torstenvblog

Predator: Killer of Killers trailer

Recently I covered the Predator: Badlands teaser. which I;m pretty pumped for, but we’re getting a pretty awesome appetizer with this dark, animated anthology film. I love the idea of 3 Predator stories told throughout human history: the Viking era, Feudal Japan, and WWII. I like seeing the different Yautja types and even what seems to be some space combat, which is something new to the series. I’ll definitely be checking it out this summer. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Superman full trailer

I’m cautiously optimistic for this one. I’ve been a longtime fan of James Gunn, even before his time with the MCU. The last DC cinematic universe imploded so there’s literally an entire cinematic universe riding on this movie. Corenswet seems like a more human Clark and I do like the energy he seems to have as the Man of Steel. I like what I saw of Lois, Guy Gardner, Mr. Terrefic, and Lex Luthor. I’m not sure how I feel about the Engineer as the main baddie but I do love everything I’ve seen of Krypto. There have been some leaks that I pray aren’t true or at least seriously overplayed about the main plot of the movie because so far I like where it’s going. Time will tell. May the gaming gods bring you all glory.

Samurai Cop 2: Deadly Vengence

How in the hell did we get a sequel? Normally, I’d start with a synopsis, but truth be told, there isn’t much of one. Marshall and Washington reunite begrudgingly to take on a new syndicate and Tommy Wiseau. I just explained the movie and saved you a lot of boredom.

Samurai Cop 2 misses a lot of what made the first great. There is bad acting and garish effects but nothing that reaches into the legendary WTF territory as the first. The pacing is atrocious. Halfway through Savior and I kept asking when it would be over. Tommy Wiseau was…Tommy Wiseau and though he’s the final villain, he is too annoying to be funny. There are a lot of callbacks that don’t go anywhere. In the end , forget this movie exists and stay with the original. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Samurai Cop

When the violent Katana Gang goes too far, it’s up to 2 mispaired cops to bring them down: the laid back Frank Washington and his partner Joe Marshall, the Samurai Cop, trained in Japan… ok let’s stop there.

Samurai Cop absolutely earned its legendary status in B movie culture. It’s got everything a bad movie can ask for: Godzilla-style dubbing, random sex scenes, hilariously bad fight scenes, WTF dialogue, porno level level line deliveries and hair that is clearly a wig. This movie is a laugh riot that thankfully doesn’t try to take itself seriously. Savior and I had a blast reciting lines from it between laughing our asses off at the bad fights and the mankini scenes. There’s not much to say for this Lethal Weapon knock off except it’s a damn fun time with friends that lives up to B movie legend. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Predator: Badlands teaser.

The year has been a major surprise in terms of nerd movies and I’m all for it. Badlands has been promising a different vibe to the series- a Yautja protagonist, new monsters, mankind not the main prey. I’m super excited by what I see here and I’m excited as hell for more. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Alien Day 2026

Happy Alien Day, one and all, from us to you. If you followed us at all, you’ll know I’m a humongous Alien fan. I ran over 2 miles to see Prometheus opening day and I even went to Romulus for the midnight show, not to mention owning multiple copies of each movie.

Our latest installment in the saga is Alien: Earth coming to Hulu this summer. Am I nervous it’s going to be a TV series? Oh hell yeah! But there is some great talent behind the lens, and so far they the setting and creature designs are spot on. To end off this post I’ll leave you with some recent tastes we got of it and I wish everyone a safe Alien day, show some love to Ripley, David, Rain and Andy and stay the hell away from large leathery

The Last of Us Part II

Joel and Ellie have settled down after escaping the Fireflies but all is not well after Ellie learned the truth Joel hid from her. They have a home. Ellie is beginning to thrive, even finding love, until the unthinkable happens when Joel is viscously murdered in front of her. Traumatized and enraged, Ellie ventures off to find the young woman named Abby and her crew responsible, journeying deeper into terror and bloodshed for revenge. But why was Abby out to kill Joel in the first place? Who are the Wolves and the Scars at war? How far are the two willing to go to settle their disturbing blood feud?

So controversies aside, I can understand some of the hate for the game. The Last of Us was a storytelling masterpiece. Last of Us 2 is a sequel that takes a lot of risks and goes to some truly depraved places as a revenge story. Personally, I loved most of what the game had to offer but I can understand why someone wouldn’t. The story, while way darker than the first (which really says something) balances it out with some pretty heartfelt and beautiful moments as did its predecessors. I was incredibly captivated by Ellie and Abby’s journeys. The beginning is much slower so you do have to stick around but once Ellie starts her revenge quest, the game not only opens up but you’re treated to some really tense gameplay. The infected take a back seat this time, though the new types combined with the vastly smarter enemy AI make some good horror- the Rat King towards the end genuinely scared the shit out of me and was one of my favorite horror bosses in a while. I love that the game adds some disturbingly realistic touches to the enemies so you feel dirty killing them. I appreciate the differences between Ellie’s and Abby’s weapons and passive abilities that add a bit in clinches. I do have have to say the game overall is way harder than the first and much less forgiving. I’ve gotten more frustrated on certain sections of this game than I have on a lot of Souls games and Alien: Isolation o give you an idea, so patience is a must. Also the slower pace does make the game feel much longer, even without the humongous death count, than I’m sure it really is. In the end, I love the game just as much as the first as a truly horrific revenge tale bordering into the waters of depravity as Blood Meridan but this game is absolutely not for everyone but well worth your time. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Camp Blood Clown Shark

You know a movie’s WTF when you have a hard time finding an actual cover for it on Google. Savior and I really have to reevaluate how we pick our movie day watches anymore…

We begin with a familiar scene, a young woman being chased by a masked killer through the woods. She has visions that allow her to defeat the clown-masked psycho. After beheading and tossing his mask into the lake, all seems over…until the spirit of the killer finds a lonely sea bass, transforming it into a shark with a clown mask as it starts a new killing spree…

I might have made this sound better than it is. Going in I was hoping for another Graveyard Shark but alas, no. Not to say it ain’t still funny. The shark is stock footage with a clown mask superimposed over it. The computer effects make each kill with it look like something out of Aqua Teen Hunger Force, which admittedly was my favorite part. Sadly there’s not much clown shark in Camp Blood Clown Shark, but instead, a killer who skips around like he needs to shit- which is funny in itself but not as funny as the shark. The downside of this movie is it feels way longer than it really is. Clocking in at 70 min, it feels almost full length and I got bored way too many times for a movie this short. In the end, it’s meh as far as C movies go- thankfully not as boring as Fraternity Demon (1992) but there are definitely better WTF C movies out there. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Mafia 2

Vito Scarletta and his best friend Joe are out to make a name for themselves in 1940’s Empire City. Both grew up poor, witnessing the destitution of the Great Depression and the riches of the made men in there midsts. After Vito returns from WW2, he finds himself getting involved with a local mob head only to be sent to prison. After a shortened sentence him and Joe are back at with a new family, new opportunities and a bright future. But at what cost?

I have a weird relationship with this series that I mostly love. 2 is actually the final game of the trilogy I played, the 3rd and least loved game being my first foray into the series, then the 1st, and now 2, which many have told me is the series’s peak. In many ways, I can see why.

The game, like the other two, is great at making you feel like you’re in the time period from the clothes, to the cars, to the guns. I will warn you, there are some raunchy scenes and a fair bit of racism involved, understandable given the time period. I loved Vito’s story and I was invested in the other characters. The driving feels solid and I do appreciate being able to tune up and customize your cars as well as save them in your garages. The gunplay is solid and challenging at points, sometimes too challenging. Sometimes I’ve died out of nowhere and the checkpoints can be unmerciful as the later, more intense missions come out. The fighting damn right annoyed the hell out of me and I tried avoiding it whenever possible. The police can be a major pain in the ass, either forgetting you exist instantly or clinging to you like herpes over the dumbest crap- I had to outrun them once for 15 minutes straight just because I checked my guns on the sidewalk. In the end, Mafia 2 is a damn good game despite some annoyances and some harmless bugs but well worth checking out. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Black Panther: The Client

King Tchalla is well known as the wise, noble, ingenious king of Wakanda as well as it’s protector, they mysterious and legendary Black Panther. King Tchalla and his enigmatic entourage have come to New York after a little girl was found murdered after receiving aid from a publicized Wakandan charity. Hotshot State Dept. Everett Ross is tasked with accompanying the group, unaware the King is on a revenge quest that will sweep through not only Brooklyn but bring Ross and the Black Panther face to face with Mephisto himself…

I was curious how Marvel Knights would treat Panther. I mostly wasn’t disappointed. After the bright, CGI-filled movies of the MCU, it was refreshing to see an angry, badass Black Panther beating his way through thugs. I found this book’s take on Ross to be sleazy and just hilarious how unprepared for this kind of shit the guy is- Ross in his boxers hanging out at the apartment with Mephisto was straight-up comedy gold. The villain of the book creeped me the hell out. One of my complaints I have is the pacing is off. I wish there was more detective story and stayed more street level. Leading up to Mephisto’s involvement was really cool but I felt like the story rushed it’s way there. By the end I felt lost and had to reread chunks, swearing I missed something somewhere. The art is solid but not particularly memorable. The dialogue and writing feels dated, which does add to the comedy but I’m sure if it was intentional or not. In the end, it’s a solid book but I wouldn’t recommend as a newcomer’s first Panther read. May the gaming gods bring you glory.