Monday, February 21, 2011

Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four in... Brain Drain!

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Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four in... an advertisement for OfficeMax!

NOTE: I'm testing out a microphone with this review. Tell me what you think!


145 comments:

Unknown said...

Hey Lewis. The new mic sounds ok, but it seemed to be picking up some ambient noise. You might want to try clipping it higher up, making sure it's facing outside of your jacket (so you don't get the occasional "rub" sound) and turning the gain down just a bit. Other than that, nice get :)

Anonymous said...

Ahh, THAT explains it. I saw this before it was posted to the blog, I think, so I didn't understand what was up with the sound.

I dunno, the mic makes you sound pretty muffled. But the music and SFX also sound off, but I don't know what could be causing that.

Anonymous said...

Concerning the mic...I don't like it. Your voice sounds unnatural.

Anonymous said...

I'd say the new mic is not an improvement. Which is a shame; this is one of the best episodes in weeks.

Mountain King said...

Okay I didn't review for the last couple of weeks because they were more to do with the arc plot than the comics. Rather than just ramble incoherently for about eight pages about why that was both good and bad I just gave up.

Now that we're back to regular reviews I only have one thing to say:- WTF. My head really hurts after that one. Seriously, I'd have be tempted to tear the comic apart with my teeth about half way through. What is it with PSA's and Marvel Editors trying their damnedest to ruin the character of Spiderman? I'm a 2000ad and DC fan boy and find Marvel a bit too much like a soap opera for my liking, still I can't wrap my brain around why they keep stabbing poor Peter Parker in the back.

As you pointed out in your introduction Spiderman is not a good role model. The problem is he is the most popular. Tony Stark isn't exactly a good example for kids, neither is the murderous and short tempered Wolverine. Not many can relate to the mutants directly (even though the entire point of mutants in marvel is the alienation of young people…) In the end Peter Parker is the most human and relatable of Marvel's famous staple of heroes. Which is, unfortunately, why he's the first pulled into a PSA no matter how bad it is.

As for your review, we're back back to humour. Opposed the drama focus of the arc story. I'll be interested to see what you do with an immense warship equipped with temporal fragment shielding, planetary bombardment cannons, large manufacturing capabilities and an almost infinite amount of destructive potential.

Yes, going to your head might be a problem.

Thomas

PS: There was a little too much echo on the mic. I'm not sure if that was the settings or if you were in a "live room" (a room with too many solid edges for the sound to bounce off from, opposed to soft furnishing that absorb the sound). not a real problem and certainly a better one that before. There is more depth and quality to your voice for one thing.

kara said...

not going to lie, i hit my head on the computer at least three times to try to escape the stupid of this comic. how could the former marvel-editor-in-chief fuck something like the thing's character up on such an astronomical scale?

keep on keeping on, linkara. i think you're gonna need it.

Anonymous said...

I like the microphone. It's okay.

Btw, you should get a new opening, since you now own a spaceship. It would be like a new season of AT4W.

SP4Mew said...

You might want to use the mic you had previously. This one just sounded toned down, at least to me.

doggans said...

Were the teachers in this issue based on actual real-life teachers who won some award? Because then I just feel sorry for the real people. They're portrayed like the clingly friends who really believe they're helping, and everyone let's them hang out out of sympathy.

As for the new mic, I'd suggest lowering the audio levels when you record or edit.

Lord Harlock said...

I think that Doom was in hell at the time after getting the leather outfit, so it definitely was a Doombot. At least with Squirrel Girl, it's because she has a secondary mutant power that makes her uberpowerful, but Doom would never try and take the worthless knowledge of an American Teenager. Most of which, he already knows for he is DOOM! And DOOM knows all that is worth knowing so says DOOM! That's because DOOM is a bit arrogant, and he has never had a high opinion of American youths.

And I'm going to guess that Tom DeFalco did this for a paycheck. Also, this should have been a vehicle for the Great Lake Champions or whatever they are called currently. Then at the least, the bringing together of the teachers would make sense because that group is dumb enough to do something like that. But as DOOM says Reed Richards is a moron. And I'm going to go with the good doctor on this one even if Baron Victor Von Doom never actually graduated from Graduate School.

Unknown said...

Just watched a few minutes, and I gotta say, your voice with the new mic is odd. It's not bad or anything, it just sounds...odd, I guess sort of muffled like tobymobias said.

Jesse said...

The new mic sounded fine to me, but I didn't watch this episode on my home equipment. I'll have to watch it again when I get home and see if there's any difference. For now, though, I'd say stick with this new mic.

And I've gotta ask, did you do a Spidey for OfficeMax Promo PSA before? Much as I enjoyed this one, for all the comic's out-and-out stupidity, it seemed awful familiar somehow, too.

Loved that movie-era Starfleet uniform you had, though. That was great!

Information Geek said...

The microphone makes it sound like everything you are saying was dubbed in at a later point. It really sounds strange when I see you talking on screen.

Steve said...

...Huh. I SWEAR you reviewed this before. Maybe it's me, lol.

Good ep, though. The microphone's a bit muffled, however.

Unknown said...

"Gaze upon my radiant beauty - and DESPAIR!" Thanks a lot Linkara, now I've got coffee in my keyboard :)

Anyhoo, I'm no sound expert but the review sounded a little hollow to me. Hope that helps.

Yogurt said...

"Concerning the mic...I don't like it. Your voice sounds unnatural."

Don't be frightened, anon. The dark side is a pathway to powers and vocal tones that some would indeed call...unnatural.

*imperial march*

Anonymous said...

Van Halen's "Hot For Teacher" would have pwned the closing credits...

Brine

JDB15 said...

The mic made you sound a bit muffled, but, at least to me, its not a big issue. Also after watching this, reminded me of your earlier videos at times. I'd say continue with the mic.

Anonymous said...

You know I kinda expected a Castlevania: Symphony of the Night or I Wanna Be The Guy reference with the "Gaze upon my radiant beauty and despair!" line, but I think just the line by itself does wonders for the review. Also, the addition of the mic makes the video sound a little off-putting, but it kinda works for some parts. Keep experimenting with it.

Cubey said...

This comic! I remember reading about it before. So I knew what to expect - waiting for your reaction shots was half the fun in this video.

I think the real moral here is: listen to your teachers kids, or you will be as stupid as all characters involved in this piece of crap.

White Base? I didn't know you were a Gundam fan, Linkara.

Random Internet Critic said...

Oh, sweet Saint Buddha, you have the Starfleet unform from Wrath of Khan.

You are clearly a god among nerds.
May Kahless the Unforgettable let you pass into Sto 'Vo 'Kor.

:)

Jesse said...

I think another thing the comic got wrong is that PARENTS don't care about their kids losing their intelligence.

The students parents weren't even mentioned beyond being worried about them (I think) and after that all we got were the creepy and annoying teachers.

Wonder what PSA will be next? "Don't skip school or you'll ruin your life"? *thinks* That might actually be it.

PS I honestly didn't see any difference between the microphone and your usual way of doing reviews. Sorry.

TimeTravelerJessica said...

The microphone worked fairly well but it also made you sound strangely muffled.

Anyways, thanks for bringing up the "teachers paying out of their pocket" thing. My Mom was an elementary school teacher for thirty-one years and in that time she spent at least a hundred dollars every year buying art supplies and decorations for her room and who knows how much on supplies for kids whose parents couldn't afford it or (far, far worse for the poor kids) were just too lazy to get their kids anything for school. How about some commentary on that, hmm, comic?

Unknown said...

Wow, just wow. I actually had to look up Tom deFalco and was shocked by what I saw. The mike was fine but it shows when there is an increase in volume a couple of times when the camera is on you. That part with the teacher distracting Doom actually made me cry a bit. I am actually confused. Isn't Dr Doom a scientific Genius/strategist? Was deFalco out of evil schemes when he wrote this? Also, in which comics did Doom conquer the earth, because now I am a bit interested.

Anonymous said...

Well, here are some options for naming the ship (all preceded by U.S.S., naturally):

--Your favorite Starfleet captain
--Fabian Nicieza
--Camelot
--Spanish Inquisition
--Gallifrey
--Tom Servo

The new mic sounds good, but needs some fine polishing (you really sound too muffled here).

areoborg said...

I'm going to go along with the crowd saying that you sound odd with the new mic.

I'll bet the laptop has a Blu-Ray drive, making it far superior than the DVD or *snort* CD-ROM that Richards uses.

Ooh! You should name your ship The Fourth Wall. That way, you can give your review from the highest level of the ship, so it really would be Atop the Fourth Wall! *rimshot*

Brian said...

So the Baxter Building was... short on office supplies?

SynjoDeonecros said...

...What in the blue blazing granfalloon is up with these educational PSA comics and their need to demonstrate how awesome learning is by CREATING PLOTS ABOUT MAKING PEOPLE STUPID? Honestly, it seems like the bad guys in these PSAs have to have some sort of scheme to devolve people into literal clinical retardation JUST so they can get the message that learning will make your life better across? Not only is that counterproductive, in and of itself, but what does this tell the kids with ACTUAL learning/mental disorders? Just think about it: say you were autistic, had to be reduced to buying Hooked on Phonics to help you with schooling, and you get blindsided by one of these comics. How could you NOT join with the growing population of suicidal depressives in the world, after that? It's a literal insult to their intelligence and worth as a human being.

That said, my god, that was the most painfully blatant use of product placement I've ever seen. And really, rubber band balls? First, I didn't know they actually SOLD them, let alone at an office supply store, and two, they use them to destroy Doom's machine? Are you kidding me? That's like using a paddle ball to demolish an armored car!

The mic does sound a little stuffy, but I'm sure you can work it out. I was more thrown off with how closed in the review looked; it seemed like the camera was zoomed in a bit farther than usual, and the lighting is a bit darker.

SchweitzerMan said...

Wow...this was...really REALLY stupid.

First off, the mic sounds OK. No major complaints.

I agree that teachers are important but it seemed that the comic was trying too hard to drill this fact into our head.

Personally, the only thing more sad than Dr. Doom being taken down by a bunch of teachers would be seeing Twin Clones of Hitler being stabbed to death by Barney the Dinosaur

Jikarn said...

And here I was hoping for the "Brain Drain" clip from Batman Forever. Come to think of it, was that scene or this comic dumber?

Razorvine said...

I didn't notice to much of a difference with the Microphone, though honestly I have never been that good at picking out quality issues with sound equipment unless it was blatantly obvious.

The comic was bad, almost as depressing as our weather up here in Minnesota. Seriously we were on our way to a good meltdown. Curses on that Groundhog for lying.

However, "Gaze upon my radiant beauty... and Despair!" That was almost worth the price of admission.

Darren Esh said...

First off great review, I just want to say that, and I know the troubles of what teachers go through with super attendents because my mother is a teacher in that predicament.

As for the sound, like other people have said before it sounds muffled, so the only think I could think of is that its either in a wierd position of your clothes. You should keep the mic chest level. I sorry if that sounds pandering.

Shada said...

The new mic will take some getting used to, since it does make your voice sound deeper and more "echo-y."

You could name your ship the Madame de Pompadour. XD

Seriously, Freedom's Lament maybe, or Necessity of Freedom (I love Halo-style ship names).

That comic seemed really familiar to me too? I don't think I ever got it from Office Depot (although I could be wrong about that - I have a lot of boxes of old comics I haven't read in a while).

This one was weird, and raised a couple of questions in my mind though. The biggest being: Where were these students' parents? Why weren't THEY the ones to go with the kids to the Baxter Building? (I know they were including them for the stupid Office Depot tie-in, but from a story perspective this is just a gaping plot-chasm).

I do agree, and shared your moment of "fatal error" on this one. They really couldn't figure our another reason for Doctor Doom to go after high school students? He doesn't exactly have the personality to ecen think that he needs the intellects of someone like Reed Richards to help him, much less 15-18 year olds. You really have to feel sorry for ole' DD here, this is a worse defeat for him than the Squirrel Girl incident.

Great review Linkara, keep up the great work!

ShadowWing Tronix said...

" Steve said...
...Huh. I SWEAR you reviewed this before. Maybe it's me, lol."

I thought so, too, but maybe someone else covered it? I know it's been brought up in article form on one of the sites I follow.

You may want to mess with the mic settings or placement. As folks have said, it sounds dubbed in or muffled.

nebosuke said...

Funny review, Lewis.

Anyway in regards to the new mic, I'd say it souns okay but it could use adjusting since at a couple points it makes your voice sound a little unnaturally amplified, kinda like you're speaking through a megaphone.

Oddly enough, this comic had me thinking how much better it would have been if one (or all) of the teachers had been replaced by Eikichi Onizuka of GTO.

Still considering your new ship was owned by someone from another dimension (and not human too), I'm a bit surprised you haven't had any wierd language mishaps (assuming Vyce's native language isn't english) like in episode 38 of DBZ.

Just curious, but have you read any of the Spiderman novels? If not I highly reccomend at least The Darkest Hour by Jim Butcher as in this novel (and the other two I've read) the Peter/MJ marriage is intact and I've got to say it's well written in that one too, Peter's career is a teacher, and the story's good too.

MattV said...

"exception, rather than rule"
that's a might overoptimistic, wouldn't you say?

as for the mic, it seems to function ok, but the sound throughout the whole episode sounds weird and muffled. it's particularely jarring when you listen to Vincent's song's clean audio and then switch to you sounding like you're talking with a mask on.

J. J. Ramsey said...

I wonder if you felt your brain being drained just by reading that comic. That's gotta be the dumbest one you've reviewed in a while. The writer of it probably didn't even care and just threw together some nonsense to please his bosses. PSA Hell, indeed!

(BTW, I didn't notice a difference between the old mic and the new one, FWIW.)

Wazaraku said...

I died of laughter during all this review. Yes the idea of the comic is horrible, but so bafling that i couldnt help to laugh my ass of at it, and you good sir didn't make that any better with your BSOD XD

Anyway cool work and let us enjoy this "plot free" week thought i like them anyhow

Sieg-sama said...

I think that was the deepest circle of PSA Hell.

About the mic. It seemed uneven at times (if that makes any sense). And many scenes seemed like they were dubbed over.
Nothing terribly bad. I guess it just needs some more tuning and tweaking.

D. R. McLeod said...

The thing about Spider-Man as a motivational speaker because his life sucks isn't really a good argument because all the things that happen to him (outside of being unmasked and making a deal with the devil) aren't of his own doing. It's not like Tony Stark's alcoholism or Batman's inability to relate to another human being outside of violence and threats. Spider-Man is a comparatively normal, well-adjusted man with no major personal or psychological issues other than the fact that life - largely through no fault of his own - decides to shit on him. Unless you're saying that he could somehow alter his personality in a way that people around him no longer die, we can't blame anything you said on Spider-Man. In fact, he's a great motivator because he's undergone so many personal tragedies but yet he deals with it. He suffers, but he's still out there every day saving lives and fighting evil. A man who continues doing good deeds despite the naysaying of others and massive personal tragedies when he could just give up at any time and live a much more normal life isn't just a good example for children he's damn near messianic.

Turkish Proverb said...

Mic wasn't bad, but it was very different. I think it might need a tiny bit of noise cleanup.

Good review, and I was glad to hear your compliments towards teachers. Heaven knows people seem to have some insane idea they're overpayed these days.

Austin said...

The mic makes your voice sound like it's a little too close to it, a bit more louder then usual.

Jer Alford said...

Wow! This was stooopid! I rarely have to shake my head at how something is THIS stooopid. Office Max is where I do alot of the copying for my comics, but I wouldn't use them to help save the world from Supervillains! Makes me realize why Dr. Doom has been vanquished by Squirrel Girl.

Also, the new mike makes you sound more like you're doing a podcast. Might wanna adjust it.

Lizzie said...

The mic has potential.

Opinion from this side of the peanut gallery is that Spidey is a good role model. If you had to have all your problems sorted out first, there wouldn't be anyone who qualified. He's hard working, compassionate, smart... kids could do worse.

But to move on! The message of this comic was more than hard to follow. It's like this was written when the guy was half asleep. The connections and logic may very well exist in his head, but they never made it to the page!
Still, I can't fault the teachers for wanting to actually do something when their students were being attacked. There's a story in that nugget of an idea. Not this. This was terrible. And I can't for the life of me understand why rubber band balls featured so prominently. But civilians feeling duty bound to get off the sidelines? Sure!
-Oracle

Lotus Prince said...

Oh god, this review is hilarious. I aspire to be an English teacher, myself, but my GOD, this was campy. I do like how the teachers ran around and made career-related puns, like Spiderman tends to do, though. :-D

As for the microphone, I never had a problem with your current setup. I did notice a difference in quality between your "captain's log," and when you responded to Pollo, but I suspect that that's because one recording was with a regular mic, and the other might've been with a camera, as it had a bit more of an echo. However, your audio quality during your regular review, on the couch, sounded just fine.

Wave Maker said...

First things first, opening was great. As for the comic... wow that was terrible. Like, stunningly hilarious terrible. I agree, yes, teachers deserve a great amount of respect for what they do but... wow, not like that. I wonder how many of the teachers regret being involved in this.

With the mic... I dunno, it sounds a little odd but that may only be because of the difference compared to before. It doesn't sound normal, but it's not so bad that's it's distracting to the review. *shrugs*

Grunty said...

Okay nice that you are back to normal (like some other commentators, i don't mind your selfmade stories, but i skip them).

Yay for Gundam reference.

Oh man i really wonder what's going through the minds of those who make these PSA stuff. Do they completly forget how they felt about these things as kids?

Because i always thought of them as annoyingly stupid, even as 8 year old kid.

This comic so beautifully shows everything that's bad about this stuff.

Infact one could use it as guideline on how to not make a PSA comic.

Your comment about Doom getting defeated by jokes of characters, reminded me to how Squirril Girl defeated him and it's played up that he still wets his metal pants when she shows up.
While i think of her as a joke gone to long, at least in her case one can overlook it by knowing the whole setup is meant to be stupid.

By the way was Defalco better or worse than Bob Harras?

Steve Herman said...

Name for the space ship, the IMAman.

James said...

You know, I watched Jason's riffing of Electra Elf before I watched this video... and I gotta say I didn't think I could physically handle so much stupid in one day. I was pausing frequently to facepalm.

Also, new mic sounds fine to me. A lot clearer IMO.

SeiferA said...

Good review as always. One of the best Ive seen in a while.

Also, I really don't think you need a new mic. This one sounded waaaaay too muffled, and honestly, half of the comedy comes from your reactions. The fact that the mic muffles or removes the echo and clarity of your voice from previous reviews really makes the review sound more toned down than it should be.

James Edward Clark said...

you should do a PSA hell episode about that one heart warming Spiderman PSA comic where we learn that Peter Parker was sexually abused as a child by an older boy

HERES THE LINK!
http://www.ep.tc/problems/fifteen/01.html

yes I'm serious

Anonymous said...

What about calling the ship "(insert USS or whatever) Vigilance"?

I mean, besides the obvious "It starts with a v." it also refers to watching over. And since you review comics (a.k.a watch over the world of comics to bring justice to stories that have been ruined by bad writers/artists), I thought it would make sense in context. Plus, the word pretty much relates to every superhero, (as well as any other hero you've mentioned on the show a.k.a star trek, power rangers, doctor who, ect.), making it a badass word.

Of course, if this has been done before (or the idea just sucks), then I apologize.

Tegan Dumpleton said...

Wow, it's been a long time since i've laughed so hard at a comic XD.

Something tells me that Defalco was either tricked or forced into doing this comic, and, knowing how well PSAs turn out anyway, decided to make it as stupid as possible. Why else would be get the over blown advertisements, the weaponizing of rubber band balls and the line "Gaze upon my radiant beauty--- and despair!" XD

I don't know how yet, but i am so going to use that line in casual conversation XD

Andrew said...

The mic seems okay, though it'll need a bit of adjusting. Also, maybe you should name the ship "The Green Futon"! :D

Miyuko said...

try again with the mic,i just started to watch the video and i could Barely understand what you were saying

Ginger Strawhat said...

Hey man good job. This is one of those really easy but really funny one's that I like seeing you do. Seriously I couldn't get over it, Doctor Doom is one of the most threatening overpowered beings in the Marvel universe and here he's about as threatening as the villain from Spider man, Storm and Cage. Wow how the mighty can fall in the presence of a bad story.

About the Mic. I don't think it's the best it kind of sounds a little unnatural and makes your voice deeper then it is. It grew on me through the review but not by much.

I also hope you liked the Human Torches death. Sure he'll be back but at least he went out like you said a hero should go out.

SO all in all good job man :)

P.S. Nice blunder on the ending :P

Screech The Mighty said...

1. Why. Why does this comic exist, why. I'm pretty sure half of my brain cells died just from this review. >.<

2. I think I'm going to use "GAZE UPON MY RADIANT BEAUTY AND DESPAIR" in regular conversation now.

3. I like the old mic better, but it just might be a matter of getting used to the new sound. If you think it works, you should keep it.

4. Have you seen the first issue of IDW's Doctor Who run with the 11th Doctor? If not, you should. There are talking staplers and for some reason the villain looks like Danny Trejo. Why? I sure don't know. But it's kinda awesome.

Anonymous said...

Oh wow... I was whacking myself over the head in response to the sheer stupidity here. I mean just... WOW. How does a comic like this happen? Even a PSA comic? I'm still a little confused as to what the message actually WAS it was so stupid.

The mic was a bit strange at first, but once you got a ways into the review I stopped noticing it.

What to name your ship... Is Titans taken? USS Titans? I remember you said they were your favorite super-team.

MagnaRyuu said...

A Castle in New York City isn't that outrageous. There is Belvedere Castle in Central Park.

Travis said...

honestly, the mic sounds worse than most of your previous videos, I don't know if your using anything to block zmbient sounds, but your voice seems faded and of lower quality than your usual.

日本文化のマニアック said...

I've gone back to school to get a teaching degree, and you know what? having superheroes who choose to be teachers as another way of helping society is a much better plug for teaching than having teachers be pathetic excuses for superheroes.

Erebus said...

If the 'message' of this comic (which really was just an Office Max ad, let's be honest) was that teachers should be appreciated because they impart useful knowledge and skill to kids to prepare them, and that they do care about their students, fair enough. But this would have you believe that 'awesome' teachers would be willing to, literally, travel to the ends of the earth to assist a single child, at potentially great personal risk. If teachers were volunteers, maybe I could understand such zeal, but it's called the teaching profession for a reason.

Teaching is still a job. A job that must be taken seriously and only for those capable of working with kids, but a job all the same. This isn't to make offense, it's just being realistic! That, and teachers aren't near as narmtastically stupid as the comic's.

Plus, I now have the image of my 12th grade Brit. Lit. teacher distracting Doctor Doom in my head. This cannot be unseen.

Ah well. I did learn one good thing out of this review. Apparently, Office Max brand rubber band balls (do such things exist?!) are the greatest weapons known to educators!

I can't really explain this right, but, your new mic makes it sound like you're actually talking through a mic. Before, it just sounded like you were talking in your room, and not really through anything. It sounded more natural. Yeah, that's not that helpful, just my observation. I just need to hear it more, like others probably do, and get used to it.

P.S. Long time viewer, first time commenter. Read: nervous. Sorry if the post ran long.

Anonymous said...

Not a huge fan of the microphone, but it's not bad. Also, where did you get TWOK-era Starfleet uniform?

Crystanubis said...

At first, I almost liked the new microphone; it's got that warm analog quality, but it definitely needs some gain adjustment. It sounds like it's picking up everything BUT you, and when you do come through, you sound like you're standing on the other side of the room.
I don't think you need a new one, it just needs tweaking. Don't worry about getting right by the next episode, that's impossible, but try a few different things. Sorry I can't give more technical advice, but sound is actually something I struggle with in my videos near-constantly, so I'm just about in the same boat as you.

Truce Weston said...

I must say, this was your funniest review in a long time! Your reviews are always top notch, and very funny, but this one was epic classic!

That blue screen of death, had me laugh so much, I had to stop and catch my breath! And we have another goofy plan on the list of goofy plans, about Doom draining student's minds to gain their intelligence.

BTW, the new mic sounds good dude! It did sound different, but it's a good different, like when you started and then moved into fancier equipment and more elaborate techniques, for AT4W

So until the PSA comic with Teen Titans & Green Lantern advertising Bass Pro Shops comes out, MAKE MINE LINKARA!

Anonymous said...

Hahaha speech team reference FTW

Anonymous said...

What's even more ironic about Tom DeFalco being the writer for this issue is that he's been the writer of both Fantastic Four and the Amazing Spider-Man comics in the past. Actually, he's a pretty prolific writer in regards to Spider-Man...he wrote the alien costume storyline, he was the one that strengthened the Peter/MJ relationship by revealing that she had always known his secret identity, and he co-created Spider-Girl (the daughter of Peter and MJ in an alternate future).

Don't let this garbage fool you...the guy can write! Well, except if you ask him to write a PSA OfficeMax advertisement.

Red Potemkin said...

White base ? Does that mean that you saw one of the many old-shcool Gundam series ? That's surprising, in a very pleasant way.
I guess you really are fond of SF and space-opera in general, whatever the country the show is from or if it is animated or live-action.

Unknown said...

Hurrah for Speech references! Were you on the speech team (and what category), or just people you knew?

Also, I kinda like how on the rare occasions you're political, you're not stereotypically Republican nor Democrat, regardless if you consider yourself one or the other.

Anonymous said...

I like the microphone. Good quality for an independent show.

Also, good review. Hoo, boy! was this puppy atrocious! Product placement off the bat and an ill-researched message! Good grief!

I actually didn't know about Peter's teaching tenure until now. Too bad I can't look at it now! ]:(

SailorCardKnight said...

I honestly liked whatever mic you where using before better. As one commenter put it, now when you speak twords the camera it seems dubbed, which gets a little annoying at times.

For something positive, before there was like a faint echo when you spoke on camera, now there isn't, which I like. It makes the sound more professional that way.

Anonymous said...

Dear God. Dear God. DEAR GOD!!! I come from a family of teachers, and because I know roughly a gazillion times more about teaching than this comic, that was, in my opinion, the most wall bangingly worst comic you have reviewed. I'm not a big comic fan, but I have learned more and more about it from watching this show (PS. Read Kingdom Come. Loved it). But because this is a topic near and dear to me...I don't even know where to begin. The very idea that teachers should help their students by bending over backwards for Office Max or whoever the hell paid for this is just insulting. The idea that teachers are some kind of commando unit is just nauseating. The idea that teachers should be expected to help students who have recently become mentally handicapped all on their own without any help and out of their own free time, completely ignoring their other students in the process, is just...ugh. I could go on a longer rant, but quite frankly, I can't bring myself to do it. I wish you could mail that thing to me so I can puke on it.

Having said all that, thank you for acknowledging all the hard work teachers put into their jobs. It was a very nice thing for you to say, and I am very grateful. You showed a hell of a lot more respect than this comic did, and I thank you for that.

Oh, and if you must know, yeah, the mic did sound kinda muffled. I'm not a mic expert, so either mess with it or just go back to your old one.

I have no idea what you should name your ship. I'm no good at coming up with names, but I'm sure you'll think of something.

Red Potemkin said...

I forgot to say that this episode is for the moment the most hilarious one this year.

This PSA comic is really on the top of the pile (or the bottom...you know what i mean) and your tantrum about the teacher's uselessness, the product placement less subtle than a pink elephant on steroid and the pure blatent inconsistency of the characters and the storyline seems to be fresh like if i had discovered your show for the first time. Good job !

Batzarro said...

Sad part is, that really is what passes for radiant beauty in the schoolteacher business.

I joke, but this really is riding on some flimsy logic. It doesn;t seem the kind of thing where editorial goes: "Make me a story that has teacher cheering and product placement. I can feel the office max guys lurking over the shoulder of the writer...

Ryan said...

The new mic is fine but for whatever reason there was some noticeable inconsistencies in terms of the quality/volume of the sound during the episode. The audio never got bad, I could always understand what you were saying, but sometimes the change was jarring for a few seconds (usually when transitioning from the voice over to the live action scenes and vice versa). It might just be something I need to get used to. Either way, I enjoyed the episode.

Andrew said...

I think the mike needs some work, but as everyone else has provided comments on that and suggestions on how to fix that I won't add to it. Instead I shall do two things:

One, praise you for this amusing review showcasing a truly brainless comic.

And two, suggest a few names for your ship. I couldn't decide on one so, in the tradition of the Nostalgia Critic, here are eleven possibilities and why:

1: Leonidas. Since it now defends rather than conquers and is also a comic book reference.

2: Endymion, for the Greek shepherd who was said to be the personification of the sunset. Also a ref to Sailor Moon.

3: Damascus. Named for the Middle Eastern city and a reference to the "Road to Damascus" where Paul was visited by Jesus. This led to his eventual conversion to Christianity. Given you have converted the ship from an evil mission with good intentions under Lord Vyce to a good mission with good intentions, Damascus seems a fitting name. The Pauline (in reference to a Pauline Conversion) might also work, and it also sounds kind of quirky.

4: Bercilak de Hautdesert (shortened to Bercilak) for the true name of the Green Knight in "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight". Given your love of Arthurian lore and the green coloring of the ship I thought it might work.

5: Fomalhaut. Named for the star and from the Arabic meaning "mouth of the whale", which, given it is a leviathan might fit.

6: Perun, for the Slavic god of thunder and lightning. He's kind of like Zeus and Thor combined, and some of the symbols associated with him on the Wiki page resemble your ship from certain angles.

7: Rama. For the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and the ship from the classic scifi novel "Rendezvous with Rama". Hey, since you're delving into scifi might as well reference the classics, right?

8: Leviathan. Also a Biblical reference for a great monster and also pretty fitting given what it looks like.

9: Roanoke. For the missing colony and the Native American Tribe. Just because it sounds cool and mysterious.

10: Chronos, for the Greek god and the reference to time. It's temporal shielding makes this ref obvious.

11: Columbia: A common name for ships, including the famous space shuttle. It's derived from Columb, the Latin word for "dove", a bird associated with peace.

There. All my suggestions. Take them or leave them, entirely up to you.

Anonymous said...

Argh...as much as I hate writers screwing up the personalities of characters for reasons of plot and drama, I think I hate people screwing up/blatantly disregarding characters for the sake of a cheap gimmick even more. I mean, really, there is no excuse for that Thing wall banger.

BTW, your Reed Richards voice is weirdly awesome and hilarious.

Also, you should do that Blue Screen of Death more often — I laughed my ass off.

Oh, and I dunno if you're planning one, but if you do another Top 15 ______ show, you should totally do a "Top 15 Stupidest Wallbangers". You've already done Top 15 WTFs, and the Worst Heroes Becoming Villains has some overlap, but there's just soooooo much potential for pointing out 15 of your most hair-ripping moments in comics. It also would let you ramble about stuff that happened in comics that you can't review because they aren't bad all the way through, and you won't even set off the continuity alarm!

EinWolf said...

I liked the subtle humor at the end with the "Only thing standing between childrens going stupid" then cut to you holding the comic upside down.

As for the plot, I would believe that Reed just found the source of the signal right away and then all that stuff with the teachers was just to humor them. Like children. Even when they take them on the field trip to Doom's castle. But then the A- Team Action Squad going in and saving the heroes is where I lose that facade and am forced out into the cold realization that yes, this product placement comic is just that stupid.

I liked it better when I though Reed was just being a passive aggressive jerk. Like "Oh, you have a masters in Physical Education. Isn't that just Wonderful?" As he builds a machine to harness the mental capacity of his alternate selves from alternate dimensions throughout space and time.

I have a short comic from Jack in the Box from 2001 apparently written by Alvin Lee (no idea who that is) with artwork by Udon. It works, because A the only product placement in the entire thing is the jack in the Box logo on the cover. Other than that the only time they talk about Food is Hawkeye talking to Captain America about getting some Egg Rolls. The dialogue is quipy and fun. It even makes the Daredevil pretty cool looking. In that he's actually got super-senses rather than some sort of Radar that makes him see sounds. It's also pretty funny when Daredevil asks Hulk if he knows who he is and Hulk says "Spider-man?"

I'd send it to you just so you could have a good Ad comic. But... I like it and it's mine!

Laughing Hyena said...

"Gaze upon my radiant beauty and despair!", needs a T-shirt of it, stat. It can have sparkles around it.

"Powerhouse Excitement!", needs T-shirt form too.

Kavinsky said...

Linkara please when your testing out new equipment like this just make and post a small test run video with it instead of automatically using it for the next ATFW.

and it sounded like you were using a bad gaming microphone.

Shanya Almafeta said...

Regarding The Thing's comment about his old teacher: Writers who write him with emoangst are... kind of missing it. A big part of his entire character is that the people in his life make him happy to be the ever-lovin' blue-eyed Thing. Of course, it's usually a girlfriend or wife, who can be killed off the next time that the new writer feels more comfortable with an emogoth monster, but there's no reason that he wouldn't remember a teacher in the same way.

Also, I think the new microphone has some strange squelching at the extremes of your vocal range. At a few parts, it made you sound like your voice was cracking.

Chance Thulin said...

This was a pretty good episode. It was funny, set up future scenes for plot, and also allowed for fan interaction as we try to help with the naming of the new vessel.

As for a name, might I suggest Khaji Kara? It is new but also references the Blue Beetle's Scarab/Magic word through the title Khaji. I figured it would invoke heroism, your love of the blue beetle, comic books, and also add your normal kara suffix into the name, thus associating it with you. Plus, it is something that is badass on its own if done right.

Just a suggestion, though.

As for the mic, i think it was a little loud at first, coming off as booming, but it eventually settled down for me. work on the sound feedback a little and you should be golden.

Anonymous said...

The Comic: You're... You're kidding, right? Dr. Doom wants to steal the knowledge of school kids who probably know LESS about certain fields than he does, scratch the 'probably,' to become more powerful than he already is, he-who-rules-his-own-country last time I checked? That is THE dumbest thing I have ever heard. Those teachers weren't too bright either. Going into a situation that is WAY out of their league isn't a good move.

Your New Ship: I kind of liked the one suggestion posted earlier, The Fourth Wall, just not for the pun potential reasoning used.

The Mic: ... I'd honestly only use it outside or in crowded situations where the camera's mic might not pick up what you're saying.

Anonymous said...

The Mic sounded good to me. Pretty sad when Doc Dooms master plan is dumber than the average Doc Insano ploy to rule the world, but well he did lose once to Squirrel Girl-ya just cant shake that monkey (on second thought, Deadpool lost to her once too; maybe shes worse than I thought). I think its mandatory that all PSA comics suck but this one is like their King! Doom may have lost this round but by gawd! He now possesses the mental power of a High School Student! The Power! The Power!

PWBOT said...

What a perfect birthday present for me! Well, technically it is the 21st when this review came out but from my time zone, it's the 22nd.

Anyway, this has to be one of your best reviews to date, although, the humour does lend itself easily for this one. God, I think even Dr Doom had a BSOD hearing the radiant beauty line, cause that was just so bizarre.

For your new mic, like most people, I find that your voice kind of sounds muffled in this review. It sounds deeper in a good way, but still muffled. I say just adjust the new mic and it would be just right.

Unknown said...

"White Base"? Did you mean "White Star"? Anyway, I think "Linkara's Space Party Boat in Space" is a good name.

WeirdRaptor said...

Well, you came in loud and clear for me. Great review, as usual. Your always brighten my day, Linkara.

One thing I've always wondered, though: Where did you come up with your character's name (Linkara)?

MoonTiger said...

About the microphone: It sounded good in my opinion, you should probably keep it :)
Also: Lovely review, teachers are the new age's superheroes!.. wait what?

Lewis Lovhaug said...

""White Base"? Did you mean "White Star"? Anyway, I think "Linkara's Space Party Boat in Space" is a good name. "

No, I said White Base and I meant White Base - as in Mobile Suit Gundam's White Base.

Anonymous said...

I'm on a space ship
I'm on a space ship
Everybody look at me cause I'm piloting a space ship
I'm on a space ship
I'm on a space ship
Take a good hard look at the motherf*ckin space ship

To be honest, this is the first time one of your reviews made me laugh this hard
I ascribe this to the source material.
The comic is so awful it's adorable.
Like a lovechild of the silver age, 50s propaganda and a 80s G.I. Joe cartoon.

I'm kind of shocked that you mentioned Human Torch dying, but not Spiderman becoming his replacement on the team.

Titania Bird said...

Mic does sound a little off, although I can't quite place why, unlike some of the other commenters.

And HOLY CRAP was that painful. Y'know, I have plenty of teachers in my life that I've respected for putting up with me and not being mean in the process, but if I got kidnapped by Doctor Doom, I wouldn't want them risking their lives on my behalf. For the love of God, they have families, spouses and children! And I...have a girlfriend and a couple of cats. And a legion of internet friends. That's about it.

The real purpose of this comment, though, was to through another name into the hat for ship name suggestions. Might I suggest something Stargate-influenced, say Daedalus, or Prometheus, or Thor's Hammer?

Mavrickindigo said...

I like how you forgot this show was about comic books in the beginning of the video. It's a wonderful analogy about how you're actually treating this show with your Lord Vyse nonsense

Anonymous said...

I Enjoyed The Review Best Thing I Saw All Day,Great End Credits Song!

The Microphone Was Honestly Good: It Has A Great Sound Quality,Kinda Weird Without Out That Famous "Linkara Acoustic Voice Sound" But Great Nevertheless.

Anonymous said...

Hey Linkara, I just wanted to say thanks for stating your support of teachers. My parents are teachers and I can say that teaching is stressful and underappreciated work. I love your reviews, even though I don’t read comics a lot. This review was freaking hysterical and I can’t wait for more!

MetFanMac said...

Maybe it's just because I'm not used to it, but I don't really like this mic--your voice sounds deeper and flatter, kind of unnatural. It sounded, for lack of a better description, like you were closer to the screen but also muffled. Maybe you just need to fiddle around with it...

Great episode though. This may be the most mind-boggling "PSA Hell" comic yet, epecially considering who wrote it (for a split second I thougt it would turn out to be Fabian Nicieza :-))

Bazookoidben said...

I actually started hitting my head off of my journal when I saw Mr Fantastic oogling rubber bands and graph paper...wouldn't he have that stuff in his...oh what do you call it...?

LABORATORY?

It's bad enough that they totally ignore the resources of the Baxter Building, but also forgetting where Doom lives...the only thing stopping him taking over the world is a frigging Woolworths...argh. I actually developed a headache over the course of watching this crap.

FFFF...the stupidity is piling high... and how could I predict that five super heroes who could punch doom's face to custard need to be saved by teachers....friggin teachers? Oh yes. Because this comic is crap.


Wait? Is that a Bajoran tricorder? Neat-o-torpedo. Lets go find some spoon heads!

Gyre said...

Ah the White Base. All the memories of Gundam series that didn't rely on yaoi fangirls and idiotic politics written by drunk monkeys to be successful. Maybe your new ship can be the Pegasus.

On another note why the heck do they need OfficeMax? Ignoring the fact that it's blatant product placement why wouldn't this very advanced team with a very advanced building have all the material they could possibly need.

Tree of Truth said...

Good administrators are essential to a properly functioning organization.

If the top administrator at any private sector organization with as many employees as your typical school district was being paid only 120k we would be applauding the guy for taking such a small small sum.

Now compare that with the insults that the top administrator (who often has a doctoral degree in education!) gets just for having a small six figure income.

These top administrators often have 20+ years of experience.

I doubt you can show me many people with a doctorate in administration and 20+ years of experience that doesn't bring at least 6figures of value to the organization.

Eric Image said...

Great review! Gotta say that I'm not liking the mic, though. Something about not being able to hear the slight echo in the room makes it feel... I dunno. "Not like AT4W"? Also, the sound seemed a bit "muffled", for lack of a more technical term (I know next to nothing about sound production).

I'd say some extensive trial and error will be necessary to get the sound just right, but it shouldn't be too hard to do.

samson said...

wait, teachers have to pay for supplies in america?
That's worce than having to pay for healthcare! Come to england link, you can watch doctor who on time and be able to go to the hospital whenever you want :)

Eternal Wanderer said...

I've been watching Linkara for months now but for all of the crappy comic he's reviewed this is the only one that has ever made me want to comment. Its ridiculous how every single character in this abomination grabbed the idiot ball and the leaps in logic prevent anyone can from taking this seriously. And the worst part of this is that Tom Defalco, a writer I enjoyed wrote this garbage.

kais saidi said...

Dude i guess victor was kinda uninspired for his plan of his,maybe Doom should stop smoking joints before scheming it really hurts his reputation.as for "gaze at my beauty & despair" He could have answered" No woman YOU will BOW BEFORE DOOM's SEXUAL MAGNETISM,FOR WOMEN CALL ME LATVERIA'S MIDNIGHT LOVER!!".
as for the death of johny who gives a damn ,you're talking about a company who hired robert weinberg to reinvigorate cable just to fire him 18 months later while his direction was great,who ruins characterization for schock stories that make no f...... sense when compared to the past ones.Srsly linkara you may say the 90's have flaws (& they have,what era doesn't) but stuff like Morrison' x-men or avengers disassembled make apocalypse:the twelve look like a frikkin masterpiece,& i still take adam x the x-treme (despite the codename ,he's a nice guy from what i've read about him)over Vulcan (Brubaker's f... you to the fans) & Onslaught over cassandra nova (at least the first made a lick of sense)
As for the fantastic four,i advice the mark waid run.it is the pinnacle of the f4,his run had everything great stories ,likeable characters & it shows you where the pettiness of victor von doom can go.By the way ,& it's apersonal opinion , squirrel girl SUCKS.i know she's ajoke character but she's a joke that overstayed its welcome .i would read a story where deadpool would shoot her repeatedly in the head while singing my sharona until she screams uncle or carnage playing squirrel season with her. i mean really the one thing that was kinda funny were the squirrel army stopping Doom,& knowing what victor did to a classmate who wanted to correct his miscalculation (Reed Richards) i can let you imagine where squirrel girl's spleen & head would fly if he finds out who sent those vermins at him.we're talking about a guy that NEVER forgives unless undebted & even that is not a guarantee since he can retaliate on another occasion.As awesome as he is ,Victor Von Doom is still amoral just read unthinkable or emperor doom (by the way ,when was the second time he coquered the world?)

@ Grunty /i dunno quesada makes me regret Harras worst excesses, but if i have to choose i'd say Defalco is better EIC than Harras but then imay be mistaken

@Linkara:can isuggest house of M or planet X for next review, & keep the good work ,dude

Anonymous said...

Wow, the writers really phoned it in on this book. :/

Just how many Starfleet uniforms do you even [i]have?[/i]

This was one of your funniest reviews in awhile, just seeing your reactions to the progressive stupidity in the comic was hilarious. (One More Day + the Imperial March got a laugh out of me as well.)

Also, I really hope "Gaze upon my beauty AND DESPAIR!" becomes a new meme on this show. That line was priceless. xD

Jyger85 said...

How does "The Linkruiser" sound to you?

You realise now that you said that about One More Day that people are probably gonna wind up mailing you copies by the truckload, right? Ooh, you could start a public bonfire with 'em!

Falcovsleon20 said...

Is that really true? All of the Fantastic Four have each died at one point? When did that happen?

Maybe Marvel needs to get it through their heads to STOP KILLING PEOPLE OFF!

Miles Reid-Lobatto said...

All I have to say is that you rule for mentioning the 'White Base.'

Emily said...

Just a drive-by comment:
~ The mic sounded a little odd, but not at all bad. It was a little jarring, but just fiddle with the settings a bit and we'll eventually adjust to the higher quality

~ That comic .... my god .... There really aren't words are there? But I will second that "Gaze upon my beauty and DESPAIR" with sparkles and butterflies and whatever should absolutely be a shirt so that I can buy one! (I'm also waiting on Spoony to make an "I'm Sciencier" shirt, but that's beside the point!)

~ I appreciated the nod at the beginning about returning to actual reviews: again, I like them equally as well as the plot, but I don't want either to completely consume the other ;)

~ I second pretty much all the names suggested so far (especially "USS Vigilance" "USS Camelot" and "USS Galifrey"). Some other V names to go with the decor include: Valiant, Vantage, Venture, or Volition
...... The USS Fabian Niceza gets an honorable mention ;)

~ One of my favorites in a long time! Keep up the entertaining work, and we'll see you again next week! ;)

Aurabolt said...

Well, there are most teachers that deserve respect, and some teachers which don't show up to class more than the students, and don't grade the required work which followed the requirements strictly to a fair extent, but I digress. (Nearly cost me my degree too.)

Teachers have a lot to deal with, and sometimes they take it out on the children and see if they fry in the wake. I hope we all had a good relationship with our teachers-I had many myself-but we are all human.

Onto the comic itself; sheesh, at least it wasn't the "GO TO COLLEGE" comic where those who don't will never succeed. There's PSA, and then there is 'P'SA, where the P stands for propaganda against a opinion and unestablished research which proves otherwise.

Aaron "The Mad Whitaker" Bourque said...

Well, the new mic is definitely echoier.

Andrew Sorohan said...

Just remember -- renaming a vessel is REALLY REALLY BAD LUCK. If you're going to rename Vice's ship, I suggest you do it right: http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/rename.htm

Unknown said...

"Mobile Suit Gundam's White Base?" Very well. But "Linkara's Space Party Boat" is still a rocking good name.

Anonymous said...

I have to disagree with you that the whole point of Ben Grimm's character is that he just angsts over over being a big rock monster.

Ben Grimm at his Bar Mitzvah explained how he was also happy to have been a Superhero and gotten the chance to team up with so many other Superheroes.

When counseling Franklin Richards also explained how he missed being a pilot and a former college football player. Ben became a pilot and because of that he got to see the stars, visit alien worlds and fight space pirates.

Unknown said...

Speaking of product placement and merchandising, how do you feel about the MAC Cosmetic's new Wonder Woman make-up line? :( Opinions vary, but even WW fans who like the makeup hate the online comic where Wonder Woman saves all the women in the world from being turned into "Plain Jane's" by a gorgon-headed monster.

Anonymous said...

Good review, Linkara. The funny thing about this comic is that Dr. Doom teaches at the university I go to. No, really.

Unknown said...

I thought my speakers were broken while watching this until I saw the note about the microphone.

Anonymous said...

I had to actually pause the video for a minute to laugh at Reed's idiotically gleeful expression at 11:30 at the sight of the rubber band balls.

This is really one of those comics where just looking at the pictures and dialogue make you laugh, and commenting on it is just embellishment. This actually puts it among prestigious bad comics like Doom #1, All star Batman and Robin, and Countdown to Final Crisis.

Mystik Tomato said...

This was an awesome review, and it introduces your most powerful weapon on the show so far:

THE ALMIGHTY RUBBER BAND BALL!

Tyr Germanic said...

my feedback:INSTANT CLASSIC!!(due to non-stop hilarity and top tier heroes)
Hell,even the continuity alarm made an appearence.
the mic sounds better,less steely.both mics are good enough tho. this mic has more emphasis on the low noises.its hard to explain except like this:
It would be easier to do a barry white impersonation with this new mic.
or sing the end credits from ferris bueller.WHICH IM REQUESTING BY THE WAY(for harvey or linkara to sing.maybe a duet?i dont care,fit it in somewhere)

Id also like to request you review a beloved comic that you think sucks(for legit reasons).There are plenty of beloved comics(like alot of 80s Frank Miller)that i think is plain shit.(his art isnt acceptable most times.)


one major complaint though...WHY WASNT THE REVIEW DONE FROM THE SPACESHIP?
it fits your themes,and its a hell of alot better than lookin at a white wall.just put up a green blanket and youre cool.

Ozaline said...

Usually I enjoy any comic with Doctor Doom in it, this one is an exception.

And maybe if those school supplies had an atlas with a map of Latveria that'd help?


Also I give The human torch at least 2 years because the current FF writer has a 3 year plan and this is the end of year 1, The future foundation sounds like a cool idea so maybe Johnny will actually stay dead for a while.

It happens...

occasionally.

Ozaline said...

"My name's Doctor Doom and I may rule my own country, and I may have conqured this earth a few times and ruled an alternate parellel Earth created by Franklin Richards... but I am not smarter then a 5th Grader"

Fesworks said...

On the microphone:

It could just be the "it's new and different" feel, but It sounds a little off too me.

Like it's either muffled a bit, or the "low gain" is picking up too much, versus the "high gain".

I believe (I don't know for sure) that when you have the pin-mic, they tend to pick up more bass by not getting your forward vocals, and more of your chest.

I am not sure what you are using as a mic, but I would look at your dials/settings and maybe increase the high/treble gain, and/or lower the low/bass gain.

Maybe not all that much; perhaps just a couple of notches.

If you can't adjust those settings, turning down the overall gain volume and bringing it up closer to your mouth could help. But I can;t say for sure, since I've not yet messed with those types of mics yet.

Than again, it could just be me. And since I work with microphones and recording weekly, I could just be me nit-picking (but you did ask for feedback). With just listening, and not knowing your set-up, this is my best speculation.

Joseph Lee said...

I get the feeling that the Entity isn't just going to be a Linkara problem, but the basis for a Crisis Crossover for all the reviewers during the 3rd anniversary.

I could be wrong, but that would be awesome. A big crossover wrapping up the stories of all the reviewers in one fell swoop.

Night said...

The new mic sounds...kinda flat, somehow, like the tones are wrong, and muffled a bit. Your earliest reviews have a little of this effect, but only a very little.

Ship names! If you want one with history, I can suggest a few. Shigure to be lucky; three times the only survivor. Kumano for resilience; eight torpedos and six bombs is far more than it should take to sink a heavy cruiser. Take or Johnston for the victorious underdog. Victory for those days when you just feel Lord Nelson. (Or you could always go for one of the French/Spanish ones; L'Orient, Vengeur de Peuple, and Santissima Trinidad all put in respectable performances at some point, though the first-named sort of ruined it by immediately catching fire and blowing up afterwards.)

I'd say kids are easier targets, or at least unlikely to draw the same sort of attention. If you start draining university professors, it's immediately obvious you're after relatively smart people. If you start draining students, you might be cracking down on illegal downloading.

As for the rest of this episode, it's too painful to watch even at this level of remove. I keep skipping ahead, hoping for something better to happen, but it doesn't come. Just looking at the actual dialogue or artwork and my mind immediately detaches and goes "wtf is this, there are things so totally wrong and not happy fun comicbook physics wrong oh god it's and ad argh".

I'm gonna go watch Sinnamon #11's review to wash this out of my brain.

SignNinja said...

You know, as big of a bitch they make Dr. Doom out to be in this comic, to be fair he did get bested by Squirrel Girl....by summoning an army of squirrels. Yes, Dr. Doom, scourge of Latveria, has been beaten by an army of squrrels.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Tyr Germanic — a praised, or at least controversial, comic that you can do a "serious reviewer" analysis on like you did for Dark Knight Strikes Again. You've expressed your dislike of Identity Crisis two or three times, and in Gay for Justice, you mentioned you'd like to review it — I think that would be AWESOME. As hilarious as you are at trashing comics that are terrible and stupid and poorly written on all levels, I think you have a really, really good eye for isolating the flaws that are subtle enough to make a comic seem good on the surface but really terrible once you dig deeper into it, especially when it comes to characterization and various character motivations/plot logic. Identity Crisis is *perfect* for this kind of a review — one of those things where the deeper you dig, the more crap you uncover, and the longer you think about, the stupider it gets. I officially suggest this comic!

jacob nameri said...

incredible review i splaterred my keyboard at the stardate...monday joke i have some suggesions for the name of your ship (though i do love the fourth wall as a name)
-the technus imperative
-the lian/the lian harper
-spaceship awesome
-the funken wagnal
-the bear
-the miller time

Lessons in the Univesity Level said...

MY GOD was that comic lame!
ISnt bad enough teachers dont get paid enough for their job, did they had to make a shitty comic about them.

Anonymous said...

http://www.the-gutters.com/comic/62-mark-robinson

THis site deserves your attention. I mean when youre not reviewing bad comics and just neeed a laugh.

http://thegamerologist.blogspot.com/

Saidi from tunisia said...

since you guys asked for comparing eic (sorry couldn't find defalco) here's why Harras harms to most characters was at worst temporary ,while with quesada ,well,most heroes are all frigin jerks
Becoming A Marvel Editor
1988: Bob Harras becomes editor of Uncanny X-Men.
1998: Joe Quesada becomes editor of own line, "Marvel Knights."

Becoming EIC
1995: Bob Harras becomes group EIC in 1994, sharing the title with a handful of other EICs. In 1995 he is made sole EIC.
2004: Joe Quesada becomes EIC in 2000, with Publisher Bill Jemas taking a hands-on approach as almost a tag-team EIC. Bill Jemas departs in 2004, leaving Quesada to take on the full EIC role himself.

The "Alternate Reality That Shouldn't Exist" Summer Event Storyline
1995: X-Men: Age Of Apocalypse with Bob Harras' go-to writer Scott Lobdell.(& it fucking rocked & it's still awesome to this day,En Sabah Nur deserves more respect in regular continuity
He is one of the oldest and most powerful mutants on Earth. He is brilliant, devious, and patient. He plots, gathers followers, lays the seeds for his plans and brings them about at the proper time.

He does not simply get a guy to kill some people, make an appearance, and then start trying to take over the world.he's beyond that so marvel remember that!!)
2005: House Of M with Joe Quesada's go-to writer Brian Bendis.(need i to tell you that bendis raped wanda?& clint?& hank?
well guess what ,lets RAPE the x-men altogether now with decimation ,the only good book out of this shit was the cable & deadpool issue "tie-in" that can be pretty much read while ignoring house of m or just seeing it as another parallel earth that was doomed to be destroyed by...i dunno qabiri?choose any cosmic threat & it'll make the cut)


The "Storyline So Badly Coordinated That Books Frequently Contradict Each Other" Company-Wide Crossover
1996: The poorly-conceived Onslaught.(srsly,it aint that bad,i see the flaws but it was great to see all the heroes against prof x's dark psyche so i say i love onslaught & i still take it over any marvel big crossover)
2006: The poorly-conceived Civil War.(this is awful ,in every possinle meaning of the word none of it makes sense its pure bullshit f""" you millar f""" you)

But then Joe Q jumps the gun by two years (and exactly two years, at that).

The "Spidey's Marriage Is Limiting The Stories We Can Tell" Solution
Dec 1999: Amazing Spider-man (Vol. 2) #13 - MJ disappears after a mysterious plane crash.(you knew it wouldnt stick...)
Dec 2007: Amazing Spider-man (Vol. 1) #545 - Spidey makes a deal with the devil.(& yeah byebye spidey game over i dont give a f""" anymore)

Which brings us to...

Replaced As EIC
Late Summer 2000: Bob Harras is replaced by Joe Quesada as EIC.
Late Summer 2008: Alonso?
sorry for the length of the post guys take care.by the linkara ,do you plan to review a howard mackie spidey comic or the batman war games or crimes saga ,those were pretty bad

Anonymous said...

Th# n## m##rop###e s##nded ##ne.

Sorry, couldn't resist... I didn't notice the difference.
The mic's okay, but Mik sounds like a jerk.

I'm kinda surprised you, of all people, didn't get us all to read 'Ozymandius' by Shelley: "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
(I admit I had to look it up. I knew the words, but not where they were from.)

Thing has been calling himself 'The ever-lovin' blue eyed idol o' millions' for years. I'm not a big reader of the Fantastic Four and I've come across that multiple times.

- Mik

Anonymous said...

Just thought that you should know, on February 21, Dwayne Mcduffie, responsible for dozens of comics, many episodes of justice league, and Static Shock, died in surgery.

SuperFireDagwon said...

Dear God, what a horrible comic!

And believe me Linkara, I'm just as shocked as you that DeFalco wrote this!

I mean, how could someone who gave us the excellent Thunderstrike and Spider-Girl give us this dreck??

I'm guessing he wasn't allowed too much leeway in the writing chores as the powers involved wanted to make sure Office Max and the whole teacher angle was pushed more than anything actually being in character for the FF or Spider Man.

You know, if you ever do an interview with Mr. Defalco, you should ask him about this.

Oh, the microphone is a bit distracting at times. There's a slight reverb in it, like when there's too much bass for a given song. I think it'll work fine if you can tweak it a little.

Anonymous said...

li-messor said "Thing has been calling himself 'The ever-lovin' blue eyed idol o' millions' for years."

I don't think that's what Linkara was irritated about. The Thing may be glad that people like and admire him, and he may like the nickname too, but the context of his line suggests that he thinks he struck gold when he got turned into a hideous rock monster and the reason he's glad that he became a pilot is because if he wasn't, he'd've never gotten caught in the cosmic ray storm. Which is definitely NOT how the Thing feels. Even during those times where he doesn't feel too angsty about being a rock monster, he still isn't *glad* he's one instead of being a normal human or having powers that turn off like those of the other three.

Of course, seeing how terrible this comic is, there's also the possibility that it was just a really badly written/unclear line of dialogue, and DeFalco was just lazy, not totally getting the character wrong.

Anonymous said...

Quoth anonymous: "the context of his line suggests that he thinks he struck gold when he got turned into a hideous rock monster"

Good point, that makes much more sense.
OTOH, Vincent Furnier did strike gold when he got turned into a hideous rock monster...

Ridley Litton said...

The ship kinda reminds me of the Toonami ship The Absolution. If I were to name it in a similar vain, Benediction or Windfall would be pretty cool names for a ship.

The Wookie Has No Pants said...

hilarious vid!

I agree with the stuff you said about teachers. Also about the dumb evil plan (though I think the Nightcrawler Pope and Future 5 plans are still worse)!

My only problem is that by saying you wish you had a copy of "One More Day" so you could throw it against a wall (although it should be thrown in the trash), and how many fans you have, you are going to get flooded with countless copies of that nonsense book, donated by your fans, and no one should be buried under so much junk like that!

If anything, send them to your old HQ!

Katherine said...

I agree with Lizzie and D. R. McLeod. I would also say that Spiderman is often cast as a role model for kids because unlike a lot of superheroes, he’s relatively ordinary and thus easier to identify with. Sure, he dresses up in a costume and crawls up walls as Spiderman, but as Peter Parker, he’s just an average, dorky guy who has problems trying to pay the rent or trying to get the girl of his dreams just like many other people. He isn’t a suave billionaire like Bruce Wayne or Tony Stark, who can amply provide for themselves and date lots of beautiful women without needing to be superheroes. Peter has his daily problems that he struggles with, but he manages to still be a superhero anyway. He’s both ordinary and extraordinary, and I think that’s why he’s such a popular role model.

Anonymous said...

It's such a shame you tested the mic on this episode. It's one of the best reviews you've ever done but the mic really distracts from your hilarious commentary and the awfulness of the comic.

I doubt you'd ever have time to rerecord with a better mic and update the episode but, if you did, it would be a vast improvement from the current audio on the vid.

Anonymous said...

It's cool that you want to defend teachers an' all, but not everybody had a good experience.
I mean, when WE grew up and went to school, there were certain teachers who would hurt the children any way they could - by pouring their derision upon anything we did and exposing every weakness - however carefully hidden by the kid.

(Somebody had to say it.)

Ming said...

Why, Tom DeFalco? Why did you even write this comic? Did you and Marvel became so desperate for cash that you were reduced to forcing some of your iconic heroes into doing a promo comic with OfficeMax, where Doctor Doom drains the minds of high school students? I can't even begin to figure out how it is even possible. Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four must feel really BAD over doing this comic.

Loved the Star Trek-style monologue at the opening. The BSOD screen after discovering THE Tom De Falco actually worked on this is a priceless moment of funny!

Ellipsis Flood said...

Ow, this was stupid. And as someone who once wanted to become a teacher, I have to say, I feel kinda... uh, I think I feel insulted. This comic was, between all the PSA (What was this a PSA for? Teachers being awesome? What?) and advertisements, implying that teachers could only do good if they, dunno, helped some super heroes defeat the bad guy.

Hagler said...

My god... I watched this review years ago, before i had any idea, what the hell Gundam is. I started with original series this summer and became a huge fan. While I don't recall me knowing you made reference in this, I like to think helped me to subconciously get to it, so thanks.

Yeah, I'm also pissed Peter as teacher is gone. But don't worry, now he works in superduperawesome laboratory, where they can make and do awesome science-fiction stuff! That's way more relatable!

Why people like Dan Slott's run so much?

Yeah, this comic is dumb, but it's harmless, fun kind of dumb. Both FF and Spider-Man can do much worse.

JerryScott said...

Quick question: Do you still use the microphone you where testing out here?

Lewis Lovhaug said...

"Quick question: Do you still use the microphone you where testing out here?"

Nope. Couldn't control its levels.

J said...

OK, heres a way this could work and not make Doom look like an idiot. Kidnap children who are intelligent and seem likely to get important positions as they grow and brainwash them to use their positions for Doom. It's longer term, yeah, but it seems like the kind of thing Doom would have set up.