'Tis the Season to Scare!
Next Club Meeting: December 14, 2024, at the Fountaindale Public Library in Bolingbrook from 11:00 am - 5:00 pm
The Animatrix Network is an anime & manga fan club located in the Southwest suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. We usually meet on the third Saturday of each month (except when holidays or conventions coincide). The meetings are free and open to the public. Join us for a day filled with anime.
This site provides news, reviews, commentaries, and previews of the world of anime and everything it inspires, such as live-action films, comics, music, art, and other weird things to enjoy and contemplate.
The Animatrix Network is an anime & manga fan club located in the Southwest suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. We usually meet on the third Saturday of each month (except when holidays or conventions coincide). The meetings are free and open to the public. Join us for a day filled with anime.
This site provides news, reviews, commentaries, and previews of the world of anime and everything it inspires, such as live-action films, comics, music, art, and other weird things to enjoy and contemplate.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Kakurenbo - Hide and Seek
Its time to Hide or Seek!
The film is based around "Otokoyo", a game of hide and seek
played by children, wearing fox masks, near the ruins of an abandoned
old city. The children who play this disappear, believed to be spirited away by demons. Kakurenbo
follows Hikora, a boy who joins the game with hopes of finding his
missing sister, Sorincha. The storyline is built on the idea that Tokyo
is losing its natural aesthetic, which includes child's games
such as hide and seek in order for industrial progress to ensue i.e.
lighting the city of Tokyo costing innocence of childhood games.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Disney's Trick or Treat
[Source: Wikipedia] Trick or Treat is a 1952 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The cartoon, which takes place on Halloween night, follows a series of pranks between Donald Duck and his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie who are aided by Witch Hazel. The film was directed by Jack Hannah and features the voices of Clarence Nash as Donald and his nephews, and June Foray as Hazel. The film introduced the song "Trick or Treat for Halloween" which was written by Paul J. Smith.
The film opens with the song "Trick or Treat for Halloween," the
lyrics of which tell the story's lesson – one must be generous on Halloween or face trouble.
One Halloween night, Witch Hazel observes Huey, Duey, and Louie going trick-or-treating. The trio, dressed as a ghost, a devil, and a wizard, go up to the door of their uncle Donald Duck's house under a covered porch and ring the bell. But instead of giving them the traditional candy, Donald explodes firecrackers
in their bags, then pulls a string leading to a rigged bucket of water
hanging under the porch roof and tips it on the boys. Donald laughs, and
the discouraged nephews go and sit on the curb.
But Hazel, who was secretly watching the drama unfold, tries to
comfort the boys. When she discovers that they believe in "real
witches," she decides to help them get their treats from Donald after
all. At first Hazel tries to convince Donald herself, but he dumps
another bucket of water on her. Realizing that the job may be harder
than she thought, she turns to her magic.
At another location, the nephews watch Hazel concoct a magic potion
in a large cauldron. In a scene paying homage to Shakespeare's MacBeth (see Three Witches),
Hazel adds ingredients somewhat toned down from the play. ("Eye of
needle, tongue of shoe, hand of clock that points at two!" etc.) Hazel
fills a spray bottle of the potion and returns to Donald's house with
the nephews.
Hazel sprays a Jack-o'-lantern
and three fence posts with the potion and they become an animated
chorus singing the theme song. A terrified Donald instantly agrees to
treat the boys, but when Hazel refers to him as a pushover,
he changes his mind. Donald locks his pantry and swallows the key.
Hazel then uses the potion on Donald's feet, and commands them to "kick
out that key." But when the key is kicked out, Donald throws it under
the pantry door. Hazel then orders Donald's feet to "smash that door
down" with Donald. After several attempts, Donald finally breaks down
the pantry door and is left unconscious on the floor.
In the end, Huey, Duey, and Louie collect their treats and Hazel
departs. A final shot shows the enchanted Jack-o'lantern suddenly pop
onto the screen saying "Boo!"
Saturday, October 29, 2011
DyE "Fantasy" - Official Video by JEREMIE PERIN
Most Disturbing Music Video in Years...
WARNING: Mature Images, WTF, NSFW
Tigersushi and Excuse My French are pleased to present the new video for
DyE's new single, Fantasy. Directed by animation wunderkind Jérémie
Périn, the video tells the story of a group of highschool kids ready for
teenage mischief. They break into the local swimming pool intending a
session of innocent nightswimming, in an awkward climate of romance and
apprehension. What happens next is for you to discover here...
<< Watch the Video >>
Behind Closed Doors
A Monstrous Aniboom Animation
Troubled by his parents fighting and haunted by the monster that dwells
in his bedroom closet - Gregory must confront his demons and defeat the
true evil that exists behind closed doors.
Friday, October 28, 2011
At the Mountains of Madness
A Cthulhu Film
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
This short animated film is based on the novella by H.P. Lovecraft. The story is written in first-person perspective by the geologist William Dyer, a professor at Miskatonic University. He writes to disclose hitherto unknown and closely kept secrets in the hope that he can deter a planned and much publicized scientific expedition to Antarctica. On a previous expedition there, a party of scholars from Miskatonic University, led by Dyer, discovered fantastic and horrific ruins and a dangerous secret beyond a range of mountains higher than the Himalayas. The group that discovered and crossed the mountains found the remains of fourteen ancient life forms; completely unknown to science and unidentifiable as either plants or animals. Six of the specimens are badly damaged and the others uncannily pristine. Their highly-evolved features are problematic: their stratum location puts them at a point on the geologic time scale much too early for such features to have naturally evolved yet. Because of their resemblance to creatures of myth mentioned in the Necronomicon, they are dubbed the "Elder Things".
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Trick-r-Treat
Season's Greetings!
Deadtime Stories
Pilot for animated horror series
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Motivational Poster - Drugs Would Be Cheaper
The Passenger
A one-man project created between 1998-2006
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Redline Anime's English Dub Trailer
UPDATE: on DVD and Blu-ray January 17, 2012
Vampire's Crown
A Dental Aniboom Animation
A grumpy vampire has a toothache and takes a visit to the dentist. He is
tempted to bite the sexy dentist, and tries to go for it after she fits
a gold crown on his fang.
Monday, October 24, 2011
The Costumes of BlizzCon 2011
Fans of Blizzard Entertainment Unite!
[Source: Yahoo.com] Well, it's that time of year again. Time for BlizzCon -- the annual gathering in Anaheim, California, where fans celebrate the massively successful WarCraft, StarCraft, and Diablo franchises created by Blizzard Entertainment. And BlizzCon means costumes. An intrepid photographer has captured snapshots of the wildest and winningest costumes to grace the Anaheim event this year. Click through to see them all! (Photos by Derick Tortorella)
<< Click to see more pics >>
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
Young Justice
Episode 14 - "Revelation"
October 1: When Plant Creatures attack major cities around the world, the team is eager to join the fight alongside the Justice League. Instead, Batman assigns them a still more dangerous task which is taking out the Plant Creatures' masters: a secret society of super-villains called the Injustice League, consisting of The Joker, Count Vertigo, Poison Ivy, Atomic Skull, Wotan, Black Adam, and Ultra Humanite. In the end, it is revealed to the audience that the Injustice League are a public fall guy for "The Light" consisting of Vandal Savage, Ra's al Ghul, Lex Luthor, Queen Bee, Ocean Master, Klarion the Witch Boy, and The Brain who were truly behind what has occurred all season.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
New York Comic Con 2011 coverage
Dayside TV's coverage of NY Comic Con 2011
The 2011 New York Comic-Con took place last weekend. Here are some highlights...
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
iHOBBY EXPO
America's Largest Model & Hobby Show
Final Show in Chicago
iHobby Expo is moving to Cleveland starting in 2012. Don't miss your opportunity to see the World's Largest Annual Model and Hobby Show before it leaves the Chicago area. This will be iHobby Expo's last and best appearance in Chicago!iHobby Expo 2011 - America's Largest Model and Hobby Show - The Quick facts:
WHAT: iHobby Expo is the largest hobby show in the country featuring over 500 booths and 250,000 sqft of attractions. It is a fun show for all ages where you can fly planes, race cars, run trains, battle robots and much more.
WHERE: Donald E. Stephens Convention Center 5555 N River Road Rosemont, IL.
WHEN: Saturday and Sunday October 22nd and 23rd, 2011 from 10am to 5pm.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND: The entire family will enjoy this fun show.
WHY ATTEND: You can see over 500 booths of hobby exhibits. The are attractions for all ages. It is the most fun you'll ever have indoors.
HOW MUCH: Admission is $12 for adults, $10 for Seniors over 65 and CHILDREN ARE FREE!
SPECIAL LIMITED OFFER - VIP Access!
For the first time iHobby Expo will allow a limited number of people to purchase a VIP pass which will provide admission on both Saturday & Sunday. In addition it will allow access on Friday from 10am to 5pm during times normally restricted to just industry members. There are only 500 of these special VIP passes available and they are being sold on a first come first served basis.
For more information Click here
New Poster For Disney's Release of "Arrietty"
Coming February 17th, 2012
[Source: AICN.com] Disney's latest promo art for their North American release of Studio Ghibli's acclaimed The Secret World of Arrietty. The Hiromasa Yonebayashi directed movie, also known as Arrietty the Borrower, adapts Mary Norton's novel The Borrowers, about the little people secretly living in human dwellings. Studio co-founder Hayao Miyazaki wrote the film's script.
Trailer from the UK release, which features a different dub cast than the American.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Newsletter - October 2011
October 2011
News Collected and Edited by Octavio Soto
Ranma 1/2 Manga Gets Live-Action Special with Yui Aragaki posted on 2011-09-26 13:08 EDT
Kento Kaku, Natsuna to play Ranma's male/female sides in 2-hour December special
A live-action television adaptation of Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½ martial arts comedy manga will air this December as a two-hour special on Japan's NTV network. Yui Aragaki (Digimon: Data Squad, Koizora) will play Akane Tendō, and Kento Kaku (Paradise Kiss, Gokusen) and Natsuna (Gantz) will play the dual male/female sides of the title character Ranma Saotome.
A live-action television adaptation of Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½ martial arts comedy manga will air this December as a two-hour special on Japan's NTV network. Yui Aragaki (Digimon: Data Squad, Koizora) will play Akane Tendō, and Kento Kaku (Paradise Kiss, Gokusen) and Natsuna (Gantz) will play the dual male/female sides of the title character Ranma Saotome.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Young Justice
Episode 13 - "Alpha Male"
Friday, October 14, 2011
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Darth Vader in Love
Darth is smitten with a new colleague
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
The Running Man (1989)
The Classic Anime Re-released to a New Generation
(Click to watch video) |
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Kimi ni Todoke
"From Me to You"
Sawako Kuronuma has had a difficult time fitting in. Is it her long
black hair, her hushed manner of speaking, or is it her name's
similarity to Sadako, a character from a popular Japanese horror series?
On her first day of high school, Sawako meets the one boy who treats
her like a normal girl—Shota Kazehaya. Through his selfless aid, Sawako
slowly learns to come out of her shell and even begins to make friends
for the first time in her life. However, with a new social life come
social pressures. Rumors begin to circulate about her, her friends, and
even the kindhearted Kazehaya. As she grows into her new identity,
Sawako must learn to deal with such pressures as well as start to
understand the unfamiliar feelings inside of her, especially in regards
to the boy who made her new start possible.Monday, October 10, 2011
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Young Justice
Episode 12 - "Homefront"
September 22: When Mount Justice itself is attacked by two
"relatives" of Red Tornado called Red Inferno and Red Torpedo, Artemis
and Robin (the two teens without super-powers) must save the team from
the unknown invaders.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
The Five Stages Of A Giraffe In Quicksand
A MAD Cartoon
Friday, October 7, 2011
Motivational Poster - Awesome
Fate/Zero
Promo Video
The second promotional video for the upcoming anime series Fate/Zero, a prequel of Fate/Stay Night.
Newsletter
August - September 2011
News Collected and Edited by Octavio Soto
Iron Vendetta Robot Anime Production Put on Hold posted on 2011-08-13 06:00 EDT
Ankama Japan division's dissolution cited for halt on former dōjin robot anime
The staff of the Iron Vendetta (Kōtetsu no Vendetta) military robot anime project confirmed in a Thursday blog entry that the project is on hold due to the dissolution of the production division of its sponsor Ankama Japan. As a result, the release of the anime's episode 0 is now unscheduled. The staff is looking for a new sponsor, and the members are manning a booth at the semiannual Comic Market event — just as they have had since they started the project, before Ankama Japan agreed to sponsor it. The staff members thanked their fans for their email messages of support and expressed their desire to continue with project. The project began as a series of dōjin (self-published) shorts by the unit Thumbnail, but the Japanese arm of the French company Ankama Games agreed to produce the anime. The voice cast would have included Ami Koshimizu as the heroine Rain Yashima and Rie Kugimiya as Flor.
Hulu to Launch Subscription Streams in Japan This Year posted on 2011-08-13 22:14 EDT
The online video service Hulu announced that it will launch a subscription service in Japan later this year — its "first international expansion." Hulu will offer films and television shows on personal computers, televisions, mobile phones, and tablets. The Hulu announcement did not give any more specific details about the Japanese launch, but described its move into the country as meeting an “unfulfilled market need with respect to premium film and TV content."
Hulu also announced that it opened Tokyo offices with a Japanese staff designing and running the new service, which will be tailored for Japanese customers.
Quake Charity Miku Figure Delayed in Overseas Shipping posted on 2011-08-13 22:17 EDT
The figurine manufacturer Good Smile Company apologized about delays in delivering its “Nendoroid Miku Hatsune: Cheerful (Support) Ver.” figurines, which may not arrive in some countries until mid-October. Good Smile said that the delays were caused when the figurines were accidentally sent by surface mail, whereas they were supposed to be sent by Express Mail Service (EMS). Express Mail takes about 10 days, but surface mail can take three months. (The Miku Hatsune figures were shipped by surface mail in July.)
As international orders were charged 2,000 yen (US$26) for EMS delivery, this fee will be refunded to credit cards or PayPal accounts depending on how the original payment was made. The refunds will start on August 11 and should be completed in a few days, the company said. Any figures that turn out to be damaged during the surface delivery will be replaced. As of August 10, surface mail packages have started arriving in mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand. However, other countries may have to wait until mid-October. Good Smile will update its website as the deliveries come through.
The company promised that all future shipping from its online shop will be sent by Express Mail. It said in its statement that, “We wish to extend our apologies to everyone who ordered the figure, there is no excuse for the error we have made.”
New Mari Iijima Songs to Air on Tennessee Radio Tuesday posted on 2011-08-13 23:18 EDT
Four new songs by Mari Iijima, the voice of Lynn Minmay in the Macross anime franchise, will air and stream on the radio show Battle Fever on the Tennessee college radio station 88.3 WMTS on Tuesday, August 16. The songs are from Iijima's new EP recording, 2 Seconds of Infinity. The broadcast will be from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m CDT, with two songs aired back-to-back each hour at around 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Listeners in the Murfreesboro area can tune-in to 88.3 FM, and worldwide listeners can find the stream at http://wmts.org.
Attendance Dropped by 20,000 at Comic Market 80 posted on 2011-08-14 23:57 EDT
An estimated 200,000 people came to the third day of this year's Comic Market 80 event in Tokyo on Friday, tying the record for the most visitors on one day. However, the total attendance for this summer's event was 540,000, compared to the 560,000 that came to the Summer Comic Market events of 2009 and 2010. The 20,000-visitor decline is the largest year-to-year drop for a summer Comic Market since 2006's Comic Market 70 (430,000 visitors) attracted 50,000 fewer people than the previous summer's event. The event organizers cited the effects of the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake (Higashi Nihon Daishinsai) disaster. Comic Market 81 will take place at the same Tokyo Big Sight event center from December 29 to 31. (A person who came to all three days of Comic Market would be counted three times, under the tallying system it uses.)
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Anime Programming Schedule for Oct. 8, 2011
Say Hello to Fall!
NOTE: We are returning to Building K, Room 131, as well as to our regular time of Noon to 8:00 pm for the rest of the year.
Noon - 12:50 Dragon Crisis 5-6
Noon - 12:50 Dragon Crisis 5-6
12:50 - 2:05 Fractale 9-11 (end)
[Source: Wikipedia] The story takes place on an island resembling a futuristic Ireland
(certain scenes are directly taken from Galway city in the west of
Ireland), in a world ruled by the "Fractale System" that ensures
mankind's stability and prosperity. One day, Clain meets a fleeing girl
called Phryne, who disappears during the night leaving a pendant. When
he is able to activate the pendant (which turns into a "doppel" named
Nessa), Clain sets out for a journey with the girl-shaped avatar Nessa
to look for Phryne and discovers the secret behind the Fractale System. After the destruction of the Temple base and the continued deterioration
of Fractale, the Temple begins attacking the home villages of the Lost
Millennium factions. While the faction leaders meeting to discuss what
to do, Dias informs them that Sunda possess the "key" to restarting
Fractale. Viewing the Temple as backed into a corner, the factions agree
to Dias's plan to join forces and attack the Temple and destroy
Fractale. Meanwhile Phryne tells Clain the truth about Nessa and herself
and how they must eventually become one in order to restart Fractale.
Although Clain wants to join Sunda in the attack on the Temple, Sunda
instructs Clain to stay behind instead and protect both Nessa and
Phryne. However, the night before the attack, Phryne sneaks out and
returns to the Temple to put a stop to everything. When Clain and Nessa
discover Phryne missing, they set out after her. Clain and Nessa catches up with Sunda and tells him that Phryne had
returned to the Temple. While Phryne confronts Archpriestess Moeran,
Sunda and Clain take a mini-airship and enter the Temple. But Moeran,
who is also a clone, hates Phryne because of the younger's greater
importance and attempts to strangle Phryne. Meanwhile, Nessa, who
remained on the Danan, begins to lose form. After a message from Dias,
Enri decides to enter the Temple with Nessa so that they can join Clain
and Phryne. Phryne escapes from Moeran during the commotion while Clain,
Sunda, Enri, Nessa, and Dias meet up. Although Dias encourages Clain
and Nessa to search for Phryne, his real goal is to kill Phryne. Phryne
encounters Dias's soldiers but barely escapes before finding Clain and
Nessa on the other side of a transparent wall. However, Barrot appears
on Phryne's side and claims that he and Phryne are bound together.
[Source: Wikipedia] After recalling the time she joined Scar Chain, Karako defends herself from the acid spewing robot and destroys it, falling down with it. Meanwhile, Nagi is betrayed by Rokudo and confronted by an Undertaker named Hibana Daida, who uses a special weapon to neutralize his Branches of Sin. As Hibana starts slicing off bits of Nagi's flesh, he provokes her into chopping off his arm, giving him the opportunity to activate the elevator Ganta's group needs to take. However, Ganta's group is confronted by Genkaku and his men, leaving only Ganta and a few others left alive to carry the chip containing the information. Whilst bleeding to death, Nagi makes a call to the hideout, which is heard by Shiro who catches up to Ganta and throws the chip into a fire. Ganta becomes angry at Shiro for throwing away the data chip, telling her he never wants to see her again. Meanwhile, Mikuni investigates Tamaki's office, overhearing a conversation between him and the Defense secretary concerning the Deadmen. As Karako and the others discuss their next plan, Rokuro appears and reveals the data chip was actually a bomb he had made before announcing that the group is being held hostage unless Nagi agrees to become an Undertaker. As Rokuro decides to execute Ganta first, Crow appears on the scene, managing to fight back against the Undertakers using sonic blasts. As Shiro laments her situation with Ganta, she meets Toto "Mockingbird" Sakigami, the one who told her about the bomb.
3:45 - 4:45 Club Meeting and Announcements
- Animation News from around the world
- Cosplayers/Skits/Masquerade
- New Anime Releases
- And other interesting stuff...
5:10 - 6:00 Gosick 12-13
[Source: Wikipedia]
Gosick takes place in 1924 in a small, French-speaking fictional
European country of Sauville. The story centers on Kazuya Kujo, the
third son of a Japanese Imperial soldier, who is a transfer student to
St. Marguerite Academy, where urban legends and horror stories are all
the rage. There he meets Victorique, a mysterious yet beautiful and
brilliant girl who never comes to class and spends her days reading the
entire content of the library or solving mysteries that even detectives
can't solve. The series mostly focuses on Kazuya and Victorique getting
involved in different mystery cases and their struggle to solve them, at
the same time forming important bonds with different people. Everybody in school is preparing for their summer vacation. Kujo has
turned down his vacation trip with Avril to stay with Victorique. During
his quiet days with her, Kujo has a flash back of his childhood and his
reasons to leave Japan to study abroad. Kujo and Avril explore one of the school's towers and Avril figures that
it is related to the legend of Leviathan, an alchemist who lived there
decades before. Victorique stumbles on a pop-up book containing a
cryptic message allegedly from Leviathan himself and when a death occurs
at the top of the tower, she decides to investigate by herself.
FEATURE PRESENTATION:
FEATURE PRESENTATION:
6:00 - 7:50 Redline [MOVIE]
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Steve Jobs Passes Away
Apple and Pixar Chief Executive, 1955 - 2011
[Source: ToonZone.net] Steven P. Jobs, former CEO of Apple Computer and Pixar Animation Studios, passed away on Wednesday in Palo Alto, CA, at the age of 56 after a long struggle with cancer. In 1976, Jobs and Steve Wozniak launched Apple Computer, becoming instrumental in launching the personal computer revolution and began a career as a major influence in the industry. Jobs oversaw the development of the Macintosh, released in 1984, which was the first mass-market computer with a graphical user interface, but was ousted from Apple only one year later. His return to the company in 1996 led to a revival of the company's fortunes, and under Jobs' second tenure, the company produced iconic computing hardware including the iMac, the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad.After his departure from Apple, Jobs founded NeXT Computer and purchased an underused computer graphics department from George Lucas' Lucasfilm. The department became Pixar Animation Studios, which released the first CGI feature film Toy Story in 1995 and has become the gold standard in the industry for both techincal and storytelling achievements. The protracted feud between Pixar and Disney CEO Michael Eisner over the two companies' distribution deal ended in 2006 when Disney purchased Pixar in a deal valued at $7.4 billion, which also made Jobs the largest shareholder in Disney.
Guilty Crown - Trailer
After the
outbreak of the unidentified virus "Lost Christmas" in 2029, Japan has
been under the control of a multi-nation organization called GHQ. Ohma
Shu is a 17 year old boy who has a psychic power in his right hand. He
can use the power "Ability of King" to extract tools or weapons from his
friends. He has been avoiding making trouble for others but his life
changes when he meets a girl Yuzuriha Inori, a member of a resistance
guerrilla group called "Undertaker", whose members pilot mecha weapons
to fight against the government. Anime is set to release in October.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Girls of the Justice League
Girl Fight! Girl Fight! Girl Fight!
Next Animatrix Club Meeting is Oct. 8, 2011
Building K, Room 131, from Noon - 8pm
ANIMATRIX NETWORK
Where: College of DuPage, Building K, Room 131
(Located near the Intersection of S. Lambert Road and Fawell Blvd) Click for Regional Map and Local Map for Directions.
Please note that we are returning to Building K, Room 131, as well as going back to our regular time of Noon to 8:00 pm. We will remain in Building K for the rest of the year.
A Viewing Schedule will be posted soon.
Monday, October 3, 2011
A Review of the Wonder Woman Pilot
A Superhero Show That Deserves to be Seen!
(Photos from iFanboy.com) |
(As CEO of her company, Diana can market her own action figures) |
SPOILERS AHEAD!!! SPOILERS AHEAD!!! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
At the beginning of the episode we first see Wonder Woman running after a meta-human through a crowded city street. Both of them moving at nearly three times the speed of a normal person. She leaps onto cars, running on top of their hoods, even gets hit by a taxi, smashing the front of the car while she remains unharmed. She looks at the damage to the taxi with utter annoyance and continues the chase. All of this happens at real speed. No slow motion like in the Bionic Woman. Also, no "girly" running with arms and legs moving at a very feminine motion like in the Bionic Woman. This Wonder Woman is an athlete, a superhero, an amazon. Adrianne Palicki pulls it off. She... is... Wonder Woman.
The chase through the street traffic is frenetic, and she's pissed. Finally, she puts an end to the chase by whipping out her golden lasso at her prey. I like seeing it used as a weapon rather than a truth detector. Throwing the lasso as if shot from a gun, and finding the perp's neck, wrapping around it like an iron claw, Wonder Woman pulls him to the ground hard. She lands on top of him, twisting his arms behind his back, and quickly jabs a syringe into his neck. He goes limp. The cops arrive and ask Wonder Woman to relent the bad guy to them. Her reply, "Why? So he can lawyer up?" She looks like she wants to break some more of the perp's bones, but she eventually releases him to the care of the cops. And then she walks away. The crowd parts, giving her a wide berth, and we hear them cheer for Wonder Woman.
(A car slams into Wonder Woman who emerges unscathed, the car however...) |
Now that was awesome! David E. Kelley had gotten it right! This Wonder Woman is tough, no nonsense, and doesn't take any crap from anyone.
Wonder Woman, herself, has three personas. First, in the public eye, she is Diana Themyscira, CEO of Themyscira Industries. Second. everyone knows that Diana Themyscira is also Wonder Woman. This is very much like how the world knows that the billionaire industrialist, Tony Stark, is also Iron Man. For Wonder Woman, it works just as well. Third, in her private life, she is Diana Prince, a young woman, who lives alone in an apartment with her cat, Sylvester. As Diana Prince, we see the vulnerable side of Wonder Woman. There is a scene in which Diana is on her computer starting her own Facebook page. On the line where she's suppose to list her friends, she types in only one name... Sylvester.
What sets Wonder Woman apart from other comic book heroes is her sense of justice. Batman and Superman do not kill, at least they try not to. For Wonder Woman, its eye for an eye. She sees no problem being judge, jury, and executioner. She views the legal system as needlessly bureaucratic, and she despises lawyers. David E. Kelley managed to capture that aspect of Wonder Woman in this pilot episode. Its sort of a dark twist on his lawyer loving show Ally McBiel. We can see an example of this near the end of the pilot when Wonder Woman storms into the secret labs of a meta-human experimentation facility. She fights off dozens of armed guards, literally throwing some of them through concrete walls. In one scene that is reminiscent from the movie Kick-Ass in which Hit Girl runs through a hallway with guns blazing, tosses her guns in the air to reload, and continues firing. Here we see Wonder Woman trying to reach a door at the end of a hallway where a guard is shooting at her. She runs at full speed, deflecting the bullets with her bracelets, while fending off attackers from the sides, even using one bad guy as a human shield. The guard continues to fire at her as she charges towards him. Finally, Wonder Woman grabs an iron pipe and throws it at the guard, impaling him in the neck, killing him. Its this type of violent vigilante justice that reflects her amazonian ways. Bad guys deserve what's coming to them, in the most hurtful way possible.
David E. Kelley's Wonder Woman isn't perfect, but it is by far enjoyable, and in the spirit of the source material. I like this version very much. Too bad NBC (or any other network for that matter) didn't pick it up. It had strong possibilities for being a hit show.
(Wonder Woman: "Get out of my way or else.") |
(Returning from hero duties; back to the corporate grind) |
David E. Kelley's Wonder Woman isn't perfect, but it is by far enjoyable, and in the spirit of the source material. I like this version very much. Too bad NBC (or any other network for that matter) didn't pick it up. It had strong possibilities for being a hit show.
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