HERO WORSHIP: HOTSUMA ~ THE ULTIMATE NINJA

Hero: Hotsuma

Breakdown: The Oboro ninja clan has long protected the nation of Japan from the shadows. They have faced inexplicable odds, powerful magic and sorcery, and demons. Japan has existed for a century under their protection. Hotsuma, his brother Moritsune, and friend Ageha were orphaned as children. Together the three of them were raised by the Oboro clan elder Kobushi. It was quickly noticed by Kobushi that these three had potential far beyond others of their age. They were trained by all the masters of the clan. Moritsune showed the most potential. Growing up the three were inseparable. Both Hotsuma and Ageha worshiped Moritsune and Moritsune would do anything for them.

The Oboro Clan

One fateful day the three of them as children discovered the greatest treasure hidden by the clan, the most deadly weapon on Earth: the cursed soul devouring sword Akujiki. When Ageha touched the sword it awoke. It began feeding off her soul. Hotsuma, at the behest of his brother, ran for help. When he returned with master Kobushi they found Ageha in tears, free from the sword, and Moritsune with Akujiki in hand, a vicious gash cut into his forehead. He had saved Ageha by offering the cursed sword a piece of his soul, anointed with blood.

Akujiki

Ageha became fiercely devoted to Moritsune, Hotsuma too wanting nothing more than to be like his older brother. The years passed and Hotsuma never felt he was his brother's equal. Soon the boys learned that the two of them were first in line to be the leader of the Oboro Clan. The two of them would be pitted against each other in a battle to the death. Tradition and ritual was thrust upon them, a duel that could not be denied. The two brothers faced their destiny.

Hotsuma and Aomizuchi

The night of the duel came. Hotsuma believed his brother to be his superior in every way. All the clansmen of the Oboro were ready to call Moritsune their leader. And Hotsuma was prepared to die, having made peace with his soul. The ritual required both men to fight to the best of their abilities. All the clan watched. Only Kobushi and Ageha were allowed to stand close by. It destroyed Ageha
to watch the two men she loved kill each other. She spoke out against the ritual but her protests fell on deaf ears. Hotsuma and Moritsune fought. And Hotsuma won. Before the death blow was struck Hotsuma was instructed to finish him off with Akujiki. Hotsuma refused to kill his brother. Moritsune thrust the sword into Hotsuma's hands and told him to be strong. "My spirit shall forever be by your side."

Aomizuchi Concept Art

Ageha abandoned the Oboro becoming a rogue kunoichi (female ninja). She hated them for what they had done. Hotsuma too was devastated even moreso having killed his brother and feeding his soul to Akujiki. He ascended to leader of the Oboro Clan but the guilt drove him into exile. Four years passed and Japan lived in peace, no need for the Oboro. Hotsuma remained in exile. One night a mysterious ninja of great skill entered the Oboro village, slaughtering every man, woman, and child. So great was this shinobi's skill that even the masters of the clan fell before his sword. Not long after an ancient golden castle rose up from the earth in the heart of Tokyo. Demons spewed forth from the castle gates plunging the city into chaos. Hotsuma returned to find his clansmen slain.

Hotsuma and Ageha

The government sought out their protectors, the Oboro. Hotsuma was all that was left. He vowed revenge. A government chopper escorted him into the city. They informed him that a self-proclaimed sorcerer was summoning hellspawn and unleashing them on the city. The cabinet members were all missing, presumed dead, and the government was all but paralyzed. The sorcerer had practically won. Every incursion into the city by government operatives, tanks and soldiers had failed. The Oboro was their last hope. Suddenly hellspawn attacked the chopper. Hotsuma leapt from the helicopter, still hundreds of feet in the air, thrust Akujiki into the side of a building, and slid down to the ground.

Concept Art and Character Designs by Makoto Tsuchibayashi

Making his way through the city he was ambushed by the Oboro. Hotsuma easily dispatched them. After the battle he discovered demonic talismans plastered to their faces, reanimating their corpses, and forcing them to do the evil sorcerer's bidding. This only enraged Hotsuma further promising his fallen clansman to take Hiruko's head. He continued making his way through the city fighting more of his clansman and demons.

Ageha returned to assist him. She still harbored animosity toward the Oboro and showed no sympathy for their cruel fate. But she still had feelings for Hotsuma and offered to help him avenge their deaths. But when she left the Oboro those four years ago was when he needed her the most. She had abandoned him too. Still hurting from her departure, Hotsuma told her to leave at once lest she be cut down by demons too. The two of them parted on uneasy terms. Hotsuma took to the rooftops hoping to travel faster through the city.

Ageha

There he encountered the mysterious ninja who was responsible for killing the Oboro. The ninja introduced himself as Aomizuchi saying, "With your death so dies the Oboro bloodline." The two battled on the rooftops demonstrating incredible skill and fighting prowess equal to the other. Mid battle Akujiki began reacting strangely to Aomizuchi's presence, its blade glowing deep red. A scar along Aomizuchi's glowed a similar color. The devil ninja told Hotsuma there is nothing he can do to save the Oboro or defeat Hiruko. "Even now the great Kobushi lies dying at the steps of Kumano Shrine." Their battle was interrupted by an explosion and Aomizuchi escaped.

Hotsuma raced to Kumano Shrine in hopes of reaching his surrogate father, Kobushi, before it was too late. A horde of enslaved Oboro and demons awaited him. Ageha reappeared and joined him in the fight. Hotsuma offered to stay and clear a path for her so she cpuld reach Kobushi faster. Hotsuma launched head on towards the enemy and Ageha slipped past them in the chaos. During the battle Akujiki fully awakened. With each enemy cut down it swallowed their souls. Its hunger proved insatiable, even feeding off Hotsuma's soul when there were no more enemies left to devour.

Aomizuchi Revealed

Ageha reached Kobushi in time saving him from death. Soon Hotsuma arrived. Kobushi revealed a long forgotten history about Hiruko and Oboro. Centuries ago the dark sorcerer plunged the land into darkness. A lone shinobi wielding Akujiki cut him down and his body was entombed here at Kumano Shrine. Every year the seal keeping Hiruko buried is blessed by the shrine priestess, an ancestor of Hiruko's with the power to keep him subdued. Kobushi came to the shrine to discover who had broken the seal. Instead he was attacked and the shrine priestess was kidnapped. He urged Hotsuma to find the priestess Kagari and stop Hiruko. Hotsuma asked Ageha to help him to safety and then left to find the missing priestess. Once he was gone Kobushi confessed to Ageha that he was mortally wounded. With his dying breath he told her how wonderful it was to see her again. He died in her arms and she cried, "Why did it have to come to this?"

Hiruko

In his pursuit to find Kagari, Hotsuma encountered the masters of the Oboro, The Fire Master, Wind Master, Dog Master, Weapons Master, and more. They told to him that they too were being controlled by Hiruko's magic talismans but that some of them resented him still for killing Moritsune. Some in fact were enjoying being ordered to fight him. Their words stabbed at his heart but he had no choice but to fight. One by one they fell before his blade, their souls consumed by Akujiki.

The Oboro Masters

Next to stand against him were the Four Hellspawn Lords. They dangled Kagari in front of him as bait before luring him into their trap. He defeated three of them. The fourth revealed himself to be the mysterious ninja Aomizuchi. Hotsuma followed him to the Nakatomi Factory where he confronted Hiruko face to face. Hotsuma moved in for the kill only to be thwarted by Aomizuchi. The two ninjas faced off and Hotsuma slashed off Aomizuchi's mask revealing Moritsune's face underneath! Demon Lord Aomizuchi was possessing the body of Hotsuma's dead brother. Aomizuchi and Hiruko escape and Hotsuma finally rescued Kagari.

Kurakuda ~ One of the Four Hellspawn Lords

Hotsuma continued his pursuit traveling through the very temple where the fateful duel to decide the leader of the Oboro took place. Inside the temple awaited Lord Aomizuchi. At the temple gate Hotsuma was attacked. He knew the weapons. He was familiar with the fighting style. Before he saw his assailant he knew who it was: Ageha. He asked her why she was trying to stop him. She explained that she had never forgiven the Oboro for taking Moritsune away from her. She revealed that she was the one to release Hiruko, hoping his magics would resurrect Moritsune. The resurrection ritual was almost complete and Ageha vowed not to let anyone interfere, not even her beloved friend Hotsuma. The two entered into an epic clash, each giving their all to combat the other. In the end Hotsuma's skills proved the better and Ageha was defeated. Hotsuma stayed his sword vowing never to kill another loved one ever again.

Hotsuma, Ageha, Aomizuchi, & Kagari

Ageha rushed through the temple gates. Inside Hiruko and Aomizuchi awaited her. She asked Hiruko if the ritual was complete, knowing Hotsuma was not far behind. Hotsuma arrived and froze at the sight of his brother. Hiruko beckoned Ageha to Moritsune. She collapsed in his arms, love and relief flowing through her. Moritsune's fist stabbed into her gut, a green otherworldly glow surrounded him, and his body began to transform. Hiruko laughed at the stunned and dying woman stating that the advent of Demon Lord Aomizuchi was at hand. He disappeared before Hotsuma could lop off his head leaving Hotsuma to face the true power of Aomizuchi alone. His two best friends lay before him, one dead on the ground, the other a puppet for a demon. Hotsuma and Aomizuchi clashed! The battle took everything he had nearly pushing him to the brink of death. But Akujiki would not be denied the fourth hellspawn lord. Hotsuma thrusted the blade through his brother's body and Akujiki feasted upon the demon lord's soul.

Aomizuchi ~ The Fourth Hellspawn Lord

At that moment a soul climbed out of Akujiki. Moritsune took possession of his body once again. Hotsuma stared in shock. Moritsune said he had always been with Hotsuma, that his soul has been within Akujiki the whole time. He told Hotsuma that he was going to take Ageha with him back into the sword. Before he left he begged Hotsuma to avenge their people and destroy Hiruko. Hotsuma nodded and Ageha and Moritsune vanished. His brother's command renewed his spirit and gave him the strength to continue.

Moritsune/Aomizuchi

Hotsuma stormed the Golden Castle facing down Oni, demons, hellspawn, and the last of his reanimated clansmen. He ascended the hell palace to the very top where Hiruko waited. Hiruko revealed it was his plan to lead Hotsuma here. The entire Oboro clan rested inside Akujiki along with countless demons and monsters. Akujiki's power had grown tenfold and the power inside was now that of a perfect pure soul. Hiruko would use the power within Akujiki to reshape the world. Hotsuma refused to listen to his insane babble and stated that he would destroy the sorcerer along with the accursed blade! The battle began. Hiruko called on the light of the heavens and fires from hell, all the magic he could muster to destroy the errant shinobi. Hotsuma's skill had never shown more intensely, his focus, his rage, his spirit all in perfect alignment. Hotsuma felt Moritsune, Ageha, and his clansmen fighting with him, lending him their strength. Akujiki found its mark slicing deep into the sorcerer and swallowing the vilest of souls.

With Hiruko's soul Akujiki returned to dormancy. The tower collapsed around Hotsuma. With all the hellspawn vanquished and Hiruko's dark magic gone, the clouds parted over Tokyo and the sun once again shone. Kagari watched the Golden Castle crumble and wondered of Hotsuma's fate. Days later he visited her, the sword broken in several pieces. He entrusted the sword to her asking her to use its power to seal the gateways between the spirit worlds and ours. Then he disappeared into the night.

Review: I first played the game SHINOBI for PS2 back in 2004 while in college. I fell in love with the game and characters. The character designs were so cool and unlike anything I had ever seen before. The English voice acting was a little crappy (the Japanese voice acting is amazing) but the game was so cool I easily overlooked it. I had never been put through my paces like this game put me through. This game is hard as hell with a very small percentage of gamers completing it (and that's just on normal difficulty!). It is a point of gamers pride with me that I defeated it, defeated Hard Mode, and completed Super Mode.

Ageha & the Kunoichi

The game is also distinctly Japanese. No surprise considering where it came from and the subject matter, right? You see, that's one of the aspects of ninjas that is lost all too often. Ninja Gaiden barely retains its Japanese heritage. With Shinobi however you see it in the game design, you hear it in the music, and feel it in the story. It feels like a true representation of ninja.

But what I loved most about the game was the character of Hotsuma. I love ninjas, all kinds, man and woman, big and small, human and mutant turtle. Hotsuma is my all time favorite ninja both in design and plot & character. I love the world he lives in. No other shinobi (ninja) has his skill level nor his presence. He is badass personified. It's in the way he walks, the way he runs, his demeanor, how he carries himself, even the way he stands is emotive and revealing into his character. The man doesn't have to say anything and it tells you so much about his character. Every word he speaks you can feel his pain and anger lying just underneath. I'm making him sound emo but he couldn't be further from it. It's his pain of loss that motivates him, that propels him through the story, "I shall have my revenge." Instead of being a whiny protagonist he silently bares his burden.

Then there is his design. The helmet with the four glowing eyes is both scary and wicked awesome. The shurikens along his arms are sick. And lets not forget the scarf. If ninjas wore capes this is what it would be. That scarf is so rad. I cannot leave his Stealth Dash or what I've lovingly referred to as his Shadow Dash. Based in the idea of the ninja practice and technique of dividing one's self in multiple bodies. In the game it is an ultra-fast movement placing you either directly in front of the enemy, beside the enemy, or behind the enemy leaving their back exposed. An after image is left where you once stood confusing the enemy further. It's so cool and so much fun to use in the game. Plus Akujiki is one of the greatest weapons ever in a video games or even a narrative. How often do you have a sword that could carry the plot of a story all on its own?

It has been 10 years since I first defeated the PS2 video game SHINOBI. I recently downloaded it on the Playstation Network for my PS3 and am making my way through Super Mode as we speak. The more I play the better it gets.

Overall Ranking: 10 out 10

80'S HORROR: NIGHTBREED BLU RAY REVIEW

This last October horror film distributor SHOUT! FACTORY released on blu ray for the first time ever the director's cut of Clive Barker's misunderstood monster film NIGHTBREED. In fact this is the first time this cut has ever seen release on any video format ever. Based off Barker's novel CABAL the movie that was filmed and the movie that was released to theaters and to the public were two very different films. Finally we get to see the former remastered in high definition!

A little history before we begin. Clive Barker became an overnight sensation with his directorial debut film HELLRAISER (a classic horror film in every respect). HELLBOUND: HELLRAISER II also debuted to high praise and solidified the Barker brand amongst genre fans and cinemas. His next project boasted the biggest sensation yet, a monster movie to end all monster movies with the largest cast of creatures ever on one set. Barker was going to adapt his novel Cabal into a film called Nightbreed and it was going to be his magnum opus.

The story is about monsters trying to live life in peace, indeed the monsters are supposed to be the good guys. A homicidal psychiatrist named Decker and a bloodthirsty cop named Eigerman prove to be far more monstrous than the monsters. In fact the human characters are the badguys. In the middle of it all is a love story between the main character Boone and his girlfriend Lori, one a monster and one a human. The film script followed the novel very closely... originally.

Warner Brothers and Morgan Creek studio executives did not understand the film they were producing. In 1989 the big horror films at the box office were Halloween 5, A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 5, Friday the 13th Part VIII, and Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part III. The studio wanted a slasher flick. They didn't like the idea of the audience sympathizing with the monsters. They made Barker cut scenes, film new scenes, and rewrite the script. Gone were the love story and sympathetic monster plotlines.

The movie released in theaters worked but it didn't work well. It was still a spectacle to behold but it had no heart. This new director's cut release from SHOUT! FACTORY has 45 minutes of previously unreleased footage. It reworks the plot showing Clive's true vision. Boone's character feels far more developed and likeable. The plight of the monsters feels dire and your sympathies really do lie with them. A totally new ending is attached as well solidifying Lori and Boone's relationship and shows more clearly Boone's new role as Cabal.

Two editions were released: The two disc blu ray/dvd combo containing the new director's cut, and introduction to the film by Clive Barker himself, making of featurette, audio commentary, actor interviews, and special effects/make-up effects featurettes. And the limited edition 3 disc set. The limited edition set comes with the exact same blu ray disc as the other edition along with another disc loaded with special features, and a third disc containing the original theatrical cut on blu ray for the first time. I was one of the lucky ones who got the Limited Edition individually numbered (#7,043 of 10,000). A sturdy slipcase collects the discs featuring new exclusive artwork. The exclusive special features include deleted scenes and extended scenes, trailers, test footage, extended interviews with the special effects teams, extensive still galleries and poster gallery, and a look at the monsters in the film.

I'm a sucker for special limited editions and this one sucked me right in. I have watched all the special features except for the audio commentary. I'm saving that for a special occasion. All in all the movie feels and flows smoother and finds the heart that the theatrical cut never had. The blu ray transfer looks and sounds great. I'm not saying you have to get the limited edition but to preserve the history and context surrounding this it kind feels necessary. Whenever there's an alternate version released I feel it is important to have the original theatrical cut with it so to see the importance of the new cut. This is one of those cases.

The only major drawback to this set is the price. The list price for the limited edition is around $80. It's a very steep price for any single movie. I can understand some monstrosity boxset for a series of films but one film... c'mon. Who am I kidding? I love this stuff. And I love Clive Barker's monsters. Bottom line this is a great set either the two disc or three disc. It's a long lost gem, a victim of the studio and the MPAA... just like so many horror films during the waning days of the 1980's. It is incredible to see one of these victims finally vindicated.

Overall Ranking (for the blu ray release): 7 out of 10

SILVER TONGUED SILVER SCREEN: THE BABADOOK

"If it's in a word. If it's in a look. You can't get rid of the Babadook. A rumbling sound then 3 sharp knocks 'ba BA-ba DOOK DOOK DOOK!' that's when you'll know that he's around. You'll see him if you look. This is what he wears on top. He's funny don't you think? See him in your room at night and you won't sleep a wink. I'll soon take off my funny disguise. Take heed of what you've read... Once you see what's underneath you're going wish you were dead. You start to change when I get in... the Babadook growing right under your skin."

I have been looking forward to seeing this movie for what feels like forever now, since last winter when a friend of mine, Tim, showed me the trailer. Wow, that was frightening. The passage above is from a fictitious children's book featured in the movie called THE BABADOOK. I like the idea of those old fairy tales we were told as children that were far too violent by today's standards, the classic Grimm's Fairy Tales. This movie takes the idea of a storybook too frightening for kids and goes a whole other step further. And it is terrifying.

SPOILERS AHEAD
Amelia lives alone in a big dark house with her young son Samuel. Amelia's husband died seven years ago while driving her to the hospital to give birth to Samuel. She never quite got over his death and raising a child alone, especially one with a lot of energy and an active imagination, is never easy. Amelia suffers from nightmares, when she sleeps she relives the fatal crash that took her husband. The lack of sleep is wearing her down. Samuel too has been having trouble sleeping, but not from nightmares... It's the man in the closet that's kept him from sleeping.

To help him sleep Amelia reads him a bedtime story. Sam picks a book titled The Babadook. The book appears custom made with no publication date or distribution information. She asks him where he got the book and Sam says he found it on the shelf. She reads it to him (see above passage). The more she reads the more disturbed by this book she becomes. Then they hear knocking... She stops reading and both sleep very little that evening.

Strange noises are heard throughout the house. Sam begins acting out at school. Amelia is worn down further and further. She sees things in her room at night. One night her bedroom door opens. A low creaking of the hinges rouses her. The shadows seem to grow deeper in the dark. She finds herself retreating underneath her covers. Her bed shifts, as if someone else were climbing on top. Then she hears a weathered voice whisper "Ba-ba-dooooook..."

I don't want to say anymore about the movie because I want you to watch it! It hasn't been since MAMA or THE CONJURING that I've had such a good scare like this one. The illustrations of the book and sick little nursery rhyme are ghastly brilliant. The Babadook itself is a franchise worthy horror character that I feel could carry a series of films on its own. The acting is very well down and the plot is executed slowly yet perfectly paced. And the sound, my God, the sound! Watch this on Blu Ray simply for the ambient noises in the film. They add a whole new height of horror to an already frightening film.

My only little complaint is the special effects in a few moments. There are a select few scenes where the CGI reminds me of something rendered during the mid-90's. The scenes are quick but the bad CGI is kinda noticeable. I've said it before and I'll say it again, CGI ain't got nuthin' on the real thing." In this case though I'm not sure how the filmmakers would get around it. In any event this did not stop me from thoroughly enjoying the film. You must check this one out! It's going in my collection for sure!

Overall Ranking: 7 out of 10
Nude-O-Meter: 0 out of 10

THE METAL WILL LIVE ON: FOO FIGHTERS ~ SONIC HIGHWAYS

The Foo Fighters have long been considered my all time favorite band. It was the songs of The Colour and The Shape that first grabbed a hold of me. Then the song Learn To Fly. Then All My Life. The first album of theirs that I ever purchased was The Colour and The Shape. They have made a life long obsessive fan of me. I own all their albums, around twenty singles (all with rare tracks not included anywhere else), and every dvd/blu-ray they've released so far. I've seen them in concert and talked endlessly about how great they are. There... now that I've gotten that out of the way...

SONIC HIGHWAYS is the latest album released by the Foo Fighters just this last Tuesday November 10th. It marks the band's eighth studio album and twentieth year as a band. The album consists of 8 tracks for a total of 42 minutes. It is the band's shortest album both in total run time and track numbers. The track titles are:

1. Something For Nothing
2. The Feast and the Famine
3. Congregation
4. What Did I Do?/God As My Witness
5. Outside
6. In The Clear
7. Subterranean
8. I Am A River

It has been three years since the last studio album of the Foo Fighters titled WASTING LIGHT was released. That album was strangely good. I mean, all the Foo Fighters albums are good but Wasting Light was incredibly good. I don't know how they did it but wow was that an amazing album. To me it stands as an anomaly. In the wake of the sheer power of Wasting Light, Sonic Highways doesn't seem as strong. But that is to be expected and in no way does that mean this is a bad album. In fact it feels right on par with Echoes, Silence, Patience, and Grace.

The band did something different this time, something unprecedented to my knowledge. They have traveled to 8 different cities with rich music heritage and unique musical identity. These cities are Chicago, Arlington, Nashville, Austin, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Seattle, and New York. They've collaborated with Rick Nielsen, Pete Stahl, Skeeter Thompson, Zac Brown, Gary Clark Jr., Joe Walsh, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Ben Gibbard, Tony Visconti, and Kristeen Young. They also produced an HBO tv series documenting the experiences of the bands in these eight cities and the resultant creations of the songs and album.

Sadly I don't have HBO and I haven't watched the series. Having said that, I'm sure watching the tv show would provide me new appreciation and insight on the album. Until I see the show my review will be simply based on the music within the album and my own past experiences with the band. So to sum it up I'm a little disappointed. My disappointment stems from the album length and not the music. If there were some bonus tracks at least I'd feel a little better. It has always been my feelings that an album with less than ten tracks is more an EP or extended play and not full length. Maybe I've been spoiled over the years with bonus tracks and B-Sides. Whatever, it's still short.

It plays a lot like albums One By One and Echoes... where there are three standout songs and then there's the rest of the album. Songs like Something For Nothing, The Feast and the Famine, and Congregation are my favorites on the album. Something For Nothing starts out pretty mellow but works itself into a rocket punch fist to the face frenzy by the end (which I so do love). The Feast and the Famine is intense through and through, keeps your blood pumping nice and heavy after the epic finish of the previous song. Congregation tones us down a bit but keeps rocking.

After that the album explores other melodic themes and territory I'm not as well versed in. Dave Grohl knows music better than anybody and truly seems to appreciate the art form. I can't even begin to tell you what he's drawing from in these other songs. But they are assembled with just as much care and attention to detail as the others, they just explore different avenues. What Did I Do/God As My Witness has a lot of power and emotion in it and feels truly epic in scope. Outside is another rocking track with a long guitar solo in the middle that trails on for a while, almost just as good as Congregation. In The Clear is another solid song with plenty of replay value.

The Foo Fighters, as great as their rock songs are, have always had equally powerful ballads and acoustic plays. The final two songs fit this tradition. Subterranean has a haunted melodic quality to it. The lyrics strike me in this song, almost as if the Foo are talking to us the listeners and telling us we don't know shit about what these amazing guys are capable of. And it's true. Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Chris Shiflett, Nate Mendel, and Pat Smear can do anything they damn well please and this album is just another example of how talented they are. The final song I Am A River is a powerful send off. It is a beautiful song both lyrically and musically.

All in all it is another solid notch on the band's belt, just a little short. It isn't as phenomenal as Wasting Light but very few are. At this stage in the game you always wonder if your favorite band has anything left to give or if we're listening to their twilight years. They made a clear distinction after Echoes that the first chapter of their careers had ended. The second chapter began with Wasting Light and continues through Sonic Highways. We haven't come anywhere close to the twilight years in my opinion. They still have plenty of piss and vinegar left in em.

Overall Ranking: 6 out of 10

My buddy, Chad, ordered the album straight from the band's website on LP. The lucky bastard received a 45 with an extra song titled "Two-Headed Dog" a cover of the classic Roky Erickson song. They performed this song for Austin City Limits a year or so ago. As far as I know this is the first it's been recorded for release. A lot of the Foo Fighters extra songs are covers and that's cool with me. There's a super rare compilation album of the Foo Fighters titled Medium Rare (more like ridiculously rare) that collects a number of their covers. Good luck finding it on either LP or CD.

THE SAGA OF THE KING OF THE MONSTERS PART 24: GODZILLA VS MEGAGUIRUS

Part 24, GODZILLA VS MEGAGUIRUS, the second film in the Millennium series (third series) of Godzilla films showcased a monster barely remembered from a classic kaiju film and took the monster further down its evolutionary path into something Godzilla fans and the kaiju universe had never seen before.

In the 1956 scifi classic RODAN, the movie begins with a couple of miners disappearing. We then discover these men have been eaten by 12 foot long giant insects called Meganulons. Giant prehistoric dragonfly larvae the size of a car. They terrorize a small mining village in Japan, killing many and causing havoc abound. Halfway through the film they are forgotten as an even larger threat emerges, a threat that eats the Meganulons for breakfast, RODAN.

44 years later the Meganulons return to the screen taking on their largest role ever in the greatest battle they will ever face, a battle against Godzilla! In this film they aren't from Earth. In an effort to destroy Godzilla, Japan's leading scientists develop a Black Hole weapon, that when fired will open a wormhole in time space connecting directly to a black hole in deep space. The hope is that when fired it will swallow Godzilla whole, ending his threat forever. When testing the weapon an unforeseen event occurs... something comes out of the wormhole. It gestates within an egg, hatches, then multiplies. The Meganulon slaughters humans and lays its eggs inside them. They multiply and sprout wings, transforming into Meganula. Thousands of them swarm Godzilla, stealing his energy, and transferring it to a kaiju size beast, the final form, MEGAGUIRUS.

The film isn't one of my favorites due solely to the fight scenes between Godzilla and Megaguirus. They harken back to the 1970's Godzilla films, a very low point in the series in my opinion. When I was a kid I loved the late 60's and 70's Godzilla films for how fun and kid friendly they were. This film is strange in that it has a scene of extreme violence and then goofy fight scenes between the monsters. But seeing a long forgotten kaiju return and revamped (much like Moguera in Godzilla Vs Spacegodzilla) makes this a worthy entry in the franchise.

Megaguirus is a very cool design similar to the kaiju Battra in many ways. I wish there would have been a few more scenes showcasing the Meganulons though, some sort of homage to their appearance in Rodan. The first time they kill humans in the film is shockingly graphic, especially for a Godzilla movie. As it stands that scene is an anomaly as no other part in the film goes quite that far. More scenes like that and better constructed fight sequences would have pushed the film to a whole new level. Check it out and see whether you agree or not.

 

Overall Ranking: 5 out of 10

Category: This one is hard to peg whether or not its a kid movie or transcends. I'm leaning more towards an Adolescence category.