Month: September 2024

RIP to the King, James Earl Jones

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , ,

RJ Writing Ink Reacts to the Passing of James Earl Jones

D&A Anime Blog focuses on anime, but that doesn’t mean that we’re not fans of other things. Before I discovered anime, one of my favorite pastimes as a little kid was watching movies on my parents sizeable VHS collection. And two things that I loved to watch were Star Wars and the many, many animated films from Disney. Imagine my surprise years later when I learned that James Earl Jones, the man whose voice brought Darth Vader to life, voiced Mufasa in The Lion King. My mind was blown!

That just made it twice as hard on me earlier this week when I heard that he had passed away at the age of 93.

James Earl Jones Was a GOAT

James Earl Jones wasn’t just one of the GOATs; he was a king. His career spanned seventy years, and in that time, he played roles in every entertainment medium. By the time George Lucas chose him to provide the voice that would make him a legend, he had already been acting in Shakespeare and Broadway for two decades, and he had thirteen years in film under his belt to boot. And when he spoke, it didn’t matter if he was a doctor, a navy admiral, an actual king, or the Dark Lord of the Sith. People would stop what they were doing and listened to him. That deep voice of his just had this magnetism to it that made people want to listen to what he said.

The funny part thing is, he used to have a stuttering problem as a kid. It wasn’t until he discovered the theater that he managed to overcome it. And thank heavens he did, because the world was made so much better for it.

But it wasn’t just his voice that made Jones a king in all but name. It was the way he presented himself. He gave off this air of being confident yet humble, wise but also approachable. He had the presence of a king, which showed in almost every role he played. If you were to tell me that he had been a king in a past life, I wouldn’t doubt that. That’s the kind of presence that he had, and it’s what made him one of the greatest actors of all time.

JEJ Will Live on in AI Voice

And, for better or worse, his voice in his most famous role is going to live on after he’s gone. And that’s because he wanted that.

In 2022, James Earl Jones made the decision to retire as the voice of Darth Vader. At the same time, he understood how important his voice was to making Vader who he was. So, he decided to let a Ukrainian-AI company have the rights to his voice as Darth Vader. That means they can legally use his voice for as long as they want. That doesn’t seem like much of a comfort, especially with using AI to recreate voices is considered controversial, but it’s what he chose.

This is the third time this year that I’ve had to talk about a celebrity I care about dying on this blog, and that can get to me. It doesn’t help that I do think that Toriyama and Rachael Lillis were gone too soon. Heck, James Earl Jones was 93 and I still think it was too soon for him to die! But death eventually comes for all of us, and while it may hurt, we shouldn’t let that hold us back. James Earl Jones left behind an incredible legacy, one that’s going to be remembered for decades, maybe even centuries after we’re all gone. So, while I’m going to be taking time to mourn, I think it’s more important to look at how much of a positive impact he had on the world. And when the time comes for us to celebrate Star Wars 50th anniversary and the remaining cast and crew reunite for the inevitable spectacle that will come from it, I know James and those who passed on will be there in spirit.

Rest in peace, King. You have earned it.

I Like Fairy Tail. Change My Mind!

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Fairy Tail: Hundred Year Quest Initial Series Review

When it comes to Shonen series, depending on who you’re asking, Fairy Tail is either pretty famous…or pretty infamous. People have criticized Hiro Mashima’s best-known work for many things over the years. Things like having too much fanservice in it and not enough character depth. How it uses the power of friendship to let its characters bs it’s way through situations they shouldn’t survive. And, my personal favorite, how it’s One Piece if Oda didn’t care.

Having read Fairy Tail for years, and spent as much time reviewing Mashima’s next series, Edens Zero, I can honestly say the criticisms are valid. That said, that doesn’t stop me from loving the series like a guilty pleasure. And when I found out that the sequel manga, Hundred-Year Quest, was getting an anime this summer, I knew I had to watch it. I’m glad I did, because the series is as fun as ever.

Fairy Tail’s Greatest Adventure Yet

It’s been one year since the wizarding guild Fairy Tail and their allies defeated Zeref and Acnologia, and resident Fire Dragon Slayer is going on his greatest adventure to date. Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Erza, Wendy, Happy and Carla travel to the continent of Guiltina to take on the Hundred-Year Quest, a quest so dangerous that none have completed it since wizarding guilds began. It soon becomes apparent why. The quest involves finding the Five Dragon Gods, defeat them, and seal away their powers. And each of them has strength on par with Aconologia. Needless to say, Team Natsu has its work cut out for it.

Meanwhile, back at Fairy Tail, a new member named Touka joins the guild, and she’s crazy for Natsu. But there’s something off about her…

I Like Fairy Tail and you Can’t Change My Mind!

I want to reiterate this: I’m well aware of the criticisms surrounding Fairy Tail. And I will not deny them. I’ve spent years reading the work of Hiro Mashima, and as good as he can be, he’s no Oda, Araki, Kishimoto, or Toriyama. Granted, Kishimoto has had his own problems writing female protagonists, but that’s besides the point. But even with all these faults, I still love Fairy Tail, and here’s why.

Firstly, I love the series sense of humor. It could do a little bit better when it comes to how deep it makes some of its characters, but when it comes to being funny, Mashima knows what he’s doing. The titular guild is a haven for rowdy, chaotic, but good-natured people who love life, adventure, and testing each other. In fact, whenever I’m feeling depressed about life, one of my first instincts is to look up a video of Fairy Tail and watch them do the funniest stuff. Say what you want, but they always bring a smile to my face.

The second reason I like Fairy Tail is simpler: the dub is good. When Funimation first started dubbing the series fifteen years ago, they spared no expense when it came to talent. If you look at the cast list for the english dub, you’ll see that it has a lot of voice actor’s that were either already successful or have become successful in the time since then. And they do a good job at playing their roles. The way they deliver some of their lines is enough to get a laugh out of me.

Lastly, the show’s got some great music. Full stop.

So, yeah, I like Fairy Tail despite its faults, and I’ve been eagerly watching the dub for Hundred-Year Quest. And on the subject of whether it’s good or not, this is all I have to say: it feels like the series never left us, and I’m sure plenty of fans feel the same way.

I don’t know how long the new series will run for, but frankly, I don’t care. I’m just glad that Fairy Tail has come back to us after almost five years of waiting. It was worth the wait, and it steps back into the world of the series so seamlessly, you’d barely recognize that it had left.

Verdict: I’m Watching it, and So Can You!

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Is Coming!

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Sonic The Hedgehog Movie , , , , , , , , ,

RJ Writing Ink’s Reaction to First Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Trailer

It took an entire season’s worth of waiting, but our patience has been rewarded. The first Sonic the Hedgehog 3 trailer is out, and the fans are overjoyed. Considering what we got in the stinger for the last film, we have every right to be overjoyed. We’re getting Sonic Adventure 2!

Sonic Adventure 2 is the GOAT. Change My Mind

Sonic the Hedgehog’s video games have varied in quality over the years, but most can agree that the original games on the Sega consoles were peak. And the best of them all was, arguably, Sonic Adventure 2. The opening level is one of the best in video game history, the music is filled with absolute bangers, and the darker and more mature storyline still holds up well. That, and you can’t tell me that final boss fight is the definition of awesome. Needless to say, our expectations for this film are pretty high. Thankfully, this first trailer has done an excellent job of demonstrating that it’s going to work hard to meet them.

From the outset, the trailer makes it clear that, like its prequel, Sonic 3 won’t be a beat-for-beat adaptation of the video games. While that shouldn’t be too big a surprise, I did like how Sonic’s role in the film is initially reversed from the game. Instead of being on the run from GUN, they’re being smart and asking him for his help stopping Shadow. But as the trailer makes painfully apparent, Team Sonic is still being prepared for Shadow. And as the trailer continues, things only get worse.

Shadow is Not a Joke

Shadow might be mocked online and called an edgelord and the hedgehog version of Vegeta, but as the trailer takes great pains to remind us, he’s still super dangerous. It doesn’t make it clear if Shadow is an artificial life-form like in the games or if he’s another alien like Team Sonic, but if it’s the latter, then it only makes his status as Sonic’s anithesis all the more apparent. Whereas Sonic found friends and acceptance on Earth, Shadow’s backstory remains in full effect for the movie. And if you played the games or saw the videos, you know how bad that is.

And yes, the rumors were true: Keanu Reeves is voicing Shadow.

Even better, though? Dr. Eggman is back!!

JIM CARREY IS BACK!!!

After Sonic 2 came out, Jim Carrey claimed that he seriously considered retiring from acting after bringing Dr. Robotnik to the big screen. And I don’t blame him. After being one of the big-name comedic actors in the 90s and 2000s, the man almost fell off the grid. His playing Eggman was his best role in years! I put it up there with Ace Ventura and The Mask for him! I would be sad if he wanted to retire, but understand he’d like to end things on a high note. Thankfully, not only is he coming back, but he’s also playing another character that I don’t think anyone expected.

None of us know why Gerald Robotnik is still alive in the film, but it’s a pretty big twist, considering what he does in the video games. Plus, it gives Jim to show off by playing alongside himself. And, his Gerald Robotnik reminds me of when he played the Grinch, but without that weird Sean Connery lisp.

I don’t know why Paramount and Sega decided to wait until less than three months before the film comes out to release the trailer, but they do a good job of making up for lost time. I follow many people in the entertainment industry on social media, and many of them are as excited about this film as the rest of the fans. However, it will be going up against Disney’s Mufasa in the box office. I love The Lion King, but I have yet to see the need for the CGI remake or this prequel. So, let’s ensure that Sonic blows that film out of the water! After that, we can worry about whether Paramount should make more Sonic movies.

Also, if the climax doesn’t have “Live and Learn” then I’m gonna so mad!