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My Adventures With Superman S3 Ep 9 Review

Well, this is quite the mess, you guys! Thanks to Lara and Jonathan, the children of tomorrow, and Lex, there is a MENACE to the space-time continuum now loose in the universe. Kara is in a coma, the kids have PTSD, and everything is going to hell. The one good thing is that Clark has returned to the Fortress of Solitude to try and regain his powers. The bad news? He has to go through a trial that will have him go full barbarian warrior to do so. Well, that’s not bad in and of itself, but it’s the lesson he’s supposed to learn.

Oh, and Brainiac is back.

How did it Get to this?

In the aftermath of the Eradicator’s escape into the timestream, Amanda Waller has taken charge. I didn’t touch on it before, but we got to acknowledge the fact that Waller is now willing to see the Kryptonians as allies and protectors of Earth. She’s finally learning from her mistakes. However, she’s still Amanda Waller, a no-nonsense soldier. And even though she doesn’t know where Jonathan and Lara come from, she doesn’t hesitate to draft them into her anti-Eradicator plan. Except Lois isn’t happy about that.

Lois has spent this entire season trying to come to terms with her future with Clark. She accepted that she’ll be a mom one day, and now she’s learning that she could become the kind of parent her dad was to her, and it scares her. She also makes things worse when she rightly calls Jonathan and Lara for making Luthor wake up the Eradicator before it was ready. And for Jonathan’s disrespect to her in general. He tried to shame her for not actually fighting. WHAT DOES HE EXPECT?!? Unless there’s some tech lying around that can give Lois Kryptonian powers, or some power armor, she can’t do much!

She at least has better luck with her daughter. Through Lara, Lois learns that her future self does care about her kids enough to give her a pep talk. But it’s ultimately Kara who has to talk some sense into Jonathan.

KARA! YOU’RE OKAY!

Thank heavens, Kara is not dead. She’s left in a coma for several days, and when she wakes up, Jimmy is asleep by her side. He stayed there the entire time because he cares that much. I know that their relationship has been a problem this season, and we only have one episode left. But I hope they become an item in that time. And if we get a fourth season, I would love to see them act like a couple.

So, Kara finds Jonathan moping on the Moon, angsty about how he can’t live up to his dad’s reputation. So Kara tells him the truth: he’s not perfect. Everyone sees him like that because he never gives up. So Jonathan reconciles with his family and agrees to help. But, honestly? I don’t really like this version of Jon that much. I get why he is the way he is, but his personality gets a little grating. Hopefully, when Lois and Clark do have kids, they’ll have a better life.

So, everyone comes together to fight the Eradicator. The Kryptonians, Steel, Slade and the other agents of Task Force X. Even Luthor.

Yeah, when Luthor tries to duck and hide like a coward, Jimmy calls him out on it. He was the one who set Lex on his current path, and he is so disappointed in how he’s turned out. Especially since he’s seen that Lex can be a hero for himself. So he tells him to either shape up and be a hero, or just admit that he’s the bad guy. And it works!

But where does this leave Kal-El the Barbarian?

Kal-El the Barbarian

So, as many of us probably guessed, Brainiac is technically not dead. The version we met in season two is dead, but the version that helped run Krypton remains active in the Fortress of Solitude. And he is unimpressed with how Clark lost his powers and seeks to teach him a lesson on strength. Thus, to get his powers back, Kal-El has to relive Krypton’s ancient history and the start of their Empire. He has to be a barbarian conqueror.

From the second I heard what Brainiac was telling Clark, I saw the red flags. It’s obvious that that ship of invaders was just people who crash-landed. The Kryptonians told themselves that lie to justify their tyranny. And despite Brainiac trying to force him to give in to Krypton’s past, Clark isn’t playing his game. He stays true to himself, choosing to befriend the aliens and help them, because that is what real strength is like.

And Brainiac just loses it as we get the big twist. It turns out, Brainiac was one of those stranded aliens, forced to serve the Kryptonians until the day their empire collapsed while being converted into an AI. And he’s justifying the entire thing like it was right for Clark’s ancestors to do that! This was some insane levels of Stockholm Syndrome at work, and it made me sick to my stomach. How broken do you have to be to justify your terrible lot in life like that?!? Even worse, Brainiac takes Clark’s sympathy for the Coluans fate as an insult! He cannot compute the fact that things could’ve been different, and so tries to kill Clark. Thankfully, Bizarro is able to save him, but…what now?

Oh, no! He’s Voiced by Steve Blum!

The Eradicator returns from the timestream, and now looks like an anime version of General Zod, more dangerous than ever. We only have one episode left of the season, and possibly the series, and we have no clue how Kal-El can get his powers back, let alone stop the Eradicator! Can we please get a happy ending for the final episode? Please!?!

Hopes aside, I liked the barbarian aspect of this episode and I hope that we get more seasons of the show. That, and I think Lois would love the outfit!

I Give “Vae Victis” a 4.5/5

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My Adventures With Superman, S3 Ep 8 Review

So, the second we saw what the future looked like in “The Death of Superman,” we knew we were in for more time-travel shenanigans. Cyborg Superman may have been stopped, but that only led to an even worse future where Lex Luthor ruins everything. Granted, Lex Luthor tends to do that a lot, but this future is even more messed up. Not only does another version of Jon come back to the past with a sister, but they were there to basically…pull a Terminator. And…I think it may have cost everyone everything.

There’s two of them now?

Picking up right where we left off, Clark and Lois are stunned, not only by the apparent return of their son, Jon, but the fact that he is not alone. He now has a sister. In most iterations where Clark and Lois marry, they tend to only have the one son, so having a daughter is a big surprise. At any rate, her name is Lara Lane, emphasis on Lane being her and Jonathan’s last name.

The Kids were asked to Re-enact Terminator?

Right off the bat, the show confirms what many of us were afraid of: that by stopping Hank Henshaw and altering the future, Clark and the others overwrote it with an entirely different future. And, depending on whether multiverse theory is in effect for time travel here, that means the Jon Kent we came to know no longer exists. That alone is enough to scare Clark and Lois, but it’s nothing compared to how their kids are. Firstly, this other Jon goes by Jonathan and acts like he’s a 90s anti-hero, abrasive attitude and all. Even worse, though, is why they came back in time in the first place: to kill Lex Luthor. They were ordered by General Lane to go back and pull a Terminator on Lex Luthor. The scariest part, though, is that the “General Lane” in question is future Lois. She sent her own kids back in time to go Terminator on Luthor.

This revelation naturally has Lois shaken. She had just learned that she could turn out like her dad in the last episode. Now, a future version of her did turn out like that. For someone who’s just come to terms with the future, that is a scary prospect. And that’s not including the fact that her future self sent them back in time to kill Luthor.

The reason why Luthor is now marked for death is simple: he didn’t learn his lesson with Cyborg Superman. Instead, he’s decided to double-down on creating a Superman clone by creating an even bigger, badder, and meaner one called the Eradicator. In this bad future, he uses them to conquer the world. However, in an ironic twist, the siblings mission may not have even been necessary. In strolls Amanda Waller, who’s apparently no longer a fugitive and working for the Government again. Except this time, she’s actually learned her lesson about Superman being a good guy. Thus, she tells Luthor she’s shutting his project down, as well as Lexcorp.

Part of me wants to feel sorry for Lex in this scenario. All he wants to do is prove himself to the world, but he keeps being the worst version of himself. He’s the architect of his own undoing, hence why it’s ironic future Lois sent her kids back in time to kill him. All that manages to do is make Lex panic and wake up the first Eradicator before he can establish control over it.

What happens next feels like a nightmare.

Is this DOOMSDAY?!?

In keeping with MAWS Dragon Ball inspiration, this version of the Eradicator feels like an expy of Cell mixed with Doomsday. He’s smart, can regenerate at an alarming rate, and is just plain stronger than the Kryptonians. Lara and Jonathan are barely able to hang on in their fight against it, forcing Kara to step in. But not even she, a full-blooded Kryptonian with years of combat experience, is able to put a dent in the Eradicator. And then we get that moment where she recreates that iconic scene where Piccolo takes a ki blast to protect Gohan!

She doesn’t wake up after that. There is the very real chance that Kara may have just been killed, and that almost left me in tears! She and Jimmy were starting to patch things up, with Kara reiterating how she wanted to be more than friends. I haven’t liked how the show has handled their relationship this season, but now? Now it may never happen since Kara might be dead. And to make matters worse, the Eradicator steal’s Jonathan’s Time-Band thing and escapes into the timestream. In other words, there is a monster capable of causing castrophic damage to history loose in the space-time continuum! All because future Lois wanted her kids to pull a Terminator!

Ultimately, seeing what happens to his family proves to be the last straw. Clark needs to get his powers back to stop this madness! Which means he has to return to the Fortress of Solitude to do so.

No Terminator, You Guys! It Never Works!

This was a very dark episode, you guys. Brainiac invading the Earth was one thing, but now we have someone who could destroy history altogether on the loose. Which means that Clark is going to have to become Superman ASAP to stop this. That, and he needs to make sure his future kids don’t turn out like what they are now. No Terminator!

I Give “It’s Reigning (Super)Men!” a 4.5/5

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Rick and Morty S9 Ep 10 Review

I didn’t really watch this episode of Rick and Morty. There, I came out and said it. Maybe it was because I was too busy with other things, or because I found the ending to be way too depressing for me to handle, but it was just too hard for me to watch. Though it also could’ve been because I accidentally spoiled the ending for myself, and I got the gist of what happened. The fact is that this was a lot for me to handle, and for good reason. When Morty gets the chance to see what a normal, loving family feels like, it’s him, not Rick, that ends up destroying it.

Morty Pulls a Tom Sawyer

It all starts when Morty goes to an estate sale for a dead Smith family. That’s where he learns from another Morty about funeral hopping: going to the funerals of alternate versions of himself to see how much his family loves him. He even gets a mini Portal Gun to do so! And for a while, it works great! But then he stumbles upon a version of the Smith family where Rick never invented portal travel, and distanced himself from the family.

At first, Morty is thrilled by this. He’s found the one version of his family that is loving and non-toxic. But then it goes too far, when Good Jerry tries to keep him from going home. That’s when he realizes that his alternate self was emotionally abused until he wound up either dying in an accident or chose to die.

The Smith Family Dies

Again, I couldn’t bring myself to watch this whole episode, but I got to admit that this was kind of brillaint. We’ve probably wondered what it would’ve  been like if Morty’s family chose to be good from the get-go, but as it turns out, an assertive Jerry may not be the best thing. And to make matters worse, our Morty ends up being what destroys this version of his family.

Morty is so desperate to get him that he enlists the aid of Good Rick, who left behind all his negative qualities and became a successful professor at MIT. But because Morty pushes him into inventing portal traveling, he becomes the alcoholic we know, even losing his new wife in the process. And in the end, it’s all for naught, as the entire family gets killed in the process.

And this is why I had such a hard time watching this episode. I have gotten used to how cynical the show is, and have done my best to make myself immune to it. But this? Seeing how Morty can be just as toxic as Rick? This is too much for me, man! It’s a great episode, but it’s just not my cup of tea.

The one good thing to come out of this ordeal is that Morty now knows that what he has is the best he’s going to get. He had a taste of what a normal family would be like, and it sucked for him. Like it or not, he and Rick are made for each other. And despite both having their problems, they have gotten better over the years. That being said, I don’t know if I will be reviewing any further seasons after this. Maybe I just want to enjoy the ride from now on, like with President Curtis. By the way, you should definitely watch that spin-off. It feels like the second coming of Inside Job.

I Give “Field of Dreams” a 4/5

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My Adventures With Superman S3 Ep 7 Review

So, where were we? Ah yes: Clark is having an existential crisis now that he’s lost his superpowers. Jimmy is in hot water with Kara for how badly he’s treated her all season. And before they can talk things out, they’re all abducted by Mr. Mxyzptlk for another one of his crazy schemes. And the entire gang is in swimsuits this episode.

This is going to be both fun and annoying!

Mr. Mxy is at it again!

So, after getting kidnapped by Mr. Mxy and changed into beach attire, the gang finds themselves in another dimension. The reason why is because he’s getting divorced from his wife, Glitzy! And according to him, their divorce proceedings are settled by a series of platformer-style games. Clark, Lois, Kara, and Jimmy play for Mxy, while alternate versions of Kara, Lois, Jimmy, and LEX play for Glitzy.

Now, the whole reason Mxy chose them, besides simply trolling, is that he thought Clark still had his powers. But for all his power, he didn’t know that Clark lost his, much to his dismay. And my amusement! All that power and he still doesn’t know that!

I don’t why exactly, but I like impish and chaotic characters like Mxy. Maybe it’s because I have a troublemaking streak of my own, or because they don’t care about the rules of reality, but they’re so entertaining to watch. But that doesn’t blind me to the fact that they are also super sus, and given our past experiences with this version of Mxy, I was on my guard. Especially when we saw what his wife looks like. I prefer personality over looks, but I think the best of both worlds can be ideal if necessary. Plus, Glitzy does seem like plenty of fun.

The Alternate Gang was Cool, I guess

In any event, I wouldn’t call this episode filler. There doesn’t seem to be any filler in this series, with every episode moving the plot forward a little bit. More importantly, seeing our heroes interact with their alternate counterparts is eye-opening at what their lives could look like. Given how the whole theme of this season is what the future can bring, it’s a source of great distress for them.

Firstly, we have Lois and her counterpart, General Lois Lane. It seems that in her timeline, things panned out similarly to what we’ve seen so far, with Clark eventually losing his powers. She, Jimmy, and Kara could handle that. But then, Clark died when Earth was invaded by enemies that, while I didn’t recognize them, I think the fandom should be worried about. Losing her lover led Lois to become just like her father: a cold-hearted soldier who hides their grief by throwing themselves into their job. It goes to show us that Lois always had it in her to be like.

Kara seems to be no better. Losing her cousin seems to have made her slide back into who she was serving under Brainiac, making our Kara fear the worst for herself. And alternate Jimmy? He became a tokukatsu-style superhero called Flamebird and is acting like everything is fine, but it’s isn’t. He’s just in denial about losing his best friend and, while he doesn’t say it, he never fully mended things with Kara.

The most interesting interaction, though, was between Clark and Alternate Luthor. Like in Jon Kent’s future, Superman’s death made him realize how pointless his hatred for him was. This is pretty telling, by the way. That makes it two times now that we’ve seen a Lex become capable of being a good person. It shows that it is possible for Lex to change, which only makes seeing our Lex fall down the rabbit hole of villainy all the more disappointing.

There is no One True Path

Ultimately, the contest comes down to the groups being forced to find their “one, true path” to the future. Lois and Clark stumble, and so do Jimmy and Kara. But then Jimmy, bless his heart, has a moment of emotional intelligence and apologizes to Kara for being an ass and promising to change. And then, it all clicks for her. The future is always changing and never set in stone. It is within their power to decide who they want to be! And that helps all of them stop worrying about who they are or what they might become.

For a moment, a part of me thought that this was all part of one big lesson that Mxy had for our heroes, but that would require him actually caring. He doesn’t, and neither does his wife.

In a twist that, I’ll be honest, part of me expected since it’s Mxy, the imps weren’t getting divorced. This was just them role playing for date night. And they were just using everyone to get access to the Cosmic Anvil, said to be capable of rewriting reality. They try to bribe everyone with the promise of changing their universes to whatever they want, but Clark is smart enough to not play their game. Instead, he lets the clock run out, meaning that no one wins.

Also, it led us to get this scene where Lex finally figures out that Clark Kent is Superman. The self-proclaimed smartest man ever, and he couldn’t figure that out. At least he had enough humility to take it with grace.

Keep Moving Forward

I know that this episode is going to feel a little like filler to some people, but in a show this tight-knit, filler isn’t really a thing. The whole point of the episode is having the gang get over their problems. Clark finally realizes that his powers don’t define him; Kara realizes that she can choose not to be what Brainiac wanted her to be; Lois learned to not fear the future as much. And Jimmy realized how much of a bonehead he’d been to Kara. But he’s going to have a lot of work to do if he wants to make things right.

Of course, the episode ends with us getting another curveball, as either Jon or another version of Jon appears before them. And there’s a girl with him that I’m pretty sure is his sister.

The future is still not safe!

I Give “The Ex-Games” a 4/5

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One Piece Chapter 1189 Review/Recap

The more that this fight against Imu continues to drag on, the more we see why he was able to become King of the World. We’ve already managed to see just how absurdly powerful his Devil Fruit is, but lately, there’s one aspect of it that fans have been focusing on: the weapon wheel. In a video game, the weapon wheel is a common mechanic meant to allow players to access a number of different weapons, skills, and gadgets. It’s supposed to be a convenient magic satchel to justify them carrying around so much stuff at once. Now, I don’t know if this is actually a part of his Devil Fruit or some other power, but this chapter pretty much confirms that Imu has some kind of weapon wheel to work with. But that’s not the scary part; the scary part is where he’s getting the weapons from.

Recap

After getting run through by Imu’s spear, Luffy is then impaled onto a tree, as his crew starts to notice that something is wrong. As they look after Loki, Hadrujin and Gerd show up, with the latter beginning to treat his injuries, having been sent there by Jarul with a warning about how this attack has been in the works for a long time. That prompts Loki to reveal more about what happened years ago.

When Loki told Jarul, Shanks, and Gaban how he wanted to avenge his father, Shanks tried to stop him. He knew that Loki couldn’t take on the entire World Government by himself, prompting him to tell them about the King of the World, Imu. He even points out how Rocks was able to make it to Imu, but couldn’t defeat him, but Loki didn’t listen. And in the end, Shanks was right. He couldn’t even get close to Imu.

The others are floored by this revelation about the world having a king above the Five Elders, but Loki sees this as an opportunity. If Imu has come out to play, they have a chance to cut the head off the snake; even Hajrudin is all for it! However, they’re a little distracted by Brook looking after Shuri despite Ragnir’s protests, and Robin wants Chopper to come with her to the Owl Library.

Meanwhile, Imu is basically playing with his food. He’s trying to see how many slashes Luffy can endure before finally dying, all while insulting him and his older brothers for being such a nuisance as he keeps summoning the weapons of the 19 Kings. Even Sommers and Qillingham are able to summon them as they continue to battle Zoro and Sanji. Right as Imu is about to deliver the killing blow, though, Gaban comes in clutch, blocking the attack and saving Luffy’s life!

HOLY S***!

Review

Well, it looks like the cat is finally out of the bag. The Straw Hat’s may not entirely know who Imu is, but at least they know what he is. I’m not surprised that this happened, though. From the moment Imu was introduced to the story, I knew it was only a matter of time before the Straw Hat Pirates learned about his existence. It’s kind of necessary since Imu is in the running for the main, overarching antagonist of One Piece alongside Blackbeard. Still, it’s a big moment, since our protagonists now have an idea about who they’re fighting. And…Loki does have a point. They have a chance to take him down. Or at least really, really hurt him. He more than deserves it considering all the pain he’s caused.

Not that knowing is going to do them much good with the hacks that Imu has with that weapon wheel.

I will be honest: the fact that Imu had some kind of RPG-style weapon wheel never crossed my mind until I saw other fans bringing it up. Though, given how so many of Imu’s powers seem to break the rules of the series as it is, it makes a lot of sense. What worries me the most, though, is that these weapons are all explicitly confirmed to be the same ones from Imu’s throne room. I thought that those things were just for decoration; I wasn’t expecting them to still be usable after 800 years! Then there’s the names they have. It wasn’t until I heard Killingham drop the name “Longinus” that I realized they were all the names of legendary weapons or people associated with them. The Longinus Spear alone, AKA the Spear of Destiny, is said to be the weapon that pierced the body of Christ to check if he was dead. If these weapons are anything like their real-world myths, then they’re dangerous!

So, this is the power of the one who calls himself the King of the World. No wonder Imu has been able to rule from the shadows for 800 years, and why the Roger Pirates kept quiet about it. Gaban and the others likely learned about Imu’s existence when they reached Laugh Tale, but since they couldn’t do anything about it, they kept their mouths shut. It’s pretty telling that when Shanks told Loki about Imu, Gaban was notably worried. But I don’t think that Imu will be able to keep himself a secret for much longer. Even if the Straw Hats don’t tell anyone about him, the Giants will almost undoubtedly declare war on the World Government for this attack as well as the death of Harald. Which means that the very thing Imu sought to prevent will come to pass as the Giants will take Luffy’s side in the final war. First, though, they have to survive! Hopefully, the two-week wait will make the next chapter worth it!

I Give “King of the World” a 4/5

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Rick and Morty S9 Ep 9 Review

You know those episodes of shows where the parents get fed up with what their kids are doing, so they send them away to a camp? Man, I hate those episodes. It just feels like bad parenting to pawn it off on someone else, even if it can help them learn a lesson. But this is Rick and Morty, so you know that camp was going to go sideways for them. But on the plus side, we got to see the adults of the Smith family get baked out of their minds, and it was hilarious!

So Much for Reform Camp

Lately, Morty and Summer have been getting full of themselves thanks to the stuff they have access to thanks to Rick, and it’s getting them in trouble in school. When they finally push their luck too much by crossing Rick himself, though, he decides to put his foot down. After getting them un-expelled from school, he ships them off to this camp that’s supposed to bring entitled and wealthy brats into line. It looks as though the Smith kids are going to be dealing with this military boot camp or a scared straight program, but then the show immediately pulls the rug out. It turns out, the campers at the place Rick sent Morty and Summer had overthrown and killed the counselors years ago. Now they’re just using it as a place to revel in drugs and alcohol.

Thank heavens that the whole thing was just a setup for joke! Like I said before, I hate storylines where the kid gets sent to a camp to help them against their will. Either it turns out to be a waste of time because it doesn’t work, or it works too well and will alter the kids personality to the point it’s unrecognizable. And then everyone else has to work to change them back to normal. Either way, I hated it as a kid, I hate it now, and I’m glad it gets zig-zagged by the show as Morty and Summer quickly tire of the constant rager life at camp. Unfortunately, their attempts to leave are thwarted by the fact their parents and grandpa are completely baked.

Beth and Jerry are so high, they can barely see

So, as soon as the kids are gone, Beth and Jerry stupidly decide to go through Summer’s drug stash and huff something called “High Forever.” The next thing we know, they look like they’ve got Spice Addiction with their eyes all blue, and they are completely baked. They’re acting goofier than a little kid, they forget how stairs work, and they’re just complete idiots! It was hilarious to watch! And when their attempts to cure themselves fall flat, Rick shows up just as high as them!

I loved this entire part of the episode, to be honest. It just shows how much of a hypocrite the adults on the show are. Morty and Summer even say that this is why they act out in the first place. The adults in their lives are so useless that they had to get this smart to get by! And I see their point, too. Rick barely does anything to help them get out of their mess, and when the adults in the nearby town hear about the camp being without guidance, they try to hold everyone for ransom. So, Morty and Summer have to rally the campers into taking back the camp and save their parents after they get taken hostage.

Screw the camp! ANARCHY!!

In the end, the whole camp was completely useless and didn’t do anything. It’s Morty and Summer seeing their parents high on the drugs that Space Beth gave them that makes them decide to chill out. Yes, Space Beth shows up and proves to be the only responsible adult in the room by taking everyone home. Which is why she is the cool mom!

This episode was just so stupid, you guys! If it wasn’t so late at night when I was watching it, I would have been laughing my ass off at the entire thing. It also makes me happy that I never had to go to an actual summer camp growing up. No offense, but I wouldn’t have survived without my TV and video games!  

I Give “Salute Your Morts” a 4/5

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One Piece Chapter 1188 Review/Recap

This is it, the moment we’ve been waiting for: Luffy vs Imu! The second coming of Joy Boy vs the Devil who rules the world from the shadows! Ever since we learned about his existence, I have been waiting for the day where Luffy beats the monster responsible for much of the suffering in the world into the ground. However, I’m not an idiot. I know how things tend to play out in Shonen manga, and that Luffy is fighting an uphill battle against an opponent that’s far stronger than him. What that means is that this chapter is basically a repeat of Luffy’s infamous first bout against Crocodile all the way back in Alabasta, complete with the same outcome.

Recap

As Imu seems to remember the day that he first met Joy Boy, he acknowledges that that man is long dead. However, he still insists that Luffy is stirring up those old memories of his as the two begin their battle. The two begin to trade blows as they unleash the full extent of their powers, with Imu blocking all of Luffy’s hits, while Luffy dodges Imu’s in the most comedic fashion possible. Then, Luffy turns into a giant Genie and says he’s not going to let Loki die for nothing!

FYI, Loki is still alive, and while Brook and the others are looking after Shuri, Jinbei is protecting him and Ragnir, much to the squirrel’s joy. As the king of the world and embodiment of freedom continue to clash, Imu unleashes a technique called the Wailing Sword. This weapon apparently drains the life out of the trees, robbing Luffy of his ability to hide while also powering up Imu. As a result, Imu is able to gain the upper hand on Luffy, who he says that Joy Boy would be nowhere near as weak as him as he proceeds to impale him on his sword!!

Review

Oh, crud. This is bad, you guys. Really, really bad. The last time I saw Luffy in this rough a shape was in the fight with Kaido. But I think that a more appropriate comparison might be to Luffy’s first fight with Crocodile back in Alabasta. As someone on YouTube pointed out, this fight pretty much mirrors how that battle went down. Luffy was going all out on the silliness in an attempt to gain the upper hand, only to get absolutely pulverized by his opponent. The impalement only makes things worse.

Now, I knew that Luffy was going to be fighting an uphill battle against Imu, and he was probably going to get his ass beaten pretty badly at first. However, I didn’t think that the gap between them would be this wide! What makes things worse is that Luffy doesn’t have the time he needs to come up with a clever plan to one-up Imu. If he’s going to want to win, then he needs to push himself harder than ever. He’s strong, but by Imu’s own admission, he’s not yet at the same level as Joy Boy. That has led many fans to speculate that Luffy will get another power-up in the near future in the form of another Gear, or he will perfect Gear Five even further in order to win.

Now, I know a lot of people are freaking out and worrying that all hope is lost. However, I am not too worried. Do you know how many times we’ve seen Luffy get his ass handed to him over the course of the series? A lot. He’s not going to die that easily, and we all know it. So until I see his heart stop beating, I won’t even entertain the idea that Luffy might be dead, and neither should anyone else. We may have to wait two weeks to see how things turn out, but Luffy isn’t going to die that easily. Have some faith, people!

I Give “Wailing Void” a 4/5

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One Piece Chapter 1187 Review/Recap

On the last piece of One Piece, Brook finished telling th Straw Hats about how Shuri was brainwashed by Imu and helped destroy Esperia. Meanwhile, Loki continued to do battle with Imu, but it was clear that the Giant was in a losing battle. Fortunately, Luffy had finished eating everything at the Walrus School to recover his strength. With Straw Hat back at full power, he jumped in and gave Imu one of the most satisfying of punches in the entire series! Luffy is about to whip somebody’s ass! HARD!

Recap

Imu was caught off guard by Luffy’s surprise attack, but he doesn’t let that stop him for long. He summons these black flames onto Loki’s body near his previous injury, and then he turns them into a sword that runs him through! Loki is sent flying all the way back to Brook’s group, and Ragnir ends up hitting the ice block holding Shuri, prompting it to melt. Imu tries the same thing with Luffy, but he dodges it.

Meanwhile, Zoro and Sanji are currently confronting Sommers and Qillingham, respectively. Sommers says that they’re too awesome to be beaten right now and they’re going to take the Giant kids with them, but Zoro boasts that Qillingham won’t be making it out alive. As for Sanji, he won’t hit a fake monster woman, but he’s smart enough to know that Qillingham is the real target. And that his weakness is Conquerer’s Haki, something he has the potential to unlock. But to do so, he has to become a King himself if he wants to make Luffy THE King.

And Luffy? He’s standing face to face with Imu in Gear Five, who calls him Joy Boy, who responds by telling him not to call him whatever he wants. He’s Luffy, the man who’s gonna be the King of the Pirates!

Review

It should be pretty clear to us by now, but I’m going to say it anyway: we are near the climax of the Elbaph Arc. The fact that we are about to see the Monster Trio face off with the strongest enemies of the arc is proof of that. And judging by just how locked in they are, I think that we are about to see them whip the bad guys’ asses! But for now, let’s go over the state everyone is in.

I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t disappointed that Loki might be out of the fight. Given how strong he is, I wanted to see him and Luffy tag-team Imu to run the tyrant out of Elbaph for good. Yet, it also makes sense when you think about it. He was already beaten up by Shuri and Shamrock earlier, and I doubt he had enough time to get to full strength. Add in everything he’s done since then, and he must be exhausted beyond belief. However, that doesn’t make him weak. If anything, the fact that he’s held his own for so long shows just how strong he is. Plus, Ragnir did manage to melt the ice trapping Shuri.

At this point, I’m calling Shuri a wildcard in the fights to come. There is the risk that she could still be under Imu’s mind control, but I don’t think that will be the case. Imu was already losing control of her when Brook got to her, and that was before he decided to show up on Elbaph. He might be able to power up Sommers and Killingham, but I think he’ll be too focused on Luffy to notice. If Brook can get through to her, she could be the deciding factor in defeating Imu and the God’s Knights.

Sommers and Qillingham are gonna Die

Speaking of the God’s Knights, they are screwed. Zoro and Sanji are the two strongest members of the Straw Hats after their captain, the former already has Conquerer’s Haki while the latter’s almost certainly about to unlock it. The question is, how does Sanji do that? Based on what Gaban said and what we’ve seen of other users, I think that means casting away any doubts and uncertainties someone may have and having total faith in their abilities. I’m guessing this because, looking back on the manga, one trait most characters with Conquerer’s Haki all share is a supreme confidence in who they are and what they want to do. I’m guessing that, in Oda’s eyes, that is what being a King is meant to be about.

Luffy is gonna whip Imu’s Ass!

And now we get to the moment we’ve all been waiting for: Luffy vs Imu. From the moment that Oda introduced him to the story, I think we all knew that Luffy was going to fight Imu one day. As the demon who rules the world from the shadows, he’s responsible for much of the pain and suffering the World Government has inflicted on the cast throughout the series. If not directly, then indirectly by enabling people to be the worst versions of themselves. Not only that, he’s the ancient enemy of Joy Boy, the one whose will Luffy has taken up. And while part of me wishes that Luffy knew how important that is, I think it’s more fitting that he doesn’t. He’s not trying to be Joy Boy or Nika or continue their story, but to tell his own story, hence why he tells people that he’s Luffy. Which, ironically, might be the reason why his Devil Fruit chose him to have Joy Boy’s powers!

Either way, this is beyond exciting for One Piece fans! The kind of excitement that you only get in a Shonen series when the main protagonist is about to fight the big villain that has been built up for years. Like when Goku was about to fight Frieza on Namek! And I have full confidence that Luffy is going to whip Imu’s ass all the way back to Mariejois, no matter what the fans might say! I can’t wait for the next chapter to see what will hopefully be one of the most important battles of the entire series!

“The Root of the Problem” a 4/5

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One Piece Chapter 1186 Review/Recap

Ever since we learned from Brook that “Gunko” the God Knight was actually a princess he knew from his life before he became a pirate, fans have been trying to understand why. Why would Imu go out of his way to turn some random princess into one of his most dangerous minions? Why brainwash her into forgetting who she really was? I’ve been wracking my brain this whole flashback, and I still can’t understand it. At this point, though, does it even matter? It’s just another example in an incredibly long list of atrocities that Imu needs to answer for. And come hell or high water, Luffy and Loki are going to make him pay!

Recap

In the past, Brook was left in complete shock at the sight of a demonic Shuri cutting down King Leuven. He tries to revive his adoptive big brother, but it’s already too late. Outraged, Brook demands to know what the stranger, Manmayer Groh, did to Shuri, only for Shuri to reveal that Leuven wasn’t her biological father. She says that she’s actually a Celestial Dragon by birth and that this war was started because Leuven refused to hand her over. Brook is so in shock that he doesn’t even try to fight back as Shuri runs her sword through his skull.

Miraculously, Brook survived this injury, having been saved by the few guards left. Shuri had already boarded a WG ship, and most of the citizens of Esperia had fled. The country had fallen.

Back in the present, Brook admits he thought he had hallucinated everything like a nightmare. However, if it were real, and after everything they’ve learned, he asks his crew if they can help him save Shuri. The others don’t hesitate to lend their support as they try to come up with a plan to free Shuri from the ice.

Elsewhere, Loki and Imu continue their battle as the demon goes on a monologue, saying how the Giants bent the knee in the Void Century to save their kids and history is just repeating itself. Before he can go any further, though, they’re interrupted. Luffy just finished recharging from all the food he ate, he has no clue who Imu is, and probably doesn’t care. He just charges in and tells Imu to get out of Elbaph before landing a devastating punch to his face!!!

Review

The following clip represents my reaction to that final panel of the chapter:

OH, THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL! I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR YEARS FOR LUFFY TO DO THAT TO IMU! And the spoilers were right; that was exactly like the iconic moment that Luffy punched Charloss at Sabaody! To this day, that remains one of my all-time favorite moments in any work of fiction. The moment when Luffy showed us he was willing to defy the so-called gods of his world to do what he thinks is right. Is it any wonder why people started using his flags at protests?

All fanboying aside, though, I now get why Brook had such a strong reaction to seeing Shuri again. The man was so traumatized by what he saw that he had to convince himself he had imagined it just to stay sane. I don’t blame him, either. Seeing the first person who ever cared about you dead at the hands of the girl you think is their daughter would break anyone. Not to mention Shuri’s claims about Leuven not being her real dad, and that she was actually a Celestial Dragon. The only way that could be true is if she had been fathered by one of them when Candelle visited Mariejois (I can’t remember when that was, though.) And the worst part? I don’t think that it was a lie.

We already know from the stories of Bonney, Shanks, and Shamrock that the Celestial Dragons are not above fathering kids with people from the lower world, regardless of the willingness of the other parent. I wouldn’t put it past them to have forcibly gotten Candelle pregnant, which is disgusting in itself. However, we should take everything Shuri said with a massive grain of salt. She was clearly under Imu’s Domi Reversi while she said this, and that technique is known to bring out a person’s dark side and make them say things they don’t actually believe. And Brook himself points out that even if she wasn’t related to Leuven, he still raised her as his daughter. Remember, one of the big themes about One Piece is that sometimes, the family you choose is more important than your actual family. Especially when your actual family is scum.

Regardless of whether or not what Shuri said is true, it feels pretty obvious that she was just saying what Imu wanted her to say. She has spent all these decades being a prisoner trapped inside her own body, likely unable to even think of rebelling against the master who took everything from her. It might be even worse if she was aware on some level of what was happening to her, as she couldn’t do anything about it. I don’t know why Imu wanted her, but something tells me that saving her from his control might be the key to driving Imu away from Elbaph. As much as I hate to admit it, Luffy and Loki are going to need help if they want to stop Imu from enslaving the land of the Giants. Plus, having Shuri defy Imu would make for one hell of a middle finger to the being who has been responsible for much of the pain and suffering the world has had to endure for all these centuries.

LUFFY! LOKI! KICK IMU’S ASS!!

I Give “Once More” a 4/5

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My Adventures With Superman S3 Ep 3 Review

Jimmy Olsen, my brother in nerdom, why must you disappoint me like this?

So, if you saw the last episode of MAWS, then you know that Jimmy managed to have a fumble of near-biblical proportions. Kara straight-up asked him to date her, and he turns her down. He says that she needs to expand her horizons and experience more before finding that special someone. And then he gets jealous when every man, woman, and child is lining up to date her! And it only gets worse in this episode as Jimmy shows he’s jealous by trying not to look jealous by going to a matchmaking company. Meanwhile, Lois is having a panic about the future, and it looks like Hank Henshaw is set on his path to becoming the show’s version of Homelander.

Really, Dating Apps?

So, after Jimmy dropped the ball with Kara by convincing her to date everyone that isn’t him (half of Metropolis), he’s not taking it well. He’s determined to make Kara just as jealous as he feels by going to this new, scientifically backed matchmaking service, W.O.R.M.S., that just started. And Lois just spoke for me with how disappointed she was in him! And frustrated!

This is one of the goofier episodes of the series, no doubt about it. Which, knowing what this series is like, can only mean one thing: something bad is coming. I’m not just being paranoid, either. The first season had Lois figure out that Clark was Superman at the end of episode 4. Last season had Kara arrive on Earth in episode 5. I’m telling you, there is going to be some kind of drama or threat that’s going to take place in the next episode or two. And the ending of the episode only seems to make that more obvious, but more on that. We first need to talk about Lois and Kara’s day out.

So, after telling Kara about what Jimmy is doing, Lois learns firsthand that his attempts to make Kara jealous are doomed to failure. Kara openly shows her self-confidence by calling herself “as strong as she is beautiful.” I have to respect that level of self-esteem! But Lois manages to find an opening when Kara sees it as a competition and decides to “win” and make Jimmy her boyfriend. Which also means that Kara was only taking Jimmy’s advice because she still wants him.

I dont know if I should take this seriously or not, but I like seeing this kind of romantic drama unfold for the laughs! This show really knows how to lean into the absurd comedy, and I thank it for wearing its anime influences on its sleeves like it is.

Lois Would be a Great Mom

So, Lois spends the day helping Kara set up a dating profile by going out into the city, and it somehow leads to them having a musical duet about their thoughts on the future. Admittedly, I skipped it, but I got the gist: Kara is excited about the promise of the future now that she can decide it. But Lois? She has spent the last three episodes listening to Clark come up with plans for their future. He even has a model of the farm he wants to buy for the two of them, with a baby crib to boot! And Lois is freaking out about it!

I totally understand why Lois is reacting this way. She’s still a young adult in her twenties, she’s finally feeling successful in her life. She doesn’t want this stage of her life with the adventures to end. And she’s worried that settling down and having a family will change that. That, and while it doesn’t say it, I think she’s worried that she might be a good parent or wife since she didn’t have a stable life growing up.

I wholeheartedly disagree. I’ve seen many variants of Lois, and even after getting married, she is still every bit as badass as ever. If anything, she’d be the super cool mom that every kid would want to have. I just really hope that she sees that for herself by the end of the season, because I don’t want to wait.

Jimmy, Why do you think like this?

Meanwhile, Jimmy’s time at W.O.R.M.S. is a disaster. It turns out that his date is the supervillainess Giganta. And she’s been using this chemical perfume to transform people in a quest to find love, and kidnaps Jimmy. So Superman has to save him with help of the girls who run the company. It’s all incredibly silly and it ends on an equally silly note as Superman doesn’t want anything to do with the dating app. Jimmy, on the other hand, doesn’t learn his lesson.

It looks like it will be a while before Jimmy finally sees sense and accepts that he’s good enough for Kara. The problem is that this might end up interfering with a new threat on the horizon.

Cyborg Superman is Really Channeling Homelander

So, amidst everything that’s happening, Hank Henshaw is trying to show he can be a superhero like Superman. However, I think the showwriters must have asked Jack Quaid about his time on The Boys, because Henshaw was really channeling Homelander this episode. Firstly, when he stops a thief from stealing a purse, he slams them into a metal pole, and from the looks of things, he might have broken their spine. For stealing a purse. It’s enough to make people afraid of him, which is the opposite of what Lex wants.

It gets worse. When Intergang robs Lexcorp, Hank zeroes in on Siobhan and starts brutalizing her trying to get what she stole back. And keep in mind that the Intergang in this series is pretty harmless in terms of being supervillains. Heck, Superman is on a first-name basis with Silver Banshee and gets her to return everything like a parent scolding a kid. But Hank? He tries to kill her because she knocked off part of his outer shell, revealing the cyborg he really is underneath. It takes Deathstroke intervening to get him to stand down.

If Cyborg Superman wasn’t already channeling Homelander at this point, then the next scene cements it when Lex reveals he has the man’s cybernetics under his control. And if The Boys taught me anything, it’s that you can’t keep someone like Hank Henshaw under control forever. He’s going to break free and likely become the monster we see in the comics. Actually, he might even be worse if the final moments of the episode reveal anything.

Superboy is Basically Trunks here!

So, let us make sure that we got this correct: the future is in ruins. Superboy is getting sent back into the past to stop this future from happebing. And we also saw Jimmy and Lex Luthor die as this happens. This is pretty much the story of Future Trunks from Dragon Ball, and I absolutely love it. At the same time, though, my mind is already trying to come up with an idea about how this could happen. My current theory is that Brainiac and Cyborg Superman either team up or one gains control over the other, and it leads to this apocalyptic figure. And now Superboy has to stop that from happening.

On the plus side, this version of Superboy is Lois and Clark’s son. Which means that, like it or not, Lois will be forced to come to terms with her potential motherhood.

I Give “All’s Fair in Love and W.O.R.M.S.” a 3/5

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