|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 29, 2008 21:15:45 GMT -5
57. Bill The Butcher Who is he: A butcher/leader of the Nativist gang in New York circa 1862. What is he from: “Gangs Of New York.” What has he done: Killed Priest Vallon, did many illegal activities to make the Nativists a very powerful gang in New York. Intelligence: Clever and calculating, Bill had a knack with the scurviest thug and dirtiest politico. Power: Had a lot of power as the leader of the Nativists and as friend to “Boss” Tweed. Vileness: His "Butcher" nickname didn't only come from his profession, and those fighting tactics weren't completely honorable. Sway: Often employed an intensity rarely matched. Purity: He shows a softer side when Amsterdam comes along to provide him with the son he never had. Physical Prowess: Can fight very well, is very skillful with knives, usually has many men around him, looks scary with the bald eagle in his fake eye, and has a vicious meanstreak. Name Coolness: “Bill The Butcher” is pretty cool. It sounds a little like it could be a pro wrestler’s name. Created by: Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian, and Kenneth Lonergan. Portrayed by: Daniel Day Lewis, who was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar but didn’t win it. It is 1846. In the Lower Manhattan "Five Points" district, a territorial war raging for years between the gangs of the "Nativist" faction (comprising those born in the United States from earlier English & Dutch protestant immigrants) and the recently arrived predominantly Irish catholic immigrants, is about to come to a head in Paradise Square. The Nativists are led by William "Bill the Butcher" Cutting (Daniel Day Lewis), a WASP, with an open hatred of recent immigrants. The leader of the immigrant Irish, the "Dead Rabbits," is Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson), who has a young son, Amsterdam (played as a child by Cian McCormack). Cutting and Vallon meet with their respective gangs in a battle, horrific and bloody, concluding when Bill kills Priest Vallon. Amsterdam is a witness. Cutting declares the Dead Rabbits outlawed and orders Vallon's body buried with honor. Amsterdam seizes his father's knife, races off and buries it. He is found and taken to the orphanage at Hellgate. Sixteen years later, Amsterdam leaves Hellgate a grown man (now played by Leonardo DiCaprio). Arriving in Five Points, he reunites with an old friend, Johnny Sirocco (Henry Thomas). Johnny, now a member of a clan of pickpockets and thieves, introduces Amsterdam to Bill, for whom the group steals. Amsterdam finds that many of his father's old loyalists are now under Bill's control, including Happy Jack Mulraney (John C. Reilly), now a corrupt police officer in Bill's pocket, and McGloin (Gary Lewis), now one of Bill's lieutenants. Amsterdam soon works his way into the Butcher's inner circle. Amsterdam learns that each year, on the anniversary of the Five Points battle (February 16), Bill leads the city in saluting the victory over the Dead Rabbits, and he makes plans to kill the Butcher during this ceremony, in front of the entire Five Points community, in order to exact public revenge. Amsterdam meets Jenny Everdeane (Cameron Diaz), a pickpocket and grifter, who preys upon Manhattan's upper class by impersonating a maid. Amsterdam is attracted to Jenny, but it is dampened when Amsterdam discovers that Jenny was once the Butcher's ward and still enjoys Bill's affections. Amsterdam gains Bill's confidence as Bill becomes his mentor. He becomes involved in the semi-criminal empire of William M. Tweed also known as "Boss Tweed" (Jim Broadbent), a corrupt politician who heads Tammany Hall, the local political machine. Tweed's influence is spread throughout Lower Manhattan from boxing matches to sanitation services and fire control. As Tammany Hall and its opponents fight for control of the city, the political climate is boiling. Immigrants, mostly Irish, are drafted into the Union Army as they depart the boats. $300 can buy one's way out of service, which only the wealthy can afford. Anti-Black sentiment runs rampant through the Five Points, as does a general hatred of the upper class. During a performance of Uncle Tom's Cabin Amsterdam thwarts an assassination attempt that leaves the Butcher wounded. Amsterdam is tormented by the realization that he acted more out of honest devotion to Bill than from his own plan of revenge. Both retire to a brothel, where Jenny nurses Bill. Amsterdam confronts Jenny over Bill, and the two have a furious argument which dissolves into passionate sex. Late that night, Amsterdam wakes to find Bill sitting by his bed in a rocking chair, draped in a tattered American flag. Bill speaks of the downfall of civilization and how he has maintained his power over the years through violence and the "spectacle of fearsome acts." He says that Priest Vallon was the last enemy he ever fought that was worthy of real respect, and that the Priest once beat Bill soundly and then let him live in shame rather than kill him. Bill credits the incident with giving him strength of will and character to return and fight for his own authority. Bill implicitly admits that he has come to look upon Amsterdam as the son he never had. The evening of the ceremony arrives. Johnny, who is in love with Jenny, reveals Amsterdam's true identity to Bill in a fit of jealousy and tells Bill of his plot to kill him. Bill baits Amsterdam with a knife-throwing act involving Jenny, where he targets her and superficially cuts her throat. As Bill makes the customary toast, Amsterdam throws a knife at Bill. Forewarned, Bill blocks the shot and counters with a throw of his own, hitting Amsterdam in the abdomen. Bill beats him, as the crowd cheers him on, marks his cheek with a hot blade, and casts him out into the streets, proclaiming that for Amsterdam to live in shame is a worse fate than death. For three months, Jenny nurses Amsterdam while in hiding. She implores him to join her in an escape to San Francisco. The two are visited by Walter "Monk" McGinn (Brendan Gleeson), a barber who worked as a mercenary for Priest Vallon in the battle in which he was killed. McGinn gives Amsterdam the straight razor that belonged to his father. Amsterdam announces his return by placing a dead rabbit on a fence in Paradise Square. The rabbit finds its way to Bill, who sends Happy Jack to find out who sent the message. Jack tracks down Amsterdam and chases him through the catacombs into the local church where Amsterdam ambushes and strangles him. He hangs his body in Paradise Square. In retaliation, Bill has Johnny beaten and hung over a stake in the square. Suffering, Johnny pleads for Amsterdam to kill him, which he does. The Natives march to the Catholic church as the Irish, along with the Archbishop, stand on the steps in defense. Bill promises to return when they are ready. The incident garners newspaper coverage. Boss Tweed approaches Amsterdam with a plan to defeat Bill and his influence, hoping to cash in on the publicity. Tweed will back the candidacy of Monk McGinn for sheriff in return for the support of the Irish vote, the first step towards defeating Bill. The election is rigged and Monk wins on a platform of working for the people. Bill visits Monk at his shop, where Monk refuses Bill's implicit attempt to start a fight, and offers to negotiate. As soon as Monk turns his back to head into his shop, Bill hits him in the back with a thrown meat cleaver, and kills Monk with his own shillelagh. During the funeral procession, Amsterdam pauses to issue a battle challenge to Bill. The two sides agree to the terms of the battle and Amsterdam's gang resurrects the name of the Dead Rabbits. Battle will take place in Paradise Square. The Draft Riots break out just as the gangs are preparing to fight. Many people of the city are attacked by those protesting the drafts. Union Army soldiers march through the city streets trying to control the rioters. As the rival gangs meet in Paradise Square, they are interrupted by cannon fire from Union Naval ships in the harbor directly into Paradise Square. Many are killed by the cannons as an enormous cloud of dust and debris covers the area. The destruction is followed by a wave of Union soldiers, who wipe out many of the gang members. Abandoning their gangs, Amsterdam and Bill exchange blows in the haze, then are thrown to the ground by another cannon blast. When the smoke clears, Bill discovers he has been impaled by a large piece of shrapnel. Looking at the devastation, he declares, "Thank God. I die a true American." Bill offers no resistance as Amsterdam stabs him, dying with his hand locked in Amsterdam's. In the final scenes, the dead are collected for burial. Bill's body is buried in Brooklyn, in view of the Manhattan skyline, right adjacent to the grave of Priest Vallon. Jenny and Amsterdam visit as Amsterdam buries his father's razor. Amsterdam narrates that New York would be rebuilt, but that they are no longer remembered, as if "we were never here". The movie concludes as the frame shifts several times to reflect the intervening growth of the city between 1864 and the present day. As time progresses, the graves of the two gang leaders become overgrown and unrecognizable. The villains on this countdown have many characteristics in common: cruelty, ruthlessness, greed, power hungry, egotistical, cunning, weaselly, and many more. Though they don’t all share the same qualities, there is one universal characteristic, besides being evil, among them: hate. They all hate someone or something, whether it’s one man or all of humanity. And, there is one man who can be seen as a perfect example of hate: Bill The Butcher. He hates immigrants. To him, foreigners are cockroaches scurrying across your kitchen floor: they are unwelcome guests and ought to be exterminated by the rightful owner of the place. He loves American and Americans, as long as those Americans were born in American. And, he doesn’t like immigrants coming into his country and taking away resources from good Christian Americans. His hatred of immigrants leads him to create a gang of WASPs (White Anglo-Saxon Protestants), the Nativists, who harass and beat up immigrants. However, this leads to the immigrants creating their own gang, the Dead Rabbits, led by Priest Vallon. These two gangs have a big brawl at the beginning of the film, and it ends with Bill kills Vallon. Vallon’s son, Amsterdam, is left an orphan and vows revenge on Bill. When he meets Bill in 1862, he tries to gain his trust in order to get close to him. He quickly learns that Bill is cruel and vicious man who uses fear, intimidation, and physical violence to get support for Boss Tweed. However, Bill is also a very charismatic man, and Amsterdam soon becomes trusted confidant of Bill. He is lured into Bill’s world because of the perks being a Nativist has, i.e. a nice living in a harsh New York, which was a lot harsher back in 1862. Eventually, Amsterdam saves Bill’s life after he is shot at a performance of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. He has become so enamored with Bill that he is confused about whether to kill him or not. However, when Bill learns who Amsterdam is and that he plans to seek revenge, Bill immediately beats him and throws him out of this gang. Amsterdam retaliates by reforming the Dead Rabbits. Soon, the two are on a path to another brawl similar to the one at the beginning of the movie. However, a riot in New York over the Civil War draft interrupts the brawl. Nevertheless, Bill and Amsterdam are so obsessed killing each other that they fight as New York is hit with Union cannon fire. But, after another cannon blast, Amsterdam kills Bill; and he offers little resistance. But, Amsterdam’s victory is a hollow one. Bill has made such an impression on Amsterdam that he cannot truly feel avenged. Bill was basically another father to him, and he also felt that Amsterdam was like a son to him. There is no real revenge for Amsterdam; Bill has basically taken it from him, just like he took Amsterdam’s father from him years ago. For a man so filled with hate, the worst thing Bill the Butcher could do was to love someone.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 29, 2008 21:17:16 GMT -5
Tomorrow, numbers 56 and 55. Here are the hints:
Both are obsessed with one man: one is after a lawyer, and the other is after a male arachnid.
|
|
|
Post by teamjd on May 29, 2008 21:18:09 GMT -5
oh lord, Venom better not be ahead of freakin Kid Miracleman!
|
|
|
Post by Seth Drakin of Monster Crap on May 29, 2008 22:44:22 GMT -5
One is gonna be that guy from Cape Fear.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 30, 2008 21:07:28 GMT -5
It may be a little late, but it's countdown time. Here is number 56: 56. Venom (Eddie Brock) Who is he: A former reporter with an alien symbiote attached to him as a costume. What is he from: Marvel Comics, most notably the Spider-Man comics. What has he done: Attacked and tormented Spider-Man. Intelligence: Average intelligence mixed in with some insanity. Power: He’s a loner and not really affiliated with any kind of organization, except for the short time he was a government agent. Vileness: Will kill but does have some morals as he has saved people throughout the years. Sway: Fear and intimidation is useful to him. Purity: Is obsessed with killing Spider-Man, and as mentioned, has some moral high ground. Physical Prowess: Superhuman strength, agility, and reflexes; webbing creation; the ability to adhere to walls; immune to Spider-Man’s spider sense; highly resistant to physical injury; and some shape-shifting abilities. Name Coolness: “Venom” is very cool, and “Eddie Brock” is a pretty cool name as well. Created by: David Michelinie and Todd McFarlane. Portrayed by: Hank Azaria was the voice of Eddie Brock/Venom in the 1990s FOX Spider-Man animated series. Brian Drummond portrayed Venom’s voice in the Spider-Man: Unlimited series. Eddie Brock appears in The Spectacular Spider-Man, voiced by Ben Diskin, and he will become Venom at the end of the first season. And, Topher Grace played Eddie Brock/Venom in the “Spider-Man 3” movie. Born in San Francisco, Edward Allan Charles Brock was raised in a Roman Catholic upbringing by a cold and unloving father who blamed him for his wife's death in childbirth. Though he desperately sought his father's approval and excelled in many subjects, particularly athletics, his father's response was always in the form of half-hearted encouragements. After reading a newspaper article on the Watergate scandal in college, Brock quit athletics and switched his major to journalism. Upon graduating, he moved to New York City and obtained a job at the Daily Globe, a rival of the Daily Bugle. He proved himself to be highly talented, though even this could not get his father's approval. At some point in his career, he married Anne Weying. She was apparently attracted by his wit and gentility, traits he had always hidden from his father. Meanwhile, the creature that would ultimately become Venom was born to a race of extraterrestrial parasites, which lived by possessing the bodies of other lifeforms. The parasites would endow their victims with enhanced physical abilities, at the cost of fatally draining them of adrenaline. According to the Planet Of The Symbiotes storyline, the Venom symbiote was deemed insane by its own race after it was discovered that it desired to commit to its host rather than use it up. The symbiote was then imprisoned on Battleworld to ensure it didn't pollute the species' gene pool. In Secret Wars #8 (December 1984), Spider-Man damages his costume in combat and is directed to a facility which can provide a new one to him. Before having the chance to recover a new suit, Spider-Man stumbles into the prison module the symbiote has been trapped in. He then activates the machine which releases the symbiote in the form of a black liquid. Upon Spider-man's first contact with the liquid, it covers his body and, reacting to Spider-Man's thoughts about the costume worn by the second Spider-Woman, forms a new costume. To Spider-Man's surprise, the costume can mimic street clothes and provides a seemingly inexhaustible and stronger supply of webbing. Once back on Earth, Spider-Man learns the costume is a sentient alien symbiote that wishes to fuse permanently with him and often controls his body while he sleeps. With the aid of Mr. Fantastic and the Human Torch, Spider-Man discovers the symbiote is vulnerable to sound and flame, and he uses sonic waves to remove it and flames to scare it into a containment module. The symbiote escapes and finds its way to Peter Parker's closet and disguising itself as a spare red and blue costume it then attempts to forcibly bond itself to Spider-Man. Later the Vulturions attacks and Spider-Man forces himself into a church belltower. As the bells ring to sound the hour, Spider-Man fights through willpower to reject the symbiote, leaving both the alien and Spider-Man weakened. The symbiote, using its remaining strength, carries an unconscious Spider-Man to safety from the bells before it slithers away. Spider-Man's rejection of the symbiote would later leave it extremely bitter toward Spider-Man, a trait it would share with its future hosts. As for Brock, his life took a turn for the worse when he is diagnosed with cancer and is told by his doctor that he does not have long to live. Hoping to make the best of his last days and take his mind off the cancer, Brock buries himself in his work. He begins to investigate a series of murders perpetrated by a serial killer nicknamed the Sin-Eater, and surprisingly finds someone actually confessing to the murders. Brock interviews the man and The Globe's popularity soars. However, with the authorities pressing for a suspect, he is forced to reveal his subject's identity. To his horror, it turns out that Spider-Man had caught the real killer and the man he had been interviewing was nothing more than a compulsive confessor. Brock is fired from his job in disgrace, and his father practically disowns him. With no decent publishers willing to hire him, he is forced to work for sleazy tabloid magazines. Now with his fear of the cancer growing, Brock resumes his passion for athletics through weight training to reduce stress. Though his body grows to near-Olympic standards, his anger and depression remained. Tiring of her husband's incessant brooding, Anne divorces him. With both his professional and personal life shattered, Brock contemplates suicide and goes to Our Lady of Saints Church where he prays to God for forgiveness, unaware the symbiote Spider-Man had discarded is waiting for him. Attracted by the adrenaline caused by his cancer, the symbiote bonds with Brock, feeding off the cancer and keeping him alive. It also gives him superhuman strength, speed, reflexes, agility, an ability to cling to any surface, and web spinning; all powers that it received from Spider-Man. Grateful for the power it gave him and for stopping the cancer from killing him, Brock accepts the symbiote. However, he knows that the symbiote thinks of him as a second rate meal compared to Spider-Man and thus Brock turns the wallcrawler into his personal demon, knowing that as long as he lives, there is a chance he will accept the symbiote back, leaving Brock to die. The symbiote takes advantage of Brock's hatred, since it is still angry at Spider-Man for rejecting it. The symbiote imparts him with the knowledge of Spider-Man's secret identity, and Brock names himself "Venom" ("For that's what I'm paid to spew out these days") and torments Spider-Man and his family. Venom is subdued and incarcerated when the plague-spreading supervillain, Styx, renders the symbiote unconscious. The symbiote finds and bonds with Brock, aiding in his escape. During the escape, the symbiote reproduces, and its offspring bonds to Brock's cellmate Cletus Kasady, creating Carnage. He is also hired to take down the hero Quasar, but is defeated. Venom later abducts Spider-Man, and takes him to a remote island. Spider-Man fakes his death to convince Venom that his vendetta is over, and Venom resigns himself to life on the island. Venom's "retirement" ends when Spider-Man, unable to defeat Carnage, returns to enlist Venom's aid. In the 1993 Spider-Man crossover storyline "Maximum Carnage", Venom teams up with Spider-Man and a number of other heroes to defeat Carnage when he and a team of powerful supervillains take over New York City. His willingness to kill the villains causes a deep rift with many of his allies, who only wish to subdue them. Having made peace with Spider-Man after he rescued Brock's ex-wife, Venom moves back to Brock's hometown of San Francisco, where he acts as the protector of an underground society descended from survivors of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Venom continues his mission of protecting innocent people, though he made mistakes along the way. For example, he believes he is killing a corrupt businessman but instead accidentally slays a cleaning lady who is enjoying a break in her boss' chair. Venom also works to protect the underground society from exploitation on the part of business concerns who cared nothing about killing. Also, during this time, he has a brief relationship with a woman named Beck. This lady and several other members of the society under his protection are taken hostage by alien-afflicted mercenaries known as 'Stalkers'. Venom teams up with the mystical antihero known as Vengeance in a rescue attempt. Most of the hostages escape before Venom and his ally have to personally fight to save Beck and another woman who had feelings for Brock. His career as a lethal protector is cut short when the Spider-Man clone Ben Reilly hunts him down and separates Brock from the symbiote after an intense battle. Five other spawns of Venom are created by the Life Foundation, to act as "super-cops" for its planned fallout shelter society. Due to his past experiences with Carnage, Venom assumes the rest of his progeny (the Life Foundation symbiotes Scream, Lasher, Riot, Phage, and Agony) would turn out the same way, and thus should be destroyed. However, the Life Foundation symbiotes were afraid of becoming like Carnage, and instead wanted Venom's help controlling their symbiotes so they could use them for good. Even though the Life Foundation symbiotes rescue him from imprisonment, Brock refuses to help them and Scream goes insane and kills them (Venom: Separation Anxiety #4). When Scream later reforms, she helps Venom several times. The remains of the other four symbiotes merge to form Hybrid, who considers Venom a threat. For a while, Brock begins to doubt the nobility of his cause and temporarily abandons his alien other. The telepathically projected grief of the symbiote attracts a scouting party of other members of its own species which begins possessing people and forcing them to steal the material needed to create a portal to their home world. When the portal opens, the symbiotes invade New York, taking over the bodies of civilians and superheroes alike. Brock rejoins with the Venom symbiote to assist Spider-Man and Ben Reilly in fighting the other symbiotes. Venom convinces the heroes to distract the symbiotes while he concentrates on creating a "psychic scream" that would render the invaders unconscious. To Spider-Man and Ben's horror, however, the attack actually kills every alien symbiote on the planet. Brock is captured in his sewer hideout and put on trial, with Matt Murdock acting in his defense, and his symbiote held in check with a chemical inhibitor. Carnage is called as a witness, but he overcomes his own inhibitor and attacks. Venom, Spider-Man, and Daredevil team up and subdue Carnage. However, before the trial can continue, Venom is unexpectedly taken into custody by a secret government organization who offered him amnesty if he joined them as an agent. Though Venom at first relished his new found immunities, he left after being abandoned during a dangerous mission. This would lead to Eddie Brock being given selective amnesia from a head wound and later being separated from the symbiote, which is presumed killed by the government Overreach Committee. The symbiote in fact survives and tracks down the amnesiac Brock, turning him into Venom again. Venom then infiltrates Ravencroft prison, slaughters the guards, and temporarily absorbs the Carnage symbiote. He joins the Sinister Six, but turns on the other members after they mock him, crippling Sandman and Electro before making peace with Spider-Man. Like all prior agreements with Spider-Man, this peace is short-lived, as Venom's hatred for Spider-Man is renewed when Anne Weying, driven over the edge by fear of her husband, committed suicide after seeing Spider-Man in his black suit. Venom loses his chance for revenge when the powerful human/alien hybrid Senator Ward forcefully removes the symbiote from Brock once more. The Carnage symbiote gives birth to the Toxin symbiote. Carnage attempts to kill the newborn Toxin, but Venom opposes him until he realizes that Toxin's policeman host would not ally with him. Venom calls a truce with Carnage in order to destroy Toxin, who is aided by Spider-Man. Spider-Man and Toxin drive Carnage and Venom away. An alien race, secretly operating within the United States government, clones the Venom symbiote. Venom absorbs the clone, gains its knowledge, and decides to carry out the aliens' orders. Before he does, however, Brock knows that he will die if he does not permanently bond with the symbiote. The Symbiote rejects Brock, not desiring to be bonded with a diseased body anymore. Ultimately, Spider-Man tricks the symbiote into permanently merging with Brock. After bonding once more with the symbiote, Brock has a religious awakening and decides against permanently merging with the symbiote. Brock instead chooses to sell the symbiote to crimelord Don Fortunato, intending to donate the $100 million received to charity before dying. Angelo Fortunato, the Don's son, became the second Venom for a brief period of time. However, Angelo began killing innocent people in his quest for glory and later proved to be a weak host for the Symbiote, being humiliated in a battle with Spider-Man. The symbiote abandons Angelo mid-leap, and the subsequent fall kills Fortunato. Upon hearing about this, Brock feels responsible and attempts to commit suicide by slitting his wrists, but survives. The symbiote then becomes attached to Mac Gargan, better known as the Scorpion at the time, and is currently still with him as he is now a member of the Thunderbolts. When Peter Parker unmasks himself publicly as Spider-Man, Brock is among the millions of witnesses. He is shown in the hospital, rapidly succumbing physically to his cancer and experiencing hallucinations of the symbiote, representing his dark side. He spots Mary Jane Watson Parker watching over Aunt May, who has been seriously wounded by a bullet. Brock has no idea what to do, but his dark side then persuades him to order a black suit similar to Peter's and put it on. Making a decision to go and try to murder Aunt May while she's in a coma, Brock orders a dress-up costume of Spider-Man's black costume and sets out to kill her, first murdering a nurse for getting in his way. At the last minute, however, he has a change of heart, finding he could not murder someone as innocent as Aunt May. Peter enters the room moments later to find Brock sitting on the shattered window, and having slit his own wrists dozens of times to get rid of Venom. He tells Peter that while he's done terrible things, he's not a terrible person, and asks for his forgiveness before jumping out the window. Peter breaks his fall by catching him with two strands of webbing. Awakening chained to his bed, Brock decides to take better control of himself in the short time he has left. He tells his dark side that it's all right if they are together forever, as long as they know that Eddie Brock is in charge. Besides Brock and Parker, other people have bonded with the Venom symbiote, including Mac Gargan, the former Scorpion and current host; Ann Weying, Brock’s ex-wife; Patricia Robertson; and Angelo Fortunato. Ultimate Venom: In Ultimate Spider-Man, Eddie Brock, Jr. is Peter Parker's closest childhood friend and in college while Peter in high school. Eddie is closer to Peter's age and science-minded. He is actually a parallel of Peter Parker. They are almost exactly alike except that when Eddie's parents died, he didn't have anyone like Uncle Ben and Aunt May to take him in. Instead of a sentient alien, the Venom symbiote is a genetically-engineered protoplasmic "suit" designed by Peter's father, Richard, and Eddie's father, Edward Brock, Sr. Richard and Sr. Brock intend it to be used for medical purposes in their quest to cure cancer but the company they are working for, Trask are more interested in the military applications of the suit. After the deaths of both men, Eddie continues the research. Peter Parker meets up with Eddie and the pair bond over their shared history before Eddie informs Peter of their legacy. Peter returns at night, determined to continue his father's research by taking a sample, but it instead bonds with him. After nearly being driven to murder by the suit (and even momentarily taking on a Venom-like appearance), Peter warns Eddie of its danger and takes the sample to an industrial smoke stack where he destroys it. Eddie, after having his romantic intentions rejected by Gwen Stacy, becomes furious with Peter when he catches him destroying their "inheritance". Eddie then uses a second sample of the suit but the suit takes full control of Eddie, transforming him into the large, strong, power-hungry, symbiotic monster known as Venom. Eddie, as Venom, viciously attacks Peter at his high school in the football field. After the fight, Venom flees into the city where after being electrocuted by some power cables in contact with water on a street and seems to disappear. His powers are similar to the mainstream Venom's, excepting that this Venom is not immune to Spider-Man's "spider sense." He does, however, overload it, incapacitating Spider-Man. He also lacks chameleonic powers, psychic abilities and the ability to make his strength match whatever his foe's is. He also lacks the weaknesses to fire and sonics; instead he bears a weakness to electricity. And he also has no compunctions over killing people at all. He next appears in Ultimates 3 attacking the Ultimates at their mansion looking for an (as yet) unrevealed female. He starts by attacking Thor, who is sent plowing through their mansion. Hawkeye fires projectiles which bound off of Venom and Panther fight back only to be knocked far away. Valkyrie almost splits Venom in half but seals himself back together. Wasp manages to distract Venom until Thor summons a lightning bolt to electrocute Venom, turning him into a pool of goo. Hawkeye promptly sets off to find Spider-Man for some answers. The white spider symbol is now present on his chest. This is not explained in the comics, although it may be explained by the events of the video game (see below). It is also unclear why the Ultimates refer to Venom as such, since he was never given a code name in the Ultimate Universe, except for the original project that created the "suit" being called "The Venom Project." Further explanation may be given in the remaining issues of Ultimates 3 or in the upcoming Ultimate Spider-Man story arc War of the Symbiotes. Spider-Man: The Animated Series: Venom appears in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, voiced by Hank Azaria. Like in the comics, Eddie Brock is a former reporter who becomes bonded to an alien symbiote that was once attached to Spider-Man. The symbiote's origin is altered however, the alien being brought to Earth from a Moon-based space exploration. During their return, the astronauts are assaulted by the symbiote and crash their ship in the center of New York where Spider-Man arrives to help, inadvertently collecting the Symbiote when he leaves. Brock, in the meantime, tries to sell Jameson photos of Spider-Man robbing the shuttle, until the now black-suited Spider-Man exposes Brock for a fake again. Spidey and Jameson team up to rescue Jameson's son from the Kingpin, and Eddie tries to intervene. Spider-Man webs up Eddie and hangs him from the church bell to leave his body where the Symbiote eventually bonds with a webbed-up Brock hanging below, becoming Venom, and begins to endlessly torment Peter Parker. Spider-Man manages to separate Brock and the alien, sending the Symbiote into space. However, the dread Dormammu brings the symbiote back to Earth which bonds with Brock again. In the end, Venom helps Spider-Man and Iron Man defeat Dormammu, but ends up being sucked into an interdimensional portal, as he heroically saves Ashley from Carnage. Spider-Man Unlimited: Venom appears in Spider-Man Unlimited, voiced by Brian Drummond. Here, Venom along with Carnage, attempts to conquer Counter-Earth with an invasion of symbiotes, which, unlike the Venom and Carnage symbiotes, simply possess people rather than bond with them. The Spectacular Spider-Man: Eddie Brock appears in The Spectacular Spider-Man, voiced by Ben Diskin. In this series, Brock is similar to his Ultimate Marvel counterpart in being like an older brother to Peter Parker, having protected him from bullies in high school before his graduation. Like the mainstream Brock, he is physically large. However, he also has an interest in science, and became Curt Connors' assistant while attending college as a freshman. Regarding this, he has stated, "I played football in high school, but now I'm a full time nerd." He expresses anger at Peter when he discovers that Peter took photos of the Lizard to win the Daily Bugle money contest. He forgives Peter in the next episode, but states that he needs some time alone. Eddie continues to make minor appearances and is slowly growing more hateful towards Peter and Spider-Man. In episode Persona his hatred deepens as he believes Peter saw Spider-Man stealing the symbiote and didn't bother to ring the police. He will become Venom in the final episode of the first season and will be a major threat to Spider-Man. “Spider-Man 3”: Venom appears in the 2007 feature film Spider-Man 3, played by Topher Grace. Like in the Ultimate Spider-Man comics, his name is Edward "Eddie" Brock, Jr. but is a new freelance photographer vying for a staff position at the Daily Bugle with Peter Parker. Brock is portrayed as a competitive, shallow and antagonistic parallel of Peter Parker. An egotistical and underhanded character, willing to do whatever is necessary to further his own career, including faking photos. He is also shown to be attracted to Gwen Stacy and considers her his girlfriend although Gwen remarks they only went on one date. Desperate to win the Bugle job, Brock forges a photo of Spider-Man but his scheme is quickly undone when the photo is recognized by Peter Parker as one he himself took at an earlier date. Fired and black-listed from a career as a photojournalist, Brock is left distraught and angry, a feeling compounded when he witnesses Parker on a date with Gwen Stacy. Brock retreats to a church to pray for God to smite Parker for ruining his life until he is attracted to the ringing tower bells. Brock witnesses Parker tearing the alien symbiote away, revealing his nemesis to be Spider-Man. The symbiote drips onto Brock and forcibly bonds with him to create Venom {Although, he is never referred to by this name in the film directly, he is identified as Venom in the credits). Using his knowledge of Peter's dual identity, Venom attempts to kill Spider-Man by kidnapping his ex-girlfriend, Mary Jane Watson and allying with Sandman. Although able to overpower Spider-Man while combined with the suit, Venom is ultimately defeated by the symbiote's vulnerability to intense soundwaves. Peter pulls Eddie from the symbiote and throws a pumpkin bomb at the creature to destroy it, but Eddie, desiring to keep the symbiote, tries to rebond with it as the bomb explodes. Venom's appearance was slightly redesigned for the film. Instead of a solid black suit with a large white spider at the center, here the suit seems like a distorted mold-replica of Peter's original Spider-Man suit, having a faint, disorganized webbing pattern on it and a version of the white spider symbol on his chest. The character retains the signature toothy-jaw and pronounced tongue found in his comic incarnations, however he is portrayed as only slightly more muscular than Spider-Man rather than the exaggerated musculature of the comic version. When Brock's face is visible while merged with the symbiote, he is shown to have a set of fangs. Venom's voice is portrayed as being only slightly deeper and raspier than Topher Grace's natural pitch, as opposed to some other previous media portrayals where he was given a distorted, almost dual tone. Venom's appearance was originally with a tongue flapping out, but was reverted to make it resemble his first appearance more. This adaptation also has Venom being much more feral than his comic counterpart, emitting high pitched growls and screeches. Okay, I know I’m going to get a lot of flack for this. Hell, Venom hasn’t been a character that was filled with greatness throughout his comic career. And, he does have some sense of morals and has saved people at times. But, there is something that has to be taken into consideration: the first appearance of Venom. When Venom first showed up in the comics after the symbiote had bonded with Eddie Brock, he was awesome. I mean, he had a great look: that awesome black Spider-Man costume with those large white eyes and that gigantic white spider symbol, the fangs, the tongue, and the green drool. He looked scary as hell, which is great for a villain. A good villain puts fear into the hearts of his or her enemies. Plus, he was psychotic, obsessed with killing Spider-Man after he had ruined Brock’s journalism career. And, because he knew that Peter Parker was Spider-Man, he knew where to strike: his wife at the time, Mary Jane. He kidnapped and scared the girl nearly to death; she even had Peter give up the black costume because it reminded her so much of Venom. That original version of Venom was incredible. However, over the years, he developed into an anti-hero: he still had an edge with all that killing of people, but he mainly killed criminals and saved people at times. And, there have been some bad interpretations of Venom; I’m looking at you, “Spider-Man 3” Venom. [small rant]FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, YOU DIDN’T EVEN SAY “WE ARE VENOM!” You better have been forced to put Venom in the movie by the studio Sam Raimi![/small rant]. But, there were some good ones, like the Spider-Man: The Animated Series, which may be the closest to the actual character’s first appearance. And, yeah, there were several other hosts and a whole slew of symbiotes from Carnage to Toxin. But, that shouldn’t disqualify Venom from being on the list. Look at Eddie Murphy. Sure, he made “Norbit” and whole lot of bad movies in the past few years, though I should say decade or longer. But, back in the 1980s, Eddie Murphy was the smurfing man! He was a great stand-up comedian, is considered one of the best Saturday Night Live cast members of all time, and made classic movies like “Beverly Hills Cop,” “48 Hours,” and “Coming To America.” Over the years he lost it, but no one is going to say that he was bad because of his current output. The same thing applies to Venom. He may have lost it, but when he had it, Venom was a smurfing amazing villain.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 30, 2008 22:02:19 GMT -5
55. Max Cady Who is he: A convicted rapist. What is he from: “Cape Fear” (the 1962 movie and the 1991 remake) What has he done: Stalked Sam Bowden and his family. Intelligence: He’s quite smart and outsmarts Bowden several times. Power: He’s a loner. Vileness: Both versions of Cady are quite obsessed with making Bowden’s life a living hell. However, the 1991 version seems more vicious, beating up Bowden’s mistress, killing the maid and the private detective, and trying to seduce Bowden’s daughter. Sway: The usual fear and intimidation. Purity: Both versions only care about seeking revenge on Bowden. Physical Prowess: Muscular and good in a fight. Also, the 1991 Cady is covered in tattoos, which adds some scariness to him. Name Coolness: “Max Cady” is pretty cool. Created by: John D. MacDonald wrote the novel the 1962 film was based on, The Executioners; James R. Webb wrote the screenplay to the original; and Wesley Strick wrote the remake screenplay. Portrayed by: Robert Mitchum played Cady in the original, but he originally turned down the role. Also, there was some controversy to him playing Cady since Gregory Peck, who played Sam Bowden, is taller and more physically imposing then Mitchum. Robert De Niro played Cady in the 1991 remake and was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar for the role. Also, Mitchum appeared in the 1991 remake, along with Peck and Martin Balsam who were also in the 1962 movie, as a cop who helps out Bowden. Sam Bowden (Gregory Peck, 1962; Nick Nolte, 1991) is a former Atlanta public defender who seeks to start a life in corporate law for him and his family in the quiet resort town of New Essex, North Carolina. Max Cady (Robert Mitchum, 1962; Robert De Niro, 1991) is a client Sam defended 14 years prior to the setting of the movie. Cady, who was being tried for the rape and battery of a 16-year-old girl, was illiterate at the time of the trial and was unable to read a report Sam kept hidden from him and the court that could have lightened his sentence or acquitted him. The report stated that the victim was promiscuous, a decisive fact in a rape case because the intercourse must have been non-consensual. Now a well-read, recently-released ex-convict, Cady stalks Bowden and plans to seek vengeance for his imprisonment. The movie's climax has the two men engaging in a showdown during a severe thunderstorm on Cape Fear. This is the synopsis of the 1991 remake. Here are the differences between the two versions: • In the 1962 version Sam Bowden was a witness to the rape Max Cady committed and testified against Cady as opposed to being Cady's lawyer and suppressing evidence in his favor in the 1991 film. • In the 1962 film Cady was in prison for only eight years instead of 14. • In the original version, Bowden was an upstanding husband and father in a perfect marriage with a housewife, Peggy (Polly Bergen), and an obedient 14 year old daughter named Nancy (Lori Martin). In the 1991 version he had possibly committed several infidelities, had a defiant daughter named Danielle (Juliette Lewis) and his wife, now named Leigh (Jessica Lange), has a career outside the household. • Bowden's daughter Nancy (Martin) is a pure innocent and completely terrified of Cady in the 1962 version. In contrast Danielle is much more sexually aware, smokes marijuana, and is briefly intrigued by Cady. She is almost seduced by him. Also she is 15 years old, a year older than Nancy. • Bowden had his first physical altercation with Cady at the boat basin in 1962 while in 1991 it was at a parade. • Diane, the woman Cady raped and battered in the 1962 version was a transient barfly who habitually hung out at taverns and was unknown to Bowden. In contrast she was a legal clerk at the courthouse and he possibly had an affair with her in the 1991 film. Also, Diane in the 1962 version refused to press charges on Cady in part because she knew the people in her home town would read about the sordid details of her attack in the papers. Rape shield laws concerning the sexual background of sexual assault victims did not exist in 1962 nor did the general agreement in the press not to publish the names of rape victims as it was by 1991. • In 1962 Bowden did not watch the men the private detective (Telly Savalas, 1962; Joe Don Baker, 1991), hired (who was in turn hired by Bowden) with Bowden's consent to try to beat up Cady. Bowden did watch in 1991 and Cady pretty much knew he was watching in 1991. • The police learned of Bowden hiring thugs to beat up Cady from one of the attackers in a death bed declaration in 1962 while in 1991 Cady had taped their previous encounter and the threat of bodily harm Bowden made. • The police were directly in on the plot to set Cady up to be killed in the 1962 version while in the 1991 version the police hinted broadly what Bowden should do but were not involved. • The Bowdens didn't try to set Cady up to kill him in their home but only the houseboat in 1962. • In 1962 airline ticket agents freely gave out who was on which flight and when they would arrive. Cady simply asked for the information with a simple story to cover why he was asking. In the 1991 version airlines no longer gave out that information to anyone who asked so Cady had to have a more sympathetic story to cause the airline ticket agent to break regulations. • The private detective was not at the houseboat in 1962 but an undercover policeman, officer Kersack, was helping Bowden stake out the houseboat. • Cady did not attack the Bowdens in their home in 1962 while in the 1991 version Cady killed the housekeeper and the private detective in their kitchen. In the 1962 version Cady surprised and killed officer Kersack in the river as he lay in wait. • The Bowdens quickly left the murder scene at their house for their houseboat, becoming fugitives themselves in the 1991 version. • The Bowdens thought they were completely safe on the houseboat in the 1991 version unaware that Cady had followed them. • Nancy didn't injure Cady in any way and was totally helpless in the original but Danielle set fire to him in the 1991 version with lighter fluid. • The Cape Fear River was a dead calm in the 1962 version, while in the 1991 version a severe rain squall developed. • The houseboat wasn't wrecked in the 1962 version while in 1991 the boat smashed into a rock and broke apart into small pieces. • Cady didn't die in the 1962 version but went back to prison for life. In the 1991 version he drowned cuffed to a piece of houseboat wreckage. This entry is a little interesting as it is basically two versions of the same character. Now, there are some differences. Robert Mitchum’s Max Cady is a little tamer than his Robert De Niro counterpart. Though, the original came out in 1962, when the old Hollywood code was in place, and the 1991 remake comes after the current rating system was put in place. This allowed for Martin Scorsese and Wesley Strick to give us an edgier Cady. For one, the 1991 Cady kills the Bowden’s maid and the private detective hired. And, there was that great scene in which Cady tries to seduce Bowden’s daughter. It is very scary because Danielle is a little into him. You want her to runaway and are scared to death that Cady will seduce the girl to his side and turn her against her father. It’s natural. Most people want to see the villain lose, and this scene almost has him winning. But, back to my point on the differences between the two versions of Max Cady: they are different, but they have more in common. Both are obsessed with Sam Bowden, the man responsible for putting Cady in jail. He wants revenge and will do anything to get it. And, Cady just doesn’t want to harm Bowden physically. He also wants to drive him scary and lead him into an emotional breakdown. And, Cady’s obsession nearly becomes fulfilled, but it ultimately leads to his destruction in both versions. Now, you can argue about which Max Cady, Mitchum or De Niro, is the better version. However, everyone has to agree that both versions of Max Cady are very dark, disturbed, and pure evil.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 30, 2008 22:07:32 GMT -5
Tomorrow, numbers 54-51. Here are the hints:
He has seven sins, What the hell are you?, a good girl goes bad and comes back from the dead a hundred times, and a yuppie that looks a lot like Batman.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 31, 2008 12:44:57 GMT -5
Countdown time, once more. Here's number 54: 54. John Doe Who is he: A serial killer. What is he from: “Seven.” What has he done: Committed murders based on the seven deadly sins. Intelligence: Brilliant and clever, if not insane and disturbed at the same time. You seen this guy's notebook collection? Power: A loner with no real power in the world, but his crimes will insure him infamy. Vileness: Paints the pictures for our good detectives with blood and guts in some of the grizzliest acts known to cinema. Sway: Given the insanity of his activities, it's tough to be swayed by this psycho... unless your wife's head is in the box. Purity: He's even willing to sacrifice his own life to complete his illustration of the seven deadly sins. Physical Prowess: Doesn’t look scary; he’s simply an average physical man being driven to commit ungodly acts by an unhealthy mental obsession. Name Coolness: Due to its as a placeholder for an unknown male in a legal discussion or action, “John Doe” has a cool mysterious quality to it. Created by: Andrew Kevin Walker. Portrayed by: Kevin Spacey, who wasn’t even listed in the ads and opening credits to the film. In an unidentified dystopian city of constant rain and urban decay, Detective William Somerset (Morgan Freeman) is preparing to retire and leave the horrors of the city. Before he does he is partnered with Detective David Mills (Brad Pitt), a cocky, young and easily angered cop from a small town. The two investigate the murder of a highly obese man who was fed spaghetti until his stomach burst from a kick. Somerset investigates the murder while Mills is given the murder case of Defense Attorney Eli Gould, with GREED written in Gould's blood on the floor. Soon after, Somerset finds GLUTTONY written behind the obese man's fridge and theorizes that a serial killer is basing his crimes on the Seven Deadly Sins, with five more to go. To give Mills and Somerset a chance to get along, Mills' wife, Tracy (Gwyneth Paltrow) invites Somerset over for dinner. After Tracy goes to bed, Mills and Somerset examine case evidence from the two scenes. They find a picture of Gould's wife with blood painted around the eyes. The Detectives have a distraught Mrs. Gould look at the pictures in a safe house and she notices a painting that is upside down. The Detectives, under a UV Light, find fingerprints outlining the words "Help Me." After running the fingerprints through CODIS, the prints are traced a day later to a pedophile named Victor, who escaped conviction for the rape of a minor due to the efforts of his lawyer: Eli Gould, the GREED victim. SWAT and the detectives raid his apartment to find Victor to be the SLOTH victim, having been bound to his bed for a year, still alive but suffering from severe physical and mental deterioration. His hand was cut off to leave the prints. That evening, Tracy calls Somerset and requests that he meet with her. The next morning, Somerset meets Tracy in a diner where she tells him how miserable she is in "the city". At Somerset's urging, Tracy reveals the truth of her request to meet: she is pregnant, afraid of raising a child where they now live and afraid of telling her husband, David. Later that day, and using a contact in the FBI, Somerset gets a library list of people who have borrowed books related to the Seven Deadly Sins. The list leads the detectives to a man named John Doe (Spacey), whose apartment they visit soon after. Doe, his face hidden, sees them as he comes home and pulls out a gun. After a long chase, Doe hits Mills with a tire iron, keeps him subdued at gunpoint, but lets him live and suddenly flees. While examining Doe's apartment (after bribing a resident to claim she called the detectives about Doe) they find notebooks of his thoughts, trophies of the crimes and a picture of Mills fighting off Doe, who, at the time, was posing as a press photographer. They also find a photo of a young woman, a prostitute, who they believe may be the next victim. A receipt leads them to an S&M leather shop where Doe placed an order for a sexual device. The girl is soon found dead in a room with LUST written on the door. Also found in the room is a visibly shaken man forced by Doe at gunpoint to wear and use the device, a strap-on dildo with a blade attachment to rape and kill the girl. The next morning a model is found dead with PRIDE written on the crime scene. Doe cut off her nose ("to spite her face") and gave her the choice of suicide by sleeping pills or calling for help and living scarred. As the detectives return to the police headquarters, the blood-soaked Doe walks up to them and gives himself up. He talks to his lawyer and agrees that if he can take Somerset and Mills to two more bodies, he will confess to the murders. Wanting a confession, the detectives agree. As the three travel to the desert outskirts of the city, Doe explains his rationale behind the murders as a way of showing people what the world is, as well as punishing the wicked. He goes on to say he will be remembered and admired for what he has done, while the disgusted Mills is driven to rage and screams at Doe while Somerset remains calmly worried. Once they reach the outskirts, a van appears and Somerset stops it. The driver claims Doe paid him $500 to deliver a box at this place and time. As Somerset opens the box, Doe admits to Mills that he admires Mills' life, to the point of growing jealous of his wife and the love they share. He states that he tried to "play husband" with Tracy that day but it didn't work out and he took a trophy instead: "her pretty little head". It was Doe's plan that Mills kill him, as he was guilty of ENVY. Mills, despite the warnings of Somerset, is too shocked by his wife's death and the knowledge that she was pregnant and empties his gun into Doe. Thus, Mills fulfills the role of WRATH with his wife's death his punishment. After Mills is taken away, Somerset states that he will stay with the police department, eschewing retirement. Most villains these days lack one thing that helps them on their way to greatness, and it’s not a lightsaber or a cool-ass costume. I'm talking about a plan, something for them to follow, to stick to. Sure, some do have a plan, but they get sidetracked when the good guys nip at their heels trying to foil said plan. Not John Doe. He wants to remind the world about the seven deadly sins it was supposed to be avoiding: gluttony (he forces a fat man to eat spaghetti until his stomach bursts open), pride (he cut off the nose of a model, superglued a phone to one hand and sleeping pills to the other, and gave her the choice to call 911, live, and be scared for the rest or her life or take the sleeping pills and overdose on them so she could die being remembered as beautiful), greed (he forced a lawyer to cut off a pound of his own flesh), lust (he forced a man to rape and kill a prostitute with a strap-on dildo with a blade attachment), sloth (he kept a man tied to a bed for a year, allowing him deteriorate physically (the police thought he was dead at first) and mentally, also cutting off his hand to leave prints at the Greed crime scene), envy (Doe’s sin, he tried to live a nice life with Mills’s wife, but he couldn’t do it and cut off her head), and wrath (he basically forced Mills to shoot him). And in David Fincher's dark and dingy world, Doe was able to slip into the shadows after each instance in which he left bloody examples of the weak representatives of mankind for the detectives on the case. Hell, they didn’t catch Doe until he walked into the police station and turned himself in. In fact, he wins in the end. Doe wanted Mills to kill him because he had a sin of his own and to complete his masterpiece of killing, and to insure this would happen, Doe cut off his wife’s head. Sure, you could say that Doe’s sin and Mills killing him proves that the good guys won; but in the end, Doe’s plan is complete, and Mills’s wife is still dead. John Doe’s death just makes him a martyr.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 31, 2008 13:52:29 GMT -5
53. Predator What is it: An extraterrestrial hunter. What is it from: The Predator franchise. What has it done: Hunted and killed humans. Intelligence: Hunts by using his experience and training, but beyond that, he's merely a hunter using his skills. Power: Its technology is superior to human technology. Vileness: Skins his victims after ripping their skulls and spinal cords out of their bodies. Sway: His breathing and growling noises are pretty damn scary, and he lets his actions speak for him. Purity: While looking for big game (humans), it would seem he enjoys his hunt; but it doesn't kill women, so it may have some sense of morals. Physical Prowess: Superhuman size and strength; his cloaking device helps him hide from prey; without that, he's pretty terrifying; and without his mask: HOLY CRAP!!!! Name Coolness: We don’t know it’s real name, but “Predator” is cool. Created by: Jim and John Thomas. Portrayed by: Kevin Peter Hall played the Predator in both “Predator” and “Predator 2,” but he wasn’t the first choice. Jean-Claude Van Damme (yes, the action star Jean-Claude Van Damme) was originally cast as the Predator, the idea being that the physical action star would use his martial arts skills to make the Predator an agile, ninja-esque hunter. However, Van Damme wasn’t physically imposing to the Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, and Jesse Ventura. So, he got replaced by Hall, who stood at 7 feet 2 inches. Hall also played the helicopter pilot in the last scene of the film. Ian Whyte played “Scar,” the main Predator, in “Alien VS Predator.” He reprised the role in “Alien VS Predator: Requiem.” Expanded Universe: In the Aliens vs. Predator novel series based on the Dark Horse Comics by David Bischoff, Steve and Stephani Perry, the Predators, known in the series as "Yautja", are revealed to live in a matriarchal clan-based society bearing similarities to a pack mentality, with the stronger and most skilled of the group being leader. The Predators are portrayed as sexually dimorphic mammals, with females being larger and stronger than males and sporting more prominent mammary glands (like human females). Both genders give off a strong musk to signify aggression, while females can also emit it when in estrus. This musk can be detected by other Predators and canids, though it is imperceptible to humans. Predators in the Perry novels are not monogamous, and it is not uncommon for veteran warriors to sire hundreds of offspring (known as sucklings) with multiple mates. It is also revealed that their blood has the capacity of partially neutralizing the acidity of Alien blood. Their religion is partially delved upon in the series, showing that they are polytheistic, and that their equivalent to the Grim Reaper is the so called "Black Warrior", who is seen as an eternal adversary who eventually wins all battles. Though female Predators are occasionally referred to in Steve and Stephani Perry's novel series, one does not make an actual appearance until the graphic novel Aliens vs Predator: Deadliest of Species. In Randy Stradley's graphic novel Aliens vs. Predator: War, it is revealed through the narration of the character Machiko Noguchi that Predators were responsible for the spread of Aliens throughout the galaxy, though the Predators themselves deny this, stating that their large interplanetary distribution is due to simultaneous convergent evolution. In John Shirley's stand alone novel Predator: Forever Midnight, Predators, now referred to as "Hish", are shown to possess a gland located between their neck and collarbone which secretes powerful hormones into their bloodstream and which drives them to hyper-aggression. When this gland is over-stimulated, it sends the creatures into a frenzied rage, causing them to attempt killing any living thing in sight, including members of their own species. This "kill rage" can be contagious and spread from one Predator to another, driving them all to attack each other. The Predators as a species barely survived the wars provoked by their kill glands, and they have learned to control the gland's secretions with artificial hormone regulators. In John Vance's graphic novel Predator Homeworld, it is revealed that Predators breathe 1% more oxygen, and 4% more nitrogen than humans, and that they are capable of adapting themselves to Earth's atmosphere for one week at the most if deprived of a breathing apparatus. In Ian Edginton and Alex Maleev's graphic novel Aliens vs. Predator: Eternal and the videogame Predator: Concrete Jungle, Predator flesh and blood, if consumed, is shown to have the capacity of greatly lengthening a human lifespan. “Predator”: Opening with a mysterious spacecraft entering Earth's atmosphere, the film begins on the coast of Guatemala, where a U.S. Army Special Forces unit, led by Major Alan "Dutch" Schaefer (Arnold Schwarzenegger), is ordered to rescue a presidential cabinet minister kidnapped by guerrilla forces in Val Verde. His team includes: Sgt. Mac Eliot (Bill Duke), Sgt. Blain Cooper (Jesse Ventura), Pvt. Billy Sole (Sonny Landham), Pvt. Jorge "Poncho" Ramirez (Richard Chaves), and Cpl. Rick Hawkins (Shane Black). Dutch's old Army buddy and now CIA agent, Major George Dillon (Carl Weathers), joins the team and they travel by helicopter to their destination within the jungle. Once inserted, the team finds the remains of a downed helicopter and later the bodies of several men who have been skinned. They are identified to be another U.S. Special Forces unit, whose presence in the country mystifies Dutch. They soon make their way to a heavily defended rebel encampment and take out its inhabitants in short order, save for a girl named Anna (Elpidia Carrillo), whom they take prisoner. Dutch is enraged to discover that the rescue mission had been a set up to get him and his men to destroy the camp, after the previous team, the dead men they found earlier, disappeared in a failed rescue of several CIA agents belonging to Dillon. Dutch extracts this information from him, who confesses that he was using him all along. As the soldiers make their way to the extraction point, the men are observed from afar by an unknown creature, who uses infrared imaging to spy on them. Once members of the team are killed mysteriously, they become aware that something in the jungle is stalking them, whose presence is confirmed by eerie sightings of a cloaked figure. Anna delivers insight into the creature, who has apparently become a local legend for hunting humans as trophies. Despite attempts to track down the creature, the team is slowly killed off one by one, until only Dutch and Anna remain. Realizing that the creature kills only those possessing weapons, a wounded Dutch sends an unarmed Anna off to the extraction point. Dutch narrowly escapes the creature, revealed to be a masked, reptilian being, by unintentionally covering himself in mud, which hides his body's heat signature, rendering him invisible to the creature's thermal vision. Dutch decides to face off with the creature one last time, using the mud as camouflage and a number of improvised weapons and traps to kill it. The creature arrives as planned, but despite having its cloaking ability disabled in an attack, it manages to capture Dutch. Then, in a display of chivalry, the creature chooses to brawl its human prey to the death, unveiling his facade and discarding his electronic weaponry before brutalizing him. Once cornered, Dutch sets off one of his traps; a suspended log that falls and crushes the creature, mortally wounding it. As Dutch approaches the creature and asks him what he is, the creature mimics his question and then activates a time bomb on his wrist device. Dutch runs for cover as the creature self-destructs, and a massive explosion ignites the jungle. Anna and the rescue helicopter finally arrive to pick up a disheveled but victorious Dutch. Flying back to safety, he stares out at the jungle in mournful silence. “Predator 2”: In 1997, Los Angeles is suffering from both a sweltering heat-wave and a vicious street war between rival Jamaican and Colombian drug cartels. Engaged in a protracted shootout with some Colombians, police officers Leona Cantrell (Maria Conchita Alonso) and Danny Archuleta (Ruben Blades) await the aid of their boss, veteran Lieutenant Michael Harrigan (Danny Glover). After an intense firefight with the officers, Harrigan's aggressive tactics cause the criminals to withdraw into a nearby building. A series of explosions rock the structure, followed by mysterious gunfire. Harrigan proceeds inside, against orders, only to find the Colombians have been mysteriously slaughtered. He catches sight of what appears to be the hazy silhouette of a large man, but waves it off as an effect of the heat wave. Harrigan suspects that a new "player" has entered the streets for control. At the police station, Harrigan is introduced to Special Agent Peter Keyes (Gary Busey), leader of a federal task force investigating the cartels. Harrigan is also introduced to a new officer for his team, Jerry "The Lone Ranger" Lambert (Bill Paxton). Later, Jamaican cartel members attack the Colombian drug lord Ramone at his home. After ritualistically murdering him, the Predator takes advantage of the situation and kills the Jamaicans, leaving only the Colombian's girlfriend alive. Arriving first, Harrigan and his team enter against orders, observing one of the Predator's daggers stuck in an air-conditioner, before Keyes and his team arrive. Enraged at his defiance, Keyes threatens Harrigan, saying he will be 'disappeared' if he interferes again. Harrigan and Archuleta discuss plans to return to the crime scene later for further investigation into the murders. Archuleta arrives before Harrigan and attempts to retrieve the dagger, which has gone unnoticed by Keyes. Unfortunately, the Predator has also returned to the scene. Archuleta attacks on reflex and is killed by the Predator. Harrigan is devastated, vowing to his superiors and Keyes to destroy the perpetrator responsible for his friend's death. After Cantrell and Lambert tail Keyes to a slaughterhouse, they visit a pathologist to investigate the dagger, which Harrigan had secretly removed from Archuleta's corpse. She discusses its origins, noting the weapon's molecular structure does not correspond with the periodic table. Harrigan decides to set up a meeting with the Jamaican drug lord King Willy, hoping he will know who is attacking them. Willy believes the creature involved in the killings of his men is not of this world. More confused than ever, Harrigan leaves; and the Predator immediately attacks and kills King Willy. Leona suspects that this killer is toying with Harrigan, as Danny was murdered shortly before Harrigan arrived, while King Willy was murdered moments after he left. Cantrell and Lambert, planning to meet Harrigan, are traveling by subway when a group of thugs threaten a man. They pull guns on each other, causing Lambert and Cantrell to pull their own weapons. As the tense standoff ensues, the Predator suddenly attacks. During the confusion, Cantrell assists the passengers to safety within another subway car while Lambert keeps the Predator busy. After stopping the train and getting the passengers to the surface, she doubles back to find Lambert has been killed. She encounters the Predator, who scans her body with thermal scan technology. Viewing a fetus within her, the Predator refrains from attacking. Harrigan arrives at the new crime scene and discovers Cantrell is still alive. He also surmises that only armed civilians and officers were attacked. Following a blood trail down the subway tunnel, he witnesses the Predator mutilating Lambert's body. Harrigan pursues the creature, only to be captured by Keyes' special team. Keyes finally reveals his agenda. He and his team have been following encounter sites with the Predator, hoping to catch one ever since Alan "Dutch" Schaeffer (the protagonist of the first film, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) and his Special Forces team were attacked in the jungle ten years earlier. Keyes and his men hope to capture the creature for study. Armed with weaponry intended to immobilize the creature, they have set a trap in a vacant slaughterhouse. Their aim is to make it impossible for the Predator to see in the infra-red spectrum, without which it will be blind; however the Predator simply switches its helmet's scanner to an ultraviolet wavelength. The Predator attacks the government team, killing everyone except Keyes. Harrigan, who foresaw trouble, is able to escape custody and heads to confront the Predator. A short battle follows, in which Keyes is apparently killed. Harrigan is able to shoot down the Predator and remove its mask, but the Predator revives moments later and nearly kills Harrigan. Keyes, still alive (although horribly scarred by a plasma attack), arrives to battle the creature, using a specialized liquid nitrogen cannon. Keyes demands that Harrigan retreat, saying that the fight is between "me and him." The predator pulls out a "smart-disc" weapon and throws it at Keyes. The weapon cuts through half a dozen cattle carcasses before hitting Keyes, slicing him in half. Harrigan and the Predator exchange attacks, as the battle moves to the rooftop. The Predator gets knocked over the side and, hanging from a ledge, attempts to activate the micro-nuke self-destruct bomb contained in its wrist-mounted computer. However, Harrigan steals the Predator's smart-disc weapon and uses it to cut the Predator's forearm off, destroying the bomb in the process. After tending its wounds the Predator retreats to an underground spaceship followed closely by Harrigan. The two have a final duel, ending with Harrigan killing the Predator. The elder Predators pick up their fallen soldier and give Harrigan an old flintlock pistol as a sign of respect. Aliens VS Predator graphic novel: The first Aliens versus Predator centers on Ryushi, a recently-colonized planet, and Machiko Noguchi, the Chigusa Corporation's administrator there. The settlers on Ryushi raise cattle-like quadrupedal ungulates called rhynth for export to other solar systems, and at the time of the story are in the process of assembling a shipment of the native livestock. Unbeknownst to the colonists, Ryushi is a traditional hunting ground of the Predators, and they are returning for their initiation rites. Onboard the Predator ship, the prey are prepared: an Alien queen lays eggs for delivery to Ryushi. Confounding the Predator's safeguards, this queen manages to slip an egg containing the seed of another queen into the shipment. On reaching Ryushi, the eggs hatch and infect Rhynth. Led by a Predator elder, Broken Tusk, the Predators arrive expecting to encounter Aliens. However, they soon run into the settlers and, after Broken Tusk is incapacitated, change their plans and hunt them instead. Meanwhile, the infected Rhynth have been loaded aboard a cargo transporter and, with a queen among their number, an Alien colony quickly takes hold. The Predator assault continues to the settler colony itself, and the surviving settlers find themselves pitched between the Aliens and Predators. Broken Tusk, now recovered due to the intervention of a human doctor, sides with Machiko, and together with the cargo ship's crew they arrange for the transporter's massive orbiter to crash into Ryushi and destroy the colony and the Aliens. In the ensuing fight, Broken Tusk is mortally wounded, but, admiring the courage of his human comrade, "bloods" Machiko with the mark of his clan. The story concludes with Machiko the sole inhabitant of Ryushi, the surviving settlers having been evacuated from the planet. She waits, and is rewarded with, the return of the Predators and another hunt. One of Broken Tusk's former Predator rivals greets her and, recognizing Broken Tusk's clan symbol, accepts Machiko into the hunt. “Alien VS Predator”: In 2004, a satellite detects a mysterious heat bloom beneath Bouvetøya, an island about one thousand miles north of Antarctica. Billionaire Charles Bishop Weyland (Lance Henriksen) assembles a team of scientists to investigate the heat source and claim it for his multinational communications company Weyland Industries. The team includes paleontologists, archaeologists, linguistic experts, drillers, mercenaries, and a female guide named Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan). As a Predator ship reaches Earth's orbit, it blasts a hole through the ice towards the source of the heat bloom. When the humans arrive at the site above the heat source, an abandoned whaling station, they find this hole and descend beneath the ice. They discover a mysterious pyramid and begin to explore it, finding evidence of a civilization predating written history and what appears to be a sacrificial chamber filled with human skeletons with ruptured rib cages. Meanwhile, three Predators land and kill the humans on the surface, making their way down to the pyramid and arrive just as the team unwittingly powers up the structure. An Alien queen awakens from cryogenic stasis and begins to produce eggs, from which facehuggers hatch and attach to several humans trapped in the sacrificial chamber. Chestbursters emerge from the humans and quickly grow into adult Aliens. Conflicts erupt between the Predators, Aliens, and humans, resulting in several deaths. Unbeknownst to the others, a Predator is implanted with an Alien embryo. Through translation of the pyramid's hieroglyphs the explorers learn that the Predators have been visiting Earth for thousands of years. It was they who taught early human civilizations how to build pyramids, and were worshipped as gods. Every 100 years they would visit Earth to take part in a rite of passage in which several humans would sacrifice themselves as hosts for the Aliens, creating the "ultimate prey" for the Predators to hunt. If overwhelmed, the Predators would activate their self-destruct weapons to eliminate the Aliens and themselves. The explorers deduce that this is why the current Predators are at the pyramid, and that the heat bloom was to attract humans for the purpose of making new Aliens to hunt. The remaining humans decide that the Predators must be allowed to succeed in their hunt so the Aliens do not reach the surface. As the battle continues most of the characters are killed, leaving only Alexa and a single Predator to fight against the Aliens. The two form an alliance and use the Predator’s self-destruct device to destroy the pyramid and the remaining Aliens. Alexa and the Predator reach the surface, where they battle the escaped Alien queen. They defeat the queen by attaching its chain to a water tower and pushing it over a cliff into the water, dragging the queen to the ocean floor. The Predator, however, dies from its wounds. A Predator ship uncloaks and several Predators appear. They collect their fallen comrade and present Alexa with one of their spear weapons in recognition of her skill as a warrior. As they retreat into space, a chestburster erupts from the dead Predator. It appears to be an Alien/Predator hybrid, as it has the characteristic mandibles of both creatures. “Alien VS Predator: Requiem”: The film begins immediately following the events of Alien vs. Predator, onboard the Predator spaceship leaving Earth which is carrying dead Aliens, living facehuggers, and the body of the dead Predator who had defeated the Alien queen. A chestburster erupts from the dead Predator's body; it is a new creature which is a hybrid of Alien and Predator characteristics (referred to as the "Predalien" by the film’s production team). It quickly grows into an adult and begins killing the Predators onboard the ship. One Predator fires at it, creating a hole in the hull and causing the ship to crash in the forest outside of Gunnison, Colorado. With the Predators dead, the Predalien and several facehuggers escape into the forest and impregnate a father and son on a hunting trip as well as several homeless people living in the sewers. A distress signal from the ship reaches the Predator homeworld. A lone Predator responds to the signal and comes to Earth, using his advanced technology to observe the cause of the crash and track the facehuggers. He begins to erase the evidence of the Aliens' presence, first by blowing up the crashed ship and then by using a blue liquid to dissolve the bodies of the facehuggers and their victims. Meanwhile, in Gunnison, ex-convict Dallas Howard (Steven Pasquale) has just returned to town after serving time in prison. He is greeted by Sheriff Eddie Morales (John Ortiz) and reunites with his younger brother Ricky (Johnny Lewis). Ricky has a romantic interest in the more affluent Jesse (Kristen Hager) and is being harassed by her current boyfriend Dale (David Paetkau) and his cohorts. Dale throws Ricky's keys into the sewer drain, and while Dallas and Ricky search for them they hear noises and see evidence that something strange is in the sewers. Meanwhile, Kelly O'Brien (Reiko Aylesworth) has also just returned to Gunnison from deployment in the army and is reunited with her husband Tim (Sam Trammell) and daughter Molly (Ariel Gade). Sheriff Morales leads a search party into the forest to search for the father and son who have gone missing on their hunting trip. A deputy encounters and is killed by the Predator. The Predator makes his way into the sewers and fights several adult Aliens. The battle reaches the surface, where the Aliens disperse into the town. The Predator pursues several of them to the city’s power plant, where the explosions caused by his weapons fire cause a citywide blackout. Ricky and Jesse meet at the high school swimming pool, but are interrupted by Dale and his friends just as the blackout occurs and an Alien enters the building, killing Dale’s friends. An Alien also invades the O’Brien home, killing Tim while Kelly escapes with Molly. They meet up with Ricky, Jesse, Dale, Dallas, and Sheriff Morales at a sporting goods store to gather guns. National Guard troops arrive but are quickly killed by the Aliens. The battle between the Predator and the Aliens enters the sporting goods store, where Dale is killed and the Predator’s shoulder cannons are damaged. He is able to modify one into a handheld blaster. As the survivors attempt to escape the town they make radio contact with Colonel Stevens, who indicates that an air evacuation is being staged at the center of town. Kelly, however, is suspicious of the military’s intentions. While Sheriff Morales heads to the evacuation area with the rest of the surviving townsfolk, the remainder of the group opts to head for the hospital, where they may escape via helicopter. The hospital, however, has been invaded by the Aliens and the Predalien who have set up a hive there. The Predalien demonstrates the ability to implant embryos directly into host humans without the need for eggs or facehuggers. The Predator also arrives at the hospital, and in the resulting battle Jesse is killed, Ricky is injured, and Dallas takes possession of the Predator’s blaster cannon. As the battle reaches the rooftop Dallas, Ricky, Kelly, and Molly escape in the helicopter while the Predator and Predalien battle hand-to-hand. The two creatures mortally wound each other just as the military jet arrives and is revealed not to be a rescue airlift, but rather a tactical nuclear strike. The Predator, Aliens, Predalien, and remaining citizens are eradicated in the blast along with the rest of the town. The blast causes the helicopter to crash in a clearing, where the survivors are rescued by the military and the Predator’s blaster cannon is confiscated. In the closing scene, Colonel Stevens presents the blaster cannon to a Ms. Yutani (foreshadowing the Weyland-Yutani corporation of the Alien series). She remarks that the world is not ready for this technology, to which he replies: "But this isn’t for our world. Is it, Ms. Yutani?" In hunting, you have a predator and a prey. The predator stalks its prey, trying to sneak up on it in a moment when the prey is preoccupied and not thinking that something will come out and kill it. Then, the predator pounces and takes its prey. However, when the prey knows the predator is out there, it comes harder for the predator to take the prey. Nevertheless, some predators usually get their prey. For example: humans. We are good at hunting because we have developed technology to hunt and make it easier to take out our prey. In “Predator,” the tables are turn, as there is an alien with better technology that ours, with its shoulder-holstered missile launcher; double-bladed, saw-toothed, hand-fastened knife; multi-spectrum vision enhancement mask; and light-bending armor. It easily takes out its human prey. And, the Predator is quite cruel in the hunt. It rips the spines right out of its prey and takes the prey’s skull as a trophy. However, the Predator does have some sense of morals: it never kills women or children. In the first movie, it didn’t kill Anna; and in the sequel, it didn’t harm Leona when it saw that she was pregnant. And, it only really attacks people carrying weapons. It nearly attacks a kid with a toy gun, but when it scans the gun and discovers it is a toy, it backs off. The Predator is only concern with the prey that can put up a fight. And, the Predator and its race respect other fellow hunters and those who defeat them in a fair fight. In the end of “Predator 2,” after Harrigan kills the Predator, they give him a flintlock gun as a trophy and let him leave alive. Nevertheless, the Predator is a vicious killer and will do anything to kill its prey.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 31, 2008 15:06:08 GMT -5
52. Dark Phoenix Who is it/she: An immortal and mutable manifestation of the prime universal force of life that possesses Jean Grey, a member of the X-Men. What is it/she from: Marvel Comics, most notably the X-Men comics. What has it/she done: Destroyed beings it considers to be obsolete. Intelligence: Takes on the intelligence of its host, and Jean Grey is a very smart woman. Power: Is feared throughout the universe and can swallow stars. Vileness: Shows little care for the beings that died because of its actions. Sway: Its reputation has put fear into many people in the universe. Purity: While the Phoenix Force has little care, Jean Grey has felt guilty about the things she did when the Phoenix Force possessed her. Physical Prowess: Jean Grey is a 5 ft 6 in, 110 pound girl, but she has the powers of telepathy and telekinesis. When possessed by the Phoenix Force, she was granted the ability to create, control, and manipulate cosmic fire, known as cosmic pyrokinesis; the ability to feel the texture of things she holds, known as telekinetic sensitivity; the ability to resurrect herself and anybody from death; the ability to travel unaided through space and time; and the ability to psionically manipulate matter by molecules and any form of energy Name Coolness: “Dark Phoenix” is pretty cool. Created by: “Jean Grey” was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and the “Phoenix Force” was created by Stan Lee and Dave Cockrum. Portrayed by: Catherine Disher voiced “Jean Grey/Phoenix” in the 1990s FOX X-Men animated series. In the X-Men: Evolution animated series, Venus Terzo voiced “Jean Grey,” but she didn’t become the Phoenix in the series. And, Famke Janssen played “Jean Grey,” who became the Phoenix in the third film, in the X-Men films. Comics: The Phoenix Force is an immortal and mutable manifestation of the prime universal force of life. Born of the void between states of being, the Phoenix Force is a child of the universe. It is the nexus of all psionic energy which does, has, and ever will exist in all realities of the omniverse, the Guardian of Creation, and a de-facto guardian of the M'Kraan Crystal. The Phoenix is among the most feared beings in the entire existence - having the power to cut and re-grow any part of the universe, as well as destroy it entirely, which is part of the Phoenix's purpose: "The Judgment of the Phoenix", to burn away the obsolete. The Phoenix Force is described as being "the embodiment of the very passion of Creation: the spark that gave life to the Universe, the flame that will ultimately consume it." During its time as a sentient entity, it traveled the cosmos just like other cosmic beings. At first, the Phoenix Force was a formless mass of energy, but thousands of years ago, it came to Earth, and met a magician named Feron (who worshipped the legendary Phoenix), whose daydream-like visions prompted the Phoenix to adopt the firebird form it has today. He asked the Phoenix to help him by lending its energy to project a stone pillar (which resembled a lighthouse) across the multiverse. The pillar became the lighthouse base for the British super-team Excalibur (a team its future host Rachel Grey née Summers herself would join). Afterwards, Feron was attacked by Necrom in an attempt to steal the power of the Phoenix. Feron, strengthened by the Phoenix Force, was able to fight back but Necrom was able to steal a fraction of the Phoenix Force's essence forcing it to flee back to space in agonized confusion. The Phoenix Force returned to Earth when it felt the mind of a human transcend the physical realm, a mind that resonated with the Phoenix Force's energy. A young Jean Grey had telepathically linked her mind to her dying friend, Annie Richards, to keep Annie's soul from moving to the afterlife. In doing so, Jean's mind was being dragged along to the "other side" with Annie. Phoenix lent its energy to break the connection, and kept close watch on young Jean, as it felt a kinship with the young mutant. Years later, while Jean and Scott are having a romantic evening in Manhattan, she, Wolverine, and Banshee, are abducted by Sentinels. They are taken to an abandoned S.H.I.E.L.D. orbital platform under the command of the anti-mutant activist Steven Lang, who is plotting to unleash a new generation of Sentinels. The other X-Men, with the aid of Dr. Peter Corbeau, rescue them. During the space station's destruction, the X-Men find that their shuttle has been damaged in an earlier fight with the Sentinels. The X-Men decide that someone must stay at the controls and pilot the ship, while everyone else remains in the shuttle's heavily-shielded life cell. Knowing no one else could survive long enough to pilot the shuttle to safety, Jean uses her telepathy on Dr. Corbeau to learn how to pilot the shuttle and her telekinesis to block the radiation as she pilots the ship back to Earth. Her telekinetic shields give way under the onslaught of the intense radiation. The strain of holding the solar radiation at bay with her powers destroys the psychic shields Xavier placed in her mind as a child, and Jean’s mind calls out for help and the Phoenix Force answered and saved her, transforming Jean into Phoenix. Jean assumes her ultimate potential as a psychic, becoming an entity of pure thought. The shuttle crashes into a bay, and Jean telekinetically reforms her body and emerges from the water. Taking the code-name of Phoenix, Jean's psi-powers are now vastly stronger, and she manifests a fiery bird-shaped energy aura whenever she uses her powers to their fullest extent. Phoenix healed the M'Kraan Crystal to keep the universe from being destroyed. As originally written, the Jean Grey incarnation of the Phoenix was not a separate cosmic entity, but Jean herself, having attained her ultimate potential as a psychic. The extent of the Phoenix Force's abilities has not been fully clarified. In a certain retconned issue, the Phoenix can be seen holding the Universe-616 in the palm of her hands, modifying them at will. Jean Grey as The White Phoenix of the Crown was able to change the future of a universe by reaching back in time and pushing her husband Cyclops to move on with his life. The Phoenix will become Dark Phoenix if it allows human emotions to cloud its judgment. In this state, Phoenix is the strongest, but also is an evil entity. It thirsts for power and destruction. Totally uncontrollable, it is a force to be reckoned with as it is not bound by a human conscience. When Dark Phoenix flew back into space, her true firebird form was seen across the entire universe and even demanded the attention of Eternity. Dark Phoenix was first released in the Dark Phoenix Saga. Her vast potential made her a target for the illusionist Mastermind, who was attempting to prove himself in order to join the prestigious Inner Circle of the Hellfire Club. With the help of a mind-tap device created by the White Queen, Emma Frost, Mastermind (using the alias Jason Wyngarde) was able to project his illusions directly into Phoenix’s mind. These illusions caused her to believe that she was reliving the memories of her ancestor, Lady Grey, who in Mastermind’s illusions, was Wyngarde’s lover. Phoenix was subverted into joining the Hellfire Club as their Black Queen, a decadent role that would allow her to relish the extremes of human emotion and began to break down the barriers that she had erected. When the X-Men came to her rescue, they were captured by the Inner Circle, and Jean’s true love Cyclops faced Mastermind in a psychic duel. When Mastermind killed Cyclops’ psychic image, it served to break his hold over Jean’s psyche and shattered the final barriers on her power. Experiencing this power in its totality, along with the decadent role she had just played, overwhelmed Jean entirely, and she renamed herself the “Dark Phoenix.” The X-Men battled her, but were easily defeated by her power before she departed for the heavens. Intent on satiating her hunger, Dark Phoenix created a wormhole and transported herself to a distant galaxy. Without a thought of the consequences, she dove into the heart of the D’Bari star and devoured its energy, causing the star to go nova, killing billions of innocent aliens in the process. Dark Phoenix was then attacked by a Shi’ar vessel to prevent her from destroying other stars. Dark Phoenix easily defeated her foes, but not before they were able to alert the Shi’ar Empress Lilandra. Gathering a host of intergalactic associates, including the Kree and Skrull empires, the council concluded that Dark Phoenix was an even more serious threat than the planet-consuming Galactus and must be destroyed because she had the power to destroy the entire Universe. On Earth, the X-Men were greeted by Avengers member, and former member of the X-Men, the Beast. He had designed a device which would neutralize Phoenix’s powers long enough for them to defeat her. Dark Phoenix returned to Earth, to her family’s home, and was subsequently attacked by the X-Men. During a vicious psionic battle with her mentor, Charles Xavier, he was able to rebuild the psychic “circuit-breakers” in her mind which reduced Dark Phoenix’s powers to more reasonable levels and allowed Jean’s personality to reassert control, curtailing the destructive impulses of Dark Phoenix. The Shi’ar then abducted the X-Men, told them of Dark Phoenix’s casual genocide, and indicated that she must be put to death because of it. Xavier, who was romantically involved with the Shi’ar Empress, challenged Lilandra to Arin’n Haelar, a Shi’ar duel of honor that cannot be refused. After conferring with her allies, who insisted the contest be staged to ensure a guaranteed victory on their part, Lilandra ceded to Xavier’s demand. The next day, the X-Men and the Shi’ar Imperial Guard were teleported to the Blue Area of the moon where they would do battle, with the victors deciding the fate of Phoenix. The Imperial Guard, led by Gladiator, was able to defeat all of the X-Men, leaving Cyclops and Phoenix alone to make a final stand against them. When a stray bolt of energy hit Cyclops, Jean Grey’s panic overrode the psychic circuit-breakers Xavier had placed within her mind and the full might of Phoenix’s powers were once more unleashed. At this point, Lilandra abandoned the delicate approach and ordered Plan Omega, which would consist of destroying the whole Solar system in hopes of eliminating Dark Phoenix in the process. With events spiraling out of control, Xavier ordered the X-Men to subdue Jean to preempt Lilandra’s emergency measure. The team battled her until she regained her senses. Running to a back alley on the moon, Jean, struggling to keep control, activated a Kree weapon and disintegrated herself after an emotional good-bye to Cyclops. He later deduced that Jean had planned her sacrifice from the moment they had landed on the moon. This pivotal story ends with Uatu the Watcher commenting that “Jean Grey could have lived to become a god, but it was more important to her that she died as a human.” In order to return Jean to the fold several years later, this storyline was retconned to reveal the existence of the cosmic Phoenix Force entity, which had created a duplicate body of Jean, believed itself to be Jean, and acted in her place while the real Jean lay in a coma in the ocean. This let Jean be revived as a member of X-Factor. The extent to which the duplicate and Jean are separate entities depends on who is writing the character(s) at the time. Part of the Phoenix Force joined with Jean's clone, Madelyne Pryor, until she also committed suicide and the Phoenix consciousness rejoined with the awakened Jean. Another possessor of the Phoenix Force is Rachel Summers, Jean's daughter from the Days of Future Past alternate future. The Phoenix Force accepted her as a host, allowing her to use limited amounts of its immense powers to enhance her own. During an encounter with Galactus the Devourer of Worlds, Rachel Summers, at the time completely overtaken by the Phoenix Force, battled Galactus in an effort to save a planet he was preparing to devour. The Phoenix Force disrupted Galactus' feeding process and thus was able to eventually defeat the depleted world devourer in battle. Galactus accused the Phoenix Force of hypocrisy and revealed to it that every time it exercised its powers on such vast scales, it robbed energy used to birth future generations. Realizing this to be true, the Phoenix vowed never again to use its powers to such an extent. In Phoenix—Endsong, the Shi'ar resurrect the dormant Phoenix Force prematurely and without a host, in hopes of destroying it. The Phoenix escapes to Earth where it resurrects Jean Grey and forcefully bonds with her again, despite Jean's pleas that it is "too early." Wolverine finds Jean before the Shi'ar fire a miniature black hole at the two. The Phoenix Force teleports Jean and Wolverine to the North Pole. Seeing an injured Logan, Jean is able to resurface and gain control. She asks him to stop the Phoenix. Wolverine tries to kill her, but she will not die. He manages to weaken the Phoenix greatly, and Jean embeds herself in the ice. The X-Men arrive at the North Pole in the Blackbird, and in the ensuing battle, the Phoenix alternately possesses Emma Frost and an escaped Quentin Quire who hopes to use the Phoenix to resurrect Sophie of the Stepford Cuckoos. Cyclops realizes that Jean is the only hope of containing the Phoenix. He frees her from the ice, and Jean is able to rip the Phoenix Force out of Emma Frost. The Phoenix is shocked, but Jean merely replies, "Don't you remember? I am you." The Phoenix then taunts Jean about losing Cyclops' love. Distressed, Jean begins to lose control. Cyclops then realizes that Jean needs to feel the love her teammates and he himself have for her, and has Emma and the Stepford Cuckoos contact all of the current and former X-Men around the world to focus their love into Jean. Jean regains control and transcends into the White Phoenix of the Crown in time to save the team from another black hole created by the Shi’ar. Before she departs, Jean asks Scott to remove his visor because she wants to see his eyes. Enveloped in his optic blast, she leaves for the White Hot Room to gather the missing pieces of herself, giving Scott one last goodbye. In Phoenix—Warsong, the story revolves around the Stepford Cuckoos and includes the team from Astonishing X-Men. The Phoenix Force attaches itself to the three remaining Stepford Cuckoos, amplifies their telepathic power, and gives them the power of telekinesis. With their newfound abilities, the girls overcome Emma Frost's psychic detention and resurrect their deceased sisters Esme and Sophie. Kid Omega also wakes, once again, from his stasis in Beast's lab. Soon, several revelations come to the forefront: both for the audience, as well as the Cuckoos themselves. It is shown that the girls' bones are actually composed of or bonded to a yet-to-be disclosed metal. We also learn that they have the ability to mentally communicate with each other in binary language, at a rate far too rapid for other telepaths to decipher. Emma goes on to discover that the girls had placed all of the X-Men, including its most powerful telepaths, into a looping psionic memory-block which would disable their linear thought process whenever they began to question the Cuckoos' origin. And finally, the episode concludes with the Three-In-One's discovery that they're only three of nearly a thousand identical female units: the remainder residing in individual incubation chambers hidden within an underground laboratory. The two deceased Cuckoos, now undead but still decayed, appear and are more aware of the unfolding events than the Three-In-One. Then, it was revealed that Emma's ova were the genetic templates used to clone the hundreds of identical telepaths; including the Five-In-One. They were harvested from her by John Sublime, at some point during her coma following the death of the original Hellions. The clones begin to refer to Frost as "mother", a title which she later accepts. It was also shown that Celeste now wields the Phoenix Force. The fourth issue reveals the Cuckoo's original purpose. It is shown that the cloned sisters serve as telepathic antannae, their sheer number granting them projection and reception capabilities at a global range. The Three-In-One were to be linked with three egg-like compartments of the machinery which binds the clones, acting as its focal point. With all three Cuckoos focusing the combined power of their thousand-fold sisters, they would have the ability to obliterate any number of mental signatures that they chose-- in essence, giving them the ability to simultaneously eliminate all of mutantkind, worldwide, by simply concentrating on mutants' unique mental wavelengths. Many may notice the similarity between this plotline and that outlined by the second X-Men movie, X-Men 2: X-Men United; though here, the Three-In-One replace Professor X and their myriad of cloned sisters replace the duplicated Cerebro. The fourth installment goes on to reveal that the Celeste/Phoenix combination has manifested for the purpose of destroying the Cuckoo clones; the entity wasting no time in incinerating Esme, Sophie, and the deformed rejected clones. To stop its activities, Emma enters into the egg-like compartment meant for Celeste; and synching with Mindee and Phoebe, she uses her significantly more refined abilities to disconnect the factions of Celeste's brain which grant her access to both her psionic powers and the Phoenix force fragment. Emma then settles to comfort her barely conscious daughter, only to be ambushed with tentacle-like extensions of Sublime's machine. Impaling Celeste, the machine absorbs a backlash of her residual Phoenix energy, which immediately disperses to all of the cloned units as well. Upon the issue's conclusion; the audience is left with a scene depicting each one of the cloned units, as well as the Three-In-One, now seemingly empowered by the Phoenix fragment. The series concludes with the girls now referring to themselves as the Thousand-in-One and under Sublime's control. The cosmically-empowered psychics proceed to enact their programmed destiny of mutant destruction. Celeste however, is still in partial control of both her own and her sisters' supermind, alerts the X-Men that they can short-circuit the girls' linkage by destroying Sublime's machinery; which they do. Phoebe, distraught at having lost access to the cosmic power, sends a concentrated bolt of her last remaining energy through the facility's floor-- prompting an explosion that would destroy everything within a half-mile radius. Celeste, at Emma's behest, accepts her role as a Phoenix host, and stops the explosion by temporarily freezing localized time. She then goes on to destroy the thousand-strong Cuckoo clones, by shattering their newly-manifested Diamond forms; before casting the entity out of her body. It however, refuses to depart the area; to which Celeste reacts by reabsorbing force into her own and her two remaining sisters' diamond hearts. Unlike their mother's diamond composition, the Cuckoo's hearts haven't a single flaw; and as such, nothing can destroy, enter, or escape them, even the splintered Phoenix itself. The price the sisters must pay for this, is that they can never again feel emotion; thus leaving them even more cold-hearted and detached from their fellow man, than they were before. The storyline ends with Emma sitting alone outside of the X-Mansion, staring into the night sky, and promising retribution to the Phoenix Entity for exterminating her cloned progeny... should it ever return to Earth. X-Men: The Animated Series: The entire saga of the Phoenix is retold and adapted in the third season of the X-Men animated series, subdivided into the five-part "Phoenix Saga," in which Jean acquires the power of the Phoenix and the battle for the M'Kraan Crystal occurs, and the "Dark Phoenix Saga," showcasing the battle with the Hellfire Club, the Phoenix Force's transformation into Dark Phoenix, and the battle to decide her fate. These particular episodes are as close as the cartoon came to directly duplicating the comic book storylines - the "Dark Phoenix Saga" is so accurate to the original stories that the episodes have the additional credit, "Based on stories by Chris Claremont." Notably, however, as the Phoenix Force retcon had occurred before the creation of the series, the episodes were made with this change in mind - rather than having Jean develop her powers independently (as was the original intent of the comics), or be replaced by the cosmic Phoenix Force entity (as events were later retconned), the two concepts were merged, into Jean's actual body being possessed by the Phoenix Force, leading to a true struggle between two independent entities. Rather than destroying an inhabited system -- which was the cause for the decision to kill off the character in the comics -- the animated story had her destroy a deserted system and only disable the attacking Shi'Ar cruiser. These changes made it possible for aspects of the original ending of Uncanny X-Men #137, in which Jean survives, to be used. Jean does still commit suicide (taking control of the Shi'Ar's laser beam to fire on herself, rather than finding an ancient weapon), but with her death, the Phoenix Force is purified, and then uses its powers to resurrect Jean, drawing on the combined life-force of the assembled X-Men to bring her back to life. Jean retained her original basic powers, whereas in the aborted comic book ending, she would have been lobotomized by the Shi'Ar and lost them entirely. She was voiced by Catherine Disher. X-Men: Evolution: The Phoenix Force makes a cameo in the last episode of X-Men: Evolution following Apocalypse's defeat. Her cameo is part of Professor Xavier's glimpse of the future, and shows Jean Grey screaming out as she becomes the Dark Phoenix. The X-Men films: In the second X-Men movie, X2: X-Men United, Jean Grey's powers are evolving. As Jean Grey uses her powers, a fiery aura appears in her eyes. In the climax of the movie, she is engulfed in a fiery aura as she holds back a tsunami of water from a burst dam to save the other X-Men. In the final scene, a giant flying fiery bird can be seen reflected in the water. In the third X-Men movie, X-Men: The Last Stand, Jean becomes Phoenix. Jean is the only known class five mutant. At a young age, Xavier locked some of Jean's powers away as she could not control her near-infinite abilities. This causes a split in Jean's psyche—between Jean Grey and the Phoenix (what her split-personality calls itself)—and drives her to insanity. During the movie, Jean and Phoenix battle for dominance. Jean tells Wolverine she thinks she killed Scott, although this is never confirmed. Phoenix destroys Xavier and joins Magneto. Jean/Phoenix abstains from a battle on Alcatraz until the military reinforcements show up and try to shoot her; Phoenix then gains full control and demolishes the island, ripping it and everything on it apart on the molecular level. Wolverine climbs his way to Jean's side while his flesh is peeled from his Adamantium covered bones, his healing factor keeping him alive. He calls to Jean, but there is only the Phoenix and it does not understand his actions. Logan tells Jean that he would die for her and that he loves her. His heartfelt words pull Jean to the fore; she asks him to save her. He stabs her with his claws, killing her and ending the destruction. Jean is buried on the X-Mansion ground, besides the markers of Scott and Xavier. “The Dark Phoenix Saga” is one of the best know X-Men stories, and one of the main reasons for it being so well known is that the villain of the story is one of the X-Men: Jean Grey. It is quite amazing how fast Jean became corrupted by the Phoenix Force. All that power combined with Mastermind’s illusions quickly turned sweet Jean Grey into the evil Dark Phoenix. And, when she went bad, it was amazing how much destruction she caused. She swallowed an entire star and killed all the inhabitants of the star’s planetary system. Hell, she had the entire Shi’ar Empire trying to take her out. However, Jean Grey was able to regain control and committed suicide. But, over the years, some things have transpired that have hurt the stories and Dark Phoenix’s impact: the multiple resurrections of Jean Grey, the retconning that made Jean and the Phoenix separate entities, and “X-Men: The Last Stand” (Goddamn you, Brett Ratner). However, there was a very good sequel, Phoenix—Endsong, which was quite popular and captured the tragic tone of the Dark Phoenix Saga, and the X-Men animated series did a great adaptation of the story. Besides, if a classic story can hold up to whatever comes along that may weakened it, and the Dark Phoenix Saga has done so, which will insure that the Dark Phoenix will be a classic villain for years to come.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 31, 2008 15:51:56 GMT -5
51. Patrick Bateman Who is he: A Yuppie investment banker. What is he from: American Psycho (novel and movie) What has he done: Killed a lot of people. Intelligence: Harvard-educated, so he’s very smart. Power: He’s a VP in the firm he works for. Vileness: Besides the murders he commits, his "experiments" with women are graphic and appalling. Sway: His straightforward honesty is unsettling toward the people he despises, but he wilts under pressure. Purity: He spares only one life: his assistant Jean. Physical Prowess: He is in excellent physical shape, obsessively so, and walks around looking fabulous in his nice suits. Name Coolness: “Patrick Bateman” is a typical yuppie name. Created by: Bret Easton Ellis. Portrayed by: Christian Bale, who is the stepson of Gloria Steinem, who was one of the many opposed to the release of the American Psycho novel. This irony is mentioned in Ellis's mock memoir Lunar Park. Novel: Set in Manhattan and beginning on April Fools' Day 1987, American Psycho spans roughly two years in the life of wealthy young investment banker Patrick Bateman. Bateman, 26 years old when the story begins, narrates his everyday activities, from his daily life among the upper-class elite of New York to his forays into murder by nightfall. Bateman comes from a privileged background, having graduated from Philips Exeter Academy, Harvard (class of 1984), and then Harvard Business School (class of 1986). He works as a vice president at a Wall Street investment bank and lives in an expensive Manhattan apartment on the Upper West Side. He embodies the 1980s yuppie culture. Through present tense stream-of-consciousness narrative he describes his conversations with colleagues in bars and cafes, his office, and nightclubs, satirizing the vanity of Manhattan yuppies. The first third of the book contains no violence, and is simply an account of what seems to be a series of Friday nights, as Bateman documents traveling with his colleagues to a variety of nightclubs, where they indulge in massive amounts of cocaine, drink a variety of alcoholic beverages, critique fellow clubgoers' clothing, trade fashion advice, and question one another on proper etiquette. Beginning with the second third of the book, Bateman begins to describe his day-to-day activities, which range from committing brutal violence (such as the torture of a young woman by trapping a rat in her cheese-filled vagina) to such mundanities as renting videotapes and making dinner reservations. Bateman's stream of consciousness is occasionally broken up by chapters in which Bateman directly addresses the reader in order to critique the works of various 1980s musicians such as Whitney Houston. In addition to describing his daily life, Bateman also speaks at length about his love life. He is engaged to a fellow yuppie named Evelyn, though he possesses no deep feelings for anyone; additionally, he frequently solicits sex with attractive women ("hardbodies"), manipulates his secretary's feelings for him, and tries to avoid the attention of Luis, a closeted homosexual colleague who confesses his love for Patrick. Bateman also documents his relationship with his estranged family, including his senile mother, whom he visits to present with a pair of Wayfarers while she lays semi-comatose in a nursing home, and his younger brother, a hedonistic college dropout. As the book progresses, Bateman's grip on reality seems to begin deteriorating and his murders become increasingly violent and complex, going from simple acts of violence to drawn out sequences of torture, rape, mutilation, cannibalism, and necrophilia. He starts to randomly slip in anecdotes about serial killers into his casual conversations, and at some points confesses these murders to his co-workers, who either react as if Bateman is simply joking with them and displaying his interest in a strange hobby, or completely misunderstand him ("murders and executions" becomes "mergers and acquisitions"). As the book nears its conclusion, Bateman begins to describe such incidents as seeing a Cheerio interviewed on a talk show, being stalked by an anthropomorphic park bench, and being ordered to kill cats by a demonic ATM. These incidents both serve to demonstrate Patrick's mental state and to draw into question whether Bateman has actually committed any of the murders he has described, or whether or not he was insane from the start. The incipit of the book has Bateman staring at a graffito on a Chemical Bank building, reading Abandon all hope ye who enter here. The book ends with a scene similar to its beginning, as Bateman sits in a bar, staring at a sign that reads "THIS IS NOT AN EXIT". Movie: American Psycho takes place in Manhattan during the late 1980s. Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) is a 27 year old investment banker. He narrates his upper-class daily life, and then turns to his darker side of rape, torture, and murder by night. Patrick grew up with a wealthy background. He graduated from Harvard, and Harvard Business School. Patrick is the vice president at the Wall Street investment bank, Pierce & Pierce, owned by his father. His activities involve: renting/returning videos, attending classy restaurants, parties with his colleagues, and visiting night clubs. Patrick's personal life consists of various affairs around his fiancée Evelyn (Reese Witherspoon). Patrick prides himself on his physical appearance, and trying to outclass his colleagues. He is aware of his psychopathic nature and tries to hint this to others, but he is misunderstood, and ignored. Patrick is visited by Detective Donald Kimball (Willem Dafoe), who is investigating the "disappearance" of Paul Allen (Jared Leto). In the movie it seems that Detective Kimball suspects Patrick of having something to do with the disappearance of Allen, but is told by others he was at a party on the date Allen went missing. At the end of the movie, Patrick tries to tell his lawyer (Stephen Bogaert) that recently he has maybe murdered 40 people along with Paul Allen. His lawyer thinks it is a joke and tells Patrick that he had lunch with Allen in London only a little while ago. Patrick concludes the story with a final thought. His thought is that that he has surpassed all the mayhem he has caused. He wants his pain inflicted on others, and no one to escape. His punishment continues to elude him. His confession has meant nothing. On first appearance, Patrick Bateman exemplifies the image of the successful Manhattan executive: well-educated, wealthy, unusually popular with women, abreast of cultural trends, belongs to a prominent family, has a high-paying job, and lives in an upscale, chic apartment complex. Bateman passes for a refined, intelligent, thoughtful young man and is the ultimate stereotype of yuppie greed: rich, shallow, and addicted to sex, drugs, and conspicuous consumption. He is extremely style-conscious, and appears an expert in fashion and high-end consumer products. In his narrative, he obsessively describes his and other people's possessions in exhaustive detail, focusing particularly on attire, and even noting articles like pens, and pocket squares. He has a general tendency to pay more heed to the designer, place of purchase, and style of the items he describes, often ignoring the textile type or color. Bateman incisively answers his friends' and co-workers' queries, authoritatively explicating the difference between various types of mineral water, which tie knot is less bulky than a Windsor knot, and the proper way to wear a cummerbund, pocket square, or tie bar. Yet, contrary to his persona, he tortures and murders victims, practices violent sex, cannibalizes victims, and sexually penetrates body parts of corpses. For transportation, Bateman uses personal limousines to search for suitable victims in the streets. He commits many murders. There was the homeless man he happened upon in the alley. Bateman spoke to him about getting a job, wondering why he couldn't better himself, and summarily gutted him and killed his dog. He chased a hooker around a building with a chainsaw while naked and after having killed the woman who a part of their threesome and killed the prostitute by dropping the chainsaw on her from the top of a staircase. He buried an axe into the head of Wall Street rival Paul Allen, the culmination of a rage incited by Allen's superior reputation, success, and business card. And, there are many more gross and despicable acts in the novel that are too horrible and disgusting to mention. If you are really curious, go read the novel. The only recognizable glint of humanity in Bateman emerges when he had his assistant Jean (Chloe Sevigny) over for cocktails one evening. He learned through conversation that she was optimistic, still interested in achieving things and bettering herself for herself, not for accolades or status. Bateman told her she should go before she got hurt, revealing for the first time a human side and a sense of empathy. He does outrageous things in a search for his true self; the mundane day-to-day activities of life simply aren't fulfilling enough. His life, to this point, has been nothing of note: he has a cushy job and a cushy life with a set of friends that he felt necessary to fit in with. However, Bateman wants to fit in and be the best at the same time, a frighteningly impossible paradox that quite possibly leads to his sexual and homicidal adventures, all in search of something to fill that vacuum inside. But applying deep-cleansing face masks, espousing on the hits of Huey Lewis and Phil Collins, and quoting the likes of Ed Gein and Ted Bundy just isn't working. Ultimately, Bateman cracks under the pressure of trying to understand why he is driven to kill. Bateman has hallucinated so many times that he isn't sure what's real anymore. His "murder" of Paul Allen is even more enigmatic. When he tells his lawyer of the murder of Paul Allen, the lawyer says that it is impossible for him to have killed Paul because the lawyer had lunch with him sometime ago. Then, he has no idea whether or not he actually killed Paul, and neither do we. Hell, he may not have killed anyone. But, that doesn’t matter, because we have been presented with him killing several people, and under the surface, lies a killer that could come out strike at any time.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 31, 2008 15:53:48 GMT -5
Tomorrow, we reach the half way mark with 50-47. Here are the hints:
Is it safe?, his favorite sport is hockey, Oh no! There goes Tokyo!, and he's not fat; he's just big boned.
|
|
Sajoa Moe
Patti Mayonnaise
Did you get that thing I sent ya?
A man without gimmick.
Posts: 39,683
|
Post by Sajoa Moe on May 31, 2008 16:04:05 GMT -5
You forget to mention that the Predator is "wan ahgly mudda fuggah".
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on May 31, 2008 16:58:52 GMT -5
You forget to mention that the Predator is "wan ahgly mudda fuggah". DAMMIT!
|
|
|
Post by Silent Brad on May 31, 2008 17:14:16 GMT -5
Tomorrow, we reach the half way mark with 50-47. Here are the hints: Is it safe?, his favorite sport is hockey, Oh no! There goes Tokyo!, and he's not fat; he's just big boned.
|
|
|
Post by Seth Drakin of Monster Crap on May 31, 2008 17:40:21 GMT -5
Two of them are Godzilla and Eric Cartmen.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on Jun 1, 2008 13:54:41 GMT -5
We have reached the half-way mark. Time to countdown some more villains with number 50: 50. Dr. Christian Szell Who is he: A former SS Nazi dentist hiding in South America. What is he from: Marathon Man (novel and movie) What has he done: Tortures Babe, was a Nazi, kills a man who recognized him. Intelligence: He is a smart man with a medical degree who has been patient for many years, but recent events have forced him to make new plans very quickly. Power: He was a prominent Nazi, running a concentration camp; but now he’s a fugitive in hiding. Vileness: If the Nazis liked his torture methods, then he must have been one sick, sadistic son of a bitch. Sway: Cold and stern, he is a frightening figure with a foreign accent. Purity: Still a ruthless killer and torturer after years removed from the concentration camps. Physical Prowess: He's older and weaker but still got some tricks up his sleeve (literally). Name Coolness: “Dr. Christian Szell” has a lot going for it: it’s foreign, it has a title (doctor), and “Christian” gives the character a nice touch of irony. Created by: William Goldman. Portrayed by: Sir Laurence Olivier. Ironically, two years later, Olivier played a turnabout role as a Nazi-hunter in “The Boys From Brazil.” Thomas Levy (Dustin Hoffman), nicknamed "Babe" in the film, is a history Ph.D. candidate researching the same field as his father, who committed suicide after being accused in the McCarthy Communist hunt. His brother, Henry (Roy Scheider), better known as "Doc", poses as an oil company executive, but in fact he is a U.S. Government agent working for an agency headed up by Director Peter Janeway (William Devane). Doc is often supposedly out of the country on business for extended periods of time but comes to New York under the guise of a visit to Thomas. The brother of a Nazi war criminal possessed a safety deposit box key, but is killed in a traffic accident. Doc suspects that the criminal, Dr. Christian Szell (Laurence Olivier) will be arriving to retrieve an extremely valuable diamond collection. Babe soon enters into a relationship with a young woman named Elsa Opel, who claims to be from Switzerland. One night while out on a date Elsa and Babe are seemingly mugged in a park by two men dressed in suits. Some time later, Doc takes the couple to dinner, where he tricks Elsa into revealing that she has been lying to Babe about being Swiss. Doc suspects she may have some connection to Szell, but there is also a possibility that she is simply seeking an American husband so that she can become a citizen of the United States. Doc meets with Szell and flatly states that the former Nazi is not welcome in the country. Szell casually accepts the pronouncement, but then swiftly knifes the spy, wounding him severely. Doc is able to make it back to his brother's apartment, but collapses and dies in Babe's arms without telling him anything. The police interrogate Babe for hours, until Government agents led by Peter Janeway arrive. Babe is highly uncooperative with Janeway, who is trying to find out what Doc told Babe before he died. Babe continually insists that his brother did not tell him anything, but Janeway feels that Doc struggled all the way to Babe's apartment to give him vital information of some kind. Babe is later abducted by Szell and his subordinates (the two men from the park). In an infamous sequence, Babe is tortured by Szell, a skilled dentist, and continually asked "Is it safe?". Confused by the question, Babe denies any knowledge, but is tortured until Szell is satisfied. Babe is then rescued by Janeway, who kills Szell's bodyguards and takes Babe from Szell's hideout in a car. Janeway also continually asks Babe what he knows and what Doc told him that night, but Babe again states that he has no information. In a twist, Janeway returns Babe to Szell's supposedly dead bodyguards: the rogue government agent has been working with the Nazi criminal all along. It transpires Szell is one of Janeway's highest level informants, and had informed on other Nazi war criminals in return for immunity. Babe escapes again, this time on his own, and is able to hide from his pursuers. He phones Elsa, and she agrees to meet him with a car. She takes him to a home in the country that turns out to be owned by Szell. Babe guesses that she has set him up, she confesses, and they wait for the arrival of Szell's men. Janeway and Szell's men arrive, but Babe avoids an ambush by taking Elsa hostage. In another twist, Janeway kills Szell's men and tells Babe that he will allow him to have Szell if he can have the diamonds. Babe agrees and is told where to find him. As Babe leaves, Janeway kills Elsa, as she is connected to Szell. Babe in anger, as he still loved Elsa, shoots Janeway, killing him. Back in New York, Szell attempts to determine the value of his diamonds. Unfortunately, the appraiser he chooses is located in a Hassidic neighborhood; he is recognized by an old woman, whose cries for help are ignored by passerby on the street who believes that she is senile. Szell walks into a diamond retailer owned by a man who was in a German concentration camp, who recognizes Szell; Szell flees the store, and when the man gives chase, Szell slits his throat. Szell retrieves his diamonds from the bank, but, as he leaves, he is taken hostage by Babe, who inconspicuously forces him into a sewage treatment plant. Babe holds Szell at gunpoint on a scaffold and seizes the diamonds; rather than kill Szell, Babe informs him that he will allow him to live, and keep as many diamonds as he can swallow. Szell initially refuses, prompting Babe to begin throwing the diamonds into the sewage below them. Szell relents, and swallows a diamond, but then pulls a knife and tries to stab Babe. Babe throws the remainder of the diamonds down the scaffold steps towards the sewage; Szell dives for them, but stumbles, and fatally falls on his own knife. It may seem cliché to put a Nazi on this list, but Dr. Christian Szell is a great villain. He was once known as the "White Angel" because of the large crop of bright white hair on his head and not because of his skills as a doctor or dentist. In fact, you wouldn’t want him as your doctor. During World War II, he ran the exexperimental camp in Auschwitz (like Josef Mengele, whom the character was based on) and would bargain for the release of certain Jews in exchange for the gold in their teeth, which eventually escalated to him bargaining with their lives for diamonds. In 1945, he managed to escape Germany with his brother. While Szell laid low in Uruguay, his brother traveled to the US and stashed the diamonds. Years later, Szell learned that his brother was killed in a freak accident, so despite the efforts of authorities to locate him to prosecute him for his WWII hate crimes; he came to New York City to collect the family jewels. In the middle of all this is Thomas "Babe" Levy, whose brother is a government spy involved with the efforts to find Szell. When his brother is killed by Szell, Babe is taken hostage by Szell because he needs to know what his brother told him, if anything. Szell simply wants to know if it is safe for him to go to his brother's safe deposit box to pick up the diamonds, and he goes to extreme torturous lengths to find this out. And, we got that infamous torture scene where Szell drills into Babe’s teeth without any painkillers. It is one of the most famous and scariest scenes in cinema history. You could almost feel your teeth aching in pain as you watch it. Ultimately, it's not the feds that Szell has to worry about, but the countless souls he tortured and mistreated in Germany all those years ago. This is another great scene in the film. You have the old woman screaming at Szell, obviously recognizing him. Here, the imagination runs wild, wondering just what unspeakable horrors this doctor committed back in WWII. Then, there’s the diamond appraiser who recognizes him. As he flees with the appraiser following him and the old woman yelling at him, you can feel the suspense building until some kind of release. You know something bad is going to happen. Then, two bad things happen: the old woman is hit by a car, and, while everyone is looking at her, Szell turns around, pulls a knife out from a device hiding in his sleeve, and slashes his throat. The man is quite vicious. However, interestingly, he isn’t really acting out of hate; though, he probably still hates Jews. Anyway, the main motivation for his actions is greed. He tortures and kills in order to learn if it is safe to go get the diamonds from his brother’s safety deposit box. And, in the final scene, Babe holds him at gunpoint and forces him to swallow his precious diamonds or else Babe will throw them into the sewage, and amazingly, he does just so Babe won’t throw away his diamonds. In fact, Szell dies, when trying to stab Babe, Babe throws the diamonds into the sewage; and Szell dives for them, stabbing himself. The greed that drove Dr. Christian Szell ended up driving to his own death.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on Jun 1, 2008 14:41:44 GMT -5
49. Jason Voorhees Who is he: A mass murderer. What is he from: The Friday The 13th franchise. What has he done: Killed a whole lot of people. Intelligence: Doesn’t know much about anything but killing and all manners of cutlery. Power: He’s loner but is a lot more powerful than most humans. Vileness: Like his slasher film counterparts, Jason's strength is slicing, dicing, and impaling. Sway: Let's his mask and machete do all the talking. Purity: Nothing stops this guy; dumb dudes, hot chicks, and everyone in between are all prospective victims. Physical Prowess: Shows great strength and staying power; the hockey mask is a horror icon, and as Jason gets rattier in every sequel, so does the face underneath. Name Coolness: “Jason Voorhees” is pretty cool. Created by: Victor Miller, Ron Kurz, Sean S. Cunningham, and Tom Savini. Portrayed by: Ari Lehman played Jason in the first “Friday The 13th.” He appears near the end of the film, attacking Alice as she waits for help in the canoe. In “Friday the 13th Part 2,” Warrington Gillette played Jason in the unmasked scene, and Steve Daskawisz was the Jason stunt double. Richard Brooker played Jason in “Friday the 13th Part 3.” Ted White was Jason in “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter,” although he was uncredited. In “Friday the 13th: A New Beginning,” Tom Morga played Jason. C.J. Graham played the hockey-masked killer in “Friday the 13th VI: Jason Lives.” Kane Hodder, the most well known person to play Jason, played the slasher in “Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood,” “Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan,” “Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday,” and “Jason X.” And, Ken Kirzinger played the killer in “Freddy VS Jason.” “Friday the 13th”: Jason made his first appearance in the original Friday the 13th (1980), not as the film's killer, but as a memory of his mother, Mrs. Voorhees (Betsy Palmer), and a hallucination of Alice's (Adrienne King). Though the character is never truly seen, he is the subject of the plot of the film, as Mrs. Voorhees seeks revenge for the death of her boy which she sees as the fault of the counselors. “Friday the 13th Part 2”: The film begins with the only survivor from the first movie, Alice (played again by Adrienne King), being slain by a mysterious prowler in her own home two months after the conclusion of the original film. Five years later, a group of young adults have come to Crystal Lake to attend a counselor training center that has been set up near the now-condemned Camp Crystal Lake. While some counselors are in town on their way to the facility, Crazy Ralph appears and tells the counselors to turn back, as the young counselors five years ago did not heed his warning. Paul, the leader of the group, explains how camp counseling is a serious job, and that the main danger in this area is bears. One night, around a campfire, Paul tells the people about how Jason Voorhees drowned in the same lake which their training area also bounds; how his mother was found to be the infamous murderer of "Camp Blood;" and that Alice survived only to disappear shortly thereafter, and that some of the local residents believe Jason is still alive and viciously protects the area around Crystal Lake. When the counselors seem into the story, they are shocked by a man with a spear, but it only turns out to be Ted in a monster mask and Paul claims that Jason is dead. While some of the counselors are seen making out, Crazy Ralph is standing by a window, and is suddenly killed by a prowler using a garotte. Two of the counselors sneak away to Camp Crystal Lake, which is now in disrepair. As they are about to go into one of the cabins, they are stalked by an unseen man who then approaches them; but it is revealed that is a local policeman who has caught them trespassing. The policeman returns the two counselors to camp, where Paul only recommends a light punishment. However, when driving, the policeman sees a masked man dart out in front of his squad car, running in the direction of the off limits Camp Crystal Lake. The policeman chases after the masked man to arrest him as well, only to lose him and go into a cabin. The policeman then sees a horrifying sight. It is not shown to the viewer as the prowler who killed Crazy Ralph also murders the policeman from behind. After getting to know one another and participating in some training exercises (which consist of dancing, jogging through the woods, swimming and a cookout), the majority of the trainees leave the campsite to party in town. Soon after, the remaining young adults are stalked and killed by a mostly-unseen killer. Upon their return to camp, Ginny and Paul discover the lights are not working in the main cabin and sheets on an upstairs bed appear to be covered in blood. Ginny screams in horror when she sees the dead bodies of two of the counselors, and then opens the freezer and sees the corpse of Crazy Ralph fall out. Paul is attacked by a figure whose head is covered with a burlap sack as Ginny screams and runs out into the dark woods. After a lengthy chase, Ginny stumbles upon a run-down cabin and enters. In the back room, she discovers a makeshift alter holding the severed head of Pamela Voorhees. Littered around the altar are several bodies of the slain trainees as well as the rotten corpse of Alice and the newly murdered policeman. The killer is identified as Jason Voorhees, who seems to have survived his drowning. Ginny dons Mrs. Voorhees' sweater and deceives Jason into believing that she is his mother (although Jason wises up when he sees his mother's severed head). After Paul wrestles with Jason, Ginny slams a machete through his shoulder. Paul and Ginny retreat back to their cabin believing Jason is dead and find Muffin, Terri's pet dog. As Ginny calls to Muffin to come, an unmasked Jason leaps through the window and begins to pull Ginny out. Ginny wakes up while being placed in an ambulance with no recollection of what happened to Paul. “Friday the 13th Part 3”: Picking up almost directly where Part 2 left off, Jason has survived his attack at the hands of Paul and Ginny, and migrates to a store where he changes clothes and kills the store owners before moving on to a nearby lake front property named Higgins Haven. At the same time, Chris Higgins, who was attacked by a mysterious, disfigured stranger in the woods near Crystal Lake two years earlier, returns to the property with her friends; Debbie, Andy, Shelly, Vera, Chuck, and Chilli. They all meet Chris' boyfriend Rick at their destination. Chris intends to face their fears; however none of the kids know that an unmasked and reclusive Jason has taken refuge in the barn. Shelly and Vera get into trouble with a biker gang who then comes to Higgin's Haven for revenge. However, they are dealt with by Jason before they can do any real damage except for taking the gas out of the gang's van. While Chris and Rick go out for a walk in the woods, Jason wanders out to hunt again. He slashes Shelly's throat and takes his hockey mask. Now with a mask to cover his face, he then precedes to kill Vera (spear shot to eye), Andy (sliced in half while walking on hands), Debbie (knifed from under hammock), Chuck (thrown on fuse box and electrocuted) and Chilli (impaled with fireplace poker). When Chris and Rick return they find the place empty when they split up to find out what’s going on. Rick is attacked by Jason who squeezes his head so hard his eyeball pops out. Jason then confronts Chris, the two exchanging attacks until Chris leads Jason to the barn. She seemingly defeats Jason by tying him to a rope and hanging him. Jason survives the hanging and shows his real face to Chris and she recognizes him as the man who attacked her two years ago. As Jason proceeds to attack Chris, one of the bikers (Ali), who survived his attack earlier, attempts his revenge but meets his doom. While Jason is busy hacking Ali, Chris picks up an axe and strikes Jason on the head, apparently killing him. Chris then wanders over to the lake and falls asleep in a canoe that drifts into the middle of the lake. She subsequently suffers a nightmare of first a revived Jason running out to the lake to attack, and then being grabbed and taken into the water by a decomposing Mrs. Voorhees. At some point later, the police take a clearly mentally disturbed Chris off the property as the camera fades out on Jason's body. An infamous alternate ending depicted Jason actually decapitating Chris in a dream sequence (as opposed to the dream sequence in the finished film featuring Mrs. Voorhees). It is featured in the 1982 novel by Michael Avallone, which was based on the original shooting script. Some photos of the scene also appear in Peter Bracke's 2005 book, Crystal Lake Memories. “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter”: Police and paramedics are busy cleaning up the mess Jason Voorhees left at Higgins Haven during Friday the 13th Part 3, including the defeated hockey-masked killer himself. Once delivered to the Wessex County morgue, Jason rises again, kills an attendant Axel (Bruce Mauhler) and nurse, then makes his way back to Crystal Lake. A group of friends (Paul, Samantha, Sara, Doug, Ted and Jimmy) have rented a house on Crystal Lake. On the way there, the group passes Mrs. Voorhees' gravestone and a portly female hitchhiker who becomes Jason's next victim stabbed in throat while eating a banana. Next to the rental house is the cabin of Mrs. Jarvis, her teenaged daughter Trish, her twelve-year-old son Tommy, and their dog, Gordon. The group meets Trish, Tommy and Gordon when they arrive. The next day the group befriends twins Tina and Terri, who live in the area, and they all go skinny-dipping at Crystal Point. Trish and Tommy, driving by, stop to see who's at Crystal Point and the group invites Trish to a party that night. Trish's car breaks down a bit further along the road, and they are helped by Rob, a hiker with mysterious reasons for visiting Crystal Lake, who soon becomes good friends with Trish and Tommy, and camps out in their yard. Trish and Tommy return to find their mother missing, so Trish goes to Rob for help. Meanwhile Jason kills Samantha (who is stabbed while skinny dipping), Paul (shot in crotch with speargun), Terri (impaled with spear), Jimmy (whacked in the face with meat cleaver with hand nailed down by corkscrew), Tina (thrown from window), Ted (stabbed in the head with kitchen knife though movie screen), Doug (head smashed against shower tile), and Sara (axed in the chest while trying to escape). Rob explains that he's looking to get revenge for the death of his sister, Sandra (killed by Jason in Friday the 13th Part 2). Trish and Rob take Gordon next door to see what's going on. Tommy is left at home, and finds Rob's newspaper articles about Jason. Jason kills Rob, and Trish flees back to her home intending to warn Tommy. Tommy shaves his head and makes himself up to look like Jason, which is effective in distracting Jason long enough for Trish to be able to attack Jason with a machete. She just misses him, but manages to cut his mask off. While Jason heads for her, she drops the machete to the floor. Tommy picks it up and swings it at Jason's head. Jason then falls to the floor, causing the machete to cut further into his head and brains. As he embraces his sister, Tommy sees Jason begin to move, loses control and hacks Jason repeatedly with the machete, while Trish screams his name. The final scene of the movie has Tommy visiting Trish in the hospital, and they embrace as they believe their nightmare is over. However, Tommy's eyes open at the end of the film, indicating that he may be a killer in future installments. “Friday the 13th: A New Beginning”: After years of being shuffled around various mental institutions, Tommy Jarvis has now been placed in the Pinehurst halfway house, one that is unique because it runs off an honor system. It is not made clear what happened to Tommy's sister, Trish, following the events of the previous film, but he apparently has no contact with her. Shortly after arriving, one of the patients murders another and is arrested. Soon afterwards, a series of murders begin to occur around the area. With Jason Voorhees dead, the identity of the assailant remains unknown. As the killings continue, the already strained mind of Tommy is plagued with memories of Jason. When the killer makes himself visible to the last few left in the halfway house, Tommy confronts what appears to be Jason, returned from the grave. However, when the killer lies dead and unmasked, it is revealed to be Roy Burns, a paramedic who had been using Jason's M.O. and identity to avenge the death of his son who was killed earlier at the halfway house. It is also revealed that Burns had placed his son up for adoption, and that he never knew him. The final scene of this movie takes place in the hospital with Pam, the halfway house director, visiting Tommy as he recuperates. Tommy appears to be having delusions of Jason, and attacks Pam. Tommy then suddenly wakes up in his hospital bed, the previous attack having been a dream. He then walks to a dresser in the room, and pulls out a hockey mask. Pam then walks into Tommy's room to find Tommy gone, with the window smashed open, making it appear as though Tommy has run away. However, as the door closes behind Pam, Tommy is revealed, wearing the hockey mask, preparing to attack Pam, leaving the conclusion open-ended. “Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives”: Jason Voorhees is dead and buried. However, Tommy Jarvis, who successfully killed the murderous Jason as a young boy, is haunted by the memories of Jason and sets out to exorcise his demons once and for all by digging up and finally destroying Jason's body with the help of a fellow mental institution patient. In a fit of rage, Tommy stabs Jason's corpse with a piece of the cemetery's iron fence. Instead of being sent to Hell, Jason is revived via a jolt of electricity from a lightning bolt. Tommy's companion is murdered by Jason as Tommy flees to the cemetery in his pickup truck. Now more unstoppable than before, Jason moves on a killing spree through the town of Crystal Lake, now renamed Forest Green in an effort to distance itself from the events that earned its campsite the nickname "Camp Blood." Tommy desperately tries to warn the authorities about Jason, but they are reluctant due to the nature of Tommy's claims and his troubled past. The only person willing to listen to him is the sheriff's daughter, Megan. With her father ready to pin several recent murders on him, she helps Tommy as he devises a plan he believes will finally stop Jason once for all. As Jason preys on the counselors of the recently re-opened camp, Tommy lures him out into Crystal Lake, the place where Jason originally drowned. At the risk of his own life, he ties a pair of chains to a stone and wraps the other end to Jason's neck, and sends the stone to the bottom of the lake. When Megan swims to rescue Tommy, Jason grabbed her by the leg trying to pull her down. She starts the motor to the boat and the propeller shreds Jason's face. Once safely on land, Tommy observes the waters where he left Jason and believes that Jason is finally "home." “Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood”: As a child, Tina Shepard witnessed her alcoholic father physically abusing her mother. The emotional trauma unlocks Tina's previously latent telekinetic powers, which result in her father's death at the bottom of Crystal Lake. Many years later, Tina is still struggling with the guilt surrounding the death of her father. Tina's mother, Mrs. Shepard (Susan Blu), takes her to the same lakeside residence so that her powers can be studied (and exploited) by her psychiatrist, Dr. Crews (Terry Kiser). Dr. Crews begins a series of experiments (verbal assaults) designed to agitate Tina's mental state, forcing her powers to become more pronounced. After a particularly upsetting session with Dr. Crews, Tina runs from the cabin and attempts to raise her father. Instead, she accidentally resurrects Jason Voorhees (Kane Hodder), the notorious Crystal Lake serial killer. Tina's torment from her powers is increased as Jason kills everyone around her. Mrs. Shepard, Dr. Crews, and a group of youths vacationing in a nearby cabin, are all killed violently by Jason. Tina is left with no choice but to utilize her powers in an effort to stop him. She unleashed her powers and forced Jason's masked to tighten and squeeze blood out of his head. Eventually, the mask breaks in two, revealing Jason's hideous face. She then unleashes her psychic abilities wherein the Shepard lakeside cabin is destroyed by an explosive fire. Although she is unable to kill Jason, she unknowingly resurrects her father, who emerges from the lake and drags Jason back down into the depths with him. Jason is once again chained to a large boulder at the bottom of Crystal Lake. “Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan”: After being resurrected once again, this time by an electric charge from an underwater cable snagged by a boat anchor, Jason rises from Crystal Lake and kills a couple having sex. The next day he boarded the Lazarus. On its way to New York and full of high school graduates, Jason has plenty of time and people to kill before he eventually chases his prey into the streets of the Big Apple. After Jason kills every passenger and sinks the Lazarus, only two adults, three students and their dog remain. They take refuge in the streets of New York, where their pursuer eventually makes his way as well. Jason kills off three of his victims until he leaves only two students running into the sewers of Manhattan, where he follows. Jason's face is burnt by toxic waste, forcing him to remove his mask. At an attempt to kill the last two survivors, the sewers are washed out with toxic waste, in which the unfortunate Jason Voorhees becomes submerged. The two surviving kids crawl out from the sewers and reunite with their dog in the middle of Times Square. “Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday”: It is a normal night in Crystal Lake with Jason Voorhees on the hunt again, but this time the brutal killer is on the wrong end of an FBI sting. As he's about to kill a woman, the FBI springs a trap. After gunning him, they launch an explosive, and Jason gets blown to pieces. His grisly remains are sent to a morgue, where the coroner (Richard Gant) is hypnotized by Jason's beating black heart and begins to eat it. Somehow, this causes him to be possessed by the demonic spirit of Jason. As the dark spirit jumps from host to host via a demonic, snake-like spirit, it is revealed by bounty hunter Creighton Duke that as through a Voorhees was Jason born, so too through one can make him reborn, and that only by the hands of another member of the Voorhees Family can truly destroy Jason. This means that only members of his bloodline can kill him. He'll return to life if he's killed by someone outside of his family. The only relatives of Jason are his half-sister Diana Kimble (Erin Gray), and Jessica Kimble (Keri Keegan), along with Jessica and the main protagonist's Steven Freeman (John D. Lemay)'s baby, Stephanie. Jason (possessing the coroner), kidnaps policeman Josh (Andrew Bloch) and takes him to the Voorhees house, where he shaves Josh and transfers his heart into his body. Josh (possessed by Jason) makes his way to Diana's house. Diana shoots Jason (as Josh) in the head, but is no use. Steven, having been asked to meet Diana's at the house, bursts in and stabs Jason (as Josh) with a fireplace poker. Diana is killed with a butcher knife, and Jason (as Josh) escapes. Steven is falsely accused and arrested for Diana's murder. Duke reveals Jessica, the baby's mother and Steven's ex-girlfriend's relation to Jason, and Jason possessing anyone to get to Jessica or Stephanie. Steven escapes from jail, with the reluctant help of Officer Randy Parker (Kipp Marcus), a friend of Steven's. Meanwhile, Jessica is dating American Casefiles reporter Robert Campbell (Steven Culp). Steven goes to the Voorhees house, but falls through rotten boards. Robert comes inside the upstairs room, and reveals his plans to "spice up" Jason's unknown return from death with his theft of Diana's body from the morgue, also boasting about having sex with Jessica. Jason (as Josh) bursts in and transfers his heart into Robert. Josh, due to being possessed by Jason, melts into a puddle of flesh and blood. Robert (possessed by Jason) leaves, with Steven in pursuit. Jason (as Robert) attempts to be reborn through Jessica at her mother's house, but is disrupted by Steven, who hits him and takes Jessica into his car. Steven runs over Jason (as Robert), but obviously does no damage, other than to Robert's body. Jessica does not believe Steven, and throws him out of the car. Jessica makes it to the police station, where she is dressed and comforted by Ed Landis, the town's sheriff and her mother's boyfriend, and the other cops present. Steven is told of Jessica's location and asks Randy to arrest him after a scuffle and gun draw between the two. Jason (as Robert) barges into the station, throws an officer and Landis aside, and kills three others, two of them by head bashing. Steven and Jessica, Jessica now believing Steven and Duke's story, run to Joey B. (Rusty Schwimmer's)'s diner to grab the baby, but are held at gunpoint by Joey. Duke, in the meantime has escapes and takes the baby from the back of the greasy spoon. Jason (as Robert) kills Joey's some Ward, and comes into the diner. Two innocent patrons are killed. Joey's husband and cook, Shelby (Leslie Jordan) attempts to kill Jason by shooting him, as do Joey and Jessica's waitress friend Vicki (Allison Smith) with guns. Shelby is dumped and scalded to death in a fat-fryer by Jason (as Robert), and Joey is killed with an elbow to the face, literally denting her mouth inside of her face. Vicki manages to kill Robert with a barbecue skewer, although Jason is not dead, and dying in the same manner. Jessica meets up with Duke at the Voorhees house, who is holding her baby. An unseen officer makes his way into the diner, discovering the bodies except for Robert's, which (possessed) leaps from the closet, and transfer his heart into the unseen officer's body (offscreen). Duke falls through the floor, and Jessica is confronted by Landis and Randy, who both survived, but one them possessed. Landis accidentally stabs himself with the magic dagger, which can be used by a Voorhees woman to send Jason to Hell, and Jessica drops the dagger. Randy, being the officer possessed, attempts to be reborn through Stephanie, but Randy's neck is severed with a machete by Steven. Jason's heart, which has now grown into a Hellbaby, crawls out of Randy's neck, and makes its way into the basement, where it possesses Diana's dead body. Jason is reborn and kills Duke. Steven fights Jason, and Jason is stabbed by Jessica and pulled by giant demon hands into Hell. The film ends with Steven and Jessica, along with baby walking into the sunset, and after Jason is defeated, Freddy Krueger's clawed glove grabs Jason's mask, and takes it to Hell. “Jason X”: In 2008, Jason Voorhees is captured by the US government. Rowan, a government researcher, leads several unsuccessful attempts to execute him. By 2010, the government decides to study Jason and his rapid cell regeneration, seeing profit with new technologies. Jason escapes, however, killing several soldiers. Rowan manages to lure him into the cryonic chamber and activates it. This had been what Rowan had been fighting with the government to do. However Jason manages to stab her through the door and in the process freezes Rowan and the entire room with him. In the year 2455, after the apocalypse on Earth, five students on a field trip lead by Professor Lowe enter the facility and find Jason and Rowan. They take them back to their space shuttle and take off into space. They dock on a large spacecraft (manned by a total of 21 people, including other students, soldiers, a pilot, an engineer and a female android) and take Rowan and Jason's bodies to separate labs to examine them and reanimate Rowan. Over a videophone, Professor Lowe's financial backer explains that Voorhees' body could be worth a substantial amount to a collector. As Lowe's intern, Adrienne, studies Jason, he awakens and kills her by dunking her face in liquid nitrogen and smashing it. He then takes a surgical tool that resembles a machete and leaves to kill another student. After discovering the intern's corpse, Professor Lowe, Rowan, and his students are sent to Lab 1 where they should be safe from Jason. The ships trained soldiers are sent to find and take Jason alive. Jason is underestimated and soon kills every soldier one by one until only the sergeant is left. Jason then kills the ship's pilot on its approach to a space station, causing the station's destruction. Jason then breaks into the lab and kills the professor. With the ship badly damaged, Rowan and three other students go to the shuttle, while a student with his android go to the armory to get weapons, and two others go to the bridge to prepare the shuttle departure. Jason kills again and arrives at the shuttle door. Kensa panics and she shuts the shuttle door, stopping Janessa and the other survivors entering. Jason makes his way to the shuttle door. Janessa begs Kensa to open the door, but she refuses. As the other survivors arrive Kensa panics, and begins the shuttle, but not realizing the shuttle is still connected to the ship. As Kensa sets the shuttle off it smashes in to the ship, killing Kensa. With the ship severely damaged, the survivors send out a distress call, and it is soon answered by a patrol-shuttle. The survivors must however retreat to a section of the ship and separate it from the main section which is going to explode before the patrol can reach them. While they are setting explosive charges for this separation, the nanotechnology in the sickbay brings Jason back in a more powerful cyborg form. As the new Jason comes upon them, the android tries to battle him again, but Jason knocks the android's head off with a single blow; another student however sacrifices himself by setting off the explosive charges while Rowan and three others escape. But Jason is not dead. He punches through the hull causing a hull breach. The remaining four survivors try to escape, but Janessa cannot escape the gravity pull. She holds on to a grate while another is pulled from the floor and is stopped at the hole where the gravity is pulling. The other students try to save her but she loosens grip and is sucked through the grate, killing her. Using a simulation of Crystal Lake to distract Jason, Rowan and the last remaining student escape onto the patrol-shuttle. As the shuttle leaves, the rest of their ship explodes, and Jason is sent hurtling towards the shuttle, however, quick thinking by the sergeant, and both of them are burned up in the atmosphere of Earth 2. In a final shot, two teens beside a forest lake on Earth 2 set off to find where the falling star fell; Jason's mask is shown in the water. “Freddy VS Jason”: Freddy Krueger is stuck in Hell, and his only way out is if people remember him and his terrible deeds. Therefore, he resurrects the undead serial killer Jason Voorhees, who is capable of acting in the real world, and tricks him into rising from the grave again. In the disguise of Pamela Voorhees (the one person to whom Jason will listen), Freddy convinces Jason to kill teenagers living on Elm Street to make the residents of Springwood, Ohio think that Freddy is back. Jason first kills a boy named Trey after he and his girlfriend, Gibb have sex at a house "party", which is blamed on Freddy. A group of youths, including Lori Campbell, Kia, and Gibb are questioned and Lori hears Freddy's name said by one of the police officers. The group is then sent to the police station, where Lori dozes off. In her dream she sees girls skipping rope and singing Freddy's theme song. In the real world, Freddy tests his power gained from Jason's attack. Although he is able to be seen by Blake, (one of the teens partying at Lori's house) Freddy cannot cause any damage. So, Freddy lets Jason get the kill of Blake and his dad, overlooking the massacre and remarking that he will, "get the glory." At school the next day, Kia, Lori and Gibb hear about Blake's death and Lori tells everyone about her dream, in front of everyone in the school. After she tells them, she finds that her old boyfriend, Will Rollins has returned, (she didn't know that he had been kept in an asylum for years). Later that night, everyone goes to a rave in a corn field. Gibb apparently takes some date rape pills and falls asleep, vulnerable to Freddy. A boy comes across her unconscious body and kisses her, but while this is occurring Jason crashes the rave, killing Gibb (who is still sleeping), the boy, and 15 others. Deputy Scott Stubbs, a rookie police officer tries to inform the Sheriff about Jason, thinking he is a copycat killer, but the sheriff refuses to believe it. Stubbs goes to Lori and the others, and tells them about the killer. They all conclude that Freddy is the one pulling the strings. However, by the time they realize this, the fear has made Freddy strong enough to come back from Hell. The group goes back to Westin Hills Asylum to find Hypnocil (a dream suppressant) so Freddy cannot kill them. Then Freddy possesses a teen and disposes the majority of the Hypnocil. Jason comes into the building and attacks, but is put to sleep by Freddy's possessed teen. Freddy brings him to the Dream World where Jason, realizing he's been tricked, fights Freddy, only to lose due to his fear of water from his drowning as a child. The teens decide to bring Jason back to Crystal Lake, feeling that the best case scenario is that Jason will win on his home turf. Lori is injected with the remaining tranquilizer so she can bring Freddy out of the Dream World. Jason wakes up not long after she does, and escapes the van. The group brings an unconscious Lori into a cabin, where Jason attacks, fatally wounding Linderman. Lori wakes up after the cabin is set on fire and Freddy comes out of the dream with her. Jason and Freddy soon begin a final battle at Crystal Lake, Jason eventually kills Kia and the fight begins between Freddy and Jason. Freddy starts taking advantage of the construction site and uses it to cause lots of harm to Jason unfortunately he is knocked off balance and falls to the ground and enters direct cobat which goes all the way to the docks where Freddy slices Jason's fingers off, taking his machete and landing several hard slashes on Jason. Lori distracts Freddy and lights the dock on fire giving Jason the opportunity to tear off Freddy's arm. Lori and Will blow up the propane tanks, in an attempt to kill the two. Freddy emerges from the lake with the machete still in his hand. He is about to kill Lori and Will when Jason emerges from the water and stabs Freddy with his own glove. Lori then decapitates Freddy with Jason's machete, and both Freddy and Jason fall into the lake, disappearing beneath the surface. The film ends with Jason walking out of Crystal Lake holding Freddy's decapitated head, which winks to the audience, leaving the outcome of the battle ambiguous. Literature: Jason first appeared outside of film in the 1982 novelization of “Friday the 13th Part 3” by Michael Avallone. Avallone chose to use an alternate ending, which was filmed for Part 3 but never used, as the ending for his 1982 adaptation. In the alternate film ending, Chris, who is in the canoe, hears Rick's voice and immediately rushes back to the house. When she opens the door, Jason is standing there with a machete, and he proceeds to decapitate her. Jason would not appear in literature again, until the 1986 novelization of Jason Lives by Simon Hawke, who also adapted the first three films in 1987 and 1988. Jason Lives specifically introduced Elias Voorhees, Jason's father, who was slated to appear in the film but was cut by the studio. In the novel, instead of being cremated, Elias has Jason buried after his death. Jason made his comic book debut in the 1993 adaptation of Jason Goes to Hell, written by Andy Mangels. The three-issue series was a condensed version of the film, with a few added scenes that were never shot. Jason also made his first appearance outside of the direct adaptations in Satan's Six #4, published in 1993, which is a continuation of the events of Jason Goes to Hell. In 1995, Nancy A. Collins wrote a 3 issue, non-canonical miniseries involving a crossover between Jason and Leatherface. The story involves Jason stowing away aboard a train, after being released from Crystal Lake when the area is drained due to heavy toxic waste dumping. Jason meets Leatherface, who adopts him into his family after the two become friends. Eventually, they turn on each other. In 1994, four young adult novels were released under the title of Friday the 13th. They did not feature Jason explicitly, but revolve around people becoming possessed by Jason once they put on his mask. In 2003 and 2005, Black Flame published novelizations of Freddy vs. Jason and Jason X respectively. In 2005, they began publishing a new series of novels; one set was published under the Jason X title, while the second set utilized the Friday the 13th title. The Jason X series consisted of four sequels to the novelization of the film. Jason X: The Experiment was the first published. In this novel, Jason is being used by the government, who are trying to use his indestructibility to create their own army of "super soldiers". Planet of the Beast follows the efforts of Dr. Bardox and his crew as they try to clone the body of a comatose Jason, and their efforts to stay alive when Jason wakes from his coma. Death Moon revolves around Jason crash-landing at Moon Camp Americana. A clone of Jason is discovered below a prison site, and unknowingly awakened in To The Third Power. Jason also has a son in this book, conceived through a form of artificial insemination. On May 13, 2005, Avatar Press began releasing new Friday the 13th comics. The first, titled Friday the 13th, was written by Brian Pulido and illustrated by Mike Wolfer and Greg Waller. The story takes place after the events of Freddy vs. Jason, where siblings Miles and Laura Upland have inherited Camp Crystal Lake. Knowing that Jason caused the recent destruction, Laura, unknown to her brother, sets out to kill Jason using a paramilitary group, so that she and her brother can sell the property. A three-issue mini series titled Friday the 13th: Bloodbath was released in September 2005. Written by Brian Pulido and illustrated by Mike Wolfer and Andrew Dalhouse. The story involves a group of teenagers who come from Camp Tomorrow, a camp that sits on Crystal Lake, for work and a "party-filled weekend". The teenagers begin to discover they share common family backgrounds, and soon awaken Jason who proceeds to hunt them. Brian Pulido returned for a third time in October 2005 to write Jason X. Picking up after the events of the Jason X film, Über-Jason is now on Earth II where a biological-engineer, Kristen, attempts to subdue Jason, in hopes that she can use his regenerative tissue to save her own life and the life of those she loves. In February 2006, Avatar published Friday the 13th: Jason vs. Jason X. Written and illustrated by Mike Wolfer, the story takes place after the events of the film Jason X, where a salvage team discovers the spaceship Grendel and awakens a regenerated Jason Voorhees. The "original" Jason and Über-Jason are drawn to each other resulting in a battle to the death. In June 2006, a one-shot comic entitled Friday the 13th: Fearbook was released, written by Mike Wolfer with art by Sebastian Fiumara. The comic has Jason being captured and experimented upon by the Trent Organization; Jason escapes and seeks out Violet, the survivor of Friday the 13th: Bloodbath, who is being contained by the Trent Organization in their Crystal Lake headquarters. The Friday the 13th novella storyline was not connected to the Jason X series, and did not continue the stories set forth by the films, but furthered the character of Jason in its own way. Friday the 13th: Church of the Divine Psychopath has Jason resurrected by a religious cult. Jason is stuck in Hell, when recently executed serial killer Wayne Sanchez persuades Jason to help him return to Earth in Friday the 13th: Hell Lake. In Hate-Kill-Repeat, two religious serial killers attempt to find Jason at Crystal Lake, believing that the three of them share the same contempt for those that break the moral code. The Jason Strain puts Jason on an island with a group of convicts, placed there by television executives running a reality game show. The character of Pamela Voorhees returns from the grave in Carnival of Maniacs. Pamela is in search of Jason, who is now part of a traveling sideshow and about to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. In December 2006, DC Comics imprint Wildstorm began publishing new comic books about Jason Voorhees under the Friday the 13th moniker. The first set was a six-issue miniseries. The miniseries involves Jason's return to Camp Crystal Lake, which is being renovated by a group of teenagers in preparation for its reopening as a tourist attraction. The series depicts various paranormal phenomena occurring at Crystal Lake, and also states that Jason's actions are driven by the vengeful spirits of a Native American tribe wiped out on the lake by fur traders sometime in the 1800's. On July 11 and August 15, 2007, Wildstorm published a two part special entitled Friday the 13th: Pamela's Tale. The two issue comic book covers Pamela Voorhees' journey to Camp Crystal Lake and the story of her pregnancy with Jason as she recounts it to hitchhiker Annie, a camp counselor who was killed in the original film. Wildstorm released another two-part special, entitled Friday the 13th: How I Spent My Summer Vacation, that were released on September 12 and October 10, 2007. The comic book provides new insight into the psychology of Jason Voorhees, as he befriends a boy born with a skull deformity. Wildstorm has planned a six issue series called Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash, starring the two killers and Ash from the Evil Dead series. The story focuses on Freddy using the Necronomicon, which is in the Voorhees' basement, to escape from Jason's subconscious and "gain powers unlike anything he’s had before". Freddy attempts to use Jason to retrieve the book, stating it will make him a real boy. Ash, who is working at the local S-Mart in Crystal Lake, learns of the books existence and sets out to destroy it once and for all. Wildstorm released another two-issue miniseries on January 9 and February 13, 2008, titled Friday the 13th: Bad Land, written and illustrated by Ron Marz and Mike Huddleston respectively. The miniseries features Jason stalking a trio of teenaged hikers taking shelter from a blizzard in Camp Crystal Lake. Ah, Jason Voorhees. He is one of the most famous film slashers of all time. Ironically, he wasn’t even the killer in the first movie of his franchise, “Friday the 13th.” In that first movie, 11-year old Jason Voorhees was attending summer camp when he presumably drowned in Crystal Lake. Mom blamed the camp counselors, but Jason's body was never found. He would return from his watery grave, however, to become one of the greatest figures in horror history. Jason would exact revenge on the same kind of campers and counselors who put him in danger, and his acts were ones of quiet rage and calculation. After eleven films and over twenty years, the hockey mask has become an icon of blood-curdling terror. Throughout the entire Friday the 13th franchise, Jason has offed over 100 people on screen with a vast array of fantastic devices: icepick, barbed wire, straight razor, spear gun, cleaver, pitchfork, fire poker, surgical hacksaw, corkscrew, axe, broken bootle, tree branch, dart, tent spike, party horn, electric guitar, syringe, steam pipe, wrench, pencil, car door, deep frier, barbecue skewer, liquid nitrogen, and, of course, the machete. With versatility comes longevity. And, yes, as the years have passed, the movies and plots have become more jumbled and confusing, at times involving demonic possession, large leaps of logic, and “Jason X” (Who in the blue hell thought that Jason in outer space would be a good idea? Hell, it was a smurfing MADtv sketch! If you are basing a horror film off of sketch in a variety show, then you need to give up on filmmaking RIGHT DAMN NOW!!!!). And, in “Freddy vs. Jason,” he was finally matched up against another horror icon, Freddy Krueger. After being manipulated by Freddy to kill some Elm Street residents, Jason didn’t move aside for Freddy without a BIG fight. After so many movie appearances and despite all that crap, Jason Voorhees is still an icon of the horror genre and one thing remains true about him: superstitious or not, everyone feels a slight twinge of uneasiness whenever Friday the 13th comes around. For that, you can thank the guy in the hockey mask.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on Jun 1, 2008 15:29:30 GMT -5
48. Godzilla What is it: A giant dinosaur. What is it from: The Godzilla franchise. What has it done: Destroyed Tokyo time after time. Intelligence: It’s an animal and has displayed some intelligence, most likely animal cunning. Power: Like I said, it’s a giant dinosaur. Vileness: It has destroyed cities without any care for the human population. Sway: When you see Godzilla coming, you get the hell out of the way. Purity: Has been the hero of some films. Physical Prowess: Besides being a giant dinosaur, it has atomic breath, can emit atomic energy from his body, can generate magnetic fields after being struck by lightning, a special “nuclear reverse” power, resistant to injuries, can heal quickly, and has a very powerful tail. Name Coolness: “Godzilla” is pretty cool, and his aliases, “Gojira” and “Gigantis,” are also pretty cool. Created by: Tomoyuki Tanaka, Ishiro Honda, and Eiji Tsuburaya. Portrayed by: Several men have been under that Godzilla suit. In the Shôwa Series, Haruo Nakajima, Katsumi Tezuka, Ryosaku Takasugi, Seiji Onaka, Shinji Takagi, Isao Zushi, and Toru Kawai portrayed the monster. In the Heisei Series, Yoshitaka Kimura, Kenpachiro Satsuma, and Shigeru Shibazaki were the men in the suit. And, in the Millennium Series, Tsutomu Kitagawa and Mizuho Yoshida played Godzilla. Films: Godzilla made his first appearance in the original 1954 film “Godzilla.” In the film, as a result of testings of the hydrogen bomb, Godzilla is awakened and mutated. Throughout the film, Godzilla rampages through Japan and destroys various cities, while scientists try to figure out a solution to kill the monster. In the end of the film, Dr. Daisuke Serizawa (Akihiko Hirata) uses an oxygen destroyer that he created and opens it underwater, dissolving himself and Godzilla. The American version titled “Godzilla, King of the Monsters!” contained scenes from the Japanese film with narration by and reshot footage of Raymond Burr's character Steve Martin. Godzilla returned in Godzilla Raids Again, though it was a different Godzilla named Gigantis in the American release. This is the first film in which Godzilla battled another monster, named Anguirus, who was defeated. He would continue to play the role of an antagonist until Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, in which Godzilla took on the heroic personality which he would wear for the remainder of the series. (Indeed, a translated conversation between Godzilla, Mothra and Rodan in said film reveals that Godzilla's ire towards humans is merely due to what he perceives as unprovoked attacks towards him). He would team up with Mothra, Rodan, and Anguirus along with other monsters to battle Ebirah, Kumonga, Kamacuras, Hedorah, Gigan, Megalon, Mechagodzilla, and, most frequently, King Ghidorah in different films. He even gained a son in the form of Minilla. The series ended with Terror of Mechagodzilla in 1975. The Toho sentai series Zone Fighter is notable in that it features Toho Kaiju from the films, such as Gigan, King Ghidorah, and Godzilla himself. Produced during the 70s, Toho has gone on record stating that the events depicted in the Zone Fighter television series are actually part of the Showa era, taking place between “Godzilla vs. Megalon” and “Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.” In the Heisei era (the VS era), Godzilla not only returns after more than a decade's absence, but marks a transition between the Shôwa era (the reign of Hirohito) to the Heisei era (the reign of Akihito). This would be the first of many times the Godzilla film series would see a continuity reboot. In The Return of Godzilla, all Godzilla films through Godzilla Raids Again and Terror of Mechagodzilla would be retconned, with The Return of Godzilla being a direct sequel to the original film and featuring a brand new Godzilla. The Godzilla of the Heisei era would be portrayed in a less anthropomorphic manner than the Showa Godzilla, depicted as a violent, insatiable force of nature rather than a campy superhero. However, despite being a threat to humanity, Godzilla would continue to fight other monsters, battling Biollante, King Ghidorah, Mothra, Battra, Rodan, Mechagodzilla, Spacegodzilla, and Destoroyah over the course of the series, and acquired an heir in the form of Godzilla Junior. Heisei Godzilla would eventually meet his demise in the final film of the series, “Godzilla vs. Destoroyah,” melting down after defeating the titular villain, with Godzilla Junior mutating to full-size to carry on his legacy. The Millennium series is unique because rather than creating a single continuity that all the films would follow, the series would instead comprise a number of discrete narratives, each using only the original Godzilla film as a backdrop. The Millennium series would consist of “Godzilla 2000,” “Godzilla vs. Megaguirus,” “Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack,” “Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla,” “Godzilla: Tokyo SOS” and “Godzilla: Final Wars.” Each film would feature its own incarnation of Godzilla. Throughout the series, Godzilla would fight both new opponents such as Orga and Megaguirus, as well as classic opponents such as Mothra and Mechagodzilla. The majority of the films in the series (with the exception of “Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack”) featured a revamped Godzilla design. This new "Millennium Godzilla" had a wilder appearance, with spikier skin, more massive, jagged dorsal fins, and a fiercer, more reptilian face than the Godzilla featured in the Heisei series. Due to the disconnected nature of the Millennium series, the character's portrayal varied more than it did in the Showa and Heisei series, with some films depicting him as a sympathetic and heroic character (“Godzilla 2000,” “Godzilla vs Megaguirus,” “Godzilla: Final Wars”), and others depicting him as pure destructive force (“Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack,” “Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla,” “Godzilla: Tokyo SOS.”) Overall,(excluding the American remake, “GODZILLA,” which was said to feature Zilla) Godzilla has starred in 28 films. His last film was “Godzilla: Final Wars” with the next Godzilla film coming around five to ten years from now, which will mark the 60th anniversary movie. Television: In Japan Godzilla was an oft-seen guest star on the tokusatsu series Zone Fighter. He fought alongside the titular hero against other kaiju, including Gigan and King Ghidorah. Toho has gone on the record saying that the events in Zone Fighter are part of the Godzilla series, taking place between “Godzilla vs Megalon” and “Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla.” Godzilla made his American series debut in the 1978 Hanna-Barbera Saturday morning show The Godzilla Power Hour, in which he gained a sidekick, Godzooky, described as his son. However, in some cases, Godzooky would be considered his nephew. In addition to his trademark atomic breath, (retooled as flame breath), he was also given the power to shoot laser beams out of his eyes. He was routinely summoned by his human friends using a signaling device or by the cry of Godzooky. Godzilla cartoons were paired with cartoons featuring Jana of the Jungle. The series ran, both as part of the hour and with the Godzilla segments airing as a separate half-hour show, until 1981. In the Hanna-Barbera cartoon, Godzilla's roar was not the same as his trademark roar. Instead, it was provided by Ted Cassidy. The second cartoon series, which aired on Fox Kids, was based on the events of the 1998 American movie. Godzilla: The Series featured a juvenile Godzilla from the 1998 American remake which had grown to full size. In a similar fashion to earlier animated works, Godzilla traveled around the world with a group of humans called H.E.A.T, including scientist Nick Tatopoulos (which the new Godzilla believed to be its parent), battling monsters. The offspring not only had the abilities and physical forms of his parent, but the creators of the show gave him even more powers and attitude more resembling the Japanese Godzilla. There were even references to the Japanese Godzilla series. The series was also similar to the Japanese Godzilla movies in that this monster battled against other monsters. Godzilla (comics): In the 1970s, Godzilla starred in a 24 issue run of comics written by Doug Moench and published by Marvel Comics entitled "Godzilla King Of The Monsters" which thrust Godzilla completely into the Marvel Universe. In a nod to King Kong vs. Godzilla, Godzilla first appears by exploding out of an iceberg. It seems that Godzilla's appearances in the Toho movies were given a nod in a few issues. In at least one issue commented that Godzilla had often 'seemed like the lesser of two evils' when he would clash with a monster far more evil in intention than Godzilla, who generally acted more like an actual animal, albeit one with unusual levels of intelligence. Godzilla encountered not only agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., but also many heroes from Marvel Comic books. Among them, the now defunct group called The Champions (sans the Ghost Rider, then a member at the time), The Fantastic Four, Devil Dinosaur and Moon-Boy, and The Avengers, along with a brief, belated cameo by Spider-Man in the last issue of the series. Godzilla also fought other gigantic monsters, including Yetrigar, who was likely patterned after King Kong, and The Mega Monsters, and in defeating these three alien beasts, saved Earth and an alien world which had been at war with the masters of the Mega Monsters. In the comics he has fire breath, rather that radioactive breath as in the films. A character created specifically for the series called Red Ronin, would reappear in Avengers, Solo Avengers, and an issue of Wolverine, in which Godzilla is given a subtle nod, being referred to as 'Time Lost Dinosaur' to avoid being sued by Toho, presumably. Red Ronin would also appear in the series Earth X, a darker future of the Marvel universe, which provided frightening details about the purpose of Galactus and the origins of Earth's super powered populous. One of Godzilla's primary antagonists from the series, mad scientist Doctor Demonicus, would later capture and mutate Godzilla even further. This altered version of the monster has continued to make rare appearances into the 2000s, but never called Godzilla directly. Recently, a creature bearing a resemblance to the Heisei-era Godzilla made a cameo the opening issue of The Mighty Avengers. More than likely, however, this is simply a throwaway appearance and does not bear on Godzilla's place in Marvel canon. Recently, however, in the Marvel Comics atlas (under the article on Japan), it states that the age of monsters began in 1954, evidently a reference to Godzilla. Additionally, the entry also mentions that Godzilla had returned years later and was the reason for the construction of Red Ronin and the formation of shields' Godzilla Squad. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Godzilla-hunting ship, Behemoth, has recently resurfaced under the command of Amadeus Cho in The Incredible Hercules #115. Dark Horse Comics eventually gained the rights to the license sometime in the 1980s, and produced several vignettes of Godzilla, before providing a translated manga of Godzilla 1985 which was based on the Japanese version of the film rather than the Americanized version. Godzilla, the 1990s, would also receive his own run with Dark Horse Comics in a 17 issue run which used the same name as the Marvel run; Godzilla King Of The Monsters. This series featured several new monsters for Godzilla to fight, and a story arc in which Godzilla was flung through time by a would-be arch villain, who used him to cause the San Francisco Earthquake of 1906, sink the Titanic, and even pitted him against the Spanish Armada. Godzilla would be flung into the far flung future as well and would rampage across it before returning to the modern day. The last issue of the Dark Horse series saw Godzilla flung back into time to just a few hours before the asteroid which supposedly destroyed the dinosaurs impacted on Earth, and fought an alien creature. This issue first seemed to have the 'it was all a dream' ending, as Godzilla awoke from his slumber in the modern day. But then threw a twist onto the ending, showing Godzilla staring at a piece of his opponent's tail still in his hand from where he had ripped it off in the final moments of their battle before the impact. Godzilla (Marc Cerasini series): Godzilla Returns is the first novel, with Godzilla reappearing for the first time since 1954, rampaging and destroying the city of Tokyo. The book is clearly set to follow the U.S. dubbed "Godzilla, King of the Monsters", as Steve Martin - referred to as "Stephen Martin" - is said to have been present during the original attack. The finale of the novel is similar to the 1984 movie The Return of Godzilla, as Godzilla is drawn away from the city using a lure identical to the one used in that film. However, the lure is used to draw Godzilla to the deepest part of the ocean, rather than a volcano. In the second novel, Godzilla 2000 (not to be confused with the movie of the same name), the United States government forms a new organization, G-Force, dedicated to stopping the attacks of giant monsters, especially Godzilla. Meanwhile, a meteor shower threatens mankind with extinction. The initial wave delivers a parasitic alien organism to Earth, which bonds with a praying mantis to form a swarm of gigantic creatures dubbed Kamacuras. Soon after, another monster, Varan, surfaces in Mexico. A gigantic pterodactyl, actually the monster Rodan, emerges from the North Pole and builds a nest on Mount Rushmore. And the King of the Monsters himself surfaces off the coast of California, ultimately crossing the United States and arriving in New York City on January 1, 2000. There, it is finally revealed that he has been led there by Mothra, the Protector of the Earth, to destroy the dreaded King Ghidorah, the three-headed space monster who emerged from one of the asteroids approaching Earth. Humankind must survive the epic battle of the monsters. In the third novel, Godzilla At World's End, a new threat emerges from within the Earth itself a year after Godzilla's battle with King Ghidorah. An ancient civilization, long dead and buried beneath Antarctica, springs to life with the arrival of a teenage girl from the surface world, who becomes corrupted by the power she finds there and seeks to destroy mankind, unleashing five new monsters: Gigan, Megalon, Manda, Battra and Hedorah. Her ultimate weapons are the Babel Wave that cuts off all communications and the plant monster Biollante. Luckily, with the help of a group of teenage scientists, Mothra, a young Rodan (the one that hatched from the egg on Mount Rushmore), and the newly awakened Anguirus, who emerges from the Caspian Sea to slay Gigan, Godzilla saves the world once more, but becomes trapped beneath the surface of the Earth. In Godzilla vs. The Robot Monsters, Godzilla emerges from a volcano in the year 2004. Meanwhile, America, Russia and Mongolia have each been hard at work on their own anti-monster projects: Mechagodzilla, MOGUERA and Mecha-King Ghidorah, respectively. Mechagodzilla is pitted against Baragon, who emerges from hibernation to feed, while MOGUERA defeats and captures Anguirus. Mecha-King Ghidorah, on the other hand, is in the hands of a corrupt Kulgan Khan, the new ruler of Mongolia, who intends to use the rebuilt space monster as a weapon of conquest. In the climax of the novel, Godzilla escapes from the bottom of the Earth and returns to Japan to do battle with his old foe, unwittingly teaming up with Mechagodzilla and MOGUERA in the process. However, the only survivor of the fight is Godzilla himself. In a subplot, the radioactive mutant Fire Rodan, the individual introduced in Godzilla 2000, returns to America, laying a new egg on a mountaintop in West Virginia. The final book, Godzilla and The Lost Continent, was set for a 1999 release, but was never published due to the loss of Random House's license. The summary given in the previous book reveals that a new continent would rise from the Pacific, with several nations laying claim to it, but that it would also harbor great danger: Varan, Manda and Battra now call this continent home, as well as a totally new yet unnamed kaiju and a previously unknown civilization. Godzilla resurfaces to do battle with this threat. Now, this one is gonna be a little hard to explain. Sure, Godzilla is a gigantic monster that destroys city after city with no mercy, but it is kind of hard to say that he is a villain. For one, he wasn’t the villain in all the films he appeared in but rather the hero. Yes, he has saved Japan from other monsters, but he fights without much care for collateral damage. I mean, there is still as much destruction when he is the villain as there is when he is the hero. So, he could be seen as a villain/anti-hero. Also, some have excused his actions as an animal merely attacking to protect himself and doesn’t know any better. While that may be true, he still destroys cities and is a serious threat to the country of Japan. There is one very interesting facet of Godzilla: his origin is that of a dinosaur that was mutated by a hydrogen bomb. You see, the monster is created by humans. He is a product of our need to destroy each other, the grandest symbol of the nuclear holocaust. The first Godzilla movie has this great subtext of “Sure, this monster destroying our country is horrible, but we sort of brought this on ourselves.” It’s like that Blue Öyster Cult song says, “History shows again and again/How nature points out the folly of men.” Godzilla is a great symbol of man’s folly.
|
|
|
Post by Hulk With A Mustache on Jun 1, 2008 16:13:25 GMT -5
47. Eric Cartman Who is he: A 9-year-old bigoted and egotistical student. What is he from: South Park. What has he done: Ground up Scott Tenorman’s parents into a chili fed it to Scott, tried to act out his “final solution” on the Jews, tried to get Family Guy taken off the air, has been a dick to nearly everyone in South Park, Colorado. Intelligence: He’s smart, a little too smart, especially for his age. Power: He is just a 9-year-old boy, but he has been able to get many people to follow him. Vileness: Is a racist, a bigot, and an egotistical jerk to everyone he meets. Sway: Good at manipulation, especially with his mother. Purity: Cares only for himself. Physical Prowess: He’s not fat, he’s just big boned. Name Coolness: “Eric Cartman” is an average name. Created by: Matt Stone and Trey Parker. Portrayed by: Trey Parker does the voice of Cartman, though, it is altered to get the voice that is heard on the show. Eric Cartman is portrayed as the "fat kid" and the antihero and sometimes antagonist of the South Park gang. His personality has notably changed over the course of the series. While always self-centered and bigoted, he was portrayed as more of a mean, immature brat in the earlier seasons. As the seasons progressed, writers altered his personality to become more aggressive and cunning, while his bigotry morphed seamlessly into Nazi-like hatred and theorizing, as well as becoming viciously sadistic. There are several examples of this over the course of the series. He refuses, for example, to acknowledge his obesity (instead insisting that he is big boned). Also, in "Le Petit Tourette", he reveals his true sadness in the fact that he cries himself to sleep at night due to the absence of a father, being the only one of the main characters to not have one. Though it is obvious through the course of the show that Cartman shows signs of a personality disorder, it can never be pin-pointed to just one type, and instead showing signs of sociopathy, psychopathy, and narcissism. Cartman is often criticized by his peers for his rash stereotypes and generalizations. Cartman's abilities to manipulate the other characters into doing what he wants have been made keener over the course of the series, along with his overall intelligence. His characteristic intelligence and manipulative skills are perhaps best displayed in the famous and very dark episode "Scott Tenorman Must Die", in which he develops a fierce obsession with, and later exacts revenge upon, an 8th grader who scammed him out of $16.12. In the denouement of the episode, Cartman exacts his revenge by having the boy's mother and father killed and subsequently, having him unknowingly eat their remains. Upon discovering his parents demise, the boy burst into tears. This caused Cartman great delight, who then proceeded to lick the tears off the boy's face calling them "yummy and sweet". This episode was ranked number one in "Cartman's 25 Greatest South Park Moments", that were chosen by voting on Comedy Central's website. Cartman is viciously intolerant of anything he doesn't agree with, and will go to lengths in order to get his way (e.g. "Cartoon Wars Part I", "Cartoon Wars Part II"). This trait has been developed and expanded throughout the long-running series. His deep Anti-Semitic behaviour shows this development effectively. Originally, this was used to pick on his friend, Kyle Broflovski, but later this evolved into a Nazi-esque hatred after seeing Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, in which Cartman was shown idolizing both the movie and Mel Gibson for its perceived Anti-Semitic tone. This ultimately led Cartman to dress up as Hitler in an attempt to restart the Holocaust. Later in the series, he was also shown to be Anti-Islamic, developing an immediate distrust for fellow classmate Bahir, who he tries to prove, albeit unsuccessfully, a terrorist based on his Muslim heritage ("The Snuke"). Other than this, the character has shown other forms of racism, such than throwing racial slurs to black classmate, Token and singing In the ghetto when in a Mexican class room. Cartman's characteristic hatred of views other than his own is shown clearly through his hatred of hippies, and other similarly alternative groups. An effective and central element of many plots in the series is that despite his personality flaws, or perhaps because of them, Cartman can, at times, be incredibly charismatic, and is usually the default leader of the boys in times of crisis or adventure. For example, in "Make Love, Not Warcraft," when a mysterious griefer begins to kill all the players, it is Cartman who is shown to rally the other three kids to face and defeat the hacker and save the online game. This, coupled with the aforementioned manipulative abilities, allows him to form and control mobs with great speed and efficiency, and just as easily disperse them ("Ginger Kids"). Cartman is often portrayed as a somewhat precocious language student, despite his characterization as a lazy student of South Park Elementary. In a number of different episodes, including "My Future Self n' Me," it is shown that he is near fluent in Spanish. In "The Passion of the Jew," he speaks passable German in his Hitler-like tirades. His use of Japanese is also essentially flawless in "Chinpokomon". In the episode “Make Love, Not Warcraft” he speaks the French language as well but to a lesser extent. The same is true of his Mongolian in "Child Abduction is Not Funny". In the episode “Eek! A Penis!”, Cartman tries to create a Mexican accent when he has to teach a high school class full of Mexicans. A budding penchant for photography is well-versed with highly technical jargon used by professional photographers, as illustrated in both "Cartman Sucks" and the "Imaginationland" series. The character's other talents are diverse and include World Of Warcraft gameplay, stealing and negotiation as shown in "Fun with Veal", and Powerpoint presentations as shown in "Mystery of the Urinal Deuce" and "Ginger Kids". Although he basically shows no affection towards humans, he is fond of cats. This is shown when he gives them a hiding place when they become persecuted in the episode "Major Boobage". Kyle compares this persecution of cats to the holocaust, although Cartman seemingly didn't see any type of relation. Cartman is often depicted as a poor fighter, bursting into tears from a single slap, although this trait was altered in the episode "With Apologies to Jesse Jackson", when he defeats Dr. David Nelson, a midget who visits teaching of tolerance. Cartman's relationship with his friends and family is portrayed mostly a turbulent one. He has a domineering relationship with his mother (actually his father), Liane Cartman, constantly ordering her around, to which she willingly submits for the most part. In the episode "Tsst," Liane, with the help of dog trainer Cesar Millan, was able to briefly control Eric's behavioral, weight and personality problems. In the commentary to the episode, Trey Parker said that Cartman's behavioral problems were mostly the result of Liane treating Eric like a friend and not like a son, allowing him to take advantage of her. An early episode in the show's first season explored the identity of Cartman's father. With most of the town's male populace as possible suspects, due to their having relations with Cartman's mother, it was revealed that the promiscuous Liane is actually a hermaphrodite, and is in fact Eric's father. Cartman's biological mother remains a mystery. Cartman is characterized as maintaining a love-hate relationship with his three main friends, Stan, Kyle and Kenny, and is often shown teasing them for various reasons; Stan for being a wuss or hippie; Kyle for being a Jew and Kenny for being poor. Although the three appear to resent Cartman for constantly berating them, they are normally tolerant of him as they consider him their friend whether they like it or not. Kenny generally seems to accept Cartman as his best friend ("Kenny Dies"), although in "Best Friends Forever", Kenny states in his will that he never liked Cartman. The two have been seen playing together without Stan and Kyle. It has been speculated that Cartman treats Kenny the way he does because he does not know how to react to having a friend. Cartman has a rather bizarre and sinister relationship with Butters, around which many plots have been based in the series. Butters views Cartman as a close friend with whom he can play and have sleepovers. Cartman, however, sees Butters as a loyal servant who will go along with anything he says and uses this to manipulate and abuse Butters for his own gain and pleasure. Cartman often presents himself as a father figure to Butters, teaching him the finer points of negotiating in business, and the danger of Jews and “ginger kids”. Stone and Parker have both said in their DVD commentaries that they enjoy the antics between the two characters because they “are such opposites of each other”. Cartman mainly considers Butters to be a "fag" and even refers to him with insulting code names like "faggot" as seen in the first episode of the Imaginationland series. In Smug Alert!, when Kyle moves to San Francisco, he is willing to replace him with Butters as the "dumb Jew to rip on" despite Butters not being Jewish. Although Cartman doesn't generally appear to like anyone in particular, he seemed very fond of Chef, as seen in "The Return of Chef" where Cartman was crying in front of Butters and even admitted that he was going to miss Chef, but didn't know how to tell him. He normally went to Chef with his problems, and Chef was always willing to help him. Cartman also has a pet cat named Mr. Kitty. Although it is hinted that this cat is female in "Cat Orgy", the episode "Major Boobage" states clearly that it is male. Cartman is always yelling at it, and very rarely gives him any love. One of the few, if not only things he has ever shown any true care towards is Clyde Frog, one of his stuffed animals. The most notable examples of his villainy come in the episodes “Scott Tenorman Must Die” (the aforementioned grounding of his Scott parents and feeding them to him), the “Imaginationland” episodes (in which he relentlessly tried to get Kyle to suck his balls), and the “Cartoon Wars” episodes (in which he tried to take Family Guy off the air). Now, I know what you’re saying: “Now, now, Mr. Cobb. You’ve gone too far. Eric Cartman evil!? He’s not evil! He’s just a nine-year-old boy, a precocious scamp who doesn’t really know what he is doing. Besides, he’s like the main character on South Park. Why would anyone have their show revolve around an evil little boy?” And, to you I say, “How did you know my last name was ‘Cobb’? I’ve only revealed it on here like once or twice, and I doubt anyone remembers.” And to that you reply, “Could answer my question? I don’t want to spend all day reading your stupid rants!” And, I answer, “That is where you are wrong. Eric Cartman is just one of the four main characters on the show, and he is PURE EVIL!!!!” You see, he may have started out as a brat; but he became something more. As the years progressed, the bigotry and racism grew. He went from a few slurs to trying to act out his “final solution” on the Jews and faking Tourette’s Syndrome so he could go on air and say as many Jewish slurs as he could and get away with it. His egomania became more and more pronounced. He cares only for himself, so much so that he won’t allow his mother to have a normal life (look at the episode “Tsst”). And, he will go through great lengths to achieve his goals. He was adamant about taking Family Guy off the air, even pointing a gun at the President of FOX. In the “Imaginationland” episodes, he went through the courts and broke into the Pentagon to get Kyle to fulfill his agreement to such his balls. Hell, he even imagined the event in Imaginationland just to say that Kyle sucked his balls. And, don’t let the fact that he is 9-years-old fool you. The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he doesn’t exist. So, even if I haven’t convinced you, it doesn’t matter. I know that Eric Cartman is evil. I know the truth!
|
|