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BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Captain Marvel (2019) in Movies
Mar 9, 2019
Chemistry between Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson (1 more)
As always, END CREDITS SEQUENCE
A Marvel-ous "Buddy Cop" film
For those of you who read my reviews regularly know, I am a fan of the films produced in the MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE. There has been a bit of a hiatus in these films (the last one was ANT MAN AND THE WASP last July) so it was with some excitement that I headed to the multiplex to check out the latest installment in this film franchise.
And...after an opening that paid tribute to the late, great Stan Lee, I settled in for what, I hoped would be a fun time at the movies. I started to become a little concerned in the first half hour of this film as it jumbled things around, trying to tell an origin story of a person who has no memory of where she came from while Jude Law was "man-splaining" the new worlds and the new people that the audience needs to know about it. I was becoming concerned that this film was going to become a "hot mess".
And then came Samuel L. Jackson.
Mr. Jackson is a MOVIE STAR and his presence in this film instantly catapulted it to another level. The star power, energy and pacing of the film improved and (if I am honest with myself) the performance of Brie Larson as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel improved as well. The film stopped being an "alien Super Hero" film and it become a "buddy cop film" along the lines of LETHAL WEAPON, 48 HOURS and (my personal favorite) MIDNIGHT RUN.
The chemistry between Jackson and Larson is undeniable and they play off of each other very well, bantering and bouncing lines back and forth while chasing - and being chased - by the bad guys. This dynamic raised the level of this film from a "middle of the road" SuperHero film to a fun action/comedy that is in the upper third of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Aside from Jackson, Larson (eventually) is terrifically cast as the titular character. She has a difficult balancing act to fulfill in the first 1/2 hour of the film, since her character has no memories, she also was in danger of having no personality. I've heard the word "bland" thrown around to characterize her performance, but I wouldn't quite go there (especially once Jackson shows up and her character's memories start to return). This is a well rounded, fierce performance and I don't think we've really seen the "best" that this character - or Larson's portrayal - has to offer.
Jude Law, Annette Benning(!) Lashana Lynch and Clark Gregg are all "fine" in supporting roles, but they pale in comparison to Larson/Jackson. Only Ben Mendehlson was able to "up" his performance to match these two, so when Jackson/Larson/Mendehlson were on the screen together, things crackled. Oh...and I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the best feline performances in film in quite some time - GOOSE, the cat (yes, named after the character in TOP GUN). The less I say about this character the better - but it was really fun. The only disappointment for me was the usage of Gemma Chan (CRAZY, RICH ASIANS) as Minn-Erva. She just didn't have much to do, probably because at the time of filming Chan was not much of a "name". I know here character is crucial to some Captain Marvel storylines in the comics, so I am hoping they bring her back and use her more in the future.
But...as for this film...it is a fun romp, with good action and a truly memorable pairing of Jackson/Larson - one that does not disappoint. Stay, of course, for the TWO end credits scene - the first one sets up AVENGERS: ENDGAME and the last one is...
Letter Grade A-
8 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank(OfMarquis)
And...after an opening that paid tribute to the late, great Stan Lee, I settled in for what, I hoped would be a fun time at the movies. I started to become a little concerned in the first half hour of this film as it jumbled things around, trying to tell an origin story of a person who has no memory of where she came from while Jude Law was "man-splaining" the new worlds and the new people that the audience needs to know about it. I was becoming concerned that this film was going to become a "hot mess".
And then came Samuel L. Jackson.
Mr. Jackson is a MOVIE STAR and his presence in this film instantly catapulted it to another level. The star power, energy and pacing of the film improved and (if I am honest with myself) the performance of Brie Larson as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel improved as well. The film stopped being an "alien Super Hero" film and it become a "buddy cop film" along the lines of LETHAL WEAPON, 48 HOURS and (my personal favorite) MIDNIGHT RUN.
The chemistry between Jackson and Larson is undeniable and they play off of each other very well, bantering and bouncing lines back and forth while chasing - and being chased - by the bad guys. This dynamic raised the level of this film from a "middle of the road" SuperHero film to a fun action/comedy that is in the upper third of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Aside from Jackson, Larson (eventually) is terrifically cast as the titular character. She has a difficult balancing act to fulfill in the first 1/2 hour of the film, since her character has no memories, she also was in danger of having no personality. I've heard the word "bland" thrown around to characterize her performance, but I wouldn't quite go there (especially once Jackson shows up and her character's memories start to return). This is a well rounded, fierce performance and I don't think we've really seen the "best" that this character - or Larson's portrayal - has to offer.
Jude Law, Annette Benning(!) Lashana Lynch and Clark Gregg are all "fine" in supporting roles, but they pale in comparison to Larson/Jackson. Only Ben Mendehlson was able to "up" his performance to match these two, so when Jackson/Larson/Mendehlson were on the screen together, things crackled. Oh...and I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the best feline performances in film in quite some time - GOOSE, the cat (yes, named after the character in TOP GUN). The less I say about this character the better - but it was really fun. The only disappointment for me was the usage of Gemma Chan (CRAZY, RICH ASIANS) as Minn-Erva. She just didn't have much to do, probably because at the time of filming Chan was not much of a "name". I know here character is crucial to some Captain Marvel storylines in the comics, so I am hoping they bring her back and use her more in the future.
But...as for this film...it is a fun romp, with good action and a truly memorable pairing of Jackson/Larson - one that does not disappoint. Stay, of course, for the TWO end credits scene - the first one sets up AVENGERS: ENDGAME and the last one is...
Letter Grade A-
8 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank(OfMarquis)
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Stan & Ollie (2018) in Movies
Sep 28, 2021
When the laughter has to end.
The problem with any comedy double act is that if illness or death get in the way (think Dustin Gee and Les Dennis; or Morecambe and Wise) the wheels can come off for the other partner. “Stan and Ollie” tells the story of the comic duo starting in 1937 when they reached their peak of global popularity, albeit when Laurel was hardly on speaking terms with their long-term producer Hal Roach (Danny Huston).
As you might guess from this, the emotional direction for the film is downwards, but not necessarily in a totally depressing way. The film depicts the duo’s tour of Laurel’s native country (he was born in Lancashire) and this has its ups as well as its downs.
Not knowing their life story, this is one where when the trailer came on I shut my eyes and plugged my ears so as to avoid spoilers: as such I will say nothing further on the details of the plot.
My wife and I were reminiscing after seeing this flick about how our parents used to crack up over the film antics of Laurel and Hardy. And they were, in their own slapstick way, very funny indeed. The film manages to recreate (impecably) some of their more famous routines and parodies others: their travel trunk gallops to the bottom of the station steps, mimicking the famous scenes with a piano from 1932’s “The Music Box”. “Do we really need that trunk” Hardy deadpans to Laurel.
The turns
There are four star turns at the heart of the film and they are John C. Reilly as Ollie; Steve Coogan as Stan; Shirley Henderson (forever to be referenced as “Moaning Myrtle”) as Ollie’s wife Lucille and Nina Arianda (so memorable as the ‘pointer outer’ in the ‘Emperor’s New Clothes’ segment of “Florence Foster Jenkins“) as Stan’s latest wife Ida.
Coogan and Reilly do an outstanding job of impersonating the comic duo. Both are simply brilliant, playing up to their public personas when visible but subtly delivering similar traits in private. Of the two, John C. Reilly’s performance is the most memorable: he IS Oliver Hardy. Not taking too much away from the other performance, but there are a few times when Coogan poked through the illusion (like a Partridge sticking its head out from a Pear Tree you might say).
Henderson and Arianda also add tremendous heart to the drama, and Arianda’s Ida in particular is hilarious. Also delivering a fabulous supporting role is Rufus Jones as the famous impressario Bernard Delfont: all smarm and Machiavellian chicanery that adds a different shape of comedy to the film.
Another Fine Mess?
Actually, no: it’s one of those pleasant and untaxing cinema experiences that older audiences in particular will really enjoy. However, the film’s far from perfect in my view: the flash-forwards/flash-backs I felt made the story bitty and disjointed; and ultimately the life story of the duo doesn’t have a huge depth of drama in it to amaze or excite, the way that 2004’s “Beyond the Sea” (the biopic of Bobby Darin) did for example. But the film never gets boring or disappoints.
I’d like to say that the script by Jeff Pope (“Philomena“) is historically accurate, but a look at the wikipedia entries for the pair show that it was far from that. Yes, the tours of the UK and Europe did happen, but over multiple years and the actual events in their lives are telescoped into a single trip for dramatic purposes. But I think the essence of the pair comes across nicely. Laurel’s wikipedia entry records a nice death-bed scene that sums up the guy:
“Minutes before his death, he told his nurse that he would not mind going skiing, and she replied that she was not aware that he was a skier. “I’m not,” said Laurel, “I’d rather be doing that than this!” A few minutes later, the nurse looked in on him again and found that he had died quietly in his armchair.”
“Stan and Ollie” has a few preview screenings before the New Year, but goes on UK general release on January 11th. Recommended.
As you might guess from this, the emotional direction for the film is downwards, but not necessarily in a totally depressing way. The film depicts the duo’s tour of Laurel’s native country (he was born in Lancashire) and this has its ups as well as its downs.
Not knowing their life story, this is one where when the trailer came on I shut my eyes and plugged my ears so as to avoid spoilers: as such I will say nothing further on the details of the plot.
My wife and I were reminiscing after seeing this flick about how our parents used to crack up over the film antics of Laurel and Hardy. And they were, in their own slapstick way, very funny indeed. The film manages to recreate (impecably) some of their more famous routines and parodies others: their travel trunk gallops to the bottom of the station steps, mimicking the famous scenes with a piano from 1932’s “The Music Box”. “Do we really need that trunk” Hardy deadpans to Laurel.
The turns
There are four star turns at the heart of the film and they are John C. Reilly as Ollie; Steve Coogan as Stan; Shirley Henderson (forever to be referenced as “Moaning Myrtle”) as Ollie’s wife Lucille and Nina Arianda (so memorable as the ‘pointer outer’ in the ‘Emperor’s New Clothes’ segment of “Florence Foster Jenkins“) as Stan’s latest wife Ida.
Coogan and Reilly do an outstanding job of impersonating the comic duo. Both are simply brilliant, playing up to their public personas when visible but subtly delivering similar traits in private. Of the two, John C. Reilly’s performance is the most memorable: he IS Oliver Hardy. Not taking too much away from the other performance, but there are a few times when Coogan poked through the illusion (like a Partridge sticking its head out from a Pear Tree you might say).
Henderson and Arianda also add tremendous heart to the drama, and Arianda’s Ida in particular is hilarious. Also delivering a fabulous supporting role is Rufus Jones as the famous impressario Bernard Delfont: all smarm and Machiavellian chicanery that adds a different shape of comedy to the film.
Another Fine Mess?
Actually, no: it’s one of those pleasant and untaxing cinema experiences that older audiences in particular will really enjoy. However, the film’s far from perfect in my view: the flash-forwards/flash-backs I felt made the story bitty and disjointed; and ultimately the life story of the duo doesn’t have a huge depth of drama in it to amaze or excite, the way that 2004’s “Beyond the Sea” (the biopic of Bobby Darin) did for example. But the film never gets boring or disappoints.
I’d like to say that the script by Jeff Pope (“Philomena“) is historically accurate, but a look at the wikipedia entries for the pair show that it was far from that. Yes, the tours of the UK and Europe did happen, but over multiple years and the actual events in their lives are telescoped into a single trip for dramatic purposes. But I think the essence of the pair comes across nicely. Laurel’s wikipedia entry records a nice death-bed scene that sums up the guy:
“Minutes before his death, he told his nurse that he would not mind going skiing, and she replied that she was not aware that he was a skier. “I’m not,” said Laurel, “I’d rather be doing that than this!” A few minutes later, the nurse looked in on him again and found that he had died quietly in his armchair.”
“Stan and Ollie” has a few preview screenings before the New Year, but goes on UK general release on January 11th. Recommended.
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated Deadpool 2 (2018) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019 (Updated Jun 10, 2019)
More of the same
Who would have thought we would get to this? I certainly didn’t. After the right royal mess 20th Century Fox made of everyone’s favourite anti-hero, Deadpool, in X-Men Origins: Wolverine all those years ago, it felt like a solo outing would never be possible, never mind a sequel.
Deadpool senior went on to gross nearly $800million worldwide, impressive for an R-rated (15 certification) flick, and was an undisputed king of comic-book hero movies. Like Guardians of the Galaxy was for Marvel Studios, Deadpool was a huge gamble that paid off massively thanks to Ryan Reynold’s brilliant comic-timing and an origins story that wasn’t done to death. Naturally, a sequel was always on the cards. But are we looking at a sequel of Empire quality or Speed 2: Cruise Control?
Wisecracking mercenary Deadpool (Reynolds) is back, and this time he decides to joins force with three mutants – Bedlam (Terry Crews), Shatterstar (Lewis Tan) and Domino (Zazie Beets) – to protect a boy from the all-powerful Cable (Josh Brolin).
One-half of John Wick’s directing team, David Leitch, is thrust into the directing chair for Deadpool 2 after Tim Miller was unceremoniously dumped from the project due to creative differences with Ryan Reynolds (read into that what you will). Thankfully, he brings that trademark style that we again saw in Atomic Blonde to this sequel and with that comes plenty of stylised action and a neon/grey colour palate plus a Celine Dion number that’s just begging for parody status.
Surprisingly, that all works rather well for this film. Propped by another cracking performance from Ryan Reynolds who has really found his calling after years of mediocrity. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, he was absolutely born to play this role and his dry wit is given much more room to breathe this time around.
The rest of the cast are fine, if a little underdeveloped. Zazie Beets probably makes the most impact as mutant, Domino, but even she is a little underpowered when compared to the brilliant work the MCU has done on its heroes over the years. Josh Brolin (who must be getting paid rather handsomely this year) is great as Cable, though it is difficult to hear his voice and not immediately think of Thanos. T.J. Miller returns in a heavily reduced role as does Reynolds’ on-screen girlfriend Morena Baccarin who is criminally underused.
Story wise, it’s pretty much more of the same and that’s no bad thing. The fourth-wall breaking is as fresh as it felt two years ago and is cleverly used to hide the necessary exposition to bring the audience up-to-speed with what’s been happening in Deadpool-ville over the last couple of years.
Thankfully, there is plenty of repeat-watch value in Deadpool 2, thanks mainly to the returning cast members
The comedy hits more than it misses, though the constant quipps can be exhausting, and the action is filmed as confidently as you’d expect from the man who brought Keanu Reeves screaming into the 21st Century, but there is some incredibly poor CGI that is at odds with a movie costing over $100million. By incredibly poor, I don’t mean just a bit naff, I’m talking laughably bad.
The finale is vibrant, action-packed and as Deadpool himself says, CGI-filled, but it’s a little unoriginal and very much like its predecessor, though the inclusion of one particular character that I won’t spoil here is great fun to see.
There are also plenty of X-Men Easter eggs for fans to enjoy too. From characters showing up where you’d least expect them to a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Stan Lee cameo, the film is full to the brim of in-references that only the most hardened of comic-book fans will notice on the first watch.
Thankfully, there is plenty of repeat-watch value in Deadpool 2, thanks mainly to the returning cast members. Reynolds, T.J. Miller, Leslie Uggams (Wade Wilson’s blind roommate Al) and Karan Soni (taxi driver Dopinder) are welcome returnees and ensure the film has a little heart, though not too much. After all, that wouldn’t be the Deadpool way.
Overall, Deadpool 2 is a confident sequel to one of the best comic-book movies there is. What it does right, it does very well indeed. The comedy, performances and action are all spot on. Unfortunately, there are some very poor special effects over the course of the film and in an effort to make everything bigger and badder, it occasionally feels like a mass of scenes put together to make a film. A worthy sequel, but not an Empire or Spider-Man 2 in this instance.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2018/05/16/deadpool-2-review-more-of-the-same/#more-6342
Deadpool senior went on to gross nearly $800million worldwide, impressive for an R-rated (15 certification) flick, and was an undisputed king of comic-book hero movies. Like Guardians of the Galaxy was for Marvel Studios, Deadpool was a huge gamble that paid off massively thanks to Ryan Reynold’s brilliant comic-timing and an origins story that wasn’t done to death. Naturally, a sequel was always on the cards. But are we looking at a sequel of Empire quality or Speed 2: Cruise Control?
Wisecracking mercenary Deadpool (Reynolds) is back, and this time he decides to joins force with three mutants – Bedlam (Terry Crews), Shatterstar (Lewis Tan) and Domino (Zazie Beets) – to protect a boy from the all-powerful Cable (Josh Brolin).
One-half of John Wick’s directing team, David Leitch, is thrust into the directing chair for Deadpool 2 after Tim Miller was unceremoniously dumped from the project due to creative differences with Ryan Reynolds (read into that what you will). Thankfully, he brings that trademark style that we again saw in Atomic Blonde to this sequel and with that comes plenty of stylised action and a neon/grey colour palate plus a Celine Dion number that’s just begging for parody status.
Surprisingly, that all works rather well for this film. Propped by another cracking performance from Ryan Reynolds who has really found his calling after years of mediocrity. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, he was absolutely born to play this role and his dry wit is given much more room to breathe this time around.
The rest of the cast are fine, if a little underdeveloped. Zazie Beets probably makes the most impact as mutant, Domino, but even she is a little underpowered when compared to the brilliant work the MCU has done on its heroes over the years. Josh Brolin (who must be getting paid rather handsomely this year) is great as Cable, though it is difficult to hear his voice and not immediately think of Thanos. T.J. Miller returns in a heavily reduced role as does Reynolds’ on-screen girlfriend Morena Baccarin who is criminally underused.
Story wise, it’s pretty much more of the same and that’s no bad thing. The fourth-wall breaking is as fresh as it felt two years ago and is cleverly used to hide the necessary exposition to bring the audience up-to-speed with what’s been happening in Deadpool-ville over the last couple of years.
Thankfully, there is plenty of repeat-watch value in Deadpool 2, thanks mainly to the returning cast members
The comedy hits more than it misses, though the constant quipps can be exhausting, and the action is filmed as confidently as you’d expect from the man who brought Keanu Reeves screaming into the 21st Century, but there is some incredibly poor CGI that is at odds with a movie costing over $100million. By incredibly poor, I don’t mean just a bit naff, I’m talking laughably bad.
The finale is vibrant, action-packed and as Deadpool himself says, CGI-filled, but it’s a little unoriginal and very much like its predecessor, though the inclusion of one particular character that I won’t spoil here is great fun to see.
There are also plenty of X-Men Easter eggs for fans to enjoy too. From characters showing up where you’d least expect them to a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Stan Lee cameo, the film is full to the brim of in-references that only the most hardened of comic-book fans will notice on the first watch.
Thankfully, there is plenty of repeat-watch value in Deadpool 2, thanks mainly to the returning cast members. Reynolds, T.J. Miller, Leslie Uggams (Wade Wilson’s blind roommate Al) and Karan Soni (taxi driver Dopinder) are welcome returnees and ensure the film has a little heart, though not too much. After all, that wouldn’t be the Deadpool way.
Overall, Deadpool 2 is a confident sequel to one of the best comic-book movies there is. What it does right, it does very well indeed. The comedy, performances and action are all spot on. Unfortunately, there are some very poor special effects over the course of the film and in an effort to make everything bigger and badder, it occasionally feels like a mass of scenes put together to make a film. A worthy sequel, but not an Empire or Spider-Man 2 in this instance.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2018/05/16/deadpool-2-review-more-of-the-same/#more-6342
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) in Movies
Sep 28, 2021
Lestranger than fiction.
I must be one of the last people to watch this in the cinema, thanks to an irritating bout of sickness and – well – frankly total bloody apathy! For me this is the franchise that nobody asked for and nobody wanted. (Well, “nobody” is probably overstating the case, since there is probably a bunch of Potterheads out there who are shouting at me right now). But judging from the opinion of my daughter-in-law, who could win “Mastermind” with her knowledge of the original Potter series as her specialist subject, I am certainly not alone in my lack of enthusiasm.
The Plot
I’d really love to tell you about the plot. I really would! But I would struggle to pull all the multitude of strands together from J.K. Rowling’s story and coherently explain them to anyone. If Rowling had put ten thousand monkeys (not a million – it’s no bloody Shakespeare) into a room with typewriters and locked the door I wouldn’t be surprised.
Let me try at a high level….. The arch-criminal wizard Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) is being tortured in ‘Trump Tower’, but manages to escape and flees to Paris in pursuit of a mysterious circus performer called Credence (Ezra Miller) and his bewitched companion Nagini (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) played fetchingly by Claudia Kim. Someone needs to stop him, and all eyes are on Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law). But he is unable to do so, since he and Grindelwald are “closer than brothers” (nudge, nudge, wink, wink). So a reluctant and UK-grounded Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) is smuggled into the danger zone… which suits him just fine since his love Tina (Katherine Waterston) is working for the ministry there, and the couple are currently estranged due to a (topical) bout of ‘Fake News’.
Throw in a potential love triangle between Newt, his brother Theseus (Callum Turner) and old Hogwart’s schoolmate Leta Lestrange (Zoë Kravitz) and about a half dozen other sub-plots and you have… well… a complete bugger’s muggle – – sorry – – muddle.
A plot that’s all at sea
Above all, I really can’t explain the crux of the plot. A venerable diarrhoea of exposition in a crypt, during an inexplicably quiet fifteen minutes (given ‘im-who-can-be-named is next door with about a thousand other people!) left me completely bewildered. A bizarre event at sea (no spoilers) would seem to make absolutely NO SENSE when considered with another reveal at the end of the film. I thought I must have clearly missed something… or I’d just not been intelligent enough to process the information…. or…. it was actually completely bonkers! Actually, I think it’s the latter: in desperation I went on a fan site that tried to explain the plot. While it was explained there, the explanation aligned with what I thought had happened: but it made no mention of the ridiculousness of the random coincidence involved!
The turns
The film’s a mess. Which is a shame since everyone involved tries really hard. Depp oozes evil very effectively (he proves that nicely on arriving in Paris, and doubles-down about 5 minutes later: #veryverydark). Redmayne replays his Newt-act effectively but once again (and I see I made the same comments in my “Fantastic Beasts” review) his character mumbles again so much that many of his lines are unintelligible.
I also complained last time that the excellent actress Katherine Waterston was criminally underused as the tentative love interest Tina. this trend unfortunately continues unabated in this film…. you’ll struggle afterwards to write down what she actually did in this film.
Jacob (Dan Fogler) and Queenie (Alison Sudol, looking for all the world in some scenes like Rachel Weisz) reprise their roles in a sub-plot that goes nowhere in particular.
Of the newcomers, Jude Law as Dumbledore is a class-act but has very little screen time: hopefully he will get more to do next time around. Zoë Kravitz impresses as Leta.
Wizards of the screen
As you would expect from a David Yates / David Heyman Potter collaboration, the product design, costume design and special effects are all excellent. Some scenes are truly impressive – an ‘explosion’ in a Parisian garret is particularly spectacular.
But special effects alone do not a great film make. Many reviews I’ve seen complain that this was a ‘filler’ film… a set-up film for the rest of the series. And I can understand that view. If you analyse the film overall, virtually NOTHING of importance actually happens: it’s like the “Order of the Phoenix” of the prequels.
Final Thoughts
I dragged myself along to see this one because “I thought I should”. The third in the series will really need to sparkle to make me want to see it. If J.K. Rowling were to take me advice (she won’t – she NEVER returns my calls!) then she would sculpt the story-arc but leave the screenwriting to someone better. The blame for this one, I’m afraid, lies at Rowling’s door alone.
The Plot
I’d really love to tell you about the plot. I really would! But I would struggle to pull all the multitude of strands together from J.K. Rowling’s story and coherently explain them to anyone. If Rowling had put ten thousand monkeys (not a million – it’s no bloody Shakespeare) into a room with typewriters and locked the door I wouldn’t be surprised.
Let me try at a high level….. The arch-criminal wizard Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) is being tortured in ‘Trump Tower’, but manages to escape and flees to Paris in pursuit of a mysterious circus performer called Credence (Ezra Miller) and his bewitched companion Nagini (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) played fetchingly by Claudia Kim. Someone needs to stop him, and all eyes are on Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law). But he is unable to do so, since he and Grindelwald are “closer than brothers” (nudge, nudge, wink, wink). So a reluctant and UK-grounded Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) is smuggled into the danger zone… which suits him just fine since his love Tina (Katherine Waterston) is working for the ministry there, and the couple are currently estranged due to a (topical) bout of ‘Fake News’.
Throw in a potential love triangle between Newt, his brother Theseus (Callum Turner) and old Hogwart’s schoolmate Leta Lestrange (Zoë Kravitz) and about a half dozen other sub-plots and you have… well… a complete bugger’s muggle – – sorry – – muddle.
A plot that’s all at sea
Above all, I really can’t explain the crux of the plot. A venerable diarrhoea of exposition in a crypt, during an inexplicably quiet fifteen minutes (given ‘im-who-can-be-named is next door with about a thousand other people!) left me completely bewildered. A bizarre event at sea (no spoilers) would seem to make absolutely NO SENSE when considered with another reveal at the end of the film. I thought I must have clearly missed something… or I’d just not been intelligent enough to process the information…. or…. it was actually completely bonkers! Actually, I think it’s the latter: in desperation I went on a fan site that tried to explain the plot. While it was explained there, the explanation aligned with what I thought had happened: but it made no mention of the ridiculousness of the random coincidence involved!
The turns
The film’s a mess. Which is a shame since everyone involved tries really hard. Depp oozes evil very effectively (he proves that nicely on arriving in Paris, and doubles-down about 5 minutes later: #veryverydark). Redmayne replays his Newt-act effectively but once again (and I see I made the same comments in my “Fantastic Beasts” review) his character mumbles again so much that many of his lines are unintelligible.
I also complained last time that the excellent actress Katherine Waterston was criminally underused as the tentative love interest Tina. this trend unfortunately continues unabated in this film…. you’ll struggle afterwards to write down what she actually did in this film.
Jacob (Dan Fogler) and Queenie (Alison Sudol, looking for all the world in some scenes like Rachel Weisz) reprise their roles in a sub-plot that goes nowhere in particular.
Of the newcomers, Jude Law as Dumbledore is a class-act but has very little screen time: hopefully he will get more to do next time around. Zoë Kravitz impresses as Leta.
Wizards of the screen
As you would expect from a David Yates / David Heyman Potter collaboration, the product design, costume design and special effects are all excellent. Some scenes are truly impressive – an ‘explosion’ in a Parisian garret is particularly spectacular.
But special effects alone do not a great film make. Many reviews I’ve seen complain that this was a ‘filler’ film… a set-up film for the rest of the series. And I can understand that view. If you analyse the film overall, virtually NOTHING of importance actually happens: it’s like the “Order of the Phoenix” of the prequels.
Final Thoughts
I dragged myself along to see this one because “I thought I should”. The third in the series will really need to sparkle to make me want to see it. If J.K. Rowling were to take me advice (she won’t – she NEVER returns my calls!) then she would sculpt the story-arc but leave the screenwriting to someone better. The blame for this one, I’m afraid, lies at Rowling’s door alone.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Cartographers: A Roll Player Tale in Tabletop Games
Sep 13, 2021
I have often wondered how cartography actually works. How was it that people with primitive tools were able to grasp the lay of the land and sea? And are we complete in our mapping of Earth or are there more secrets we have yet to discover? Thankfully, in Cartographers we aren’t really answering those questions, but other practical questions may arise.
Cartographers is a flip-and-write style game where players are competing to gain the queen’s favor and become the royal cartographer. While the main game focuses on finishing with a greater score than your opponent(s) the solo game is more relaxed. The solo player will be competing against their previous scores and comparing against the queen’s title matrix. Each game will be played over four seasons (rounds) and once the year is over the winner or title is claimed. Can you score 30 or more points to become a “Legendary Cartographer?”
To setup, lay out the Queen’s Edict cards that show A, B, C, and D. Shuffle each small deck of like-backed Scoring Cards and randomly place one from each deck underneath the Edict cards. Remove all the enemy Ambush Cards and shuffle one into the main deck of Explore Cards. Set the Season Cards in order: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Each player will receive one Map Sheet and a pencil. The game may now begin!
Each Season Card will feature a time threshold number that when met or exceeded will end the season. This corresponds to the time markings on each Explore Card drawn from the deck. For example, Spring allows 8 measures of time before it will switch to Summer. Explore Cards will usually show from 0-2 time measures on it, so seasons could change after four or more cards. At the start of each season, the player will flip an Explore Card to reveal which type of map element is requested and of which shape. The map elements are Forest, Farm, Water, Village, Mountain, and Monster. The shapes shown on the cards are reminiscent of Tetris-style shapes and also some others as well.
Once a card has been revealed, the player now will draw on their sheet the shape (or one of the shapes if more than one are shown) and fill it in with the matching symbol for map element type. If during this phase of the round the player surrounds the four sides of a pre-printed Mountain square they will score one coin and mark it at the bottom of their Map Sheet.
Should a Ruins card be revealed the player will flip another card to reveal the next card in line. Whatever shape and element is shown on the card AFTER the Ruins card will be used, with a twist. The shape shown on this card will now be required to encompass one of the pre-printed Ruins squares on the Map Sheet. If there are no legal spaces to place these shapes (or any shape on future cards) the player will be allowed to place a single 1×1 square on their Map Sheet anywhere they wish.
Should an enemy Ambush card be revealed the player will check which corner of the map the ambush takes place and will draw the provided monster shape in the closest area to the corner as possible. These are awarded negative points at the end of the seasons and can make large impacts on final scores.
After the elements have been drawn on the Map Sheet the player will check if the season ends. The season will end if the total number of revealed cards’ time measures equal or exceed the time printed on the Season Card (again, for example, Spring lasts 8 time). If not, then the player resumes another card reveal. If the time threshold has been met or exceeded then the player will score for the season by referencing the Scoring Cards that were placed under the Edicts at setup. For Spring the player scores Edict Cards A and B. Mark the score in the space provided at the bottom of the Scoring Sheet and flip the Season Card to the next season to begin a new round.
Play continues in this fashion until all four seasons have been played. At the end of the fourth season the game ends and the player will tally up their score to compare against the queen’s title matrix at the back of the rulebook. Not to brag, but my first game scored over 30 points, so I began this journey as a Legendary Cartographer.
Components. This game is 100 double-sided Map Sheets, four golf pencils, and a bunch of cards. The sheets and pencils are just fine, and the cards are good quality. What I really enjoy about the components is that this is “A Roll Player Tale,” meaning that many of the components and art hearken back to the original Roll Player game. As I love Roll Player’s art style, I also love that of Cartographers. There isn’t a ton of art in the game, more of graphic design, the art that IS provided is stellar Roll Player fare. I have no complaints about the components here except my wife thinks the pencil erasers could be better.
I skipped backing this one on Kickstarter and have only recently come to acquire it. I am definitely kicking myself in the rear for that decision because this is an excellent game. Obviously, anything that is enjoyable solo AND multiplayer is a huge boon (my wife scored it a 5!), and being able to play it multiple times in a row is a benefit as well.
We both love the decision-making in Cartographers, and when we first played together I had to shield my map sheet from my wife because she was copying! SHE was copying ME! She ended up handing me my booty in that game (of course) but we both had a great time plotting out our map elements. Determining where and which direction a shape should be placed can certainly be frustrating, but seeing your well-laid plans come to life is very rewarding. I am definitely seeing myself needing to download and print off more map sheets in the future because I have a feeling I am going to be playing the mess out of this one.
If you are looking for something special for your collection, check out Cartographers. If you already enjoy Roll Player, this will feel homey to you while offering a completely different style of game. My wife and I love it, and I am not sure I know anyone who would turn their nose up at it. Once we get into the Post-COVID era I plan to play this all the time at game nights.
Cartographers is a flip-and-write style game where players are competing to gain the queen’s favor and become the royal cartographer. While the main game focuses on finishing with a greater score than your opponent(s) the solo game is more relaxed. The solo player will be competing against their previous scores and comparing against the queen’s title matrix. Each game will be played over four seasons (rounds) and once the year is over the winner or title is claimed. Can you score 30 or more points to become a “Legendary Cartographer?”
To setup, lay out the Queen’s Edict cards that show A, B, C, and D. Shuffle each small deck of like-backed Scoring Cards and randomly place one from each deck underneath the Edict cards. Remove all the enemy Ambush Cards and shuffle one into the main deck of Explore Cards. Set the Season Cards in order: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Each player will receive one Map Sheet and a pencil. The game may now begin!
Each Season Card will feature a time threshold number that when met or exceeded will end the season. This corresponds to the time markings on each Explore Card drawn from the deck. For example, Spring allows 8 measures of time before it will switch to Summer. Explore Cards will usually show from 0-2 time measures on it, so seasons could change after four or more cards. At the start of each season, the player will flip an Explore Card to reveal which type of map element is requested and of which shape. The map elements are Forest, Farm, Water, Village, Mountain, and Monster. The shapes shown on the cards are reminiscent of Tetris-style shapes and also some others as well.
Once a card has been revealed, the player now will draw on their sheet the shape (or one of the shapes if more than one are shown) and fill it in with the matching symbol for map element type. If during this phase of the round the player surrounds the four sides of a pre-printed Mountain square they will score one coin and mark it at the bottom of their Map Sheet.
Should a Ruins card be revealed the player will flip another card to reveal the next card in line. Whatever shape and element is shown on the card AFTER the Ruins card will be used, with a twist. The shape shown on this card will now be required to encompass one of the pre-printed Ruins squares on the Map Sheet. If there are no legal spaces to place these shapes (or any shape on future cards) the player will be allowed to place a single 1×1 square on their Map Sheet anywhere they wish.
Should an enemy Ambush card be revealed the player will check which corner of the map the ambush takes place and will draw the provided monster shape in the closest area to the corner as possible. These are awarded negative points at the end of the seasons and can make large impacts on final scores.
After the elements have been drawn on the Map Sheet the player will check if the season ends. The season will end if the total number of revealed cards’ time measures equal or exceed the time printed on the Season Card (again, for example, Spring lasts 8 time). If not, then the player resumes another card reveal. If the time threshold has been met or exceeded then the player will score for the season by referencing the Scoring Cards that were placed under the Edicts at setup. For Spring the player scores Edict Cards A and B. Mark the score in the space provided at the bottom of the Scoring Sheet and flip the Season Card to the next season to begin a new round.
Play continues in this fashion until all four seasons have been played. At the end of the fourth season the game ends and the player will tally up their score to compare against the queen’s title matrix at the back of the rulebook. Not to brag, but my first game scored over 30 points, so I began this journey as a Legendary Cartographer.
Components. This game is 100 double-sided Map Sheets, four golf pencils, and a bunch of cards. The sheets and pencils are just fine, and the cards are good quality. What I really enjoy about the components is that this is “A Roll Player Tale,” meaning that many of the components and art hearken back to the original Roll Player game. As I love Roll Player’s art style, I also love that of Cartographers. There isn’t a ton of art in the game, more of graphic design, the art that IS provided is stellar Roll Player fare. I have no complaints about the components here except my wife thinks the pencil erasers could be better.
I skipped backing this one on Kickstarter and have only recently come to acquire it. I am definitely kicking myself in the rear for that decision because this is an excellent game. Obviously, anything that is enjoyable solo AND multiplayer is a huge boon (my wife scored it a 5!), and being able to play it multiple times in a row is a benefit as well.
We both love the decision-making in Cartographers, and when we first played together I had to shield my map sheet from my wife because she was copying! SHE was copying ME! She ended up handing me my booty in that game (of course) but we both had a great time plotting out our map elements. Determining where and which direction a shape should be placed can certainly be frustrating, but seeing your well-laid plans come to life is very rewarding. I am definitely seeing myself needing to download and print off more map sheets in the future because I have a feeling I am going to be playing the mess out of this one.
If you are looking for something special for your collection, check out Cartographers. If you already enjoy Roll Player, this will feel homey to you while offering a completely different style of game. My wife and I love it, and I am not sure I know anyone who would turn their nose up at it. Once we get into the Post-COVID era I plan to play this all the time at game nights.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Vamp on the Batwalk in Tabletop Games
Feb 12, 2021
I think I could be a vampire. Not that I THINK I’m a vampire, but I think I could live(?) with being a vamp. Not the sparkly kind. Just the normal kind. Or maybe the “What We Do in the Shadows” kind. Yeah. At least initially I don’t think I would care much about being the most fashionable vampire in the group, but I could see why some of the elder vampires would need SOMETHING over which to compete and obsess. Maybe I could be one of the judges.
Vamp on the Batwalk has players take on the personalities of one of these fashionable elder vampires competing in the latest fashion show. The only problem is that vampires are unable to see themselves in mirrors, so they cannot really assure themselves that they look marvelous; the other vampires will have that privilege. Which vampire can win the most fashion shows this year with limited knowledge of how they look? Who would… stake… their reputation on mere fashion shows anyway?
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup invert the bottom of the box and insert it into the back of the box top lid to create a runway. A “batwalk,” if you will. Each player will choose a vampire and place their standee on the batwalk Start space. They will also take the matching Reference Card. All Vamp Cards matching the vamps in play are collected, shuffled together, and five are dealt to each player. Whichever player is most fashionable goes first and the game may begin!
Vamp on the Batwalk is a trick-taking game where players know not which cards they hold. Instead, their hands are facing all other players in order to suss out which cards they may be holding. The first player will open the game by playing any card from their hand. The next player also will play any card they wish, and so on until all players have played a card.
Once each card is played the “lead” card may be switched depending on the rules of the game. Should all cards played be of the same suit the highest card played is the lead card and wins the trick. Similarly, if the first card played remains the highest card in that suit and no other cards played earn the lead card status, that highest card wins the trick.
However, when a card is played that is the same value (a three played on a three of a different suit) the newest card with the matching value “Steals the Show” and becomes the new lead card. Some cards feature a star for the value. These star cards will always take the lead unless a garlic card has been played to trump the star. Garlic cards typically are the lowest-ranking suit, but when played in the same hand as a star become the trump suit.
Luckily, the reference cards have handy reminders for these special rules. After all cards from the hand have been played, players check who is winning the fashion show based on points earned during the round. If this is the end of the third round the vamp with the most points wins! If not, the player to the left of the most recent first player then becomes the first player for the next round.
Components. This game features an ingenious scoreboard that is just so fun to use. Having the box double as the scoreboard runway was such a great decision and it works flawlessly. The cards are all large tarot-sized (I think, I’m no tarot-master) and feature some really great art. The player standees are fine, but only four or so can actually fit on a space on the runway without creating a mess. All in all I adore the components and art style here.
Now, several games also employ this mechanic of holding your hand of cards outward for opponents to see, but here the players never really are told which cards they hold. In Vamp on the Batwalk the card play is silly and mostly a guessing game, at least in my head. One can never truly know all the cards they hold because each round not all cards are used. This adds another layer of difficulty in trying to guess what you are holding. This may turn off certain gamers, but it’s a silly way to play the game and I love it.
At the end of the day, this is a game about vampires putting on a fashion show. I feel like once I decided not to take it so seriously I began enjoying it so much more. Sometimes it’s a surprise to win a trick with a 2 of garlic. A throwaway card usually can win if a star is played. Or thinking you have THE card to win the trick only to have someone else Steal the Show and beat you out. It’s just chaotic silliness and I’m smitten.
If you are at all anything like me and can put aside the need to win at all times and at all costs, you will enjoy this one. It is wacky, has an amazing theme and excellent components, and is just a fun game to relax with or to help recharge after a brain burning sesh. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a blood-slurping 8 / 12. Even though I think the blue vamp is eerily similar to Travis McElroy, the almost-coolest-Travis, this one is a hit for me. Go grab it if you like fun games that don’t tax the brain a whole lot.
Vamp on the Batwalk has players take on the personalities of one of these fashionable elder vampires competing in the latest fashion show. The only problem is that vampires are unable to see themselves in mirrors, so they cannot really assure themselves that they look marvelous; the other vampires will have that privilege. Which vampire can win the most fashion shows this year with limited knowledge of how they look? Who would… stake… their reputation on mere fashion shows anyway?
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup invert the bottom of the box and insert it into the back of the box top lid to create a runway. A “batwalk,” if you will. Each player will choose a vampire and place their standee on the batwalk Start space. They will also take the matching Reference Card. All Vamp Cards matching the vamps in play are collected, shuffled together, and five are dealt to each player. Whichever player is most fashionable goes first and the game may begin!
Vamp on the Batwalk is a trick-taking game where players know not which cards they hold. Instead, their hands are facing all other players in order to suss out which cards they may be holding. The first player will open the game by playing any card from their hand. The next player also will play any card they wish, and so on until all players have played a card.
Once each card is played the “lead” card may be switched depending on the rules of the game. Should all cards played be of the same suit the highest card played is the lead card and wins the trick. Similarly, if the first card played remains the highest card in that suit and no other cards played earn the lead card status, that highest card wins the trick.
However, when a card is played that is the same value (a three played on a three of a different suit) the newest card with the matching value “Steals the Show” and becomes the new lead card. Some cards feature a star for the value. These star cards will always take the lead unless a garlic card has been played to trump the star. Garlic cards typically are the lowest-ranking suit, but when played in the same hand as a star become the trump suit.
Luckily, the reference cards have handy reminders for these special rules. After all cards from the hand have been played, players check who is winning the fashion show based on points earned during the round. If this is the end of the third round the vamp with the most points wins! If not, the player to the left of the most recent first player then becomes the first player for the next round.
Components. This game features an ingenious scoreboard that is just so fun to use. Having the box double as the scoreboard runway was such a great decision and it works flawlessly. The cards are all large tarot-sized (I think, I’m no tarot-master) and feature some really great art. The player standees are fine, but only four or so can actually fit on a space on the runway without creating a mess. All in all I adore the components and art style here.
Now, several games also employ this mechanic of holding your hand of cards outward for opponents to see, but here the players never really are told which cards they hold. In Vamp on the Batwalk the card play is silly and mostly a guessing game, at least in my head. One can never truly know all the cards they hold because each round not all cards are used. This adds another layer of difficulty in trying to guess what you are holding. This may turn off certain gamers, but it’s a silly way to play the game and I love it.
At the end of the day, this is a game about vampires putting on a fashion show. I feel like once I decided not to take it so seriously I began enjoying it so much more. Sometimes it’s a surprise to win a trick with a 2 of garlic. A throwaway card usually can win if a star is played. Or thinking you have THE card to win the trick only to have someone else Steal the Show and beat you out. It’s just chaotic silliness and I’m smitten.
If you are at all anything like me and can put aside the need to win at all times and at all costs, you will enjoy this one. It is wacky, has an amazing theme and excellent components, and is just a fun game to relax with or to help recharge after a brain burning sesh. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a blood-slurping 8 / 12. Even though I think the blue vamp is eerily similar to Travis McElroy, the almost-coolest-Travis, this one is a hit for me. Go grab it if you like fun games that don’t tax the brain a whole lot.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Bunny Party at Maple Valley in Tabletop Games
Oct 11, 2021
What kinds of pets did you have growing up? My family was allowed one dog throughout my formative years, and I even tried to keep a turtle once in college. I have not ever had rabbits, but my brother did – Brewster. He was a cool bunny. Kinda freaked out sometimes and made a huge mess, but overall a nice little fella. I am trying to imagine an entire village of Brewsters planning a party and inviting all their friends. I can’t really do it, but now I don’t have to – there’s a game I can play.
Bunny Party at Maple Valley (which I shall refer to as simply Bunny Party from here) is a sweet and cute little card game for three or four players. In it players are the titular bunnies decorating for and competing to win the chance to host the Night Sky Party at their place. However, in this game more often than not the victory is shared between they who amass the requisite five decorations and their neighbor who also co-hosts the event! The bunnies gotta get crackin’ so let’s get going!
PS – I will be reviewing the 3-player version of the game, which has ever-so-slightly different rules.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup, character cards are shuffled and two dealt to each player. They choose one to be their avatar and discard the other back to the box. The large deck of cards with the house on the back is shuffled and placed on the table within reach. The villager cards are shuffled and one is drawn and placed outside the play area – it will not be used this round. The other five villagers are arranged as a market of friends. Each player draws three cards on the first round, and the game is ready to begin!
Bunny Party is played over a series of rounds until one player satisfies the win condition. Each round consists of eight phases: Turn Start, Tidy a Card, Villagers Visit, Play Cards, Trade, Play Cards (again), Party Start?, and Villagers Go Home. Turn Start typically involves players setting the table for the round. First, the villager cards are re-shuffled, one set aside to be ignored this round (they are staying home), and the remainders displayed. Then each player draws two cards from the deck and collects one Trade Token.
Next, all players will choose one of their cards they drew during the Tidy a Card step to be placed in a temporary discard pile face-down. Alternatively, a player may forego the Tidy in order to place a card in front of another player by spending one Trade Token. Once all players have tidied a card or placed one in front of another player, the Tidy pile is shuffled, then flipped as a stack to the top of the discard pile, face-up.
The villagers are now becoming impatient, so players will allow them audience during this Villagers Visit phase. Each player chooses a villager from those available to host during their party preparation. These villagers offer special abilities each round and can be very valuable at certain times during the game.
While the villagers are visiting, players may next Play Cards from their hand. These cards are typically of three types: Item, Event, or Decoration. Item cards are placed in the player’s tableau and offer one-time or lingering effects. Event cards are typically one-and-done cards to be completed and then discarded. Decorations are what players are really after, as they are what determine win conditions. With five star or moon cards the player can start the party and end the game. At the bottom of the decoration cards is printed an arrow. This arrow points to the neighbor that will co-host and also win the game. In a three-player game Decoration cards are displayed upside down, so that is why the photo below looks a little strange.
When players have all played their hand of cards, the Trade phase may begin. Players may offer Item cards to other players and a trade may be struck by each player discarding a Trade Token from their stash. This may result in a player receiving a new card to be played. When this happens, the next phase is immediately played (after all trades have been completed). Any player who now holds an unplayed card may Play Cards (again) as before.
If a player (or players) have now collected five or more star or moon Decoration cards, they may claim victory during this Party Start? phase. Again, the Decoration cards have arrows printed to determine the co-host/co-victor in the game, and the winners may then invite the rest of the burrow to their den for the Night Sky Party! However, if no victor emerges during the Party Start? phase, then all the Villagers Go Home, and a new round begins with the Turn Start phase.
Play continues in this fashion until winners have been crowned host and co-host of the Night Sky Party in Maple Valley!
Components. This one is a bunch of cards a few cardboard chits. The cards are all fine quality, as are the chits. What is really great about these components is the art on them. I cannot think of many cuter themes than uber-nice bunnies throwing a party and sharing their victory with a neighbor. So obviously the art has to match the theme, tone, and style of the game. I believe Bunny Party knocks it out of the park here. The art is so playful and cute, and I absolutely have to give a huge shout out to Evan’s Games for the very apparent inclusivity and representation. I see you and I applaud you!
Gameplay for me is where I take just a little issue. Everything works, and once you understand the phases it does flow better, but, I can see myself really only playing this with children or in a gateway/breaking in new gamers situation. It is very light, but there are eight phases to a round! So while each phase is easy to understand and execute, each round takes a little longer because there are a few too many steps. Once my kids really know how to read well they will be playing this with me and I know right now that we will have a great time with it. I really do appreciate the special efforts that were made with regards to representation (yes, even with anthropomorphic cartoon animals) and with the design being more focused on sharing victory and being nice to neighbors. My children will certain have good habits reinforced while playing this, and that is what makes this game important.
Again, this is not the game for hardcore gamers, nor those who are interested in bigger and more complex medium-weight games. This is a quick filler at best during a game night when newer gamers are gathered. That being said, I still find a great deal of value in this one, and will be keeping it for a long time. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a 4 / 6 on stand-by. I do want to try this with different types of people (once we are able again) to see if my predictions are correct. I have only been able to play it with adult family, and none of them are medium to heavy weight game enthusiasts. If you are needing a nice game that can be played among other games for a themed game night (like Bunny Party + Bob Ross: Art of Chill + Hues and Cues + Escape: The Curse of the Temple) then this certainly fits that niche.
So my official stance, for now, is that Bunny Party has a great theme, excellent art, a wonderful message of harmony, but is both too light and too complex for what it is. I realize that sounds ridiculous. Please try it and let me know your thoughts. For now, I am keeping this close and I will be trying it with various groups with whom I game.
Bunny Party at Maple Valley (which I shall refer to as simply Bunny Party from here) is a sweet and cute little card game for three or four players. In it players are the titular bunnies decorating for and competing to win the chance to host the Night Sky Party at their place. However, in this game more often than not the victory is shared between they who amass the requisite five decorations and their neighbor who also co-hosts the event! The bunnies gotta get crackin’ so let’s get going!
PS – I will be reviewing the 3-player version of the game, which has ever-so-slightly different rules.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup, character cards are shuffled and two dealt to each player. They choose one to be their avatar and discard the other back to the box. The large deck of cards with the house on the back is shuffled and placed on the table within reach. The villager cards are shuffled and one is drawn and placed outside the play area – it will not be used this round. The other five villagers are arranged as a market of friends. Each player draws three cards on the first round, and the game is ready to begin!
Bunny Party is played over a series of rounds until one player satisfies the win condition. Each round consists of eight phases: Turn Start, Tidy a Card, Villagers Visit, Play Cards, Trade, Play Cards (again), Party Start?, and Villagers Go Home. Turn Start typically involves players setting the table for the round. First, the villager cards are re-shuffled, one set aside to be ignored this round (they are staying home), and the remainders displayed. Then each player draws two cards from the deck and collects one Trade Token.
Next, all players will choose one of their cards they drew during the Tidy a Card step to be placed in a temporary discard pile face-down. Alternatively, a player may forego the Tidy in order to place a card in front of another player by spending one Trade Token. Once all players have tidied a card or placed one in front of another player, the Tidy pile is shuffled, then flipped as a stack to the top of the discard pile, face-up.
The villagers are now becoming impatient, so players will allow them audience during this Villagers Visit phase. Each player chooses a villager from those available to host during their party preparation. These villagers offer special abilities each round and can be very valuable at certain times during the game.
While the villagers are visiting, players may next Play Cards from their hand. These cards are typically of three types: Item, Event, or Decoration. Item cards are placed in the player’s tableau and offer one-time or lingering effects. Event cards are typically one-and-done cards to be completed and then discarded. Decorations are what players are really after, as they are what determine win conditions. With five star or moon cards the player can start the party and end the game. At the bottom of the decoration cards is printed an arrow. This arrow points to the neighbor that will co-host and also win the game. In a three-player game Decoration cards are displayed upside down, so that is why the photo below looks a little strange.
When players have all played their hand of cards, the Trade phase may begin. Players may offer Item cards to other players and a trade may be struck by each player discarding a Trade Token from their stash. This may result in a player receiving a new card to be played. When this happens, the next phase is immediately played (after all trades have been completed). Any player who now holds an unplayed card may Play Cards (again) as before.
If a player (or players) have now collected five or more star or moon Decoration cards, they may claim victory during this Party Start? phase. Again, the Decoration cards have arrows printed to determine the co-host/co-victor in the game, and the winners may then invite the rest of the burrow to their den for the Night Sky Party! However, if no victor emerges during the Party Start? phase, then all the Villagers Go Home, and a new round begins with the Turn Start phase.
Play continues in this fashion until winners have been crowned host and co-host of the Night Sky Party in Maple Valley!
Components. This one is a bunch of cards a few cardboard chits. The cards are all fine quality, as are the chits. What is really great about these components is the art on them. I cannot think of many cuter themes than uber-nice bunnies throwing a party and sharing their victory with a neighbor. So obviously the art has to match the theme, tone, and style of the game. I believe Bunny Party knocks it out of the park here. The art is so playful and cute, and I absolutely have to give a huge shout out to Evan’s Games for the very apparent inclusivity and representation. I see you and I applaud you!
Gameplay for me is where I take just a little issue. Everything works, and once you understand the phases it does flow better, but, I can see myself really only playing this with children or in a gateway/breaking in new gamers situation. It is very light, but there are eight phases to a round! So while each phase is easy to understand and execute, each round takes a little longer because there are a few too many steps. Once my kids really know how to read well they will be playing this with me and I know right now that we will have a great time with it. I really do appreciate the special efforts that were made with regards to representation (yes, even with anthropomorphic cartoon animals) and with the design being more focused on sharing victory and being nice to neighbors. My children will certain have good habits reinforced while playing this, and that is what makes this game important.
Again, this is not the game for hardcore gamers, nor those who are interested in bigger and more complex medium-weight games. This is a quick filler at best during a game night when newer gamers are gathered. That being said, I still find a great deal of value in this one, and will be keeping it for a long time. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a 4 / 6 on stand-by. I do want to try this with different types of people (once we are able again) to see if my predictions are correct. I have only been able to play it with adult family, and none of them are medium to heavy weight game enthusiasts. If you are needing a nice game that can be played among other games for a themed game night (like Bunny Party + Bob Ross: Art of Chill + Hues and Cues + Escape: The Curse of the Temple) then this certainly fits that niche.
So my official stance, for now, is that Bunny Party has a great theme, excellent art, a wonderful message of harmony, but is both too light and too complex for what it is. I realize that sounds ridiculous. Please try it and let me know your thoughts. For now, I am keeping this close and I will be trying it with various groups with whom I game.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated VENOM Assault in Tabletop Games
Jan 25, 2021
What would you say if I told you I completely expected a game I received to fall completely flat for me but instead may actually unseat a revered similar game from my Top 10 list of games? That would be surprising, right? Well such is life, and such is this game. I do believe that VENOM Assault may knock off one of my favorite games: Legendary: A Marvel Deck-Building Game. That’s really saying something from me, so let me discuss a bit about why I state this.
VENOM Assault is a deck-building game very similar in style to Legendary: A Marvel Deck-Building Game (which, if I have to reference again will just call Legendary). Players take control of a team of (relative) wimps in order to help recruit the real elites and battle the evildoers plus their henchmen. Sound familiar? For this review I will be playing the Solo rules, which are the same as the multiplayer rules, but for one player. Novel, eh?
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup a game, please follow the rulebook as there is way too much to cover here in complete detail. The setup should look similar to the following photo. Here is what you will see: a space for the Mission scenario in the upper left corner. To its right a space for the active Event card. Next to that is the area for the VENOM Support cards to be displayed. Then the VENOM Support deck and discard areas. Below the Mission area is the space to track threat level and the current VENOM Leader’s Health and Defense values. Beneath those trackers is an area for four decks: the VENOM Leader deck, Reward deck, Event deck, and Event discard. To the right of this area is the Training Ground (recruitment zone), the Recruitment deck, and the Retirement pile. In the middle of the board are seven spaces to be populated with Reward cards and VENOM Leaders on top of the Rewards. Each player is dealt six Recruits and four Commandos and will shuffle these to create their draw deck. The players then draw five cards to create their hand and the game may now begin! Go save the world!
I will not be covering every aspect of a turn but will highlight the goings on. The Commander (first player) will draw and read the Event for the round. Events can be helpful for the players, extremely hurtful by advancing the VENOM plot, or even uneventful altogether. Next, player(s) will enter the Recruitment Phase. During this phase players will be using their entire hand to total the recruitment points that can be spent on recruiting those elite soldier, vehicle, and location cards from the Training Ground right into their discard piles.
Once the Recruitment Phase is complete, the Tactical Phase begins, and this is a large part of the game that helps differentiate it from others of its like. The players will choose one of the seven revealed VENOM Leaders on the map to attack in combat (if they choose – this is optional). Using the stats on the VENOM Leader card the players will adjust the Health and Defense values on the trackers on the board. If the VENOM Leader has any abilities that would trigger during this phase, then they trigger now. These could include Global Abilities as well. Once the Leader is done with their abilities, the players will choose one of their cards played to become the Combat Leader. This character now may not use their printed ability but will use their Combat Value (crossed pistols) to place combat dice on their card. The other team members in the combat will add dice to the pool as well if their abilities direct them. Next, the VENOM Leader will call forth their VENOM Support armies to aid them in the combat round. Once displayed, any hero Tactical Phase abilities can be resolved. If VENOM Support armies still are active, their abilities may be resolved at this point.
As the Tactical Phase ends, the Combat Phase begins. The Combat Phase is where the players are able to roll their combat dice in the hopes of besting the VENOM Leader’s Health and Defense values. Defense values dictate the dice values that need to be hit or exceeded to equal a successful attack. The Health value is how many successes are needed to defeat the Leader. However, once rolled the VENOM Leader will trigger any Combat Phase abilities at this time. Once complete the hero team will be able to resolve their own Combat Phase abilities, if any. Finally, the VENOM Support will resolve their Combat Phase abilities. Now the dice may be completely resolved against the Leader, after all abilities have been resolved. If the Freedom Squadron (heroes) defeated the Leader, they take the Leader and Reward cards into their VP pile. Depending on the Mission, these Rewards may be necessary to win the game, and all will have VP values.
After a lengthy Tactical and Combat Phase, the players then enter the Retirement Phase. The players may retire a card from their hand, thus removing the card from the game entirely.
Once a card has been retired (or not), the End of Turn Phase will help clean up the mess of the current round. Any other End of Turn Phase abilities will trigger, and used cards will be discarded to the appropriate areas and refills of key points on the board and players’ hands will setup the next round of play.
Once the Mission card’s success or failure stipulations have been met the game is over and, with any luck, the Freedom Squadron has defeated VENOM once and for all!
Components. This game boasts a large game board, a metric ton of cards, some dice, and some cardboard tokens. All the components are of fine quality and I have no issues with them. The art style used in the game is pleasing and, thankfully, not over-the-top gory or bloody or anything.
You may have noticed or thought that perhaps this game is taking inspiration from a cartoon/toy line from the ’80s, and I would very much agree with you. Could it be called Legendary: G.I. Joe? Maybe, but this one stands on its own, though very similar to the Legendary system. What I do like about VENOM Assault is the fact that it already comes with a large amount of incredible cards to be recruited. I do not know if I will ever feel the need for extra heroes in this game, whereas with the Marvel Legendary one can really go overboard trying to collect all the mini expansions and big box expansions just to find their favorite Marvel entities. Since VENOM Assault isn’t tied to any specific IP and is more generic overall, each character provided is its own thing, not a specific hero that one has grown up loving their entire life.
You see, the problem with those mini expansions in Legendary, at least for me, is that each one brings with it a host of heroes AND a host of new keywords and rules that must be remembered or referenced until it becomes second nature. In VENOM Assault, the rules stay the same and play is altered by the Missions and which characters can be recruited. I like a more reliable and static ruleset when I’m playing an intense game. So point goes to VENOM Assault here too.
Now, I was never into G.I. Joe and I am not at all a war or guns kinda guy, but I am really attracted to this game. I don’t necessarily think of my heroes as going in and shooting the place up, but rather taking Navy Seals-style tactical maneuvers to eliminate the target. So the point is that if you were never into that IP before, you should not feel alienated by this one. It appeals to all, in my opinion.
I said previously in this review that VENOM Assault is knocking on the door of bumping Legendary from my Top 10 games. I continue thinking about it even when I am not playing, and that is a mark of an excellent game for me. If I never think of a game again after playing, there is no way it remains in my collection. This one, however, has me considering different strategies in my head even now as I’m typing.
If you are in the market for a great deck-builder with worldwide espionage at its heart, I urge you to grab a copy of VENOM Assault. If you like the Legendary system but are looking for something just a little different, check this one out. If you just enjoy owning games that are fun and make you think, but also include a bit of luck in the dice rolls, then you owe it to yourself to play this. I really think you’ll enjoy it, as I have. Okay, time to setup another game.
VENOM Assault is a deck-building game very similar in style to Legendary: A Marvel Deck-Building Game (which, if I have to reference again will just call Legendary). Players take control of a team of (relative) wimps in order to help recruit the real elites and battle the evildoers plus their henchmen. Sound familiar? For this review I will be playing the Solo rules, which are the same as the multiplayer rules, but for one player. Novel, eh?
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup a game, please follow the rulebook as there is way too much to cover here in complete detail. The setup should look similar to the following photo. Here is what you will see: a space for the Mission scenario in the upper left corner. To its right a space for the active Event card. Next to that is the area for the VENOM Support cards to be displayed. Then the VENOM Support deck and discard areas. Below the Mission area is the space to track threat level and the current VENOM Leader’s Health and Defense values. Beneath those trackers is an area for four decks: the VENOM Leader deck, Reward deck, Event deck, and Event discard. To the right of this area is the Training Ground (recruitment zone), the Recruitment deck, and the Retirement pile. In the middle of the board are seven spaces to be populated with Reward cards and VENOM Leaders on top of the Rewards. Each player is dealt six Recruits and four Commandos and will shuffle these to create their draw deck. The players then draw five cards to create their hand and the game may now begin! Go save the world!
I will not be covering every aspect of a turn but will highlight the goings on. The Commander (first player) will draw and read the Event for the round. Events can be helpful for the players, extremely hurtful by advancing the VENOM plot, or even uneventful altogether. Next, player(s) will enter the Recruitment Phase. During this phase players will be using their entire hand to total the recruitment points that can be spent on recruiting those elite soldier, vehicle, and location cards from the Training Ground right into their discard piles.
Once the Recruitment Phase is complete, the Tactical Phase begins, and this is a large part of the game that helps differentiate it from others of its like. The players will choose one of the seven revealed VENOM Leaders on the map to attack in combat (if they choose – this is optional). Using the stats on the VENOM Leader card the players will adjust the Health and Defense values on the trackers on the board. If the VENOM Leader has any abilities that would trigger during this phase, then they trigger now. These could include Global Abilities as well. Once the Leader is done with their abilities, the players will choose one of their cards played to become the Combat Leader. This character now may not use their printed ability but will use their Combat Value (crossed pistols) to place combat dice on their card. The other team members in the combat will add dice to the pool as well if their abilities direct them. Next, the VENOM Leader will call forth their VENOM Support armies to aid them in the combat round. Once displayed, any hero Tactical Phase abilities can be resolved. If VENOM Support armies still are active, their abilities may be resolved at this point.
As the Tactical Phase ends, the Combat Phase begins. The Combat Phase is where the players are able to roll their combat dice in the hopes of besting the VENOM Leader’s Health and Defense values. Defense values dictate the dice values that need to be hit or exceeded to equal a successful attack. The Health value is how many successes are needed to defeat the Leader. However, once rolled the VENOM Leader will trigger any Combat Phase abilities at this time. Once complete the hero team will be able to resolve their own Combat Phase abilities, if any. Finally, the VENOM Support will resolve their Combat Phase abilities. Now the dice may be completely resolved against the Leader, after all abilities have been resolved. If the Freedom Squadron (heroes) defeated the Leader, they take the Leader and Reward cards into their VP pile. Depending on the Mission, these Rewards may be necessary to win the game, and all will have VP values.
After a lengthy Tactical and Combat Phase, the players then enter the Retirement Phase. The players may retire a card from their hand, thus removing the card from the game entirely.
Once a card has been retired (or not), the End of Turn Phase will help clean up the mess of the current round. Any other End of Turn Phase abilities will trigger, and used cards will be discarded to the appropriate areas and refills of key points on the board and players’ hands will setup the next round of play.
Once the Mission card’s success or failure stipulations have been met the game is over and, with any luck, the Freedom Squadron has defeated VENOM once and for all!
Components. This game boasts a large game board, a metric ton of cards, some dice, and some cardboard tokens. All the components are of fine quality and I have no issues with them. The art style used in the game is pleasing and, thankfully, not over-the-top gory or bloody or anything.
You may have noticed or thought that perhaps this game is taking inspiration from a cartoon/toy line from the ’80s, and I would very much agree with you. Could it be called Legendary: G.I. Joe? Maybe, but this one stands on its own, though very similar to the Legendary system. What I do like about VENOM Assault is the fact that it already comes with a large amount of incredible cards to be recruited. I do not know if I will ever feel the need for extra heroes in this game, whereas with the Marvel Legendary one can really go overboard trying to collect all the mini expansions and big box expansions just to find their favorite Marvel entities. Since VENOM Assault isn’t tied to any specific IP and is more generic overall, each character provided is its own thing, not a specific hero that one has grown up loving their entire life.
You see, the problem with those mini expansions in Legendary, at least for me, is that each one brings with it a host of heroes AND a host of new keywords and rules that must be remembered or referenced until it becomes second nature. In VENOM Assault, the rules stay the same and play is altered by the Missions and which characters can be recruited. I like a more reliable and static ruleset when I’m playing an intense game. So point goes to VENOM Assault here too.
Now, I was never into G.I. Joe and I am not at all a war or guns kinda guy, but I am really attracted to this game. I don’t necessarily think of my heroes as going in and shooting the place up, but rather taking Navy Seals-style tactical maneuvers to eliminate the target. So the point is that if you were never into that IP before, you should not feel alienated by this one. It appeals to all, in my opinion.
I said previously in this review that VENOM Assault is knocking on the door of bumping Legendary from my Top 10 games. I continue thinking about it even when I am not playing, and that is a mark of an excellent game for me. If I never think of a game again after playing, there is no way it remains in my collection. This one, however, has me considering different strategies in my head even now as I’m typing.
If you are in the market for a great deck-builder with worldwide espionage at its heart, I urge you to grab a copy of VENOM Assault. If you like the Legendary system but are looking for something just a little different, check this one out. If you just enjoy owning games that are fun and make you think, but also include a bit of luck in the dice rolls, then you owe it to yourself to play this. I really think you’ll enjoy it, as I have. Okay, time to setup another game.
