Feeling Nostalgic? Don’t worry, we got you covered. Head over to http://www.youtube.com/user/ToonamiRevolution for a tour de force of past Toonami greatness featuring TOM, SARA, and the rest of Absolution crew throughout the block’s near 12-year history. Enjoy!
-Omni
Just a little preview of NeoToonami’s forthcoming broadcast and ‘new look.’ Props to Zipper for this amazing intro.
It’s been a while since the front page has been updated and it seems when that happens people begin to lose faith. But fear not Toonami faithful, NeoToonami is still on course and will see its magnificent launch in the indefinite future. For now, there is still work to be done and we are currently pushing for creative work to be finished. Once we get that done then we’ll be well on our way. Forum member thehiddenice has finished our wonderful TOM 5 as you guys have seen in the previous update and I’m amazed every time I lay eyes on it. That’s one major hurdle down and two to go.
Work is currently being done on SARA 3 by forum member digitani and is in the very early stages of development. Please direct your eyes over to this preview video digitani has set up of his progress on SARA.
Please leave a comment on his work and give him some feedback. Creative ideas are always welcome. Let’s work together to make this a reality.
In addition to SARA, we still need work done on the ship TOM and SARA will be cruising in, a ship which we’re dubbing “The Renascent.” We are still looking for talented 3D artists, so if you think you have what it takes to give us a hand, please do and join the forums and let us know what you can do. We’re a small staff and with most of us being college students with jobs, free time can be hard to come by — so help is always welcome.
I myself have been working on some creative issues for the project and also plan to revamp the site. So look forward to that.
So that’s the haps at the moment. The project is alive and well. We’d like to thank everyone who stuck with us and who will continue to stick with us as we rebuild Toonami from the ground up.
Never doubt the revolution. Only NeoToonami.
-Zipper
After much trial and tribulation, forum member hack3r has finally worked the kinks out of our Google Wave page. What this means is that, in the very near future (i.e. when more of us actually have Wave accounts– still waiting on my invite), NeoToonami will host both private meetings and public chats via our Wave client. Stay tuned!
For Wave invitations or general Wave info, see hack3r’s two forum topics, here and here, respectively.
Thanks, Toonami Faithful, for all your contributions and help. Most of all, thanks to forum member, 3-d modeler and animator thehiddenice for his saintlike patience and perseverance. I realize that this video features un-credited artwork. Quite frankly, I found the images on the old forums, and no source was given then so I can’t give any now. If you know the original artists responsible for these works and/or are perturbed by the work’s inclusion sans reference, please, let us know!
Song is “revehent,” courtesy of forum member and all-out mixmaster _res.
These interstitial film reviews are becoming the norm for this site, it seems. I’m sorry that they aren’t read aloud to you in TOM’s metallic baritone. However, I assure you, all-new Toonami material is well on its way down the pike.
This review should be slightly more relevant than the last, as Zombieland was only just released a couple of weeks ago in the U.S. Perhaps future postings will be even more so, provided I resolve to more diligently refrain from frittering precious time away on certain anonymous image boards. Regardless, this article’s relevance is indirectly proportionate to my rambling, so let us commence!
As is usual, this review is not a summary, and I will refrain from spoiling key story developments.
Although I’d heard of Zombieland’s rave reviews, I was apprehensive entering the theatre.
You see, my only real impression of Zombieland’s plot was this: In a world where Woody ‘Tallahassee’ Harrelson has got one mean hankering for a Twinkie, no zombie is safe. Jesse Eisenberg, AKA Columbus, is the socially inept and chronically phobic Sancho Panza to Harrelson’s Don Quixote, clashing starkly with Harrelson and his up ‘n at ‘um attitude. When the time comes to ‘nut up or shut up,’ hilarity ensues.
In short, I was afraid that Zombieland would be just as brainless as its undead. I feared that the ‘zombie survival 101′ gimmick would wear thin, and that Columbus’s Bueller-style soliloquizing would just feel forced. But just as certain among Columbus’s terrors are met head-on and dealt with, so too were my own worries laid to rest by the bell’s final toll.
Despite his inane motivations, Tallahassee sticks by your side throughout as the big oaf with a big heart. There’s a tender side to what the zombies see only as tender flesh, a part of Tallahassee that slowly but surely gurgles to the surface. Contrary to what I’d feared, Harrelson’s search for the last ’spongy yellow bastard’ on earth serves wins the marathon as a running gag, and does not over-exert itself. In all seriousness, it’s a serious endeavor. Now, I may be digging too deep here, but it’s my belief that Tallahassee’s philosophy of enjoying ‘the simple things’ is his best remedy for dealing with both painful memories and Zombieland itself. In a world without people, a Twinkie is all that stands between Tallahassee and insanity.
Next is Columbus. Although he certainly does occupy the role of Sancho Panza with relation to Tallahassee (Tallahassee being perhaps as insane as Quixote himself), Columbus differs in that he, rather than Tallahassee, occupies the role of main character.
My main fear, here, was that Columbus would be little more than just another Evan a la Superbad, characterized only by the shallow stereotypes that, combined, constitute the modern definition of a nerd. In many ways, Columbus is host to those traits and more; however, they do not define him. When faced with the drooling maw of half a jaw, he does not attempt to cast Meteo. His double-tap is of the shotgun variety, not the B-button. Columbus may play a Wood Elf, but his performance is far from wooden.
Just as I’d feared that Columbus would simply be Evan take two, so to was I afraid that Wichita would be little more than Jules 2.0. Indeed, actress Emma Stone played both roles, Superbad’s Jules and Zombieland’s Wichita, rendering my concerns quite well-founded. Wichita’s character is that of the headstrong and manipulative young woman who, by her wit and wiles, can easily hold her own in a fight. At first glance, she’s just the freshest bad girl on the block, yet another 21st-century cliche. Wichita’s younger sister, Little Rock, is even worse. Possessing Wichita’s same qualities, Little Rock squeezes them into an even more ironic parcel, being a 12-year-old little girl and all. Together, the two sisters are partners in crime, surviving by their smarts as much as by their killer instincts.
Pre- and post-Zombieland, both Wichita’s and Little Rock’s modus operandi is to expertly con unsuspecting men out of house and home via their feminine charms. For instance, one flashback scene features the sisters tricking a 40-year-old virgin-type gas attendant out of $300 and a fill’er with utter impunity. They time and again succeed in getting Columbus’s and Tallahassee’s proverbial goat. Yet, after a more extensive analysis of both characters, you should discover just as I have that there’s definitely much more to them under the hood. For instance, one has to wonder, what were these two young girls doing all by themselves pre-Zombieland? Are they orphans? Like in the case of Tallahassee, the film challenges the viewer to fill in the blanks. Some may argue that this tactic is cheap, but I disagree. To the contrary, it lends great intellectual depth to what would otherwise be a mere half-a-laugh undead shoot’em up.
At first a motley crew whose quirks and stubbornness compound the overall hopelessness of their situation, by curtain call all are united as one big happy family. As Columbus observes, ‘What’s life without people? After all, without the people you love, you’d might as well just be a zombie.” The moral of the story, perhaps the oldest one in the book, is nevertheless undeniably poignant.
It should be clear by now that I wholeheartedly enjoyed the film and would recommend it to just about anybody not in the no-fun club. This would normally be the paragraph that my official endorsement would occupy; however, in the case of this review, the whole of its text has thus far been one great recommendation. See Zombieland, it’s well worth the ticket price. In conclusion, the only downside to the film is that– similar to 9– it’s dreadfully short, clocking in at precisely 80 minutes long. But oh, is it sweet!
Well, seeing as even those of you whose opinion this review may have swayed can’t exactly decide to up and see the film since it’s probably out of circulation now, I’m not sure as to the point of this article. I guess that its main point is to just be SOMETHING new, for there hasn’t exactly been a glut of updates lately. Ah, well.
About a month ago, some friends of mine and I resolved to catch Tim Burton’s latest, the CGI animation flick “9.” Technically, the film isn’t Burton’s latest as a director, as he simply produced the film with Shane Acker at the reins. Needless to say, 9 is perceived by many as being “Burton’s latest,” much as District 9 is “Peter Jackson’s latest.” There’s much to be said of the recent phenomenon of nameless directors playing sidekick to big-name directors-turned-producers, but I digress.
This review is not a summary, and I will refrain from spoiling key story developments. What I will primarily address is how the film made me feel, as it is a heavily atmospheric film, relying not so much on dialog as on more subtle nuances and cues to carry the film forward.
The aptly named “Nine,” voiced by Elijah Wood, is the ninth and last of his kind– a race of Sack Boy-esque, mechanical rag-dolls. One of the film’s key plot points is Nine’s quest for personal purpose and the reason behind the existence of his kind. Since we ourselves are ever in search of such truths, Nine is rendered especially endearing. As a result, moviegoers will find it easy to empathize not only with Nine but also with his curious kin, each possessing their own unique personalities and motivations. Each of the 9 harbors some distinct quality or another which any human being should be able to identify within his or her own self. Thus, one cannot help but grow attached to the film’s quirky cast.
Nine’s adventurous nature clashes with the isolationist philosophy of the rest of his tribe, a philosophy which is primarily perpetuated per the mandate of their stubborn leader, One. As a result, One and Nine are put at odds with each other from the moment they first meet. While One’s leadership had indeed kept his people out of harm’s way, the potential change of pace that Nine represents is met with little resistance.
The post-apocalyptic world of 9 is certainly a perilous one, especially if you’re approximately 10 inches tall. The “scary imagery” that apparently earned the film its PG-13 rating consists of the odd corpse here and Terminator bloodhound there. I distinctly remember many PG- and G-rated films of my youth that far surpassed 9 on the creep-meter.
Regardless of whether or not the film could have squeeked by with a PG- rather than a PG-13 rating, 9’s desolate wasteland setting remains utterly breathtaking. I, for one, found it to be almost disturbingly comforting, so serene was this world without people. One scene in particular brilliantly integrates the song Somewhere Over the Rainbow, creating a juxtaposition of scenery and soundscape that is more than reminiscent of the famous Mad World Gears of War commercial. it’s truly wonderful, and definitely my favorite part of the movie.
Before I wind up divulging all of the film’s high points, I will conclude this review on a high note. When the film ends, you will immediately find yourself wishing for more. Shortly thereafter, though, you will conclude that 9 felt short, yes, but was ultimately sweet, and any more would surely spoil you. Sweet, but not sickly so. Satisfying and uplifting. 9 more than holds its own against all contenders for the title of Best Animated Film of 2009, of which there are many worthy candidates.
-Clown
*Sigh* I’m gone for two weeks and no one can update the main page?! Just kidding. I know school is back in session and for a lot of us that’s meant being slowly buried up to our ears with things to do again. I personally have also had the pleasure of being sick as a dog the past few days which has only added more to my to do list and left me with even less time to help with the project. That being said and I’m sure I speak for many here when I say that I am by no means giving up, but I will be readjusting how much time I put into Neo. As of today, I will only post to the front page once a week between Monday and Friday (unless circumstances allow for more). This will give me enough time to focus on my life and and produce a worthwhile article week after week. It will also give others a chance to post as I hope that we can eventually have a different person write for the front page for every day of the week (excluding weekends, unless we decide to work then). Thanks for your understanding.
Another thing I should probably touch on is the whole conferencing issue I brought up two weeks ago and have since left to you guys to debate. So far Skype has been named the most in the comments and there is documented proof that it can support up to five people in the same call at once. Furthermore, it is supported on nearly all platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux), fairly easy to install and use, and I’m pretty sure it can be run off of a flash drive for those of you having trouble installing it to your machines internal drive. As for Ventrilo, it sounds like an amazing platform, however, one needs to either host or rent a server; I personally cannot host a server on my school’s network and I really don’t want to have to pay for a server that not many people are going to use at first. Finally, several folks have mentioned using “messengers” for conferencing. The two problems with these is that different people use different messaging clients, not all of which play nice with each other, and I don’t know whether or not these clients support conference calls, aka VOIP calls between more than two people. As always, your feedback on the issue is welcome.
-Omni
