Sunday, December 17, 2023

Movie Review: Chicken Run 2: Dawn of the Nugget

Movie Review: Chicken Run 2: Dawn of the Nugget                                                                 12-15-23

Set some time after the escape from Tweedy’s farm, Ginger and Rocky now have a fledgling of their own: An energetic free-spirited daughter named Molly. Molly yearns for adventure beyond the island they live on, even though humans eat chickens. When Molly escapes the island and gets put on a truck to a new chicken farm, it’s up to Ginger and the gang to rescue Molly before she gets made into chicken nuggets.

Even though Chicken Run 2 has a plot too similar to other animated movies in the market, it makes up for it with outstanding animation, new voice acting that sounds identical to the original, and a score from Harry Gregson-Williams that expertly mixes old music with the new.

Mack has finished building a replica of the new chicken farm.

If I were to complain about one thing, however, I don’t like how Fowler is treated in this movie. In the original film, Fowler served as the foil to Rocky the Lone-Free Ranger. Yes, we would ramble about his RAF days, but he also had some leadership in his giblets. In Chicken Run 2, however, Fowler feels more like a rooster version of Abe Simpson.

Fowler making conversation with a snail.

In conclusion, while nowhere near as outstanding as the original, Chicken Run 2: Dawn of the Nugget is still a lot of fun for those who loved the original or are just big Aardman fans.

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Saturday, December 16, 2023

Pokemon Around the World: Paldea Edition Part 3

 Hi, everyone! With the releases of the Pokémon DLC (downloadable content) The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk, it would only make sense to do another Pokémon Around the World article. First up are two Pokémon leaked earlier this year, Walking Wake and Iron Leaves!

Walking Wake is an ancestor to Suicune, and is Water/Dragon like Kingdra, Palkia, and Tatsugiri. I distributed this Pokémon to North America, but it went extinct about 100 million years ago.

Next up is Iron Leaves, a futuristic relative to Virizion. This Pokémon is Grass/Psychic like Exeggutor, Celebi, and Calyrex, and is said to slide open trees and boulders. Just like other Future Paradox Pokémon, I made Iron Leaves man-made: Similar to Iron Valiant, it has been designed to fight in hand-to-hand combat.

Next is Dipplin, a new evolution to Applin. After being exposed to a Syrupy Apple, Applin evolves into this odd Pokémon. Despite looking identical to Applin, Dipplin is actually bigger than Applin, since it's actually made of two of them. I imagine that, about 150 years ago, Applin were brought to America by Carnies and had syrup accidentally spilt on them. This caused Applin to evolve into a new Pokémon: Dipplin, since it's an Applin that got dipped in syrup.

Next up are Poltchageist and Sinistcha, Grass/Ghost-Type lookalikes to Sinistea and Polteageist. Polthcageist is basically a small pot of matcha (a Japanese tea),but when exposed to an old Teacup, it evolves into Sinistcha. Since these Pokémon have roots in Japanese lore, I decided to distribute these Pokémon to the Land of the Rising Sun.

Next up are a trio of Legendary Pokémon that managed to defeat the powerful Grass-Type Legendary Ogerpon (more about her later). First up is Okidogi, an ill-tempered Poison/Fighting-Type canine that can pulverize anything with its chain. Because of this, I decided to ban Okidogi.

Next is Munkidori, a Poison/Psychic-Type primate with powerful ESP. Much like Poltchageist and Sinistcha, I distributed Munkidori to Japan.

And last, but not least, is the Poison/Fairy-Type avian Fezandipiti. This Pokémon can scatter pheromones to that can captivate people and Pokémon. I distributed this Pokémon to Australia, since there are quite a few poisonous birds found there.

Next is Ogerpon, a Grass-Type ogre that can be either part Water, Fire, or Rock depending on the mask it wears. It may look scary, but Orgerpon without her mask (yes, it's a female) looks rather cute.

Anyway, I decided to ban this Pokémon because of how dangerous and powerful it can be.

Remember Duraludon, a Steel-Type dragon from Generation 8? Well now, it can evolve into a new Pokemon, Archaludon. This Pokemon is so powerful that it can dig through mountains, and its lasers are also said to be powerful. Because of this, I decided to ban Archaludon.
After learning the new move Dragon Cheer, Dipplin evolves once more into Hydrapple. There are said to be at least seven 'syrpents' living in Hydrapple's apple, with the one popping out being the leader. I decided to distribute this Pokémon to India, where it lives in the country's jungles.
Remember how Suicune had a prehistoric ancestor? Well, it appears that Entei and Raikou have one too! First up is Gouging Fire, an ancestor to Entei that was Fie/Dragon like Reshiram and Turtonator. I distributed this mighty beast to North and South America, where it would hunt Slaking 1 million years ago.

Next is Raging Bolt, an ancient relative of Raikou. While Raikou is pure Electric, Raging Bolt is Electric/Dragon line Zekrom and Dracozolt. Because this Pokémon has the power to destroy everything around it with lightening launched from its fur, I decided to ban Raging Bolt.

Next is Iron Boulder, a futuristic relative to Terrakion. While Terrakion is Rock/Fighting, this Pokémon is Rock/Psychic like Lunatone and Solrock. I distributed Iron Boulder to American rodeos, where it gives a whole new meaning to mechanical bull rides.

Next is Iron Crown, a futuristic relative of Cobalion. This Pokémon is Steel/psychic like Metagross, Bronzong, and Jirachi, and is able to launch shining blades to cut everything around it to pieces. I distributed this Pokémon to major lumberjack companies, in which they use Iron Crown to cut down trees.

Next up is Terapagos, a Legendary Normal-Type turtle that is responsible for the Terastal phenomenon (in which a Pokémon can temporarily change it's Type during battle). With its ability Tera Shell, it has a resistance to every single type. However, this only happens when Terapagos' HP is full. Anyway, I distributed this Pokémon to oceans around the world, though it doesn't stay in one place.

And finally, there's Pecharunt, a Poison/Ghost-Type fruit that can control people and Pokémon with its mochi. In the same fashion as Mew, Celebi, Jirachi, and Keldeo (among others), Pecharunt cannot be caught in the games without, Arceus forbid, hacking. Anyway, I decided to distribute this Pokémon to secluded forests in Japan.

Well, that wraps up Pokemon Around the World for now! Very soon, I will upload my review of Aardman's latest feature film, Chicken Run 2: Dawn of the Nugget!

Saturday, December 2, 2023

New Script Announcement

Any of you familiar with The Animal Show with Stinky and Jake? In case you're not, I'll tell you. The Animal Show was a Muppet show that ran from 1994 to 1998, and was a talk show hosted by a wise polar bear named Jake and a childlike skunk named Stinky.
Each episode would feature two animal guest stars that would share something is common. For example, an owl and an octopus appear in one episode because they have great eyesight. As well as Stinky, Jake, and the numerous guest stars, other characters on The Animal Show include Bunnie Bear, Jake's cousin who serves as a foil to the pessimistic chickenhawk Armstrong....
Tizzy, a CGI honeybee who hosts a quiz twice per episode...
And Yves St. La Roche, who is best described as The Swedish Chef as a cockroach. Unlike the Swedish Chef, however, Yves can actually talk.
Every episode from seasons 1 and 2 have been uploaded onto The Jim Henson Company's YouTube family channel, which will be provided in the link below.
Anyway, I decided to tell you about The Animal Show because I decided to do a reboot season of The Animal Show featuring new animals that have not been featured on the show, such as a poison dart frog, ptarmigan, platypus, and tuatara. For new characters, I'll once again have Emmy Pflugh design them. This reboot season will have 22 episode scripts, but halfway through, I'll take a break to work on another Pokémon project.
The first episode, Chameleon and Flounder, will be uploaded January 4th.