fabcomix

  Comic creator, reviewer and asks questions  Follow me on twitter:@fabcomix and like me on facebook:facebook.com/pages/Fabcomix/316800541857695

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Weekly Wednesday Review Watching the end of Arrow Season 2 Includes Spoilers

Welcome to another Wednesday weekly review on if you hadn't guessed already Arrow Season 2.

I finished watching the season yesterday and there is so much to talk about that I've had to try and condense it to a suitable length that doesn't give away too many spoilers. As I do I’ll note when I'm mentioning a spoiler so can you continue reading if you don’t want to know the spoilers of Season 2.

 SPOILER: The first thing about to mention is that Slade Wilson decided to reign act the scene when Oliver had to choose between saving Shadow or Sarah when Ivo had shot Shadow. He first done this by using Moira and Thea and murdering Moira Queen and Thea Queen managing to escape. He had then decided to do the same with Laurel Lance and Felicity Smoak as he wanted to further inflict pain towards Oliver but he failed in the attempt to kill any of those characters. This is a relief for me as killing such vital characters in the show would be shocking and devastating and they add so much to the narrative.

The second point is the introduction of new characters Sebastian Blood, Sarah Lance and Isabel Rochev helped added something fresh to the narrative by playing vital parts in the narrative.

Furthermore towards the end the shock twist of having two characters who wouldn't come together come together after a secret was revealed. This is likely to shape how season 3 plays out and will be interesting to see this.

Another secret revealed about Oliver Queen’s time on the Island is revealed as the fact that he didn’t spend the entire five years on the Island and met an existing character at the different location. This is another thing I’m looking forward to in season 3.

It is interesting to see how Oliver Queen copes with not killing anyone even a certain character that he had previously attempted to kill he instead sent to an A.R.G.U.S jail. This limitation enhances Stephen Ammell’s performance on screen as we can understand the emotions he’s going through as the character Arrow.

What else was shocking for me in this season is a certain character associated with Diggle joining the suicide squad and Diggle ending up not killing him.

There is further character development when a character is expecting a baby, a member is revealed to have joined the league of assassins to then re-join the same group when it comes to receiving their help to stop the miracuru injected soldiers.

It’s also nice to see the continuity of the range of action shots when Arrow is fighting different criminals and the back story of the Island continuing to developing.

Overall the character development continuing from season 1, introduction of new characters, secrets being revealed, Oliver Queen coping with not killing anyone, the suicide squad, range of action shots and the back story of Oliver Queen on the Island makes Season 2 great to watch.

[fabcomix]

Weekly Wednesday Review First thoughts on Arrow Season 2 Includes Spoilers

After the great first season of Arrow, I had to continue watching the series. It had taken a while to get back into the show having had a gap in between where I wasn’t able to watch it due to college and other commitments. However as the episodes did progress the same show I loved in Season 1 was back.

  The opening sequence has changed as the previous goal of crossing the names of his dad’s list in the book by getting rid of the people is replaced by the goal to save Starling city from the criminals. Whereas previously he murdered the villains he has to change that to not resorting to murder, in order to honour his friend Tommy Merlyn’s memory.

The back story of Oliver Queen still on the island develops and we learn that Laurel’s sister who was presumably dead is actually alive and was on the Island with Oliver. For me this isn’t much of a shocker as I had a feeling this character would be developed further which she in fact is but I don’t want to spoil too much.

  The court case of Moira Queen develops and she publically reveals the secret that she has been keeping from Oliver and Thea. This secret wasn’t a shocker at all due to the previous relations with that person. Another character presumed dead is also back on the scenes. I don’t know yet how he escaped death as I haven’t gone that far into the season but I believe this adds to the already thrilling narrative.

  Upon writing this review I’m have finished watching episode 8 where I’ve found another thing that makes this show worth watching. If like me you got into watching Arrow from watching the first season of The Flash where the arrow made cameo appearances you’ll be glad to know that in episode 8 that no other than….. Barry Allen makes an appearance as a forensic scientist as he in that time he hasn’t become the Flash. This is great that the shows follow a timeline that makes for these appearances and we begin to see a relationship happening between him and Felicity Smoak.

The same features that occurred in season 1 of an action packed narrative, Greg’s trademark phrase at the end and character development are included as we are able to see characters such as Laurel’s emotions on how she’s coping with Tommy Merlyn’s death.

Overall I’m currently enjoying season 2 due to the back story of him on the island developing, introduction of Laurel’s sister, reminders of what happens in previous episodes, recurrence of characters cameo appearances, action packed narrative, Greg’s trademark phrase and character development makes this show great to watch and will highly recommend.

[fabcomix]

Wednesday Weekly Review Back to the Future Day

For those of you that don’t know today marks the day of Back to the Future 2 where the Delorean goes to October 21 2015

Personally I believe the films are one of the best films ever made as I like the whole concept of the narrative revolving around the characters going to different time periods to change the events that happen. In addition to this the humour, character development and introduction of new characters in the 3 films make this exciting to watch.

Especially memorable props from the film such as the Delorean, hoverboard, Pepsi Perfect and the Gray Sports Alamanac. From browsing my local supermarket I’ve found out that back to the future have released a 30th anniversairy edition with a bonus disc of extra features that I’m definitely going to purchase. However if you don’ t have a copy of back to the future you can find out more about it by watching the films on ITV2. Therefore my only reccomendation is to go and watch it.

[fabcomix]

Weekly Wednesday Review: Arrow Season 1

Arrow Season 1 Review Age Rating: 15 Characters: Stephen Ammell: Oliver Queen is a Billionaire and the vigilante Arrow Kate Cassidy: Laurel Lance is the Ex Girlfriend of Oliver Queen David Ramsey: John Diggle is Oliver Queen’s bodyguard Willa Holland: Thea is Queen Oliver’s sister Paul Blackthorne: Detective Quentin Lance is the father of Laurel Lance Emily Bett Richards: Felicity Smoak is an IT Specialist at Queen’s industries John Barrowman: Malcolm Merlyn is the friend of Moira Queen and the late Robert Queen. Susanna Thompson: Moira Queen is the Mother of Oliver & Thea Producers: Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Marc Guggenheim

In this review I will be stating my opinion on the whole of Season 1 of Arrow, not an episode by episode breakdown, as I don’t want to give too many spoilers away and want to condense this review to a legible length.

Arrow is an action, adventure, crime, drama, mystery; sci-fi basically to make it simple a hybrid genre that follows the protagonist Oliver Queen who was stranded on a deserted island to come back as a different man, a vigilante named the Arrow.

I’m going to start with the narrative as that’s the most important part of any film or TV Show. The concept of having Oliver Queen, a billionaire who has spent five years on a deserted Island, become this totally different character that fights off the people on a list that his father gave him whilst stranded on a safety boat. He does this to write the wrongs made by his father. The concept of having flashbacks of Oliver Queen from the past stranded on the desert Island isn’t just there for air time but, because it helps us, the audience understand more about the character as, time progresses and is interesting on its own.  

------------------------------------------------INCOMING SPOILER------------------------------ SPOILER: Another part of Arrow I like is the amount of links characters have with each other. For example take Oliver’s friend Tommy Merlyn he’s best friends with Oliver, dated Oliver’s ex girlfriend Laurel Lance and is the son of Malcolm Merlyn who ends up being the other guy in the hood. In addition the jokes are well balanced meaning that they aren’t too many to spoil the serious tone An example is when Felicity speaks to Oliver and she doesn’t want what she says to be misinterpreted by Oliver.

The addition of new characters as the episodes progress brings a new twist to the narrative making it more enjoyable to not always see the same characters on screen.

Adding the key parts of the previous episode is a nice touch since it reminds someone like me who had waited a while to watch the next episode of Arrow elements on the previous episode that I may have forgotten.

The cliffhangers make me, the viewer want to watch one episode after the other due to the, great character development and narrative evident within the episodes.

Lastly what makes this show great is the reference to the writer Greg Berlanti. After the show it goes “Greg move your head.” Whilst an image of a person moving out the way. Followed by the sound of an arrow shot and Greg Berlanti’s logo appearing afterwards. I feel this is a nice trademark to add as it feels like that of Stan Lee’s cameo appearances in Marvel films.

The only criticisms I have is the duration as it ends at an awkward time of around 40 minutes, although having said that I don’t remember a time when I’ve been bored during this time. SPOLIER: I disliked the ending only due to the fact that Malcolm Merlyn and Tommy Merlyn were killed off as I believe they’re could’ve been further character development for them and I liked those characters for different reasons.

To conclude Arrow is a hybrid genre TV show that follows the protagonist Oliver Queen, progresses as each episode goes on, including an action packed narrative with the concept of Oliver Queen’s flashbacks, cliffhangers to encourage the audience to continue watching, reminders of key elements from previous episode and reference to the writer with the only criticisms being the 40 min duration which may be an issue for some viewers who prefer short episodes.

[fabcomix]

Wednesday Weekly Review: Soccer World (Online Soccer Manager Game)

Soccer Worlds is a cloud based online football management game which you can play online on the computer or download the app.

I first came across Soccer Worlds when I was browsing on what online management game to try and found this app so I thought I would give it a try and I’m glad I did.

The first feature I came to like was the ability to play this on your Smartphone. This is useful as this allows me to play it anywhere at any time as long as I have an internet connection.

Another feature that I enjoy is that there is no limit to how many players you can have in a team. This is beneficial because if one got injured/wasn’t fit to play I can use one of my various substitutes to replace him. However I can see that this is a problem for some users as this makes the game quite unrealistic but this is the unrealistic feature which I like about the game as it’s unique.

In addition I like I am able to pick 3 teams from any league around the world and that they’ve included the real team names and player names. Picking 3 teams is useful as this is a turn based game. This means that fixtures happen every few days. Therefore if I have finished sorting out changes with my first team I still play the game with my two other teams.

Furthermore the app itself is easy to use as it’s basic and comes with the features necessary to play the game. Moreover I like that the app is free to play with in app purchases that don’t affect the gameplay. The only options the in app purchases provide are allowing the user to reserve a club, purchase a game world and the option to have more clubs.

Lastly I like the game world feature which is where players are chairman of leagues and they can start at different points. For example you can join a league that its 1st season turn 1 or you can join one that in its 20th season turn 32. This is useful as it doesn’t mean that a user can’t select their favourite team is taken as they can go onto a different game world and so separates the game nicely into sections

However one major thing about the game that I dislike is the player’s ratings According to the Soccer Manager website these ratings come from this other website called Soccer Wiki. Upon doing further research into this website I have discovered that soccer wiki is an editable page where anyone can update information on any club around the world. This is a problem for users like me who want a sense of realism to the game as some player ratings aren’t realistic. For example Radamel Falcao has a rating of 93 when Daniel Sturridge has a rating of 91… Don’t think I need to explain myself further.

Overall the ability to play the game on your Smartphone, unlimited players in a team, ability to pick up to 3 clubs, it’s free to play, including game worlds and real team names and player names  make this a great game. The only negative thing to say about it is the unrealistic player ratings for some players.

Companies Names, Player Names are copyrighted by their respective owners.

[fabcomix]

Wednesday Weekly Review: First thoughts on Halo CE on the Halo Master Chief Collection

To summarise for those of you who are unsure of what Halo is. Halo is a first person military shooter game where you take on the role of the protagonist named Master Chief.

I came across Halo CE Anniversary when I purchased the Halo Master Chief collection. I must've spent ages installing all the games in one huge file. The problem with this is if I want to free some space up on my hard drive to install other games I can’t delete one Halo instillation file as all the halo games are one file.

Anyway after this nerve wracking instillation process was finally done I began playing. The game started with a short introduction into the narrative of the ship being under attack and taking the role of Master Chief.

I began with the button configuration Legacy Southpaw. I wouldn't recommend this as it makes the right trigger to move the character forwards and backwards. Whilst the left trigger moves the camera upwards and downwards including making the character side step left and right. I would strongly recommend using the legacy controls which are the opposite of Legacy Southpaw controls as personally it makes it easier to shoot in game.

For example with the legacy controls I had the ability to dodge the enemy’s attacks on the ship quickly through side stepping to the right to take cover and then moving back to the left to shoot my enemies.

Speaking of which, the shooting is different to games such as Call of Duty. as you don’t have to aim to accurately shoot. This for me brings an arcade like feel to the game to make the experience more enjoyable.

Another thing I was impressed by were the game’s visuals as they have been significantly remastered from the previous gen Halo to provide a clearer HD image as opposed to the previous standard definition picture.

Overall my experience of the game is fairly positive as although I dislike the installation duration and process. Whilst I disliked the previous button configuration (a quick change). I have so far enjoyed the narrative and the stunning visuals that make the game fun to play and I can’t wait to complete it and shall make a full review on it in the near future.

[fabcomix]

Fantastic Four (2015) Review

Fantastic 4

Cast:  Michael B. Jordan (Human Torch), Miles Teller (Mister Fantastic), Kate Mara (Susan Storm), Jamie Bell (Thing), Toby Kebbell (Doctor Doom), Ref E Cathey (Franklin Storm)

Director: Josh Trank

Running Time: 1h 46min

Fantastic four is a reboot of the previously released film in 2005 which follows how the superheroes got their powers and how the villain Doom came about having his powers.

I’ve read lots of criticism about this film which is understandable but there are also some good points, YES some to take from this film.

Opening

The opening of the film was good as it followed Reed a prodigy as a child, how he ended up becoming friends with Ben Grimm from school and their struggles. As an audience this makes us feel like we can understand the character more and sympathise.

Mise en Scene

Costumes

 The costumes, the fantastic four wear to control their powers look great and make the team feel united as they wear the same colour.

Editing

I didn’t think the editing was up to scratch, for example the superheroes got captured by the army and then it says one year later so what they’re telling us is in a whole year nothing of significance happens such as the character’s emotions ,outbursts with their powers and parents reactions to them being captured weren’t included. I think this would’ve made the film better as you’re can understand the characters’ situation more and create a sense of realism.

Special Effects

Some of the special effects I liked such as, when the fantastic four and trees where they got sucked into green beam caused by Doom looked realistic. However some of it looked terrible such as when they were walking on the inter-dimensional planet it looked green screened.

Characters

Villains

Actually only one super villain present the other was part of the government and was meant to be mole man. It was predictable that Victor Voon Doom was going to be the villain later on the film as he acted negatively and had previous history of breaking the law. He did realistically perceive himself as a villain when up against the fantastic four.

Fantastic Four

Apart from the wearing same uniform the characters didn’t feel much like a team even though they spent over a year together and  built an inter dimensional machine. When it had came to fighting Doom the fantastic four didn’t fight together as the Avengers done in Age of Ultron when Thor hit his hammer onto Captain America’s Shield to cause a shock wave, the superheroes could’ve got thing to throw a rock and the human torch could’ve blasted it with fire towards Doom.

Parents (Reed Richard’s & Ben Grimm)

The fact that none of their parents seemed to care about where their children had gone to and what happened to them, if they had came to the army facility and found out about it they would’ve been more emotion between all the characters involved making the film more realistic.

Some Things that I think make a Marvel Film

Humour

I didn’t think there was many jokes that stood out in comparison to yep you’ve guessed it another Avengers Age of Ultron reference: Thor challenges the rest of the superheroes to pick up his hammer but they can’t

A  Stan lee Cameo

Yep, although he was an executive producer he didn’t want to be in the film, wonder why?

An end credits scene

After I saw Avengers Age of Ultron I saw a glimpse of what the next film is going to include but with this film there was only a message that stated that the making of the film involved 15,000 jobs.

Other Suggestions

One part of a scene they could’ve added was having the human torch flying over the different cities in the world practising his flying ability during his training with the army.

Conclusion

I believe that this film is either an average or a below average film due to the lack of character emotions involved at certain points where I think they should’ve been included, lack of humour, no cameo, end credit scene and editing and special effects being unrealistic in places. Not as fantastic as you would expect.

Rating: 2.5 Stars (Average)

I’ve tried to make this review different from other ones I’ve seen but please comment with any suggestions and opinions you had about the film.

Fab

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Daredevil Yellow Review

Publisher: Marvel Comics, Format: Trade Paperback, Jeph Loeb, And Tim Sale

Collects Issues 1-6

Characters

Matt Murdock is a blind lawyer with Foggy and becomes Daredevil

Jack Murdock is Matt’s father and is a boxer.

Karen Page is Matt Murdock’s Love interest

Foggy is Matt’s best friend and co lawyer

Q&A’s about the comic

How did I end up reading Daredevil Yellow?

I was at my local library browsing through the graphic novel section when I saw it and thought I would give it a go.

What is the best thing about reading this comic?

I think, the best thing is that it combines the genre of action adventure well with romantic comedy as you can really understand what daredevil and the fellow characters are going through during the different stages of the book.

SPOILER: What makes this daredevil book stand out from the other ones available?

This narrative focuses on Matt Murdock emotional side of wanting to become Daredevil to avenge Justice for his father’s death, the love relationship between Matt Murdock and Karen Page whilst including action of him fighting the people who killed his father and saving Karen from the clutches of the purple man and the owl.

SPOLILER: What page in the book stands out for you in the book?

I think every page is unique from the next so it’s hard to pick but one that I like is when Karen Page is with Matt Murdock in the office. Let me explain panel by panel bear with me on this:

The first panel shows an over the shoulder shot of Foggy holding a bouquet of flowers about to going into the office when he saw Matt and Karen dancing together holding her in his arms.

The next panel shows the same shot but he’s not holding the flowers, with the next panel shows a close up of Foggy zoomed out with a sad facial expression which leads to three panels of long shots of Foggy walking outside throwing the flowers away and walking off.

This stands out as us the reader can see the true emotion of Foggy in which that he knows Matt likes Karen and vice versa and that he hasn’t got a chance to be with her as Matt and Karen seem to be enjoying each other’s company

The graphic novel costs £14.99 in the UK is there anything that makes it stand out from other graphic novels?

Yes, the graphic novel includes some pages titled Sketchbook which some of the development sketches and how they carefully done for various reasons

So, therefore you should buy the graphic novel at £14.99?

No, I’m not saying that at the end of the day the decision to buy the graphic novel is up to you, personally I prefer issues as I would say I’m half collector half reader, it just depends on your preferences you may prefer issues, digital issues or borrowing from a local library like I have done.

Thanks for taking the time to read this please leave a comment on suggestions on how to improve this review or any of my other reviews

Fab

[fabcomix]

London Super Comic Con Review

Article Summary

Advantages

Helpful Staff

Wide range of comic artists and writers

Free Goodie bag and Starburst magazine

How to pitch to editors talk = informative and inspirational

DIsadvantages

Information desk unoticable

Presentations where hard to hear at first

Included programme in goodie bag (easier to access)   

If you’re a comic fan then the London Super comic conventionis the place to be. My first time at the London Super Comic Con and was excited to see how the day was going to plan out. I was slightly disappointed when I had noticed the comic con area was smaller in comparison to the much larger MCM Comic con. However this disappointment didn’t last when I received a free London super comic con goodie bag and Starburst magazine.  I hadn’t received a programme to the event, so I asked the helpful staff where I can pick one up and was kindly directed towards it. It would’ve been better if the information booth was closer to the entrance so easily accessible to everyone but it wasn’t much of a hassle. From then on my action packed day began. I met up with many well known and inspirational comic artists and writers such as Paul Levitz, Kieron Gillen, Ian Churchill and Jonathan Ross who I've had the pleasure of meeting for the second time. I also attended the how to pitch to Editors talk with Paul Levitz, Ron Marz and Jeremy Whitley which, although sounded quiet was quickly fixed so I was able to hear it. The talk was both informative and had inspired me to both write this article and more in the future. After the talk I got the chance to browse the wide range of comic stalls from independent artists and writers to shops such as Gosh Comics where I purchased a bundle of comics of all different ages and genres. Overall, although there was some negatives, the positives outweigh what a marvellous experience I endured and I hope to continue visiting the London Super Comic Con whilst it grows and evolves in the future.

[fabcomix]

My large comic haul from #GoshComics #LSComicCon #marvel #dc #comics #bargain #bundle #great #dc #marvel #london #LSCC #comiccon #convention #read ☺👍 Full image on twitter --> http://t.co/hwYyyc1J76

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