MORE ON MY X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE EXPERIENCE

More on my take on the Wolverine movie…

I watched this movie last night with my driver and his 16 year old daughter. They weren’t too familiar with the X-men story, and that is the point I am going to try to make with this.

While this movie may be a good one for the Wolverine/X-men fan, if you don’t know much about the comic then there’s a lot that wouldn’t make sense to you about this movie. My driver’s daughter could barely understand why Logan and Victor were still alive after fighting in almost every major war in the Us and the world. The movie just assumes you know about mutants and you don’t wonder why some of the characters have superpowers and where those powers came from.

This is sort of a conundrum for me. For the fanatics who defend the movie, they would argue that for me to enjoy the movie, I would have to shut up about how it was different from the comic and just take it as it is. However, if I disregard the comic, then I would have to watch this movie as if I previously knew nothing about it, in which case a lot of things, like the existence of mutants wouldn’t make any sense at all.

And if I leave behind everything I know about the comic and just watch the movie, then the movie just isn’t good enough for me. I have seen the black ops put in the shelf and the remnants killing off all the old members thing one too many times. Was I really surprised that Sabretooth and Striker had a deal going? Even if I wasn’t reading Wolverine, that was pretty damn predictable. Even Gambit being the only one who escaped from the secret lab and showing Wolverine the way back is so “The Rock” as in Sean Connery’s movie in the 90’s. And of course… Weapon XI’s all-your-powers-into-one soldier has been so done to death, how many anime and videogames have we seen that before? Even Megatron did that over 20 years ago in TF Generation 1 when he took weapons from every Decepticon so he’d kick Optimus Prime’s butt in an “honorable duel”.

And Wolverine's claws all hot and red from Weapon XI's optic blast... while pretty awesome, has been done somewhere before. I've seen the predator do that in Scwarzenegger's movie with the blade attachment in its arm... it heats it up using the laser sighting on its shoulders... sort of like a hot knife through butter thing...

But again, in defense or in fairness to the movie, the Wolverine story is quite old. So I am not saying it ripped off other movies or plots. It’s just that I have seen it all somewhere else before. The simple point is this… you can’t really watch this movie and say forget everything you know and do not expect anything. Rather, you have to have some sense of familiarity and prepare yourself for how some things are different and some stayed the same, and somewhere in the between, have a great time.

Lastly, did you ever wonder why Wolverine's claws seem to NEVER have any blood stains of them, considering they go in and out of his arms all the time and each time, the skin rips open? Anyone who watches CSI knows that a knife, when used as a stabbing weapon, has blood stains or even small particles on it. Wolverine's claws seem to be clean all the time. Does the blood slide off because the claws are like non-stick teflon? Hey, I'm nitpicking here...

MY WOLVERINE MOVIE BUBBLE BURST... THANK GOD FOR HEALING FACTOR

It took a while but I finally had free time and circumstances finally gave me the chance to catch this movie. I went and watched guaranteed seat at SM Megamall Cinema 1 last night. Gee. When was the last time I watched a movie? I didn't know tickets were this expensive now! P180 a pop, and the popcorn and soda I bought weren't cheap either. I bought a Coke 500 and 2 bags of popcorn and it cost me P210. Oh my...

I read some reviews by my friends about this movie before I went, and so I had an idea what to expect. But as per my EX's advice, throw your expectations out the window and it won't disappoint you THAT much. Other reviews I read were raving about it so much that they watched it over half a dozen times. Well, I won't be doing that with this one, at least not on the big screen.

It may also be good to point out that I didn't go into this one armed with my stock knowledge of the X-men storyline, a comic book line I have been reading for years. I had boxes and boxes of X-comics, and Wolverine is definitely one of the coolest characters in my book. Not to mention that over the years, the X-men storyline has been remade and retold so many times with so many different animation series, I barely remembered which were the original. It's as if I was like Wolverine himself, not knowing which part of what he remembers is real.

The movie itself was pretty good, at least better than the X-men trilogy which I hated. It didn't have a lot of boring parts, lots of action in this flick. I expected no less since Wolverine does more with action than talking. I didn't have too many complaints on the casting. They all did pretty well. When you watch a comic-turned-movie like this, you tend to nitpick a lot about who they picked to be who. Wolverine looked like Wolverine, if you can forgive the actor's height, he's got everything else done right. Kikiligin ka pa when you hear him say his famous line "I'm the best at what I do." Deadpool is right on the mark, he is still as funny as he is in the comic... although the actor seemed to deliver some lines too familiar with his character in Blade Trinity, who is also the comic relief in the said movie. Other memorable characters like Agent Zero, the Blob, Cyclops, and Silver Fox were also well-casted.

Aside from Logan [why the hell did they give him the name "Jimmy"?], 2 other characters that stuck in my mind made it to the movie... the first one being Gambit. I disagreed with some friends of mine who said his role was too small. Gambit had a whole story altogether, if they delved into that too much, I think the movie would've taken a different direction. As much as I liked him in this movie, he is one of those non-faves of mine, the kind that is so cool and prominent that you just have to include him, but you wish they included other characters that you like more. To me, Gambit is one of those overexposed characters in the mainstream X-Universe... I guess I saw too much of him when I watched the animated series in the 90's that I got sick of him. In Looney Tunes, Gambit would be like Sylvester, Bugs, Daffy, Tweety, Taz, Marvin or Porky... They just have to be there but you wish some other characters made it.

Which brings me to my favorite X-character... SABRETOOTH! Even when I was reading X-men over 10 years ago, I always liked Victor better than Logan. That wrestler they casted for him in the first X-men movie was terrible compated to this one. At first, I was skeptical with his new actor... I saw this guy in CSI [he filled in for Grissom when Gris went on a sabbatical] and he was the guy in the Manchurian Candidate. But he did it pretty well. I always found Sabretooth to be menacing, big, almost maniacal, cold-blooded... and he was like that in this movie. And how cool is having Wolverine and Sabretooth fighting on the same side?

I still remember Sabretooth's picture in the comic that got me into thinking he is the coolest villain Logan could ever face. In my TPB copy of the Wolverine Saga, there was a part about how Wolverine found Silver Fox dead, and Sabretooth owned up to it. He wasn't in his costume yet. He was wearing something that lumberjacks usually wore. His face had all that hair and that evil grin... that look that gave you the feeling he just raped a woman, killed her, and ate her! Not to mention that they had a fight in that bar [which was used in the movie], Logan got his ass kicked! Unlike Logan, Sabretooth is naturally tough, he wasn't fused with adamantium, and that is why I like him more. But enough of that, I am not trying to put Wolverine down... point made, not necessarily taken...

The only one minor complaint I have with the movie is that part where he finds Silver Fox supposedly dead, he holds her in his arms and shouts loudly with his head tilted upwards, and the camera taking an overhead shot. For me, napaka-baduy at overused na nito. Ilang beses ko na yata itong nakita, pati sa local shows like ABS-CBN's Lobo and Sana Maulit Muli. Mahilig sila dyan sa mga sustained "nooooo!!!" na yan. I think even Barry Allen did that with his dead brother in the TV series of The Flash.

It was a great experience watching this movie and I will definitely buy the DVD, unlike the X-men Trilogy. If you guys still haven't caught this one, you might still be able to. But Angels and Demons is taking over in the cinemas pretty quickly.

PREMATURELY BURSTING MY WOLVERINE BUBBLE

PICTURED ABOVE: Wolverine & Sabretooth toys I bought in Toys R Us 3 years ago. My how time flew. Halos di ko na makita yung blog post ko where I posted these pics. Wala lang, just to prove na hindi ako nakikiuso porke may pelikula sya ngayon...

Hindi ko pa napapanood ang Wolverine movie ni Hugh Jackman. May deadline ako this tuesday at may gagawin pa ako sa sunday [sisimulan namin ng driver ko na maglinis ng kalat dito sa kwarto at sa kwarto ko sa itaas]. Malamang, kung papalarin, next sunday ko na ito papanoorin, at kung may oras, pati ang Star Trek.


I am a big Wolverine fan... Kumpleto ako sa digital comics nya, Meron akong Essential Wolverine volumes 1-3. Wolverine Saga 1-4, at napakadaming comics, graphic novel at TPB tungkol sa kanya. Yung pagka-forbidden love nila ni Mariko Yashida [I have the TPB version] was one of my old favorites dahil nung panahon na yun, yung girlfriend kong Koreana eh pinagkakait din sa akin ng pamilya nya. Hehe I also had a Wolverine shirt, saka nabili ko yung classic action figures nila ni Sabretooth dati sa Toys R Us.


Pero nung nabalitaan kong gagawan ng origin movie at live action pa, hindi naman ako ganung ka-excited sa kanya. Based on my EXGF Meo's review of the movie, mukhang masasatisfy ako pero as a Wolverine fan, parang maiirita lang din ako. Sa totoo lang kasi, wala akong nagustuhan sa mga XMEN movies [the trilogy] and while kamukha ni HJ si Wolverine, he is obviously too tall for the role.

Nakakatawa na lang yung mga babaeng fan na tuwang tuwa sa character na ito... as usual na-reduce na naman sa pagiging "fafa-ble" si Wolverine... Asus... kung talagang kilala nyo ang character na ito, you'd probably find him cool but definitely not a hunk... bakit ka naman mai-in love sa isang tao na mas matanda pa sa lolo mo?

Anyway, back to the movie I HAVEN'T seen yet... sana nga mali ako at matuwa ako sa kanya. Kaso as of late, disappointing naman talaga ang mga ganitong movie... PUNISHER WAR ZONE ang pinakahuling movie based on a comic na nagandahan ako. Everything else, even Michael Bay's Transformers was disappointing for me. Nakakatawa nga yung mga comment ng TF fans, libog na libog kay Megan Fox na parang ngayon lang sila nakakita ng babae. Eh kung nanonood ka ng CSI MIAMI, linggo-linggo may ganyan... Asus!

Mas okay pa para sa akin yung WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN animated series. Sana kasi magconcentrate na lang sila sa paggawa ng mas magagandang animated series/movies kesa pinipilit nilang pagkitaan ng Hollywood ang mga ganito. As a fan kasi, hindi mo naman maiiwasan na panoorin dahil fan ka nga nya, pero malamang madidisappoint ka lang tapos sasabihin mo sa sarili mong "Hindi naman yan ginawa para sa iyo, para sa mainstream yan."

NEW PROJECT

Tapos na by next week ang project na sinusulatan ko sa 20+, ang Tormenta en El Paraiso. Sad to say, hindi sa akin napunta ang final episode so as usual wala na naman akong kaalam-alam kung papano magtatapos ito. Sigh. More importantly, kinabahan na naman ako na wala akong raket.

Kahapon, tinawagan ako ng contact ko at sa wakas eh may bagong project na. Sana dumami pa! Although I checked this one and it's only 50 episodes [Tormenta was 185], at least sa simula pa lang eh kasali na ako dito kaya marami-rami ang episode na mapupunta sa akin.

And it looks right up my alley, too. May pagka-Scarface meets Punisher War Zone yata itong El Cartel. Excited na akong simulan sya. But not before I finish my last episode of Tormenta. They're both due on tuesday. So walang habas na sulatan na naman ito. But I'm no stranger to that...

There's nothing like a new project that makes me see green [kahit na wala nang berde sa pera ng Pilipinas]... Hindi ko na nga maalala kung ano yung binalak kong bilhin sa kikitain ko dito. Pero siguradong hahabulin ko yung mga Street Fighter toys na nagsilabasan na hindi ko pa nabibili. As far as I know, may bagong line na ang SOTA [kasali si Dhalsim, at E. Honda among others] at yung Revoltech. Sana lang nga meron pa when the time comes...

BAGO KONG PINAPANOOD: GOLGO 13!

The other night, I was waiting for my driver to get redy... pupunta na ako sa dialysis. So pinanood ko ang episode 1 nito na matagal ko nang dinownload...

Matagal ko nang alam ang anime na ito. Nalaro ko ito a long time ago sa Nintendo Famicom nung may parentahan sa Virra Mall.

Balita ko din eh dito binase yung pelikula ni Jean Reno na "Leon: the Professional". But I haven't seen that movie yet. I don't remember if i I bought the original DVD years ago, for myself, or my director. Naku ang ulyanin ko na kasi...

I saw episode 1 and was not disappointed. This guy is way cool. He doesn't talk much pero pulido kung pumatay. Just my kind of guy...

Sayang lang nga at palaktaw-laktaw ang fansubs. Hopefully there isn't a whole lot of continuity in his "missions".

Mapapag-aksayan ng oras ito...

MY CRAZY SHAKEY'S CUSTOM PIZZA

Nung nasa high school pa ako, the very first time I tried this was when my dad took me to the then newly opened SM City [North Edsa]. Back then bihira ako makapunta sa mga ganung kalayong lugar. Kadalasan eh sa Greenhills lang ako nakakapunta.


May Shakey's doon [meron din naman sa Greenhills so ewan ko kung bakit doon sa SM City ko ito sinubukan] and I decided to make a customzed piiza for takeout. Back then, wala pang vegetarian pizza ang Shakey's so I basically just ordered a basic cheese then ordered extra toppings... 2 of each vegetable. I liked how the garlic tasted and having fresh sliced tomatoes and I have gotten hooked ever since.


Later on in high school, hinahanap-hanap ko pa rin ang Shakey's pero at the time, hindi pa rin sila nagdedeliver. Pizza Hut pa lang ang may delivery nung panahon na yun. Pero back then, my half brother and half sister moved in with us, their mother passed away. So the driver would go pick them up at Katipunan [my half sister studied at Maryknoll or Miriam College as it is known now] everyday after my brother and I went home. May Shakey's sa tapat ng Ateneo so lagi ako nagpapabili ng pizza for dinner...


That was when I really went nuts customizing my pizza. Back then affordable pa ang pizza sa Shakey's. Wala pa yatang P200 ang pinakamalaking thin crust pizza nila noon at sobrang dami na ng toppings. Mura pa ang extra toppings noon [about P9 each] so for about P300, I could have a family size pizza with so many toppings. Eto yung nakakalokang combination ko...


Thin crust family [or party size, basta yung pinakamalaki] Manager's Choice, Shakey's Special or Italian Sausage and Mushroom.


extra toppings:

4 x extra garlic
1x extra onion
1x gresh tomato
1x anchovies


Sa sobrang dami nung bawang, talagang iinit yung bibig mo. Pero ang sarap! If you've ever had Mongolian buffet at Mongolian Quick Stop and see the bowl of garlic na pwede kang kumuha ng as many spoonfuls as you want, ganun kadami ang nasa pizza ko.


Those were the days. Syempre sa presyo ngayon, hindi na yan feasible. Katulad ngayon, I ordered a small thin crust vegetarian pizza with 2x extra garlic and 1x beef, halos P300 na. And the amount of toppings on it won't even compare to how much they put back then. Sobrang kaunti na.