"Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves"
May. 22nd, 2023 11:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
matt_zimmerAlso reviews for the latest episode of American Dad!, the comic book miniseries The Dark Tower Treachery, and the comic book One-Shot The Dark Tower: The Sorcerer.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Favorable review. These are new characters, so I don't need to do this huge deconstruction of their arcs, other than to say I liked them (particularly Chris Pine's character). I think the biggest reason I liked it was because it was enjoyable. I love The Lord Of The Rings movies, but man, those are a freaking slog. Not only are they long, but they take things SO freaking seriously.
And the problem was the last time Dungeons & Dragon had a movie was it was TOO silly. It devolved into camp. And I think the fact that this movie's tone is more modeled on the first three Phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is right. It's fun, it has jokes, but the story is serious enough to have actual stakes too. And I think that's how popcorn movies SHOULD be. You can have jokes in a movie, and have it be enjoyable, without lowering the stakes or turning it into a slapstick comedy. It's weird Marvel itself is currently struggling with that. But as seen here it's still pretty much an effortless thing to do.
There is a tag, but it's a joke tag, which I approve of. I must be alone in disliking the Marvel tags. I wish each of those films were permitted actual endings and allowed to finish telling THEIR stories instead of teasing the future of different movies in the continuity. I came to watch the movie. I did not sign up for a lifetime commitment. And this is speaking as someone who watches all of those movies and even the Disney+ TV shows. I like closure in my stories. And it's especially frustrating not getting it because most of the Marvel tags don't even pimp future outings of the same franchise. None of those endings to those movies feel like they belong in those movies. And they've gotten me off on quite a tangent in this review, haven't they?
Speaking of the joke tag. The five questions thing was the proper use of comedy in a big budget action picture. It's silly, but doesn't actually break the reality of the Universe. I don't personally find that a difficult needle to thread in my own writing, but I guess it must be considering how much stuff actually struggles with it.
The guy Hugh Grant played turning out to have betrayed them all was the least surprising thing ever, although just based on how insincere Grant played him making that promise, it was also set up well.
Choosing to save the woman at the end played by Michelle Rodriguez was the right narrative choice and made the stakes and sacrifice genuine. Again, not as impossible as much of fiction makes it look, but it's actually rare, so maybe I'm crazy.
I looked for Gary Gygax's name in the credits and didn't see it, even as a "special thanks". It's weird that Futurama acknowledged his influence in their Dungeons & Dragon stuff, and an actual Dungeon & Dragons movie acts like it's down to Hasbro, and is a corporate toy franchise on par with Transformers or Lego instead of a passion project from a single creator. I don't like that fact.
But the movie itself is quite charming. I would not mind seeing these characters again, or even an entirely new cast set in the same continuity. I enjoyed it. ****.
American Dad! "Stan Fixes A Shingle"
The ending didn't come together. It's a good premise (and the song was great too) but I didn't feel the resolution was anything special.
Robert Wuhl and his potato salad. He's a good sport.
For the record, Gallagher DID actually die during the production of this episode so it's in poor taste. On the other hand in his later years he turned into a conspiracy theory crank and polluted his comedy shows with his toxic opinions, so screw him. The episode actually acting like he was ever funny is higher praise than he actually deserved.
I love Lewis calling Billy "our weird monster kid". Is there actual love in that statement? Maybe. It's a whole lot less impersonal than referring to him as THAT weird monster kid.
The shingle thing is random and unfunny which is why it's charming. Naming the episode after it is why American Dad is quirky and weird, as is making it an entire C story.
All right, but it didn't close strong. ***.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 1 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 1
I sort of see the point of the resentment of the rest of the gunslingers in training. I actually don't think it's fair that Alain and Cuthbert were awarded their guns without the trial either. The risk of exile to me is the most important part of the trial. No matter WHAT they accomplished in Mejis, getting their guns without ever having that specific thing hanging over their heads isn't actually fair. Granted I don't think it's actually fair ANY of the students have that hanging over their heads, but that's another story. ***1/2.
Injured Hawks And Failed Gunslingers
And here's the other story. Robin Furth again points out that the all-or-nothing gunslinger trial is completely counterproductive and merely results in Gilead creating its own worst enemies. The thing that bugs me is this should be self-evident and this has still been the custom for centuries.
The essay is preceded by the Gunslinger Litany as are all the essays in this volume. ****.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 2 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 2
I like Aileen Ritter and how she refuses to forget the face of her mother in her version of the Gunslingers Litany. Cool. ****.
Women Of Mid-World And The Cult Of Oriza
About the Patriarchy of Mid-World.
Furth neglects to mention the best and baddest-assed part of Lady Oriza killing Gray Dick at the dinner with the sharpened plate: She did it entirely naked. That's a pretty huge detail to leave out especially because it speaks to what a pig Gray Dick was for insisting that as a condition for the meeting, and what a warrior goddess Oriza was for remaining unflappable during the encounter anyway. "May your first day in Hell last ten thousand years, and may it be the shortest," is also a totally hardcore thing to tell someone you are about to kill. ***1/2.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 3 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 3
Not much interested me in this part. **1/2.
The Shadow Of The Rose
This is almost assuredly an origin story for the Little Sisters of Eluria. ****.
The Long Road To Treachery
Weird to put a recap at the end of the comic's third issue, but okay.
King Connections Of Note: Take note: although not written by Furth, Marten Broadcloak is called "Flagg" and "The Walkin' Dude", his aliases from "The Eyes Of The Dragon" and "The Stand" EXPLICITLY for the first time in the supplementary material. ****.
Issue Overall: ***.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 4 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 4
I love Cuthbert telling Roland he loves him always looking on the bright side. Yup. That's Roland all right.
The rest of the story was cool too. ***1/2.
The Manni, The Tower, The Touch And The Rose
This reveals that "There are other worlds that these" is a Manni phrase. Which suggests Jake had The Touch all the way back during "The Gunslinger". Interesting.
King Connections: Todash space (as seen in "The Mist") is only briefly mentioned, but the concept of twinners, introduced in "The Talisman" and "Black House" is explored more fully in this essay than it ever was in the Dark Tower books themselves. ****.
Issue Overall: ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 5 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 5
Aha! We finally are getting the story about the musician Cort reportedly murdered for cheating at the Fair-Day Riddling contest! He's Farson nephew. Explains a lot.
And Charles' death proves John Farson is the biggest bastard in Mid-World. Even Marten uses the light touch compared to him.
It was good, but Charles death WAS upsetting. ***1/2.
Regicide, Poison Gardens, And The Training Of Apprentice Gunslingers
Guide to some of the poisons of Mid-World. Many of these can be found in OUR world too.
King Connections: Dragon's Sand is from "The Eyes Of The Dragon", and the land of Garlan from that book is again mentioned.
Fascinating read. *****.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 6 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 6
Devastating (but inevitable) ending.
Weird they didn't point out that the dude CHEATED at the Riddling contest. Winning it was the least of his sins in Cort's mind.
I like that one of the riddle answers was a raven and a writing desk. And the answer is described as obvious.
Ah, what might have been between Roland and Aileen. Aileen is only briefly mentioned once in the first book (also as Roland's potential intended) but I like the role she is given in the comics.
That last page killed me. ****1/2.
Mid-World Fairdays And Mid-World Riddling
Hearing what makes a good riddle (the changing of human perspective) is super fascinating, and the essay gives us several good riddles too. *****.
Issue Overall: *****.
The Dark Tower: The Sorcerer 1 (Marvel Comics)
Marten Broadcloak as Merlyn's bastard offspring from the moon Goddess Selina? Yes, please. Also yes to the idea that the Wizard's Rainbows are his siblings and he was having sex with his sister, the Grapefruit. Equally dramatically juicy is his anger that the Grapefruit killed Gabrielle Deschain. It sounds like he actually loved her, but his sister was properly jealous of that fact. Great notion.
King Connections: "Randall Flagg" and "The Walkin' Dude" are explicitly named as Martin for the first time in the comic itself. The alias Rudin Filaro is mentioned in the comic for the first time too. Delain is also from "The Eyes Of The Dragon".
Long-awaited and worth the wait. But because "The Wind Through The Keyhole" retconned SO much of the comics, does that mean Walter O'Dim's origin story here ALSO takes place on a different level of the Tower? That idea is both possible and frustrating. *****.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Favorable review. These are new characters, so I don't need to do this huge deconstruction of their arcs, other than to say I liked them (particularly Chris Pine's character). I think the biggest reason I liked it was because it was enjoyable. I love The Lord Of The Rings movies, but man, those are a freaking slog. Not only are they long, but they take things SO freaking seriously.
And the problem was the last time Dungeons & Dragon had a movie was it was TOO silly. It devolved into camp. And I think the fact that this movie's tone is more modeled on the first three Phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is right. It's fun, it has jokes, but the story is serious enough to have actual stakes too. And I think that's how popcorn movies SHOULD be. You can have jokes in a movie, and have it be enjoyable, without lowering the stakes or turning it into a slapstick comedy. It's weird Marvel itself is currently struggling with that. But as seen here it's still pretty much an effortless thing to do.
There is a tag, but it's a joke tag, which I approve of. I must be alone in disliking the Marvel tags. I wish each of those films were permitted actual endings and allowed to finish telling THEIR stories instead of teasing the future of different movies in the continuity. I came to watch the movie. I did not sign up for a lifetime commitment. And this is speaking as someone who watches all of those movies and even the Disney+ TV shows. I like closure in my stories. And it's especially frustrating not getting it because most of the Marvel tags don't even pimp future outings of the same franchise. None of those endings to those movies feel like they belong in those movies. And they've gotten me off on quite a tangent in this review, haven't they?
Speaking of the joke tag. The five questions thing was the proper use of comedy in a big budget action picture. It's silly, but doesn't actually break the reality of the Universe. I don't personally find that a difficult needle to thread in my own writing, but I guess it must be considering how much stuff actually struggles with it.
The guy Hugh Grant played turning out to have betrayed them all was the least surprising thing ever, although just based on how insincere Grant played him making that promise, it was also set up well.
Choosing to save the woman at the end played by Michelle Rodriguez was the right narrative choice and made the stakes and sacrifice genuine. Again, not as impossible as much of fiction makes it look, but it's actually rare, so maybe I'm crazy.
I looked for Gary Gygax's name in the credits and didn't see it, even as a "special thanks". It's weird that Futurama acknowledged his influence in their Dungeons & Dragon stuff, and an actual Dungeon & Dragons movie acts like it's down to Hasbro, and is a corporate toy franchise on par with Transformers or Lego instead of a passion project from a single creator. I don't like that fact.
But the movie itself is quite charming. I would not mind seeing these characters again, or even an entirely new cast set in the same continuity. I enjoyed it. ****.
American Dad! "Stan Fixes A Shingle"
The ending didn't come together. It's a good premise (and the song was great too) but I didn't feel the resolution was anything special.
Robert Wuhl and his potato salad. He's a good sport.
For the record, Gallagher DID actually die during the production of this episode so it's in poor taste. On the other hand in his later years he turned into a conspiracy theory crank and polluted his comedy shows with his toxic opinions, so screw him. The episode actually acting like he was ever funny is higher praise than he actually deserved.
I love Lewis calling Billy "our weird monster kid". Is there actual love in that statement? Maybe. It's a whole lot less impersonal than referring to him as THAT weird monster kid.
The shingle thing is random and unfunny which is why it's charming. Naming the episode after it is why American Dad is quirky and weird, as is making it an entire C story.
All right, but it didn't close strong. ***.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 1 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 1
I sort of see the point of the resentment of the rest of the gunslingers in training. I actually don't think it's fair that Alain and Cuthbert were awarded their guns without the trial either. The risk of exile to me is the most important part of the trial. No matter WHAT they accomplished in Mejis, getting their guns without ever having that specific thing hanging over their heads isn't actually fair. Granted I don't think it's actually fair ANY of the students have that hanging over their heads, but that's another story. ***1/2.
Injured Hawks And Failed Gunslingers
And here's the other story. Robin Furth again points out that the all-or-nothing gunslinger trial is completely counterproductive and merely results in Gilead creating its own worst enemies. The thing that bugs me is this should be self-evident and this has still been the custom for centuries.
The essay is preceded by the Gunslinger Litany as are all the essays in this volume. ****.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 2 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 2
I like Aileen Ritter and how she refuses to forget the face of her mother in her version of the Gunslingers Litany. Cool. ****.
Women Of Mid-World And The Cult Of Oriza
About the Patriarchy of Mid-World.
Furth neglects to mention the best and baddest-assed part of Lady Oriza killing Gray Dick at the dinner with the sharpened plate: She did it entirely naked. That's a pretty huge detail to leave out especially because it speaks to what a pig Gray Dick was for insisting that as a condition for the meeting, and what a warrior goddess Oriza was for remaining unflappable during the encounter anyway. "May your first day in Hell last ten thousand years, and may it be the shortest," is also a totally hardcore thing to tell someone you are about to kill. ***1/2.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 3 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 3
Not much interested me in this part. **1/2.
The Shadow Of The Rose
This is almost assuredly an origin story for the Little Sisters of Eluria. ****.
The Long Road To Treachery
Weird to put a recap at the end of the comic's third issue, but okay.
King Connections Of Note: Take note: although not written by Furth, Marten Broadcloak is called "Flagg" and "The Walkin' Dude", his aliases from "The Eyes Of The Dragon" and "The Stand" EXPLICITLY for the first time in the supplementary material. ****.
Issue Overall: ***.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 4 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 4
I love Cuthbert telling Roland he loves him always looking on the bright side. Yup. That's Roland all right.
The rest of the story was cool too. ***1/2.
The Manni, The Tower, The Touch And The Rose
This reveals that "There are other worlds that these" is a Manni phrase. Which suggests Jake had The Touch all the way back during "The Gunslinger". Interesting.
King Connections: Todash space (as seen in "The Mist") is only briefly mentioned, but the concept of twinners, introduced in "The Talisman" and "Black House" is explored more fully in this essay than it ever was in the Dark Tower books themselves. ****.
Issue Overall: ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 5 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 5
Aha! We finally are getting the story about the musician Cort reportedly murdered for cheating at the Fair-Day Riddling contest! He's Farson nephew. Explains a lot.
And Charles' death proves John Farson is the biggest bastard in Mid-World. Even Marten uses the light touch compared to him.
It was good, but Charles death WAS upsetting. ***1/2.
Regicide, Poison Gardens, And The Training Of Apprentice Gunslingers
Guide to some of the poisons of Mid-World. Many of these can be found in OUR world too.
King Connections: Dragon's Sand is from "The Eyes Of The Dragon", and the land of Garlan from that book is again mentioned.
Fascinating read. *****.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: Treachery 6 (Marvel Comics)
Treachery: Part 6
Devastating (but inevitable) ending.
Weird they didn't point out that the dude CHEATED at the Riddling contest. Winning it was the least of his sins in Cort's mind.
I like that one of the riddle answers was a raven and a writing desk. And the answer is described as obvious.
Ah, what might have been between Roland and Aileen. Aileen is only briefly mentioned once in the first book (also as Roland's potential intended) but I like the role she is given in the comics.
That last page killed me. ****1/2.
Mid-World Fairdays And Mid-World Riddling
Hearing what makes a good riddle (the changing of human perspective) is super fascinating, and the essay gives us several good riddles too. *****.
Issue Overall: *****.
The Dark Tower: The Sorcerer 1 (Marvel Comics)
Marten Broadcloak as Merlyn's bastard offspring from the moon Goddess Selina? Yes, please. Also yes to the idea that the Wizard's Rainbows are his siblings and he was having sex with his sister, the Grapefruit. Equally dramatically juicy is his anger that the Grapefruit killed Gabrielle Deschain. It sounds like he actually loved her, but his sister was properly jealous of that fact. Great notion.
King Connections: "Randall Flagg" and "The Walkin' Dude" are explicitly named as Martin for the first time in the comic itself. The alias Rudin Filaro is mentioned in the comic for the first time too. Delain is also from "The Eyes Of The Dragon".
Long-awaited and worth the wait. But because "The Wind Through The Keyhole" retconned SO much of the comics, does that mean Walter O'Dim's origin story here ALSO takes place on a different level of the Tower? That idea is both possible and frustrating. *****.
