Now that everyone’s had the chance to see it for themselves, it’s probably safe to say that “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” was a bit of a disappointment. If there’s any good that came out of the summer blockbuster, however, it’s “G.I. Joe: Resolute,” the online animated series produced in conjunction with the film’s theatrical release. Written by comic legend Warren Ellis, “Resolute” takes a decidedly more mature approach with the “G.I. Joe” franchise in both story and tone. The set-up is still the same – Cobra Commander has stolen some kind of top-secret device and the Joes have to stop him before he uses it to take over the world – but it doesn’t feel nearly as cheesy as usual. There’s also a cool subplot involving Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow that dives into their backstory, while all of the usual suspects make some kind of appearance. It would have made for a great TV pilot if so many major characters didn’t die, but although it’s something that most fans would probably enjoy, “G.I. Joe: Resolute” is simply too short to warrant its $13 price tag. Paramount would have been better off including this on the recent DVD release of “The Rise of Cobra,” because then at least there’d be something worth watching on the disc.
Category: TV DVD Quicktakes (Page 5 of 26)
The trio behind “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” has cooked up some of the most unpolitically correct humor in the history of TV, but for “A Very Sunny Christmas,” they’ve dialed it down considerably, instead relying on more gratuitous tactics – like language, nudity and gore – to score laughs. Split up into two stories, the holiday special follows the gang as they prepare for Christmas Day. While Dennis and Dee try to teach Frank a lesson by taking him through his own version of “A Christmas Carol,” Mac and Charlie try to cope with the fact that their Christmas memories aren’t as great as they remember them. The episode culminates with a Claymation musical number that features Hermey the Mischief Elf, Sam the Snowman, and the California Raisins dressed up as KKK members.
Though the former subplot definitely has its moments (a sweaty, naked Danny DeVito not being one of them), the latter is easily the funnier of the two, whether it’s Mac losing his temper or Charlie going nuts on a mall Santa. Still, for a show that’s just beginning to earn an audience beyond its cult fanbase, it takes a lot of nerve to release a 42-minute Christmas special straight to DVD. Though you can’t really blame the creators for making this kind of executive decision (this has Fox’s greedy little fingerprints all over it), the show itself really could have been a lot better. Instead, you get a mediocre extended episode for about five dollars less than the cost of an entire season. It’s not exactly a great way to win over new viewers, and certainly not the way to treat old ones either. This is strictly for diehard fans only, but even they may have issues with ponying up the cash for something that FX is bound to air for free eventually.
Click to buy “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: A Very Sunny Christmas”
After dutifully earning his bones as one of the more reliable roasters at Comedy Central’s annual events (to Larry the Cable Guy: “Why are you so popular?”), Greg Giraldo finally gets his first one-hour special, and he makes it count. His take-no-prisoners approach is intact here, and in fact he saves a lot of his best bits for third rails like children (they’re fat, sickly and autistic). He does come a tad too close to a bit that popped up in Bill Burr’s act a year or so ago (the ‘I’m not a racist, but…’ routine), but he makes up for it by hammering a “sleepy Rasta” who nodded off in the third row, and by saluting a “gaggle of squawking twats” who refused to let 9/11 ruin their friend’s bachelorette party. The bonus features include the unaired pilot episode of “Adult Content,” a Comedy Central show about, well, porn. It’s a pretty decent show, though it makes sense that they would have had trouble following it up. With any luck, “Midlife Vices” will allow Giraldo to carve out a name for himself as something other than “that roast guy,” because the material here is most worthy.
Given how brutally Will Ferrell skewered George W. Bush during the 2000 election, you’d think a one-man show in which Ferrell celebrates the end of Bush’s two terms with 90 minutes of proudly partisan buffoonery would be a can’t-miss prospect — and during the limited live run of “You’re Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush,” that may have been true. On DVD, however, Ferrell’s salute to the former Commander-in-Chief provokes more chuckles than guffaws, due at least in part to the fact that, despite his many contributions to late night comics’ monologues, Bush’s presidency really wasn’t all that funny. Taped shortly after Bush yielded office to Barack Obama (or, as Ferrell’s version of W. calls him, “the Tiger Woods guy”), this performance initially had the power of pent-up catharsis to get it across; now, however, it’s mostly just a faintly humorous, somewhat painful look back at a period of American history pockmarked with war, terrorism, economic turmoil, and a horrific natural disaster. Ferrell’s squints, frat-boy chuckles, and screams of idiotic rage just can’t keep up with it all, although the show’s more brazenly surreal moments (including a dance with Condoleezza Rice, played here by the fearless Pia Glenn) offer pleasant reminders of just how far he’s willing to go for his comedy. If you really loathed Bush, you’ll probably want to own it — or at least watch it — just to have one last laugh at his expense, but otherwise, this is a pretty lukewarm roast.
Click to buy “You’re Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush”
Following the box office success of “Iron Man” last summer, it was pretty much a given that Marvel would move forward with an animated series. When it was announced that Tony Stark would be getting the high school treatment, however, my interest in the project plummeted. Fortunately, I still had a lingering curiosity as to how it would turn out, and although a teenage version of Iron Man certainly isn’t ideal, the show actually works better than expected thanks to some solid writing and slick CG animation. Loosely based on the comic book roots, the series begins with teenage prodigy Tony Stark putting the finishing touches on his latest invention. But before he can show it off to his dad, he’s killed by longtime business partner, Obadiah Stane, in a coup to take over Stark Industries. Now, with the help of his friends Rhodey and Pepper, Tony begins to unravel the mystery behind Stane’s takeover, all while playing superhero in his new Iron Man armor. Sadly, only six episodes are included in this Volume One collection, so while we do get to see classic Iron Man baddies like Mandarin, Whiplash and Crimson Dynamo, you’ll be left wanting more when it’s all over. That may be Marvel’s intention, but with the new sequel due out in theaters this May, let’s hope they release the entire first season in time for casual fans to discover what they’re missing.
FOLLOW US!
CATEGORIES
© 2023 Premium Hollywood
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑