Jab’s Builds! (Miss Piggy! The Swedish Chef! Sweetums! Gonzo!)

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
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catsi563
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Dreamqueen! Collective! Citadel! Anastasia!)

Post by catsi563 »

Bluths best for me will always be Secret of Nimh. great story and some truly amazing imagery.
Dr. Silverback has wryly observed that this is like trying to teach lolcats about Shakespeare

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Jabroniville
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Dimitri

Post by Jabroniville »

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Seriously, this is the face they used for the love interest.

DIMITRI
Played By:
John Cusack (speaking), Jonathan Dokuchitz (singing)
Role: Snarky Con-Man, The Love Interest
PL 4 (65)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 2 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 4 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Athletics 5 (+7)
Deception 6 (+8)
Expertise (Con-Man) 6 (+8)
Expertise (Singing) 6 (+8)
Insight 4 (+6)
Investigation 2 (+4)
Perception 3 (+5)
Stealth 2 (+5)

Advantages:
None

Offense:
Unarmed +4 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +5 (DC 15), Parry +5 (DC 15), Toughness +2, Fortitude +3, Will +4

Complications:
Motivation (Greed)- Dimitri is out to score big, by taking the Dowager Empress's reward money.
Relationship (Anya)- The two instantly dislike each other, which of course means there's a spark of romance between them.

Total: Abilities: 42 / Skills: 34--17 / Advantages: 0 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 6 (65)

-Dimitri is a sly, conniving con-man, out to get a young actress to portray the lost Princess Anastasia and net the reward money. Living in the empty Imperial Palace (did that really just sit abandoned like that, with all that loot inside?), he & Vlad find Anya by pure luck, and start their con, teaching her royal ways. Of course, he's a bit snarky and off-putting, which drives Anya nuts, and the two spend 10-20 minutes straight bickering with each other, which Vlad (and the audience) immediately recognize as the beginnings of True Romance, especially when he foolishly gets the two of them to learn the waltz together. So they stare into each other's eyes for a bit, and immediately all their hate turns into love and admiration.

- Anya loses it when she finds out what Dimitri was planning on conning that nice old lady. They do the standard "But Falling In Love Wasn't Part Of The Plan" thing, and all is forgiven when it turns out that Dimitri did a good turn, and refused the Dowager Empress's money, simply happy that Anya found her place after all.

-I wasn't a fan of the design for this character- a combination of bland & creepy, his design is "Average '90s Guy" with that distinctive "Short on bottom, long on top" hairstyle, and his squinty eyes and sneering expression made him look more like a nasty criminal than a charming con-man. Really, he's not charming in the slightest- some rogueish charm or charisma would have gone a long way. Which isn't to say that John Cusack did a bad job- it was merely a serviceable one. I feel like the character should have been PUSHED further- he should have talked about his past, scraping by and barely surviving; maybe a bit about how people can't be trusted and he's learned that you can only survive by looking out for yourself. That's the kind of Disney-level stuff that would make the character "pop" a bit more than "sneering weirdo".

-Dimitri is good at what he does, and is pretty physically capable (handling himself well on the train & ship set-pieces), but falters badly in the final fight scene. Granted, he's up against a 20-foot-long metal horse, but still. PL 4 is fine for him.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Sun Jan 30, 2022 5:22 am, edited 1 time in total.
BriarThrone
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Dreamqueen! Collective! Citadel! Anastasia!)

Post by BriarThrone »

Horsenhero wrote:Huh. Well, they can't be concentrating too much on real history or the musical would end with Anastasia getting gunned down and buried in an unmarked grave (the Bolsheviks wanted NO martyrs grave for monarchist allies to get emotional over).

Still, for years some people romanticized that the Czarina might have escaped. That must've been something Stalin, Lenin and Trotsky found mildly amusing, since they all doubtless knew the truth.

Interesting tidbit from the journal of one of the revolutionaries who helped shoot the Czar's family dead: Apparently they tried to smuggle out a bunch of jewelry in their clothes as the fled, so when the bullets hit them, they threw off sparks. This light show was disconcerting to the Bolshevik soldiers until they figured out exactly what the cause was.
Yeah, normally I think historical accuracy is a tertiary concern at best, but Anastasia is even worse than Pocahontas. If you're just cribbing a couple character names and concepts, why are you bothering with this story at all?
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KorokoMystia
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Dreamqueen! Collective! Citadel! Anastasia!)

Post by KorokoMystia »

Speaking of Don Bluth, recently he did a kickstarter in an attempt to fundraise a Dragon's Lair movie. I dunno if it succeeded or not, but it sounded like a cool idea. Also, Capcom announced yet another version of Street Fighter II for the Nintendo Switch.
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Vlad

Post by Jabroniville »

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VLADIMIR
Played By:
Kelsey Grammar (speaking & singing)
Role: Fun-Loving Fat Guy, Generous Con-Man
PL 2 (33), PL 3 (33) Defenses
STRENGTH
1 STAMINA 2 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 0 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Con-Man) 2 (+4)
Expertise (High Society) 4 (+6)
Expertise (Singing) 6 (+8)
Insight 4 (+7)
Perception 1 (+4)

Advantages:
None

Offense:
Unarmed +0 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +0 (DC 10), Parry +0 (DC 10), Toughness +2, Fortitude +2, Will +4

Complications:
Motivation (Greed)- Despite coming off as pretty nice, Vladimir appears to be in it for money as well.
Relationship (Sophie)- The two haven't seen each other in ten years, but are apparently quite into each other. Vlad is apparently all about DAT ASS.

Total: Abilities: 22 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 0 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 1 (33)

-Vladimir is an odd one, and fits in a peculiar manner with the other characters. He's Dimitri's partner in the Con... but doesn't seem overly greedy. Or particularly duplicitous. He comes off as happy and charming, cares genuinely for Dimitri & Anya... yet I guess he's still part of the Con? Hell, him knowing Sophie, the Dowager's Lady-In-Waiting, is what gets them "in" with the Dowager in the first place! He hooks up with Sophie in the end, but we never know if he got any money. His position in the plot is to teach Anya the ways of an aristocrat, but he's also clever enough to recognize his mistake in letting Anya & Dimitri dance- despite the importance of getting her to waltz, he realizes that the two basically had a "spark" between them.

-Kelsey Grammar's voice is pretty much MADE for this kind of thing, which is why it's too bad Vladimir is such a minor character with little "acting" to do- he's the only major character who gets the same VA for speaking AND singing, meaning there's a continuity there (he mentions in a commentary that this is important to be "true to the character" in a musical). Grammar's epic baritone should be shouting from the rooftops, but instead Vladimir is quite restrained and calm. He should have been a bit more of a wildman, or a lady-killer (especially with Sophie).
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Dreamqueen! Collective! Citadel! Anastasia!)

Post by Spectrum »

I recently watched Netflix's Trollhunter series. Guillermo del Toro is involved and it really shows. The mentor character, Blinkous "Blinky" Galadrigal, is voiced by Kelsey Grammar and it's glorious.

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We rise from the ashes so that new legends can be born.
Jabroniville
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Rasputin

Post by Jabroniville »

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ImageImage

RASPUTIN
Played By:
Christopher Lloyd (speaking), Jim Cummings (singing)
Role: Revenant, Large Ham
PL 8 (113)
STRENGTH
1 STAMINA -- AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 1 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Magic) 5 (+8)
Expertise (Religion) 5 (+8)
Expertise (Singing) 6 (+9)
Insight 3 (+6)
Intimidation 4 (+7)
Perception 3 (+6)
Ranged Combat (Magic) 4 (+8)
Stealth 4 (+4)

Advantages: 
Ritualist, Startle

Powers:
"A Corpse, Falling To Bits!" Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]

"I Opened My Eyes and the Nightmare Was ME!"
Protection 2 [2]
Features 1: Body Parts May Detach & Reattach [1]

"Rasputin's Reliquary" (Flaws: Easily Removable) [31]
Blast 8 (16) -- (17)
  • AE: "I'll Take The Train!" Move Object 6 (12)
Summon Demons 1 (Extras: Horde, 8 Minions +6) (9)
"Animate Statues" Summon 5 (Extras: Heroic +2, Variable +2- Anything) (Flaws: Source- Statues) (25)
-- (51 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +1 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Blast +8 (+8 Ranged Damage, DC 23)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +4 (DC 14), Parry +1 (DC 11), Toughness +2, Fortitude --, Will +5

Complications: 
Motivation (Power)- Rasputin desperately wished for power over people.
Enemy (The Romanovs)- The Royals "betrayed" him, and now he thirsts for revenge. To the point that his soul remains in limbo, as "one little girl got away!"
Diabled (Falling To Bits)- Rasputin's body is decaying and falling apart- he is prone to losing limbs, eyeballs and even his mouth as he moves around.

Total: Abilities: 22 / Skills: 38--19 / Advantages: 2 / Powers: 64 / Defenses: 6 (113)

-Probably the most memorable part of Anastasia is its villain- a guy who would fit right in with the Disney Villains of past movies. Voiced by Christopher Lloyd, who never met a piece of scenery he didn't find delicious, Rasputin acts out wildly, conspires to commit evil, and is a detestable monster of a man. The power-hungry poon-hound known to history is largely forgotten, and in his place sits a Revenant-like monster who only seeks to murder others. In the film, he was so furious over being discarded by the Royal Family that he sold his soul to dark forces (you get to see his body being consumed and replaced by malefic energy), then murdered the lot of them. Only he was trapped in ice trying to kill the little girl of the family (Anastasia), and was thus trapped in limbo for ten years, decaying the entire time.

-Rasputin awakens when his Familiar, Bartok the albino bat (himself stealing most of his scenes, with Hank Azaria's perfect voice acting giving him an "ad-libbed" energy while appearing super-cute and "Toyetic") discovers Anastasia and the Reliquary- he plots to murder the last Romanov and thus... I dunno, return to life? He's more trying to escape this "limbo" state, but I guess he doesn't want to disappear.

-Rasputin also gets the most memorable song of the picture, singing In The Dark of the Night to a chorus of... giant bugs? Okay, while this song is awesome (it falls below Poor Unfortunate Souls and the like, but it's WAY up there with Villain Songs), this kind of shows the problem I had with this character. Rasputin is just too GOOFY to take seriously as a villain. I mean, this guy is a plotter, schemer and murderer, who's sold his soul for vengeance... and spends the entire movie acting like a goof-off, falling to pieces constantly, dressing in drag on one occasion, and moaning & whining. Yet they also do all this big "I am so powerful!" stuff- it's incongruous. Disney had its goofy villains- Prince John & the Sheriff of Nottingham, Captain Hook, etc.- but these guys weren't also MENACING. You didn't see Ursula, Scar & the evil bear from Brave doing pratfalls. Even Gaston, as silly as he could be, usually wasn't the butt of physical humor. Rasputin kind of wants to have his cake and eat it, too.

-And in his big Villain Song... what is WITH those bugs? They don't show up in the rest of the movie! There's no point to them other than to be silly! He has mystical, glowing DEMONS to do all of that work in the film- THOSE should be the things singing. Imagine a dark Demon Army, or worse- ZOMBIES- doing all of this. That would make for a MUCH better scene. Even Be Prepared had more dignified minions in the Hyenas (who may be silly, but they also walked like friggin' STORMTROOPERS). We're supposed to be afraid of the voice of Tigger singing to some vermin?

-Rasputin's stats are unimpressive for a comic book villain, but since his toughest opponent is PL 3, it fits. He's actually a definitively weak fighter, not even winning grapples with a teenage girl- he even DIED fighting a lil' girl and an old lady during the Russian Revolution! That said... that Blast packs a punch, and he can animate Demons and a giant Pegasus statue to fight on his behalf, so watch out.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Sat Jan 14, 2017 7:37 am, edited 1 time in total.
bsdigitalq
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Dreamqueen! Collective! Citadel! Anastasia!)

Post by bsdigitalq »

Ra ra, Rasputin! Lover of the Russian queen! There was a cat that really was gone.
Ra ra, Rasputin! Russia's greatest love machine! It was a shame how he carried on.

:D
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Rasputin

Post by Jabroniville »

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RASPUTIN (Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin)- Real Version
Created By:
Efm & Anna Rasputin
First Appearance: Jan. 21st, 1869
Role: Mad Monk, Holy Man, Unkillable Menace, Ladies' Man
Country of Origin: Russia
Group Affiliations: The Russian Empire
PL 4 (74), PL 6 (74) Defenses
STRENGTH
1 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 2 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 4 PRESENCE 5

Skills:
Deception 6 (+11)
Expertise (Religion) 4 (+7)
Expertise (Mysticism) 5 (+8)
Insight 5 (+9)
Intimidation 2 (+7)
Perception 2 (+6)
Persuasion 7 (+12)
Treatment 3 (+6)

Advantages: 
Attractive 2, Daze & Fascination (Persuasion), Diehard, Second Chance (Death By Shooting)

Offense:
Unarmed +2 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +4 (DC 14), Parry +3 (DC 13), Toughness +4, Fortitude +6, Will +6

Complications:
Motivation (Power)
Addiction (Women)- Rasputin's skills as a lover were legendary. His penis is so famous that it once had its own Wikipedia page.
Relationship (Wife & Daughters)
Responsibility (Pacifism)

Total: Abilities: 42 / Skills: 34--17 / Advantages: 6 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 9 (74)

RASPUTIN (Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin)- Mythical Version
Created By:
Efm & Anna Rasputin
First Appearance: Jan. 21st, 1869
Role: Mad Monk, Holy Man, Unkillable Menace, Ladies' Man
Country of Origin: Russia
Group Affiliations: The Russian Empire
PL 6 (101)
STRENGTH
1 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 4 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 4 PRESENCE 5

Skills:
Deception 6 (+11)
Expertise (Religion) 4 (+7)
Expertise (Magic) 9 (+12)
Insight 5 (+9)
Intimidation 2 (+7)
Perception 2 (+6)
Persuasion 7 (+12)
Treatment 3 (+6)

Advantages: 
Attractive 2, Daze & Fascination (Persuasion), Diehard, Second Chance (Death By Shooting), Second Chance (Poisoning), Second Chance (Drowning), Second Chance (Being Shot)

Powers:
Regeneration 6 [6]
"Hypnotism" Affliction 6 (Will; Entranced/Compelled/Controlled) (Extras: Area- Visual Perception) [12]

Offense:
Unarmed +2 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Hypnotism +6 Area (+6 Affliction, DC 16)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +4 (DC 14), Parry +3 (DC 13), Toughness +4, Fortitude +6, Will +6

Complications:
Motivation (Power)
Addiction (Women)- Rasputin's skills as a lover were legendary.
Relationship (Wife & Daughters)
Responsibility (Pacifism)

Total: Abilities: 46 / Skills: 38--19 / Advantages: 9 / Powers: 18 / Defenses: 9 (101)

-Rasputin remains one of the most notorious figures in Russian history, and to this day remains synonymous with debauchery, lust and hunger for power- so much so that Boney M release a legendary disco hit around that very concept. However, much of his story is rooted in myth and legend- he was a known "Holy Man" and healer (a position frought with charges of charlatanism, then as now) who became a hated figure to the Russian public, and a scapegoat for the problems that the nation of Russia was facing in the early 20th Century.

-Rasputin was a quirky, but charismatic man (he was known to have several physical tics), and was generally a minor figure until he was chosen to be an aide to the young Tsarovich, Alexei, who suffered from hemophilia. Rasputin claimed to have the power to heal the boy, and the weak Tsar Nicholas II and his worrisome wife Alexandra were easily-swayed into accepting him into their home. Soon, rumors began that Rasputin's thirst for power had increased- that he had intruded into the Royal Family and become an advisor of sorts. His closeness with the royals begat both jealousy and accusations of him sleeping with the Tsarina herself.

-As Russia fell apart, so to did Rasputin's reputation fall- Nicholas II had failed his people, and Russia suffered both economic collapse and loss in The Great War- the Bolshevik Revolution gained steam as well. Eventually, assassination was in the air- he was once stabbed, but recovered thanks to some candlelight surgery. However, the next one did him in- in an attempt so over-the-top, overly-planned, and excessive that it's become legend in and of itself, Rasputin was lured to the apartment of some members of the Royal Family, where he was first shot with a revolver after getting drunk on wine. Then shot once more. With two bulletholes in his stomach, liver, kidney and spine, he was struck with a man's shoe. Shuddering from what were SURELY fatal bullets, Rasputin was then shot by a panicked conspirator right through the forehead. Then his corpse was driven to a bridge, where it was thrown through an ice-hole in a river. His corpse had nonetheless floated to the surface, meaning that it could not flow into the sea.

-Legends almost immediately sprung up about the death of the "mystic"- That he had been poisoned. That he had survived the poison, all of the shootings, and the drop into the river, and it was HYPOTHERMIA that had done him in. He has become a legendary villain, and prescribed magical powers and more! And in the end, his assassination had failed to help Russia- turns out Nicholas II was incompetent and useless all on his own, and soon the Royal Family was usurped, imprisoned, and executed.

-Rasputin in real life was considered to be a hypnotic mastermind- people go on and on about his eyes- every Eye Cliche there is has been thrown his way. His voice "could never be forgotten", said others. He wasn't actually a member of any particular religious sect, but a man who could explain the Bible to others in uncomplicated ways. He is basically a wildly-charismatic man with a pretty good Toughness save- unfortunately, not a true Wizard. A more "Mythical" version gains Regeneration & Hypnosis for realz.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Sun Jan 15, 2017 5:23 am, edited 1 time in total.
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HalloweenJack
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Dreamqueen! Collective! Citadel! Anastasia!)

Post by HalloweenJack »

Gotta admit, I really dug Christopher Lee in the role of Rasputin in one of the Hammer movies. Not a particularly strong movie, but Lee himself did a pretty awesome job as the guy
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Dreamqueen! Collective! Citadel! Anastasia!)

Post by bsdigitalq »

HalloweenJack wrote:Gotta admit, I really dug Christopher Lee in the role of Rasputin in one of the Hammer movies. Not a particularly strong movie, but Lee himself did a pretty awesome job as the guy
Definitely. Kind of a shame they didn't get him to reprise the role for Hellboy. The guy they got did a serviceable job, but was kind of underwhelming (then again, Hellboy Rasputin was never one of the stronger villains of those comics).
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Moana

Post by Jabroniville »

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MOANA (2016):
Written by:
Ron Clements, John Musker, Chris Williams, Don Hall, Pamela Ribon, Aaron & Jordan Kandell

-Moana is 2016's big Disney Movie, and pretty much continues their huge "New Renaissance" push, where they make all of the monies, and get all of the respect from critics. It's another "Disney Princess" movie, one that features a young girl from an isolated Polynesian island who's always possessed a deep love for the sea, despite her father's insistence that she stay where she is. Atypically for the genre, there's no love interest at all, nor is marriage even in the prospects- this is more of a Questing Story: Moana is charged with returning "The Heart of Te Fiti" to a magical Lady-Island, at which point the darkness threatening the islands & oceans will fade away.

-Along the way, she gets the Demi-God, Maui, to assist her- this drives the majority of the story's "conflict", as the arrogant Maui (voiced by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) argues with the headstrong-but-inexperienced young Chief's daughter ("You wear a dress and you have an Animal Sidekick- You're a Princess!"). Plot contrivances see him taken down, so he has to teach Moana his own "Wayfinding" ways- the ways actual Pacific Islanders used to become the best sailers in their era and populate all the islands they could find.

-The movie used a bit combination of talent, including getting many actual Pacific Islanders to help them with the cultural bits- Moana's island isn't any ONE culture, but like Frozen's Arrendele, is more of a "Best-Of" combination. Many of the songs are typical of that region, and they got Lin-Manuel Miranda, the now-famous superstar behind Hamilton (the biggest show on Broadway), to handle the rest with his trademark fast-talking rap stuff.

From my initial review:
I just got back from Disney's Moana. A great little film, with like a LASER FOCUS on the main plot- there's all of eight speaking roles in the thing, and 95% of the focus is on the title character.

* Great character designs. I love Moana's look- she actually LOOKS 16, and not like the adult women that usually populate the Princesses (she's supposed to be only a year younger than BELLE and two younger than Cinderella, both of whom look like adult women). She's got a wide face, broad nose, and arms & legs that are THICK- this girl works out! And I LOVE her hair- so many styles and forms- filled with sand, soaking wet, frizzy, up in a bun, etc. 

* Of course she appears as a baby. Gotta sell that "Character as a Baby" Merch. Expect this in EVERY Disney movie now, by the way. Exposition AND Merch Sales- these guys know their shit when it comes to the $$$.

* The villain's visually impressive, but doesn't actually say anything, meaning it lacks "something" as a classic Disney Villain. Our closest version of that is the Evil Crustacean, who gets a pretty decent Villain Song that nonetheless feels a weird combination of "too short" and "not quite catchy enough". They were going for Bowie-style audaciousness and just ALMOST made it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQzAi-a9Bv8

* The songs are serviceable and good, but not quite the EPICS that we know Disney for. No one should have been expecting another Let It Go, but the Murderer's Row of talented assembled (including Hamilton's Lin-Manuel Miranda, the current Most-Respected Pop Culture Guy) would have been expected to do a bit bigger & Better. Though given that Miranda had JUST completed a 2-CD Masterpiece more or less with himself on lyrics and a few other guys for help, it's possible he shot everything out of his cannon already for the next long while. Moana's Signature Track, for example, is basically as good as For The First Time In Forever- GOOD... but nobody would have cared about Frozen as much if For The First Time In Forever was the Signature Song. It's as generic an "I Want" song as you're ever gonna get. It was like a TEXTBOOK on how to write an "I Want" song. And You're Welcome is CLASSIC Miranda- you can hear him all over this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyv0ZlW0yS0

* The Merch-tastic Pig & Tiny Coconut Pirates of course get almost no screen-time whatsoever. Like, the TROLLS in Frozen were a bigger part of the plot. The Pig is only there for a tiny bit and never does anything. The CHICKEN of all things gets the bulk of the "Sidekickery".

* The two leads do pretty good work- Dwayne Johnson sounds... well, pretty much like they just hired him to do his own act (complete with raised eyebrows on the animated character), like a lot of "Ink-Suit Actor" type hires. Moana's VA (a total unknown) did a really good job in parts, especially the Big Argument on the boat.

* There's two big laughs in the thing- the Chicken gets one, and Maui gets the other. You'll see it.

Builds will, naturally, be forthcoming, but only in a month or so. I don't like to stat up movies IMMEDIATELY... unless it's Frozen.

* The only thing I REALLY think the film is missing was a big "Wow" moment. They get CLOSE, with the Manta Ray scene and the part with the Ship Visions, but there's nothing on the level of "Elsa Making her Ice Castle and Accepting Herself" or "the Animal Spirits take the mother Bear's spirit and change her killer's form" or "Mulan fails and is thrown out of the army, thus sparing her father's life and completing her first goal... but instead turns back and proves herself, becoming the best soldier in the army while Donnie Osmond sings the most glorious song of all time". I feel like it was RIGHT on the cusp, but never quite pulled it off.
-It's a very solid "Fetch Quest" type of story, told between two characters. They even go through the Random Encounters table- "*rolls* Okay, so you find a floating island-fortress filled with humanoid coconuts dressed like Mad Max villains", fetch the Magical Weapon (the Magical Fishhook in Tamatoa's lair), and more. Art-wise, it's possibly Disney's PRETTIEST movie in years, featuring epic water animation and great backgrounds on the various islands and regions they visit- the character design and animation isn't quite on the same level, but the tattoos and outfits are well done.

-I liked the Grandmother character- a lot of movies do quite well by having an elderly woman do her best stuff- old actors make the BEST actors, sometimes. They speak volumes with only a few words, learn subtlety over "over-acting", and more. Moana's Grandmother is totally perfectly-handled- she's wise but not lecturing nor vague. She is mischievous and a trickster, but not an annoying crackpot. She believes in Moana's destiny, but confesses that she may have pushed her too far. And she gets many of the movie's best moments.

-Given some time to think on it, I still think Shiny is the best overall song. But the song on the island is actually my #2 favorite- Moana's father (played by an unkonwn, but his singing voice is George Washington in Hamilton) telling Moana about how great their island is, and how she never has to leave it. The same "Misguided Father" trope as in Frozen, but told a bit differently- he has better reasoning (his best friend was killed on the same journey Moana's considering taking), is less frightened by everything, and his advice is much more solid.

The movie did fantastically well as always... but has been much slower than Frozen or Zootopia to hit the highest of peaks. It will likely end up with a much smaller total than either film, though of course is still a monster smash hit. Notably, it hasn't made even close to what The Secret Life of Pets did, either abroad or domestically (Pets made more than $100 million more at home!). I think it's a combination of things- the designs are great, but not as epic as Frozen's, and certainly not as Toy-friendly as the Animal-People of Zootopia (Animal Movies also sell BIG in animation- look at how much the Ice Age movies make; or Sing). The characters are cute, but they have much smaller eyes and bare a lot more skin- less costume-friendly. The story's a bit of a harder "Sell"- "I'm a headstrong girl trying to put a rock in an island!" isn't exactly as universal as Sisterly Love (Frozen), True Love (Every other Princess Movie, also Frozen) or Prejudice (Zootopia). It also lacks the major "Animal Stars", as the pig is barely in the movie, and the chicken is just comic relief and isn't overly cute. And really... it's about the Pacific Islands. Not a "big sell" as a film- movie audiences (especially internationally, oddly) have been trained to see Euro-centric films as a "Big Deal" to the point where other cultures just aren't as easy to sell. 

Which is why I give Disney so much credit for trying something like this as one of their Big Movies- "Hey, let's tell the story of an island girl from a cultural group almost nobody about- and NAME it after her!" After so many Princess Movies got "Generic Titles" to avoid turning off young boys from seeing them, it's a bit surprising to see Disney go "okay, so this one is called Moana". Kind of a reflection of their confidence in their own work by this point (they could release movies about talking turkeys at this point and make bank, because the New Renaissance hasn't yet hit its Pocahontas).

In short, though- the movie is rad, I've seen it twice already, and it truly fits in with the New Renaissance. It's not as good as Frozen, Zootopia or Tangled in my mind... but it's close enough. And doesn't push the same damn song all movie long, like a certain Anti-Prejudicial movie did.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Sat Jan 14, 2017 7:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
bsdigitalq
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Re: Moana

Post by bsdigitalq »

Jabroniville wrote:MOANA (2016):

-Mulan is 2016's big Disney Movie
Ummmmmmmm...
Jabroniville
Posts: 24695
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Moana of Motonui

Post by Jabroniville »

Image
Image

"Who am I?
I am a girl who loves my island
I'm the girl who loves the sea
It calls me
I am the daughter of the village chief
We are descended from voyagers
Who found their way across the world
They call me
I've delivered us to where we are
I have journeyed farther
I am everything I've learned and more
Still it calls me
And the call isn't out there at all, it's inside me
It's like the tide; always falling and rising
I will carry you here in my heart you'll remind me
That come what may
I know the way
I am Moana!"


MOANA
Played By:
Auli'i Cravalho
Role: Disney Princess, Adventurous Girl
PL 5 (81)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Acrobatics 1 (+5)
Athletics 8 (+10)
Expertise (Survival) 2 (+4)
Expertise (Wayfinder) 7 (+8)
Expertise (Singing) 8 (+11)
Insight 2 (+4)
Perception 2 (+4)
Persuasion 1 (+4)
Vehicles 6 (+8) -- Flaws: Limited to Boats

Advantages:
Equipment (Small Boat), Minion 8 (The Ocean), Ranged Attack 2

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +6 (DC 16), Parry +6 (DC 16), Toughness +3, Fortitude +4, Will +6

Complications:
Motivation ("I Love the Sea...")- Moana feels a tremendous connection to the sea, and desperately wishes to travel the waves and plot her course.
Relationship (Family)- Moana respects her father deeply, but twists against his wishes for everyone to remain on their island. She only talks to her mother once. She is closest to her grandmother, who pushes the young woman's ideas about traveling the seas.
Responsibility (Staying on the Island)- The Island of Motonu'i has been the home of Moana's family for generations, and they are expected never to leave. It turns out that the seas themselves are being poisoned, and boats were never coming back.
Relationship (Maui)- Moana is charged with finding the Demi-God Maui and placing the Heart of the Sea in its rightful place. Unfortunately, he's an arrogant blowhard, and she's a stubborn, angry girl.

Total: Abilities: 46 / Skills: 34--17 / Advantages: 11 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 7 (81)

-Moana is typical of "Modern-Day Disney Princesses"- headstrong, courageous and fighty, not afraid to argue with people and insisting upon getting her way. She naturally has the dream of "Something MORE"- only she wants to travel beyond her island instead of leaving her Stepmother's place (Cinderella), provincial town (Belle), tower (Rapunzel), or castle (Anna). She's a mite bit more capable than the naiive Rapunzel or the thick-headed, foolhardy Anna, though. Moana's suggestions to leave the island when their coconuts and fishnets turn up empty are NOT appreciated by her stern-but-caring father (who amazingly gets to live through the whole movie!), but since the sea is her friend, she survives when she disobeys his orders and travels to Te Fiti.

-This movie is ALL about Moana, too- Maui is the second-most-important character, and he gets way less lines than say, Flynn in Tangled. And newcomer Auli'i Cravalho does a hell of a job for her first time out- she gets the funny lines right (*fakes crowd noise* "You are so amaaaaaazingggggg...!"), argues well with Maui, and gets the sad bits right. Better than many Hollywood actors & actresses who can't be bothered to learn the craft of "acting with your voice", that's for sure.

-Physically capable and not very flawed as a character, Moana is better overall than most Princesses at various things- she's a bit stubborn and argumentative, but nowhere NEAR as much as Frozen's Anna. This prevents her from being quite so "identifiable" (even Merida, from the feminist-feeling Brave, is a giant brat and downright aggressive), but she still comes off pretty normal for a brave rookie "wayfinder". Her design is terrific- thick-limbed, stocky and with a cool outfit, her dolls seem to have become a pretty big hit (the Super-Deluxe Giant one is amaaaaaaazeballs...), though she probably loses "Toy Points" for not wearing a big sparkly dress, and for having her Animal Sidekicks either be not in the movie (the pig who received many toys is in the movie for all of two minutes and never does anything; He-He is more comedic than cute). But really... you don't ALWAYS have to cram the toys on people- the movies still make millions.

-Moana is pretty skilled- early on, she's basically doing Island Parkour on the trees in her village, and later on she learns wayfinding from Maui. She also beats the hell out of tons of Kakamora, and successfully rescues He-He the chicken from their crazy Mad Max boats by doing some Daredevil-quality stuff. She's good, but no physical match for much of what comes later. Her "The Ocean is a Friend of Mine" thing that allows her certain abilities- it throws her onto Maui's exact island, refuses to let her drown, and splats her right back on the boat every time she falls off, in addition to throwing a dart into Maui's butt-cheek. It's almost like a... Minion... I guess? It can't really be hurt (you're gonna fight the ENTIRE OCEAN? What are you, Xerxes of Persia?), but it won't win the day on its own (by the end, its only action is to help Te Ka reach Moana).

THE OCEAN
Played By:
N/A
Role: Moana's Guide
PL 2 (115)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA -- AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 0 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 0

Skills:
None

Advantages:
None

Powers:
"Water"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Protection 2 [2]
Insubstantial 1 [5]
Immunity 80 (All Damage) [80]

Offense:
Unarmed +0 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +0 (DC 10), Parry +0 (DC 10), Toughness +2, Fortitude --, Will +0

Complications:
Responsibility (Moana's Mission)- The Ocean has charged Moana since infancy with the mission of restoring the Heart of Te Fiti.

Total: Abilities: -2 / Skills: 00--0 / Advantages: 0 / Powers: 117 / Defenses: 0 (115)

-The Sea can move Moana around, and seems to know its way around, but can't physically injure things that capably. Its only real "attacks" consist of splashing Maui with water and tossing a dart into his butt-cheek.

Last edited by Jabroniville on Sat Jan 14, 2017 7:06 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24695
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Re: Moana

Post by Jabroniville »

bsdigitalq wrote:
Jabroniville wrote:MOANA (2016):

-Mulan is 2016's big Disney Movie
Ummmmmmmm...
ASS :P
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