Akira: 35th Anniversary Box Set (2017)

Akira: 35th Anniversary Box Set (2017)

Author + Illustrator: Katsuhiro Otomo  |  Publisher: Kodansha | Page Count: 2530

I knew in advance that Katsuhiro Otomo's seminal six-volume AKIRA manga was 2000+ pages, in total, but I wasn't expecting Kodansha's 35th Anniversary box set to be as mammoth as it is. It's the size of a hat box and heavier than a baby!

The scale of the work deserves a review that's a lot more in depth than I've time to give — the phenomenal world-building alone is worthy of a mini dissertation — so I'll limit my words to the presentation of the physical product, pictures of which are at the end of the post. (The image to the right is edited to fit my posting template.)

I suppose that means it's partially a review of the packaging, but that's not my goal. Given the costly RRP, it's about whether I feel it's worth it or not, but opinions on value will, of course, differ.

The Dark Crystal (1982)

The Dark Crystal (1982)

Dirs. Jim Henson / Frank Oz

TDC is a tale set in an "age of wonder," populated with creatures that are bizarre, cute, and often colourful. The world is rarely at rest; flora and fauna react when something shuffles by, while things scuttle in and out of the frame often, helping the world seem alive.

A v/o narration at the film's beginning is our introduction to the land's history and of the races that populate it. The majority of the story revolves around three of them:

The gentle urRu Mystics, who are like benevolent druids with sad, dog-like faces; they live at peace with nature and appear to be accepting and respectful of its seasons.

Their antithesis is the evil Skeksis, selfish and cruel vulture-like beings that shuffle and stoop menacingly. Terrifying nightmare fuel, the Skeksis give the impression that if you were to get up close to them they'd smell of carrion and mildew (and perhaps a whiff of aristocracy). They scared the crap out of me as a kid... and I loved every minute of it.

The Tyrant King (1968)

The Tyrant King (1968)

Dir. Mike Hodges / 6 episodes, approx 24 mins each.

Adapted from a 1967 children's adventure book (The Tyrant King - A London Adventure by Aylmer Hall, a pen name of Norah Eleanor Lyle Cummins), the story follows three bored British teenagers, siblings Charlotte and Bill and their friend Peter, who overhear a shady man's phone conversation while exploring a stranger's house (aka trespassing).

Overcome with curiosity, and partial good intentions, the trio make it their business to solve the cryptic coded words of the mysterious stranger.

The tagline promises 'A Prog Rock Odyssey Through Swinging London', which is glamorous speak for what's essentially a visual tour of the city incorporated into a Children's TV show.

The New Adventures of He-Man (1990)

The New Adventures of He-Man (1990)

65 episodes, approx 23 mins each.

Jebus, it's really bad. It's not even funny-bad. It's just shit. If you find it on sale for a few notes and actually buy it, then it's the seller who got lucky, not you. I suffered the twenty best episodes as voted for by fans of the series. It's all I could bear to watch. It would be more appropriate to call them twenty of the least worst. I know because I watched most of it on TV the first time around.

New Adventures' version of He-Man is an imposter with a scaled down physique and a different Power Sword. (He isn't really an imposter, but for my own peace of mind I like to pretend that he is.) It continues the story from the original Filmation series, so you'd expect that to mean it's faithful to the character if not the design. But no, it isn't.

The first episode sets up the series: a small group of humans from a future society travel back in time to Eternia. Their mission is to convince a hero to leave his home and help protect the last humans on the planet Primus from the mutant bad guys of a neighbouring world called Denebria.

Suspiria (1977)

Suspiria (1977)

Dir. Dario Argento

Some folks don't connect with Suspiria. I can understand that same feeling with regards to certain other 'classic' films, but even if you hate Argento's film, you can't deny that it's a daring and uniquely constructed piece of visual art.

I agree that it doesn't always make sense and that at times it's little more than staged set-pieces stitched together, but what a stunning canvas they make when viewed as a whole!

Jessica Harper plays Suzy (perfect casting), an American ballet student who's in Freiburg, Germany, to attend a renowned dance academy. The competitive bitchiness of the other students is to be expected, but the mystery surrounding the den of evil that co-exists, that's hidden from plain sight, is the real focus of the story.

Many of Dir. Dario Argento's methods are unconventional. The coloured lights and filters aren't at all naturalistic but like everything else on screen — even the subtle use of flowers on a side table in a corridor — exist for one purposeful reason: to heighten the dramatic effect.

Supernatural: Season 04 (2009)

Supernatural: Season 04 (2009)

22 episodes, approx 42 mins each

There's a four month gap between the end of Season 03 and the beginning of Season 04. What happened in the intervening months?

You won't get the answer straight away, but you will eventually, so stick with it. It's just one of the mysteries that get explored in more depth as the season progresses.

The covers of each Blu-ray box set up until now have been pretty standard and similar. There was the bag of salt on Season 01, but nothing much noteworthy beyond that. The cover of Season 04, however, whether by accident or design, is a lot more interesting.

The third figure, the one positioned between the two leads but set back, as if perched on their shoulders (the right of one and the left of the other, suggesting ambiguity or unclear alliance?), whose voice would be heard as a whisper... yeah, it's probably pure coincidence, but still a pretty cool thing to ponder.

Scream! and Misty - Halloween Special (2017)

Scream! and Misty - Halloween Special (2017)

Authors: Guy Adams / Grainne McEntee / Feek / Kek-W / Hannah Berry / Alec Worley | Artists: John Stokes / Frazer Irving / Tristan Jones / Henry Flint / Simon Coleby / Warwick Fraser-Coombe / Ben Willsher / DaNi / Mike Hoffman | Page Count: 52

'His thirst for blood could be sated, but his longing for something else took hold. He wanted to be part of the hedonism, the nihilism, the dawning of another cycle in life's great illusion.'

Both Scream! and Misty have enjoyed a revived success of late, with two collected editions each (so far), so it made sense for publisher Rebellion to give us more. But what I wasn't expecting was that they'd give us NEW stories set in those worlds!

And they've been updated, set now in the current era of ubiquitous mobile phones and internet access. I can't speak with regards Misty, because I didn't read it back in the day, but the Scream! stuff works just as well despite the cultural and social sea-change since its original run (1984).

There are six stories included, two for each of the titles already mentioned, and two others that feature or bring together characters from other long-dead comics (e.g. Thunder, Buster, Speed, and Jet) that were not deemed important enough, it seems, to get a mention on the front cover and whose surprise inclusion makes it feel like we're getting less of what was advertised by the eye-catching cover art.