Surf's Up

Movie: Fantastic Four - Rise of the Silver Surfer

Somehow they managed to make the Silver Surfer un-cool.

I told Alex before i went into the show that if i kept my expectations of the film low i would probably enjoy it more. Boy, was i wrong. I think i would enjoy the film much more (like Alex) if i didn't know a thing about the Silver Surfer. As they say, ignorance is bliss (and the subtext 'Rise of the Silver Surfer' is so misleading; watch the show and you'll understand why). I just wish they didn't make him so weak, or dependent on his cosmic surfboard.

Of course everything (wrong) about the Silver Surfer pales in comparison to the depiction of Galactus, who looks like a cosmic dust cloud pillar thingie... Galactus, by the way, looks like this:

Is it too much to ask to see a few shots of a proper Galactus?

With the CGI of Mr Fantastic's stretchy hands already looking so bad, i wonder why they couldn't just make Galactus in the same way. I think a giant, CGI planet-devouring super-duper villain would look more menacing than a cloud of dust (also in CG).

Last but not least, as in part 1, Dr Doom did not make for a very interesting villain. Despite the action which was significantly more than the first movie, i still found myself bored throughout all 92 mins (and i was thinking before the show that 92 mins was too short for a movie). To me, this just confirms that Marvel are already incapable of releasing good superhero movies. Them ruining Spiderman 3 was already an omen. I think the last Superhero flick i actually enjoyed was Batman, but that was DC, not Marvel. Rating: Low 6/10
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Some Liar Game news:

"Fuji TV's "LIAR GAME" drama series is getting an extended final episode. On June 23, instead of running in its regular 11:10-11:55 time slot, the program will air from 9:00 to 11:55.

This is a first for a drama series. There have been many cases where a final episode is extended (generally by 15 minutes) or a series gets a later special episode, but no serialized drama has ever had a finale extended to 3 hours.

"LIAR GAME" has attracted decent ratings and has become very popular among young viewers. In an Oricon survey early in the season, it had the second-highest viewer satisfaction rating behind "Kaette Kita Jikou Keisatsu."

Actor Kinya Kitaoji will make a guest appearance in the final episode as Hasegawa, the head of the "game."
- From http://www.tokyograph.com/news/id-1117

The viewership for Liar Game may not be that high but i'm glad to hear that those smart enough to watch it (11pm on Saturdays) are enjoying the show. Since the comic is ongoing i hope this means a 2nd season (more Erika/Nao!) as well. And thanks to this news i picked up Jikou Keisatsu to watch as well. I'll probably write a short bit about it when i'm done watching the first season.