Dragonball Movie 1 - Curse of the Blood Rubies (1986)

 

I've covered all of the DBZ movies, so it's time to plumb the depths of OG Dragonball and the four movies that lurk within. I have no idea what to expect from any of these, as I've never seen them before.

This first one is also known as Legend of Shenron and was released the same year as the first season of the Dragonball anime (1986). It's a bit interesting because it serves as a replacement for the Pilaf Saga (the first ten episodes or so), only substituting a new villain where Pilaf was. What's the point of this? I'm not sure. But it exists, and chronologically it could well be considered the beginning of the whole series. Things get REALLY weird with the four Dragonball movies, as the first 3 are retellings of different parts of the first half of the Dragonball show. Then the fourth is a RE-retelling of a bunch of stuff from the show, including a large amount of Movie 1. ...I don't get it. Well, for now, let's check out the first one.

Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, Part 9 - Finale

Do you like Huey Lewis and The News? Their early work was a little too new wave for my tastes, but when Sports came out in 1983, I think they really came into their own commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He's been compared to Elvis Costello, but I think Huey has a far more bitter, cynical sense of humor. In 1987, Huey released Fore, their most accomplished album. I think their undisputed masterpiece is "Hip to be Square", a song so catchy, most people probably don't listen to the lyrics. But they should, because it's not just about the pleasures of conformity and the importance of trends, it's also a statement about the band itself.

Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, Part 8 - Stand Tall

 

This campfire kinda reminds me of Chrono Trigger. Which figures, because today's episode contains time travel.

Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, Part 7 - A Dream of Spring

 

We last left DQV with Gazpacho a petrified lawn ornament / bird dropping target practice. Much time has passed, and winter has finally ended.

Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, Part 6 - The Long Kon

 

This snow town is pretty. Too bad there aren't more places like this in the game. Debora is recovered from her odd weak spell, so we're off to Gotha. The homeland of our main character, Gotha is where he'll be crowned king. Also, it's almost Cinco de Mayo, and we need to prepare for Sancho's Daughter's Quinceanera. Finally, good things are happening for our heroes!

Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Pt 3 - The End

 

This is it: The endgame of what is ostensibly Shiver Star from Kirby 64 only fully realized as an entire game. As we waltz into this very Souls-like castle vista, what menaces await?

Highlander 4x05 - Double Eagle

 

Oh man, finally a fun episode after a string of grim ones. Just for that alone this one gets an A.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Pt 2 - Amber Turd

 

Somehow, I went into April with five games "in progress" on here at once. That has never happened before. It's usually one at a time, sometimes two. Can I handle five games at once? Hell no I can't handle five games at once. So I need to wrap all of those up before I embark on something new. I'm down to four now and soon I'll finish this up too.

Note: This game is not, in fact, a turd. It's very good!

Super Mario Bros. 3, Part III

 

Today we finish up with SMB3: Now on SouljaGame! Available at no retailers.

Double Dragon Neon (Lots of systems, 2012)

 

Another retro revival of the series, though more in the vein of Streets of Rage IV in that it's modernized and all the better for it. Modernized or not, it's also 80's (and metal) AF, and a MUCH better usage of your time than Double Dragon 4, despite this launching years earlier. Let's go.

Double Dragon IV (Switch, 2017)

 

Super Double Dragon was always regarded by fans as the fourth game in the series but I guess it was never official. I mean, we got a Double Dragon 5 on the SNES. Regardless, they decided to go back to the well and finally fill in this maybe-blank in the series that didn't really need to be filled in. This game is very retro and very hard, and quite frankly wasn't on my radar until recently. Let's give it a run.

Highlander 4x04 - Leader of the Pack

 

Today on Highlander: ...Oh God, the British.

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, Part 4 - Thermosphere

 

Next up: The Earth Cave. First, we gotta cross this snowy mountain from Final Fantasy X. What's it doing here? I don't know. Also featuring Marilith. That's right, TWO Fiends today.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land (Nintendo Switch, 2022)

 

It's Kirby in post-apocalyptic Earth! ...WTF? I seriously have no idea what to expect from this game going in, so let's find out.

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, Part 3 - The Multiverse of Madness

 

I tried to trade the SouljaGame in for this at Gamestop and they wouldn't take it.

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, Part 2 - Neon Genesis

 

Damn.

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin (Playstation 5, 2022)

 

I've never covered the original Final Fantasy on here, yet here I am covering its remake. That IS what this is, right? I don't know! Let's find out.

The Game Boy Player's Guide (Plus NP Review #24)

Today I'm looking at a true blast from the past.

Super Mario Bros. 3, Part II

 

Today on SMB3: How many worlds can I get through?

Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES, 1990)

I remember when I was a kid, and had only played Super Mario Bros a few times. I thought that game was the coolest thing ever. At some point shortly after this sequel came out, I was at someone's house and they had -all three- of the Mario games. I would have given up a year's salary as a second-grader (all $50 of it) to have one of them. Of course, I wanted to play Super Mario Bros since I was obsessed with it, and my friend was like "No, you've gotta see Super Mario Bros 3, it's even better." This, of course, was hard to believe. Better than the first one? So we fired it up, and it was.