Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

 ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ – Mad enough for Me

 

I’m a bit tired of the word “multiverse” getting thrown around in superhero stuff right now. Whenever I hear the word, it reeks of corporations gearing up to inundate their movies with superfluous cameos with little in the way of substance, but a lot in the way of promises for other movies.

 

Thankfully, with Sam Raimi at the helm “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” fares better than most in this regard. This movie comes the closest out of almost any Marvel movie I’ve seen to actually having a distinct tone from other products.

 

Though unlike its closest contender, “Moon Knight,” I’m happy to say that “Doctor Strange” avoids many of that show’s biggest pitfalls in regards to adaptation choices, save for the fact that Elizabeth Olsen is still playing a character that should be Romani.

 

The story follows Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Stephen Strange - the Marvel Universe’s resident sorcerer and consultant for all things magic, as he finds himself having to protect Xochtil Gomez’s multiverse-jumping America Chavez. Wanda Maximoff, played by Olsen, has made it her mission to steal America’s powers in order to find a reality with the children she erased from existence at the end of “Wandavision.”

 

This facilitates a fair bit of action, comedy, and surprisingly enough, horror. Sam Raimi is well known for his turn as director and producer on several horror projects, and his sensibilities shine through the film’s atmosphere, jumpscares, and frequently unnerving imagery.

 

Aside from that and a cameo-filled second act that just barely avoids wearing out its welcome, there isn’t much here that’s going to convince you to watch if you aren’t already on board with Marvel – or vice versa. The fight choreography is acceptable, the music is alright, and while the editing can be endearingly goofy at times, it’s all-around competent.

 

I’m a comic book fan, so of course I enjoyed it. But the thing about being a comic book fan is that you always wish that the movies made about your favorite characters go a bit further in terms of weirdness than they usually do.

 

It is in this regard that I’ve recently found myself being disappointed. Alas, in order to keep talking about “Doctor Strange,” I can’t talk much at all about other examples – otherwise I’d just end up listing off comic runs and ideas that I want to see adapted.

 

Sam Raimi does end up going weirder than most – the climax of the film relies on a conceit that is at once frightening, clever, and cool in perfect tandem. But ultimately the film still seems inordinately focused on setting up future movies or winking to fans.

 

This is especially notable in regards to the cameos, which are enjoyable in their own right, but end up feeling as if they’re simply there to generate online buzz. I’ve seen so much discussion about how this film is setting up “Secret Wars,” “Young Avengers,” and “Midnight Sons” that it makes me wonder if anyone even watches these movies to enjoy the movies themselves.

 

And in my humble opinion, if it is setting up any of that, then it’s not doing the best job. 

 

But in the end, I can’t hold the sins of its fanbase over “Doctor Strange” when it’s a perfectly competent movie bolstered by some of the more interesting creative decisions the franchise has seen.

 

The whispers that Sam Raimi taking a more hands-on approach than other directors has led Kevin Feige to take a similar approach for “Fantastic Four,” is excellent news – Marvel’s first family should be as weird as possible. And if I must talk about “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” in regards to how it reflects on the MCU going forward, it’s more positive than not.

 

So go see “Doctor Strange.” It’s probably not gonna change your life, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s boding well for the future.

 

B, temper your expectations the slightest bit

Promare - Burning through itself

 

Promare’s sense of visual style is perhaps best exemplified in the scene where the hero’s rival introduce himself by creating a throne made out of fire, leaning back on the throne with both legs spread and both arms on the arm rests in complete symmetry, and then immediately shifting his posture so as to lean on his right hand, clenched into a fist, as the camera zooms in on his face, the sound design and character animation giving each action a sense of impact not unlike that of a bullet being fired. 

 

This is immediately followed by a cut of him and his entourage being announced as “Mad Burnish,” by looming text. If the prospect of watching two hours of sounds like too much of an ordeal, then strap in, because it somehow gets even wilder.

 

Promare is the debut film of Studio Trigger, a Japanese animation studio known for their work on Kill la Killand Little Witch Academia. Directed by Trigger founder Hiroyuki Imaishi and written by Kazuki Nakashima, the film makes liberal use of many idiosyncrasies they have built up over their career; flashy aesthetics, fast-paced visual humor, larger-than-life characters, and a constantly escalating sense of scale. 

 

The story follows hot-blooded firefighter Galo Thymos and his encounters with the Burnish, humans who have developed the power to generate fire and a compulsion to use it to burn anything they can. Their leader, Lio Fotia, is a young man who leads them to avoid harming innocent people and fight the government that oppresses them.

 

While that summary may seem truncated, it is the only way to explain the film’s story without revealing anything major. Promare’s first hour is on turbo, starting the plot at a point in time where characters are acting as if they’re at the 30-minute mark of a conventionally paced film.

 

This is both a blessing and a curse, a blessing in that it keeps the film constantly moving and introducing new information, but a curse for the characters themselves. The cast simply does not have room to breathe and interact with one another in a way that feels natural. Especially Galo and Lio.

 

The first ten minutes of the movie give way to a fight scene so dynamic that the first hour seems to tire out afterwards. There are many low-energy scenes that imply complex relationships between the cast, but without any context behind their dynamics, they don’t carry much weight. It simply moves too slow and too fast in the wrong places. And for a film that prides itself on manic energy, that is a large problem.

A problem that also ceases to exist come the end of that first hour.

Promare spirals into absurdity in its second half, cutting away any remaining traces of conventional narrative structure. Action scenes become a constant, characters speak exclusively in yelling, and everything gets a dramatic entrance complete with equally dramatic captions. The rapid descent into madness makes up for the plot’s overall simplicity in a spellbinding way.

 

A jaw-dropping score from composer Hiroyuki Sawano backs all of this action. His ability to craft sweeping vocal tracks that perfectly accentuate Imaishi’s style of action is on full display, with Lio’s theme being a particular standout. If anything is worth the price of admission in Promare, it would be the music.

Promareis, at its core, a celebration of Imaishi’s work. It is a culmination of his directorial skills, and a testament to how well he can elevate seemingly nonsensical ideas through his manic sense of style. Although the weaknesses of the script keep it from reaching its full potential, it is still very much a watch. As an introduction to Imaishi’s style, or anime in general, it is about as perfect as can be.

 

C-

AI: The Somnium Files - A twisted tale for the discerning eye

 

I think I knew I was gonna like “AI,” the moment the main character saw himself in his disembodied robot eye and started hitting on himself.

 

“AI: The Somnium Files,” is a game from Kotaro Uchikoshi’s following the completion of his cult classic “Zero Escape,” series. It follows detective Kaname Date and his AI partner Aiba, who resides in his fake eye. The two are assigned to solve a homicide in which the victim’s left eye was removed, and find that it bears an uncanny resemblance to a serial murder case from six years ago.

 

Their investigation brings them into contact with Iris Sagan, a young streamer who seems to be the killer’s next target. However, there is only so much information they are able to glean through normal interrogation, and Date must make use of a device that allows him to dive into the dreams of various witnesses to find information they are either unwilling or unable to share. 

 

Much like Uchikoshi’s previous work, the plot is a sci-fi thriller visual novel with enough bizarre plot threads to weave a mile-wide blanket. The story reads like a combination of David Fincher’s “Zodiac,” and Christopher Nolan’s “Inception,” but with the tone of Edgar Wright’s “Baby Driver.”

 

While there isn’t much in the way of gameplay, the game delivers on all other fronts, offering a well-written narrative of deception, family, and really terrible puns. Despite ostensibly being a very dark story, the quality of the comedy on display easily makes it one of the funniest games I’ve had the pleasure of playing. In particular, the characters’ reactions to environmental details had me examining every object I could find if only for the possibility of hearing another joke. “AI,” knows just how to space these conversations out to hilarious effect.

 

A lot of this great comedy comes from the main duo’s dynamic. Date’s laid-back attitude is contrasted with Aiba’s dry observations of his many, many flaws, and his tendency to make the kind of groan-worthy puns and dad jokes that are endearing rather than embarrassing.

 

The game sometimes runs the risk of tonal whiplash considering the dark nature of its story, but Date has just enough of a genuine side to him that his emotional moments almost never feel forced when the tone gets serious. This is compounded by the plot’s ability to convincingly make every character seem like a suspect while still having the conclusion ultimately make sense.

 

Though the game occasionally gets very over the top, the characters feel just human enough that it never becomes an overwhelming issue. And the performances from Greg Chun and Erika Harlacher as Date and Aiba are a major part of this, being perhaps the best of their careers.

 

In terms of gameplay, most of “AI,” consists of rather standard point-and-click interactions, with a diverging plot and multiple endings depending on how Date handles his investigation. The branches come when Date must dive into the dreams of the witnesses, wherein he and Aiba have six minutes to bypass their various mental locks and find out what they know about the case.

 

The dream sections unfold as a set of puzzles for the player to solve, but unlike Uchikoshi’s “Zero Escape,” series, the puzzles here act off of each subject’s emotional logic rather than a set of defined rules. This helps to explain each character’s personal story alongside Date’s investigation.

 

While on the whole these dream sections are a welcome diversion from the normal investigations Date conducts, they aren’t perfect. The puzzles aren’t too difficult, but managing the time in them can sometimes be a bit annoying. It’s not enough to sink the experience, but some levels take the time management part of the puzzles to the extreme.

 

Although three of the game’s five story routes can be finished in any order, two can be accessed long before they can be completed, both of which include plot details that might make other sections of the game seem redundant. To this end, it is recommended to play them in a specific order, that being purple, red, yellow, green, and pink, indicated by their color on the in-game flowchart.

 

“AI: The Somnium Files,” is one of the best experiences I’ve had with a game in recent memory. Even if the puzzles are a bit easy, or the tone can get a bit too silly, or the ending has a bit too much exposition, the resulting game is still too charming to give anything but a glowing recommendation.

 

Rating: A

Tokusatsu - Why it's rad and where to start

 

I've been reading a lot of western comics recently, and a common feeling I get as I read them is that whenever I see these larger-than-life characters on the in live-action, I'm seeing a diluted version. Spider-Man is an excellent example. Raimi's movies are eminently enjoyable camp masterpieces, but there are certain toned-down elements of the works being adapted that I'm a bit more mixed on. Things like Peter Parker's darker elements being toned way down being the biggest one. It's far from the worst offender however, as The Amazing Spider-Man and its sequel demonstrate. While Peter Parker himself has a bit more of an edge, the amount of liberties taken with the source material mixed with odd examples of rigid adherence and generally weak scripting make for an overall confusing watch. And that's not even getting into the Marvel Cinematic Universe and all its various characters. While I'm no big MCU detractor, and in fact appreciate how it's brought some of the source's more bizarre elements into the forefront, there's no denying just how many sanded-down edges there are all around.

Wouldn't it be great if there was an ever-expanding universe of live-action superheroes where I didn't have to worry about adaptational changes? That wore its darker elements and more zany elements on both sleeves simultaneously?

Look no further than the live action tokusatsu shows that Japan has been pumping out for over a decade. While these series are a bit of a commitment at an average length of 45 episodes, there's a lot of great content here that you might just miss out on.

These shows have a lot to offer from their unique comedic style, themes, and cool suits. Those suits are doubly cool because they're always real suits. Not to knock on CGI costumes, but it's just so satisfying to never be in doubt as to wether or not what I'm watching has any physical weight to it.

Now, I could bore you to death with an extensive history of the industry and how it developed, but that's a task unto itself. This is a recommendation. And I'm not suggesting it as an alternative to any of the big western superheroes. Think of it as a supplement and companion piece. After all, if you're enough of a trivia hound, you probably know how much DNA they already share.

Now let's start by covering the two Shotaro Ishinomori-created series you're probably going to be watching if you have any interest in this genre. I'd like to talk about Ultraman, but that's an entire topic of discussion unto itself. So without further ado... 

Kamen Rider

Kamen Rider is a series that started out with a simple premise: a college-age motorcyclist named Takeshi Hongo gets turned into a cyborg by Neo-Nazis, escapes their capture, and uses his powers to beat up said Neo-Nazis. It was weird, campy,  and a cultural phenomenon that has endured in Japan to this day. If you've seen a parody of Japanese superheroes, chances are it's a direct reference to Kamen Rider. And that's not even getting into how easy it is to find people sneaking its transformation poses into their work.

Rider is a good starter course for toku not simply because of how iconic it is, but because of the variety of content on offer. Each season, while it may reference previous ones here and there, is decidedly its own thing, with its own hero, supporting cast, and villains. The only exception to this is Kamen Rider Black RX, the maligned sequel to the fan-favorite Kamen Rider Black. The series is also organized in a notable way. There are specific eras of Kamen Rider, Showa, Heisei, and Reiwa, each roughly based off the imperial era in which a certain Rider debuted.

Showa shows are decidedly camp in an almost 60's Batman way, but only in a visual sense. While these shows can definitely get weird and crazy, their plots are told with utter sincerity, and can broach some rather surprising subject matter considering the intended age group they were made for. And when explicitly adult-oriented variants like Shin Kamen Rider emerged, it veered into straight-up horror.

Heisei shows started out continuing this trend with the premiere of Kamen Rider Kuuga, a reboot that saw its hero, Yusuke Godai, fighting a group of ancient monsters who went on surprisingly brutal killing sprees in each episode. Two years later, Kamen Rider Ryuki made the bold decision to place its cast of Riders in a battle royale, which would end up becoming the norm as the series progressed.

However, it was the premiere of the massively popular Kamen Rider Den-O in 2007, which would end up steering the series future in a new direction. Comedic and zany with marketable monster sidekicks, Den-O was still genuine and emotional, but also generally more cartoonish and family friendly. Now, its predecessors were, even at their darkest, still prone to many of these same elements, but never quite to this extent.

For reference, 2004's Kamen Rider Faiz starts out on perhaps the single bleakest first episode of any children's show I've ever seen.

While not all shows after it would be quite as comedic as Den-O, and it didn't even immediately result in an overt shift to a less serious style of storytelling. However, with the start of the Heisei era's second half, the Neo-Heisei era, things would quickly change.

From here on, Rider not only gets lighter and brighter, it also gets louder. The iconic transformations of early eras definitely weren't subdued, but with even more complex designs and an ever increasing roster, they often sound delightfully cacophonous. And this trend has generally continued into the Reiwa Era, and the most recent season, Kamen Rider Revice.

So where should you start? There's a couple paths you could take.

Ichigou

You could try the original classic Kamen Rider, or Kamen Rider Ichigou as he's commonly known. It's the first series, and easily one of the most iconic. As previously mentioned, this follows Takeshi Hongo as he fights the Neo-Nazi cabal, Shocker for thirteen episodes until the actor's broken leg required them to replace him for about a third of the series. This series establishes many of the running motifs of the series, particularly the tendency for the hero to fight evil by turning its own power against it.

Kuuga

If that vintage style just isn't your thing however, you could try out Kamen Rider Kuuga, which manages an extremely delicate balance between light and dark tones exceptionally well. The series follows Yusuke Godai and his not-boyfriend, police officer Kaoru Ichijo, as they hunt down a group of monsters whose bizarre rituals result in several family-unfriendly civilian casualties. Thankfully, Godai's new magic belt seems to be helping him do that, but it also might be turning him into something just as monstrous.

Fourze, W, and OOO

If the lighter tone of Neo-Heisei sounds up your alley, you could try the first three series of that era, W (Double), OOO, and Fourze back to back. They're all some of the strongest seasons ever produced and serve as a great vertical slice of tonality for this era.

W tells the story of Shotaro Hidari and his omniscient not-boyfriend Philip as they run a detective agency together while combining into Kamen Rider W to fight monsters. Check this one out if you're into a little light detective fiction

OOO follows Eiji Hino and his not-boyfriend Ankh, a greedy monster who grants Eiji the power to turn into a Rider in order to wipe out his fellow greedy monsters. This season is notable for being one of the most thematically dense of the entire franchise, featuring a vibrant supporting cast and a surprisingly mature mediation on both the danger and necessity of desire. And for the anime buffs out there, it's one of the many toku shows helmed by Yasuko Kobayashi, writer for the adaptations of Attack on Titan and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.

Fourze is, surprisingly, one of the only Kamen Rider shows about a high-school superhero, following Gentaro Kisaragi as he attempts to befriend every student and teacher at his new school, even if most of them are monsters in hiding. This is another super-lighthearted one, possibly even moreso than Den-O, but it's also scripted by Gurren Lagann and Kill la Kill writer Kazuki Nakashima.

But if you're looking for a contemporary take, there is another option.

Zero-One

Kamen Rider Zero-One follows failed comedian Aruto Hiden as he is simultaneously forced into superheroics and inheriting his grandfather's robotics company in order to prevent a robot uprising. This show boasts incredibly strong action, endearing characters, and some surprising social commentary on how the working class are viewed as tools by the upper-class.

Now, there are far more starting points you could choose from. My first Rider was Ex-Aid, the video game themed season. If you're still curious, just watch a henshin compilation on youtube and watch whichever show looks the coolest, even if it's one of the more reviled shows by the fanbase.

But of course, Kamen Rider is only one series of tokusatsu juggernauts. Now it's time to talk about its sibling...

Super Sentai

Created in part because someone at Toei realized that having a team of superheroes inherently increased the amount of toys you could sell, Super Sentai is primarily known as that one show that inspired Power Rangers. Now, where to start with Rangers is a whole other ballgame entirely. This context does however give me a lot less explaining to do since you've likely at least heard of Power Rangers and understand its conceit: multicolored heroes fighting bad guys, bad guy blows up, giant robot fight.

This is adapted pretty faithfully from Sentai, as are the plots... sometimes. Sometimes you get shows like Time Force, which are adapted almost shot-for-shot and beat-for-beat from their originator, and sometimes you get RPM, which turns the largely comedic Go-Onger from a wacky vehicle-themed romp into the post-apocalypse from The Terminator because Disney was about to sell the rights to Power Rangers and probably weren't paying attention to what their showrunners were doing.

Either way, Sentai follows a similar developmental track to Rider, though with the caveat that despite being a younger series, Kamen Rider's hiatus in the 90's means that there are even more shows in Sentai. It's also generally lighter in tone than Rider, which, and I cannot emphasize this enough, is not an indictment of it whatsoever. It doesn't make it shallower, worse, or even less appreciable, it's merely a stylistic distinction. There is also a bit less plot variance in terms of setup for this franchise, most of them boil down to "evil army is attacking, here's five or so guys who can stop it," with the main variance being the team's dynamic and personalities. But make no mistake, they're not interchangeable.

So where do you start? Well that's a bit more difficult.

The Gorengers

Himitsu Sentai Gorenger (Secret Squadron Gorenger) is the first series, and helped to establish the franchise's staple elements, however, it isn't quite as highly regarded as its counterpart, Ichigou is for Kamen Rider. It's a fairly basic "save the world" story, following five survivors of a massacre on an anti-terrorism organization called EAGLE as they fight yet another Nazi-themed evil organization: the Black Cross Empire. There are definitely more interesting places to start however.

The Livemen

"My friends, why have you sold your souls to the devil?!"

Those words, sounded before the theme song of episode, eternally remind viewers of Choju Sentai Liveman (Super Beast Squadron Liveman), of the murder that kicks off the story, and of how its effects permeate the rest of the series.

The first series to feature a female blue ranger, Liveman is one of the heavier entries, following three teenage science prodigies who witness their classmates kill their friends in cold blood. Years later, when the killers return as members of an evil cult, leveling their old school grounds for good measures. Our heroes don their suits in order to fight back against them, and hopefully bring them back to their senses.

Definitely on the darker side of things, Liveman is a bit of a heavy watch compared to other entries in the series. Of course, it's not humor-averse, but the commentary here, directed at elitist Japanese education standards, is surprisingly grounded as far as these shows go.

The Megarangers

Now, maybe you're nostalgic for the Mighty Morphin' days and want some teenagers with attitude. Maybe you want me to tell you to watch Zyuranger so that you can see what it was like for the Japanese audience?

Well first off, Zyuranger wasn't about high school, it was about ancient dinosaur warriors awoken in modern Japan fighting a Satanic witch. And second, while Denji Sentai Megaranger (Electromagnetic Squadron Megaranger) is not the first example of a high-school oriented Sentai series, it is probably my personal favorite.

The series follows a high school computer club who, due to being in the wrong place at the wrong time, are forced to take up the role of superheroes after they're given experimental suits to fight invaders from another dimension. While its companion Power Rangers In Space was a space opera, Megaranger is a bit more grounded and focused on the importance of guiding younger generations towards a better tomorrow. It's further bolstered by a take on high school that's far more grounded than Mighty Morphin' ever was. If the latter was what I believed high school was going to be like for me, Megaranger is more in line with how it actually went.

The Magirangers

Mahou Sentai Magiranger (Magical Squadron Magiranger) is notable for being one of three series to be a "family Sentai." In other words, all of the primarily members are siblings, and only one of the additional members isn't related to them.

Like most of the previously mentioned series, Magiranger follows similar beats of an invading evil army, but the context behind the powers granted to the heroes, a gift from their mother before she's imprisoned by their enemies, lends a bit more emotional weight to their struggle. The series follows the Ozu family as they not only fight evil, but attempt to adjust to life without their mother and being forced to rely on each other in ways they previously hadn't needed. This is a more lighthearted one, and it's clearly cribbing off that one magic-themed book series that shall not be named, but the cast's familial chemistry is both believable and engaging, and it has what might be one of my favorite mid-season additions to a team in any of these series.

The Gokaigers

Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger (Pirate Squadron Gokaiger), is an anniversary season, celebrating thirty-five years of Sentai with a bit of a shakeup to the premise.

In this series, all previous Sentai teams have used up all of their power to defeat an invading alien force called the Zangyack, scattering their essence into the cosmos.

However, a group of space pirates has discovered the Ranger Keys containing said power, and returned to earth in order to track down "the Greatest Treasure in the Universe." Initially unconcerned with actively fighting the Zangyack, their journey brings them into contact with various other Sentai heroes, all of whom are played by their original actors, which is something tokusatsu tends to be very anal about. Characters are almost always tied to specific actors, this is a primarily live action genre after all. So the fact that they were able to get so many back is incredible.

And this has narrative weight to it, each cast member guiding the Gokaigers towards genuine heroism. This can be a bit intimidating, after all, it almost reeks of the overly complex lore that permeates western comics. But it's surprisingly approachable and enjoyable even if you're a Sentai neophyte.

So there, those are the best series for starting out your toku binge, at least as far as Kamen Rider and Super Sentai are concerned. Again, you should start wherever looks most interesting to you, these are obviously my picks as filtered through my own biases. But trust me, there's an entire world out there you're missing if you decide to pass these shows up. Yeah they're campy, yeah they're made for kids, but hey, at Hideaki Anno can't get enough of them, and if he can go on to create and direct some of the most influential pop culture of all time, you're probably fine.

Hitman: The World of Assassination Trilogy – The perfect stealth game

I'm not going to act like I'm a stealth game detractor who was won over by Hitman's recent reboot series. I greatly enjoy games like Metal Gear Solid or Dishonored. But what enthralls me about IO Interactive's Hitman is not that it does stealth well, though it does stealth very well.

No, what really draws me to it is how it makes me want to be stealthy. Something not even those excellent alternatives have managed to this extent.

Hitman is in this respect, to stealth games as Devil May Cry is to action games: a culmination of mechanical refinement that gives way to unmatched player freedom for approaching the game's various challenges. Hitman 2 dropped for free on PS Plus this year and I was sucked in so bad that I immediately caved and bought the entire trilogy shortly after.

The game follows Agent 47, a contract killer employed by the mysterious International Contracts Agency (ICA) for the purpose of assassinating various high-profile targets as covertly as possible. The trilogy follows him as he uncovers his forgotten origins and the dark truths behind the leaders of the ICA... and it's fine I guess.

To be frank, the best story moments do not come from anything related to the game's main plot. But I'll get to that in just a second. Really, the plot is just an excuse to travel around the world while working out how to take out a series of contemptible targets in the most ironic, hilarious, or devious ways possible.

The game is structured around individual locales like Italy, China, Japan, and Morocco, with various types of designs structured around the targets and their domains. Dweller targets will stay in a specific location without much complex movement, while Roamers will wander about, often in public areas.

They can be found in two types of domains, fortresses, and what the developers call, "snail houses with swiss cheese." Fortresses have tight, heavily-armed security and are frequently made up of non-public spaces. Snail houses, as explained by Game Maker's Toolkit's exceptional Hitman 2 video, are areas with obvious visual pathways that guide the player in a spiral like a snail's shell, but with Swiss cheese-like holes that allow experienced players extra navigation options.

One of the absolute best levels in the trilogy, a racing event in Miami, is a great vertical slice of these elements. One target, Robert Knox, dwells in a heavily guarded office while the other target, Sierra Knox, starts off in a car, racing on a track, before roaming around the stands and VIP area, a snail house area with plenty of holes to exploit.

You have a variety of options at your disposal in order to take these targets out. You could very well just hide in a bush and shoot your target in the head from afar, but that's a bit anti-climactic, isn't it?

You could try one of the many mission stories that guides you through a series of events that will lead to a satisfyingly flashy murder opportunity. Or you could take a look at the challenges and try all the hilarious kill opportunities like spiking Sierra's flaming drink with nitro fuel that sets her on fire when she lights it.

But really, the World of Assassination trilogy is just constantly preparing you for a perfect run, and in this regard, it succeeds better than any stealth game I've ever played. So what is a perfect run?

Well, one of the major gameplay aspects is the disguise system, which affords 47 access to specific areas depending on what clothes he's wearing. You can find outfits lying around or steal them from unconscious or dead NPCs. It won't mean you're above notice, certain enemies will see through your disguise if you linger too long, but it's an absolutely vital tool for most runs, especially for accessing fortresses.

But this just means you're mostly just hiding in plain sight, right? Don't most stealth games emphasize avoiding sight at all?

That's where the SASO run comes in.

Silent Assassin Suit Only (SASO) runs form the basis for Hitman's ultimate challenge: kill only your targets without being detected, without leaving obvious traces of your actions, and without changing out of the suit you started the level in. Oh, and if you're a glutton for punishment like me, do it on Master Difficulty where you only get one save opportunity to scum rather than the generous infinite amount lower difficulties grant you.

These runs require intimate planning and multiple prior runs through a level to prepare. You need to have an intimate knowledge of how to navigate a level, map out routes through restricted areas that keep you out of sight, learn how to lure guards away from their posts, and know which kill opportunities you can even perform under all these circumstances.

All of these unique pressures make SASO runs as exhilarating to perform as any high-level action game's toughest bosses.

And the game has plenty of great playgrounds to perform these assassinations in. In addition to Miami, there's the murder mystery stylings of Dartmoor, a New York bank, a stylish technologically advanced inn in Hokkaido, a Dubai high-rise, a Paris fashion show, and an Italian town built over a bioweapons lab.

Each level has a beautiful exterior that contrasts heavily with the criminal element hiding just underneath, and the variety of missions you'll be given is also appreciated. The level in Italy requires 47 to dispose of a deadly virus, Hokkaido requires him to assassinate a patient undergoing surgery, who is under unbreakable surveillance, and the Berlin level has a unique premise so good I dare not risk spoiling it.

Really the only flaw in the game is that the Colorado level is one of the single worst gaming experiences I've ever had. The area has no public spaces whatsoever, relegating a suit only run to only the most masochistic of players. But on top of that it offers very little variety in terms of internal locations or kill opportunities.

Ultimately though, the average Hitman map is designed better than many entire games, and the wide variety of side activities like kill contracts or escalation missions help to put new limitations on the player's assassination attempts.

But perhaps the most unexpected surprise of the package was Agent 47 himself. The deadpan humor derived from his very existence never failed to make me burst out laughing. 47 is out of place no matter what outfit he wears, and yet he's barely ever found out even when speaking directly to people who know the individuals he's impersonating. And that's not even mentioning his ability to pull out various skills like massaging, yoga instruction, cooking and drumming at the drop of a hat. Or his penchant for morbid double entendres.

Or you know, just straight up giving a house tour wherein he notes how useful various rooms would be for setting up assassination opportunities while impersonating a realtor.

David Bateson's performance as 47 turns him from a pure avatar of death into the protagonist of a black comedy, effortlessly bouncing off his delightfully hatable targets in every level.

I'll admit, I may not have been a detractor from stealth games, but I was a detractor from the kind of high profile release that Hitman's reboot falls under. While the series started out a bit rough, the place it has ended up with the trilogy complete is a triumph.

I'm eagerly awaiting IO Interactive's pass at a James Bond game. But it'll probably be hard to top the ones they've already made.

A+, Good work, 47

Mashle: Magic and Muscles - A well-toned takeoff

 

Webcomic artist ONE took the world by storm in 2009 with the crudely-drawn viral hit “One-Punch Man. This led to a redrawn comic with art by Yusuke Murata and an internationally successful TV series.

 

The high-concept of a superhero that comically invalidated all evildoers with a single blow was so accessible that inevitably, at least a few future works would seem like obvious derivatives.

 

With that being said, Hajime Komoto’s “Mashle: Magic and Muscles” is “One-Punch Man” by way of “Harry Potter.” The main character even resembles Mob from ONE’s second most famous work, the superlative “Mob Psycho 100.”

 

That’s probably all you need to know in order to tell you whether or not this sort of comic is worth your time, but perhaps a bit more explanation is in order.

 

Mash Burnedead, in addition to possessing one of the most comically cool names I’ve ever heard, has been sheltered all his life from a society wherein magic is commonplace and determinant of one’s standing in society.

 

The reason being that he is unable to use magic, which marks him for death by the powers that be. But when he is discovered by and attacked by the Bureau of Magic’s enforcers , they quickly find that what Mash lacks in magic is more than made up for by his muscles.

 

His feats are so unbelievable that they may as well be magic themselves.

 

As a result, Mash is offered a chance by the head enforcer to attend the prestigious Easton Magic Academy and become a Divine Scholar, a religious position that will grant Mash the power to upend the laws of his society. Mash accepts, and proceeds to utilize his inhuman physiology to fake his way to the top of his class.

 

Despite the world it presents being a eugenics-based dystopia, “Mashle” is very much a comedic story. Mash is even more deadpan than ONE’s heroes, but also far more easy to push into a tranquil fury.

 

The methods by which Mash uses his rippling bod to fake magic are so absurd from the get-go that one might think the comic loses steam as it goes on, but it only escalates. Mash begins the series by basketball dribbling spells and by Chapter 15 is punching house-sized monsters into orbit.

 

And that doesn’t even cover all of the other insane wizard aspirants he has to compete with. This gives “Mashle” a surprisingly engaging action element that syncs perfectly with the comedy.

 

If there is a flaw however, it primarily comes down to the aforementioned similarities “Mashle” has with other works. The execution of the tropes it borrows is good, often exemplary, but it leaves others feeling half-baked.

 

This is especially felt in the side cast, who don’t have much going for them compared to Mash. Though ultimately it’s a testament to how enjoyable Mash is as a character that he’s able to carry this series on his chiseled back.

 

In many ways it is unfair to any series to judge it relative to its potential influences, but Mashle’s similarities to ONE’s works and “Harry Potter” almost feel like overboard. 

 

However, added details like exchanging the sorting hat for a unicorn’s skeleton ultimately mean that I prefer this wizarding world overall. It feels more idiosyncratic, which also opens up more freedom in absurd visuals for the comedy.

 

The art is a great help in this regard, though it may not look like it at first.

 

Many of Komoto’s early drawings are rather simple, even when they’re strikingly composed, but he improves rapidly. His grasp on action posing and comedic flow is some of the best I’ve seen from a recent comic.

 

In the end, Mashle could be called derivative, but what works about it works so perfectly that it still ends up being profoundly readable.

 

B, a marvelously magic mash up 

No More Heroes III - Welcome to the Garden of Insanity

 

Goichi “Suda51” Suda is a developer with such a diverse lineup of titles to his name that any attempts to categorize him quickly fall apart. He’s worked on arthouse cult hits such as “Killer 7,” puzzle games like “Flower, Sun, and Rain,” and visual novels such as “The Silver Case,” all while maintaining a dedicated following.

 

However, his most famous project by far has been the “No More Heroes” series, and now, Suda has decided to cap it off with “No More Heroes III.”

 

Does it work? Sort of.

 

“No More Heroes” follows the story of Travis Touchdown, an assassin with a bad attitude and a mean beam katana. Over the course of the previous games, Travis has been humbled, become a father, and has become slightly less of a human disaster, but is put to the test in “III” by a sudden alien invasion.

 

Led by Prince Jess Baptiste VI, AKA FU, the aliens ravage Travis’ hometown of Santa Destroy and institute a “Galactic Superhero Ranking” that Travis has to cut his way through until no more heroes remain.

 

To do this, Travis must navigate a city so bizarrely constructed that at times it feels like a joke. Santa Destroy has combat challenges and collectables galore, and blazing through it on Travis’ “Akira” style motorcycle can be fun, but not much of it feels all that rewarding. The best open worlds encourage exploration, but this one could not feel more superfluous.

 

The combat fares better in this regard, this time structured as a series of individual challenges based on differing combinations of distinct enemy types. Levels preceding a boss are applied rarely and irregularly, and when they do appear, they can radically shift the genre. Examples include a first-person horror section and a musical chairs battle – complimented by gorgeously eclectic visuals.

 

The combat itself feels more refined than the two previous games, though I do miss Travis’ variety of beam katana types, especially the Rose Nasty twin blades. New moves such as Travis’ brutal dropkick and time dilation make them a bit more strategic than the slugfests of previous games.

 

Encounters and bosses are generally well designed, though when playing on higher difficulties the luck-based nature of combat can become apparent. Sometimes you’ll struggle to get through one phase, then other times you’ll be given the opportunity to do back-to-back suplexes on your foes until they die.

 

In regards to the story, its biggest weakness is how much it feels like a part of a larger whole. This is mainly in regards to “Travis Strikes Again,” which catalyzes Travis’ development from killer nerd into a something resembling a hero, though it’s far from the only example. Characters from other Suda51 properties show up constantly, and at times it’s actually rather difficult to sift through all the in-jokes. This is on top of all the other references piled on top of that. Suda’s love of wrestling, Takashi Miike movies, and giant robots are not merely worn on the game’s sleeve, they’re basically the entire jacket. 

 

Oh, and the constant “Kamen Rider” references - from Travis referring to himself as a “passing assassin” a la “Decade,” to his geeking out about one of his battles being held on a set from the show, to a Rider-style superhero suit being a gameplay mechanic.

 

But that sort of manic, unfocused energy is kind of the fun of the series. And thanks to Travis’ excellent vocal performance courtesy of Robin Atkins Downes, both the meta humor and his journey’s end land convincingly.

 

In this regard, “No More Heroes III” is triumphant in how it caps off Travis’ story.  Seeing him go from an antisocial loser to a hero with a purpose, no matter how much prior context is needed, is eminently satisfying.

 

Even if his best idea for consoling a grieving woman is to recommend her old anime.

 

B-,  A flawed paradise, but I suppose that fits