#its not the cartoon- its moreso the fact it amazes me that a cartoon can mean so much to someone actively living thru trauma....

[oscill4t3]

☆★ Comfort char these past 2 years ★☆

- Minty

[maneaterwithtail]

Fangbone PageとScreen

Yep, another at long last, I have a terminal some free time, and some actual encouragement.

Sorry but as these screenshots from me from a hastily web-based editor ... but well I just gotta continue

Shout outs to @badkunrules @brusk-ghost @nubeth @cricketgreens @its-yasleepygal @ghostofawolf300 @vaultpanda101 @rosy319 @cartoonfan7 @tortugadechocolate

And not forgotten the aid of

 @book-series-fandom and @cordset

And any other Suburban Barbarians I missed and I hope you keep with the encouragement or make or share love of your own of the series

Again this is as amateur as gets but hope to have some insights and sometimes, with a web project, its about just keeping it going.  And thanks for the encouragement to do thatl

I updated the last installment for a *brief* look on how the toe ended up in Bill’s backpack and Fangbone ends up meeting him compared to the graphic novel

This is, now that I think about it, really and VERY strongly where the two stories and depictions diverge.  GN Fangbone is sly, wily, and cunning. But with our increased kinetic action.... well

Fangbone accuses Bill, ignorant of everything of theft but the Krakken catches up snatches him yanks him about, to comedic affect and then...throws him

With REMARKABLE Hangtime,

Moreso factoring in the scene where Bill is in his PJs, presumably after dinner being tucked in by his mother, notices glow and effluvium from it leading to the toes discovering presumbling parallel to the above.

Likely screaming and flying some hours in the air 

He does need a nap.

Needless to say this if VERY different from his ‘infiltration’ into class 3-G of the same day

TBF the Forging of Friendship is combination of the Summit of Swords plot, where the Shadowsteppers and Mighty Lizard Clan meet to negotiate their feud to non-mutual extinction levels, AND the flashback to the cartoon’s version of their first adventure.

The change up in pacing as well as circumstances lead for a more dramatic arc and number of action scenes as to the immediate friendship that forms then grows stronger as the stakes get more severeof the GN.  And also illustrate the difference between GN and CN Fangbone and Bill.

Like so,

 as on the next day, and start of the next Flashback framed as Bill reasoning with Axebear on a trampoline and Fangbone with One-Eyed the Slippery at Weinerdogs, Bill is admiring the toe when fangbone attacks

. . .Or tries too

Despite this amazing lack of tactical comprehension and proof of his safety Bill panics and RUNS OUTSIDE where

He is snatched up by a prepared trap, which does show while more obviously buffoonish this Fangbone DOES have his own means and cunning.  In fact this slightly turns around the near constant humiliation and embarrassment that’s been befalling our favorite 3rd grade barbarian.

While STILL insisting Bill is a thief this is where, unable to show you proper with just pictures (please don’t get struck down) 

We finally get their first proper meeting and for all that its got Fangbone raging and being stubborn its actually a nice bit of characterization for both individually and set up for how we can see these two getting along.

Taylor and Colin really deserve a thumbs up for the rapidfire overlap filled with characterization.  As Bill seems more intrigued and gleeful and Fangbone is fronting.  To a degree, he HAS to know this is *his* screw up and he’s projecting some and puffing himself up to assert himself over his plain as day weakness and poor performance and confusion.

Bill does prove not *quite* as foolish as thought, between jumping out of the door it seems he hid the toe in a gambit.

This is sort of the closest analogue in the GN

Eventually Bill is cut down 

questions fangbone and then reveals where hid toe, his locker, 

But then finds it *wiggling* and that means

Heh, the CN REALLY emphasizes action in these encounters as the characterization, buildup, and worldbuilding is in the framing device... and also past episodes. 

 Fangbone is eager to stand his ground and “dance the dance of death”  But Bill, as can imagine, RUNS

This leads to Fangbone being distracted at the fleeing toe and gaining concussion number six or so (this episode) running after pursued by krakken.

As can see we really don’t emphasize the bond with the class this episode or encounter them as the GN was building things up with Fangbone and establishing a more...well I’m not sure mature but as least not the same overaggressive character.  Plus setting, and general sense of boys adventure written and pictured story.

I mean GN Fangbone knows to ask to be excused to “make droppings” During which we get the stranger in a strangeland cliches people can note like this

Also meet Duncan,  he didn’t make the adaptation.  At all.  Not even a hint.

PRAISE BE TO STONEBACK (and his prophets Simon Racioppa and Richard Elliott)  But seriously ANOTHER character difference

Like night and day.  Part of it is the style choices in the artforms.  Fangbone even when gesticulating never seems that out of it.  And he handles this challenge smoothly and like he knows what he’s doing.  whereas, admittedly because unlike this one which hasn’t have a different battle (aside from a rusted scrapheap) we haven’t seen him fail or tricked yet.  In fact he’s, more out of luck but still, being the clever one.

This is even more of a divergence.  See In the GN Fangbone is very focused on mission and life.  While it is here at long last we see monsters, though some were in a narrated flashback to the class, attack Fangbone and see the writhing of the foul footfinger macguffin of Morg

And the attack of the first of three monsters

the Dirt devil trio

Admittedly not the most clever or involved of fights but they indicate Bill’s quick wit and how this will contribute to Fangbone and Bill’s friendship and battles.  At first Bill thinks Fangbone is cool and has obvious vulnerabilities. They talk and interact.  Bill sees fangbone triumph over things big to him that are as nothing to Fangbone.

And Fangbone sees the immediate benefit to Battle in bill’s awareness, dovetailing with his ambitions to build an army, making him remarkably more controlled and yet less obedient or drone like? Less a model barbarian?  Its just something that stands out.

Also this leads to a feature of both series, what every adventurous duo needs hideouty/digs

Cavebania is found and was introduced to Fangbone by Bill.  This is a touch that’s put aside in the Forging of Friendship but a similar scene could be 

afterwards with Bill freaking out at home somehow ditching Kraken and Fangbone by bus, hoping he doesn’t know what one is and then.  okay damn

Again after the near humilation conga of incompentence Fangbone is proving himself more than the buffoon he’s played as the closer his and Bill’s worlds meet.

What happens is the series taking advantage of motion and set up action scenes happening so fast aren’t robbed of threat or excitement.. even if the direct confrontation is ended 

Because fangbone impaled his sword at a door and Bill pulled out a cheap plastic light up toy that scares him.

But then bill *gets it* Fangbone “isn’t from around here” and this is the scene it feels they genuinely calm down and commiserate.  Fangbone finally being allowed to chill Bill returns the toe .. then it writhes

Fangbone actually suggests luring it to Bill’s room as believes it will trap and confuse and scare it like it has him.  But instead...

Another opening image shout out

As they pedal away to better ground as Fangbone awkwardly rides in back swording off arms in desperate attempt to avoid attack.

Really the differences is this is more near the end of the series and giving us a lot of charming firsts, made all the moreso with the framing device, how we see Fangbone can be loudspoken and childish but plenty focused and consider even wise, to a degree, as to overly severe and fruitless.  Bill is more childish but more...socially aware and intrigued.  And that exchanging of names works to get them on the same page and already cooperating and appreciating each other more.

The GN is building the concept and characters from ground up  Taking its time.  It also gives us more sense of two pals growing closer as to a whirlwind happenstance slamming them together.

But the snappy action and turn and reversals in such short time is efficient in the television series, while the more casual development of a regular day of a refugee also trying to see to his objectives is also nice in the graphic novel.

And the Graphic novel has even more encounters, including the more... involved bit about Fangbone and Bill’s developing friendship along with Fangbone’s with 3-G.

[beyondthetemples-ooc]

1 3 and 10 c:

Ahh, thank you for the ask! c:

1. What is your favorite DC movie and why? And least favorite?

Justice League vs. Teen Titans! Because I’m simply biased as hell.

To ALL of its elements! Azarath! In a MOVIE! Arella’s story got RECOGNIZEd– even ANIMATED! It gave Raven’s gem a BACKSTORY! It’s everything I’ve ever wanted out of a Teen Titans animation.

(Azarath being animated in a movie fulfilled my SOUL, you have NO fucking idea. It was AMAZING. And so well animated too? So pretty? So peaceful? So nice to look at? Holy god, I want ten thousand hours of documentaries on that place??? legitimate tears in my eyes when we saw it. honestly, it was just… it was so good.)

Not to mention, while the production value was Kinda Eh, the writing was really clever and the Moments (silly, fun, heartfelt, freaky, dramatic) were all really well done. It captured the “Heart” of those feelings, emotive and raw and honest. I actually enjoyed the fun moments. Myself. And wasn’t just “distantly admiring people being happy”. Do you know how much of an ACCOMPLISHMENT that is?

The music was really cool. Not to reveal my Immortal Inner Emo Kid. But “Down to Nothing�� is a really good song. (One of my only problems with this movie is that it was shoddily edited in the scene, and it’s a shame, because it really is a good song… {lD it was kinda my anthem for a long, long time after this movie. “Help me: believe in something, cuz I am: broken, I’m down to nothing. And it’s just so hard to be this way, but it’s just as hard to change. So: help me, believe in sooomethiiing….”)

(Because it’s in this movie, I grin a bit whenever Ciaran randomly shuffles it up. But also because I just really like the song itself.)

Also really cool: Trigon was an abusive asshole. Ultra mega props for that element; not just making him a Bad Guy because he’s Powerful and Wants to Rule the World, but legitimately showing that he was a BAD “GUY” *and* a Bad Parent.

Also nice, Damian felt less shoehorned in than Certain Other Really Recent Robins were in the comics…. (The reason for that may have been glossed over and a touch cliche, but it worked for the movie. It did what it needed to, nothing more and nothing less.)

Good thing too, because Damian being A Kid was really nice to see. (Raven too, let’s be real. Those kids need more “fun” in their lives.) Bond the children! BOND THEM, GODDAMN IT. That’s what any good Teen Titans story really needs; friends who are a FAMILY. They love each other, even if it’s hard-earned and hard-kept.

Focused on the PEOPLE, and their WELL-BEING, just as much as (if not MORESO!) than “ohshit, Big Bad Guy to deal with here”.

(the rest is under a cut, because godDAMN. I got rambly once I started talking about Raven.)

And perhaps most important of all to me: Raven’s characterization was amazing. Truly a masterpiece. Any time you’ve got a comic character with 7 different tones and 3-4 Literal Deaths and like 28 different writers having handled her: It takes a LOT of work to pick and choose what you want to do with them. It takes a lot of WISDOM and even prowess to triangulate your Own Characterization between such dramatic differences. Raven has been cold and distant; warm and soft; sharp and bitter; lost and clueless; wise and knowledgeable; she’s a very LAYERED and COMPLEX character even in each individual VERSION.

And the movie portrayed so many of her key characteristics so wonderfully. It’s a very “complete” picture of my absolutely Iconic Favorite Character, it encompasses so much of my Favorite Parts of her throughout her entire history, and it was just such a delight to experience. I, in my unpopular opinion (at least among my contemporary Cartoon-First Generation of Teen Titans Fans), actually really liked her voice actress, too? So subtle. So snarky. So soft, even with its edge of attitude. It was such a good fit for such a good incarnation!

And then there’s the fact that they included Jaime (who does well on his own, but honestly always seemed like a natural fit to the team), Kori (a Key Titan, let’s be honest), and even Gar (because his playfulness is a key part of Whole-Team Characterization too honestly; it wouldn’t be the same without him). It was a good setup, even with the comics this continuity’s based on being totally cracked.

And Cyborg showed up. Despite working “in the big Leagues” now. Thanks for throwing us that bone, at least. lD

And Damian? They did a great job of giving him character developement. Much needed. Good shit. If he can’t be with Dick!Bats in this verse (and I deeply prefer Dick as Nightwing anyways), that’s a really good fit for him. Learning to be human. Getting comfortable with Some Normalcy. Good and relateable.

That movie was just. Ahhh. SO Good. X3 As a Teen Titans fan especially, but also just as a person who likes a good Team Becoming Family story.

I love it. It has its caveats, but none of them dampen my obnoxiously heartfelt love for this thing.

*

(…yikes .after THAT essay, the rest of my answers are going to feel so shallow.)

All that bias aside though, my other favorite DC movie is definitely Wonder Woman. Hands down. Undoubtedly, no contest, no holds bar. It was a phenomenally well-told story with a lot of wit and compelling characters that used absolutely MASTERFUL rising action, and felt GENUINE. It was told from the heart as well as the camera, and it was told beautifully. Smoothly. It felt godly and human all at once. I can’t explain it very well, but it was genuinely one of the best movies I have ever seen.

I never got very into Wonder Woman, but from what I know of the 80’s and the Really Recent comics: It also captured her backstory, her personality, and her Style of Heroism really well. But even without being very familiar with her as a character? It’s a gorgeously well-done movie.

( Note: I still haven’t seen Justice League yet, but from what I’ve heard, I’ll probably end up liking that one too.)

*

Least favorite? I don’t know, honestly.

(My least favorite superhero movie is that one Marvel one with Vision, because I literally fell asleep while watching it. That’s the first time in my entire life I’ve fallen asleep while watching ANYTHING.)

But for DC, even the silly obnoxiously-radioactive-colored Batman and Robin has its place in history.

Can I just say, maybe… “the Injustice: Gods Among Us cutscenes”?- raven’s voice really grates my nerves, and not even in a Fun Creepy Way.- Whose idea was it to have SUPERMAN go evil? Like? ?? Who thought that was in any way a reasonable idea. - the story in that game felt really cobbled together. The comics are a lot more interesting, fun, and though there’s a lot of, like, Random Occurrences that seem to happen Exclusively For The Drama, in the game there are a lot of ill-explained things and general Random Chaos. Not my kinda story.

*

3. Which DC character should be introduced in movies/shows? Or have a movie/show of their own?

I mean. My automatic response is “Raven”, but I only ever want to see that if it’s being done right. The way CW wanted to do it kinda ripped the heart of everything I know/love about her to shreds. (”Relateable normal teen girl sudden has powers”? What? What??? That’s literally NONE of Raven’s backstory, shoo. Begone. Good riddance.)

That aside, I’d honestly probably watch the HELL out of a Nightwing show. Or movie. Just LET DICK BE HIMSELF. Without being attached at the history AND HIP to Bruce!

Or Death? or Sandman? I don’t know how well they’d translate to TV; Nightwing would certainly be the safer bet. Neil Gaiman’s writing is half as great as it is because of the WRITING. The style. The narrations… But, I mean: Coraline was just wonderful~ So why not a Sandman movie, too? Given the right director, and the right special effects team…?

(Constantine would’ve been next on my list, for a better movie anyway. but he’s already getting some decent recognition. So whoop whoop. Good shit. Nice Decision, DC. I Approve.)

10. Which DC character portrayal do you think is better in the comics than in the movies?

Batman. By far.

I’m just sick of all this manpain and gritty, utterly-unyielding violence, and… politics? Where’s the humanity?

Aren’t these writers forgetting that he’s someone who has suffered, and is doing all this, not just to beat up bad guys and look cool, but to save others from what theyd do? To HELP PEOPLE, not to growl like a man-tiger and punch things?

You can be badass and still have a heart, you know. Comics!Bruce does. (Most of the time.) And that’s a big part of why I like reading Batman comics so much.

And on that note, the conspicuous lack of Robins in (most) movies is an insult to comic history. Batman’s family-seeking and protect-the-children tendancies make for a much more interesting franchise, honestly. Give us a colorful cast! (Literally!) Give us diversity! Give us more stories with more characters so it has more facets than just “some guy wants to kill people; can’t have that”!)

As a sidenote: what I’ve seen of Gotham, it’s doing a really good job of encapsulating his Heroic Tendencies as well as his “sense of Duty” to Gotham and its people, while keeping him human AND super cool. That’s an important balance.

[moonlight-spectacles]

In Defense of Bliss Utonium

Okay, so I just found out the PPG had a POC as a new sister, and I quickly rushed to watch it. I just finished watching the Bliss story...and now I’ve learned she’s been getting a lot of criticism. I am really not surprised at this. Not because I feel the criticism is really that legit (because I don’t think it is, at all actually), but because leave it to people nowadays to over critique everything and find faults with a microlens.

I finished watching about 10 minutes ago and I’m already sick of seeing the  arguments against her, so I decided to write a rebuttal post.

Keep in mind, if there are any other arguments to address, I’ll add on later, but these are the ones that really bothered me.

1. Bliss has daddy issues

No. She  really doesn’t. Bliss never had daddy issues, I have no idea where this dumb argument even came from. Mostly, I’ve seen it said because she calls him “daddy” while the other girls call him Professor. First of all, it’s actually sweet she refers to the Professor as her dad. Because for all intents and purposes, he is. Keep in mind Bliss was his first child, the only one he had at the time. She referred to him as her dad, I don’t see the issue with that. 

2. Bliss is emotionally unstable

First off, I’m gonna have to stop you right there. Bliss is not emotionally unstable. Her powers are unstable. The actual episode outright said this. Bliss has a condition where regardless of her emotions, whether happy, sad, angry or frightened, her powers combine with her emotions and cause an explosion to occur. 

Professor Utonium.

She (Bliss) truly was the perfect little girl Sweet, strong, incredibly smart. she was my favorite little girl. over time, her powers began to evolve, and not always for the better any emotion, be it good or bad caused her to lose control of her powers. she was scared. I was scared. It got to the point that at any moment, things could go wrong.

Bliss was a result of Chemical W, a step away from X. I concluded that X was the perfect chemical and that’s why Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup didn’t explode at any point. It was a chemical imbalance in Bliss that had to do with said chemical Professor used, not the fact that she’s that way due to her being a poc.

But you know what? Even if  it was just her having high strung emotions sometimes, we see Bliss as a child and as a teenager. Guess what? Kids and teens can have shitty behavior sometimes. I know I threw tantrums as a kid. I slammed my doors, I stomped down hallways, I screamed and cried. Only difference between me and Bliss is that I didn’t have superpowers that destroyed shit whenever I did it. How would her expressing realistic behavior for a child be a bad thing? 

3. Bliss has an attitude

This is almost a continuation of the 2nd point. Bliss has an attitude, really? First of all, as I said above, Bliss was a child at the time we saw her with said “attitude.” It’s normal to have a less than stellar attitude sometimes. Second, I don’t see anyone bitching about Buttercup, who over the course of both the original and new series, has shown an attitude far exceeding what Bliss ever showed. 

Don’t get me wrong, Buttercup has always been my favorite Powerpuff, but where the hell do people get off coming at Bliss for her emotions, when Buttercup has one, even worse than hers? Buttercup was long known to be quick to anger, be the first to rebel of her sisters, and was quite aggressive at times. But of course Bliss can’t show any negative emotions whatsoever or she’s an “angry black woman stereotype.” 

As a POC myself, it pisses me off that black characters are not allowed to have emotions that are outside of the realms of perfection or being “strong” without being scrutinized. POC are human, we have both positive and negative emotions. We can be angry, we can be sad, we can love and show weakness at times. Wow, I know what a fucking shocker. 

Moreso, Bliss was blatantly stated to have anxiety. As someone who also lives with anxiety, I completely understood and related to her and her struggle, especially when her sisters continued to (unknowingly) place her under so much stress. I hate being put on the spot and pulled into many directions, it makes me very nervous, as if I’ll somehow mess up if I choose “wrong” or do something wrong. 

4. Bliss lived on “bird poop island”

....what does this matter? It was weird sure, but I found it a bit humorous and actually, I like the metaphor surrounding it. She found a beautiful island, but it was dampened significantly by the poop on the island. Yet she still made the best of a shit (pun intended) situation and found a sense of peace and happiness anyway. And although it turned out to be Him, she thought she’d made a very good friend in Me, that helped her through it as well.

5. Bliss’ best friend was a monkey.

So what are you trying to say? Because Mojo, whose legit been a monkey since we first saw him was someone she was actually friends with as opposed to her enemy right off the bat like with the other girls, makes this racist? I thought it was interesting that Mojo wasn’t jealous of her, the way he was so jealous of Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup, and it showed (to me) a different side to Mojo. 

As humorous as they made it out to be, I found it cute that he was going out of his way to try and help Bliss, and truly thought of her as a good friend seeing as he immediately recognized and was happy to see her. I think people are really exaggerating and making a mountain out of literally nothing. Like, who cares if Mojo was her friend. Nobody would care if it was Fuzzy Lumpkins (hmph, or maybe they’d dig deeper and say he represents the ignorance in the deep south and that’s also racist because of “reasons”), but go and stereotype her because Mojo happens to be a monkey. Please.

6. Bliss design perpetrates stereotypes

Why, because she’s a teenager and teenagers tend to have a different shape than children? I would have never guessed! I guess you forgot when the Powerpuff girls in the original story had an episode where they were teenagers, they also had wide hips right? How is this an issue again? If you don’t like the design as far as aesthetics, okay, but stop making it a bigger deal than it is. 

7. Bliss has blue hair, its unrealistic.

You really want to talk about things being unrealistic in a children’s cartoon, where we have flying little girls with unbelievable superpowers, and a man has the ability to create literal human life using chemicals? Come on now. 

Besides that, I fucking loved Bliss hair. I loved the color. I loved that it lit up when she did her powers. I fucking loved it. One thing I wouldn’t have minded is if it looked more natural as far as afrocentric style, but I wouldn’t care if it remained blue and lit up at all. 

Final point?

STORM (for which I noticed clear similarities, what with her hair glowing white instead of her eyes, and the lightning surrounding her).

8. Bliss isn’t the 4th sister, Bunny is!

Look, I cried too when Bunny died. She was an amazing sister and deserved better. But if we’re going to get technical with it? Bunny was the 5th sister, not Bliss. Bliss came before all of them. She was the original daughter. I do agree a callback to Bunny would have been wonderful, and I understand Bliss came in the reboot and Bunny was in the original, but they did it in a way as to not erase Bunny by having Bliss be a new creation of Professors and called the 4th sister. Instead, she was the original. 

Bottom line, I loved Bliss, I enjoyed her storyline and the only problem I had with her story is that there isn’t more at this point. 

Bliss is receiving unwarranted, bullshit hatred she doesn't deserve and I am already done with the nonsense. 

[zdbztumble]

I HAVE WATCHED THEM ALL!

And ranked them all, from favorite to least! (Three guesses as to what’s #1, given what 97% of the content on this blog is concerned with.)

1. Revelation Lugia: At no point was there any competition for the top slot. Crisp art direction, an appropriately epic scale to the design and the staging of action, a gorgeous musical score (the dub surpassed the original on this point IMO), the best editing and pacing out of any of these movies, and a well-constructed plot that’s simple without being simplistic all speak well for it. But the real selling point for this film is the character work. The CotDs are engaging and play a vital role in the plot without overtaking it. This is the TRio’s finest hour to date IMO. Tracey may be along for the ride (as he often was in the show), but Misty enjoys the best role a travelling companion has gotten to date, and Ash is saddled with his greatest challenge ever (to my knowledge, anyway; I’ve got a hell of a lot of episodes to go in catching up on the series, but it’s hard to top “save the world by yourself because Prophecy.”) And this and the next entry on this list are the only two films where I felt that Ash (and Misty, in this case), more than just experiencing another adventure, actually grew as characters. Not that Johto or the later series built on that growth, but in this show, I’ll take what I can get.

...And, yeah, the pokeshipping doesn’t hurt its rating either.

2. Lucario and the Mystery of Mew: Again, it’s all about the character work here. This is the only other time that Ash seemed to grow, through his relationship with Lucario and his discovery of his Aura (and, in a way, it’s more of a shame that the show never built on this than it is that they never built on Ash and Misty’s growth after Lugia, when you consider that the staff wrote themselves a golden opportunity to do so in DP!) His “this time, it’s personal” goal of saving Pikachu and the parallels between himself and Sir Aaron also serve to enrich his role in a way most of the other pokefilms don’t even attempt. Lucario is the most compelling and dimensional of the movie-featured Pokemon since Mewtwo. Mew is absolutely adorable. The art direction is beautiful, and it’s scope and ambition are appropriate for the high fantasy subject matter. It loses points for some awkward pacing in the front half (the dance is so slow!) and a ridiculous lack of pathos shown when the whole human cast (temporarily) dies, but it makes up a lot of those points with its gutsy ending. No contrived out for the heroic sacrifice this time!

3. Spell of the Unown: So glad I decided to give this film a re-watch. Having an innocent and traumatized little girl, or her feelings of loss and loneliness to be more specific, be the antagonist, is an amazing move by the staff, and it works so well. The threat that those feelings pose to Ash and friends when given immense power is very tangible, though the full impact of that threat takes a while to become apparent. Giving Ash a personal stake in the adventure is very welcome, both travelling companions get decent roles, Charizard’s return is spectacular, and there is some delightfully off-beat and experimental work done in the production design. With the possible exception of Mewtwo Strikes Back, this film has the most ambition and daring of any of them. An uneven pace at the start and a questionable final fight can’t take away the fact that this movie is just cool.

4. Pokemon 4Ever: Possibly the most impressive art direction out of any of the movies; the forest feels huge, and old, and real, just in one look. The Miyazaki-esque look is appropriate for the “destruction of nature” plot, the consequences of which are plainly felt. The time travel aspect is intriguing and not confusing, and Sam is the real hero of the human cast. It tries to give the TRio a real reason to be in the movie, though it’s less successful on that front than Lugia. Drawbacks include a lag in the pace toward the middle, a contrived resurrection, a waste of the travelling companions even by pokefilm standards, and the sidelining of Ash himself.

5. Hoopa and the Clash of Ages: The most threadbare plot out of any of these movies, no real role for the companions or even Ash, and some of the dullest CotDs out there can’t change the fact this is just such a fun movie. Every ten-year old’s dream of an epic inter-gen smash-fest gets thrown on-screen, and even if it doesn’t crank things up to 11, it’s still extremely entertaining. Easily the best thing about XY/Z that I’ve seen so far.

6. Jirachi Wish Maker: An extremely choppy pace and story elements that don’t belong are a serious handicap. But this film not only gives a traveling companion an arc, but makes Max’s friendship with Jirachi the main focus. The damage done to that arc by the plot’s flaws doesn’t erase its charms. And Ash, put into a supporting role, excels in the part, much moreso than in many of these movies where he stays on the sidelines for much of the running time before abruptly becoming the hero.

7. White: Victini and Zekrom/Black: Victini and Rashiram: The “villain’s” actions are poorly motivated and the CotDs are forgettable. But Victini is just so damn cute, and its bond with Ash is so endearing. Those two things elevate the film, and give Ash one of his more dramatically satisfying stints as a glorified plot device. The gimmick of these films, however, feels like a waste.

8. Mewtwo Strikes Back: Compared to my childhood memories of it, this is a very uneven film. The travelling companions have nothing to do, the CotDs are forgettable, the TRio set the “why are we even here” trend up early, the film loses a lot of juice once the battle of clones vs. originals starts (mostly due to sluggish pacing on the fight), and the means of Ash’s revival is infuriatingly dumb. But for the first (and, as far as they knew at the time, only) movie of a kids’ cartoon meant to sell video games, it’s shocking to me how dark they went with this film. Mewtwo is a wonderfully grey character, and his origins and struggles render the first half of the film one of the best sequences in the whole franchise. The idea of prejudice and fighting for superiority as a basis for the conflict is solid in theory if a bit heavy-handed in execution. If Ash and friends (mostly friends) don’t get a lot to do once they reach the island, their journey to it is a fun adventure. And there’s a delightfully twisted horror film look to the production design. For a first outing, this was a very risky film, and even if doesn’t fully work, I think it’s a more impressive effort than most of the pokefilms because of that.

9. Rise of Darkrai: On a technical level, Darkrai has a more even script, and a more consistently solid execution of that script IMO, than Mewtwo. It’s the best of the Sinnoh trilogy by a wide margin. The CotDs (well, Alberto at least) are fun and Darkrai is an effective featured Pokemon. But the problems of the Sinnoh trilogy, while not as pronounced here, are still at hand: a light tone that leaves the Legendaries feeling less impressive than their predecessors, a rather episodic layout to the plot that kills a sense of scale, sluggish pacing and a sense of padding, no real role for the travelling companions, and Ash being a glorified deus ex machina.

10. Kyurem vs. the Sword of Justice: Technical proficiency, a cinematic scale, decent dub work, and excellent use of the travelling companions argue in favor of this one being higher on the list. Arguments against that include this film featuring some of the more poorly-designed Pokemon around, a severe lack of tension and stakes in the plot, and a disappointing role for Ash. Ultimately, it just didn’t grip me the way the films immediately above it did.

11. Arceus and the Jewel of Life: Out of all the Sinnoh trilogy, this one felt the least padded, and helped clear up some of the murky plot mess of the earlier entries. The CotDs are serviceable if a little on the dull side. And this final chapter of the trilogy does aim the highest in its scope and scale, even if it doesn’t reach its goals. But Arceus’s terrible voice in the dub, and his rush to apocalyptic judgement, really hurt the character. And the main cast is worse off here than in the other entries, as Dawn ends up as sidelined as Brock in the finale.

12. Giratina and the Sky Warrior: You can give the film this - Shaymin is a well-developed character. She’s a little shit, but she’s a fleshed-out little shit. And Giratina was the most impressively presented of the Sinnoh Legendaries. But the human villain here is very dull, and Shaymin’s obnoxiousness makes it damn near impossible to get invested in her conflict or to buy her eventual friendship with Ash. On the plus side, wonderful art direction and animation.

13. Pokemon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea: This film gets off to a strong start and gives us one of the best CotDs, but it’s overlong, stalls in the middle, and its focus on the main plot comes at the expense of May’s arc with Manaphy. It also has the most maddening plot resolution out of any of them (that’s right - it’s even worse than the magic tears from Mewtwo.)

14. I Choose You!: It earns points for shaking up the routine, giving Ash an arc, and doing a superb job at retelling his first meeting with Pikachu, but its meandering middle, superfluous story turns, and some forced character work bog it down. You can give it this - it was a better anniversary show than “Mastermind of the Mirage Pokemon.”

15. Pokemon Heroes: Possibly the most frustrating of these movies to date for me, because there were a lot of elements - the setting, the mythological background, the Dragon-types - that I really liked. It’s easily one of the most beautiful of the movies, and there was a lot of potential in the plot. But most of that potential was untapped, the elements never gelled, and I was often bored watching it. When I wasn’t bored, I was frustrated and questioning - see my “review” for the whole list. And this may be the worst film on the matter of sidelining the travelling companions.

16. Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction: The charms of the titular character and some brief impressive work with the travelling companions can’t make up for an overstuffed, meandering plot full of easy fixes and an abrupt shift in focus during the last third.

17. Zoroark - Master of Illusions: Very similar situation to Diancie - a wonderful story between the titular Pokemon and Zorua can’t overcome a crowded plot that’s saddled with a weak, scene-hogging villain and terrible pacing.

18. Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel: My biggest problem with this one is that there just wasn’t much about it that was unique. Its many flaws are the same ones that plague at least half these flicks. Its good points are the same sort of good points as in the other movies. Its art direction is pleasant but nothing that wasn’t tried before. It’s just...dull.

19. Genesect and the Legend Awakened: These last two are the only ones I wouldn’t hesitate to say were bad. A fundamental weakness in the plot caused by making the titular Pokemon so unsympathetic, the poor handling of Mewtwo’s return, an unremarkable set of roles for the main cast, uneven animation, and a general feeling of laziness all conspire against a decent premise.

20. Destiny Deoxys - Awkward alien subject matter, lack of a clear emotional core, and the worst padding out of any of these flicks all leave it dead on arrival IMO.