The classic Super Friends series is back with the Complete Collection from Warner Brothers and DC Comics!
The original Super Friends series is back and this time you can get, not just the entire series but all of the lost episodes as well! The Complete Collection is currently available from Warner Brothers are Target, Amazon and Gruv. Literally a decade worth of Justice League animated goodness for only about $75. What makes the deal even better is that the quality of the episodes have been increased to DVD format, making a much cleaner viewing experience.
The series is full of long time fan favorites, like Batman, Wonder Woman or Superman and even a bunch of classic villains too. Some may notice that stills from the show have been used for memes for years and spotting them can always be a fun game. The show is clearly meant for children of all ages, some episodes haven’t aged as well as others but that’s to be expected. If you’re a fan of Super Friends or even the Justice League then this will be a treat for you.
Parents grab your children, children grab your blankies, this is not a test! Crisis on Infinite Earths Part 3 is finally here!
The team at Warner Brothers were kind enough to share Part 3 of Justice League Crisis On Infinite Earths for our review. The film starts with the death of the Monitor and pulling the Earths they could save into a realm between life and death called The Bleed. The protection of The Bleed has become increasingly unstable and incursions begin to happen across multiple Earths. First is a wave of dinosaurs attacking Metropolis and followed by Nazis armed with the weapons of Batman’s rogues gallery in Gotham. Both sequences were great.
The film does a great job of not just telling the conclusion of the story but explaining why the multiverse even exists. It even explains how the Anti-Monitor is a hero to the multiverse. Even having read the novel, my memory is that the Anti-Monitor was the ultimate villain. I loved seeing cameos from some of the other animate DC universes, like Batman The Animated Series including Mark Hamill as the Joker of that world. Overall it made for a great ending to the story and told in a better way than I had seen previously for this story.
I just hope that we get to see Batman Metal receive this same treatment because start to finish the team crushed this story!
IT IS RARE FOR ME TO SEE A MOVIE WHEN IT’S STILL IN THEATERS BUT THANKS TO WARNER BROS I WAS ABLE TO CATCH UP ON THOSE I MISSED!
Recently the fine folks at Warner Bros (their home page is here) had sent me copies of some of their movies I missed so that I could share my thoughts on them with you. For the first part of this series we talked about Scoob, Birds of Prey, The Way Back, Goonies 4K, Beetlejuice 4K, Full Metal Jacket, Sherlock Holmes 4K and Sherlock Holmes A Game of Shadows 4K. Part 2 ‘twas massive and discussed V for Vendetta 4K, 300 4K, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy 4K, The Hobbit Trilogy 4K, Blade 4K, Bill and Ted Face the Music, Tenet and The Wolf of Snow Hollow. Part 3 talked about Wonder Woman 1984, The Little Things and Judas and the Black Messiah. Part 4 discussed Tom and Jerry the Movie and Godzilla Vs Kong. Part 5 was all about Wrath of Man, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory and Space Jam. Part 6 had discussed Mortal Kombat and Those Who Wish Me Dead. Part 7 discussed In the Heights, The Conjuring 3: The Devil Made Me Do It, Zack Snyder’s Justice League and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone 20 Years of Movie Magic edition. Part 8 discussed A Clockwork Orange, Space Jam: A New Legacy and Shawshank Redemption. Part 9 talked about The Suicide Squad and Reminiscence. Part 10 discussed The Outsiders, Cry Macho, Malignant, the Many Saints of Newark and the Mad Max film collection.
Part 11 talked about Dune, Matrix: Resurrections, The Batman, Dog and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. Part 12 discussed Elvis, DC League of Super Pets, The Lost Boys and Poltergeist. Part 13 shared some classics with 8-Bit Christmas, Casablanca, A Christmas Story, Three Thousand Years of Longing, The Polar Express, Elf and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Part 14 had Don’t Worry Darling and Part 15 was discussing Black Adam. Part 16 had Bones and All, House Party plus the 4k release of Training Day. Part 17 returned for the 4k release of Rocky the Knockout Collection and Magic Mike’s Last Dance. Part 18 had the Superman 5 Film Collection, Creed III and Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Part 19 discussed A Good Person, National Lampoon’s Vacation 4k Edition and Evil Dead Rise. We are back with Part 20 to talk about The Flash!
The Flash
This film follows the Flash as he tries to change the past and creating an even worse future. The ads for this, along with the news surrounding the future of the DC cinematic universe, the film seemed like it was going to possibly be the story from Crisis of Infinite Earths or at the very least involving the Multiverse. My expectations for this film were mixed for this film. I was expecting it to be about on par with Shazam 2 in production quality and storytelling, but not so much in terms of humor. This film far exceeded my expectations in nearly every way. My only complaint was some of the CGI used for some of the alternate timeline characters, even then the likeness was spot on.
Which of these Warner Bros films have you had the chance to see? Which was your favorite? Let us know on our Twitter!
Player First Games and Warner Bros Games team up to bring us the new fighting sensation Multiversus.
From Alpha to Beta to official release we got the chance to play Multiversus each iteration from Player First Games and Warner Bros Games. Through the alpha and most of the beta we had only fourteen characters. I say only like it’s a small amount, it’s not but three more have already been added with a fourth on the way soon (we expect during the last week of September). We will break down our thoughts on all that are out currently here shortly.
Before talking about those characters we are going to discuss gameplay, controls and graphics. Graphically the game is crisp and fluid. Controls are smooth as hell and easy to learn allowing you to learn combination moves organically to become a force to reckon with. The only real failing of the game is that there isn’t a story mode of any sort. Hell, Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat and Smash Brothers all had a basic story with them when they first released. Each “season” the game features a battle pass system of rewards where you can earn character skins, emotes and more by earning XP. This system currently gives players MORE than enough time to earn the necessary amount before the season ends. This is for those players like myself that only complete the daily XP challenges and then saves the game for another day. Dedicated players will unlock these rewards long before that happens.
Overall this is a fighting game in the same way Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat are but more family friendly gameplay like Smash Bros or Brawlhalla. There is a secret adult audio mode that is disabled by default that you can turn on if you wish. Other than only a single character so far (Morty) there are really no “bad” words being used by the characters, it’s more of a change to their attitudes. Personally I prefer this because it unleashes sarcasm in my gameplay and some of it is hilarious.
Every game I have ever played before this game that had any sort of battle pass I thought was a waste of my time because the level of grinding required to get all the prizes were insane. That was before I played Multiversus. I love the cosmetic options you can earn like for Shaggy you can play as Uncle Shagworthy (if you were part of the Beta and purchased the premium pass).
You also can’t argue with the price, the game is FREE to purchase and play but most of the characters require in game currency (you can earn or purchase outright) to unlock characters. Never fear though, they even rotate characters so you can try four at a time beyond any you unlocked. If you like fighting games and characters from Warner Brothers then this game is a must for you. I am obsessed and have played daily since the Beta started.
Take a look at a trio of battles between my son and myself, we had a blast!
Now, about them characters, starting with the core fourteen.
The Iron Giant– This is the powerhouse of the game, the definition of the tank. He is literally the only character I’ve seen hit 300+ damage without being knocked off the map. His downside is he is slow and his hitbox is larger than any other character. Online players that typically use him spam his ground slam ability and his uppercut. Both are easy to predict and counter but if they hit it’s gonna hurt.
Taz– Taz was this game’s equivalent of Blanka in that he only had a couple moves that almost everyone spammed the hell out of to the same character. After his recent nerf though he feels clunky and oddly slow for a living tornado but seeing him turn opponents into giant cooked chicken makes it all worth it.
Velma– She has one of the game’s lowest and most powerful “uppercut” type abilities as the movie appears as her throwing a lightbulb above her head as she gets an idea and that lightbulb itself is deadly. She’s fast with some weak hits but between her uppercut and her police car special she should not be ignored.
Arya Stark– For me she is the most difficult to learn and yet the hardest to pin down and hit. By far one of the fastest characters in the game and her moves require accuracy more than button mashing. She has some of the most brutal combos I’ve witnessed and they are devastating. I’ve seen more videos where she has a flawless victory than any other character.
Batman– He can take a hit and is great for closing distances. His batarang is best used to weaken enemies than actually damage them. If you can chain your attacks you can land some devastating combos but those initial hits aren’t going to do much. Button mashing has worked more times with him than not.
Bugs Bunny– Bugs plays very similar to Tom and Jerry where both can be very troublesome to hit. His abilities can land some easy combos that do decent damage but expect to put more hits into your foes as he is one of the weaker characters.
Finn The Human– I am not a fan of Adventure Time and was hesitant to give Finn a try and immediately loved playing him. He is fast, hits hard and can take a beating. His air special up attack is truly devastating.
Garnet– Garnet is a character I have only seen pictures of, never watched Steven Universe before. She is more of a utility character that feels perfect in support, even though she is a bruiser. She hits hard but her attacks are mostly short ranged and require closing the distance but using her to connect to allies she can keep them from falling to their doom or being removed from the map very similar to Reindog and Morty do. This same ability protects her in the same way.
Harley Quinn– Harley is tons of fun to play. Her attacks are comical and she has tons of personality. She’s fast, excels at dodging and her hammer and feet pack a wallop.
Jake the Dog– As mentioned above I didn’t want to play this character due to not liking the show but due to his versatility and so many different move options he’s a lot of fun to play, just not a lot power behind his hits but his speed more than makes up for it.
Reindog– This is the only character that is original to this game and he is freaking adorable. This massive shaggy dog with horns may be support but he backs a major punch. Like Morty and Garnet, he can use his long distance ability to grab allies and pull them back to safety. This ability works to save himself as well.
Shaggy– The Shagster is by far one of my favorite characters to play. His rage ability makes me laugh every time I use it because it essentially turns him into the god mode shaggy from the memes. Even his costumes are great. Less skilled players focus on mostly spamming his side air special which is a flying kick. His hits can be brutal but if you combine his rage with throwing his sandwich you’ll get the most deadly projectile so far in the game.
Steven Universe– Probably my least favorite character to play, but that is mostly due to his short reach. He’s great as a support character but my play style is meant more for a melee or tank fighter. Boosting and healing teammates is not something I do often because I focus mostly on hitting my opponents. That kind of play style Steven does not work for.
Superman– There are some challenges made with certain characters in mind. The challenge that requires knocking out an opponent without being on or above the map itself was clearly made for Superman players. His side special ability when in the air grabs players and throws them to the side of the map. He can easily do this and have jumps left to get back to the map in time before falling himself. He hits hard and some of his combos are easy to learn. Even spamming the same attack and being hit with decay those attacks are still punishing.
Tom and Jerry– I’m sure I’m wrong on this but I swear this duo have more abilities/attacks than anyone else. What is great about using them is they are essentially fighting each other the entire match and your enemies are just collateral damage. They are a lot of fun to play despite the chaos they cause. They are fast, hit hard and can take a hit.
Wonder Woman– You unlock her by completing the tutorials and she is one of the most balanced characters in the game. She is also the only character to have her own daily challenges pop up from time to time where you must block a projectile with her shield (the one for side special attack is the easiest to control for this).
Now the latest three four.
Lebron– Playing against him I felt he was a very week character that was easy to disrupt. Having tried him out for myself I realize this is not entirely the case. The way I play works well against him for most characters but is truly a speedy powerhouse, if you can get a combo off.
Morty– Morty is more of a hybrid. He’s a bruiser but also plays very much like a magic character. His abilities vary greatly between high damage close up hits to ranged attacks that still pack a punch but less than the melee hits. He is fast and excels at dodging. He is a ton of fun.
Gizmo– This adorable guy is the cutest in the entire lineup. His movies are pulled directly from the two movies like his singing, driving an RC car and using a makeshift bow and arrow. He isn’t the strongest hitter but he is difficult to nail down and hit.
Rick-When this game first came out my son asked me who I would hope to see added at a later date, my immediate answer was Rick and Morty. The next day they announced Morty and as of yesterday (9/28/2022) Rick was added to the game. We spent some time with him last night and this morning. He is so much fun to play. The chaos he causes feels like you are living an episode of the show and it is amazing. The only thing missing is all of his crazy and amusing dialogue from the show. The voice actor even sounds just like him!
And Batman asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Joker, for we are many!” Delve into the insanity in Batman: Three Jokers, chapter 2, verses 1-54!
“As Batman and Batgirl follow an unexpected thread linking the three Jokers with someone from the Dark Knight’s past, Red Hood dives headfirst into trouble and finds himself struggling to stay afloat without the aid of his allies. Batman: Three Jokers continues its trajectory as the ultimate examination of The Joker and his never-ending conflict with Batman. Prepare yourselves for the second chapter of one of the most terrifying and personal mysteries Batman has ever faced!”
“Terrifying” feels a little over the top, unless you’re Jason Todd, but aside from that, this is a really spot on synopsis.
My Impressions:
This story delves into the metal injuries Joker inflicted on Jason and Barbara…and how they handled the lasting impacts. Heavy stuff that most comics don’t handle to this depth.
Without a doubt, this is the Empire Strikes Back of the series. The good guys lose and lick their wounds while the bad guys end with the upper hand. I like it!
Jason really needs to understand that he was DEAD, so he can’t blame people for burying him!
Was it really necessary to make Jason naked?
Notable Appearances/Events:
Batman (Bruce Wayne)
Joker
Joker
Red Hood (Jason Todd)
Batgirl (Barbara Gordon)
Joe Chill
Bottom Line: 4 Stars!
At least this time it’s not Batman’s fault that Jason is beaten to death (almost). Kidding aside, this is a pretty haunting issue…especially the revealing scenes in Barbara’s apartment. All of that evidence of her rehabilitation after being paralyzed…the evidence of how it changed her life. Just how much Jason’s death affected him. It’s a great story. I can’t decide if I want to see Jason embrace the Joker route, or hold true as a hero. Perhaps DC should have set up a phone number and let the fans decide!
Have you ever wanted to take on the role of your favorite villains from Gotham? In Talisman Batman: Super Villains Edition you can!
USAOpoly brings us a new take on the classic game Talisman with Talisman Batman. Having never played a Talisman game I didn’t know what to expect but loving Batman’s rogues I knew that this game would be right up my alley so when The Op Games offered me a review copy I jumped at the chance.
The goal of the game is to play as one of the various villains (what game let’s you do this, honestly?) and sneak your way through Arkham Asylum until you reach the security tower. Finding the exit isn’t simply the end though, you must also face down the greatest detective himself- Batman! Each turn your villain performs two actions, movement and encounters. In terms of movement your dice determine what happens and as always a roll of 1 is a failure, meaning Batman is moving as well. When you finish your movement you must resolve your encounter with the space you are on. Encounters will vary based on the space itself or if you share that space with either another player of Batman himself.
I loved the theme of the game and was honestly surprised there wasn’t an option where you could have someone play as Batman himself. Doing a larger group would have been quite fun if one person was playing the bat and everyone else had to either avoid him, work with each other to escape or face him directly. The mechanics worked well for the game and having to roll for your movement (instead of a default setting) added some stress inducing variables that made for some tense moments. If you’ve ever wanted to play the villain this game is a must for you but leaves a bit to be desired for those uninterested in the role.
Brethren! Seek not to ponder the Batman himself, instead, feast yourself on this massive volume of his stories! Behold the book of Detective Comics, chapter 1027, verses 1-144!
This is the scripture according to: Peter J. Tomasi, Scott Snyder, Greg Rucka, Tom King, Brian Michael Bendis, Matt Fraction, James Tynion IV, Mariko Tamaki, Marv Wolfman, Grant Morrison, Dan Jurgens, Kelly Sue DeConnick (Queue a dramatic inhale!) Illustrated by: Eduardo Risso, Lee Bermejo, Walter Simonson, David Marquez, Jim Cheung, José Luis García-López, Olivier Coipel, Riley Rossmo, Dan Mora, Chip Zdarsky, Jamal Campbell, Chris Burnham, Dan Jurgens
The official plot:
“Light the Bat-Signal, because Detective Comics #1027 is here! In honor of Batman’s first appearance in Detective Comics #27, this special, book-size celebration brings you the biggest names in comics as they chronicle the most epic Batman adventures Gotham City and the DC Universe have ever seen! The World’s Greatest Detective has a mountain of cases to crack: Who murdered Gotham’s most corrupt police officer? What does The Joker’s annual visit mean for Bruce Wayne? And most importantly, what WayneTech mystery will sow the seeds of the next epic Batman event? All this and more await you within the pages of the biggest Batman issue of them all!”
“Most epic Batman adventures…?” Not so much. “Seeds of the next epic Batman event?” Sure, I’ll give them that one. Look, it’s a collection of short stories, some good, some bad, mostly adequate. It all depends on your personal flavor.
My Impressions:
Be careful where you set this issue down, it’s so heavy it could cause some damage
Exactly what you would expect from a Batman anniversary issue…a collage of art and words. A chance for some folks to try new styles etc.
Initially intimidating…but it should be, it’s lighter fare. Easily skipped if you don’t want to invest the time.
Notable Appearances/Events:
I am not even going to attempt to list everyone appearing in this thing!
The Silver Ghost (Detective #26) – We will probably never see him again, but I liked him!
Bottom Line: 3 Stars!
This thing is a BEAST to get through…144 pages. Seriously a multi-session read. In addition, it’s one of the better milestone compilation issues I’ve seen recently, including some sections that tie into currently running story lines. Of course there are those that go for the “deep” or “shock” stories as well, though none are specifically memorable.
“You are my hammer and weapon of war: with you I break nations in pieces; with you I destroy kingdoms;” Who is this weapon? It is revealed in the book of Batman, chapters 99-100!
“The Joker War’ comes to a city-shattering conclusion as Batman battles The Joker in a brutal, no-holds-barred duel! This is a fight 80 years in the making, and its outcome won’t just change Batman’s life, it will change Gotham City for years to come! Plus, a pair of short stories that will chart what’s to come in Gotham City and Batman.”
The highly hyped Joker war comes to it’s expected conclusion. As expected, everyone under the sun shows up to throw a punch or two. Does it live up to the hype? Not in the way you might expect.
My Impressions:
Harley Quinn is the best part of this story arc. A timely intervention saves the day, and when she get’s serious, it’s chilling.
Oracle is back online. ‘Nuff said.
Clownhunter. Either he ends up a Robin, or he’s a flash in the pan. There’s no in-between.
Did Harley just become a member of the Bat-family???
Notable Appearances/Events:
Batman (Bruce Wayne)
Joker
The full Bat-Family
Harley Quinn (Harleen Frances Quinzel)
Punchline (Alexis Kaye)
Clownhunter (Bao Pham)
Ghost-Maker 1st Appearance! (Cameo)
Bottom Line: 4 Stars!
I feel like the climax for this story arc was about 1 page long. The build-up of how badly Joker and his forces were destroying Gotham, along with the corruption that is revealed is absolutely huge. Batman finally admitting he can’t deal with this alone and calling in the help of his various protégés doesn’t feel quite sufficient to handle the task. And then it’s over…and fast too. However, Harley’s part in the finale is almost a whole new character. I really hope we see her continue to evolve down this path, and become a semi permanent member of the troupe.
Evil plants of all kinds will grow on many worlds! Their leaves will not wither, and if you heed not your own common sense, they will eat you! Don’t believe me…see Justice League, chapter 52, verses 1-32!
This is the word of Jeff Loveness. As envisioned by Robson Rocha. If you’re thinking “Who??” you are forgiven. I did too.
The official plot:
“For the first time, the Justice League explores the planet of the Black Mercy’s origin. One flower is enough to incapacitate even the strongest hero, but with an entire planet full of them, the Justice League must steel their minds or else succumb to the withering effects of the great tree at the core. With Batman unable to cope, can Superman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, and Green Lantern survive the horrors of their souls?”
They should have just called this one…”Batman’s origins redone for the 5 millionth time.” Oh, and as per the new normal, Wonder Woman saves the day.
My Impressions:
Regime Change: Wonder Woman really appears to be taking on the “Leader” role…they should just make it official.
Visuals: Good with an occasional touch of great.
The real “bad”: DC is really bad at the whole “team” thing. They either try to give every member something to do, essentially under using all of them, or focus too much on just one member…like Batman in this issue. It’s seriously bad. Superman or Green Lantern could have legit burned this thing down from a mile in the air, problem solved. Instead, they have to be sidelined so Batman can have an internal struggle that he KNOWS isn’t real.
Notable Appearances/Events:
Green Lantern (John Stewart)
Flash (Barry Allen)
Batman (Bruce Wayne)
Wonder Woman (Diana)
Superman (Kal-El / Clark Kent)
Bottom Line: 3 Stars!
Why do I stick around? I’m a fan of these guys separately…and quite honestly I’m afraid I’ll miss something cool. Also, it’s not a bad story…its just been done before. Given all that, I feel they need to fix how they handle the team soon, or I just may bail.
Brothers and sisters! Pay heed to the actions of the Joker for he will cause madness in Gotham! They will drink and stagger and go mad because of the poison that he has sent among them! So sayeth the book of Batman, chapter 98, verses 1-32!
This is the scripture according to the prolific James Tynion IV. As envisioned by the not-as-prolific Jorge Jimenez
The official plot:
““The Joker War” part four of six! Batman is at his most vulnerable following a massive dose of an experimental new Joker toxin. With the Dark Knight haunted by demons and visions, it’s up to Harley Quinn to protect him while he recovers-because Punchline is on her way!”
This one should have had “Harley Quinn” graffitied over Batman in the title. The Harley/Punchline rematch is where all the action is. Batman spends the majority of the issue stuck in his own head, talking to Alfred.
My Impressions:
Harley/Punchline: I dug it…more than just punches and insults, there’s some real girl talk during the fight.
Alfred dealing out some tough love! (Even if he is a figment of Bruce’s drugged mind.)
I’m Batman: Nice presentation, but not quite as powerful as intended. Sorry, you’re not going to shake the meme with this one.
Notable Appearances/Events:
Batman (Bruce Wayne)
Harley Quinn (Harleen Frances Quinzel)
Punchline (Alexis Kayne)
Alfred Pennyworth
Catwoman (Selina Kyle)
Penguin (Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot)
Riddler (Edward Nigma)
Scarecrow (Jonathan Crane)
Joker
Killer Croc (Waylon Jones)
Mad Hatter (Jervis Tetch)
Professor Pyg (Lazlo Valentin)
Bottom Line: 3 Stars!
Harley and Punchline steal the show in this one. It wasn’t quite as campy as I thought it would be. As for Batman…can we PLEASE move on from pining after Alfred now? I think that’s the set-up here…but I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of our favorite butler.