What’s That Noise?
What’s that noise?
Is that the sound of a sharks firing lasers from their eyes, illuminating the dark depths of the ocean, melting away the slimy tentacles of a giant squid while pink dolphins aimlessly scramble for safety?
Is that the sound of ninjas fighting superhero samurais with throwing stars, shiny swords, three-pronged spears, thorn-ladden whips, battle axes and sharp minds while the city burns down around them?
Is that the sound of cowboys trying to wrangle unicorns and ponies with wings on a field of carnivorous trees, wind-riding elephants, and naked elves while the sky rains fire?
Is that the sound of robots and cyborgs crying, weeping and sobbing as they watch angels riding dragons descending from the clouds shaped like tanks and fighter jets?
DVD Library #4: The Incredibles
When the first few CG animated films invaded theaters, it felt like the first few times I saw 2D animated movies. Magical and fantastic. I just had to see them on the big screen where it’s bigger than life. But once CG animated films became a-dime-a-dozen, I kind of got tired of seeing every new release. I mean, in its early years, 1 or 2 CG animated films a year made it special. Right now, I’m getting sick of all these talking animals and cheesy pop songs. But there are still a few exceptional CG animated films out there. One of them is The Incredibles.
The Story: I love the juxtaposition of the insanely fantastic and exciting lives of superheroes and the wickedly boring and mundane sub-urban family life. To paraphrase director Brad Bird, it’s an interesting contrast between the fantastic and the mundane. As a comic book geek, I specifically enjoyed the drama that develops around the superheroes’ secret identities. Most CG animated films are geared for the younger audience, but The Incredibles offers something to everyone with a world where superheroes exist, and superheroes who have “real world” problems. I heard this was originally planned to be a 2D animated movie. Frankly, if they went for the original plan, I would have enjoyed it just the same.
Agents of Atlas
We were all taught that the first group of superheroes to emerge from the Marvel Universe was the Fantastic Four. We were taught wrong. Before the Avengers, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, there was a group of superheroes from the 1950′s who secretly banded together to answer their nation’s call for assistance in relation to the kidnapping of the then US president Eisenhower. A gorilla, an alien, a secret agent, a mermaid, a robot, and a goddess. The Agents of Atlas.
I picked up the first issue of this mini-series, written by Jeff Parker and drawn by Leonard Kirk, out of curiosity. I seldom venture into picking up books featuring characters I’m not familiar with. These characters are from the 1950′s Marvel comics. I was definitely not familiar with them before the news of this mini-series’ launch hit. I was so freakin’ glad I felt experimental that day. The mini-series is magic.
