Superhero Media: Rampage

Several friends were really keen on Rampage and kept hassling me to see it, but I never seemed to get the chance. When I finally go to it, I found Rampage fairly underwhelming, as I've never played the games and was just hoping for some Kaiju action, but what I got was a whole load of Rock and only the one monster fight. Not that there isn't a lot of fun stuff in the film, but I was in the headspace for Kaiju so Rampage couldn't help but disappoint. The opening, with a lone woman running from an (unseen) mutant rat through a space station is really well put together and quite tense, in fact, the tense scenes work well, like later when Ralph (giant mutant wolf) is picking off a team of mercenaries in the woods, but most of the "big" monster action leaves something to be desired. I'm not sure I buy the Rock as former special forces soldier/park ranger/bounty hunter turned zookeeper Davis Okoye, as he may be a competent actor, but basically only has one "action" mode. Compared to Jeffery Dean Morgan, playing Agent Russell, the Rock just doesn't seem to be having as much fun in the role as the premise would demand. 

What Rampage reminded me of most was the Transformers films, with the emphasis on military technology and what seems to be a lack of good ideas as to what to do with the actual monsters people turned up to see. Not that I expected Rampage to be Shin Godzilla or anything, but was Kong Skull Island too much to ask? I'm pretty sure only two helicopters get trashed, nowhere near enough. Though there is a cool bit where the Rock uses a broken helicopter to break his fall from a collapsing building, which is pretty neat. I guess if I'm grading on a curve for being a "video game movie", Rampage is actually pretty good, but when do we stop expecting these game adaptations to be lesser, and demand the same quality we get from comic book films? I still think the first Tomb Raider and Resident Evil are perfectly serviceable and will keep defending Street Fighter as a fun romp; not everything is the animated Donkey Kong Country film, you know? 

So what does really work in Rampage? Well, the size of the Kaiju is nice for gaming. Seriously, some larger animal action figures and model kits are pretty affordable around the 12 to18 inch mark and would sit well next to 28mm miniatures. My Gamera is around that size (he's 15mm if we're getting technical) and "looks" about right on the table. The Godzilla I've been eyeing off is a little taller and would probably be around perfect. Of course, I've seen Kaiju played at 10mm and 40mm, and most of mine aim for 6mm, so what you can afford and store is up to you, but I like a couple of big nasties to really give the "wow" factor for display games. Warmachine and D&D Miniatures have a nice giant Crocodile and Wolf respectively, and a few places do large apes in toy lines, so putting together a Rampage set would be pretty easy if that's your bag. For me, it's off to find more suitable Godzilla and Gamera Kaiju. 

Superhero Media: The Marvels Project

Not quite a follow-up to the seminal Marvels, The Marvels Project covers the first few years of the fledgling Marvel Universe, as told by Thomas Halloway, aka, The Angel. Even more so than Marvels, The Marvels Project bridges the continuity gaps between the pre-Marvel Timely comics and the "universe" that Stan, Jack and Steve built in the 1960s, not pulling a full "Avengers Forever" thing, but just massaging over the rough patches that you tend to get with Golden Age Comics. For example, rather than Phantom Bullet and The Ferret just dropping off enough in popularity to no longer be published, both characters are skilled by Nazi agents who later target Erskine and Steve Rogers. Clever, huh? Well, I like it. The narrative, whilst framed with Halloway's experience, is clearly focused on Captain America, which makes sense, as the series was written by Ed Brubaker, possibly the best Cap writer ever. That said, there is still plenty of Angel, Namor and Human Torch to keep the comics classicist happy. 

The clever thing about The Marvels Project is that it couches the story around the build-up to the United States entering the Second World War, which works nicely as a meta-narrative about the comics industry, as well as tying to the opening chapter of Marvels. I'm honestly shocked there isn't a Phil Sheldon cameo in there, but appearances from Black Widow (Claire Voyant), The Phantom Reporter and Electro help slide us into the next adventure on our Marvel Golden Age jaunt, The Twelve. Also of note, the story is bookended with appearances of the Two-Gun Kid, occasional Avengers member and good friend of Clint Barton. Probably the only element I'm not fond of in The Marvels Project is the Human Torch and Toro getting to fight during the Battle off Pearl Harbour, which just "feels" a little cheap to me, even if it does suit the story and mirror action happening elsewhere. The pacing is also a little off, but I tend to put this down to trying to match old comics. 

In terms of gaming inspiration, The Marvels Project is excellent, with games at both the high and low ends of the superhero power scale. The Human Torch and Toro versus Japanese aircraft would be amazing to see on the table, and a possible collaboration between supers and historical gamers that I may have to do, if I can get flaming figures in the right scale. And, as discussed in previous posts, I'm keen on some Pulp games, though a League of Adventurers is less interesting to me than a collection of caped heroes, and now I'll have to track down a suitable Angel to round out some kind of Golden Age Defenders for my games. I have also started up some new, plastic, pulpy Nazis to menace my heroes, which I'll hopefully have painted before too long. 

Announcement: Victorius 2025

Sorry to interrupt the flow, but as many of my Australian readers may already know, I will be at Victorius 2025 next weekend in Box Hill. 

There, as well as being generally helpful, I will be demonstrating the miniatures game I am writing, Nocturnal, which I have mentioned here from time to time, it's a gang skirmish game based on popular urban Vampire media. Think Blade, Underworld, The Lost Boys, Vampire the Masquerade, etc. If you can make it, keep an eye out for the stunning promotional artwork done by my friend Nim; 

I'll be running quick, 2-3 turn demo games for most of the day, so come by and say hello if you want to try it out. I will likely be covering a little more on Nocturnal here in the future, but this won't be becoming a blog about the game; I'll be doing other socials around it as things get closer to being finished. 

Superhero Media: Danger Mouse

Yes, I watched the entirety of the classic Danger Mouse, and I don't recommend that you do the same. That is not to say that Danger Mouse is bad, which it is, of course, not, just that binging it quickly kind of killed the enjoyment I was getting. The World's Greatest Secret Agent, Danger Mouse, and his mostly-useless assistant Penfold, battle the nefarious foes of freedom across the globe and Willesden Green in mostly unlikely circumstances. Like many programmes of its era, Danger Mouse has dated, mostly around stereotypes and backwards attitudes, especially against Mexicans, for some reason, but it holds up despite being steeped in ideas of Empire. If you can handle wacky, then Danger Mouse is a heady draught, with skouse aliens, giant bananas and more episodes in space than you would think for what is, ostensibly, a spy adventure. 

The jokes are repetitive and often deliberately bad, but there is a charm to Danger Mouse that transcends the surface quality, or lack thereof. Like I said, don't watch a lot of this back-to-back, as it starts to grate after a while, but if Danger Mouse is an old hazy memory or something an older relative talks about a lot, then dive in for a little bit and see how you go. The review of the newer seasons is actually one of the most viewed articles on this blog, so clearly there is a love of Danger Mouse and Penfold to be had out there. Such is the nature of the programme that I really can't recall too much about specific episodes to recommend, though images of sentient bagpipes, golfing Martians and ghost busses haunt my dreams. 

If you really want to game Danger Mouse (might work as a Pulp Alley game?) there are a few free STLs around for 3D printing, I'm eyeing off one of Danger Mouse and Penfold in the X-1 for printing at about 6mm scale, which should look right next to 28mm humans. I've never been one for gaming in a comedic tone myself, but it's worth remembering that Danger Mouse does shockingly little fighting in the programme, mostly resorting to a combination of dumb luck, puns and contrivance. Danger Mouse may be the world's greatest secret agent, but Danger Mouse isn't really the best programme, being very much throwaway entertainment for kids more interested in colour and movement than a maligned classic awaiting reappraisal. Still, I love it and will probably go back for more at some stage. 

Miniatures Finished: Dinoborgs of the world, unite!

Given I was so close to getting all my Bot War stuff done, I just pushed through. I'm also trying to get a Learn to Play night going at work, but that's had to be rescheduled a few times, so these are kind of just done for the sake of it. Much as the Bot War miniatures are really nice, I have gone with some 3D prints here for some of the range that isn't as nice, or just didn't fit with what I was going for.

The mighty Dinoborgs of the Red Star Nations march to war!

The Brontoborg is a transport and mobile fortress, the model has been modified with some Battlefield Accessories ruins and some 3D printed dinosaur infantry to replace the cyborg humans of the official range.

Tricera-Borg is one of the strongest models in the army currently, fast and deadly with some of the best attacks Red Star have access to.

The Raptorborgs are a little disappointing as models, but new ones should be out pretty soon. The design is nice, but they're oddly thin and flat looking.

Superhero Media: Batman Mask of the Phantasm

Generally regarded by fans to be the best Batman film ever made, Mask of the Phantasm was put together by the Batman The Animated Series [BTAS] team, including Bruce Timm, Paul Dini and Kevin Conroy. Something of an origin story, Batman must chase down the enigmatic Phantasm, clear his own name and wrestle with his past as mobsters are killed of in revenge slayings. The mystery elements of Mask of the Phantasm are pretty basic and rather obvious, but the tone, narrative and script make the journey engaging, certainly more so than most Batman films, animated or live-action. In terms of retelling the "origin" of Batman, Mask of the Phantasm focuses on a Bruce Wayne recently returned to Gotham after having trained around the world and, as yet, unsure as to how to proceed. Meeting Andrea, a carefree heiress with a wild streak, Bruce is torn between a path of revenge and one of happiness, which comes to a head when Andrea and her father flee America to escape the wrath of the Gotham crime families. 

Spotted the murderer yet? As I said, it's pretty obvious, but the film is enjoyable nonetheless and, in moments, is positively breath-taking. The reveal of the Batman costume stuns Alfred into silence in what is a brilliant animated sequence and probably one of the best attempts to make a bat costume intimidating for an audience at home. Mostly focused on mobster villains, Mask of the Phantasm also features The Joker, of course, this version given a Jack Napier style origin which is actually pretty neat, if you're going to go and give a cypher a distinct genesis, though you really still shouldn't. Like many of these animated Batman films, the Joker feels like an unnecessary element there because he'll draw more eyeballs more than being needed for the story. This feels especially like a token cast in Mask of the Phantasm, where there are plenty of other mafia-adjacent villains (like Scarface and Tallyman) who would probably fit better. 

All-in, Mask of the Phantasm is probably the best Batman film to date, even with the limitations of animation and a short run time. The action is well-paced and exciting without needing to resort to gore and killing, one of the best scenes involving Joker beating someone with deli meat, just going to prove that "make it R rated" is not the solution to improving the live-action Batman films. As I've said for years, good stories make good films, and Mask of the Phantasm keeps the myth and pace of Batman but also injects humanity and pathos that is much-needed, and the result is practically a masterpiece. I'm not sure that I'd put Mask of the Phantasm on any list of the best superhero films ever made, as whilst it is an excellent Batman film, it doesn't tell a grander story about the human condition like Black Panther or The Incredibles, but it remains brilliant nonetheless. Sadly, Mask of the Phantasm is getting harder to find, but it does come around on Netflix every so often if you want to check it out. 

Drokk the Law!! - Part XVIII

Following on from our last entry, here are all three Kleggs painted! 

Yes, still using the Necromunda tile, that should be remedied soonish if everything goes according to plan, anyway. I'm still lukewarm on the now-defunct Warlord 2000AD line, but these Kleggs are quite nice and even the nasty siocast mold-lines don't show up too badly with Contrast paints and wetbrushing. I also got a set of Fatties that I'll get onto when I can. These models are also huge, bigger than a GW Ogryn, they tower over even my GW kitbash Punks and other more recent models, not to mention Andy's classic GW Dredd range. I like it for the visual impact, though it can make for some comical pictures of games. 

I have also finally started painting my Mercenaries with a view to eventually playing a campaign either at NWA or Across the Board. Here is an old Void civilian that I gave a new base to better suit my JDMG stuff. He can be either a Punk or Juve with handgun (armour optional) making him a 30-40 Credit Mercenary, a good basic inclusion for campaign games. The Kleggs themselves can be Mercenaries, though more in the 200 credit range, so probably not going to see the table all that often. 

Speaking of Mercenaries, until my terrain arrives, they're coming more into my focus for JDMG, as I've painted most of my gangs now and am simply expanding when I get the chance. Although most of them need painting, I can cross a few off the list I posted a few months ago;

Bat Burglar (80)
Fattie (60-100)
Futsie (10ish)
Juve (10-60)
Juve Jimp (90)
Klegg (190+)
Klegghounds (100)
Lone Vigilante (500)
Punk (~95)
Pyrokinetic (225)
Robodoc (50)
Robodog (30)
Sky Surfer (100)
Vid Reporter (25)
Agent (95-300)
Combat Droid (~500)
Gorilla Gangster (125)
Street Judge (150-300)
Chimp (50-75)
Citi-Def Soldier (100-200)
Mutant (20-110)
Wally Squad Judge (100-200)
Assassination Droid (195) 

A few of these options, like the Punks, Juves and Vigilantes, I'll make a several at different credit values just to have a variety, and this gives me expansions for existing gangs as well. So even though I've crossed them off, expect to see a few more pop up as this project progresses. There are also some Chimps, Fusties and a Sky Surfer or two on the work bench on in transit via post, but I won't be counting those until they're here and at least able to be put on a table. 

I don't want to give too much about my terrain away (though observant readers may have spotted a trash pile in the last part of this series), but I have some ideas and some kits en route, so we should see some progress soon. What I do want to do is get some 2000AD-specific imaging and references in there if I can, which at this stage is likely going to be in the form of 3D printed vehicles, graffiti and hopefully some Boing if my plans for realising it work out. Hopefully some more gangs on the way too, if I can find the models I'm looking for.