comes to carrying the heart, tone, and resonating family themes of the first one, the movie is able to do that quite well. It’s probably more “funny” than it should be but it does help make it for a very feel-good time. I still enjoy the lighthearted nature of the whole thing that felt reminisce to classic superhero flicks I grew up with such as Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man and Christopher Reeve’s Superman. I like how it puts a big focus on the majority of the family members on the verge of becoming fully grown adults. And man, does it ever feel nice to see superheroes act like actual superheroes by saving civilians every chance that they get.

If you are someone that was just looking to spend more time with this cast and characters for the sequel, then you should definitely get your money’s worth. So much so, that I would have a hard time imaging someone that thoroughly enjoyed the first movie won’t enjoy their time here. Everything that folks loved about the original is still presence here, even if it’s not as “fresh” as before.

That’s not to say the movie itself is perfect because it’s clearly not. The third act does evolve into the same CGI and action-heavy tropes that most superheroes movies have grown accustom too which goes on longer than it should, there are times where the green screen shots composite are quite obvious, and while there’s a certain cameo towards the end that was welcome, the way the character was implemented mostly came across as a glorified deus-ex machina. And as I’ve stated before, if you have become familiar with the majority of the beats of a typical superhero flick, you will likely see certain beats coming from a mile away.

While Shazam! Fury of the Gods certainly doesn’t break any new ground for the superhero sub-genre and doesn’t quite reach the heights of the first movie, it still makes for a solid albeit formulaic sequel. Director David F Sandberg is able to deliver the exact goods that he delivered in the original Shazam! had even if it’s not able to deliver much else that feels as fresh. It’s not groundbreaking by any means, but with movies that are this lighthearted, fun, and just has it’s own warm tone to it, I really find it hard to be overly critical off.

I can’t help but think that the negative reaction that this movie is receiving is not so much of the quality of the movie itself but with the either the feeling of superhero fatigue or the studio politics behind the DC movies itself. And there’s of course the obnoxious fans that have been whining over the fact that because this universe is about to get rebooted, that this movie is now “pointless” because it’s no longer “canon”. My response to all of that is who cares?

When reviewing any movie, judge the movie on it’s own merits and whether or not it works on it’s own terms. Don’t take out your frustration on the movie based off the genre/sub-genre it’s a part off because of your fatigue or because the folks behind these movies won’t have it as “canon” in the future. Sometimes it’s okay to allow yourself to be sucked into the movie going experience and enjoy the time you are having at the moment you are watching the movie without worrying about the aftermath of it. Only then will the world might be able to enjoy perfectly enjoyable movies like Shazam! Fury of the Gods once again. If that’s so wrong, then who in their rights minds would want to be right? Certainly not me!

Other comments:

• I wonder how in the world the foster parents couldn’t tell that Mary Marvel was the same person as Mary Bromfield when the took look EXACTLY alike. Guess it’s the same logic as no one figuring how that Clark Kent and Superman are the same person.

• Speaking of parents, I’m just gonna say that Marta Milans as Rosa Vasquez is a MILF. Just saying!

• I do like the way the film addresses a certain character’s sexuality. It’s quick but also funny and earnest at the same time.

• This is my baseball fandom speaking but I find it odd how even though the Phillies are mentioning on multiple occasions, that the movie never bothers to make a joke about there also being a Freddie Freeman in baseball and not just in this universe.

• I feel really bad for David S. Sandberg. Not only because of the film’s underperforming at the box office and the negative reviews but how the media is trying to twist his words on the movie like it always likes to do just to create their own narrative. I really hate that and it has to stop! Even if he’s no longer going to be a part of superhero movies, I wish the man all the best luck for whatever awaits him in the future, especially in horror!

It’s interesting how not only are we getting a new Scream movie just 15 months after the last one but it’s coming out just one week after Creed III. What I mean by that is that both of these movies serve as sequels to long-awaited franchises that could’ve been laid to rest many years ago but are somehow still going. However, both now have to figure out how to keep their respective franchises going without their main face of the franchise carrying it forward due to their sudden absences involving feuds with producers. While the circumstances surrounding Sylvester Stallone and Neve Campbell is deeply unfortunate, it might just work for the better for the Rocky and Scream franchises as they continue to grow and evolve. Especially in the sense that the previous installments left their stories off on a pretty favorable note and made for the right stopping point for their characters.

Now, that the main character of Sidney Prescott out of the picture (at least for now), it’s time to see what the new kids can do on their own without the parents. While we do see a few familiar faces returning such as Courtney Cox’s Gale Weathers and the welcome return of fan-favorite Hayden Panettiere’s Kirby Reed, there is now a main focus on a new group of young, energetic adults that the film describes as the “core four”. Can this core four pick up the momentum from the previous entries or is it time to laid it all to rest?

Plot Synopsis: Taking place several years since the events of Scream, the survivors of the previous film are now living on their own attending college in New York City. We have Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera) still trying to process the trauma of her prior Ghostface encounter, her sister Tara (Jenna Ortega) is trying to party her way through her troubles, and their friends (Jasmina Savoy-Brown) and Chad (Mason Gooding) are coping just fine as they focus on their own personal and love lifes.

Of course, things can’t remain too well for our new cast as there’s a new Ghostface on the loose once again. After a clever and subversive opening that does a perfect job of throwing off a potential suspect of the killer, Ghostface is back and whoever that is, plans for revenge against Sam and the ones she cares about. With the help of new police officer thrown into the mix with Wayne Bailey (Dermot Mulroney), Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox), and the return of the lone survivor of Woodsboro murders in Kirby Reed (Hayden Panettiiere), Sam, Tara, and their friends must find a way to stop Ghostface before it is able to accomplish their mission of vengeance.

The big question that everyone had for this movie was how this movie would address the absence of Sidney Prescott and if the movie would suffer because of it? To answer the first question, it is handwaved in the best and most meta way possible. To answer the second question, it doesn’t suffer whatsoever. While I can’t say for certain that this new core four will be as iconic as the main core three of the other Scream movies, I did find myself engaged with this group without feeling the need to cut to a legacy character every two minutes. As much as I enjoyed Neve Campbell’s return in last year’s Scream, you really got the sense that the writers really struggled in figuring out an organic way to include Sid in the story and give here a reason to be there other than because she’s been the main character for the past four movies. While there are certainly folks that will miss Campbell’s presence, I was more than fine with following the main characters we are given.

A good reason for this has to do with the energy that the younger actors bring to their characters and are able to shine much better than they did in the last movie. Melissa Barrera is given much more to do this time around as Sam Carpenter and is able to stand out well here without the forced connection to Sidney. Mason Gooding is fun as one of the love interests in Chad Meeks-Martin who even makes for a nice subversion of being the one lone male lead in a mostly female group (and I’m certainly speaking with experience). Jasmin Savoy Brown is as much of a riot as she was in the last one, if not more so, as Mindy Meeks-Martin. Dermot Mulroney as Wayne Bailey is basically a reskin version of David Arquette’s Dewey but he’s fine. Liana Liberato and Jack Champion as Quinn and Ethan makes for entertaining new additions and do get their own individuals moments to shine. Lastly, the main standout of the entire cast is no other than Jenna Ortega.

This should come as no surprise as Ortega herself is starting to emerge as the next big actress to watch for. Whether it’s as the next Scream queen with the likes of Jamie Lee Curtis and Neva Campbell or just as the next Hollywood star such as Florence Pugh or Jennifer Lawrence, this girl no doubt has a bright career ahead of her. Her best scenes are with her co-star Melissa Barrera who have good chemistry with one another and make for an engaging sister bond ship. It’s also helps that Jenna Ortega is roughly around the same age that Neva Campbell was when she first started this franchise, showing that this is a franchise where horror women are just born in.

With the other two legacy characters returning in Courtney Cox and Hayden Panettiere, they don’t shine as well as the newer cast or as they did in their other films but they still make for nice returns. It’s hard to get too deep into their characters as that would be flirting with spoilers but just like with the way the legacy characters were handle in the previous movie, I suspect it will either leave fans delighted or pissed off with no in between. They still do play more of a role here than the legacy characters in the previous movie did but the movie makes it fairly clear throughout that this is not strictly their story but that it belongs to the young blood.

The kills here are still as satisfying and effective as ever. The biggest standouts include the opening scene with Ghostface, which makes it easily the most under predictable and twisting opening of any of the Scream sequels, along with the one that takes at the climax that helps hide the obvious storytelling flaws with that third act. I wouldn’t go as far as to call it my favorite kills in the series or even that this is the franchise as it’s most bloodiest and goriest but the ingredients for effective stabbing and killing in this series is still here and still works. All these and more is what helps Scream VI stands out as another good sequel but not quite a great sequel.

What keeps VI from being one of the better Scream sequels mostly ranging from the meta commentary that the franchise is known for. This installment claims to be about when a successful series becomes it’s own money-hungry, never-ending franchise that the studios will try to milk until the cows go home but it never goes as far with it as you might hope. If anything, it feels more of a continuation of the commentary of the last one (and to some extent Scream 4) with the way franchises handles their legacy characters rather than what happens when you have to now move on from them. I was expecting more, “Oh you can’t kill that character off because they are needed for their own Disney Plus/HBO Max series or spin-off movie” rather than more of the “It’s okay to kill legacy characters off because they are now old and we have new characters to focus on” that the last movie already did. Despite a handful of moments that display that well, it’s doesn’t feel much of service to it’s commentary rather than just for the sake of throwing in more kills.

I’m also not fond of the direction of the third act. No spoilers of course, but you got the sense that the writers had no idea how to actually end it or have a really effective Ghostface reveal. As a result, you get a climax that ultimately feels like a cop-out and don’t stick as bluntly to it’s choices that it has made up to this point. While the kills were just as good as you would expected, it’s the resolution that left a sour taste in my mouth around the time the credits roll.

I would say I enjoyed Scream VI about as much as I did the last one. While the third act is worse than the previous one, I found everything up to that point to be just as engaging, if not more so. The new cast equipped themselves admirably and don’t need the legacy characters themselves to carry it, the kills are still effective and satisfying, the returning cast are better utilized here than the last movie, and it does give you a brighter sense of the future that lies ahead for these kind of franchises that actually dare to move forward without their main lead. Next time however, I do hope the spoofs and meta commentary are more effective which can places itself up with Scream 2 and 4 as the very best sequels in the franchise. Maybe play around with the multiverse concept or something. Even so, I had fun but you probably have to break the mold even further next time so you don’t feel the fatigue.

Other comments:

• Yes, there is a post credit scene! Stay for the credits!

• The first two cameos of the movie are probably my absolute favorites in the entire franchise. If you don’t know who they are, please don’t spoil yourself! It will only make it even more entertaining when you watch it.

• I’m not even joking on relating to being the only male in an all-female group. From babysitting kids during teacher’s meetings in high school to having a Spanish class where I was the only man in class, I would fit comfortably in Chad’s shoes.

• Okay, Chad is not the only male character of the group for the whole movie but he is for the majority of it. So, I can still relate.

• Hard to believe it’s already been about 15 months since I published my first movie review on this site with Scream (2022). Time sure does fly the older you get!

Another year, another handful of Best Picture nominees to talk about. I’m not gonna lie, I honestly had no idea the Oscars was coming this week mostly because the way that last year’s Oscars took place at the end of March as oppose to in the middle of it. I have no idea why the Academy Awards feels the need to always change the time stamps with each award show every year but here we go again. Not gonna waste any time and let’s get down to ranking!

10.) Elvis

Each year there comes at least one “WTF!” nomination for me and this year, that award for me goes to Elvis. I’ve already never been a fan of Baz Luhrmann (The Great Gatsby aside) so imagine the horror of having to suffer through 159 minutes of all the most Luhrmann’s tropes imaginable. Glorified aesthetics, pretentious imagery, virtually no substance, convoluted plotting, and actors that feel like they are in a completely different movie.

Austin Butler is fine as Elvis himself but even his Best Actor nomination is as much of a head scratcher as Rami Malek’s was in Bohemian Rhapsody. Not even Tom Hanks can help him or anyone in this bloated mess, feeling like a rejected character from the universe of Cloud Atlas. This just feels like a movie that was added in just for the sake of having a tenth entry for nominations and not because it was actually deserving of it.

9.) All Quiet On The Western Point

Every year or so, there comes a war movie that finds it’s way onto these nominations. Sometimes they are warranted such as Sam Mendes’s 1917 but other times, you get some like All Quiet On The Western Point. While certainly well-made and acted with a handful of standout moments, there’s not much here that leaves that big of an impact or differs itself from any other war movie. Not to mention, it pulls a Hacksaw Ridge where it claims to be an anti-war film that preaches pacifism only to contradict that message in favor of gloriously over-the-top gore and brutality.

Considering there always exists a better version of this movie with the original 1930 film along with a very well-written book that this movie is based on, there’s really no reason to watch this movie when other, better material exist. Not the worst war movie to ever be nominated but certainly one of the more forgettable.

8.) Triangle Of Sadness

Arguably the most “feel good” movie on this list, Triangle of Sadness walks a fine line between between grounded and plain absurdity. The cast are fun, the cinematography is top notch, and the first two thirds of it are intriguing enough. It’s once we get to the third act where the sluggish pacing and bloated runtime becomes apparent that the movie can help but limp itself onto the finish line.

This is one of those movies where the highs and lows practically balance each other out and it’s up to you to decide which end you find yourself leaning towards by the time the credits roll. While I lean somewhere in the middle, this does find itself on the lower half of the list because of it.

7.) Women Talking

Regardless of one can say about this movie, it certainly does live up to the title. Women Talking does indeed have a lot of women talking, along with Ben Wishaw on occasion. Even so, this is a solid watch overall which is carried by a bunch of talented ladies giving great performances who are giving compelling dialogue involving issues back then surrounding feminism and gender equality. I just wish I found a more emotional connect or it intrigued me the way Greta Gerwig’s Little Women did a few years back.

There’s certainly nothing problematic or even particularly bad about it, but it never rises above it’s basic and surface level when it feels like it’s trying to be anything but that. Still, Sarah Polley goes good work here with her cast and should be an intriguing name for the future

6.) Tar

I can’t say I’m in love with this one the way the rest of the world is. Yes, Cate Blanchett is amazing like always, it’s beautifully shot, the score is great, and the subject matter is tackling is certainly some that we need in this day and age. However, just like with a number of films on this list, the pacing and length really hinders the experience for me.

For a movie with this length and material in it, I was at least expecting something more creative in terms of it’s storytelling and structure instead of just something so basic and straight forward. If it was an hour shorter, this might have made it higher. But since it’s not, it’s just off of the upper half. It still has Cate Blanchett in it. And Cate Blanchett can make any movie good or watchable no matter what it is about.

5.) Avatar: The Way Of Water

The fact that this movie is THIS high on the list says more about the nominations this year rather than the quality of Avatar: The Way of Water itself. It’s really difficult for me to say whether or not this is better than the original as a whole or that it was worth the 13-year long wait. The stuff is better is better and the stuff that works does in fact work very well. I love exploring the worlds of Pandora and being able to witness this amazing imagery on the big screen while even find some of the family elements engaging. However, the things that don’t work such as the dialogue, plot points not being given a proper resolution, and not having a cohesive narrative still stick out like a sore thumb.

No doubt that James Cameron has a strange passion and love affair for Avatar and it’s world but I’m still not sure if I’m fully on board with it yet.  Just like the original, only time will tell. It’s only then that we’ll see whether or not if better is the new worse or worse is the new better.

4.) The Banshees Of Inisherin

This is probably the one entry on here I find myself right in between really liking it and absolutely adoring it. The performances from Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson are stellar, it’s shot extremely well, the score is outstanding, and it has the beating heart and soul throughout the feel that makes the whole thing feel genuine. It’s mostly the second half that didn’t grab me as much as the first half and the downer ending kinda felt like a betrayal to the movie that it was building itself up to be.

There’s still a lot of good stuff here and is something I can see myself watching again in the future. However, it’s the direction that it takes by the second half that perhaps makes this movie just short of an all-time classic. Regardless, it’s still worth a watch and one of the better nominations.

3.) The Fabelmans

This is Steven Spielberg’s newest coming-of-age feature that is a part autobiography and part fictional tale of Steven’s early years as a boy and as a filmmaker. While The Fabelmans is not the biggest or most aspiring film in his filmography, this is easily his most personal one. The one that feels like he has waited his entire career of making up to this point. The one that honestly feels like that everything has come full circle from in. The one that symbolically and thematically should be his final one or at least the beginning of an end to one of the most influential directors of all time.

Not only is this one of the best films of the year, it easily stands as one of the top-tier works of Spielberg and possibly my favorite film of his in the 21st century thus far. I’m sure many of you reading this will find that all to be hyperbolic but just like the film itself, I find it to be aspiring. I didn’t buy The Post or West Side Story as being worthy for being real best picture nominees but I totally buy this one.

2.) Top Gun: Maverick

I’ll admit a part of me does respect this movie more than I actually love it. Not just for what it has done at the box office (grossing over a shocking billion dollars worldwide) but what it does for these kind of sequels. However, I still love this movie all the same. You can say what you want about Tom Cruise as a person but he definitely knows his own reputation as an actor and will do whatever it takes to entertain his audience. Whether it’s Mission Impossible, Jack Reacher, or Top Gun, he still act as the best kind of action hero that anyone can except. Unlike other legacy sequels, this seems to give the notion that it’s titled main character can still be on top form with what he is still able to do even if he can’t seem to do anything else. He can still best the best at what he does even when it’s time to pass the baton to a new generation.

Sometimes it’s okay to let Tom Cruise be the Tom Cruise that audience knows and loves about him without the need for anything else. And if the 1.6 billion dollar signs at the box office has anything to say about it, I think mainstream audience would agree. This is the one I imagine the mainstream audiences will be rooting for and it’s easy to see why. However, there is just one movie I like a little more than this.

1.) Everything Everywhere All At Once

My favorite movie of last year is favorite of the best picture nominations! This is a movie that feels like existing at all seems like some sort of miracle. It’s proof that there are still movie directors out there that aren’t afraid to put their own stamp on filmmaking. It’s proof that creativity and surprise is still possible for movies out there. It’s proof that you can take a concept that is sure to get tiresome soon or later by can still make for something completely worthwhile. It’s as if the Daniels are taking a great look at the future of films and decided to make a movie with a familiar concept, not to simply mock or critique it, but show the best possible version of it without the need to neglect or devalue the ones that come before it or will after.

This still stands as one of the most creative, inventive films I’ve ever seen with some of the best execution of any idea or concept on film that I’ve ever seen. I love films that is able to give me an experience I’ve never had before and this excelled greatly at that. This was the best movie of 2022 and is the best of this year’s Best Picture nominations. This is Michelle Yeoh’s universe and we are all living in it. Also, Ke Huy Quan’s world as well. And Stepheanie Hsu.

Yesterday, Rocksteady announced that their newest game, Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, will be delayed yet again until further notice. This is in response to the fan backlash over the recent gameplay footage shown along with wanting to add more polish to the game.

This new Suicide Squad game has been in development for quite a while now, making it the first Rocksteady console game since their successful Batman: Arkham series concluded in 2015 with Batman: Arkham Knight and their first overall game released since Batman: Arkham VR, which came out in 2016. After the Arkham series wrapped up, fans of Rocksteady have been waiting for years to see what the company had in store for their next game. There’s been speculations of a Batman Beyond game and even a Superman game that was in development until those ideas got scrapped in favor of a Suicide Squad game, one which would take place in that exact Arkham universe.

However, fans and gamers alike haven’t been all too thrilled what they seen so far. Because of that, Rocksteady have decided to push the game back further in the hopes of delivering a more quality product for everyone. While that’s all well and good, I don’t think any of that will matter unless the real obvious flaws that people have been complaining about are fixed. What are those flaws? Let me go over them!

Battle Passes

This has been a thing that many gaming companies have been trying to force on players for many years to try to squeeze as much money as they can out of their wallets. We live in a time that the prices for games are at an all-time high, which each new game costing $60 to $70 to play along with special editions costing even more than that. As much as one can claim that inflation might have something to do with that, it more has to do with how there are plenty of gamers that are willing to spend extra bucks on pre-order bonuses, exclusive content, and of course, battle passes to justify raising the prices. Because of that, companies have realized that they can easily take certain elements out of a game before release unless someone pays extra for it and they can get even more money from it. If you ask me, that has what led to gaming being more expensive than ever.

In the case of Kill The Justice League, it has been confirmed that the game will indeed have it’s own battle pass system. This will be a system that will be launched after the game’s release and contain only cosmetics. This battle pass system will earn the player new outfits, emotes, and other items to customize playable characters. Each battle pass will have free tiers of it’s own for free but will also have premium tiers that will be available with an optional in-game purchase. All of the battle pass items will reportedly be cosmetic and isn’t expect to impact the gameplay in any way.

While that last part I just mention is a sigh of relief, the rest of it seems yet again another attempt to get more money out of the players. I can’t speak what the actual premium tiers will be but if the way big games have gone in recent memory, there’s a big chance it’s nothing too special and could have easily been made free or be able to gain when you have enough XP points in the game to upgrade to get those tiers. What makes this more pointless is that it’s likely gonna be available for free another year or two down the line once the special or GOTY editions are released. For those who are smart, they will likely just wait until it’s made for free and the price had drop for the game. For everyone else, yet again, you are just falling for the same greedy trap that gaming companies have been setting up for many years.

Required Online Connection

It’s baffling how we are approaching the ten-year anniversary of when the Xbox One was revealed and companies are still repeating the same mistakes that Microsoft made with that console. One of the biggest controversies surrounding the Xbox One when it was announced was that it would require an online connection and it would require daily update or check-ins from Microsoft themselves. This clearly angered gamers everywhere as not everyone has access to the internet at all or even any times. So much so, that about a few weeks after E3 2013, Microsoft announced they were removing all of that due to the massive fan backlash over it. That should have been a lesson to gaming companies everywhere not to mess with gamers by trying to force things such as a required online connection. But yet, here we are again in 2023, with Rocksteady trying to force this matter with Kill The Justice League.

It has been confirmed by Rocksteady themselves that Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League will in fact require an online connection at all times. Regardless if you are playing in solo or co-op, you will need to have some sort of connection to the internet or online to be able to play the game in any way. I’m not gonna list all of the obvious reasons why this is dumb but if there is one main one, it’s that we now know that the game itself will likely only last or be supported for a limited amount of time. Just like many other games that require an online connection, there will come a point where the servers are shut down and the game will be deleted from existence. And even when the game is still being run, it will cause a slew of problems once there’s something wrong with the internet servers involving the Playstation 5, Xbox Series X, and the PC. Problems that could have been avoided if you could just let anyone want to play the main story whenever they want and for those who want to go online and play with others whenever they want.

This is yet again another example of a company basically asking themselves for trouble with required features that gamers clearly won’t like. I don’t know why companies are continuing this trend when there are plenty of examples of games that fall short because of it but here we go again. That’s not even mentioning that once the servers of the game shut down, Kevin Conroy’s final performance as Batman will be deleted from existence. Let that sink in for the rest of your day!

Is This Really In The Arkhamverse?

Expectations were always gonna be high with Rocksteady after their commercial and critical success of the Batman: Arkham series but those expectations would only grow once it was announced that their new Suicide Squad game, again their first overall game since the mid 2010s, would take place in that exact same universe as the Arkham games. That in of itself sets the expectation of not only the storyline of the Arkhamverse continuing and the expansion of that universe itself but that the game would play similar to those games except for more combat and guns thrown into the mix.

However, judging by the gameplay footage we’ve seen thus far, if you would have told me beforehand that this game is suppose to take place in the Arkhamverse, I and many others would not have believed you whatsoever. If anything this looks like it could take place in the same universe as the recent Gotham Knights game or the new Wonder Woman game that’s in the works than Arkham Asylum, Arkham City, Arkham Origins, and Arkham Knight. A change of tone, pace, and gameplay is fine but you have to be careful to not go too far out of that ballpark or else you are making something else entirely. For what we’ve seen thus far, Kill The Justice League is clearly going too far out of that ballpark.

From the looks of it, Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League seems to only take place in the Arkhamverse just for marketing purposes and the hopes that in of itself would boost sales. If it weren’t for the confirmation from Rocksteady themselves, I would have believe that Kill The Justice League would be as connected to the Arkhamverse as Crystal Dynamic’s Avengers would be connected to Insomniac’s Spider-Man, which is basically not all that much. I wasn’t asking for the new Suicide Squad game to be exactly like the Arkham games but I would have figured it would at least be something that would fit organically into that universe as oppose to feeling like some random puzzle piece that just doesn’t fit.

Can The Game Still Be Saved?

In the end, while delaying the game will certain prevent more bugs and glitches to the gameplay, none of that will mean anything unless these issues I just mentioned are resolved. I’m no gaming developer but I would assume removing all of those features will take plenty of time and the game would have to be pushed back another year because of it. I know Rocksteady and it’s fans don’t want to keep seeing this game get pushed back, especially since we are now approaching a decade since the release of their last main game, but those changes will have to be made to deliver a true experience worthy of it’s brand.

If Rocksteady is delaying it because of the criticism involving the battle passes, required online connection, and forced tie-ins to the Arkhamverse, then maybe there’s a chance that this game will be what Marvel’s Avengers, WB Games Montreal’s Gotham Knights, and EA’s Star Wars: Battlefront 2 should have been at the time of it’s release. Delivering a full quality game that includes all of the features that should have been included since Day One along with added DLC and bonus content that is ACTUALLY worth the extra few dollars. If they aren’t delaying it because of that, then none of that will matter at all and Rocksteady is clearly stalling out an inevitable fate of the game not meeting expectations critically or financially. As the old saying goes, you can polish a turd all you want and it’s still a turd.

Unless Rocksteady is able to get their heads out of their asses and avoid the mistakes of prior games in the past, then they are doing nothing but polishing a turd of it’s own. And I will have done my Batman: Arkham retrospectives for nothing. I guess no matter who wins here, everyone will lose. As a previous Batman movie villain once said, the world is cruel.

Creed III is now out in theaters. It’s quite astounding of how not only is the Rocky/Creed series still going, but that it’s still going strong. For a franchise that didn’t even need to be a franchise, it’s incredibly how strong and consistent they’ve been in quality. Despite this being a series that’s now up to nine movies, there’s only one or two that many would argue is actually bad with the rest ranging from pretty good to excellent. Just like I tend to do with most franchises whenever they get a new installment, it’s time to rank the Rocky/Creed franchise from worst to best.

9.) Rocky V

This is probably the only one that would qualified as bad but it does have interesting ideas of it’s own. Rocky V was meant to act as the finale of the franchise where he loses his money, trains a young stud who ultimately betrays him, and have one finale showdown…in an epic street fight. There’s always room to try new things in a series but when it’s intended to be the end of the story, then it’s best to just stick what worked before and not changes things up entirely. Not to mention, the way Rocky just chose to neglect his struggling son was just an absolute douche move. Thank goodness this didn’t actually end up being the end of the series because if it did, then it would have went out with an absolute whimper.

8.) Rocky IV

Easily the sloppiest and over-the-top movie in the series but it still kinda works. Rocky IV see Rocky meeting his match in the ring as the dreaded Ivan Drago made his way into the ring and killing his best friend, Apollo Creed in the process. That in of itself should make you think this is the darkest of the franchise but it’s anything but that. It’s silly and cartoon-like with top theatrics, constant montages, and even a high tech robot butler of all things. It’s still entertaining and the events transpiring here would have at least a solid pay off later on down the road but this is when you can tell the series was begin to fall victims of trying to go bigger and bolder.

7.) Rocky III

Possibly the biggest underdog story in a sea of movies about underdog story. Rocky III sees Rocky being stripped down from his prime and getting his ass beat in a way that he had never had before. However, like the old saying goes, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. While that can’t be said for his poor trainer in Mickey, Rocky is able to use that testament to train himself to take down his biggest rival yet up to this point in Mr. T. This was the point where the formula for the series would be as obvious as Rocky getting obliterated in his first go against the big man but man is it still so fun, effective, emotional, and resonant all the same.

6.) Creed III

Creed III was always gonna have to face the inevitable uphill battle that the series would have to fight against to see whether or not it can keep going without the man that started it all in Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa. Thankfully, Michael B Jordan proves he is up to the task to carry the baton forward in a respectful manner that makes Adonis Creed a compelling enough character to continue the Rocky tradition. While the movie does undeniably stick to the formula and traditions that the series is known for, it’s still able to feel fresh, unique, and satisfying all the same. Jonathan Majors proves he is the next big actor to watch out for and there is still room to go if they want to continue the series from here. The only thing keeping it from the top five is perhaps with how distinct it feels compared to the other movies in the franchise and could have used a stronger final fight. Regardless, it still rocks all the same.

5.) Rocky II

For a sequel to a movie that didn’t really need a sequel, Rocky II is about as good as it could possibly get. Not only does it help Rocky achieve the unfinished business he clearly had with the original where he went the distance with the champ but still lost, but it’s able to successfully tell the next “what’s next” chapter of a known sports athlete’s life without it being repetitive or stale. It provides the right balance between showing the importance of Rocky’s personal life and his life in the ring, Apollo Creed is a worthy friend/foe to Rocky, and it’s able to all feel genuine instead of cynical. The fact this is only #5 in the series goes to show how impressive in quality the franchise is as a whole.

4.) Creed II

On paper, Creed II sounded like the silliest idea for the series yet. You have baby boy Creed going up against baby boy Drago and it has to tie up the loose ends and emotional resonate of Rocky IV, a film as absurd and silly as this series can get. However, it all works out. Not just because of how well made it is, the intense, nerve racking fight scenes, and being able to deliver satisfying pay offs to these nagging loose ends, but how well it’s able to humanize the cartoon of a villain that was Drago along with his son. This could have easily fell into the category of a movie being shameless fan service but Stephen Caple Jr. is able to add the right amount of weight and meaning to where it all feels correct. It all just goes to show that just because you make something for the fans doesn’t mean you have to dumb everything down to make something worthwhile.

3.) Rocky Balboa

Before Top Gun: Maverick played with the idea that the one guy who was the very best at his job and still be the best if he pushed himself to do so, there was Rocky Balboa, which saw Sylvester Stallone returning to the Rocky series nearly two decades later to prove his worth once again. Sometimes it’s okay to let the man in the past be the same man for the future if he can still do the thing he’s best at. The Rocky movies at there core as always been about legacy and this was the first one in the series that seemed to put a great emphasis on it. Even if the set-up to the final confrontation is rather forced, this still makes for one of the most grounded and inspirational films in the Rocky canon.

2.) Creed

About a month before the age of legacy sequels kicked into full gear with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, there was Creed, which Ryan Coogler actually dared to take the Rocky franchise in a new direction by putting direct focus on the son of his old friend while Stallone himself acts as a secondary character. Easily one of the best movies to come out in 2015, this soft reboot is able to get everything right. It has the right amount of drama, right amount of emotion, right amount of fight scenes, right amount of legacy, right amount of inspiration, right amount focus on the villain, and just right amount of everything. Michael B Jordan is sensational as Adonis “Donnie” Creed and even Sylvester Stallone works just as well being a mentor figure as he was as the main boxer. In the era of legacy sequels, I still find this one to be the very best of the lot.

1.) Rocky

However, nothing has quite top the original Rocky. What can be said about this movie that hasn’t been said already? It’s basically perfect. What makes this traditional underdog story work so well is that it was written by Rocky himself in Sylvester Stallone, making it just as much an underdog story from behind the camera as it is in front of it. At it’s heart, this is not simply a movie about boxing, it’s a story about a man needing something to prove. And the fact that we are now movies in with this franchise, it was able to do all of that and more. Perfectly paced, acted, and written, Rocky is one of the definite motion pictures and one of the best crowd-pleasing films ever made.

Off all the installments in the Rocky/Creed franchise thus far, I don’t think there was one that was in a more unique position than Creed III. Not only because this is the first one to not have Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky in it but this seems to be the first one which actually dares to blaze it’s own path without having to carry the baggage of the legacy of Rocky Balboa that the series had been clinging onto. The first Creed was basically a modern update on the first Rocky while Creed II was a direct sequel to Rocky IV along with hitting the familiar but best beats from every Rocky sequel up to this point. Now that Rocky is able to rest comfortably knowing that his best friend’s death in the ring has been avenged along with Adonis no longer being a victim of living off his father’s glory, it’s time to take the series in his own unique direction. While there are certainly some impossible to avoid beats that this series is known for which the movie can’t help but follow, Creed III is able to succeed strongly as it’s own thing and proves that their are other stories to tell in this franchise even without Rocky Balboa himself.

Plot Synopsis: Taking place after the events of Creed II, Adnois “Donnie” Creed (Michael B. Jordan) is able to end his boxing career on top by winning in a rematch against “Pretty” Rick Conlan, the one and only opponent that Donnie had ever lost too. After one last victory, Creed has retired to take care of his wife Bianca (Tessa Thompson) and their deaf daughter Amara (Mila Davis-Kent).

Fast forward three years later and Donnie runs Delphi Boxing Academy with his prior coach Tony “Little Duke” Evers Jr. (Wood Harris) and helps promote young fighters like Felix “El Guerrero” Chavez (Jose Benavidez Jr.) in a match against well-known veterans such as Viktor Drago (Florian Munteanu). His personal life has become complicated as Bianca has become a producer after suffering from severe hearing problems, Amara has begun to follow in his footsteps of wanting to become a boxer, and his stepmother Mary Anne (Phylicia Rashad) is suffering from declining health whose days could be numbered. Things get even more complicated when Donnie’s old friend Damian “Diamond Dame” Anderson (Jonathan Majors) comes back into his life and requests for Donnie to help him builds towards a boxing career.

Because the two share a distinct past with one another and believing he owes his old pal a favor after he saved his life in an incident that got him arrested, Donnie agrees to help Dame train to become a professional boxer. As the process goes on with Dame’s turn to fame as a boxer, Donnie soon realizes that perhaps giving boxing lessons his friend who’s been in jail for quite some time might not have been the best idea. It’s then that Donnie must figure out how to keep Dame and his personal life in check or else it may result in having to return to the ring once again which might just jeopardize everything he has been building his whole life to.

To answer the obvious question that folks were wondering before this movie came out, Rocky Balboa is NOT in this movie. There is certainly a reference or two with him and he definitely still exists in this universe but there is no focus on him whatsoever in Creed III. That in of itself will undoubtedly be considered an absolute sin for the movie but if anything, it’s more of a selling point.

Rocky himself will always be a legend but he is not someone that Adonis Creed can count on forever. If he is to forge his own path, then he must learn how to live the life that his mentor once lived without his presence. While that’s not quite the central main conflict of the movie, that is no doubt the mindset that Michael B. Jordan had when realizing that Stallone himself wasn’t going to come back.

For those that were felt that the previous movie dialed back on the whole “passing the torch” premise of the original Creed by feeling the need to bring back familiar foes from Rocky’s past, they will likely find Part III to be more worthwhile. The personal conflicts that Donnie himself goes throughout the story all ties into his own past, present, and future without any tie backs or references to Rocky himself. These are his own family members and old pals that Donnie himself is forced to deal with. Whenever it involves boxing or having to take care of his loved ones, it is a problem that only he himself can solve.

And was there never a greater problem to solve than that of Jonathan Major’s Dame. While not dissimilar to that of in Rocky V where Rocky mentors his own fiery young boxer who ultimately turns on him, Dame represents Donnie trying to fix the remaining sins of his past. Because of the fact that Dame save Donnie’s life when they were kids and he have to face the consequences from it, Donnie feels like he owes his life and feels there’s no better way to repair him than to have his old pal get a taste of boxing glory. Of course, this regains the questions of whether or not Donnie is doing this because he believes Dame to be the next big thing or is he doing it because he owes Dame a favor? In that case, not only may he not find himself creating the next Rocky or Creed but possibly the next Drago. Despite Dame being once again a character that comes out of no where, it still is able to work well thanks to how it plays a role in Donnie wanting to move forward in his life while also trying to take care of any loose ends that might still need to be tied up.

This also helps because Jonathan Majors is absolutely great in the role as Dame. While we already got a taste of his acting chops in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania as Kang, Jordan is able to fully utilized Major’s ability and range as an actor here. He makes for a perfect mirror to Jordan’s Creed in the sense of wanting to become a fighter to prove himself while also for his own personal glory. Although we are clearly gonna see more of Majors down the line, I sure hope this isn’t the last time we see him paired with Jordan.

The rest of the performances are as reliably great as they have been for the previous two movies. Michael B Jordan once again proves he is the perfect man to be able to carry this franchise going forward without needing anyone else to back him up. Not only because of how Adonis Creed has become a fully fletched out character over the course of three movies but Jordan’s unique screen presence and depth he brings to the character. Tessa Thompson is as likable and charming as she has been in any other movie she’s been in and even gets more standout moments to herself here. Phylicia Rashad is as reliably great as always, Wood Harris is as likable as he usually is, young Mila Davis-Kent is able to shine well as Creed’s little deaf daughter who you can see a bit of Michael B Jordan in herself, and even Florian Munteanu and Tony Bellew make surprisingly welcome returns as the main antagonist from the previous two movies, so much so you won’t even bother to question why Creed is now supposed friends against someone from the family that’s responsible for his father’s death.

In terms of directing, Michael B Jordan shows he’s as just as much of a star behind the camera as he is in front of it. While there are a few scenes that do give the impression of a first-time together, this is a very well directed and put together movie with Jordan’s stamp clearly all over it. The boxing scenes are really well done, being able to play great tribute to traditional anime without it coming across as too over-the-top or devolving into self parody. It’s the way that the fight sequences are put together that make you feel each punch, the intensity of it all, and just the plain atmosphere of it. There is certainly room for improvement as there are times where certain scenes drag on longer than they should or end rather abruptly but for the most part, Michael B Jordan has a clear bright future ahead of him as a director.

Creed III was always gonna have to face the inevitable uphill battle that the series would have to fight against to see whether or not it can keep going without the man that started it all in Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa. Thankfully, Michael B Jordan proves he is up to the task to carry the baton forward in a respectful manner that makes Adonis Creed a compelling enough character to continue the Rocky tradition. While the movie does undeniably stick to the formula and traditions that the series is known for, it’s still able to feel fresh, unique, and satisfying all the same.

Much like the previous two movies, this does make for a satisfying end if they want to stop here but also leaves plenty of pathways to go with future movies if they want to continue on. However, after how satisfying of a trilogy the Creed movies have been along with the (mostly) consistently good quality of the Rocky franchise as a whole, I seen no reason not to welcome a Creed IV with opening arms. Creed III isn’t my favorite of the series or even the trilogy but it might just be the most important one thus far. It shows that just because a franchise can peak, doesn’t mean it can’t evolve into something else entirely. And if it can do just that with equally good results, then a franchise of any kind can last as long as it wants too.

Spring training in baseball is under way! This is the time where youngsters from all around have a chance to impress their managers, coaches, and front offices of their respective teams to get them one step closer to reaching their lifetime milestone of playing in the major leagues. And with the World Baseball Classic starting on Tuesday, this will lead to more well-known players leaving for the next two weeks and leave room for the youngsters to get more playing time. While there have plenty of notable young players to keep an eye on, I don’t think there is one player on the Cardinals and possible in all of baseball that people should be keeping their eye on more than Jordan Walker.

Jordan Walker was selected as the 21st pick overall by the St. Louis Cardinals in the first round of the 2020 MLB Draft. Despite not getting a chance to play that year due to Covid, he has been in the Cardinals minor league system for the past two years and has thoroughly impressed so far. So much so, that this spring training not only gives him a chance to earn a spot in the 40-man roster for the 2023 season but even a shot at cracking the opening day roster for the Cardinals. Even though he hasn’t played a single game in Triple A yet, Walker is noted as that rare player that is incredibly skilled, talented, and overperformed in the minor leagues that he is ready to take that leap of faith into the big leagues. If the way that Jordan is playing through spring training thus far, President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak and Cardinals Manger Oliver Marmol might want to least have a discussion with one another about that at this very moment.

During spring training, Jordan Walker has played six games with a .500 BA, .500 OBP, 1.167 SLG, and 1.667 OPS. In 18 plate appearances, he has nine hits, three doubles, three home runs, and six runs batted in. All of those categories are either at or near the top of the league among qualified players (which is basically everyone at the moment). With his recent interviews before spring training even began along with his performance thus far, it’s clear that Walker is trying to force his way onto the opening day roster and make the higher ups of the Cardinals make that bold decision to their perhaps next superstar in the making.

Now, granted, we’re only a week into spring training and that’s not always the way to judge how a certain player will perform in the season. There’s plenty of players that have great springs but end up having bad seasons and vice versa, you’re mostly always facing the same three to five teams each spring, and there’s certainly a difference between playing in a crowd of a few hundred to a thousands and a stadium filled with 45,000+ fans. However, with Jordan Walker, I can’t help but make him a possible exception for and who should be more than willing to be given the benefit of any sort of doubt.

From what I’ve seen from him thus far, he comes across as a player that just always seems determined about himself and his goals. He’s not interested in becoming the next big thing but more of his own thing. He’s not looking to become someone he’s not but be exactly who he knows he is. He has inspirations but wants to use that to pave his own path towards fame and success. He will no doubt try to keep expectations about himself in check but he will certainly look to expand upon him the further his career goes. It’s that kind of dedication and the performance he has given so far that could make him the next big superstar for the Cardinals and even baseball.

Despite the Cardinals being a consistent and winning franchise for the better part of the 21st century, they are gonna be needing a new face of the franchise quite soon. Previous Cardinals legends Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina are now retired, the still Cardinal legend Adam Wainwright has announced that he will be retiring after this season, and superstars Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado aren’t getting any younger and who knows how many years of their prime that they have left. If St. Louis want to continue bringing fun, exciting, and winning baseball to their fans, they must find their next big star player to build a team around and one that fans will always want to show up to the stadium to watch play. While there have been attempts at finding that next big star player within the Cardinals internal system with mixed results in recent memory, they may have just found the guy that have been looking for with Jordan Walker.

If baseball wants to continue to grow their audience, they must have plenty of young potential superstars in the making for the current generation and even the next that will want to watch them play. Whether it’s be Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Fernando Tatis Jr. Vladimir Gurrero Jr. Ronald Acuna Jr., Julio Rodriguez, etc., each team must have at least one of those kinds of players if they want to keep their fans interested in baseball. It’s only then will you inspire an entire generation to want to either play baseball or follow it during their free time. In the case of Jordan Walker, he might just find himself to be in that group of young studs that have a potential for a long-lasting baseball career.

There are possible reasons that the Cardinals might not want to chose to call up Jordan Walker so soon. He’s only 20 years old, has not played a single game past Double A, and if service time manipulation is still a thing, no doubt they will want to keep him down there for the first two to three weeks to make sure they get that one extra year with them. And of course, we have seen plenty of top prospects in baseball not being able to live up to their expectations for the beginning of their career (Just ask the Seattle Mariners with Jarred Kelenic). Even so, top prospects like Jordan Walker don’t come around so often and when they do, they are usually able to perform to the best of their abilities and sometimes even better.

Regardless of when he will be able to make his major league debut in baseball, the future of Jordan Walker will certainly be fascinating to watch. If everything goes right, he might be the best player that the St. Louis Cardinals have drafted since Albert Pujols. And if Mark McGuire was able to convince the Cardinals to have Albert on the opening day roster back in 2001 with how good of a spring he had did, then no doubt someone on the 2023 Cardinals will want to convince the team to have Walker on the opening day roster as well. Only time and performance will tell but no doubt, Jordan Walker will certainly be one exciting young player to watch out for in 2023 and beyond.

Here’s the links to all three of my retrospectives/reviews of the Batman Arkham series by Rocksteady:

Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009) Retrospective/Review

Batman: Arkham City (2011) Game Retrospective/Review

Batman: Arkham Knight (2015) Retrospective/Review

After two damn near perfect Batman games with 2009’s Arkham Asylum and 2011’s Arkham City along with an inconsequential but still enjoyable prequel installment in 2013’s Arkham: Origins (which I’m not covering), we would get 2015’s Batman: Arkham Knight, the intended finale to the Rocksteady’s Batman Arkham franchise, at least until that Suicide Squad game would come along eight years later.

At the time this game came out, the reactions were fascinating. Despite the strong critical reviews at it’s release, the fans’ response was more divisive. Some found it to be a worthy conclusion to the series and just as good as the entries that came before it while others were fairly underwhelmed by it. This mostly had to do with some of the new features added in the game, most notably the Batmobile and the Arkham Knight himself. Just like with any other franchise that tends to have two beloved first chapters of a story, the third and final one always tends to be the hardest to get right. In the case of Batman: Arkham Knight, it basically had to find a way to end this version of the Caped Crusader on a high note with an ending that made logical sense for the character and would (mostly) not have the most iconic comic book villain of all time. I’m sure Christopher Nolan can relate to trying to meet unrealistic expectations with a finale on those terms. However, now that eight years has passed and we are about to explore the Arkhamverse yet again with Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League coming in May, how does Arkham Knight hold up? Does it deserve the criticism that it gets or were people perhaps too harsh on it and should now appreciate it for what it was able to achieve on it’s own merits?

Plot:

Taking place on Halloween night and nine months after Arkham City, Scarecrow has returned and is able to get the entire civilian population of Gotham City evacuated after he threatens to unleash his potent fear toxin. The only ones remaining in the now deserted town is the police force from Blackgate prison and the unleashed criminals who now have the entire streets to themselves. Batman is called into action once again alongside his partners in Commissioner James Gordon, his daughter Barbara Gordon A.K.A. Oracle (who Jim doesn’t know is still in the city and is working for Batman), Alfred, Lucius Fox, Robin, and Nightwing.

As Batman tracks down Scarecrow, he finds himself encountering a new nemesis in the Arkham Knight, a trained and highly skilled fighter whose identity is unknown but seemingly knows a lot about Batman and has a big grudge against him. Batman discovers that the Arkham Knight is teaming up with Scarecrow to take over Gotham with his heavily numbered and armored special forces.

After locating Scarecrow, Batman discovers that he has turned the entire location of his hideout into a toxic bomb, one that could plague the entire city with that fear toxin. During his encounter, Scarecrow reveals that Oracle has been kidnapped before escaping. Exposing himself to the toxin, Batman is able to inhibit the bomb’s blast radius before he’s seemingly confronted by the Joker out of nowhere.

However, the Joker that is presented is not actually the real Joker himself but an hallucination in Batman’s mind. This is an effect of the fear toxin and Joker’s infected blood still being a part of Batman that the clown transfused in the Dark Knight in Arkham City. The blood that the Joker sent shipments to Gotham hospitals in Arkham City effected four other members in Gotham which seemingly turns that person into their own version of the Joker, with the fifth member being Batman himself. Throughout the story, the Joker frequently appears in mental projection form to taunt Batman and twist his perception of reality.

Once again, we see that Batman has a lot on his plate for the night. He has to stop Scarecrow’s plan, discover the identity of the Arkham Knight, rescue his friends, and take back the entirety of Gotham City from his most known enemies in what could be Bruce’s final night as Batman.

When discussing the plot of Batman: Arkham Knight, it’s quite complicated. Not necessarily because it’s hard to follow or not easy to talk about without spoilers (aside from the Arkham Knight himself) but with the way it decides to wrap up the Arkhamverse as a whole. It’s no secret that Paul Dini, the long known writer for Batman who wrote Arkham Asylum and City, did not return to write the script for this game. It’s believed that it was due to creative differences from Rocksteady over the story direction for Knight such as more focus on Hush, Azrael, and Harley Quinn having her own kid along with the company just wanting their own writers for their upcoming games instead of freelance ones. Changing the writers for a finale is usually a big risk as you loses the voice from the folks who made your previous chapters such a success. Even with Sefton Hill returning, the only returning write from Arkham City, you do definitely get the sense that this story was written by complete different writers from the other Arkham games, for better and worse.

On paper, this should be the best story of the entire Arkham franchise. It contains the biggest stakes, the highest tension, the direst consequences, the hugest risks, and certainly the most personal story for Batman. It contains the most focus on Gotham City itself, the biggest internal conflict for Bruce Wayne as Batman, how his action as Batman as brought out the worst from those close to him, and actually dares to end the Caped Crusader in a way that feels definite but also earnest. These all feel like the perfect ideas to make for a perfect finale. How is it in execution? Well, it’s make for both the very best and very worst storytelling of the Arkham franchise.

What it gets right is the way it wraps up the story by showcasing the consequences that being Batman can have on Bruce involving the people he loves. Despite having plenty of allies who have fought greatly by his side, getting them involved to help fight crime will always put their lives in great danger and leave a huge red target on their back. If the way his enemies go to destroy the one he cares about with success, then what exactly is Batman’s purpose? If he isn’t making criminals scare and is only empowering them, how can Bruce still be Batman? Is there a way for the meaning of Batman to evolve or does their need to be a brand new symbol of hope for Gotham City to rally upon? Arkham Knight is able to provide strong answers to every one of those questions and make a ending that ties these themes together quite well. Questioning the mythos of a beloved character is always risky but it works for the better for the purpose of this story.

Another great strength involves the focus on Scarecrow as the main villain. Despite the Joker now being dead and bringing back who was mostly a side villain from Arkham Asylum, Scarecrow is basically the perfect bad guy for this final installment. He is someone that aims to destroy Batman mentally and spiritually making him suffer during every last moments of living breath. He wants to unmask Batman in the hopes of showing to the world that even a strong man like him can break under the weight of his own fear. Aided by a more threatening character design and incredibly stellar voice work by John Noble, Scarecrow does make for a terrifying villain and one that is certainly the most frightening opponent that Batman has ever faced. For a villain that had somewhat of a reputation as being a joke, I don’t think anyone could make the case for that anymore thanks to this game.

What’s even more creative is the way that the Joker is implemented in the story. Even if the character is technically now dead in this universe, he has probably never been more alive than in this game. While the Joker may be gone, the consequences of his actions still remains in the head of Batman and the other folks he had infected with his blood. With a story that is as moody and dark as Arkham Knight, the Joker’s appearance is able to add some much needed levity to certain sections of the game, which is aided greatly by Mark Hamill returning to reprise his role once again. Even if it was this point in time where the Joker was now getting INCREDIBLY overexposed and I likely would not be as favorable of his return if it wasn’t Hamill voicing him, it was probably the best way to tie up Batman’s connection to the Joker following the clown’s death. Plus, without getting too heavily into spoilers, the final confrontation between the two could not have been any better.

When it comes to the Arkham Knight himself, this is when you starting diving into the worst elements of this game. I won’t go too deep into why this character just doesn’t work for me as I do have a future piece in the works that goes into great details but this was the one element that really held the plot of the game back for me. I love the idea of having a mysterious figure who knows Batman’s every move and seem to have his own vendetta against Batman due to mistakes he’s made in the past. However, it’s the reveal of who the character actually is that just feels like a total cop-out.

This mainly has to do with the promotion of the game where Rocksteady tried to throw everyone off claiming the Arkham Knight would be a wholly original character and someone you haven’t seen before. However, just like J.J. Abrams and crew tried their hardest to convince everyone beforehand that Benedict Cumberbatch wasn’t playing Khan in Star Trek: Into Darkness, Rocksteady tried their hardest to convince everyone that the Arkham Knight would be a brand new character. In both cases, it was a lie and the characters felt more designed for marketing purposes rather than for the purposes of their own stories.

It’s not that what’s done with the Arkham Knight is inherently bad in it’s own right and I’m sure that folks who aren’t as familiar with Batman lore might view the big reveal as a legit surprise, it just doesn’t feel like it fits with this iteration of Batman. It’s basically the exact same origin story as another well-known character but with slightly different motivations to have the character make more sense in this universe. It also just comes out of left field since the character himself had been barely hinted at in any other Arkham games with only an occasional reference or two that was clearly never meant to be anything except for that. That’s not even going into the thousand of mentions and references the game drops out of nowhere at one point which basically spells out the reveal right there. I won’t spoiler who it is for those who still are unaware but I certainly found this aspect of the story very underwhelming.

I do also find it odd how despite the initial premise of the game hinted at all of Batman’s deadliest foes coming together to stop Batman, most of them don’t serve a purpose to the main plot except for Scarecrow and Arkham Knight. While we see a few new villains returning such as Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn that you run into every once in a while, they don’t really serve much narrative purpose and only seem added to pad the campaign. I guess this decision was likely done to make room for the other side missions in the story and the writers perhaps thought that players being required to take 100% control of Gotham City is enough in it’s own right to make the villains matter but I wish putting them all away felt more important to the main A plot of the game instead of the multiple B plots with the story.

When it comes to the plot of Batman: Arkham Knight, it’s quite a mixed bag. When it works, it some of the best moments in not just the Arkham series but in the history of Batman. When it doesn’t work, then it’s quite frustrating and will leave you a feeling that it left much to be desired. I guess that’s the price you pay when you write a finale that dares to swing for the fences. Or maybe just changing up the writers for your intended finale.

Gameplay:

Just like with the previous games in the series, Batman: Arkham Knight is an action adventure game set with it’s own open world of Gotham City. A good majority of the gadgets and gameplay elements make a return here with a few upgrades added to them. As Batman, the player is still able to fly, glide, jump, climb, crouch, punch, kick, and use any item or gadget that they need along with the useful detective mode. I’m not gonna go too deep into these elements since the previous two Arkham reviews already covered it but I will focus more on the new things that the game adds.

Among the new gadgets, the main one that makes a huge difference is the Voice Synthesizer. With this gadget, the player can use it to be able to imitate other character’s voices such as Harley Quinn and the Arkham Knight. This is mostly use to manipulate the thugs either to open up certain doors for you or just so they can walk into a trap you have set for them. This is a device so genius that it kinda makes you wonder why Batman hadn’t come up with that idea before until now.

A bigger emphasis this game has than the other Arkham games is with exploring Gotham City. While this was introduced in Origins, you still had the sense that it barely scratch the surface on what Gotham was. Here, you truly get the sense of scope and scale that the city provides. Even bigger than Arkham City itself, this is the first time in any Batman game that you got a true look at Gotham City itself. Whether you are gliding through the skies with the much improved gliding system that allows for longer flights or roaming through the streets with the Batmobile (which will be discussed later), you will likely have the time of your life exploring the ins and outs of Gotham City. It does feel odd how it took until this game to get a true look at the one city that Batman swore himself to protect but now we have it, I don’t think I could have asked for it any other way.

The “FreeFlow” combat system makes a return here that has been tweaked and improved upon to make the combat somehow even more fluid and fun than it was before. Whether it’s the basic attacks to take out enemies or ones where you have to perform certain actions to properly defeat them, it hasn’t been more satisfying than it has been here. The strikes feel more powerful, the counters feel more accurate, and the dodging feels more on point than ever before. Disarming enemies also is much better as you might find yourself attacking enemies more head on because of it. As time comes by during these Even more so than any other Arkham game, taking out criminals have never felt sweeter.

What helps make the combat even more sweeter is the introduction of the Dual Play. During missions where you are fighting alongside one of your allies such as Robin, Nightwing, or Catwoman in freeflow combat, the player has the opportunity to switch with one of those characters in battle and perform a double-team takedown to take out their opponents. These appear whenever the players enters an uninterrupted combat-streak that you can build up to quicker with the more combos you are able to pull together. Each successful, uninterrupted attack adds to the player’s combat score, which can carry over between each controlled character, and unlocks those double-team takedowns at a higher score. If you ever wanted to get a good sense on how not only how it feels to be Batman during combat but also fighting alongside his allies, then you will definitely get a great sense of that here.

To make the encounters with enemies a tad more difficult, the game also introduces enemy medics. These are opponents who have the ability to shield enemies in electrified fields and even revive unconscious ones, enemies with swords, and brutes who can’t be damaged without the requirement of being stunned before attacked. Enemies are also capable of employing their own tactics to counter Batman’s various skills such as deploying landmines, controlling hovering drones, disabling vents if Batman is found using them, and detecting his location if Batman uses Detective Vision for too long. If it weren’t for the upgrades and improvements of the combat system, this might have come across as cheap and stupidly difficult but since it is, it does have some much need challenge to the game. What helps these sections greatly is the addition of the “fear takedown”, where Batman is able to take out up to five opponents at the same time as long as he remains undetected. Time is slow during each takedown which allows the player to take out each opponent in the designated time they need before the mode is inactive. Even it can be a tad annoying to the player, it does make for good character development from the part of the enemies to where they are now more prepared to fight Batman and knows his moves after the Caped Crusader had been fighting crime for over a decade now.

And of course, you can’t discussed the new gameplay elements of Arkham Knight without addressing the ENORMOUS elephant in the room that is the Batmobile. For the first time in the series, you are given the control to use the Batmobile. This is a vehicle that can be summoned anytime at an accurate location that you can call whether you are on foot or in the air. The Batmobile has the abilities to perform jumps, speed boosts, rotate on the spot, smash through objects, and fire missiles at enemy vehicles. There also two modes of it’s own that can be switched at any time: Pursuit and Battle. Pursuit is for moving from area to area and completing specific driving challenges, Battle is when the Batmobile transforms into a tank and using it’s weapon systems to attack enemy tanks head on, including a vulcan rotary cannon, a 60mm hypervelocity cannon for fire support, anti-tank guided missiles, and a non-lethal riot suppressor. Batman is also able to eject from the Batmobile and immediately begin gliding around Gotham City. Regardless of what objective you are completely throughout the game, you will find yourself using the Batmobile A LOT whether you like it or not.

This is the newest gameplay element that tends to make or break the game for most people. With this being the first game in the series to include the Batmobile, Rocksteady clearly wanted it to be an integral part of the gameplay. However, they perhaps they went a bit too far with that because there is so much of it in the game. I love the idea of having the Batmobile as it was something I’ve been wanting to control since the series begin and with this being the final entry where you explore all of Gotham City, this had to be included. That being said, you might likely find yourself to be really fatigued by it by the halfway point of the game.

There are certainly times where the Batmobile is really fun. It can be a joy to take out tanks with your machines guns or chase after an enemy with all the speed and firepower that you have. However, around the half way point, it starts to become way too much of a good thing. Whether you are focus on the main campaign or doing a random side mission, there will always be a section where you will be forced to use the Batmobile to complete an objective. This mostly amounts to either chasing after an enemy or doing tank battle after tank battle to get to the next part of the story. Heck, a good majority of the boss fights mostly amounts to either a chase or a tank battle with an opponent. Have you ever heard of the phrase, “less is more”? Well, Rocksteady clearly didn’t when it comes to the addition of the Batmobile.

My overall opinion of the Batmobile is like my overall opinion on sex, it’s great when it’s not forced upon you. Unfortunately, it’s forced upon you quite a bit in this game. So much so, that even the most meaningful enemy encounters of this game mostly involves to nothing but tank battles. Remember that glorious one-on-one duel between the Deathstroke in Arkham Origins? Well, if you were expecting a rematch of that! Prepare for disappointment! As much I admire the addition of the Batmobile, Rocksteady was just WAY too carried away of it which made you feel exhausted towards the end of the game.

The last main feature in terms of gameplay involves the side missions, or was is known in the game as “Most Wanted” missions. There are the side missions that can be completed at any time of the game and features prominent characters throughout Batman’s history. The main difference this time around is that these all need to be completed in order to get the true ending of the game. After completing the main campaign, Batman orders Alfred to unlock the so-called “Knightfall” protocol. In order to unlock the complete protocol, that would require to complete every single side mission in Gotham and put every known criminal back behind bars. Although, there is a time during it where it tells you are able to unlock the Knightfall protocol before doing that, that only unlocks half of the true ending. To get the complete true ending, you must fully 100% the whole game and take back the entirety of Gotham City like the goddamn Batman you are. While this will no doubt be very tiring, there is something rewarding about being able to accomplish something I doubt 90% of gamers would dare to do.

The side missions themselves though are honestly quite basic. There’s a handful of loose ends that are carried over from Arkham City such as Hush and Azrael but they aren’t giving the completely satisfying payoffs that the previous game was building up to. This might have to do with the changing of writers and perhaps Paul Dini may have had plans to have them serve a bigger purpose to the main story but it didn’t feel like it amount to much other than I guess that happened. The best by far involves the mission known as “The Perfect Crime”. That was the one which was intriguing, tense, and had an immensely satisfying payoff to who was involved with it the whole time. I won’t spoiler who it is but man, would I love to see that character be in a future Batman movie, perhaps the next Robert Pattinson Batman movie. Aside from that, it’s mostly nothing more than locking away the main bad guys doing the same things you’ve already been doing with not much new added to it.

Of course, the main side mission that you will likely spend the good majority of your time doing involves the dreaded Riddler once again. This time around, he has captured Catwoman, by putting a collar around her neck that could cause her head to explode unless Selina is able to find the right keys to unlock it. In order to free Catwoman, Batman most beat a number of challenges set up by the Riddler. These challenges consist of racing sections where you have to complete the course before time is up before going back to Riddler’s hideout to help Catwoman get the correct keys to unlock the collar. There are about ten of these sections you have to do before you are able to free Catwoman.

However, after saving Catwoman, you then have to go back and solve every single Riddler challenge you have remaining throughout Gotham City before you are able to fight them again. As before, these challenges consists of collecting trophies hidden throughout the city, using gadgets or Batman’s car, disable traps and barriers, and completing timed races. You are able to mark Riddler trophies on the in-game map once found if you don’t have the necessary equipment to beat the puzzle and learn of certain locations for collectables by interrogating the Riddler’s henchmen. There’s a total of 243 Riddler challenges and man, are they harder to solve than ever before.

I can’t tell you the massive amounts of time, energy, and searching up YouTube videos that I needed to gain all 243 of these things. If you weren’t sick and tired of The Riddler already, then you will certainly find yourself hating that man with a burning passion once you are going through these. Once I was able to unlock every single challenge that psycho provided, I couldn’t wait to kick his ass and boy, did I enjoy every single moment I did exactly that. Please, for the love of god, never bring back the Riddler! Never! Just don’t do it! Lock that psycho away in his own little claustrophobic that SOB deserves! Goodness gracious!

The last mention of gameplay features is that of AR challenges. These are challenges you start off with near the beginning of the campaign as you learn of each ability in combat, predator, gliding, and with the Batmobile and then is totally optional later on that can be used to gain XP points and unlock content. These are mostly akin to that of the side content from Asylum and City except there’s much more of it and has brand new missions involving the Batmobile itself. Just like with the Batmobile, it feels like it’s too much of a good thing that there are so much of these you have to complete in order to get all the trophies on your Playstation 4 account. I was able to do with Asylum and might some day do it with City but I highly doubt I will ever get every single trophy in Knight since it’s all just too much work. Also, the new game plus mode is back as well, just to let you know.

When it comes to the gameplay of Batman: Arkham Knight as a whole, it’s does about everything that it needed to do and what you could ask for with a next-gen Batman game. The combat is more fluid and fun, the gliding is faster and more enjoyable, the gadgets and detective vision are just as useful as before, and is still able to capture that feeling like you are indeed the Batman. When looking at it, this is probably the most polished gameplay out of all the Arkham games.

It’s just unfortunate that a good chunk of it is plagued by way too much focus on the Batmobile. These sections aren’t awful by any means and are fun in small doses but they are repetitive and really disrupts the pack to play here. Just like how the Arkham Knight bogs down to what is mostly a really good story, the Batmobile sections bog down to what is mostly really good gameplay.

Graphics:

The graphics in Arkham Knight is quite simply AMAZING! Not only is this hands down the best looking Batman game to date but this is still one of the most gorgeous games that I have ever seen period. From a technical standpoint, I don’t think there are many games during the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One era that looks anywhere near as good as this game did. Heck, I’m not even sure there are many games on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X that will be on the level as this game did.

Gotham City looks exactly like the exact corrupt cesspool of a town that you’ve always imagine it looking like in next gen form. The character models, while radically different than previous games, do fit greatly with the art style for the game. I love the way Batman looks when’s he flying through skies or zooming through the streets in his Batmobile. Like with the rest of the Arkham games, it’s able to look real and great enough but never goes too overboard in it’s realism.

Folks can say what they want about the game’s overall story and gameplay but I would be hard pressed to find everyone that would take issue with the way the game looks graphically. This is an amazing technical achievement in ways that I’ve never seen been accomplished before.

Sound:

The score for Arkham Knight had Nick Arundel return once again as he did with the previous Rocksteady Arkham games but this time around was assisted by David Buckley as oppose to Ron Fish. The pair teamed up to deliver a score that easily contains the most bleak and gloomy tracks of the entire Arkham series. Considering this was intended to be a bleak and gloomy finale, it perfectly captures that dark tone and haunting atmosphere that the game itself presents.

I wouldn’t call it my favorite score in the series as there isn’t as much tracks I go back to listen, with the exception of the main theme for The Perfect Crime. It still fits the game rather well but I don’t think the music stands out as much as it did in Asylum and City.

Similar to Arkham City, we have an enormous cast of well-known voice talent with both old and new faces in this series. And of course, just like with all the other previous games, it’s all stellar here and features some of the very best vocal performances in the series.

Kevin Conroy arguably gives his best performance in the whole Arkham series and possibly even the very best of his career here. With what is suppose to be Bruce Wayne’s most personal and emotional journey out of any of the games, there leaves plenty of room throughout for Bruce to show and express more emotion than he has ever had. Whenever that moment comes of Batman showing raw emotion or even brutality, Conroy absolutely nails it. It’s amazing how even though Kevin Conroy voiced the character as long as he has, he is still able to find new levels of depth and range to add to this iconic brooding character.

Mark Hamill makes an unexpected but very welcome return as Joker who is basically living rent free inside Batman’s head. He doesn’t get nearly as much material to work with as Conroy did as Joker is nothing more than an hallucination and feels like he’s here to add more levity to such a grim story but I can never get tired of hearing Mark Hamill’s iconic Joker laugh. You can definitely argue that this is when this series had rely way too much on Joker but at least Rocksteady was actually clever this time around to bring back the man who plays the clown prince of crime in the very best way.

The other returning members don’t get as much to do this time around but still fit their roles rather well. The returning voices include the likes of Grey Deslie as Catwoman, Troy Baker as Two-Face, Nolan North as Penguin, Wally Wingert as the Riddler and Tara Strong as Harley Quinn. And for those wondering, Strong is much better here as Harley than in Arkham City. It was at this point in 2015 that she had fully settled into the role after voicing the character multiple times and came into her own voice of Harley as oppose to just trying to copy Arleen Sorkin’s HQ voice and failing. I still prefer Arleen as Harley but Tara does makes for a worthy successor.

There were some other notable changes to the cast that are worth pointed out. We have Jonathan Banks, who played Mike Ehrmantraut in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, as Commissioner Gordon and Ashley Greene, who played Alice Cullen in the Twilight movies (*shivers*), as Barbara Gordon/Oracle. I don’t why the changes to these voices were made but both of them do a fine job voicing the characters regardless that it never bother me to much. Although, there are times where Ehrmantraut walks a fine line between monotone and just sounding bored. And even if I didn’t care much for the Arkham Knight himself, Troy Baker does everything he can to make him an engaging character and a legit threat whenever it matters.

The one main standout with the new voice cast is no other than John Noble, from Fringe Frame, as Scarecrow. He is quite simply EXTRAODRINARY as this character. Not only giving hands down the best performance in the entire franchise but one of the best vocal performances I’ve heard in any video game. He is able to deliver every single line of dialogue from Crane with absolute convention and terror. He perfectly showcases why Scarecrow is an absolute threat who should be taking seriously and why he might just be the deadliest foe that Batman has ever come up against. Even when there are moments in the script where the character falls flat, it’s impossible to notice because how convincing Noble is in this role. If I ever do a list of my top 10 favorite vocal performances, I wouldn’t be suprised if John Noble as Scarecrow would be on that list because of how good he is in Arkham Knight.

Downloadable Content:

When it comes to DLC, Arkham Knight easily has the most amount of DLC in the series. Not only does it have all the skins, challenge maps, and allies you could ask for but even has a total of at least six different story packs. These packs allows you to play as different characters other than Batman. There’s the Harley Quinn pack, Red Hood pack, Batgirl: A Matter of Family pack with Batgirl and Robin, Catwoman’s Revenge pack, GCPD Locked Down pack with Nightwing, and A Flip of a Coin pack with Robin.

Most of these packs can be beaten in less than half an hour with the one main exception being the Batgirl pack which would probably take at least a full hour. The Batgirl one is probably the best one out of the bunch as that contains the best character work and progression of the bunch. Even if it technically acts as a prequel to Arkham Asylum, it does feel nice to see how Oracle was in her days as Batgirl before Joker paralyzed her. I can’t help but feel like these DLC packs were strictly made to address criticisms of the main game such as the lack of boss fights and not being able to play as other characters aside from team-up mode. It’s mostly fun but it kinda feels like too little too late.

There is also one other story pack called the Season of Infamy pack. It contains four missions with some of the other villains that didn’t appear in the main game such as Mad Hatter, Killer Croc, Mr. Freeze, and even the League of Assassins returning to Gotham City in an attempt to resurrect Ra’s Al Ghul. I’ll admit I haven’t played this pack yet but for what I’ve heard and seen, these seem to be the best DLC pack of the bunch and felt more satisfying the majority of the main side missions in the game.

Just like with the DLC of the previous games, I was able to get all of this content for free and can’t speak for someone that had to pay extra bucks to be able to require it. I can’t speak for someone that had to buy the season pass at the time of it’s release to unlock all of this content. What I can say though is that Arkham Knight easily contains the most amount of DLC out of all the Arkham games. Not all of them are winners but the ones that are did help fix some of the flaws I had with the main game.

Conclusion:

In the end, when it comes to Batman: Arkham Knight, even with it’s undeniable flaws, I still can’t help but feel like this game is underappreciated. As much as many fans have loved to complain over the years about the bad elements to this game, not nearly enough attention is giving to the good elements of it, which are plenty. The game is graphically stunning, much of the combat and challenges are improved upon and even more fun, Gotham City is a delight to explore, the voice acting is superb, the themes are worth resonating and feel very Batman appropriate, and is able to find a fitting end to a character that isn’t very well enough for having definite endings. Yes, the story can be hit or miss but I still respect for the risks it takes and daring to go into the direction it goes. Yes, the Arkham Knight himself is underwhelming but I mostly view the title of Arkham Knight to resemble Batman more than anything else and he’s still a fine character in his own right, even if the emotional connections comes from other Batman media. Yes, the Batmobile is too much, but it does have it’s fun and badass moments throughout to not make it feel like a complete waste. Even with every con you can point out in this game comes a pro.

Do I think Arkham Knight is as good as Asylum or City? Not quite but I do feel there are plenty of instances where it comes pretty darn close. Had it perhaps tone down on the Batmobile and maybe handle the Arkham Knight a bit differently, it might have been on par if not better than those too. Even so, I strongly believe the positives of Arkham Knight far out way the negatives.

Regardless of how this new Suicide Squad game pans out, I do hope it encourages fans to look back on this series and see the amazing accomplishments that these games have turned out to be. Showcasing how superhero and license video games don’t have to suck. When you have the right amount of right people who want to create something special, it’s then you will have a gaming series as successful as the Batman Arkham series. Even when this series is not as it’s best, it still beats out the majority of other license games out there.

I really loved that I came back to revisit these games and realized how spoiled I’ve been to be able to grow up with these games. Not only showing my love for video games but my love for the character of Batman. This series fits greatly with the 90s animated series, Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, Tim Burton’s duology, and hopefully the Matt Reeves universe has being the definite forms of Batman medium in my eyes. Regardless of where the series goes from here with Kill The Justice League and beyond, I will always look back on these games and realized what amazing accomplishments they truly were.

In terms of the superhero world, don’t be surprised to see everyone’s favorite web swinger getting a special look back in anticipation for his newest game coming sometime this year.

Thanks to everyone that joined alone in my Batman Arkham retrospective this month and look forward to more content on this side soon! Have a good day! Cheers to a great March!

In an age where spoiler-free trailers and marketing for movies are at an all-time high, we tend to act more suspicious when going into a movie. While many of us surely like to go into a movie without knowing any of the big twists or surprises before hand, we also like to go into a movie where we don’t feel deceived by the pre-release coverage of it. Even if that is likely to be toned down now that movie studios can potentially be sued for false advertising (Yes, that does seem to be happening! Go look it up!), there are times where it’s hard to keep our expectations in check because we don’t know exactly what movie we are going to get once we are in the theaters. Which makes it all the more refreshing when we get a movie like Cocaine Bear, where the people behind it clearly have no intended on trying to trick the audiences or catch them off guard with what movie they should expect but would rather make it’s exact bizarre premise as the major selling point of the whole thing.

I’m not sure there’s much to say about Cocaine Bear than that it’s exactly the movie that the trailers and marketing has advertised itself as. You have a group of both recognizable and unrecognizable actors trying to run for their dear lives from a CGI bear who is addicted to cocaine and is all the more violent because of it. There’s some laughs, some thrills, some intense moments, some brutal moments, and it’s all paced well in a refreshingly brief 95-minute long runtime. You can argue it’s uneven, has too many characters or subplots, and never fully committees to the two distinct tones that the movie flirts with but then again, it’s a movie about a cocaine bear. If that’s not enough to get you interested, then I don’t even know why you are still bothering reading the rest of this review.

Premise: Cocaine Bear is inspired by the true life story of the known “cocaine bear” referred to as Pablo Eskobear. After a 500-pound black bear consumes a mountain-sized amount of cocaine, she (Yes, the bear is a woman!) embarks on a drug-fueled rampage to eat or kill anyone or anything that stands in her way. Caught in the middle of a rampage is an oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists, and teenagers that come together in a Georgia forest. It’s then that they all must figure out how to survive this insanely high bear before they all get eaten.

First off, let’s get this out of the way, No! None of the things that happen in this movie is real other than there once was a real alive bear that was high on cocaine at some point. There’s no way a bear would be able to survive as long as it does in this movie with that much cocaine stuck inside it for that long period of time. This shouldn’t matter unless you are an historically accurate purist but there you go.

What does matter tho is the way director Elizabeth Banks and writer Jimmy Warden are able to play with this insane idea as straight forward as you would expect along with something a bit extra sprinkled throughout. By that I mean it’s able to flirt with the notion of being an intense horror-filled thriller with the way the cocaine bear is presented with killing people and leaving plenty of gore and carnage lying around but still is able to commit to being the dark, black comedy that it is. Even if the movie perhaps goes a bit too far in trying to make you “care” for the other characters when you know at least some of them are gonna be eating anyway, there is still plenty of cocaine bear action when it counts. Even when there are instances where it might seem like the movie is losing track of what people are going to see this movie for, it always remembers to turn it’s attention to the central bear doing something funny, crazy, or brutal. It doesn’t quite reach the level of self-awareness in a way that M3GAN did, but it is nice to see Universal continuing to crank out these kind of movies that come off as fresh and a grand feeling of giving folk’s their fully money’s worth.

The cast we are presented with is a whole lot of fun. Keri Russell just seems like she’s about to fit herself greatly into that category of badass mothers in Hollywood with the way she plays her character in this movie. Alden Ehrenreich is done more justice here than Disney or Lucasfilm ever bothered to do with him as Han Solo. The back and forth rivalry between Isiah Whitlock Jr. and O’Shea Jackson Jr. makes for some of the best laughs in the entire movie. Margo Martindale is a scene stealer in every scene that she is in. And of course, the late great Ray Liotta is utilized very well here and the film dedicates his memory greatly in what tends to be one of his final performances.

However, the real star of the movie here is no other than the Cocaine Bear herself. The CGI on the bear is absolute top-notch with there not being very many moments where you won’t be able to buy the effects on it. It’s able to provide with the right amount of laughs, thrills, and tension every time the bear appears on screen.

Whether you are chuckling whenever the bear sprays itself with the cocaine, scared to death whenever it’s about to attack one of our main characters you may like, or thrilled to see it dismantled one of our main characters you hate lime from lime, there is plenty to enjoy whenever the bear is on screen. The main standout set pieces being the ambulance chase and the tree sequences as they provided the most memorable moments of the picture involving the bear.

Could there have been an extra scene or two of the bear instead of the human characters? Sure, but I highly doubt anyone seeing this movie will feel like the bear herself was sideline at all. If you are something that was underwhelmed with the amount of screen time that say Godzilla was in his recent movies, then you will certainly be more satisfied here as the movie never once forgets that this is the bear’s movie.

I can’t say for certain that this is the overall best version of Cocaine Bear we could have gotten as there are few faults that perhaps makes it just shy of an instant classic. As I said, there is perhaps a few too many times where the movie tries to make you care about the characters and their dilemmas. Some of it works well while other scenes with it will make you wish they could have cut it out and just put more scenes of the bear in action. And as much as Elizabeth Banks is clearly growing as a director and does great work here, she still doesn’t seem to be the best when it comes to finding complete tonal control from scene to scene. With the kind of movies she has made thus far, it doesn’t matter but in the future when she tackles more serious subject matter and stories, that might be something she might want to consider before considering doing those kind of movies.

Even so, as much as one can nitpick about certain things, it doesn’t change the fact that Cocaine Bear delivers exactly what the title would suggest, a CGI bear filled with cocaine wreaks havoc and kills people. I’m not sure what more could expect out a movie with this premise but it delivered exactly what I expected and even wanted out of it. If you are someone that has been burned out on Disney and Marvel movies and don’t have confidence in whatever Warner Bros is planning for their future because they keep canceling everything, then Cocaine Bear might act as a refreshing good time for you. With movies like this, M3GAN, Violent Night, Strays, it’s certainly nice to see Universal playing in it’s own sandbox of crafting unique bizarre flicks that lives exactly up to it’s title and premise. I’ll certainly take that than whatever the hell they were trying to do with their so-called monsterverse.

After a month of January movies that felt like they belonged in February and following that up with a month of February movies that felt like they belonged in January, it’s nice to see Elizabeth Banks providing the exact fun change of pace I needed to end this month on a high note. Thank you, Mrs. Banks! I certainly can’t wait to see you tackle Cocaine Paddington next!

Other Notes:

• I was just joking on that last part but I actually kinda want to see a movie where Paddington Bear is on cocaine.

• Unless it ends up like that effing Winnie The Pooh: Blood and Honey abomination! If that’s the case, then don’t bother!

• Speaking of which, I should get to reviewing that movie and tear it the asshole that it deserves!

• As someone that’s from around St. Louis, it’s nice to see that city get a special shoutout here.

• That scene where Alden Ehrenreich finds out the bear is a woman will likely be the funniest scene I will see in any movie this year.

• The opening credits of the movie has the mention, A Elizabeth Banks Film! What an absolute queen!

• To steal the line from Rich Eisen, I would give this movie two thumbs up but the bear has taken both thumbs off!