I never was a huge GI Joe fan, probably because I didn’t have cable growing up so I never was able to watch the cartoons. No, I was a Transformers man. But in spite of that GI Joe: The Movie still holds a special place in my cold black heart, as it truly is one of the worst things I have ever seen, and I do love truly awful things.
When word of a live action film came down the pipe I was less then excited, and as stills have trickled out I have become even further convinced that it will prove to be a disaster. Though, unfortunately, probably no where near as big a disaster as GI Joe: The Movie, thus making a film not worth wasting my time or money on.
But last year a rumor started spreading about another GI Joe project in the works, one that was to be an animated series and a defacto reboot of the franchise. Ad while that was passably interesting, it flew under my radar until one of my favorite writers, Warren Ellis, confirmed that he wrote the script for the series. Even better? It was to be PG-13 and specifrically written for an older audience. Need more? Characters die. Lots of ‘em.
You see Ellis was tagged because he had no nostalgia for the original series, so he would be able to write the series without any worrisome heartstrings getting in the way. The result is a pretty rocking one hour show, entitled GI Joe: Resolute, that is now grounded in reality (no more laser blasts bouncing off of everything) that succeeds in being fun, entertaqining, and totally kick ass.
And the best news? The entire show can be watched for free online. The official air date is tomorrow, but Adult Swim was kind enough to release the show in 5 minute segments as it lead up to the official release date. So swing over to Adult Swim and watch this outstanding show.
Is there anything cooler then a ninja? Fun fact, while growing up I used to wish for the day a ninja would be in the Transformers cartoon, and while the Transformers/GI Joe crossover comic satiated this desire somewhat, it really wasn’t what I was after. Just like when Spider-Man guest starred, these shameless cross overs diluted both of these great franchises rather then amplifying them. And while Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes were great and all, they were no substitute for Michael Dudikoff.
The American Ninja franchise has a very special place in my heart. A place that you may not, and can not, sully no matter how hard you might try. Anna hasn’t even seen this place because she is crafty and I have been unable to trick her into watching any of the films. But what are American Ninja films? I’m so glad you asked.
The American Ninja films follow a simple, hard working soldier (Dudikoff) who just so happens to be the only American ninja, like, ever. You would think this would go to his head, but no. He keeps his head down and follows orders until invariably an evil villain set on world domination kidnaps his lady friend and unleashes an army of ninjas to kill our intrepid hero. I’m fairly certain American Ninja 2 differs only in that his best friend is kidnapped, as well as a host of Marines, instead of his girlfriend. Also the evil ninjas are color coded.
I did not have cable when I was growing up, a pop cultural slight that I have now come to believe should be labeled a crime against humanity, so I had to find other ways to watch Transformers, GI Joe and anything else that might be showing only on the USA Cartoon Express. Thus, I had many an over night at my various friend’s houses where I would watch Nick at Night, Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Godzilla marathons until the sun would rise.
Now I never really understood Godzilla films at the time, all I knew was that they had giant monsters, giant robots and it also was a pretty cool Saturday morning cartoon which starred an even gianter monster who was at the beck and call of American scientists. They also also blew up stuff in the movies, which is always pretty cool.
I like to think Godzilla, and those nights spent watching him destroy, and defend, Tokyo, were some of the first planted seeds that would eventually blossom into my love of film. As such I’ve always had a bit of a nostalgic kick for men dressed in monster suits stomping on model cities. It is just good clean family fun. Until Mighty Morphin Power Rangers went and crapped all over it.
It has been a long road to get this review finished. Several months ago I finally got up the nerve to bug local film critic Colin Covert of the Star Tribune about checking out my site. Over the years I have attended numerous screenings that he has also been at and naturally we’ve discussed many of these films afterwards. After enough time we’ve developed enough of a rapport to occasionally rag on each others preferences but I’ve never pimped out anything of my own, as that would require gumption, so I was a bit apprehensive when I approached him that fateful Saturday morning.
It turns out that I had nothing to worry about as Colin was immediately interested in my little undertaking. We talked about the goals of my site and some of the movies I had enjoyed so far for a good solid 15 minutes when he quickly offered up his own recommendation for me to watch, The Saragossa Manuscript. He quickly described the film and remarked that not only was it Jerry Garcia’s favorite film, but that it had an ending that would “Peel your brain back!” Now I didn’t quite know what that meant, but it sure sounded awesome. All that was left was for me to simply track down this rare gem.
Anna tends to head home to Brainerd, MN about once a month to visit her family. While I enjoy visiting her family, my job doesn’t afford the me the luxury of weekends off so I rarely can adjust my schedule to make these trips. And while I miss spending time with her on these weekends, I am afforded one small luxury. I get to watch movies for this site that she has absolutely no interest in.
Now, over the years we have both forced the other to watch movies that we knew the other didn’t want to watch. But in fairness to both of us, typically these are films that we were passionate about and simply wanted to share something we loved with the other person. Unfortunately, both of us have wildly different tastes. She is fiercely pretentious and very selective in what she will spend her time on. I am more of a buffet styled viewer, slopping anything and everything on the Netfix queue in the hopes I find a gem within the mountain of crap. She became a fan of Bill Murray after watching Lost in Translation, and refuses to watch any of his films previous to it. I am a fan of all Bill Murray films except Lost in Translation, because it sucks. She is a fan of Lars von Trier films like Dogville and Dancer in the Dark. I may have called her stupid for liking those movies. And so on and so forth.
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