Sunday, October 14, 2012

Longbox of the Damned: Silent Hill: Past Life



Longbox of the Damned 14. ‎

31 comments:

Bekah said...

I wasn't really that interested until you mentioned the knife. :T

Luna said...

I'm loving this series so far. It's refreshing to see you talk about good comics, and I love Moarte as a character. He's so funny and has a certain level of charisma to him. I hope you continue this next year as well ^_^

Ozaline said...

Could the post man be an identically named ancestor?

Also the cult's beginnings? Huh, I wonder how much oversight Konami has over these comics, not too much I'd imagine given the messes that you reviewed for the past three Halloweens. Do these hold any water in the game canon at all?

Anonymous said...

speaking of Downpour
what do you think about that entry?

Anonymous said...

The town style seems a little confusing to me. As you admitted its a New England town and the styles there for that time frame were heavily influenced by the Puritans. Aside from that it does look interesting. In a way its good that it doesn't have the usual monsters because it is a prequel from before they came into being.

Hope no one is trying to speak the captcha text out loud I think its starting to dabble in the tongues of the great old ones.

Kenmaru said...

I always have a problem with the new continuity of Silent Hill, in particular, the town's location. They say it's a New England town but that doesn't make sense.

I always though through my playthrough of the first three games is that it takes place someone in the mid-west near the Rocky Mountains. The town seemed that it was surrounded by forest and mountain terrains with a mid-size lake. Besides, it better explains the massive amounts of fog given the topography.

Anonymous said...

Man, the music does everything. I liked the general ambiance of Long Box of the Damned alright, but it got 10 times better with Promise (Reprise) from SH2.
You should keep it. Oh and also, great episode.

Arianne said...

Oh, I don't mind that you have run out of Bad Silent Hill comics to review this Halloween.The storylines were fun, entertaining and added to the main story arcs . Also it gives me a good feeling to hear Silent Hill music being played in the background.

Movie-Brat said...

Maybe the postman is a ghost? *shrugs* I never played the Silent Hill games or read the comics but maybe it could be the postman's ancestor as one guy suggested.

And the guy in the comic sounds fucked up, no wonder the town is cursed. And I assume you're excited for the latest Silent Hill film so far?

Frosty said...

Sílent Hill fix?
Uhm... nope.

Moarte fix?
Why, YES!

Keep it up! :)

Anonymous said...

I thought it was implied that the postman was some kind of spirit of the town or possibly an inhabitant that was drawn in and reused by it over the years.

Speaking of which, Linkara (or Moarte, whoever I'm writing to), what's your take on the town? Do you consider some games canon and others not from how contradictory they can be at points? Are the events of the game the workings of the town (or spirits in the area) or is the town itself relatively unimportant and it's the actions of the humans in it that cause these events? Favorite game? Least?

And Daniel T. Stack, I think you're overreacting. After all it's just 'ncePur 2 OH GODeqesdafszg2rQE

WoodBuzz said...

So glad these are working so well for you Lewis they are so fun informative and make me want to go out get all these great titles once again congratulations to you Lewis you truly are a talented man.

Lewis Lovhaug said...

"And the guy in the comic sounds fucked up, no wonder the town is cursed. And I assume you're excited for the latest Silent Hill film so far?"

Quite the contrary. I'm fairly certain it's going to suck. DX

Movie-Brat said...

"Quite the contrary. I'm fairly certain it's going to suck. DX"

Oh dear. Since you're who I consider the Silent Hill expert, mind if I ask what do you see the movie doing wrong so far?

Anonymous said...

In re. to Movie-Brat: If I can throw some unrequested suggestions in.

The makers of the first movie are weird. As Lotus Prince over at Blistered Thumbs pointed out, several times they put a lot of effort into remaking scenes from the first game, even going shot for shot like the original. They also threw out the plot of the original game.

Instead of a father looking for his daughter they have a mother. In fact the father was supposed to have even fewer scenes until the game makers complained. Apparently the logic was that viewers didn't want to see a man afraid and worried about children. Even though, you know, that was what was in the first (very popular) game.

Instead of having the father and daughter driving by without any problems and then crashing they have the daughter having serious mental issues and shouting 'Silent Hill'. Which the mother KNOWS is a dangerous place that people can't live in. And she still effectively kidnaps her mentally ill daughter and goes (without any medical professionals to help) to a place that she knows is too dangerous for humans to be in.

The mother does this without any actual idea of how this is supposed to help her daughter. She just assumes 'I bring my mentally ill daughter to this scary, DANGEROUS, town and she'll get better!'

The entire cult and demon-worship of the game is thrown out for extreme Christian fundamentalism and a hatred of 'impure' things. Sure don't remember any hatred of the Silent Hill creatures from the cult in the game.

Several characters are so radically changed that they aren't even the same people anymore, all to just hammer home the message 'mother is god to her children' even if it means turning one of the evilest characters of the game into a pathetic, weak willed idiot.

Pyramid Head shows up even though it ignores the fact that Pyramid Head in the game represents the desire of Silent Hill character James' desire to be punished for his crime.

The police officer character is an idiot who would have survived if she hadn't revealed that her gun was out of bullets.

There are far more but those are really nitpicks relative to these glaring betrayals of the game and betrayals of reason. As I've said elsewhere of Alien, the movie works in large part because everyone behaves in a believable manner. Here, not only does no one behave rationally but they also do it while ignoring everything from the game.

Cryptix said...

Ooooh, now those Menton pages are pretty. You've got some of the sketchiness and moody coloring that makes Templesmith interesting, but it's consistent, detailed, and subtle, and the macabre elements are truly macabre because they're contrasted rather than just another layer of weird. I might have to find this just for the art.

Anonymous said...

Was that a penis joke at the end?

Anonymous said...

/quote
'ncePur 2 OH GODeqesdafszg2rQE
\quote
No clue what that is suppose to mean.

As to the location there are many areas I have been to that get frequent fog that have similar lay outs to Silent Hill. Some of the best matching ones I've been to for berry picking are just a bit north of Boston.

Anonymous said...

I don't want to be a drag, but I got to say this somewhere. I like this series for what it does, informing viewers about a unique genre of comics that has a significant amount of history, and interesting, unique and engaging stories. What I don't like is the way in which you choose to relay that; VERY LOUDLY. I'm fine with the character, but it would be very nice if you maybe dialed back the volume on the yelling.

Goff said...

I'm glad someone pointed out that Pyramid Head was a game specific character, terrifying in the game really. As far as continuity in Silent Hill, when the games were being developed by Team Silent Hill they were amazing and built on the history of the previous games. When Team Silent Hill was canned continuity went out the window.

I also have to say it is nice that Lewis Lovhaug is doing these this month. taking the time an energy to have a video ready a day is awesome. It's a major plus he's not only Atop the 4th Wall but he's out side the box this month.

Gluttony said...

I have been thinking of trying the Silent Hill games, starting from the beginning. But I noticed there is a remake of the first game available on the PSP. So I'm wondering, which version should I go for, the original that people fell in love with, or the remake that shows what the creators intended from the beginning?

Lewis Lovhaug said...

"I have been thinking of trying the Silent Hill games, starting from the beginning. But I noticed there is a remake of the first game available on the PSP. So I'm wondering, which version should I go for, the original that people fell in love with, or the remake that shows what the creators intended from the beginning?"

Never seen the PSP remake before, so can't say for certain.

I WILL say that the original has... awkward dialogue, to say the least, which was common for translated games at the time (see: the original Resident Evil), but if you can let yourself get engrossed, you'll enjoy it, though it's the second game that'll get you into the true atmosphere of the series, IMHO.

DMaster said...

"I always though through my playthrough of the first three games is that it takes place someone in the mid-west near the Rocky Mountains. The town seemed that it was surrounded by forest and mountain terrains with a mid-size lake. Besides, it better explains the massive amounts of fog given the topography."
...said Kenmaru at 20121015 10:25

Yeah...considering that the fog isn't reality, but a buffer between reality and the true nightmare of the Otherworld, and considering its presence also beckons wrinkles in the world at the edge of the vicinity of the person the town is acting upon...call it a hunch, but I don't think climate-based logic is necessary to explain the fog.

"Oh dear. Since you're who I consider the Silent Hill expert, mind if I ask what do you see the movie doing wrong so far?"
...said Movie-Brat at 20121014 17:11
"As Lotus Prince over at Blistered Thumbs pointed out..."
...said Anonymous at 20121014 17:37

People: DENA. PHELOUS. She's reviewed ALL but the most recent game, HE'S reviewed the movie. TWICE. Check the Blistered Thumbs forum at TGWTG for the Town of Lost Memories playlist, or just check the Game Den in general, or Phelous in general. Linkara knows a lot, but he's hardly the only expert out there, and Dena in particular has put a LOT more time into emphasizing what made the good stuff good. Seriously, check her out.

Anonymous said...

Um, DMaster is there some kind of problem with what I mentioned about the problems of the Silent Hill movie? Any reason why Phelous (who has made many of the same points) would be able to put them any better than they already are?

Incidentally, the reason I'm posting as Anonymous is that I have scripts turned off on my browser. I will never trust Javascript again.

DMaster said...

"Um, DMaster is there some kind of problem with what I mentioned about the problems of the Silent Hill movie? Any reason why Phelous (who has made many of the same points) would be able to put them any better than they already are?"
...said Anonymous at 20121016 03:40

That part of your comment was thrown in more due to my emphasizing that Dena is one of those personalities that's constantly overlooked. I'm glad to hear you know of Phelous, but even so.

Lotus Prince said...

Yeah, Dena's the real go-to expert for Silent Hill, and Phelous and Linkara are quite knowledgeable as well, though they don't talk about the series as much as Dena does.

To be fair, though, I did LP every Silent Hill game, so I at least have first-hand experience with the games. :-P

DMaster said...

I wasn't debating your own expertise, Lotus Prince. I'm a fan of yours myself and I'm going through your Downpour Let's Play at the moment. It just irks me to constantly see the EXACT same people brought up and praised over and over if they aren't recent additions that immediately pop, when practically everyone in TGWTG's vicinity is interesting and worth listening to.

As for the subject of this comic (as I haven't actually talked about it yet)...I still have to read. Want to, still have a Batwoman and Firestorm trade to read.

Anonymous said...

No offense DMaster (and certainly none to Lotus Prince) but actually I don't think Lotus Prince gets mentioned very much concerning Silent Hill. The only reason I mentioned him at all is that he mentioned in his Let's Play how the makers of the film copied several parts of the game shot for shot.

Lotus Prince said...

Oh, it's no problem at all. To be honest, though, I thought that Dena WAS the go-to person regarding Silent Hill. Her most famous videos, I thought, were her Game Den reviews each Halloween (which are FREAKING AWESOME; I actually used some of her info from her Shattered Memories video in my closing thoughts on the SM let's play).

Phelous doesn't mention Silent Hill quite as much, though he did review Downpour, and talk extensively about the movie. I forgot about the whole Cheryl/Sharon thing. Seriously, what WAS that? I also got a kick out of his offhand mention of the "21 sacraments" from SH4 during one of his video reviews. :-D

I'm honestly surprised that I was anyone's first mention, so that's definitely flattering, but I also agree with DMaster: if anyone hasn't listened to what Dena and Phelous (and Linkara, of course) have to say about Silent Hill, I recommend that they check 'em out!

Anonymous said...

@Daniel T. Stack:
"Hope no one is trying to speak the captcha text out loud I think its starting to dabble in the tongues of the great old ones."
"And Daniel T. Stack, I think you're overreacting. After all it's just 'ncePur 2 OH GODeqesdafszg2rQE"

Hope juxtaposing those quotes clarifies the anonymous comment?

I'm not a gamer (and want to *gasp* spend some time doing something besides Channel Awesome), so I don't watch Dena's game reviews, but her movie reviews are well worth watching.
(Do another one!)

In this town, you question the presence of somebody who's been around for 200 years?

Is that Drusilla that Jebediah's married to?

I suspect Menton3 isn't his name, but a way to indicate that he did all three bits of the art: pencils, inks, colour.
I know I've seen that done in the past (I'm not even going to try to remember which comic) with people who normally don't add numbers to their names. (And they'll do 2s, too.)

Anonymous said...

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