Neophyte-Ronin's movie Reviews on Newgrounds

[Super Nothing]

Good!

I don't see any major problems with this funny flash. But there may be just one: the resolution. It seemed as though Super Nothing did, in fact, nothing, to save the day (save offering the Fat Master an ice cream cone).

The voice work is superb, especially that green guy (that looks terribly close to Alien Hominid, by the way, and also sounds like Gollum from The Lord of the Rings movies). Few people actually manage to do four voices convincingly and have them variate well enough to be believable.

I hope you're planning on making more of these.

[Sheik's a woman?]

You're a N00b? (Could've fooled me...)

This is downright funny. We realize the little blonde dude in the green pajamas didn't mean any harm, but geez...

First of all, it may be short, but it's sweet, with excellent key-frame technique. Second, the sound is crisp and clear. Finally, the thing is flat-out funny. People will keep saying those three things until they're lucidly ingrained into your head.

You're no N00b--this establishes you as a non-N00b, and I bet you'll end up at the head of a major collaboration. Care to work with my buddy Helbereth sometime?

[The Real Mortal Kombat 1]

Well-Written, Poor Sound and Editing

Scorpion is now on the front page--about time, huh? This will be a series no doubt--thanks to the positive response from the audience, the witty writing, and concept, but some issues ought to be addressed before principle production begins on later installments.

First, the sound. The voices are okay (though Scorpion doesn't sound tough enough), but the volume is terribly LOW. The mixing is poor, to be frank.

Second, the pacing is slow--this often ruins comedy, which thrives on timing. If there's dead air, or minimal action or dialogue, slice it out as much as possible. The introduction drags. Perhaps a lack of proper sound editing is partially responsible.

However, the strongest points: Scorpion (the likely "star"), solid screenplay, and reality television-oriented concept, shine through. In any case, you have my approval, if you can improve.

[Review: Alien vs Predator]

You Waited Nine Months?

That was poor to do, waiting for all that time. I hope your next episode with Senya stays current. I saw a silly movie called "Be Cool" starring John Travolta that's a roast in itself, but has enough celebrity glamour to be riddled with bullet holes from Senya!

In essence, this is a hoot--firmly in line with Legendary Frog's trademark. The sound is muffled somewhat, but the pace is tight enough to feel like a truly polished cartoon (look into submitting this to a studio). BOE and "The Frog" make an exceptional team.

Now about Senya and Ark, Mr. Blanchette: when will you work on the Galactic War Saga? I mean, the Chibi comedy of your leads is fun, but I bet you're ready to unleash your "Masterpiece." However, given your current reputation, it might be safer (and downright cool) to revise the epic with mischevous comic flair. It's only a suggestion--don't take it to heart--but one of these days, they're going to light a fire under your butt to try something truly spectacular!

["target practice" W.W.W]

I Cracked Up... It's Golden!

Many might feel offended, but they're blowing steam. I got offended by Jeff Weises' original flash, since he went through with his delusions. I felt more sick by that than from anybody's parody of anything. This flash tickled me somewhat.

Go ahead and hate me. The kid is in hell for not dealing with his plight in a constructive fashion. Don't go easy because of his background; it mirrors various stories about growing up. He didn't. Some people, living and dead, deserve to be offended.

I still sympathize with the wretch. On many occasions, I wanted to kick tons of ass (not kill anyone, but ensure they're awake and in pain). My reasons were strikingly similar to the guys behind the Colombine shooting, as well as Jeff. Colombine was a kick in the face, or revelation, to let go of the grudges, breathe life into what I truly held dear, and move on--a difficult transition, but completed.

As for the flash, the key-frame style mirrors the original and contains a lucid enough message. The sound quality is good, too.

[TmsT's Zero Wing Rhapsody]

Excellent Concept Plagued by Midi Limitation

"Too Much Spare Time" places a smile on everyone's face with the concept of "Zero Wing Rhapsody." However, the limited Midi sound and poor voices slice the score in half. Still, the concept is valid.

Queen is considered "operatic rock"; melodrama plays a key. The flash achieves this visually, but not vocally. Voices fall short of exaggerating the emotion for Queen. It seemed "TMST" "held back," and many will pick up on it.

This must be Midi, but I could be wrong. Whatever was used succeeded with the piano, but not the heavy riffs required during Cats' head-banging sequence. That spoiled the fun.

These seem trivial as a weakness, but they're hard to overcome. Flash artists who aren't musicians borrow from media collections, which works for Newgrounds but few official venues. Worse, studio recording requires hourly fees, and this site's flash artists refuse to shell out money for projects than what's deemed "standard" or "necessary." Going solo has it's share of disadvantages.

However, the sound is clear, so that counts, and the spoof is a cool concept supported by excellent visuals. If the sound gets a spontaneous overhaul, a second "All Your Base" craze won't be far off.

TmsT responds:

Midi limitation was intentional, yes, even the crappy guitar riffs - see original Zero Wing animation; the singers had never encountered these AYB lyrics before and had no rehearsal; nice review though - excellent english tarnished only slightly by a misused apostrophe and a few too many quote marks to sound not-sarcastic.

[Kingdom Wars 3]

Excellent Concept!

A serious short with sprites? Don't make me laugh. No, literally, don't make the people laugh, because this flash is seriously good!

One thing that I thought of as cool was the Hans Zimmer soundtrack, an excellent composer and selection of tunes for setting the mood in a melodramatic war epic. The script, while occasionally stale, shines through in its timing and cinematic sleekness. This tale is in a compact file size, clocking eight minutes of showtime with a good mixture of dialogue and action. And since it is fully 8-Bit retro, that adds to its charm.

Continue with your fourth part (the end of the series, I imagine?) and never be a stranger with other projects in flash at Newgrounds.

hrechkaness responds:

thanks. I'm glad u noticed the Hans Zimmer soudtrack other then the fact that i had it in the credits lol But yeah it was hard to find fitting music for this movie and sry for the stale script at parts im not the greatest writer and was sort of rushing the ending. Don't wory there will be many more flash projects from me at Newgrounds

[FF: Mixed in Balamb2(2/3)]

I Stand Corrected

A stellar improvement over the previous installment, the Mixed in Balamb series transcends the issues of design that made me skeptical about the series' power. The 5-7 team gracefully achieved better results with proper comic timing and expanded the number of cameos of game characters, making for a feast of fandom praise.

I can't wait to see the conclusion, and I certainly can't wait for the official Episode 3. Whatever you have been doing has been planned exceptionally well--something you don't see in flash production so often. Hence, I have to apologize if I sounded harsh before. Keep up the good work.

Oh, and remember to create a recyclable library of images to work with (so you don't need to create so much from scratch all the time). People complain to Legendary Frog about this, but the finest cartoonists embody that technique's best success stories.

Toonimated responds:

:D
yep, we didn't use our library drawings as often, thanks for noticing, just trying to make it better :).

[TmsT's "Up Skit Creek"]

Without a Paddle and Still Gets There... Somehow

This flash compiles unrelated skits that would receive low ratings individually (the quality isn't constant, I'm afraid), with silly, split-second transitional material. Here is a play-by-play rundown:

#1: Washing the glasses of a jerk hitting you up for money after he cleaned your windows without being asked--priceless. (4/5)

#2: Like the creature, the skit drags on too long. (2/5)

#3: If clowns acted like Slipknot fans, they would deserve that... (2/5)

#4: This one rocks. It has nothing to do with the guy's saber. (5/5)

#5: While the pun is genuinely funny, it lacks taste, and the "d00dspeak" reference was simply lame. (3/5)

#6: As a concise, biting study on animation forms and political correctness, this stands on its own without the obligatory underestimating of President Bush's intelligence. (4/5)

#7: I thought it was about Star Wars for a moment... (3/5)

#8: The classic music used for 2001: A Space Odyssey did nothing to empower this worthless skit with its inflated sense of grandeur. (0/5, because even without the Pope being involved, the gag isn't funny enough!)

Overall Score: 3/5. Most are viewed with a grain of salt, while #1, #4, and #6 are the viewer's best bets.

TmsT responds:

Thanks for the ... "review", Mr Cowell, but I would be able to take it a lot more seriously if you were commenting on the movie itself, and not just writing up a list of spoilers for some unfathomable reason. If you didn't like certain parts in it, that's fine. I don't expect you to.
But don't ruin the enjoyment for the *vast majority* who otherwise do. Someday you'll understand, when your obvious cleverness leads you to release movies and have thousands of adoring fans too... a cleverness about which I am starting to have serious doubts considering that among your favourite scenes were the two weakest ones (Crossing and 9/11).


Thank you.

[The Price of Pixels]

Kind of Gross... Mildly Poignant... Very Funny!

Never one to rest on his laurels, Jeremy Lokken of Rainbow Animations, once again, snipes bitterly at a small fragment of the Newgrouds crowd that gets all the attention and leaves the rest of us with societal stigma. Some things in this flash are completely unnecessary as they are inappropriate, but could the flash be done in quicker time without such gags?

The animation and voices (deliberately poor) hit the subject matter right where it hurts. It is short, painful, and funny at the same time. However, don't expect this to be Mr. Lokken's crowning achievement--a four out of five.