Sean Akizuki's Fantasy Critic

I watched X-Men: The Animated Series without knowing Magneto's LONG history. It turned out that the original X-Men was in the 1960s -- meaning Haim Saban's famous TV series was decades after the original. It turned out that Magneto's original group was called the Brotherhood of EVIL Mutants -- a group of mutant supremacists. Magneto was just a dark mirror to Professor Xavier during the earlier days of the X-Men. Magneto existed as a Social Darwinist as well. This was the Silver Age comics when most villains were pretty much one dimensional. It can be noticed that Magneto had his "deepening" with Chris Claremont in the 1980s  It can be noticed that Magneto went from a one-dimensional villain to having a deeper background. Magneto was later revealed ot the survivor of the Holocaust in the Second World War.  Any backstory given to Magneto feels too random at times. For example, the famous revelation (decades later) that he was secretly the father of Quicksilver and S...

Why I don't read comics anymore these days is because of HOW LONG it can take to reveal something. Call it the Peter Pan syndrome. I thought about another long-standing rumor I believed in the 1990s -- that was Polaris was indeed Magneto's daughter. It wasn't officially declared until 2003 via a DNA test. That's what I don't like about the revolving door of writers. The writers tend to come up with a ridiculous retcon vs. a retcon that works. For example, the revelation that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch as Magneto's lost children works vs. the dumb retcon that hit in 2016 . The same could've been done in the 1980s with Polaris is as she should've been Magneto's ELDEST DAUGHTER ANYA. I always thought about the fact that more often than not, Scarlet Witch and Polaris have a certain resemblance. Quicksilver had been drawn to look like Magneto than his ADOPTIVE PARENTS. Sure, not everyone who looks alike is related. What made me think about how to link ...

Back in the 1990s, one of the most intriguing characters was Cable. However, I'd like to spare a thought for a character I thought was at first interesting but ended up as a BADLY WRITTEN TRAGEDY namely Tyler Dayspring. Tyler underwent several identities as Tolliver (a weapons dealer) and later took the alias of Genesis (since Apocalypse literally means revelation or the end of all things). These things were what I'd call a case of tragedy for tragedy's sake. Tyler was Cable's son, Cyclops' grandson, and a tragedy that sadly became the third wheel in the Cable vs. Stryfe conflict. It was a case of a series of badly written and badly unraveled mysteries. Tyler was the son of Cable and Aliya Jenskot. I'd like to say that everything started with a very OOC moment for Cable. For a start, I thought Stryfe's having to hire a mutant named Frisco to brainwash Tyler was unnecessary. Come on, Stryfe is WHAT CABLE COULD'VE BEEN WITHOUT THE TECHNO-ORGANIC VIRUS. Str...

I felt like revisiting an old X-Men comic book plot called "The Twelve" . It was here that Apocalypse recklessly tossed a rather convoluted plan. Apocalypse is known to be a master planner of sorts. It didn't look like he infected Nathan Summers with the TO Virus just out of spite. It looked like Apocalypse wanted to test if Nathan could become his next vessel -- as evidenced in "The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix". As I looked back, there was the HYPE and the INTENDED OUTCOME. Why do I think that "The Twelve" plot was a poorly calculated scheme that gave an unsatisfying outcome Apocalypse's plot in "The Twelve" was a quest for godhood. However, looking at some of Apocalypse's choices, it can be seen that there's A LOT OF BAD CIRCUITRY going on, such as: Magneto was experiencing power fluctuations (probably due to Professor X mind wiping him and the Onslaught crisis), which could poorly balance out with Polaris' geomagnetic...

  Superhero logic requires a certain degree of suspension of disbelief, right? Baron Zemo's probably still one of the most respected supervillains. However, I'd like to bring up the issue with his hood. There's really some unexplained logic with Adhesive X. How can the hook get stuck on Baron Zemo's HEAD but he could still speak, breathe, or even blink his eyes? It was explained that he's fed INTRAVENOUSLY. However, that hasn't stopped Baron Zemo from entering the hall of Bond Villain Stupidity.  Just reading this explanation actually makes me chuckle at HOW Baron Zemo's superior intellect FAILED him : Suspensions of disbelief: Let’s say for a moment that we believe the americans were so afraid the nazis could win the war with a weapon that is basically Crazy Glue. Let’s push it a little bit further in order to accept that the guy was so afraid to be recognised, he had his hood on all the time, even when he was working all alone, hidden in his private lab.  ...

Age gaps between couples can be disturbing -- especially if it's between humans -- homo sapiens or homo superiors! One of the strangest X-Men pairings comes in the form of Magneto x Rogue. The two had a brief romance in the Savage Island. Magneto is a recurring enemy of the X-Men while Rogue is a former member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants under Mystique. Mystique gets often retconned or remade into Magneto's second-in-command -- depending on the writer! Yeah, that's why I usually don't update on comics these days. Now, it's time to look into this May-December Affair. Yeah, this is coming from me who'd shipped Wolverine with other women such as Jubilee (which is pedophilia), Psylocke, or Emma Frost! The Age of Apocalypse storyline presents a different view. Rogue's loneliness comes from the fact she can't control her absorption powers. It should be F*CKED UP that she absorbed her would-be stepdaughter Polaris' powers permanently. AOA Scarlet Wit...

  It's easy to be extremely biased when comparing X-Men: The Animated Series and X-Men Evolution . There are also comic book purists who simply bash any form of adaptation whatsoever. X-Men: The Animated Series had a considerable departure from the comics. It was because this was TV-Y7-FV . That means brutal scenes like Angel's wings getting mutilated would never get past the censors. I was thinking about the missing potential of an otherwise beloved series. Yes, I'm kinda nitpicky so DEAL. WITH. IT. I learned to be nitpicky after I wrote some bad stories. Somehow, being nitpicky can be fun as well. Apocalypse showed up too soon IMHO Some people think X-Men: Evolution was too much of a radical departure. However, that series had some better stuff done like slowly introducing the core team. Saban's version rushed everything for a reason -- something that was a common trend in the 1980s to 1990s. Who can remember the 1980s Transformers cartoon introduced almost everyone a...

Since Disney is with Marvel, here's one fantasy match I am up to. Marvel's Hades and Disney's Hades both hate to be compared to the cartoon dog. During the time Marvel's Hades was using his name "Pluto" he hated it being referenced to a cartoon dog. Hades in Disney also hated the name when it was given to him by the Romans. Just note that Hades isn't evil in the original myths but a neutral god compared to these two incarnations. Disney's Hades Disney's version of Hades is goofy. Yes, he is powerful but he is goofy. He manipulated Megara into service or two, he has every scheme against his nephew Hercules BUT most of them usually are predictably stupid. He's fast-talking and doesn't really have too much power. Also, he doesn't really have that much minions to dispose of. He does have some magical powers, mystic flame (and he can use them as fireballs) but he can't inflict paralysis, empower or depower and he can't teleport b...

It's no secret that I don't like Marvel (under Disney) now. I believe Disney RUINED Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite from reaching whatever true potential it had. I was excited for Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite only to find out that it's got a lackluster roster and no arcade endings. Sure, there was the Story Mode which doesn't have to be spectacular. However, Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite ended with a bad roster presumably due to the feud with Fox. I bought Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection so I could play the classic 1990s games. Yes, the good old days and I want to replay a close-authentic arcade experience. I could finally play Marvel vs. Capcom crossover games with the full crossover.  I played Marvel Super Heroes all over again. The default difficulty made me experience arcade frustration all over again. The PSX version was slightly easier although Doctor Doom maintained his, "I'm so good at keepaway! Doo dah! Doo dah!" Doctor Doom was a real bastard due ...

I remember playing Marvel Super Heroes and Psylocke was my main character. Psylocke was my top pick either due to the Smurfette Principle or was it because she had cool moves? I didn't care too much about X-Men: Children of the Atom due to its monstrous difficulty. However, Marvel Super Heroes was far more appealing to me. It had better graphics and more reasonable difficulty. I find Doctor Doom and Thanos reasonably difficult compared to how Juggernaut and Magneto were in X-Men: COTA . It turns out Psylocke wasn't popular with the animators but only in the comics. Psylocke was probably an odd choice because she wasn't a regular in Saban's X-Men: The Animated Series . Marvel Super Heroes also featured other villains that were too oddball like Shuma Gorath, Blackheart, and the final boss Thanos. Thanos wasn't featured in any more animated variants aside from the Silver Surfer cartoon. Meanwhile, Magneto, Juggernaut, and Doctor Doom (a boss) are the easily recognizabl...

Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes became significant for two things -- it became responsible for naming the franchise sometime after Capcom created crossovers with Capcom games. Instead of just having Street Fighter characters -- more Capcom characters showed up during the crossover. After two games dealing with Apocalypse -- the menacing Onslaught was added. Onslaught was the result of Professor X's darker side emerging. Professor X mind-wiped Magneto after the latter sucked off Wolverine's adamantium skeleton. So yeah, ironic that Wolverine should be playable with his complete adamantium in this game. Onslaught was introduced as the final boss. I remember playing Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes at the arcade. My mains were usually Classic Megaman and Ryu. I wasn't a big fan of the Special Partner system since it was chosen at random. Onslaught had two forms. The first form was a giant towering figure of Onslaught that could summon Sentinels (which he did i...

  I confess I hated X-Men Mutant Academy's first entry. Was it because I still think X-Men: Children of the Atom was still better? Okay, the PSX version of X-Men: Children of the Atom lacked the character endings in full for some reason. Fortunately, Marvel Super Heroes did a better job porting the game with the endings. I didn't like the first X-Men: Mutant Academy game but the second game worked wonders. I never played X-Men: The Next Dimension so I'll just review a PSX classic. Yes, that ONLY X-Men   Mutant Academy game that I got to enjoy. The first game started with six characters and unlocked the other four. The second game has no such nonsense. Instead, it's because every character has a different final opponent like in the first two Street Fighter Alpha games. Cyclops has Havok as the final opponent (and vice-versa) and Wolverine has his final battle with Sabertooth. There were also unlockables such as Spider-Man and Professor X (who had very limited gameplay). ...

With the  Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection game around the corner -- I was tempted to visit one of the most popular villains ever. Yes, I'm talking about Doctor Doom who was first introduced as the recurring enemy of the Fantastic Four. However, as time passed, Doctor Doom became more and more distanced from his most recurring foes. That would be a peculiar thing since Doctor Doom's backstory starts with the Fantastic Four, having met Reed Richards in COLLEGE, and had a rivalry ever since. How did Doctor Doom become more popular than the Fantastic Four? The answer may lie with the Spider-Man franchise. Spider-Man may be more popular than the Fantastic Four. I'm no avid comic book reader because of the overdoing of retroactive continuity. However, in the 1960s, Spider-Man would also clash with Doctor Doom. Doctor Doom also fought with other more popular villains like the Avengers, Hulk, She-Hulk, and the Uncanny X-Men. Having fought with several superheroes BETTER than ...

  I may no longer like Marvel because of how New Disney screwed it up. However, I'd like to share some moments of Cable and Stryfe. Cable is the son of Cyclops and the Jean Grey clone, Madelyne Pryor. Unlike Saban's X-Men: The Animated Series , the comics don't shy away from brutal violence. Apocalypse was awakened when Cyclops' and Madelyne's son, Nathan Christopher Charles Pryor Summers, was born. Nathan's powers manifested since infancy.  Apocalypse would have the right to be amazed and fear the child. Apocalypse kidnaps the infant Nathan and infects him with the Techno-Organic Virus (TOV). Did Apocalypse do it so he could kill Nathan? Nonsense! Instead, it was looking for a new body that would give Apocalypse the longevity to do so.  The decision was painful. Cyclops makes a tough love decision to leave Cable to the mysterious Mother Askani. Mother Askani is actually Rachel Summers - an alternate-reality daughter of Cyclops and Jean Grey. Okay, I'm still...

It's no secret that I ended up disliking Power Rangers for years to come whether it was handled by Saban, Disney, or recently with Hasbro. However, watching Toei's extremely odd  Spider-Man adaptation made me miss the 1990s Marvel cartoons . One can argue that Toei's experimentation with the Spider-Man franchise with the Marvel license was a daring thing. However, Supaida-Man probably   wasn't the monster hit it could've been. Instead, I wanted to watch the 1994 adaptation of Spider-Man titled Spider-Man: The Animated Series .  It's because there's a difference between a licensed adaptation and getting inspired by Western superhero material. It's no surprise that Marvel worked with Toei before meeting Saban. Marvel working with Saban probably did better than working with Toei. Marvel gave Toei the green light to what I'd call the weirdest licensed adaptation of Spider-Man . Professor Monster is blatantly based on Doctor Doom. The whole environment fe...

  I guess Marvel does have a huge cycle, right? A bit of research will tell us Toei Ltd. once had a Marvel license, later Haim Saban acquired a Marvel license before getting a license from Toei, Disney later bought Marvel and later the Power Rangers brand, and then it's a weird cycle. Nothing's really completely original at all. I could go ahead and praise Haim Saban for doing Knights of Tir Na Nog though it's clearly not all that original. Heck, Toei Ltd. does seem to have a habit of making fun of a lot of stuff. One such case was when Japanese Spider-Man  or Supaida-Man was created. Sure, I expected it to be somewhat alike yet different. Instead, it's very different. The hero Yamashiro Takuya meets an alien who's the last of his kind. Yamashiro loses his father to the Iron Cross Army. Later, Shinji meets a Garian who gives him spider powers. Shinji Todo was famous for playing several villains such as General Hedder from Denji Sentai Denziman and God Neros' hum...