Blade - House of Chthon (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)Blade: the Series is currently playing on HDNet. I watched the first three episodes and was totally hooked. I downloaded the rest of the episodes from iTunes and watched them all over the space of about a week. I regret having missed the show when it was running on Spike. I think the show's creators did a really good job of translating the movies to television, and the show itself was a little more adult than most basic cable fare.
Unlike some of the other reviewers, I think the production values and acting in the show were just fine. While I initially had some problems adjusting to Kirk Jones as Blade, I think he improved a lot as the season wore on and was good at conveying Blade's reluctant caring and his gruff exterior. I was especially impressed with Jill Wagner, who plays Kirsta Starr, Blade's spy in the House of Chthon. Wagner was equally convincing wearing a evening gown or kicking butt in blue jeans and a t-shirt. In the first half of the two-hour pilot episode, Wagner wears blue jeans and carries a gun. About halfway through, she shows up at a party wearing a spectacular white dress. Wow. She's a gorgeous gal. Of the series regulars, only Jessica Gower, who plays one of the key vampires, struck me as a little wooden.
I do have some plot issues. Emily Hirst plays Charlotte, a pure-blood vampire, born a vampire instead of being turned like most of the others. Hirst is 13 or so, and her character is supposed to be 200. Do pure blood vampires grow old, maybe at a slower pace than humans? The other pure blood vampires shown in the series are all adults of different ages. I don't really understand the concept. Another gripe: during the pilot, Krista has a sniper rifle loaded with silver-tipped ammo aimed at Marcus Van Sciver's head, but instead of just blasting him, she insists on taunting him over a two-way radio she's left behind. Of course, we know what that means...
Quibbles aside, I enjoyed the show a lot, and I am sorry it only lasted one season. I would like to know what happens next. Maybe if enough people buy this DVD of the pilot episode, we can get a few direct-to-DVD movies made featuring the same cast.

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The House of Chthon, an ancient evil sect of vampires, is growing stronger everyday. Led by the vampire overlord Marcus, their objective is to create a vaccine that will give rise to a new breed of super vampires, immune to vampire weaknesses. In order to stop them, Blade joins forces with the ruthless and beautiful Krista Starr, whose brother was slain by the vampires and who will go to incredible lengths to infiltrate the House of Chthon. With her help, Blade will do everything he can to win this war before it's too late.DVD Features:Audio CommentaryFeaturette

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Superman - The 1948 & 1950 Theatrical Serials Collection (1948) Review

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(More customer reviews)How lucky are we to finally be able to enjoy these two classic Superman serials now available on DVD. These have long been around on bootleg VHS or home-burned dvds, with poor picture quality and sound. The home-burned dvds I got off Ebay did not have the capability to fast forward or rewind, and were not formatted chapter-per-chapter. It's possible that only the die-hard Superman fans and fanboys alike have ever seen Kirk Alyn's portrayal of Superman. Most people think that George Reeves was the first screen Superman not realizing that there were two complete chapter serials starring Alyn as the Man of Steel long before the iconic tv show of the 50s.
That being said, this is a real delight to watch! The fanboys, to this day, continue to cry over the fact that in these serials, Superman's flying sequences were animated. Okay, so it wasn't the high-tech CGI of today's production capabilities. If you're able to get past that, you can enjoy these serials for what they are; pure escapist fun! It's a comic book that's come to life! Kirk Alyn's Superman is not like George Reeves' or Christopher Reeves' or anyone else who ever donned the cape and tights. You've got to see him and judge for yourself. His portrayal of Clark Kent is a little more "mild-mannered" in keeping with the character from the comics, and that's nice to see. Tommy Bond, who played "Butch" in the "Our Gang" and "Little Rascal" shorts is awesome as Jimmy Olson. For me, the real delight was Noel Neill as Lois Lane, the FIRST screen Lois Lane! She was about 27 or 28 when first cast as Lois and she is just too darn cute! She's absolutely adorable with her big hat that she wears in nearly every scene. She's assertive and risk-taking, just like the Lois in the comics of that era, while still remaining feminine. Her Lois Lane of these serials are night and day from her Lois Lane of the tv show and once again, it's very interesting to see both and make the comparison yourself.
The first serial, has Carol Forman, as the Spider Lady. The 1950 Serial, Atom Man Vs. Superman is a better serial than the first one in my opinion. The production values and the writing are a little better and more developed than the first. The flying sequences were still animated but there were "close-ups" of Alyn flying, which were actually him standing upright with his arms extended over his head and the camera laid over on its side to give a horizontal effect. Lyle Talbot's Lex Luthor/Atom Man is great! Talbot was a veteran screen and television actor and many fans will immediately recognize him as Police Commissioner Gordon from Columbia's 1949 chapter serial, "Batman & Robin." In fact, if you're a fan of old movie serials in general, you'll recognize some of the faces of the actors who play Luthor's goons and thugs from other serials. One of the Atom Man's chief lackeys is an actor who is Dr. Daka's henchman in Columbia's 1943 chapter serial, Batman...too cool!
These serials were made on shoe-string budgets in 1948 and 1950 and weren't meant to be more than what they were. They weren't designed to be big screen blockbusters, and they were made for the kids of that time. We've become so sophisticated and demanding of "our" superhero movies, that to me, it seems to quite unfair to deride these two works because of shortcomings with special effects, writing or even the acting. Indeed, how lucky we are to finally be able to enjoy these two classic Superman serials now available at long last on dvd! ENJOY!!!

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Dragon Ball: Season Two Review

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(More customer reviews)The new first season set of Dragon Ball uncut isn't even out yet and they've already announced this season two set. While the main reason to buy the first is the first chance ever to own the original thirteen episodes uncut in a proper North American set most fans will probably continue on buying this one as well. I suspect many of those who already own this batch of episodes uncut on the old sets will buy this one as well in an effort to collect all the episodes in nice sets that complement each other when lined up on a shelf. Given the running time of 720 minutes this set should contain the following thirty episodes from the Red Ribbon Army, General Blue and Commander Red Sagas:
32 The Flying Fortress: Vanished!
33 The Legend of a Dragon
34 Cruel General Red
35 Cold Reception
36 Major Metallitron
37 The Ninja Murasaki is Coming!
38 Five Murasakis
39 Mysterious Android No.8
40 Horrifying Buyon
41 The Fall of Muscle Tower
42 The Secret of Dr. Flappe
43 A Trip to the City
44 Master Thief, Haski
45 Danger in the Air
46 Bulma's Bad Day
47 Kame House: Found!
48 Deep Blue Sea
49 Roshi's Surprise
50 The Trap is Sprung
51 Beware of the Robot
52 The Pirate Treasure
53 Blue, Black and Blue
54 Escape From Pirate Cave
55 Penguin Village
56 Strange Visitor
57 Arale vs. Blue
58 The Land of Korin
59 The Notorious Mercenary
60 Tao Attacks!
61 Korin Tower
All these episodes are being presented in remastered editions of their original full frame (4:3 Aspect Ratio) format. Audio is being done with English or Japanese voice track options and the original Japanese musical score in 5.1 Surround. Funimation Dragon Ball releases haven't had any special features other than previews for other Funimation products, so don't expect to find any here either.
I'm very happy with the cover art selection for these titles so far. Let's hope they don't start just throwing random characters on the cover (Piccolo on Dragon Ball Z Season 7??? What was that?). Hopefully all the Dragon Ball sets will come out as fast as these first two, thanks for your time.

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The search for the seven magic balls continues!
After meeting his match in the World Martial Arts Tournament, Goku embarks on a mission to recover the Four Star Dragon Ball that once belonged to his grandfather. His treacherous quest will take him from the terrifying heights of Muscle Tower to the darkest depths of the deep blue sea. But with the Flying Nimbus under his feet and Bulma's Dragon Radar leading the way – there's nothing mighty Goku can't handle.
With a dangerous new adversary out to get him, this will be Goku's most dangerous adventure yet. The sinister Red Ribbon Army, led by cigar-chomping Commander Red, is determined to seize the seven Dragon Balls and use them to conquer the world! Watch as colonels, generals, ninjas, android pirates, and giant pink monsters use every dirty trick in the book to stop Goku from getting his hands on the magic Dragon Balls!
Enjoy the next chapter in the saga of this legendary warrior with Dragon Ball: Season Two!

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