Ejen Ali The Movie & Boboiboy The Movie: 2019 Animations
2019 was a blast for local animation fans when all three major Malaysian animation studios released a movie for their respective biggest franchise. We’ve gotten Les’ Copaque’s Upin Ipin: Keris Siamang Tunggal in the first quarter, then the second installment of Animonsta’s Boboiboy followed suit in August, and Ejen Ali from Wau Animation did the grand closing in November. They were very well received at the national level and even several other neighboring countries. And i remember reading news about the animation topping the box office and even beating two Oscar nominated films?? (old news..can’t really remember). If you asked me ten years ago, i would have never expected the industry to grow this big or even gain this much support and i think it won’t be too much to say that they are the country’s current pride.
I personally really enjoy these franchises..well mostly?? Okay, so i’m not really a fan of Boboiboy the series, but the 2 movies are good and i did enjoy both of them. And as of today, I’ve watched both Boboiboy’s and Ejen Ali’s movies from last year and i think it was interesting to compare both of them and analyse their strength and weakness in terms of the story wise. I’m not trying to make a verdict on which one is better. But after completing these two movies, it really fascinates me to see the strength of one’s being the weakness of the other’s, and so is vice versa. And TBH, i would love to include Upin Ipin’s but sadly as i’m writing this i have yet to watch it. But i’ll try to write once i did.
So for a start, let’s focus on the plot. In my humble opinion, they both did great and there were no major flaws, at least none that bothered me. However, i do find Ejen Ali’s (EA) plot as slightly weaker in relative to Boboiboy’s (3B). I had consumed enough movies and tv shows from the west to notice the tropes are mostly the mainstream ones that have already been recycled multiple times which make the movie becomes predictable and unoriginal. Like the trope where a character (in this case, Ali) has an inter-group identity conflict and then goes on an adventure to find where he belong to...well, off the top of my head i can already name few movies that had already used that trope. Plus, as a person who appreciates the sense of identity in a storytelling, EA felt a little too westernized?? Or maybe it was just me, idk....
Now regarding 3B, though i don’t necessarily think the trope in this movie is any better, its fairly well developed subplot makes the scope of the story relatively deeper and “richer”. I remember finishing 3B and thinking “Wow! So much things happened!”. And you might argue 3B’s running time is longer hence more, but i doubt extra 13 minutes will bring so much to the plot especially when the development utilizes not one, but multiple characters. I think this is the strength 3B owns over EA. We see both protagonists of the movies fighting against their respective villains with their comrade. But here is the difference. In EA movie, Ali was only seen to fight along his colleagues at the end of the movie and we were never shown what the other agents were doing before the battle. And yes Bakar, Alicia and Comot were in the movie from the beginning but only when they were directly engaged with Ali. Hence we saw the movie heavily revolved around Ali, though it was not necessarily a bad thing (i’ll explained later).
However, 3B adequately made use of almost every supporting characters for the main plot and they were shown quite a lot in scenes where they were having their own battle with no direct link to the main character. They do fight for the same purpose against the same character, but on different path. For example when the the squad were separated at the Tapops HQ after the attack from Retak’ka, Boboiboy went on a journey to meet and learn from Hang Kasa on how to ultimately win over Retak’ka, while the rest of the squad went to stop and prevent Retak’ka from invading other planets in his mission of gaining new powers, consequently helping Boboiboy over him. The movie also showed them actively engaged in the final battle which made me really felt their presence and involvement in the plot. That’s why i think that the plot will be so much different without the other characters.
So yeah, i do love how almost every character in 3B is being utilized. But when we talk about the characters singularly, there is none from 3B that appeals to me as much as Ali did;) But i will write about this in another post and will update here later.
@di-elle hey, i guess i need to explain the point better. What i meant by the war plot as useless is that it was an exposition that was not utilised as a plot build up, therefore useless. Like..why do i need to know that lee gon is a good leader/king IF by not understanding/knowing about it won't change my comprehension of the show. Why? Because whatever fight he gets involved in later on is only in the name of his love and his personal revenge. And he obviously DOESN'T NEED to be a KING OR LEADER to fight for jung tae eul and avenge his murdered father. And you said about "back to the future" plot (i'm assuming the story will repeat), then the more unnecessary it is to tell the audience about his leadership since the point won't lead us anywhere.
Second, thank you for the link, i've read it. And yeah i can understand the appreciation for the details. But that's not the problem i have with the show. Although i can have the same appreciation, for me understanding the plot and the characters come first because those are the foundation of any story. They need to be explained like who is who and what is happening...the character's motive, context of the scene, etc. I am talking about narrative and that is the show's biggest problem. There are so many holes in the narrative that leads to why i said the drama was badly written (or i might have only suggested). I know as an audience we are not supposed to be spoon fed, but sufficient information and explanation are needed for us to have certain amount of expectation of what to come. You can pay attention and scrutinize every single detail that you want..but how is that going to help you understand the immediate context of the show better? Unless you find pleasure in that, i don't understand how that's going to make me love the show.
Anyway, I AM GLAD I'VE DROPPED TKEM since i had saved myself from a drama i deemed unworthy, so NO THANKS, i don't need nobody's sympathy;)..but i am not trying to persuade you to drop the drama. In fact i'm happy for you guys who are still able to enjoy it. I've tried so hard to find any positive thing that could motivate me to watch the drama, but nothing did it. Not even the actors that i love. If it was not for them, i would have dropped this drama after the pilot episode. And yeah, nice to have this convo with you..it was fun.
Source:
You say you're WDH fan, and yet say his characters are flat? Frankly this drama is making me want to check his other works... that's how bri
Edit: regarding the first point, i forgot that he also fights for manpasikjeok which was described as the national treasure, so yes he does fight for the people of KOC for he needs to answer to them. But it was never shown that the fight for this exact flute was in a group where he showcases his leadership.
Anyway, i think i've come way too far from the original point about the useless war plot and i still stand by my earlier statement that it does nothing to the plot and character development. You can cut the whole scene and nothing will change.
I've been a Woo Do Hwan's fan since last November and has always saw him as a good actor. I was quite excited when i heard that he was casted for a new drama and it has been a comeback that i really looked forward to since his last drama wasn't really my cup of tea. However, upon getting the news that it was penned by Kim Eun Sook had got me a bit wary. I've never liked any of her past works, and although i do admit that her dramas could usually help actors to propel themselves into stardom, i had never believed that they would help them to prove their acting abilities. But as a fan i put my trust in Woo Do Hwan's choice.
So i started The King with my expectation as low as it possibly could get, thinking that it's the only way i can enjoy the drama and won't be left dissapointed. Except that i still am and that it baffled me so much when i think about it. I've never thought a korean drama could be THIS bad...
When the drama began airing, i already knew that i won't be anticipating its storyline or plot or any of its characters (believe me, i didn't even look forward to Woo Do Hwan's character). The least that i was wishing for was some comedy and funny scenes that will give me some good laughs because that was what i usually get from Kim Eun Sook's previous dramas. And even that fell flat in The King.
But the fan in me still wants to believe that Woo Do Hwan's choice of work is always right and that the drama still has got some redeemable qualities, hence i forced myself through each episode. TBH, with each week of airing the drama feels like a task that gets harder and harder to complete. I know that many people claim that the drama demands a lot of intelligence and focus to fully understand the story because it is very complex. But it never appears to me as one. Instead it seems like it is trying SO HARD to appear as a smart and intellectual drama and wants the audience to take it seriously....that it failed miserably and my laugh just gets harder...
Let me give you an example. In episode 2 Lee Gon told Tae Eul that the more numbers of a zero behind the first digit, the greater the value it has become...like really? I think if we changed any of the zeros with any other digits the whole value will become even greater, ain't it? Because what makes the whole number value greater is not how many zeros that follows, but how many digits. This whole dialogue was laughable. Not to mention the war plot. What was the point? Does it contribute to any character development? Does it move the plot forwards? All i can say is that it was only shoved into the story as a fanservice to get the fangirls swooning over the actors in uniform. Then how am i suppossed to take the scene seriously? I don't think that i'm an intellectual that only enjoy smart and complex shows, nor that i am a hard to please audience. But this drama is beyond what i can call a decent show.
However, i do acknowledge some positive points that this drama has like the visual is very stunning (except for the excessive close up), the soundtracks are beautiful, and most of the actors did a pretty good job with what was given to them.
But no matter how much love i've got for an actor, if his/her drama failed to grab me then i will drop it eventually, and i already did for this drama after 9 episodes of struggles..pheww.. sorry Do Hwan, but I will keep waiting for his next project, and considering his enlisting rumors/news, his most 'next' comeback might be two years from now. I just hope in the future that he will thoroughly consider every project so he won't end up with another drama that is a waste for his talent (did i mention that i might consider The King as a downgrade for his acting capabilities?). He was pretty much shoved aside and was forced to carry two characters which are as flat as the ground. For his next project (i mean after his discharge) i wish he would do a film and i hope it was a horror/ghost story because i think it is still a genre he has yet to do and i can't wait to see what kind of portrayal he will show for this kind of genre.
OMG! I’ve been wondering about ejen karya’s voice actor after the first episode aired. And I watched again the re-run on the next day. So yeah, I missed the ending credit twice. =.=
But I’ve found the episode on youtube, and now I know who’s behind that character. Guess what...
Apparently there are e-sports clubs in Malaysia circa 2027
It’s a great ep, but I’m still ticked off that they never recognised Comot as an agent. She’s new, she’s a feline, and she detected, chased and fought Ejen Karya by herself before getting caught midway through the test. And then Bakar went “You two set a new record!” because maybe he hadn’t realised Comot played a huge part in helping Ali and Alicia set the record, but still. She’s relevant, so I hope Wau does something with her.
The other thing I was disappointed by was that they never showed Alicia in her casual clothes. Like after the mission she had to change, same as Ali. Though considering that Wau’s writing team and most of their character designers are men, they probabaly have no clue what sadistic 12-year-old girls wear in the 2020s. (Also I’m beginning to think they’re avoiding designing characters with long hair. The only one with lengthy tresses is the Tekno pillar leader XD Every other girl has short or tied up hair (and in the hijabi agent’s case, covered).)
I’m also happy to see Alicia isn’t as hostile towards Ali. Maybe she’s gotten used to having him as a teammate, and I like that they kept up the (brutal) competition of who fights off the most baddies. They went from strangling each other’s throats to slapping faces (AS WE CAN CLEARLY SEE LOOOOL). I’m hoping they can reach the ‘sort-of friends’ stage (but not romantic stage my god).
Ejen Spikey (his hair makes no sense) apparently sees Ali and Alicia as competition, but I’m not sure if he’s a traitor. A child traitor? Nahh. Then again, Uno could have employed anybody, even a sixth-grader.
BUT FOR REAL THO I NEED TO HEAR THE NEW CHARACTERS’ VOICES. CLONE GIRL SOUNDS ADORABLE
(I’m not sure of Ejen Headphones will even HAVE a voice but who knows)
Ejen Bakar mentioned he got his training in the academy, so that thing’s been around for a long time. Bakar’s 28, and we don’t know when exactly he became an agent (or if his sister ever became one either; @Wau pls expand on this) and if he got his training as a tween or teenager (roughly during 2013 — 2017?) the academy must’ve looked a lot more different than it is now. Can we have Ejen Bakar flashbacks? And ones of Ejen Rizwan’s trainee days?
i’m embarrassed to read my own post, because after i’ve read yours, i was like “what did i even write”. i think when i watch this series, i was just like a small kid (irony how i wrote this series should grow up for someone like me). i just watch excitedly and take note of something that just already too obvious to the public.
anyway, regarding comot, I REALLY FEEL YOU! cuz just like you i’m still waiting for the day we will get more of her. however before we get to the point of comot’s being recognized as an agent, i wish they will reveal more about comot’s character background because i have this headcanon that she, in some way, is connected to ali’s mother (or at least to labu). i want to believe that her character will bring more depth into ali’s background story - which i’m pretty sure is not much explored either. only after we’ve got ali’s acknowledgment of her that i think would be a suitable time to get her recognized by M.A.T.A.
to be truth, i used to hate alicia and almost stop watching ejen ali because of her. but in one episode she went missing and that was when i think there’s more to her character. and now i’m so glad to see alicia’s character development and how she’s slowly starting to let her guard down around ali. i think it’s relevant and related to how boys and girls are around their age. since they are twelve, it does make sense to see alicia starting to grow up and having some tolerance towards people around, while ali is still with his little childish attitude - though he starts to show some maturity in this new season i believe.
btw, glad to see some of your post about this series. such an eye-opening. but i don’t think we have to rush so much with the series development since the team’s already planned the series for seasons. so i guess, we just have take it slowly and enjoy the show…
Edit: wait, comot is a female cat? I always tought it’s a male…°¿°
So yesterday I did my review on the first episode, and since I didn’t catch much on details, here is the second part. After watching it the second time this morning, I actually still don’t have many to say except for ejen karya (his character really intrigues me). I finally got to know his name, and it’s bidin - or at least that’s what he’s known by at school - but it’s kinda bit confusing because bidin is what I actually heard him being called - twice in fact - but in his profile, it’s sudin. So tell me, which one is it?
I don’t think they’d make another Inviso character a traitor though (it’s been considered, discarded, and used as a red herring in the end) so I’m pretty sure he’s just a very good impersonator (as agents in the biz tend to be). I’m still excited to see where his character is going.
Also, his dramatic tendencies is something I dabble in every day lmao
Yeah, you’ve got a point there. And I don’t even think of going against it. Just that last night I kept thinking WHAT IF THEY WANT TO PLAY A TRICK ON OUR MIND?
Ok, this is quite complicated, but let’s put it this way:
1. Before they start with the first season, ejen ali’s team already know that we, audience might suspect ejen rizwan (inviso agent) as a traitor, so they use him as, like you said, a red herring and change their plan and divert the key character onto jenny.
2. And after their interview, we now know that they know that we might suspect ejen rizwan as the traitor. So now we have the idea on how they choose the traitor among the characters. Hence, we intuitively will be like “oh, ejen karya is very suspicious. so i think he is the traitor. but wait? last season, when we thought that ejen rizwan, a suspicious character, as the traitor, turns out he’s just a red herring and the real traitor is jenny, a character that we thought cannot do any wrong”.
3. But then, here is when everything starts to go haywire. What if the team already know that we know that they know that we might suspect ejen rizwan as the traitor. So they’ll be like “ok, this season, we will make ejen karya as the traitor. but wait, just like the last season, audience might suspect him just like they did with rizwan because they are suspicious. so let’s choose another character. but wait? they already know that we know that they might suspect those suspicious characters so they think we might make another character as the traitor. well, let’s keep our traitor as ejen karya”.
???
OMG! I’ve never written anything this twisted. I’m not sure if anyone can understand because I don’t even think I can understand this myself. So don’t worry. My point is, maybe they would like to play a game and launch a REVERSE PSYCHOLOGY ATTACK on us? (alright, finally the words come out on me)
But this just seems too much, right? And maybe it would be an anticlimax if they go with the very conspicuous character. However, it could be fun if the team plan on playing a mind game with us, audience. Cuz you know what?
So yesterday I did my review on the first episode, and since I didn’t catch much on details, here is the second part. After watching it the second time this morning, I actually still don’t have many to say except for ejen karya (his character really intrigues me). I finally got to know his name, and it’s bidin - or at least that’s what he’s known by at school - but it’s kinda bit confusing because bidin is what I actually heard him being called - twice in fact - but in his profile, it’s sudin. So tell me, which one is it?
The next thing I want to address is his suit. IMO it does resemble ejen rizwan’s suit in certain way but it’s not exactly the same either. Here is the comparison.
We can see that both are designed to look like they are wearing a tux, but their style are totally different. However, the colour scheme used does have some similarity and is an obvious indication of their identity as agents of inviso. So it is likely that they are colleagues. Speaking of which, it reminds me of these two yet-to-be-introduced new agents.
From their suit, I could only guess the woman is from tekno pillar and the guy next to her is from neuro. Nothing else is known (o.o) But still excited to learn more about them though. (and a traitor could possibly be one of them)
And back to ejen karya. Being introduced as a teacher, his first appearance does leave a very big impression on me. Cuz, why not? Just look at him..
He’s literally SLOUCHING! And it’s IN FRONT OF THE CLASS! And he’s standing before an anger!-management!-problematic!-teacher! Does he really have no conscience at all?
And look!
Notice the ink spot? And his necktie? and his beard?
Plus, what’s with all that droopy eyes…
He looks seriously enthusiastic, doesn’t he??
Well, his iconic KELAB MENGUMPUL SETEM….
And this is his enthusiastic reaction hearing his student calling to him...
You know what? I’d really love to meet a teacher like him at school.
But when he appears in his agent persona, look at his glare...
His “hey, I have some trick up my sleeves and here you go..(I find this a really ironic pun, psttt..)
His over the top AKADEMI...
LATIHAN...
MATA...
His glorious bow
...and his atch tch tch tch towards ali….
Plus, his monotone speaking makes me associate him with ejen rizwan even more…(now that i think about it, ejen rizwan and ejen karya can make a real nice ejen-buddy. when they talk to each other, i might fall asleep behind..)
Owh, almost forget this one. His dramatic HUH! really got me rolling inside ;D
pheww.. so many pictures =.= Anyway, his double-sides character is very interesting to me. But it is also what makes him suspicious. I keep wondering just which side of him is his real personality. I mean, he could be a charismatic spy in disguise of an unkempt looking teacher, or he could also be an unreliable person who happens to be assigned as an agent - though the latter sounds quite nonsensical.
And lastly, I got this feeling that his character design is actually inspired from one of ejen ali’s staff members, cuz I keep having this hunch that I’ve seen him somewhere before…it would be really funny though if it was, cuz imagine seeing ejen karya in real life…\’c’/
Totally forgot about this announcement. Some people are lucky enough to watch two episodes back to back, and here I am having to wait at least for a week to pass before i got to watch episode 2.
Oowww, that was so short. And I was quite distracted at first, so there is not much I could catch.
But there’s one thing I want to address regarding agent karya? (if that really how it’s spelled). First, he wears a suit which is designed almost/exactly? the same as agent rizwan’s (white suite with grey around the chest). Second, besides his magic trick ability, he’s also skilled at disguising, just like AR. Hence, I conclude that he is from inviso pillar (the same pillar AR is from).
So now that i’ve noticed this detail, it got me questioning WHY HE’S CHARACTER IS INTRODUCED?
I mean in the previous season, we only got to see one character from each pillar with AR from inviso. And now we don’t see him in the first episode, instead we are introduced with AK. I can only guess the reason is because AR was badly injured in the last season’s finale, so AK is introduced to temporarily replace him until he recovers?. And this actually got me curious about AR and AK interaction. Are they going to be allies? Or could they be enemies?
Whether i’m being overly analytical or this could mean something, it’s up to ejen ali’s production. But the first episode already got me pumped up. So, I really can’t wait for episode 2. And gladly tomorrow tv3 will re-air today’s episode, so I will rewatch it to catch everything I missed today.
Hope to catch agent karya’s name o_0. Really missed that part…
i’m not a fan of men with long fringe, so vincent never appears to me as someone of that attractive.
but these…
these two particular panels really got my eyes glued! O_O like OMG! has he always been this good looking?! plus, his mysteriously nonchalant personality really got me into him even more.
btw i notice he has only done this hairstyle twice, and both for important events (it could be due to victorian’s etiquette though, idk).but it’s just like telling…”enough with the party, let’s get serious from now!” and i think his attitude also changes and get a little serious than when he has his fringe all down.
idk what people call this hairstyle, but…
THANK YOU YANA SENSEI FOR DRAWING VINCENT WITH THIS HAIRSTYLE!
p/s: i remember ciel also got to style up his hair just like his father does few times, but sorry baby, you still got a long way…;)
so then i could say this wasn’t revealed yet?. but as @pega-chan said, they could have discarded it before the series starts. but i want to keep it as my headcanon as for now
because…
and…
so i don’t think the idea is far-fetched. but we don’t know how ali’s father/ dr.ghazali is connected to M.A.T.A. that’s why we can’t say for sure.
however i could be wrong though. so let’s see how far my headcanon’s going to prove this idea in season 2. and as i’m writing this now…
I didn’t realize sebastian has been missing for like two months. It really surprise me though how forgettable his character is..
just kidding =p
Anyway, with the pace the manga is going, I wonder if he will ever show up in the next chapter. Because many people thought this month’s chapter is going to be about that one particular month and he will likely be part of it. And turns out, yana still keeps him rotten in hell:)
But I still have this 50/50 about his appearance for the next issue.
i’ve seen a post by @aiscrystal talking about how these villains’ names take after latin’s numbering. so i think many people already know what number they represent. guess i don’t have to elaborate further?
just want to say, i’ve been waiting for THAT BIG REVELATION of that CERTAIN character ever since i found out their numbering order. wish THAT character really does exist and we’ll get to see him/her in this coming new season. /crossing fingers/
p/s: gonna keep my eyes wide open, maybe she’ll be jenny 2.0
Ali and Bakar character design during pre-production.
i used to be an art student for a short moment, and i’ve to say a pre-production is a very tough process. those guys behind Ejen Ali’s production really have my highest respect!
