Sean Akizuki's Fantasy Critic

While Aladdin (2019) had some good remakes such as Will Smith as the Genie or the new rendition of the classic song "A Whole New World" -- Lion King (2019) just fails to get what made Scar truly menacing. I can still remember this scene sent me chills that made The Lion King (1994) a real classic. The voices, the music, and just EVERYTHING about that movie made it a worthy classic. Just listen to how Scar (1994) was really that menacing that you'd hate his character while loving the voice behind him. But Scar (2019) is pretty much too robotic! You can see the problem when an old school ends up shaming the new school! Shouldn't the new school seek to get better? Unfortunately, this isn't the case with the "Be Prepared" song sung in 2019!

The Lion King originally had an intended (but fortunately deleted) love triangle that would happen between Simba and Scar for Nala. Scar decided to make Nala his queen so he can have a pack of little Scars. It would be disgusting considering the fact that Nala is, in fact, young enough to be Scar's daughter just like how Jafar is old enough to be Jasmine's father. So why do I actually ship the whole love triangle that happened in the remake (but sadly, dull) movie? It deepens the very petty stupidity of Scar. Scar is obsessed with Sarabi and he wants to make her his . He kills Mufasa not only for the throne but also for his sister-in-law he so covets. He's a sore loser and doesn't want to accept his losses. The scene in the original Lion King having Scar hit Sarabi somewhat hinted he did have feelings for her. Remember when Sarabi mentions Mufasa and Scar gets mad? I always assumed that there must have been a love triangle between brothers -- something that wa...

I remembered being such a fan of The Lion King as a child. As an adult, I don't know if the remake will still hold up to the original classic movie -- this is coming from someone who thinks Aladdin (2019) is an interesting remake! One whole thing in Lion King is that remember it's not entirely science but the supernatural is hugely involved. Remember when Mufasa talks to Simba via the clouds or when it suddenly rains after Scar is defeated? It just feels so weird! So here's a really good theory considering that Lion King is full of supernatural elements... The idea that the clouds follow the rightful king may make sense. The drought started immediately like so shortly after Simba left and Scar became king. Scar wasn't even meant to be the rightful king so the clouds didn't follow Scar. The very statement that Mufasa made that the past kings join the stars may also account for that. I always found it funny that it rains after a more mature Simba finally def...

Nobody can deny that inspiration begets inspiration? Disney's works aren't always original though many of these changes are actually better. It's like how often I prefer Disney's The Little Mermaid over the original tragedy or I'm a big fanboy of the original Beauty and the Beast . Now, I'd like to examine two imaginary friends of mine namely Simba and Kimba. I remembered watching the TV series Kimba the White Lion in the rather cheesy English dub on ABC-5. That was back in the simpler 90s where you'd have a hard time catching up with shows you've missed. I remembered crying over missing a number of episodes I missed from Kimba! Now, I don't know if I should watch said old-school classic though it always brought my attention to another all-time masterpiece -- T he Lion King ! I never got to see Lion King in the theaters but saw it on TV instead. I remembered how I panicked and rolled on the floor angry because my parents never took me to see...

It's no secret that inspiration begets inspiration. American entertainment and Japanese entertainment will inspire each other. So why do I think it's possible that Kimba may have inspired Simba? The late Osamu Tezuka who died in 1987 is a Disney fan. If he met with Walt Disney (this was way before the company ended up ruining my childhood) then what if copies of Kimba were at Disney and what if Disney long acquired the rights to produce a similar character?  Here's an interesting excerpt about the Lion King and Kimba from the Huffington Post : Tezuka died in 1989, but during his life he didn’t bother hiding his affection for Disney, especially his love for “ Bambi ,” claiming to have seen the film more than 100 times. The animator actually met Walt Disney during a World’s Fair before he ended up licensing “Bambi” for a Japanese adaptation and credits Disney in his autobiography for some creative influence. In his book, From Goods to a Good Life: Intellectual Prop...

I thought about the Lion King 2 a few days ago and one of the greatest issues with Simba's attitude problem is his unresolved post-traumatic stress disorder. He was just a child when he saw his father Mufasa die at the hands of his uncle Scar. Scar unofficially adopts an heir in Kovu (since being Kovu's biological child would mean incest with Kiara) though there were other candidates. Zira who may have been Scar's best friend organizes the revenge for her fallen comrade. Much of Simba's actions are related to his PTSD. It's obvious that he wants to be just like his deceased father --  he wants to fill in the huge gap that was left behind by a great king whose legacy was cut short by Scar's treachery. He wanted to continue whatever wise rule Mufasa had. But the problem was that by trying to be Mufasa -- he lost his identity. At the same time, he failed to see the meaning of the song "We Are One". This is where he screws up. He exiled the Outlan...

Kovu was supposedly the son of Scar. However one thing must be verified, Kovu is NOT the biological son of Scar, meaning that there is no actual blood incest between Kovu and Kiara. Now one may argue that if Kovu were the adoptive son of Scar, he would be legally the first cousin once removed (or better called as the second-degree uncle since he would be one generation higher). They were however not genetically related thus eliminating any blood incest between them.