Move over Ariel, Emma is taking the spotlight in this fish-out-of-water tale. In the sequel to Of Poseidon, Emma has a lot to deal with, between the revelation that her mother is the long thought dead princess of the Poseidon kingdom who is fighting to not go back, and the fact that her being a Half-Breed is preventing her and Galen, a Triton prince, from being together, she has a busy Senior year ahead of her. Her problems escalate, however, when a fake Poseidon heir takes the throne, and a group of Syrenas start plotting to overthrow the Royals. It looks like everyone Emma cares about may be taken away from her, while she is forbidden from the water for fear of her life. Emma must now decide who she is--a do nothing Half-Breed or a Syrena Royal-- which will determine the fate of the underwater civilizations forever.
Between the recent vampire and zombie fads, it is extremely refreshing to have a series about another major part of mythology that has been in existence longer than either of the aforementioned combined. Between the popularity of The Little Mermaid and the not so positive stories of the sirens from The Odyssey, there appears at first glance that there is not much left to discuss about merpeople. Banks comes out of the blue, however, with a wonderful story about the Syrena and what occurs when a half human half Syrena is born.
The original book, Of Poseidon, did a fantastic job of setting up the story, of explaining the differences between it and other mermaid tales, while this sequel focuses on what happens when the underwater government starts to lose power . . . and how a merman and a human will ever work out romantic wise.
With it being told from sassy Emma and brave Galen's point of views, Of Triton is a great second book to the retelling of the mermaid story that audiences will come to love.
Sincerely,
The Night Owl
In the third book in the Across the Universe trilogy, more than half of the inhabitants of Godspeed finally reach their destination that has taken five centuries to get to: Centauri-Earth. There, Amy and Elder hope to succeed with two things: Amy hopes to finally wake the other Sol-Earth beings--including her parents--from their frozen slumber and prove to everyone that they are not there to harm them, while Elder is hoping his people will settle the new world, and find it to be better than living on the doomed Godspeed. But from the moment they land, danger and trouble plague the young leader and his girlfriend. Carnivorous monsters lurk in the woods, waiting to make a meal out of the humans, and the newly awakened military and scientists are only focused on their mission, and not the frightened civilians around them. Secrets abound between these two sides that further complicates the settling, and when Amy and Elder suspect they're not alone on the planet, they have to uncover what is being hidden in order to ever have the chance of calling this foreign world home.
As her first sci-fi series, Beth Revis does a fantastic job of creating an entire new world filled with plants and creatures that can be easily imagined by her descriptions. She also makes the scientific side of this book comprehensible and enjoyable, adding to the advancement that has taken place in this futuristic story.
One thing that Revis has never been shy about using is shock factors; in each of her books, she is not hesitant to add something that will blind-side the reader and make them flabbergasted. She continues this tradition in Shades of Earth, adding cringe-worthy moments and revelations causing the characters and readers much pain and discomfort. Concerning her characters, Revis is unafraid to have them meet an unfortunate end, and also have them act certain ways that does not put them in the best light. Though some might see these negative characteristics as a turn off, it adds to Amy, Elder, and the rest showing that even in the future they face challenges like we do today.
Shades of Earth was a wonderful read, and a great way to end the series. Perhaps the only problem about it is the ending: it doesn't go into enough detail about the colonists and what ever happens with them, or about the future of Amy and Elder's relationship. It almost feels like a cliff hanger, however it definitely isn't, though it does beg the question, "What happens next?" Although a fourth book is unnecessary, what Revis might consider doing is writing a novella about Amy and Elder a few years after this book. However, Revis has set the end of the book in such a way that if she decided to do a fourth book or a spin-off series, it would work out very well and hopefully squelch our curiosity.
Beth Revis has certainly created a fan base for her work, and Shades of Earth is a terrific way to finish her debut series.
Sincerely,
The Night Owl
We can never escape history. It's presence in our lives will never vanish, whether it be from the past few centuries or the past few millennia, in our country or in another. Thus we return to Camp Half-Blood, an ancient Greek hero training camp set in modern day New York, for the next installment in the Percy Jackson series:The Sea of Monsters. Percy returns to camp with the rest of his demigod comrades, feeling the success of his first quest diminish as he continuously fails at camp activities against Clarisse, daughter of Ares. Believing that he accomplished his first quest on beginner's luck, he attempts to contact his father Poseidon for guidance, and when his father still seems absent Percy begins to lose faith. When the camp is attacked by monsters, however, Percy must fight his doubt to help save Camp Half-Blood from the son of Hermes, Luke, who is bent on taking over Olympus. Now teamed up with his friends Annabeth and Grover and also with his newly discovered Cyclops half-brother Tyson, Percy must journey into the Sea of Monsters in order to find a way to save his home, and face his most challenging opponent yet.
While the books are very popular to consumers, the first film The Lightning Thief did not have an impressive US run at the box office. In fact, the only reason a sequel was made was because the first movie did very well overseas. Though many were unimpressed by The Lightning Thief, it did possess one thing that this film sorely lacks: Greek mythology.What's brilliant about this story, created by author Rick Riordan, is that it is the myths that are still studied and discussed today set in our modern times with characters and situations that allow today's generation to understand and appreciate Greek myths. The first movie incorporated this with the presence of Medusa in a statue store, the presence of a hydra at the Parthenon in Tennessee, the lair of the lotus eaters in a Vegas hotel, and the entrance to the Underworld located in Hollywood. These myth tie-ins, along with many others, kept the film grounded in the mythological theme.
Now we turn to Sea of Monsters. Due to the extreme lack of Greek references, and the few that are present being seriously doused out with the modern world, it's extremely difficult to remember that this isn't just some sci-fi, but is actually supposed to be Greek myths. Only one god ever makes an appearance (if you count Mr. D then it's two, however, since it's never mentioned clearly enough who he is, those who have not read the books are going to be lost), and the one god who is present mirrors nothing of his Greek self, and just seems to be a very talented magician.
The Sea of Monsters itself is very under whelming also. While the book describes monster after monster, only two ever make an appearance. One being Polyphemus the cyclops who lives on his island, which is completely opposite of what the book describes that one must wonder who came up with the idea to add so many unnecessary features, and take away from what was depicted in the greatest Greek legend of all, The Odyssey.
If an audience member has not read the book, then there are many references that they are going to miss in the movie, many of which would help clear things up in the plot. For those audience members who have read the books, they're jaws are going to drop in horrid shock and wonder "What in hades happened?!"
What's probably the saddest part of all, is that the opening scene was the best part in the movie. Filled with amazing demigod action, emotion, and hilarity, it gives the false hope that the film will surpass it's predecessor and make a successful film series based off the books. By the end, however, it appears as if the creators decided to chuck the rest of the series into this one movie and quickly finish it off . . . but then they don't, as if they changed their minds.
If Fox dares to make The Titan's Curse into a movie, then gods help them, because Zeus will fry them with a lightning bolt if they cough out another one like this.
Sincerely,
The Night Owl
Not many authors possess the bragging rights of having a book series that just gets better and better with each book; Meg Cabot is one of those authors. In the final book of her Abandon series, Pierce Oliviera is getting used to her new life in the Underworld with its ruler (and her boyfriend) John. Things begin to calm down, and she attempts to help rule the Underworld as John's consort, all while keeping an eye on her recently deceased then revived cousin Alex, and all too adaptable best friend Kayla, while also watching out for attacking Furies bent on not only punishing John but also killing her. Her and John's relationship seem to be improving, but a horrific tragedy turns Pierce's world upside down, forcing her to go once again to the surface in order to save what's most important to her. But she's on a deadline. If she is unable to bring balance to the Underworld, the souls of those departed will over flow and spill out into Isla Huesos and out into the rest of the world. Pierce must now take on her duties as queen and not only save her family and friends, but also repair her dark kingdom. Who said dating the lord of the dead was going to be easy?
Cabot possesses the unique ability to create one-of-a-kind stories, and continue to build them up--story, character, theme--and bring it to the ultimate climax and ending. For Awaken, the story is well paced, and she forgets nothing as she brings the story to a close. Awaken is definitely the best book of the trilogy, including all the characters Cabot first introduced in the previous two books, and also introduces new characters, easily tying them into the storyline in a way that they're not thrust onto the reader, but instead feel as if they have always been there.
Another uncanny gift Cabot takes advantage of is her ability to add comedy to even the most stark situations; what other book that focuses on death can make your sides hurt from laughter. Wit has always been a constant style of Meg Cabot, and even with a book that takes place in the Underworld, she is still able to incorporate it in a tasteful manner.
Loaded with action, humor, romance, and suspense, Awaken is not only a fantastic end to the Abandon trilogy (which in itself was a wonderful modern, retelling of the Persephone myth) , but possibly one of Meg Cabot's finest pieces of work.
Sincerely,
The Night Owl
As a one dollar birthday card once read, "just like fine wine, you grow better with the years." Just like that wine, CIA operatives are the same way as can be seen in the recently released film Red 2. The Retired Extremely Dangerous crew is back with extreme action and hilarity all mixed into a two hour movie. Frank (Bruce Willis) is attempting a mission that not one of his fellow ex-CIA agents have ever accomplished: living a "normal" life with his girlfriend Sarah (Mary-Louise Parker). This dream is short lived, however, when an agent from a top secret branch of the FBI, MI6, and the Russian military all set their eyes on Frank and a missing advanced nuclear bomb they believe he was involved with hiding during the Cold War. Now he is forced back into the game (much to the delight of Sarah) along with his ever suspicious friend Marvin (John Malkovich) and weapon wheeling specialist Victoria (Helen Mirren). Between running from the FBI and MI6, dodging bullets from the world's top hit man (Byung-hun Lee) with a personnel score to settle, and an ex from the Russian government (Catherine Zeta-Jones), will Frank be able to save millions of people, improve his relationship with Sarah, and still aim towards a normal life? Perhaps this agent has finally met his match.
What was interesting about the first Red movie, was that it was not expected for there to be any realistic matches between retired agents and current trained operatives. And when it came to chase scenes (yeah it was cool when Frank easily stepped out of a speeding car shooting his gun perfectly, but realistically?) the audience was willing to bend their beliefs if for a short time. The same view is expected when going to see Red 2. The fight scenes are more impossible, the car scenes more ridiculous, and the amount of laws broken yet there being no consequences? Yep. It's definitely all doubled for this one. But there are a few movies that it's alright to do those things. Due to the comedic aspect of this film, it is okay to see Victoria shooting two guns out of different windows and hitting her targets all while the speeding car she is in skids sideways. If that was not in the movie, along with other similar improbable scenes, Red 2 would never have been able to be called an excellent sequel to the first one, which it certainly is.
This laughter driven action flick is a wonderful continuation of the Red franchise, bringing a once popular comic book story line out of obscurity and putting it back in the lime-light where it belongs.
Sincerely,
The Night Owl
He's back. One of Marvel's all time favorite heroes returns in his new film, The Wolverine. Based off of the 1980s comic arc by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller, Wolverine is in seclusion in the Canadian wilderness, struggling with the pain of killing the woman he loved, Jean Grey (at the end of X-Men: The Last Stand), in order to stop the Pheonix from destroying the world. When a figure from his past makes a sudden reappearance in his life, Logan is whisked off to Japan to say good-bye to the dying man. There, the man offers him a gift Wolverine never believed he could have: mortality. When the man's granddaughter, Mariko, becomes a target by Yakuza assassins, Wolverine does everything he can to protect her, growing close to her in the process. Now he must face his fears of immortality in order to save the woman he is starting to love, but can he knowing that the world continues to spin yet he stays static?
This movie, directed by James Mangold, has many positive aspects going for it. The story is well paced, not feeling rushed and very minimal scenes seemed like they took too long to be played out. Also, the multiple flashbacks were portrayed in such way that it was clear when it is the 1940s, and when it is present day making tag lines on the bottom of the screen unnecessary. It was a little daunting when they announced the film to take place in Japan, and that ninjas were going to be used as adversaries to Wolverine, almost guaranteeing recollections from multiple 80s ninja flicks where the fighting was almost satire worthy. However, the fighting in The Wolverine is not completely unbelievable (fighting on top of a bullet train withstanding) allowing the audience to appreciate the fights and not laugh at the ridiculousness of it. The focus of Wolverine and his growth is very well done thanks to the talents of Hugh Jackman, who has always performed the role excellently.
You've probably been searching for the "but", well here it is:
BUT . . .
While this film is definitely entertaining and one of the better movies of the summer, by the end it feels as if something is missing.
Perhaps it is the lack of mutants? When you go to the movie theatre to see the mutant of all mutants, it's almost expected for there to be . . . well . . . mutants. By the end of the movie, only three mutants are every shown, one being the title character. That's it. While the storyline does stick close with the comics, and the whole movie is about Wolverine, it most likely would have been beneficial to include more mutants (on a side note, it probably would have been amazing to have Deadpool-you know, a cool version unlike the one in X-Men Origins-to be in that crowd of ninjas. Can you say, "Hello, Deadpool movie"?).
Perhaps it's because the way the movie was portrayed in the trailers? In the trailers, it was consistently shown that Wolverine was given the option to lose his immortality, which we then assume he took because he could no longer heal himself. Doing this made it seem that Wolverine has been struggling with the fact that he can live forever while everyone else dies around him. That is never stated in the movie. In fact, the only thing that is shown and ever discussed is that he feels guilt over killing Jean, and the only time his immortality is ever brought up is by the man who offers him mortality.
What is sad about The Wolverine, is that during the movie you sit in your seat enraptured with the story, action, and quality graphics, yet all of that is overshadowed when the in-credits scene appears. By the time the audience leaves, they're not talking about the movie, they're talking about that one scene. That is what they leave with. The entire two hour movie loses to a five minute or less scene.
The Wolverine is a very well done piece, definitely one of the top action movies of the 2013 summer. But it is safe to say, concerning the final scene, that the creators saved the best for last.
Sincerely,
The Night Owl
It's the end of the third act, everything in Metropolis is broken and shattered, why not just add the general public's view of Superman to the casualty list? The shocking death of General Zod by the hands of Superman sent comic purist heads and pretty much the majority opinion of society in a whirlwind; Superman had broken his code of seventy five years and actually killed his enemy. This one act, this one shot that took less than a minute to play out, has many debating that this modern Superman is not the hero the world is annoyed with yet secretly loves, and that the Superman that first made us believe that man can fly and can be a source of good, is gone.
Is he really though? Those who disagree with this sentiment have an answer for the question, "Why did the Man of Steel creators do this?" Superman is not only the most mocked superhero that everyone doesn't like (and still has the highest rate in sold products) because of his great power, but has also historically been hounded for what many consider his greatest stance, that death is not the answer and that he believes in peaceful results. This is often thwarted by the same villains breaking out of whatever prison the Kryptonian puts them in, resulting in more chaos and death. This has long been a source of those questioning his supposedly advanced intellect. Wouldn't you prevent more chaos and death if you just eliminate the source of it? Yes, you have to sacrifice your moral code, but hey, capitol punishment, right? The creators then, says those who support the deadly move, make Superman do what fans have been chanting for decades: "off with his head!"
Yet even as Superman does the act, the audience who called for him to do it for years, who criticized him for continuing the never ending parade of escape, destruction, defeat, locked up, repeat, even as he kills Zod, we are all stupefied. We can't be satisfied, can we? We thirst for blood, yet when it's spilled, we look on in horror and disbelief; what kind of barbarian kills a living being with his bare hands? So what if he killed thousands, destroyed one of the most successful cities in America, threatened a family with small children, and attempted to destroy Earth to recreate his alien home world? Zod still shouldn't have been killed. Why does the word hypocrite come to mind . . .?
But perhaps hypocrisy is not the right word to akin to this situation. Perhaps it should be called expectation. No matter how hard we yell at the movie screen, or how loud we're shouting in our heads for Superman to just "finish him off!" we can--or could--always count on Superman to not be a killer. For the past seventy five years (yeah he's that old) we as an audience, our parents, and even (for some) our grandparents have been drilled with the knowledge that Superman will--would--never stoop to the level of his adversaries, for fear of becoming just like them. We have always held on to this high expectation of Superman, that no matter the circumstance he will never sway from his no killing policy. We always expect him to show us that he does not have to kill to stop evil, since to kill is the way of a true villain.
So . . . what does that say for Man of Steel? Is Superman, the man who stands (stood?) for "truth and justice" really gone?
There is something that has not been mentioned yet in this debate, an important aspect of Superman that has been present since the first issue from 1938: his role as a Christ figure. A Christ figure, in literary terms, means somebody who embodies the characteristic and sacrificial nature of Jesus Christ, and Superman is the ultimate Christ figure. It is stated most popularly in the original 1978 Superman film and is even mentioned in the new installment by Jor-El: he is sending his only son to Earth in order to save the human race, to be a light to them, and to lead them in the way of goodness. Russell Crowe's Jor-El says that they will "stumble and fall" but that one day "they will join [him] in the sun." Heck, even in the nineties Superman dies and resurrects in order to save mankind from Doomsday in the Death of Superman series. And the Fortress of Solitude? Where he goes and speaks to his omnipotent father from the great beyond? Someone going to church and praying? Lots of parallels there.
According to Christian belief, when Jesus died on the cross He took the whole world's sin upon Himself, so that no one would have to suffer the consequences. When Superman is faced with the decision of allowing Zod (whom he has finally captured) to murder an innocent family or to compromise his moral belief in not ending a life, instead of allowing the people to suffer he kills Zod. His emotions about it are made explicitly clear in the film with his dismayed face as he looks at the still form of the evil Kryptonian. Instead of allowing more suffering to happen to the innocent, which would have happened had he allowed Zod to kill the family or let him go from the choke hold, Superman put the pain of doing something horrible on himself, so that he would be the only one affected. Yes, thousands of people had already been affected by Zod's rampage, but Superman realized that it would never stop unless he put the pain on himself.
What many are saying about this new, red brief-less Superman is that it has killed their inner child. As they watched their longtime hero end a life with his own hands, it's as if there is no more hope for humanity. Time is an important factor here. The Superman that enchanted us was from a time where keeping the hopes of children and teens alive was essential. It was a time of war, protests, and many other things that could plague a child should they be aware of it. Thank goodness for those comics to distract them. Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolan set out to recreate Superman, to make him fit in our modern world. A world where police now have to be present at movie theatres in case some nutcase who calls himself the Joker decides to barge in and kill the movie goers, a world where children have to attend school always looking over their shoulders for fear a madman will burst in the door and gun them all down. A world where a child who has been taught to not allow adults touch them, must go against what they learned when they go to the airports, for fear someone might be carrying a bomb. That is our world now. Is it too much to say that Superman has changed with it? That when forced to make a difficult decision, you have to choose the lesser of two evils? That in order to be safe we must be groped at airports, allow police to roam school campuses, and (the forefront of the controversial world) use drones to spy on Americans. The only thing Superman has that these other "lesser evils" don't have? His choice only affected him, put all the blame on him, ruining only his image, while the rest of the world benefited from it.
Was allowing Superman to kill a smart move by the creators? Probably not. If their goal was to create discussion, then they succeeded (hence this long piece). To avoid all this controversy, they should not have backed Superman in a corner, forcing him to make that decision. They have already stated that the death of Zod will be addressed in the second Man of Steel movie, showing the affects it had on Clark Kent. Unitl then, the world will continue to debate about Zod's death. However, there is something else to be concerned with; if they dared to put in Superman killing his enemy in order to reflect the severe changes our world is going through today, one must wonder as we the human race continues to head south (after the Boston bombing, National Security debates, more chaos in the Middle East, and who knows what else) what will Zach Snyder and Christopher Nolan have this modern Superman do in the sequel?
