While normally with these retrospectives (such as History of Aladdin and the Fullmetal Alchemist retrospectives), I would look at each piece of media in order of their release. However with this look at Dragon Ball, I will be going out of order and start with what is widely considered the "most popular" series in the franchise. Additionally, 2019 also happens to be the thirtieth anniversary of Dragon Ball Z's debut on Japanese television; western audiences would have to wait almost a decade before receiving this influential anime.
Dragon Ball Z, like its predecessor, focuses on the adventures of Son Goku; however, it focuses purely on his adult years, five years after defeating Piccolo Jr. in the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. At this point in his life, Goku is now married with a young child named Son Gohan, the latter being the secondary protagonist and the character with the most development in this series (he also happens to be my favorite character in Dragon Ball as a whole, simply because I could relate to Gohan in some ways). However, his life would soon take a drastic turn with a shocking revelation from a man revealed to be his brother; he is not of the planet Earth, but a Saiyan from a destroyed planet named Vegeta. He was sent to Earth as an infant to conquer it, but due to suffering a head injury from falling into a ravine, he forgot his initial mission. Additionally, we learn of Goku's birth name, Kakarot. (Toriyama, were you reading Superman comics when writing this backstory? This seems eerily similar to the story of Kal-El.) In an attempt to recruit Goku in rejoining the few remaining Saiyans, his older brother Raditz kidnaps young Gohan. Desperately outmatched, Goku teams up with another enemy, the aforementioned Piccolo Jr (whom we will refer to as "Piccolo" for the remainder of this post and the one detailing the Buu arc) to defeat Raditz and rescue Gohan.
The battle against Raditz is one of my favorite moments in this series, because it shows how far Goku is willing to go in regard to saving the planet and his loved ones; even if it means literally sacrificing himself. Upon defeating Raditz and sacrificing himself to save Gohan, the viewer is left with another shocking revelation, two Saiyans more powerful than Raditz are on their way. Goku's friends decide to revive him with the Dragonballs (seven magical orbs that can grant any wish, for those uninformed) closer to their arrival; meanwhile, Gohan is kidnapped once again (poor kid) by Piccolo in order to train him to fight. Goku decides to make the journey to a being known as King Kai to prepare himself as well, learning two techniques in the process; a power-enhancement move known as the Kaioken, and a last-resort known as the Spirit Bomb. Goku may have been born a Saiyan, but it does not mean he has to follow their lifestyle of being ruthless warriors; this is prominently shown during his battle against the Saiyan prince, Vegeta and his lackey, Nappa. While the Saiyan arc is one of my favorite parts of Dragon Ball Z, it unforunately transitions to my least favorite part... the Namek/Frieza arc...
I understand the Namek storyline is a favorite amongst Dragonball fans, it was not the case for me; when I was watching even the Kai version for this post, it was an absolute pain to get through purely because of the story's agonizing pacing. While Kai's improved pacing made digesting this storyline much easier, it still felt like it dragged on endlessly. I could NOT WAIT until Goku's final confrontation with Frieza, so I did not have to stomach any more adventures on Namek. Backing up a bit for context, Gohan and Goku's friends Krillin and Bulma travel to Piccolo's homeworld of Namek. Their mission? Find the Namekian Dragonballs and revive those who fell in the battle with the Saiyans, including Piccolo himself. While on Namek, they encounter Vegeta's superior, Frieza, and his army. Additionally, they befriend a small Namekian boy named Dende, who would later become a prominent fixture in Dragonball moving forward. While I understand the importance of the Namek storyline, I felt there could have been a few moments that should have been cut in order to speed things up. Most notably, the moments of Vegeta doing absolutely nothing while waiting for something to occur, and much of the unnecessary filler involving Bulma. Matter of fact, Bulma as a whole in this arc was not necessary. They could have replaced her with any other character and it would have not made a difference. Her only purpose in this storyline is to inform Gohan and Krillin that Goku is slowly approaching Namek, and that is it. Other than that, she does absolutely nothing at all aside from moping and whining. I understand I am being harsh on this part of the story, but there are actually some moments I enjoy. I enjoyed the battles with Frieza himself, especially the final confrontation in which we learn Goku is a legendary warrior known as a "Super Saiyan". I believe this is one of the moments where Goku swallows his pride and embraces his heritage as both a Saiyan and a citizen of Earth (he also gives a beautiful speech to Frieza in the process, click on "Frieza" in this sentence to watch TotallyNotMark's video about it on YouTube). After the Namek arc thankfully ends, peace returns to Earth as we transition into the Android/Cell storyline... or does it?
Picking up a year and a half after the events of Namek, Goku and his friends are given a warning by a mysterious youth from the future; three years from then, a pair of Androids created by a man named Dr. Gero will appear. In the future boy's timeline, everyone is defeated by them and Son Goku dies of a heart virus prior to their activation. We also learn this boy is the future son of Bulma and Vegeta, named Trunks. The latter is a human/Saiyan hybrid like Gohan, born a year before said androids are said to make their debut. However, due to Trunks attempting to prevent the same fates that occurred in his timeline, he inadvertently causes a series of drastic changes; for starters, the pair of androids the Z Warriors initially confront are not the same ones Trunks warned them about. Matter of fact, one of them is actually Dr. Gero himself, whom converted himself into an android for the sole purpose of defeating Goku and as a result of his lust for power. The entities Trunks warned about do later make an appearance (known as Androids 17 and 18), along with a third being in their group, Android 16. The latter three later become entangled in part of a much larger plot, when a being from the future known as Cell appears. (Why do I have this feeling that Toriyama was heavily inspired by James Cameron's Terminator franchise?) Cell, like Androids 16, 17, and 18, was created by Gero to destroy Goku. However, he has another motive in mind; absorbing 17 and 18 to achieve his perfect form. This arc overall marks the culmination of many characters' development, such as Gohan, Piccolo, Krillin, and even Goku himself. It also happens to be my favorite storyline overall, with many of my favorite moments in the franchise such as Gohan finally overcoming his pacifism and pushing his own limits, and another moment where Goku makes a noble sacrifice to protect those around him (even though he ended up angering King Kai in the process). This arc is really where we see Gohan coming into his own as a character, and manages to push his own boundaries by defeating Cell with one massive Kamehameha. If Dragonball Z ended here, I think it would have been a perfect sendoff because it tied up many loose ends throughout this series and its predecessor. However, editorial interference demanded that Toriyama create one more story arc... one that proves to be a controversial one because it undoes much of the character development throughout this part of the series, and simply acts as a dragged-out epilogue. I will discuss the Majin Buu storyline next time, since it would make the pacing of this post worse than the original run of DBZ (I am also not done watching the Buu arc anyway, as I am currently going through the Final Chapters of Kai).
If you are interested in watching this part of the story in particular, I would highly recommend watching Dragonball Z Kai as opposed to the original Z. Kai's pacing is so much faster, and you get a sense of the story that is more faithful to creator Akira Toriyama's original vision. However, if you like the longer, dragged-out battles, and the copious amounts of filler, then check out the original Dragonball Z. Additionally, if you want a version that has quick pacing and makes fun of the series' absurdity, then check out TeamFourStar's Dragonball Z Abridged.
What Dragon Ball related topics would you like to see me discuss? Would you like to see me talk about DBZ Abridged? Let me know in the comments below, and be sure to like and follow for future updates from Reviews and Retrospectives.
Saturday, June 29, 2019
Top Five Disney TV Series
Hey everyone, guess what? It's time for the annual Top Five Disney list! However, this year we are going to change things up and give you two lists instead of one! In addition to the previously teased Top Five Disney Broadway Songs, I am also going to give you some insight into my top five shows made by Disney as well! Growing up in the late 90s and the 2000s as well, I was basically a Disney Channel/Toon Disney addict (along with a fascination for Nickelodeon and to some extent, Cartoon Network)! Below are five of my favorite shows from the company; there are more than this, but these are simply five that I enjoyed the most (with two honorable mentions).
5. The Suite Life of Zack and Cody/The Suite Life on Deck
I do admit, even now I love Disney Channel's iconic sitcoms from the mid 2000s. However, if you were to ask me which are my favorites, I would tell you that honor goes to the Suite Life of Zack and Cody series. The show centers around the titular twins played by Dylan and Cole Sprouse, (the latter of which is now known as the WORST version of Jughead Jones in Riverdale) living with their cabaret singing mother in a luxurious hotel. Their friends include a spoiled hotel heiress (Brenda Song), a candy counter girl (Ashley Tisdale), and a mechanic (Brian Stephanik). The closest this show had to an antagonist was the hotel's manager, portrayed by Phill Lewis; however, Zack and Cody antagonized poor Moesby more than the former. Eventually, the series was given a rebrand and a new love interest for Cody (played by Debby Ryan). The setting was also changed from a hotel to a cruise ship, with the premise of the twins going to school at sea, something I feel was a bit of a stretch in retrospect (though it would be amazing to study abroad on a cruise ship). Matter of fact, the premise was so outlandish, iCarly referenced it in one episode of their own series. Despite my problems with the premise, the rebranded series had a stronger emphasis on story than its predecessor (which in my opinion makes The Suite Life on Deck the superior series out of the two). In my opinion, these two series were the best out of what Disney Channel offered in terms of sitcoms in the mid 2000s.
4. American Dragon: Jake Long
Before Gravity Falls first aired in Summer of 2012, American Dragon: Jake Long was my favorite animated series on Disney Channel. The plot centered around the titular character, who was descended from a family of human/dragon hybrids, tasked with protecting the mortal and magical realms (think Sabrina the Teenage Witch, but with dragons instead of witches). I loved the massive amount of action in the series, the overarching story, and constantly developing characters. I was also in suspense in regard to the relationship between Jake and his love interest, Rose. Unfortunately, Disney prematurely cut this show from the roster, cancelling it after two seasons. Consequently, that would be one of few times I was legitimately angered by the company; I felt this franchise had a massive amount of potential, and could have lasted much longer than it should. Disney would later do the same to another story-driven series with a similar premise, with similar success.
3. Gargoyles
I admit, while I consider this series one of my favorites, I have not seen it completely. In the early 2000s, Toon Disney had a tendency to air this show's episodes out of their intended order. As a result, it was extremely hard to follow the overarching storylines. If this series ever comes to Hulu and Netflix, you can count on me binge watching it while I work on my animation and design projects. The series has the premise of Gargoyles frozen in time, awakening in the modern day and severely displaced from their medieval era. Like the previous entry, I enjoyed the copious amount of character development and action sequences. Unfortunately, I have not seen much of the story, so I cannot comment on it at the moment; I will give my proper thoughts on this series in a future post.
2. Gravity Falls
As mentioned in entry four, this effectively replaced American Dragon: Jake Long as my favorite Disney Channel animated series. Unfortunately, it suffered a similar fate in terms of premature cancellation as well and left many questions unanswered. Nonetheless, this series is also similar to Jake Long in its subject matter; both explore the supernatural and mystical elements of the world while also being bound to an overarching story. The basic premise surrounds Mabel and Dipper Pines' adventures in Gravity Falls during their summer vacation, and as the story progresses they come across enemies such as Bill Cipher and the irksome Lil' Gideon (the latter of which I found to be an annoying character). Its emphasis on story, and balance between action and comedy makes this stand out from what Disney XD has to offer. It was one of those rare series that contained a singular overarching story as opposed to smaller background story arcs, which kept me watching (despite getting into it well after it ended by binging it on Hulu). Plus, who could forget other iconic characters such as Wendy, Soos, and the always lovable Gnome, Shmebulock?
Honorable Mentions: Aladdin: The Animated Series and Hercules: The Animated Series
Now I bet you are all surprised that I did not put the series based on two of my favorite Disney movies in the top spot, and you all have every right to be. I loved these shows when I was younger, but I did not put them in a top spot for two reasons; the first being I do not have as much nostalgic feeling toward them as I do toward their animated film counterparts. The second being they have not aged as well as these other series in the list. While they are series that I fondly remember and love, their quality is a bit of a downgrade along with creating quite a few plot holes in terms of continuity. However despite that, there are some memorable episodes from both series that are among my favorites in addition to a CROSSOVER between the two. If you are as much of a fan of Aladdin and Hercules like I am, then I would highly recommend giving these two shows a look, they are truly a "diamond in the rough".
1. DuckTales
This series (with Aladdin as an honorable mention) is the Disney show that I have the most memories of watching; matter of fact it is probably one of the earliest exposures to Disney I remember. Since I was really young, I remember watching Ducktales on channels such as ABC, Toon Disney, and Disney Channel. Additionally, they feature characters related to my favorite classic Disney characters, Donald Duck and Scrooge McDuck. The series surrounds Donald's Uncle Scrooge and their nephews (the adorable Huey, Duey, and Louie) as they travel the world in search of treasure and adventure. During their travels, they come across enemies such as Scrooge's rival, Flintheart Glomgold, and a sorceress named Magica de Spell. Occassionally, they will also be confronted by smaller foes such as the criminal group known as The Beagle Boys and Disney's iconic Pete. In addition to being centered around Disney's duck characters, I was also hooked on the adventure aspect and diverse locales Scrooge and his gang would visit. I suppose many of you readers are asking what I think of the 2017 reboot, and I can confidently say I like what I have seen so far. I have not had time to watch much of the series, but from the few episodes I have seen, I love how it actually improves upon the source material. As an added bonus, Donald himself has more of a prominent role than in the original. I may give my thoughts on the new version in a later post, but so far I think this is a worthy successor to the Disney Afternoon classic.
What are some of your favorite Disney TV series? Feel free to leave your responses in the comments below, and be sure to like and follow for future posts from Reviews and Retrospectives! Maybe next time in Top 5 Disney I will finally discuss my favorite songs from the stage adaptations, but I will wait until I hear more from the upcoming stage version of Hercules before doing so.
5. The Suite Life of Zack and Cody/The Suite Life on Deck
I do admit, even now I love Disney Channel's iconic sitcoms from the mid 2000s. However, if you were to ask me which are my favorites, I would tell you that honor goes to the Suite Life of Zack and Cody series. The show centers around the titular twins played by Dylan and Cole Sprouse, (the latter of which is now known as the WORST version of Jughead Jones in Riverdale) living with their cabaret singing mother in a luxurious hotel. Their friends include a spoiled hotel heiress (Brenda Song), a candy counter girl (Ashley Tisdale), and a mechanic (Brian Stephanik). The closest this show had to an antagonist was the hotel's manager, portrayed by Phill Lewis; however, Zack and Cody antagonized poor Moesby more than the former. Eventually, the series was given a rebrand and a new love interest for Cody (played by Debby Ryan). The setting was also changed from a hotel to a cruise ship, with the premise of the twins going to school at sea, something I feel was a bit of a stretch in retrospect (though it would be amazing to study abroad on a cruise ship). Matter of fact, the premise was so outlandish, iCarly referenced it in one episode of their own series. Despite my problems with the premise, the rebranded series had a stronger emphasis on story than its predecessor (which in my opinion makes The Suite Life on Deck the superior series out of the two). In my opinion, these two series were the best out of what Disney Channel offered in terms of sitcoms in the mid 2000s.
4. American Dragon: Jake Long
Before Gravity Falls first aired in Summer of 2012, American Dragon: Jake Long was my favorite animated series on Disney Channel. The plot centered around the titular character, who was descended from a family of human/dragon hybrids, tasked with protecting the mortal and magical realms (think Sabrina the Teenage Witch, but with dragons instead of witches). I loved the massive amount of action in the series, the overarching story, and constantly developing characters. I was also in suspense in regard to the relationship between Jake and his love interest, Rose. Unfortunately, Disney prematurely cut this show from the roster, cancelling it after two seasons. Consequently, that would be one of few times I was legitimately angered by the company; I felt this franchise had a massive amount of potential, and could have lasted much longer than it should. Disney would later do the same to another story-driven series with a similar premise, with similar success.
3. Gargoyles
I admit, while I consider this series one of my favorites, I have not seen it completely. In the early 2000s, Toon Disney had a tendency to air this show's episodes out of their intended order. As a result, it was extremely hard to follow the overarching storylines. If this series ever comes to Hulu and Netflix, you can count on me binge watching it while I work on my animation and design projects. The series has the premise of Gargoyles frozen in time, awakening in the modern day and severely displaced from their medieval era. Like the previous entry, I enjoyed the copious amount of character development and action sequences. Unfortunately, I have not seen much of the story, so I cannot comment on it at the moment; I will give my proper thoughts on this series in a future post.
2. Gravity Falls
As mentioned in entry four, this effectively replaced American Dragon: Jake Long as my favorite Disney Channel animated series. Unfortunately, it suffered a similar fate in terms of premature cancellation as well and left many questions unanswered. Nonetheless, this series is also similar to Jake Long in its subject matter; both explore the supernatural and mystical elements of the world while also being bound to an overarching story. The basic premise surrounds Mabel and Dipper Pines' adventures in Gravity Falls during their summer vacation, and as the story progresses they come across enemies such as Bill Cipher and the irksome Lil' Gideon (the latter of which I found to be an annoying character). Its emphasis on story, and balance between action and comedy makes this stand out from what Disney XD has to offer. It was one of those rare series that contained a singular overarching story as opposed to smaller background story arcs, which kept me watching (despite getting into it well after it ended by binging it on Hulu). Plus, who could forget other iconic characters such as Wendy, Soos, and the always lovable Gnome, Shmebulock?
Honorable Mentions: Aladdin: The Animated Series and Hercules: The Animated Series
Now I bet you are all surprised that I did not put the series based on two of my favorite Disney movies in the top spot, and you all have every right to be. I loved these shows when I was younger, but I did not put them in a top spot for two reasons; the first being I do not have as much nostalgic feeling toward them as I do toward their animated film counterparts. The second being they have not aged as well as these other series in the list. While they are series that I fondly remember and love, their quality is a bit of a downgrade along with creating quite a few plot holes in terms of continuity. However despite that, there are some memorable episodes from both series that are among my favorites in addition to a CROSSOVER between the two. If you are as much of a fan of Aladdin and Hercules like I am, then I would highly recommend giving these two shows a look, they are truly a "diamond in the rough".
1. DuckTales
This series (with Aladdin as an honorable mention) is the Disney show that I have the most memories of watching; matter of fact it is probably one of the earliest exposures to Disney I remember. Since I was really young, I remember watching Ducktales on channels such as ABC, Toon Disney, and Disney Channel. Additionally, they feature characters related to my favorite classic Disney characters, Donald Duck and Scrooge McDuck. The series surrounds Donald's Uncle Scrooge and their nephews (the adorable Huey, Duey, and Louie) as they travel the world in search of treasure and adventure. During their travels, they come across enemies such as Scrooge's rival, Flintheart Glomgold, and a sorceress named Magica de Spell. Occassionally, they will also be confronted by smaller foes such as the criminal group known as The Beagle Boys and Disney's iconic Pete. In addition to being centered around Disney's duck characters, I was also hooked on the adventure aspect and diverse locales Scrooge and his gang would visit. I suppose many of you readers are asking what I think of the 2017 reboot, and I can confidently say I like what I have seen so far. I have not had time to watch much of the series, but from the few episodes I have seen, I love how it actually improves upon the source material. As an added bonus, Donald himself has more of a prominent role than in the original. I may give my thoughts on the new version in a later post, but so far I think this is a worthy successor to the Disney Afternoon classic.
What are some of your favorite Disney TV series? Feel free to leave your responses in the comments below, and be sure to like and follow for future posts from Reviews and Retrospectives! Maybe next time in Top 5 Disney I will finally discuss my favorite songs from the stage adaptations, but I will wait until I hear more from the upcoming stage version of Hercules before doing so.
Saturday, June 1, 2019
Disney's Aladdin (2019): Diamond in the Rough?
(Source: IMDb.com)
Initially, I had mixed feelings when this remake was announced but was nonetheless excited (since this is adapting my favorite animated movie). However, this film was an example of one I should have viewed with no expectations whatsoever; I was one who hoped for deleted songs such as Proud of Your Boy, and essentially an adaptation of the stage musical using Howard Ashman's deleted lyrics. I will say if you are one who had those expectations like me, you are going to be slightly disappointed; as a minor spoiler, the only instance of deleted lyrics in the film are at the end of Arabian Nights and the new reprise of One Jump Ahead (which was surprisingly written for the original film but cut later in production, similar to the aforementioned Proud of Your Boy). Despite all this, this remake is one of Disney's best in their current trend of live-action adaptations. Admittedly, while this film is by no means perfect (nor does it hold a candle to the original and its stage musical), it still does a solid job adapting the source material while giving us something new in the process.
Also, I am currently eating my words in regard to Will Smith's Genie and the rest of the cast (aside from Marwan Kenzari's Jafar).
I loved the portrayals by Mena Massoud (Aladdin), Naomi Scott (Jasmine), Frank Welker (Abu, Raja, Cave of Wonders), and of course Will Smith. They did a phenomenal job portraying their respective characters in addition to fleshing them out; their renditions of the iconic songs were also beautifully done.... except for Will Smith's Prince Ali.
While I know he was making a solid effort in that scene, the sequence as a whole lacked the energy of its animated and stage counterparts; it is disappointing because Prince Ali is my favorite song that was in the original film. I did like the part of the song where Genie was waiting for Sultan's approval to enter the palace, even though it messed up the song's flow. Harkening back to my earlier statement on deleted Ashman lyrics, I felt this song could have benefited most from using them; Genie could have used the lost intro as a means of transitioning into the main number (since the scene started rather abruptly), and the lost lyrics littered throughout the song could have been used to embellish "Prince Ali's" exploits (similar to the stage musical). Utilizing these deleted lyrics was one of main missed opportunities in this film, the other being everyone's favorite Scarlet McCaw, Iago.
I was disappointed that Iago's role was drastically reduced from the original and stage versions, where in this version he is simply a regular parrot; he is still capable of speech, but now it is small phrases. Alan Tudyk did a great job in the role, but I wish we would have seen more from him. Aside from Abu (who remained mostly the same from the original, if not having a more expanded role), the animal characters were essentially pushed aside.
While I am not the biggest fan of Abu, I actually enjoyed him much more in this version. He was given a more dynamic personality and was a catalyst for some events in the plot, making this little monkey one of the most enjoyable characters in the film. Additionally, he is given more time as a monkey than as an elephant, which is another bonus for the character.
Regarding the film's events and pacing; while the story was very solid, there seemed to be somewhat of a lack of cohesion in the second and third acts, as it simply jumped from one event to another. There were plenty of moments I enjoyed (such as the scenes of Aladdin and Jasmine in the marketplace), but there were also times where it seemed like Guy Ritchie was going off a checklist, trying to hit certain points. There were moments he nailed perfectly under his direction, and there were some that could have used some work (such as the infamous "jams" running gag).
I respect the efforts of director Guy Ritchie and the beautiful score by Alan Menken, they did a very solid job in making this film. The cast made the roles their own and did a great job, especially the main trio. Aside from Prince Ali, the entirety of Menken's score was also beautiful, and Jasmine's new song blew me away. I also loved the callbacks to the source material and the stage musical, such as making Prince Ali "of Ababwa" and the little snippet of Proud of Your Boy used at one point in the film (a moment which made me shed a few tears of joy since that is my favorite Disney song). If you go into this film with ZERO expectations, then you will have an enjoyable experience and come out satisfied. It is not exactly a "Diamond in the Rough" like one would think, but it makes a great effort in trying to be one. Aladdin is certainly worth a watch (or two or three), and I loved how it took the material of its predecessors and ran with them. However, Jafar seriously needed some work... he certainly does not hold a candle to Jonathan Freeman, not by a long shot.
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