Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Movie Review: "Furious Seven"



The "Fast and the Furious" has become one of my favorite movie franchises. It had it humbled beginnings as a street racing movie to an international spy movie with cars. Which is where we are now with the "Furious Seven", the seventh film in this franchise. Unfortunately, it is also the last movie starring Paul Walker, who died back in November 2013 in ironically a car crash.

I am happy to say that this movie is good, silly fun that allows you to escape from the real world. All the major players are back, including Paul Walker, Vin Diesel and Duane "The Rock" Johnson who adds so much to the franchise with just his presence that I can't see it going on without him.

As far as plot goes, Jason Statham plays the main villain in this sequel as he avenges his brother who has been crippled by the FF crew as he tries to maim and kill each member of Vin Diesel's racing family. We are then introduced to new members to the racing family as they race all over the world on various missions for the government to eventually bring down Statham's character. There tons of awesome fight scenes and stunts that would keep you on the edge of your seat.

The film ends with a great tribute to Paul Walker that would definitely make you shed a tear. It's most likely that the franchise will carry on but it also wraps up in a way that this could be the perfect bookend to this group's story.

My review:
*See it now!*

If you're a fan of action movies, fast cars and gorgeous women then this is a must see!




Sunday, March 1, 2015

Star Trek heroines and introducing Luna Starr


We had some sad news this week as Leonard Nimoy, also known as Mr. Spock from the original cast of Star Trek has passed away. He was always one of my favorite actors and played one of the most iconic characters of all time. He was ahed of his time and will be missed.

Lt. Uhura
Lt. Uhura
Which leads to the main topic of this post, the Star Trek heroine characters. There has been many heroine characters including Captain Janeway, Seven of Nine and Counsellor Troi but I would like to focus on the female characters of the original series. They had a few good action and perilous scenes but the thing I loved most was their sexy mini-skirted uniforms.

The first I would like to start with is my favorite Uhura. She was one of black characters in a main Science Fiction television show. She not only looked great but she had an active role on the show as one of the most important officers on the ship as the communication officer. She also took part occasionally as a member of the away team and actually had a few combat scenes. Unfortunately, it wasn't too often and she mostly stayed on the bridge but when she was in the action it was pretty cool. She even had a few peril scenes. The best episodes with her was "The Arena" and "Space Seed".

Yeoman, Janice Rand
Janice Rand is another favorite, Her position was that as Yeoman and she acted more as an assistant to Captain Kirk. She was initially supposed to be a love interest for Captain Kirk but the show moved away from that and she was soon gone from the show. She had a few cool episodes including a peril-some scene in "The Enemy Within".

Dr. Helen Noel
Another great Star Trek heroine is, Dr. Helen Noel. A psychiatrist that accompanied Captain Kirk on an away mission. They were investigating a mental asylum type base, where Kirk ended up being mentally manipulated and she played a pivotal role in beating the bad guys. There were a couple of perilous scenes including a brief but cool fight between her and a bigger orderly. Unfortunately, she was in only one episode but it is one of my favorites.
"Dagger of the Mind"

Nurse Chapel

Created by Themulator11 on Deviantart
Another cool character is Nurse Chapel, Assistant to Dr. McCoy. She was in a lot of episodes assisting Dr. McCoy. She was played be Majel Roddenberry, wife of series creator Gene Roddenberry. Although she primarily played a minor role, she did have one episode where she beamed down with Captain Kirk. The episode was called "The Manuever". She also developed a crush on Mr. Spock that went nowhere.  There are other female character that played roles in the original episodes but I feel these heroines were the best. One of my major gripes is that there wasn't more episodes where the female officers played a more active roles in action and peril. That is one of the major reasons why I created a new character called "Luna Starr". Her character is heavily influenced by Star Trek but I wanted to add Flash Gordon element in that there is more action and peril. So far, UltraHeroix.com fans seems to enjoy it.  In this story, Luna Starr is investigating the disappearance of a fellow Space Agent. She comes across space pirates and she is soon fighting for her life as she tries to rescue her friend and bring the pirates to justice.
While creating this blog, I found some art on Deviant art by Themulator11, It is definitely worth checking out if you love seeing the Star Trek ladies in perilous situations.
Luna Starr on UltraHeroix.com

Star Trek Continues, fan film series
Lt. McKennah
*UPDATE* I also found new ladies of Star Trek, Thanks to the fan film series "Star Trek Continues". These are a continuation of the original Star Trek series done by fans today. The original characters are featured and a new one named, "Lt. McKennah" that acts as the ships psychiatrist. Despite being a Doctor, she does have some action in the episodes.  Check out their adventures here!  www.startrekcontinues.com




Monday, February 2, 2015

Supergirl movie (1984)


Hi all,
For this installment, I want to talk about one of my favorite super heroine movies and that would be the Supergirl movie from back in 1984. It's not a great movie but a fun one as we see the girl of steel fight evil and falls into a few perils herself.

First off, the actress who plays Supergirl was perfectly cast with Helen Slater. She looked great in the costume and portrayed the heroine very heroically and sold the few perilous moments very well too. The costume itself is the best super girl outfit you could imagine and captures the imagination very well.

Supergirl
The story begins in Argo city, a former city of the planet Krypton existing alone in space (or inner space). The city is being kept alive by an ancient artifact but when it is lost, Kara sets off alone to retrieve it to save her people. She follows the trail to Earth and develops super powers like her cousin Superman. Unfortunately, they never meet in the movie. She dons a similar super outfit and explores her temporary home and makes a few friends.

Supergirl in Phantom Zone
The artifact is found by a witch, who then uses it to boost her magical powers for evil purposes until Supergirl confronts her on a few occasions in the movie until Supergirl is captured and sent off to another dimension. This is my favorite part of the movie as we finally get to see the infamous Phantom Zone and Supergirl encounters peril she never dealt with before. With some help, Supergirl manages to escape the phantom zone for the final showdown with the evil witch.

Swiftgirl
This is a fun movie, although it was seen as flop and not as good as the first 2 Superman movies I feel like it is a must see if you are Christopher Reeve era superman fan and especially if you are a super heroine fan. You can get the DVD at Amazon.com.

I really enjoy the Supergirl character and this movie was very inspirational in my creation of Swiftgirl, who is inspired by this version of Supergirl.

Friday, December 26, 2014

UltraHeroix's 2014 year in review...


Hi all,
It's been an interesting year for Ultraheroix.com. I want to start off by thanking all of you fans for your support and following us. 2014 was a time of change in my personal life as we welcomed the newest member in the family with the birth of my first child. So with this new addition, it took some time and adjustment but I'm happy to say that we are back on track and we are producing more stories that will make 2015 an epic year in the Ultra Heroix world.

 Looking back at 2014, I was very happy with the production as the videos this year has been the best we've shot so far.  I also wanted to thank the new and old talent we worked with. I'm looking forward to 2015 as we continue to raise our game and tell the best stories possible in the UltraHeroix.com style.

Final Clash

This past
year, we had a few videos that saw the ending and resolution of the Dark Ultra saga and the aftermath. I was especially happy to see Lady Ultra coming back from the side of darkness and playing a pivotal role in ending the reign of C.L.A.S.H and it's leader Domintia. It was great and felt fulfilling to ending the storyline.

So, what's in store for 2015? Well, we are wrapping up another long running storyline that involves another of our most popular super heroine...Swiftgirl. I'm happy to say that we shot the conclusion of the Swift Reunion/Vod storyline. In 2013, we saw Swiftgirl encounter her super sibling and her fellow villains. Although, Swiftgirl was outnumbered and outmatched she was able to defeat Vod with the help from American Amazon. In 2015, we will see her  have the final super showdown with the remainder of the villainous trio.

Luna Starr

That's not all! In 2015 we will have new adventures and new characters. We will have a new heroine on the Sci-Fi side with the introduction of Luna Starr. If you are a fan of Star Trek and Flash Gordon then you will love her upcoming stories.

We will, of course bring back some of our characters you enjoy so much including Crimson Cat.

So with the wrapping up of two major story lines I will be developing a new one. I have a few I'm thinking out right now but I want it to be big that will involve both of our most popular and powerful super heroines taking on a threat that would be too great to take on alone.

So with the end of 2014, we will have a lot to look forward to in 2015. I want to thank all of you fans that has been with us these past few years and I could honestly say that the best is yet to come. Be sure to check out all our adventures at www.Ultraheroix.com ! Take a look at three of 2014 stories.

Final Clash

Return of Lady Ultra

Fly or Die







Sunday, November 23, 2014

UltraHeroix spotlight on Dynafly...


When I started UltraHeroix.com I knew I had to create a core cast of original super heroines. I already had Lady Ultra and Crimson Cat but I needed a third to complete a diverse "team" of super heroines.
"Ultra Domination"

Lady Ultra had super powers, Crimson Cat was a ninja and I felt like I needed a normal person in a heroine role. The thing that made her special that would help her keep up with the other heroines and villains is her intelligence. So, I decide to make her a tech-based heroine. At the time, I didn't have the time or budget to create a suit of armor (and it wouldn't look that sexy). So I looked at other famous superheroes for inspiration. Batman has his gadgets and even Spiderman has used his brains along with his powers to create tools to aid him.

"Shipping & Villainy"

I decided on the fly motif because I wanted to give her a unique look and a few different skills from the other heroines. I looked back other heroines and I came across Flygirl, who used to be a sidekick for the "The Fly" another superhero that was produced by Archie comics. From what I remembered, They just had wings and a gun in their crime-fighting duties. So, I felt this was something I could easily build off of and develop Dynafly into her own character. This heroine would have brains and a decent fighting background to make her a formidable opponent against villains. At first I felt she needed additional powers like bio-sting punches and ability to stick to walls but by the time I reached her second video, I realized that she didn't need them since she could fly with her wings and she could stun them with her ray gun. Some other things I added to her utility belt was handcuffs for defeated crooks and mini explosives for bigger tougher foes.

There has been 4 actresses to play Dynafly but there has only been 2 Dynaflys. The first Dynafly had a pretty short super heroine career before it was cut short by the first super villain, Dominator in "Ultra Domination" . Her name was Jane Jensen and she was inspired by previous super heroines to become one herself. Once she reached college she studied Physics and other sciences to compensate for lack of super powers and she created the identity of Dynafly. After encountering the Dominator, she retired due to her injuries and passed the Dynafly mantle to her sorority sister, Claire Ryder. Claire has a similar background and interests was easily able to assume the role and go further with it than her predecessor. She took over for "Shipping & Villainy" .
"Fly Trapped"
One of the things that I like about Dynafly is her perseverance. She has either been outnumbered or out-powered but never gives up, even when she is on the losing end. This really shows in her latest adventure as she fights for her soul in "Fly or Die"  after she was defeated and webbed up in "Fly Trapped". She is out-powered by a demon named, Grimskull and although she has been easily defeated in battle against him, she never gives up and uses her wits to try and survive. 
"Fly or Die"
Be sure to check out her latest adventure "Fly or Die" now at UltraHeroix.com and then her other adventures!
Fly or Die
Shipping & Villainy




Thursday, October 23, 2014

Movie Review: The Man With The Iron Fists


Hey all, for this posting I'm going to do a review on a film I saw and enjoyed.
I'm a fan of kung fu movies and lately  I  had a problem finding anything new that was fun to watch of that genre. Then I found "The man with the iron fists". I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this movie.

Directed and written by RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan, you could tell that it was made by a fan of the genre for the fans of the genre. Unfortunately, It starred a fan with not much acting ability. Don't get me wrong, it's still a good movie. Thankfully the co-stars carry much of the weight of the film.

RZA as "The Blacksmith"
The plot of this film has RZA's character, the blacksmith create weapons for all the eccentric clans in a village back in the 19th century. One day, The Lion Clan stole the emperor's gold and assassinated the former leader of the Lion clan. The dead Lion clan's son seeks revenge on the traitors but is outnumbered. He eventually joins forces with the Blacksmith and they have a showdown with the members of Lion clan and their allies.

Silver Lion and the Lion Clan
The strengths of this film is the fight choreography , which is fun, graceful, gory and over the top stunts that keeps things lively and beautiful to see. The story itself is easy to follow and heavy into the fantasy side.  Some characters has superhuman like powers and most were simple characters that were clearly god or evil. The rest of cast were very good. Russell Crowe steals the show as Jack Knife. His character was a sex-driven british soldier who is investigating the stolen gold. He shares the weight of the film with Byron Mann. He is the Silver Lion and the clear bad guy of the film. I really enjoyed his character as he is played extremely conniving, evil and funny. The rest of the cast includes the lovely Lucy Liu, the gorgeous Jamie Chung and David Bautista.
David Bautista as "Brass Body"
Bautista's character is the "Brass Body" a character that is similar to the X-Man, Colossus in that he has super strength and can turn his skin to metal. Even his acting was much better and more interesting than the lead. The final plus of his movie is the sound track. The music is vibrant and adds a lot to the story with a mix of rap, rock and traditional asian music.

Now for the weakness of the film and that is mostly on the performance of the RZA. His performance as the Narrator, Blacksmith and even his fight scenes were stiff and lifeless. For someone who is such a big fan of the genre and had the passion to create this film, you would think it would show in his performance. Thankfully he was able to cast a strong ensemble to carry the film. Also, the writing at times could be a bit lame, especially the romantic scenes between
Jamie Chung as "Lady Silk"
Blacksmith and his love "Lady Silk", played by Jamie Chung.

But I can't bash RZA too much. He shows that he is a very capable director. The film itself is still very entertaining and he was able to direct the rest of the cast very well. I just wished he replaced himself with another actor.

To wrap up, I'd like to recommend "The man with the Iron Fists" if you're a fan of Kung Fu movies. It's hip, has a great sound track and is a lot of fun to watch. You can catch this film on Amazon Prime. I watched it here first and enjoyed it so much that I brought the Blu Ray.



Wednesday, September 17, 2014

A Great Villainess, Diana from "V"



There are a few series that I could watch over and over again at anytime and have the same amount of enjoyment. One of these is the original "V" series from the Eighties and I'm including both miniseries and the 1st and only season of the show. This series is a lot of fun to watch, the mini-series were a bit deeper and thought provoking while the TV show had it's fair share of exciting stories and unpredictability.  There were a lot of twists in story lines and over the top characters  despite it limited budget and dated special effects by today's standards. A brief description of this series is that aliens arrive on Earth posing as friendly human looking explorers in need of our help but in reality they are actually a reptilian, war-like race that wants to steal our natural resources and sees humans as food. Soon, their true colors show and they try to conquer the world with their superior technology and all that stands in their way is a small rebellion of humans and a few compassionate aliens.

That storyline alone is pretty cool but what makes this show memorable and a joy to watch is  the main villain of the series...Diana. This character is so evil, vicious, sinister and over the top comic style bad guy that she practically steals every scene she is in. She has a lot of unique traits, One of which is that she  enjoys eating mice and other mammals...including humans. One of the most iconic scenes is when we get a glimpse of the true nature of the visitors (nickname for the aliens) when she eats a live hamster and as you can see in the picture above, under the fake skin is her true reptilian self.




This character is so conniving, not even her own allies or crew are safe from her aspirations for power. She kills her commanding officers if they get in her way and schemes to get rid of anyone that she doesn't like or possibly poses a threat to her power and that's with her own alien kind. For humans, her wrath is much worse. Besides simply eating us, she is also a scientist and revels in experimenting on humans. She dissects people physically and mentally. She takes great pleasure in mentally breaking her prisoners and turning them against their friends as sleeper agents. She usually lets others and subordinates do the dirty work for her but is not above shooting the enemy herself even if its to their back. Only on rare occasions does she willingly fight in hand to hand combat but when she does she is quite formidable. It should also be noted that due to her alien background, she does have some attributes that gives her something of a super-human abilities (by human standards). For example, she could spit acid that could blind or even paralyze her foes. She is also bullet resistant, I'm not sure if it's from the armor of her clothing or her skin but she has been shot by regular guns without being severely harmed.


One of the main things that makes this character so iconic and memorable is the actress that played her, Jane Badler. She captures the perfect villainess qualities and is so good, I can't imagine Diana being played by anyone else. Even when we had the new 2009 "V" series, the main baddie is Ana (inspired by Diana) was nowhere near as devious as the original which I think hurt that newer series. I believe even the producers knew then needed something to give that show a real shot in the arm and they brought in Jane Badler to re-introduce Diana. It was not the same Diana from the Eighties series but she had some of the same qualities. Unfortunately it would be a little too late and the show was canceled. I believed if they let Diana be Diana earlier in the series, it would have bought in more viewers and be much more fun t watch. As for my own productions, I've tried to think of a villainess as awesome as her and the closest I've gotten is Devla. I'm still going to try and create a closer character to this awesome villainess.
As I'm writing this blog post, I am watching the series on DVD. The SyFy channel used to play these as marathons but unfortunately haven't done it in awhile and it's not on Netflix nor Hulu at this time so the best way I'd say to see her and this great series is to get the full DVD series on Amazon.com.