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patchun · 3 years

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KIRBY STAR ALLIES: UNNECESSARILY DETAILED DEFINITIVE ARENA VIABILITY TIER LIST

After reading the title you may have a few questions. The first of which may be: why should I care what you think? Haha, well, reader who has likely never even played this game...

I have invested just a little bit of time into this game. More, lately, as I recently spent about 30 hours playing this game to decide once and for all who the strongest and weakest characters are. Now, you say, patchun... you invested 30 hours into a game that's like four years old, wasn't that well reviewed, and has completely faded from relevance... all so you could make a tier list no one will care about? And I tell you. Yes. Yes I fucking did. With that out of the way, let's dive in.

The criterion I used to determine viability were damage output, safety, and versatility. Some characters, when played skillfully, can have crazy unexpected DPS. Some characters have fantastic air dodges or blocks that drastically increase their safety. Some characters absolutely destroy Whispy Woods, but then struggle against literally anyone else. All of this has been taken into account to make the following tier list.

Before we start I want to make a few notes: if playing with friends, a few positions change. When playing with friends, Rock, Gooey, and Painter move up to SSS tier. Painting rocks is legit one of the most fun and strongest ways to clear the true arena. Also, Meta Knight, when playing with friends, is in S tier. He has some very high damage output if he is safe, but can struggle to stay safe. I will be using the terms "decent, good, great, and insane" very deliberately.

In order of goodness in all rows.

F Tier:

Those in F tier have pretty much nothing going for them.

Suplex is weak and constantly makes itself vulnerable.

Kirby is arguably the most skillful character in the game, but has decent damage when played well.

Fighter just has no good moves, its kit is a weak disaster.

Painter is slow and the minions it creates are weak and not versatile. Statue (down up B) is its best move by far, but the slow startup and inability to move during really hinders the move.

Bird has great mobility and lots of i-frames, but super low damage. I-frames don't matter when you're fighting the bosses for hours.

ESP, in order to do any good damage whatsoever, needs to charge it's ball of energy to max, and then manage to hit the enemy without touching anything else first. If you can do that, it's solid. But it's pretty rare that you can do that, and you're very vulnerable while charging.

Chef honestly should have gone at the top of F tier. It's dash midair B is strong and so is its spatula, though a bit boring. However, Chef has a large hurtbox and you can't play as Kirby instead.

D Tier:

D Tier clears are manageable but require almost perfect play. These characters have something going for them, but it usually isn't much and they're heavily outclassed in some way by other characters.

Beam is strong, but struggles due to lack of mobility. All of its attacks are good, but just good.

Staff is held back by the fact that its dash attack is immobile and has very few i-frames. Down-up B and Pole Vault into B are both good, but are outclassed.

Water has a strong attack in its down-up B, which creates a rainbow and does good damage. It also has a projectile that it can stay relatively safe while using. However, the projectile falls to the ground, meaning Water really struggles against enemies that stay high in the air. Anything out of reach of its rainbow attack will be quite a hassle to kill.

Sweep - I somehow cleared true arena with solo sweep, so maybe it's better than I was able to figure out? I tried for a while. It's hold and release B move, which sweeps and then flicks the broom, does good damage. Additionally, its dash attack is decent.

Fire has one decent move - its midair down B, which causes it to roll into an invincible ball of fire. If you use this near the ground, you'll then roll. If used on a big enemy, it can do good damage, but most of the time you won't be doing much damage at all. Barely makes D tier.

C Tier:

These characters are okay. They generally require a very patient and careful playstyle, but can do decent damage.

Rock can do damage. It has invincibility. It even has an up B in this game that is strong! But... well, unless you're playing with friends, you are going to be waiting around in rock form A LOT while playing this character. Waiting as two Bugsys hover around you, waiting for that perfect opportunity... to unrock, and then rock right back up. It's boring. But you can win with it.

Beetle can be strong, but it needs to be very careful about the opportunities it takes to attack, as many leave it vulnerable in end lag.

Hammer is the only copy ability here where you're better off playing as Kirby. Bonkers' hurtbox is big, why not just use Dedede?

Yoyo is like a better Bird. It has lots of mobility and i-frames, but only does decent damage (rather than Bird who does none). Its down up B is good damage on large enemies, but leaves it vulnerable.

B Tier:

Clearing the true arena with these characters will be a challenge, but keep at it and you can succeed for sure! These characters have at least something that is actually GOOD, without drawbacks.

Bomb is safe and does a surprising amount of damage. Simple, but effective, and you can aim which is a perk. Wind and ice weapons are great on this one.

Whip is what Yoyo and Staff want to be. Though it's dash B isn't as mobile as Yoyo's, it does a lot of damage, and has much more i-frames than Staff's. Its down up move does great damage and does not leave it uncomfortably airborne like Yoyo. And like Yoyo, it can grab and throw stars and enemies.

Spider is very safe and fun. All of its moves do good damage, and you can kite enemies and spam your dashing midair B. Webbed enemies that you hit into others will do a lot of damage, and jumping off of webs is a great way to deal with airborne bosses such as Kracko and Void. Spider works well as a teammate when playing with friends for this reason, as your webs can basically function as shields against some attacks. Also particularly noteworthy is that spider has a damage-immune shield (damage-immune shields can still be sucked, blown, and tornado'd) that can be used midair.

Parasol does insane damage with its down B attack, which also grants i-frames. This can be spammed to absolutely decimate health bars, and you can move during it to reposition. Parasol also has great mobility in it's dash B, midair dash B, and midair down B, all three giving i-frames - as well as a decently powerful throw. Parasol struggles most against Hyness, who rarely goes to the ground and as such does not present many opportunities to down B.

Sword has a good dash attack, and a great up B down B combo that can really put in work against larger bosses. It is vulnerable, however, at the end of the combo, and is not great at dealing with midbosses and smaller enemies. It's midair dash B is also good, but not nearly as good as a certain other character. Wind can help Sword by increasing it's mobility.

Plasma is a great ability so long as you don't mind destroying your thumbs! For those who don't know, Plasma in this game works like this: as you move the joystick, Plasma will build up static electricity. This has three levels, and when it's fully charged, it can be fired out as a powerful circular bolt. Until it is used, the static buildup also functions as a shield, and will allow Plasma to warp instead of dodge up to three times. Plasma is good at dealing with Kracko, Void, and Hyness thanks to it's up B, which sends the circular bolt upwards, and is safe against other enemies. But yeah, you have to kill your thumbs. Mine hurt right now.

Cutter is good, but not as good as bomb.

Gooey is just slightly better rock. Most of Gooey's moves don't do much damage. Gooey's rock can be painted. Gooey also has a damage-immune shield, but it doesn't really matter because you might as well rock up.

A Tier

These characters are legitimately good, but there is a lot of variety in exactly how the characters in this category are good. It is organized by how likely you are to be able to clear with them. Now that I'm getting into good characters: I played every character in this category with every single element to deduce which element goes best with each one. I technically have them all tiered, too, but I figured that was too much for anyone to read.

Adeleine's down B's minions do a surprising amount of damage (great), and are quite versatile, even being able to hit airborne enemies such as Kracko and Void. She also has the best shield in the game, completey invincible and unable to be hit by anything to my knowledge (possibly Morpho Knight tornado), and a good air attack option thanks to Ribbon. She doesn't have any i-frames, so she may require a bit of waiting - like Rock, but that's only if you put yourself in that situation.

Susie (Ice) has shots that drop large balls of ice at the end. She easily destroys most bosses with these. Business Suit has i-frames at the beginning of its spin and a very powerful midair down B, also reducing damage and preventing negative status effects. Susie will likely get hit because of her massive hurtbox in Business Suit mode, but it won't matter as much thanks to the damage reduction.

Dark Meta Knight (Fire) has two great moves in his charge Bs. Fire was chosen as the best element for him because it expands the radius of his charge B. His dash and aerial attacks are great, especially if you can land his dash combo. Dark Meta Knight also has a damage-immune shield.

Chilly is surprising in its placement, but its midair B does insane damage and it has a solid kit to boot. Instead of normal dash B, Chilly needs to use dash down B for an briefly invincible and mobile ice ball. Chilly also has a damage-immune shield.

Daroach has a lot of options and all of them are great. Fire bombs destroy Whispy and Kracko, Ice Laser easily clears midbosses and does great damage to everyone else, Squeaks are second only to Adeleine's minions in their effectiveness, and the Triple Star is a great tool for staying safe while dealing good damage. Daroach doesn't have a special shield, but he does have a three-use, chainable warp as opposed to an air dodge, which if used correctly should be able to save you from any bad situation.

Bandana Dee (Ice) is stronger than any other Bandana Dee variant (you may notice a pattern like that...). Bandana Dee's dashing midair b can be spammed and does great damage, like a machine gun, but is held back by the fact that you inevitably touch the ground after 4-6 spears. Bandana Dee's strongest move is probably its down B, which can also serve nicely as a dash attack, as it has great mobility and i-frames. Bandana Dee (Wind) has a good charge B, but wonky throwing spears and lackluster damage output when compared to Ice overall.

Ninja (Ice) has potentially the most DPS in the game. By being near an enemy and pressing and holding B briefly, you do a double slashing move that creates an ice pillar that constantly damages an enemy. You can beat Whispy with this in under 20 seconds! Shurikens are good for hitting faraway enemies, and Ninja is also able to use Substitute Jutsu if it block before getting hit. The reason Ninja is not S tier is because it struggles against airborne enemies and is not able to utilize its full potential unless it catches an enemy standing still. High skill cap, but high reward.

Meta Knight has insane DPS with his dashing midair B spam. Ice and Wind are best, depending on who you're struggling with. Meta Knight can struggle to do damage while also keeping himself safe, and for that reason is best when playing with friends. His down up B, condor dive, grants i-frames and is usable in the air. His counter also does great damage.

Dedede (Shock) has great damage in his kit and a lot of i-frames, including his dash B and iconic down up B. However, he is hindered by his slow movement and large hurtbox.

S Tier

These characters will have no problem clearing if you play them right, but are they broken? Considering what is to come... nahhhh.

Marx (Ice, Wind, Water) has two great moves in his black hole which can do insane damage and is invincible, and his dive which can do great damage and is invincible. Marx pretty much always wants to stay in the air, and his midair B has a lot of variety depending on your element, but it is most notably a very safe move. Marx has a one time warp in the air that can be chained but has to be timed perfectly in order to retain invincibility, and his main drawback is that all of his powerful, i-frame granting moves tend to be pretty vulnerable with end lag. For that reason, Marx needs to be played patiently.

Rick & Kine & Coo have the best dash attacks in the game, both midair and grounded. Rick (grounded) will turn into a mobile rock, completely invincible, dealing a lot of damage, and also able to move, while Kine (midair) has a long spin attack with plenty of i-frames. Rick conveniently also bounces off the top of the heads of enemies, Kine has a projectile that can travel a fair distance but is weak, Rick can melt ice with his fire, Coo can cleanse dirty food with his flop. These guys also have a damage-immune shield.

Taranza is a case where all of his moves are great, but none of them are insane. Put them together, though, and you'll clear bosses safely. Taranza can kind of do several things at once, and I'd recommend down up B + dash B + up B. Utilizing all of this damage at once will destroy bosses quickly. When you don't feel you're safe as Taranza, midair up B and midair down B can give you control and hit from a distance.

SS Tier

Magolor's down up B is insane. He summons a giant sword that takes up the entire screen, then slashes it and hits everything for insane damage while being invincible, then can cancel that sword into itself. He has an invincible dash move, by far the best air dodge in the game, a black hole that he can summon just like Marx, and a powerful fire projectile that can melt ice. And that's not even everything - so how is this not the most broken character in the game?

SSS Tier

Somehow, dear reader, you have made it this far. The best character in Star Allies, even better than Magalor, are the Three Mage Sisters is ZAN MOTHERFUCKING PARTIZANNE. Zan does not care what you can throw at her, she has something to handle it, and chances are she doesn't need to use it. Because Zan's down up B is a giant piercing laser that covers the entire screen, grants i-frames, can be cancelled into itself, does insane damage, and can be moved during. There are just no enemies that can even pose a challenge to this character. There are no enemies that can even damage her. My highest score in Star Allies was me goofing around and playing solo Three Mage Sisters and just repeatedly spamming this move over and over again! The funny thing is, her other moves are good too, and so are her sisters to an extent! But Zan is great because she also has really fast movement as well as a warp similar to Marx and Daroach's. In a pinch she can relocate incredibly quickly, and she has no need for a shield because her warp, when you're used to it, is probably the easiest to chain into itself.

So yeah this was my Star Allies tier list. If you've read this far I'm actually amazed. Thanks. Star Allies is at its most fun, I feel, when playing with friends. If you'd like me to talk in more detail (but not as much as this post) about some friend strategies and which ones are best, such as painting rocks, let me know, I guess.

#will literally be amazed if anyone reads this LOL #but hey #it was fun to make #kirby star allies #kirby #text #long post

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bansheeoftheforest · 3 years

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Have I ever told you my hamsters full name? Its "Cheesepuff Jacksparrow Garbage"

Cheesepuff because,, look at him. Also I think we fed him one once. Jacksparrow because he was rattling the cage alot or running alot while pirate music was playing. And garbage, not because hes garbage, but rather because twice while being held hes attempted to jump in a trash can

Mr. Ody is actually what he named himself, I pulled up the notes app to see if his little hamster hands could type anything

Grappling Hook Spider Gun, as you well know is simply because she climbs, esp when a kitten. Also she kinda looks like a spider but I thought of that after naming her so it doesn't count

...I mean, I really cannot complain of the way you name pets. I have an oath that whenever Doriz dies and I get a new cat (like my parents promised goddamnit I want my own cat) I'll either name them something mundane, like Zosi/Zosimos, or my thought process of names includes "Captain Tiddies", "Sergeant Asshole", "Tittius Maximus", etc, etc, and it's going to be especially fun because my parents would not be able to stop me at all 'cause that cat would be my own cat <3

#I'm specifically going to name them after Zosi if the cat is black #we are probably going to buy two sibling cats bc they dont get adopted often #and bc my sister also wants her own cat #so the chances of finding black sibling cats might be slim but fear not! I still have the chance to name them captain tiddies <3 #ask #darling-dolly-darlene

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dottie-wan-kenobi · 5 years

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Also I want a marvel pairing for the listy thing so let's go with...Thor and Valkyrie, since I watched Ragnarok today

Oh YEET

Some of these are AU where they made it to Earth btw

who worries about what they will look like when they are older?

I mean they’re both pretty old, but Thor is canonically younger than Valkyrie so I’m gonna say him. it’s probably tied into “what am I gonna look like when I’m an old king” (while that was still applicable to his situation) instead of “am I gonna have wrinkles???” tho

who hogs the blanket?

they both do it and it got so bad they have to sleep under separate blankets, or specially made blankets that are so big it’s like two put together, meaning they each get one while still being under the same blanket together

who eats the others uneaten pizza crusts?

Thor. Valkyrie doesn’t understand why humans like pizza at first, but then she has some and likes it, but only wants the “good parts” so Thor eats the crusts (’cause he likes them for some reason lmao)

who is more likely to cry over a sad book or movie?

Thor. he’s a lot more emotional than Valkyrie is, so yeah when a dog dies in the movie they’re watching, he’s the one with tears in his eyes while Valkyrie’s like pretending she’s not upset by the emotions onscreen too (tho she doesn’t cry, because it’s just a dog)

who talks smack while playing video games?

Valkyrie. she gets in the zone and it just slips out. also, if she’s playing a game with strangers, those strangers are usually boys saying she can’t play because she’s a woman, so she dunks on ‘em while categorically mocking every single one of their fuck ups

who sings along with the radio?

Valkyrie. it takes a while to get used to Earth music but once she does, she sings her favorite songs and sometimes, especially if she’s in the shower, accompanies them with like hand movements/acting. she really really gets into it

who would enter them both into a talent show?

probably Thor just bc that seems like something he’d be interested in doing?? Val would either opt out or win the whole competition, no in between

who would accidentally set the kitchen on fire while cooking?

Thor. he was the prince of Asgard, he doesn’t know how to cook for himself, and also when he’s hungry and doesn’t want to wait for the oven, he will use lightning and he will scorch the ceiling and counters

who would throw the other into a pool?

Val would throw Thor and jump in right after. Thor likes when she shows how strong she is, and she likes touching his bare chest and then seeing it dripping wet, so it’s a win-win situation

who shops for groceries?

they probably have servants for this lmfao, I just don’t see either of them doing it really

who kills the spiders?

generally neither, but sometimes Val will be too tired to release it outside and she’ll put a cup over it and forget about it

who is the morning/night person?

I get the feeling they’re both disgusting morning people who get up early to work out or run laps or something, and though they can stay up late just fine, their internal clocks wake them up with the sun and then they’re both tired all day long

whO PROPOSES?

I can’t decide

if it’s Thor, he’s a big bumbling idiot about it like stumbling over his words and blushing like “I know that you do not care for Asgardian royalty...that is, you do not care for past royals, I would hope you care for me...no, I mean I KNOW you care for me, you’ve said so, but....” “get to the point babe” “I’m very poorly attempting to ask you if you would like to be the queen of Asgard...that is, if you would like to marry me....” “I would love that”

if it’s Val, I imagine that it’s after a battle or a long day/week or sex, they’re tired and in bed, and they’re just laying together and she feels so at peace, and suddenly it feels like the Right Time to do something about the question that’s been rolling around in her head for a while now, so she takes his hand in hers and whispers “Thor?” “yes?” “I love you” “I love you too” “I wanna spend the rest of my days with you” and she’s feeling awkward about it, but it’s the right choice and she’s happy she’s doing it, esp when he says “I do as well”

Send me a ship and I’ll answer these questions!

#valkyriethor #thorvalkyrie #brunnhildethor #thorbrunnhilde #valthor #thorval #thor x valkyrie #valkyrie x thor #brunnhilde x thor #thor x brunnhilde #thor #valkyrie #brunnhilde #calihart

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dragimal · 6 years

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How different are the crybaby characters compared to the characters in the manga? I haven't been able to watch it since I only have hulu and amazon prime.

(if u ever wanna watch it I could maybe try to set up a rabb.it for anyone interested and mooch my roommate’s netflix for a few viewing events. big maybe tho, I haven’t had a lot of personal time lately, and I don’t see that changing soon..)

for my own convenience I’m gonna try to do a compare/contrast list (+ personal “ideal” versions b/c why not). also, I must repeat my disclaimer that it’s been a minute since I read the og manga so some details may be warped by my memory

Ryo:

OG pre-Satan:

environmentalist, conspiracy theorist, flips wildly between completely neutral/dead-pan and hysterical (which could be for any emotion– he could be hysterically happy, hysterically mad, etc.). he’s not the best strategist and often makes snap decisions (ex– doesn’t super give a shit abt blowing his cover, as long as he can make a clean/quick getaway). his “sacrifice the few for the many” approach is questionable, but ultimately logical in a battle for the survival of humanity as a whole. more likely to seriously injure than outright murder people. pretty desperate to keep Akira by his side. he’s basically the right image below

OG post-Satan:

they actually face their mistakes and realize that by trying to wipe out humans, they turned into a version of the God they opposed, ultimately trying to wipe out a whole race of beings that deserve to live as much as anyone else, despite their faults. this is ultimately a lesson on Satan’s hubris, and lends to a thematically satisfying (and soul-crushing) ending

(x)

Crybaby pre-Satan:

basically cool/collected throughout, with very few moments where he loses his cool (or has much emotion at all, really). seems like he knows what he’s doing most of the time, and most of his decisions seem to have a far-reaching goal that was planned ahead. indiscriminately kills everyone who poses even the slightest threat to his plans, despite the fact that his plans are supposedly for the sake of humanity. doesn’t seem super attached to Akira, beyond using Akira for his goals. basically the left image above

Crybaby post-Satan:

Akira apparently taught Satan that love exists and is good? idk, the whole point of the OG plot was that Satan’s love of the demons pushed them to hate humanity. I think this is actually the main structural change that ruins the entire demon/Satan-revenge arc of Crybaby irreparably, b/c basically everything falls apart if Satan doesn’t feel any love or even obligation to the demons. like, if Satan doesn’t love demons already, then what’s even the point? as can be seen by the lack of cohesion/logic in anything Satan or their lackeys do, Crybaby clearly doesn’t know either. it’s also not a super effective approach when u can’t actually feel the love Satan/Ryo apparently has for Akira, and have to have it spelled out in the last 5 minutes of the series :/

Ideal Ryo:

OG Ryo, in all respects (aesthetics, personality, etc.). tho I do like Crybaby’s puffy white coat, that’s 100% fashion-disaster OG Ryo

Akira:

OG pre-Amon:

very skittish– will avoid confrontation as much as possible, but will still stick around to protect those he cares abt, even if he’s scared shitless. wary of weird stories abt demons, and rightfully questions their validity

OG post-Amon:

(edited w/ thessaliah’s input)

fiercely protective of humans until he realizes the atrocities they’re committing against themselves and devilmen, at which point he completely denounces humanity. thus, shows a strong sense of justice over forgiveness

Crybaby pre-Amon:

obliviously cheerful and trusting– I’m legitimately not sure if he’s actually brave or just too dense to recognize danger as it comes. doesn’t question weird stories abt demons, and is ready to step right into the frying pan w/ barely an ounce of information beforehand

Crybaby post-Amon:

(edited w/ thessaliah’s input)

cries a lot, which I think is a nice visual metaphor for his inner humanity. much more forgiving of humanity, even when he sees humans at their worst.

Ideal Akira:

personality-wise, I’d have to say OG, particularly for pre-Amon. while Crybaby pre-Amon is kinda cute in his obliviousness, I prefer the Akira who will knowingly jump into danger for those he loves, despite how scared he is. + I was so mad when Crybaby Akira didn’t question ANYTHING abt Ryo’s demonic explanations, like wtf dude u just swallowed that shit hook line and sinker, huh?

on reflection, I also prefer OG post-Amon, b/c I think it’s a lot more soul-crushing to see this ~largely~ idealistic character finally finally get worn down to the point of just giving up on those he was trying to protect. Crybaby’s overly-idealistic approach isn’t necessarily bad, but I do think it smooths out Akira’s rough edges a bit too much for my liking. tho Crybaby def has a leg-up thematically when it comes to the crying, I love that so much

aesthetically I could go for either, but I think I’d ideally love the look of everything Crybaby Akira + OG sideburns/mullet lmfao

Miki:

OG:

prideful as a personality trait, thus takes any slight as a personal offense. unashamed, but simultaneously defensive of her abilities (namely has some internalized misogyny in the beginning, which she eventually overcomes). impulsive and somewhat socially dense, which leads her to being unintentionally harsh in situations where she thinks she’s trying to enact “tough love”. could be read as (obnoxiously) selfish in situations where she wants Akira to fit her standards, and doesn’t question his changed state (and more importantly, doesn’t miss the ‘old Akira’)

Crybaby:

proud of her accomplishments, but not necessarily defensive of her position– she’s secure enough in her abilities to not feel threatened. thoughtful of those around her and what they may be going through. possibly too trusting, considering the whole situation w/ her agent. actually seems aware and somewhat wary of Akira’s changed state, even if she does like it

Ideal Miki:

this one’s tough b/c as much as I hate OG Miki and Akira’s relationship, there are certain negative traits that I think give OG Miki a more dynamic character than Crybaby. like OG’s socially dense, unintentionally harsh approach is p interesting to see, esp if it’s highlighted as a point of growth for her. of course, I want to completely trash the way OG Miki treats Akira in terms of throwing him into dangerous situations and harshly criticizing his pre-Amon character, but I wouldn’t necessarily mind seeing her sometimes harshly criticize Akira’s decisions in a way that is clearly framed as her trying to help Akira (even if it isn’t necessarily the most ideal approach). I also love OG Miki’s bubbly, unashamed personality, which is a gr8 contrast to her harsh approach to social situations

as for Crybaby, I fuckin ADORE Miki’s relationship w/ Miko, which I think only works the way it does b/c Crybaby Miki is securely proud, not defensively prideful like OG. plus, OG Miki’s defensive pride is p damn annoying to me, ESPECIALLY her internalized misogyny, god I want that completely trashed. yeah, OG eventually grows past the misogyny, but it feels less like satisfying character development, and more like a relief, like, “oh thank god she ain’t pullin’ that shit anymore”

I suppose, given all this, my ideal Miki is one that combines OG’s social harshness/denseness (to a logical/understandable degree), bubbly temperament, and impulsiveness, with Crybaby’s secure pride in her abilities and actual physical prowess (+ Crybaby’s love of cats, which is adorable and relatable)

Miko:

OG:

tbh I had to look her up again b/c I completely forgot her arc/personality. idk if that’s on her actually being a boring character, or if it’s just the fact that her arc was dropped in the middle of all the other wild bullshit of the main plot wayyyy at the end of the series

anyways, she’s a former delinquent trying to reform herself, but her old gang/posse won’t leave her alone, and she’s all stressed out over being half-demon. I don’t remember her personality necessarily being affected by the demon, which is kinda odd. also her demon form is some tiddy/pussy-volcano ridiculousness

Crybaby:

it’s worth noting that the actual, literal OG Miko makes a very brief appearance in Crybaby as one of the half-demon test subjects held captive by scientists– volcano-tits and all. personally, I count this as OG Miko’s actual Crybaby counterpart, but for the sake of comparing important characters, I’ll be comparing OG Miko to main Crybaby Miko since they share a name and an actual arc in each respective series

Crybaby Miko is insecure and wants so very badly to prove herself to others, especially Miki. this is especially potent considering Miko’s actual name is Miki, but she’s forced to stick with Miko as a name b/c Miki’s popularity/prowess overshadows any other potential Miki. post-demon, this jealousy manifests itself as an insatiable competitive streak, as Miko now has the ability to not only reach Miki, but surpass her level. Miko eventually realizes that at least part of her insecurity was misplaced affection for Miki. thus, part of Miko’s desire to be on the same playing field as Miki was so she could feel worthy of potentially dating her. also, Miko’s demon form is some kinda spider creature

Ideal Miko:

just b/c of her personal/thematic connection to Miki, I’d have to vote Crybaby Miko for almost all traits. I rly love her arc in Crybaby, and she’s a lot more personally connected to the plot than OG Miko is (considering OG Miko appears super late in the game, and barely interacts w/ Devilman).

though I do like the idea of a former delinquent trying to reform herself– it might be kinda interesting to integrate that into Crybaby Miko. maybe have her be a delinquent before she met Miki (I can’t remember how long they knew each other in Crybaby, but I’m thinking maybe have Miko be a middle school delinquent, then a reformed high-schooler). it might be especially interesting to see how Miko struggles to restrain a delinquent side that was used to getting what she wanted, then have it all fall apart when she’s merged with a demon

Crybaby Miko is also more interesting aesthetically, in all her forms (human, devilman, and demon). I’m esp super gay for her devilman form, while her full-demon form is such a huge improvement on tiddy-volcanoes. I do like OG’s hat tho, I wish Crybaby could have OG’s hat

Bullies/Rappers:

OG:

a little fuzzy on the details of these guys as well, but I mostly remember their overall arc

in the OG, these guys are straight-up bullies/delinquents, and aren’t there to fuck around. at first, they’re extremely aggressive towards Akira and Miki, and straight-up threaten to rape Miki. later on, once Akira gains their respect (and the world starts goin to shit), they become reliable, rough-around-the-edges friends, and try to protect Akira and Miki as much as they can

Crybaby:

these guys seem like harmless, disenfranchised rappers. they could be read as dangerous when they first approach Miki, but I honestly don’t think they would have done anything even if Ryo hadn’t intervened– I think they were just trying to scare her. Kukun in particular plays a significant role in Miko’s arc (however brief). they all rap about the hardships and injustices of society in a way that fits p well w/ the plot

Ideal bullies:

I rly love the OG bullies for how they go from aggressively antagonistic to aggressively protective of Akira and Miki. however, I rly hate exactly how aggressive they start out (namely, their willingness to straight-up rape Miki), which kinda sours their connection to Akira/Miki later on. it’s, uh, hard to forget something as serious as that, even when the ppl in question do seem to have changed some

as for Crybaby, I rly love how the rappers are a misfit group that makes comments abt society at large as the story progresses. + the rapping itself is p damn entertaining. I also, of course, adore Kukun’s relationship w/ Miko

it’s hard to say which I like more, but I’d def have to cut legitimate rape threats from the OG characters to truly appreciate them. as a way of merging some of their best traits, it might be interesting to see the stakes raised w/ the Crybaby rappers, and have them carry knives and make actual threats against Miki/Akira’s safety at first (again, w/o the rape threat,,), only to find out later it’s just a facade they put up for their own safety (but still won’t back down if they actually ARE up against trouble)

closing comment I guess

I think those are all the characters I feel like talking abt. I could talk abt other characters who got some significant changes (like Miki’s parents, or Akira’s parents), but I didn’t feel any particular way abt them in the OG or Crybaby, so they’re not rly worth my personal time ¯|_(ツ)_/¯

#devilman #devilman crybaby #shut up ashley

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goddessapostless · 7 years

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Flip-Flop

Fandom: Soul Eater Characters: Maka Albarn, Soul Eater Evans Summary: Maka scowls at the tag on her shirt, the one that crushes her dreams of being the greatest meister ever, the one with 'Weapon' scrawled across the top. [Reverse AU; Maka is a weapon and Soul is a meister.]

2k // AO3 // FFN

Soul could always tell when someone was near. There were few times anyone was able to actually startle him. Not even his brother, with his light steps and even lighter breathing, could sneak up on him. Soul always blamed his family. Well, not them, per se, but their occupation. His musical family gave him sensitive ears that could pick up on the slightest sounds, no matter how small. He already blamed them for his monotonous life; what was one extra strong sense compared to that?

He's practicing when it's finally brought up.

Soul had been playing his piano for so long the notes rang in his ears. Wes and his mother step into the room from the door to his back, and without turning to face them, he slides to the side so Wes can join him in a duet. When they are done, his mother dismisses Wes and takes his spot on the bench. She taps out a few loose notes before asking "How did you know we were here?"

Soul shrugs. "I guess I heard you."

Without warning, Madame Evans plays the song he was practicing before she interrupted him. She plays it just as he did, every note falling where it should, but it sounds amazing from her fingers - he sounds like a toddler compared to her. But that is not the point she's trying to make. What she wants is to show him the volume of the song. How loud it was when it was him playing it. And when she reaches the point where he let off, she winds down with a few extra notes that don't belong.

"You heard us through that?" His mother seems amused, and it annoys him. She ruffles his hair affectionately before continuing. "I don't think you're hearing us, Soul. We're not making as much noise as you think." He just gives her a blank look. Of course they were, otherwise he wouldn't know they were there. He tells her this, and she smiles and shakes her head. "You've heard stories of psychics, haven't you? ESP and the like, right?"

He scoffs. "They're bogus. Just people that are good at reading other people."

"Maybe." She chuckles. "But there are people who can do it. Are you sure you can hear us? Or is it more of a feeling that you get?"

Soul searches his memories. When he was practicing, at a recital, listening to music thundering through his headphones - all the times he knew there was someone approaching him, without eyes or ears or knowledge. It was more of a feeling than anything else, and just like that, a piece of the world clicks into something he can't quite make out yet.

He eyes his mother, who has been sitting silently while he ponders this. "How would you know anything about this?" he asks her when her smile becomes unbearable.

Her smile turns sad. "I used to do it, too, but the ability's faded from me. I suppose I traded it for my talent in music." She tries to joke, but Soul doesn't laugh, doesn't even smile. Instead, he scowls deeper. She clears her throat and starts again. "What I mean is, it runs in the family. My brother could do it, too, but he didn't let it fade. He practiced it until it became something of a weapon for him. He claims he can see into a person's very soul, now. I'm not sure if I believe it, but I think it would be better if you developed whatever this sixth sense is, don't you?"

Soul bristles. So this is it. His mother is finally giving up on him. His failure in music had reached the point that his mother felt he should give up.

Madame Evans stands behind him and wraps her arms around his neck, dissipating his doubts with her touch. "I think your music is beautiful, Soul. I want you to continue it, if that's what you want. But it's not making you happy, not like it is us. If you'd rather pursue another path, I will support you. The new school year is coming up. I can send you to the school my brother graduated from, if you want. It's something to consider." Her arms leave his shoulders and she opens the door.

Soul stops her with a question. "Where is it?"

"In the United States. Nevada, I believe."

Soul grins. "Perfect."

Maka wanted to be a great meister, like her mother. A meister. A meister, not a weapon.

It hadn't always been that way. When she was younger, she would have been fine with either. She trained for either position, strengthening both her body (in case she wielded a weapon) and her soul (in case she became one) ever since she was young. It wasn't until she was nine that she decided she wanted to be a meister only, thanks to her womanizing father.

It was his fault Mama wanted to leave, after all. His sneaking around had ignited a scornful wrath inside her mother, and though it rarely reared its head when Maka was around, she could tell from the way her mother moved, jerky and aggressive, that her father was out with another woman. Maka could see it, could almost tell when her mother would have enough and explode. In fact, she predicted the day her mother would snap.

There wasn't a big confrontation, an argument, or an explosion. There wasn't even a slammed door. There was just her mother and a suitcase and a hand smoothing Maka's hair as she was on the brink of waking. "You're so strong, Maka," a voice whispered, "you're so much stronger than me or your father." Lips met her forehead in a tender touch, and by the time she was fully awake, her mother was gone.

From that day, she despised the idea of being a weapon, of being like her father in any way whatsoever. She would become a meister, like her mother, and she would make her partner the strongest Death Scythe the world had ever known.

The irony was not lost on her when she tried to squish a bug and stabbed it instead. The damn thing had snuck up on her, crawled across her leg before jumping to the coffee table she was resting her feet on. She yelped, jumped, and started slamming her hand down on it. The realization that she was bare-handed only occurred to her after her hand smacked the table and there were spider guts all over her palm. Except...

It wasn't her hand that was on the table. Instead there was a blade that skewered the bug through its abdomen - a blade as dark as night, extending from the table to her elbow.

Needless to say, Maka was furious. She spent the rest of that week cursing her father for his strong genes. It was only a month before school started, after all, and her plans were just crushed by him.

So now she stands at the entrance of the DWMA, a week before classes start, and she's wearing that stupid name tag with that stupid 'Weapon' scrawled across the top. Lord Death stands just inside the door, greeting the newcomers as they enter and giving them the gist of the rules for the next seven days - it almost sounds like he wants them to participate in trust falls and speed-dating to "find the perfect match for your Weapon and/or Meister partner!" Maka scowls at the other weapons around her and stares longingly at all the 'Meister' tags she can see. If she's being honest, she'd like to try being her own meister, if that makes sense. She'd only need to change her arm into a scythe and surely she could learn to fight like that, but her mother insisted (through her letters, of course) that she at least try to find a partner.

Lord Death greets her with nothing more than a salute, and she's thankful that's all he does. She just wants to get this over with and knows how he loves to talk - she's known him all her life, after all. She's run through the halls of the school and she's watched the first week of each new year for as long as she can remember. She doesn't need anyone pointing out that her previous dream of being the greatest meister ever was now shattered by the label on her shirt. Of course her father is too over-the-moon to care.

He waves to her from across the room, his eyes shiny and brimming with tears as he spots her. He starts toward her, shouting for her to stay put, he needs a picture, he wants to talk about how to shift, blah blah blah. She shoots him a glare and stomps towards the hall. It's supposed to be off-limits for now, since the school is big and confusing and no one wants to go hunting for any new students that got lost in its labyrinthine corridors. But Maka knows where she's going, and she knows where to hide to escape her father's relentless pursuit.

She slips into a thin hall that's half hidden behind a message board and runs up a flight of stairs to the second floor main hallway. She slows down, sure she's lost him, when she hears the faint trickle of a piano drifting through the air. Curious, she follows it, trying to pick out the direction it's coming from. She knows it's not Black Star or any of her other childhood friends - they don't know how to play any instruments. That means this person is probably new, and probably lost, and most importantly, some stranger to hang out with until this hellish day was over with and then never see again except in passing.

She may still be bitter about being a weapon, and she may go without a meister despite her mother's advice, and she may be feeling somewhat antisocial now because of that.

But the music intrigues her. As she gets closer, she can decipher a melody - a rough, jagged, broken one that rises and falls in time to her breathing. She can hear a quieter melody beneath, just as broken as the louder one, and it taps along with her footsteps. Listening to them at the same time is an experience, and it seems intimate. The two melodies interlock in intricate waves - where one is weak, the other is strong; where one is soft, the other loud. It is an utterly jarring thing, the way the notes seem to float carelessly and then sting without warning.

Maka listens closely, her heart beating in time to it, and she's not sure why she hesitates outside the closed door of the music room.

Her hand is on the door, ready to push, but she doesn't. She doesn't want to disturb whoever is in there, she's not sure she wants to know. She doesn't understand music anyway, and she doesn't want to bother the person behind the door with her questions. It's as her hand falls that the song fades and a voice calls to her.

"Come on in," the person says, his cool voice in stark contrast to his music. Maka opens the door and peeks in before she enters, her hands behind her back.

"That was really..." She struggles for a word, trying to think back to her elementary music lessons. "Cool." Cool is the best she can come up with? Really? Way to go, Maka!

The boy at the piano shrugs. "I guess." He's silent for a moment before asking, "What are you doing up here? I thought this floor was closed so us newbies don't get lost."

Maka shrugs. "Running away from my dad." The boy quirks an eyebrow at that, but she continues before he can ask. "And I grew up here. I know this place inside and out."

"This is a pretty big place to have memorized."

"Yep." Maka's smile widens. "But it's helped me keep my title of Hide-and-Seek champion since I was six."

The boy laughs and holds out his hand. "I'm Soul," he says, his eyes crinkling as he smirks.

"Maka." She shakes his hand, and they share a mischievous look. His gaze flickers to her chest, to her 'Weapon' tag, and she peels the offending sticker off her shirt before crumpling it and throwing it in the garbage can at the front of the room. Soul holds up his own marker, flashing the word 'Meister' before it disappears into his fist and joins hers in the wastebasket.

#soul eater #soul eater fanfic #soul evans #maka albarn #reverse au #cj writes #charm.fanfic #charm.soul eater

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weekendwarriorblog · 6 years

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WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND October 5, 2018 - Venom, The Star Is Born, The Hate U Give

Going to change things up again this week as we get into October, because I want to give special attention to a film called THE HATE U GIVE (20thCentury Fox), which is opening in select cities this weekend but will expand nationwide on October 19.

In this adaptation of Angie Thomas’ book (which I haven’t read), Amandla Stenberg plays Starr Carter, a teen girl living a dual life with her family in the primarily black Garden Heights community and when hanging out with her bratty white high school friends who are always trying to act “ghetto” around her. At home, Starr has loving parents, Maverick and Lisa (Russell Hornsby, Regina Hall), a younger brother Sekani and half-brother Seven. When Starr sees her childhood friend Khalil (Algee Smith) shot by a white police officer, she’s unsure whether she should come forward and testify. Her police officer uncle Carlos (Common) doesn’t think so, especially since Khalil might have involved with Maverick’s old crime-boss King (Anthony Mackie), who wouldn’t want his business known to the police.

It seems like a fairly simple plot derived from the #BlackLivesMatter movement, but there’s so much more to the movie than the ongoing battle between the police and the poorer communities they patrol. In many ways, Starr is dealing with an identity crisis that I imagine many African-Americans must face, having to be one way around white friends and co-workers and another way at home or with their family.

Besides the fact that this is Stenberg’s third movie this year where she had a hunky white boyfriend, she is so much better in this than her other films because she brings a playful energy to Starr that makes you want to follow her story.

Audrey Wells adapted Thomas’ book into a fantastic screenplay and director George Tillman Jr., whose filmography includes oddities like the biopic Notorious and Dwayne Johnson’s Faster, really directs the hell out of this movie

There are so many great scenes including one between Stenberg and Common where they have an honest talk about the different sides of what might seem like a cut-and-dry case of police racism.

The Hate U Give (which is derived from Tupac’s “T.H.U.G. L.I.F.E” motto that “the hate u give little infants effs everyone) is a movie that shares an important message without hitting you over the head with it ala Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman or some of the other films in the oeuvre release this year.

I guess my only misgiving about the film is that it goes on a little long, offering a few satisfying scenes that could have easily ended things there, but then continuing with a full-scale riot when tempers explode after the trial of Khalil’s murderer.

In my opinion, this is up there with some of the best movies I’ve seen this year, and only slightly behind A Star Is Born (review below) this week. While on the surface, it might not seem like a movie that would appeal to everyone, it works on so many levels, including as a straight-up coming-of-age film (and by now, you all should know how much I love those).

Rating: 8.5/10

The Hate U Give is kind of the Hollywood version of the #BlackLivesMatter story, but if you’re looking for something a little more grounded in reality, you should check out Reinaldo Marcus Green’s Monsters and Men (Neon), which is now playing in select cities. I got a chance to rewatch it this past week, and I was just as impressed as when I saw it at Sundance. BlacKkKlansman star John David Washington is particularly impressive, again playing a police officer.

We now return you to the regularly-scheduled movie preview column after the jump…

This might surprise some but not others that this coming October is offering some of what might be the best films of the year, between this week’sA Star Is Born and The Hate U Give to next week’s First Man and Bad Times at the El Royale. We’re living in exciting times!

VENOM (Sony)

In what looks to be the second to last “superhero” movie of the year, Sony is finally making a movie dedicated to Spider-Man’s arch-nemesis who later became a hero, hoping the fans will forget all about the awful version of Venom from Spider-Man 3. A big selling point for the movie is that it returns Tom Hardy to the comic book world after playing Bane in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises, and he better hope fans like his Eddie Brock/Venom more than they did his strange-sounding villain.

Hardy has been laying low recently, his last film being Nolan’s Dunkirklast year in which the actor was barely recognizable as a WWII jet pilot. It was two years before that when he appeared in Inarritu’s Oscar-winning The Revenant, the crime-drama Legendand George Miller’s long-awaited (and also multiple Oscar nominee) Mad Max: Fury Road. In the years following The Dark Knight Rises, Hardy has also starred in a number of smaller films that haven’t gotten much traction, so it’s odd to see him returning to superheroes only six years after playing Bane.

Venomalso brings director Ruben Fleischer back into the Sony fold after directing the horror-comedy hit Zombieland and the comedy 30 Minutes or Less, although Fleischer has been focusing on television in the last five years since the Ryan Gosling crime-drama Gangster Squad. Neither of the latter two movies did as well as Zombieland, and it definitely feels like he has something to prove with Venom.

Unfortunately, people have already been vocally pessimistic about the movie ever since the first trailer didn’t bother to actually show Venom, and things got even more questionable after seeing Venom in a rather awkward longer trailer. Much of the movie’s success is going to depend on whether reviews totally trash the movie or whether some critics actually like what Fleischer and Hardy are doing. So far, the RottenTomatoes reviews are at 28% Fresh, pointing more to the former, but one wonders if curious fans will still give the movie a chance.

Some have suggested Venom could open with over $60 million but I’m going a bit lower with around $55 to 57 million and $130 million or so total domestic. What’s interesting is that the opening range for the movie puts Venom into consideration to become the top October opening over Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity, which opened with $55 million a few years ago. Regardless of whether it sets a new October opening record or not, I expect a fairly large drop after its opening weekend just because the fans will rush out to see it and then move onto other things. Expect this to end up around $125 million domestic, which is not great, probably not enough for a sequel unless the movie surprises internationally.

Mini-Review: I’ve never been a huge fan of Venom as a comic book character. He always seemed a little one-dimensional to me, even as other writers/artists tried to flesh him and his host Eddie Brock out. (So far, Donny Cates’ take on Venom is well worth reading.)

I’m going to assume you know something about the character, his history as a Spider-Man costume-turned-villain and then how he became a hero. It’s obvious Tom Hardy and director Reuben Fleischer were making a movie for fans of the character who were disappointed with his handling by Sam Raimi in Spider-Man 3, and for the most part, it’s fairly faithful other than any references to Spider-Man. In fact, the whole story has been moved to San Francisco, as to avoid any other Spider-Man comparisons.

In this case, the symbiote comes down to earth in a space shuttle made by the Life Corporation run by an Elon Musk-type CEO named Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed), and Drake does experiments on the homeless to try to make them hosts for the alien creatures. Tom Hardy plays investigative reporter Eddie Brock, a big-time loser who loses his lawyer girlfriend (Michelle Williams) when he snoops into a case against Drake. While investigating at the Life Corporation, one of the symbiotes takes to Brock, and you can probably guess what happens.

Although this is a straight-up origin story in the simplest terms, some things just don’t work and there are definitely issues, the first being the often silly screenplay that is constantly on the border of veering into campy Nicolas Cage territory. Much of that is due to Hardy, who plays off the silliness of the schizophrenic nature of the character,

On paper, Venom could have easily been a terrifying R-rated horror film with lots of gore, but trying to keep it at PG-13 means that Fleischer makes it more of an action-comedy, and there is enough decent action scenes and quirky humor to keep things entertaining.

Probably one of the things that makes or breaks any comic book movie is the CG visual FX and Fleischer’s hefty team of animators does a decent job making Venom watchable with long black tendrils that reminded me of the video game Prototype (one of my first Xbox games). Things do get a little messy when a counter-symbiote is introduced named “Riot” is introduce and the end battle has some of the same problems as the Ed Norton The Incredible Hulk in that it just doesn’t deliver.

Even so, if you ARE a fan of the comic character, you should be pleased with this incarnation just as those unfamiliar with the character from the comics will probably find the movie and Hardy’s performance to be off-putting. The film never deteriorates to the point of being a Catwoman or Fantastic Fourlevel trash fire, though. Despite some tonal issues, it’s often fun and entertaining, especially the action scenes, and if nothing else, there’s an end credits scene that will make people (esp. Venom fans) hope this movie does well enough to warrant a sequel. Rating: 6.5/10

Venom is going to have a lot of strong competition for older moviegoers and women of all ages with...

A STAR IS BORN (Warner Bros.)

This wasn’t even remotely one of my more anticipated movies of the year until it started getting rave reviews out of the early September festivals, but I’m sure it would have gotten a lot of attention for being Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut, even if it seems like a shoe-in to win lots of awards over the next few months.

Obviously, this is a remake of a movie that dates back to the 1937 movie starring Fredric March and Janet Gaynor, which was nominated for 8 Oscars, winning for its story (as opposed to its screenplay). It was remade in 1954 with Judy Garland, and that was nominated for six Oscars and then again in 1974 with Barbra Streisand and Kris Krisstoferson, and that also only won one Oscar out of four nominations. Can Bradley Cooper’s version possibly break the “jinx” and make a movie that wins more than one Oscar? I think so.

Cooper has mostly been taking time off of acting to direct A Star Is Born, merely providing the voice of Rocket in last year’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and this year’s Avengers: Infinity War. He kind of hit a bit of a downturn in the years following his enormous hit American Sniper for Clint Eastwood, which grossed $350 million and got Cooper his third and fourth Oscar nominations. (Cooper has already been earmarked for a number of Oscar nominations for A Star is Born, for acting, directing and possibly even for writing some of the film’s songs.) Neither of Cooper’s 2015 movies with Jennifer Lawrence (Serena and Joy) did as well as their first two movies together with David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle. Cooper’s movies with Cameron Crowe (Aloha) and his cooking movie Burnt also didn’t do very well. Even so, Cooper had already been elevated to the A-list as an actor

The real ringer for Cooper’s debut is casting Lady Gaga in the role of Ally, the lounge singer who Cooper’s Jackson Maine discovers and falls for, because Lady Gaga has such an enormous diehard fanbase that even the younger girls might not be discouraged by the film’s soft-R rating. (Honestly, I still have to question the MPAA who gives this an R and Venom a PG-13 when there was WAY more swearing in that one.) Anyway, Lady Gaga is pegged to be nominated for an Oscar for her performance and probably one of her songs, too,

Another one of the films ringers is comedian Dave Chapelle, who basically just appears in one section of the movie but Warner Bros. wisely has cut a second trailer featuring him to play in movies like Night School in hopes of appealing to some of the African-American audiences that will see this movie as very white bread. More importantly, it stars Sam Elliot as Jackson’s older brother who has many great scenes with Cooper and is likely to be nominated for his first Oscar for it. (He should have been nominated for last year’s The Hero if you ask me.)

There are many easy comparisons for A Star is Born from Eminem’s 8 Mile ($51.2 million opening, $116m total) and the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line ($22.3m opening, $119m total). There’s certainly the hype that came with 8 Mile going into opening weekend and Cooper certainly has enough box office pull, but the fact that this is a remake might already make some older audiences wary. At the same time, Gaga and Cooper’s modern take on the age-old story is likely to appeal to younger audiences, as will the music that runs a wide gamut of country rockers and ballads, including a couple that will likely be nominated for Oscars.

The good news is that the movie has been receiving rave reviews since it premiered at Venice and then played Toronto shortly afterwards.

This is the thing. I think A Star Is Born is going to do very well this weekend, probably more than $40 million, but I think it’s really going to kill in the weeks to come as word-of-mouth and repeat viewings pushes the movie up over the $150 million mark. If the movie plays as well as I think it does, I wouldn’t even be surprised to see it approaching $200 million once it re-expands to take advantage of inevitable awards.

Mini-Review: It’s been more than a minute since I saw the Barbra Streisand/Kris Kristofferson A Star Is Born, so I’m not too adverse to a fourth remake, as much as I was concerned about a movie featuring an actor I’m so-so on and a pop singer whose work I never really cared for. Imagine my surprise when I found myself enjoying the film almost immediately as we see Bradley Cooper’s Jackson Maine performing on stage with the very loud live music coming from the Dolby sound system where I saw the movie.

Maine is an alcoholic so after the show he goes looking for a bar, winding up at a drag night of one local watering hole where it just so happens that Lady Gaga’s Ally is performing “La Vie en Rose” (maybe a nod to another Oscar-winning actress?). He’s immediately enthralled and goes backstage to meet her, and the two immediately hit it off, hanging out and learning more about each other. Ally immediately starts enjoying the perks of Jackson’s fame as he flies her to one of his concerts and pulls her up on stage to perform the song “Shallow.”

Things progress from there as Ally becomes famous from a video of her performance with Jackson. After one show, Ally is approached by a manager-type who wants to make her an even bigger star, and he proceeds to do what happens too many times in the music industry where he tries to transform her into some pop diva that’s

I really enjoyed seeing the romance and relationship between the two leads evolve, because Cooper’s Jackson Maine is quite a smooth-talker, even if he’s slurring most of his words. Gaga is also impressive, likely bringing some of her own struggles in the music business to the role. On top of that, the supporting cast, including Sam Elliot as Jack’s older brother and Andrew Dice Clay as Ally’s Dad brought a lot to the mix as Cooper ably balances the film’s tonal shifts from heavy drama to lighter moments.

Things do get a little bit predictable during the second act as Ally’s star begins to rise while Jackson’s starts to crash and burn, and he’s unable to accept how she’s becoming more successful than him, as his career begins to stagnate. He stops drinking, then starts drinking again and things just get worse and worse, as he seems to be hindering her career. The film’s last act is a stunner as Jack tries to get his alcoholism in check and Ally’s star continues to rise, making it obvious something’s eventually going to give.

A Star Is Born is an impressive debut from Cooper, not only for his direction but also how he elevates himself as an actor to keep up with his perfectly cast co-star. That’s not even considering that he co-wrote many of the film’s gorgeous songs. I enjoyed this film far more than I thought I would, and I know that I won’t be the only person seeing it multiple times.

Rating: 9/10

Venom shouldn’t have a problem taking the top spot although we’ll have to see whether negative reviews manage to keep the fans away. Either way, it will beat A Star is Born on Thursday/Friday but then the latter will pick up steam, bearing in mind that Monday is Columbus Day so there’s no school and government offices are closed, which could help some of the returning movies, as well.

This week’s Top 10 should look something like this…

1. Venom (Sony) - $55.6 million N/A 2. A Star is Born (Warner Bros.) - $42.5 million N/A 3. Night School (Universal) - $15 million -46% 4.Smallfoot (Warner Bros.) - $14.5 million -37% 5. The House with a Clock in its Walls (Universal) - $7.3 million -40% 6. A Simple Favor (Lionsgate) – $4 million -38% 7. The Nun (New Line) - $3 million -54% 8. Crazy Rich Asians (New Line) - $2.7 million -35% 9. Hell Fest (CBS Films/Lionsgate) - $2.2 million -57% 10. The Predator (Fox) – $1.7 million -57%

LIMITED RELEASES

Other than The Hate U Give, this weekend is kind of a mixed bag for limited releases, since I haven’t watched as many of these as I probably should.

Almost a year after it premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, Fernando Leon de Aranoa’s LOVING PABLO (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment) starring Javier Bardem as the Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar as it follows his rise to power while in a love affair with Colombian journalist Virgina Vallejo, played by Penelope Cruz. The film is based on Vallejo’s book, and it’s opening at around 15 theaters across the country.

Filmmaker Peter Bogdonavich pays tribute to the great silent film Buster Keaton with Buster Restored (Cohen Media Group), which combines footage from Keaton’s silent comedies with interviews by those he’s inspired including Mel Brooks, Quentin Tarantino and Johnny Knoxville. It opens at the Quad Cinemaon Friday along with a small Buster Keaton retrospective and then opens at the Landmark Nuarton Oct. 19

Matt Tyrnauer follows his recent doc Scotty and the Secret of Hollywood with Studio 54, opening at the IFC Center Friday. It looks at the New York nightclub that was the place to be seen between 1977 and 1980 but was exceedingly hard to get into as its popularity and notoriety rose. Tyrnauer was given incredible access to the man-behind-the-club Ian Schrager, who tells the story of Studio 54 for the first time. After a number of showings at IFC Center with Tyrnauer in attendance, Studio 54 will then open at the Landmark Nuart in L.A. on Oct. 12.

Opening at the Film Forum in New York is Joseph Dorman and Toby Perl Freilich’s Moynihan (First Run Features), a portrait of former New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan who tried to contend with poverty and racism in the greatest city in the world. (The latter bit is my own personal opinion. I haven’t seen the movie.)

Not to overshadowed by Bradley Cooper, Cuba Gooding Jr. stars and makes his directorial debut in Bayou Caviar (Gravitas Ventures), which stars Richard Dreyfuss as a Russian gangster who hires Gooding’s former boxer to take down an associate’s son-in-law with a scandalous tape. It also stars Famke Janssen, Katherine McPhee, Ken Lerner and Lia Marie Johnson.

Bella Thorne and Jessie Usher star in Jeremy Ungar’s Ride (RLJE Films) with the latter playing James, a struggling actor who drives people around L.A. for a ride-sharing service. The job gets slightly better when he hits it off with the beautiful Jessica, but the two of them are then taken on a crazy joy ride by another fare.

Following its run on DirecTV, Trevor White’s A Crooked Somebody (Vertical/DirecTV) stars Rich Sommer as a medium who goes against the advice of his minister father (Ed Harris) trying to call forth the dead, only to be idnapped by someone who desperately wants to make contact with the dead.

Terence Stamp and Ann Demetriou stars in David LG Hughes’ Viking Destiny (Saban Films/Lionsgate), the latter playing a Viking princess who is forced to flee her kingdom after her king father (presumably Stamp) is murdered, so she travels the world building an army to get revenge. In case you’re wondering what Game of Thrones has inspired…. wonder no more!

Michael Ironside stars in Michael Peterson’s horror film Knuckleball (Freestyle Digital Media) about a 12-year-old who finds himself alone on an isolated farm after his grandfather dies. (I assume Ironside plays the latter.)

I also don’t know a ton about Eugene Kotlyarenko’s Wobble Place (Breaking Glass Pictures), which has an exclusive run at Metrograph starting Friday with the filmmaker in attendance for a few screenings. Best I can do to describe this is to share the odd trailer…

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This week’s Yash Raj Films offering is Abhiraj K. Minawala’s Loveyatri, a love story set during the 9-day festival of Navrati, starring Aayush Sharma and Warina Hussain, a romance which almost comes to an end as she travels back to the UK leaving him in India.

Filmmakers Jukka Vidgren & Juuso Laatio’s Scandinavian cult-comedy Heavy Trip (Doppelgänger Releasing/Bloody Disgusting) will open in select theaters Friday before going to VOD on Oct. 12. It stars Johannes Holopainen as a guy stuck in a small Finnish village who is also the lead singer of metal band Impaled Rektum, a band who hasn’t played a single gig in 12 years until they’re booked to play a Norwegian festival.

And speaking of which, Bloody Disgusting’s Retro Nightmares continues with a double feature of Amityville: The Evil Escapes & Amityville: It’s About Time on Thursday Oct. 4 in select cities.

Lastly, Anthony Nardolillo’s Shine (Forgiven Films/GVN Releasing), which won the Best Feature award at the 2017 Urbanworld Film Festival, comes out Friday, starring salsa dancersJorge Burgos and Gilbert Saldivar as two brothers who find themselves on opposite sides of the gentrification hitting East Harlem.

STREAMING

The only major new film streaming on Netflix is Tamara Jenkins’ new film PRIVATE LIFE, which premiered at Sundance and just played the New York Film Festival. It stars Kathryn Hahn and Paul Giamatti as a married couple who have been trying to have a baby and start looking at alternative methods after fertility treatments aren’t working. Jenkins is the Oscar-nominated screenwriter of 2007’s The Savages, starring Laura Linney and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. (The movie also opens at the IFC Center in New York and at a theater in L.A.)

REPERTORY

METROGRAPH (NYC):

I’m pretty excited about my local theater’s latest series, an Albert Brooks retrospective that runs between Friday and Tuesday and including some of his classics like Modern Romance, Lost in America, Mother, Defending Your Life,Real Life and a program of SNL shorts.

FILM FORUM (NYC):

Alain Resnais’ 1974 film Stavisky, featuring music by Stephen Sondheim, gets a restoration, which opens here on Wednesday.

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

Beyond Fest 2018 continues with a double feature of Flash Gordon and the West Coast premiere of the doc Life After Flash. Thursday sees a double feature of The Monster Squad and the new documentary about the movie called Wolfman’s Got Nards. Beyond Fest will then wrap on Saturday with a TRIPLE feature of Black Christmas and Halloween from 1978, as well as the brand-new Halloween weeks before its nationwide release.

AERO (LA):

American Cinemateque’s other L.A. theater continues its own Beyond Fest Tribute to Cronenberg with a double feature of the director’s Crash and Spider on Thursday night. It also begins the series The Life of Reilly, as in John C. Reilly, with a double feature of Chicago and Step Brothers on Friday, and then a free screening of Reilly’s new film The Sisters Brothers on Saturday. Saturday also sees a screening of PT Anderson’s Magnolia with Reilly in person and a screening of A Grin Without a Hat (1977) to celebrate Icarus Films’ 40th anniversary.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC):

To help celebrate last week’s retrospective recipient Peter Bogdonavich’s new doc The Great Buster: A Celebration (see above), the West Village theater will also show a trio of Buster Keaton shorts, The General and other Keaton classics.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART (LA):

Along with a program of Jean Vigo shorts, the Hollywood theater will show the new 4k restoration of the director’s L’Atalante that screened at Film Forum last week.

MOMA (NYC):

The Unknown Jerry: Home Movies and More from the Jerry Lewis Collection at the Library of Congresscontinues with Come Back Little Shiksa (1962) and The Re-Inforcer (1951) on Friday, Fairfax Avenue (1951), and a couple features on Gar-Ron Productions on Saturday and The Bellboy (1960) on Sunday, as it continues into next week. The month-long Modern Matinees: Vincent Price will show Edward Scissorhands on Friday afternoon.

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