FightingSeraph's movie Reviews on Newgrounds

[The Syndicate 1]

Quite entertaining!

I have to say that you have done another great job with this one. While it does have a few trivial issues; every moment was enjoyable.

Graphics: Your spritework is still excellent considering that they were properly resized. Also worth noting is the use of transparency on the effects used. How did you manage to get that done right? On the other hand, the .jpeg backgrounds looked slightly ugly in contrast with the sprites. I think it's time for you to consider getting someone from the Art Portal to make some custom backgrounds.
Audio: The sound effects and music were a perfect fit, but it's about time you made use of the Audio portal for music. (I already suggested to you some musicians on here in my last review.) Oh, and I liked the non-use of voice acting.
Content: Your direction and Adokin's writing were very gripping for a sprite movie. It may not be up to par with Alvin Earthworm or Doug Sauncy (AzureSt0ne), but it was good for what you two had. However, this isn't very original, but the execution made up for it. After all, it's not in the idea, but how it is executed.

What's good:
-Underused subjects
-Great music
-Well-written and directed
-Nice spritework

What's bad:
-Not very original
-Better backgrounds would be nice

Overall: A nine is appropriate for this. (4.5/5)

TechLeSSWaYz responds:

Noted! Thanks alot for the Pro's and cons. that always comes in handy! :]

[Black Dynamite vs Pootie]

Those layouts look promising!

To be honest, I am not familiar with your work, but do know something good when I see it. Plus, this reminds me of some of the things that were made back 2000-2003. Impressive yet authentic and sincere; elements that are lacking in the vast majority of frontpage submissions since 2008.

Animation: While this isn't as fluid as Jake Hollander, SunnyGOES, Ferguson Winston, and Adam Philips; the layouts in this cartoon are excellent. All of the poses are dynamic, solid, and had a bit of roughness that added to the atmosphere. In addition, the selective colors reminded me of Razzo's* old work, which is a plus in my book. (*=Blanco y Negro and Kong)
Audio: You did a great job on the choice of music, but most of the voices were rushed. I think a pop filter may help with that.
Content: It may not have much of a plot, but the premise of this was enough to get the point across. Thus, the no filler approach that made Blaxploitation films popular worked in your favor. Of course, what really made this shine is the direction. It has shown me that you have the eye of a director. Kudos for using underused subjects, which is also a plus.

The Good:
-The Layouts are excellent and the animation showed potential.
-Good music
-Adept direction
-Nice tone
-Underused subject

The Bad:
-Voices sounded rushed
-Not the best animation, nor was it the worst

Overall: Here's a nine from me. (4.5/5)

Neochilds responds:

Thank you kindly for your honest and well written review of my work, I take the good with the bad and aim to produce another great production down the line. Hopefully when I have more time to dedicate to another project such as this which allowed alot of flexibility. Having the range to do almost what I want with no limits was a plus which is sometimes good and bad but I choose what element worked best for my subject matter. Thanks again for the review I appreciate your time in doing that dude.

[BLACK SUNSHINE]

Much funnier than your string of game skits.

This is pretty much Newgrounds' equivalent to Coal Black and the Sebben Dwarves. It's well done yet extremely polarizing at the same time. Of course, there's Captain Ig'nant, but let's not get off track.

Graphics: I have nothing to say about the animation other than the Afro dude's skipping looked odd. I mean, his right arm was synchronized to his right leg. Perhaps this was an oversight that happens to every animator now and then. Aside from that, your layouts and colors were great as always.
Sound: You did a great job on the music selection, and the voice acting was superb.
Content: This has easily been your funniest cartoon to date! Truth is, I thought that your cartoon output for the last two years has been disappointing, which is pitiful when factoring in your unique style. However, I think you have redeemed yourself with this. In addition, this was also well-directed when compared to those *shudder* "Fail" cartoons that you have done. (I suggest that you steer clear of internet slang for movie titles.) Oh, and if you REALLY want to offend people, try making a cartoon about Obama and Romney sixty-nining each other.

What's Good:
-Great voice acting
-Funny
-Original
-Political incorrectness done right
-Good music

What's Not-so-good:
-The Afro dude's skipping looked awkward.

Overall: Proof that people who contribute can redeem themselves. A nine would be suitable for this short. (4.5/5)

Gonzossm responds:

Thanks for the critique :) Glad you overall enjoyed it lol

[TheWhiteHouseFireof2012]

I concur with Voltage!

To be honest, it takes a lot of balls to mock Obama when you consider the risk of being chewed out by his supporters. To put it another way, he's no different from Bush and Romney factoring in that he supports the things that they were in favor of. (Examples: The bailouts, the War on Drugs, No Child Left Behind, and the Patriot Act.) As a Libertarian, I support the Flash and its message.

Graphics: It may not be the most dynamic animation around, but I like how you had frame-by-frame for gestures. Plus, I like how you caricatured Obama, along the scene composition. However, for future projects, it would be advised to study classic cartoons and basic drawing/animation principles.
Sound: The sound effects may have been sparse, but they fit perfectly. However, Voltage is right about the voice acting; it needed to be funnier.
Content: While there's plenty of material to mock, the gag involving Obama's bailout support was pretty funny. Thus, this cartoon explains why subsidies in any form will only do more harm than good. It kills me that people on here act like the Democrats can do no wrong when that isn't the case. (Ditto for the GOP supporters.) If you do any more political satire, I suggest that you take it a lot farther with Obama sixty-nining Romney, Al Gore getting a handjob from Steven Colbert, and Sarah Palin doing it with Nancy Pelosi.

The Good:
-Poignant
-Funny
-Small file size
-Well directed

The Bad:
-Not the worst animation, but not the best
-Needs funnier voice acting

Overall: Here's a nice nine from me. (4.5/5)

DarkMatter responds:

Thanks alot for the extensive review, I appreciate the honest analysis of my cartoons and the high score!

[Draggin' Brawl Zzz]

Mediocre as hell.

I'm going to be honest with you; this was pretty dull, overdone, and unfunny. Look, you have improved considerably since you first came here, but damn, this just proves that just because you have talent doesn't mean your shit won't stink as bad as anyone else's. In addition, I hate writing bad reviews, which makes this even more disheartening.

When it comes to the animation, there wasn't much of it considering that this a (generic) DBZ spoof. However, for the parts that did have animation, they were well done. Plus, you did a good job on the color selection. However, that's the only major merits that this had because I have issues with the audio and the content. While I understand that you didn't want to piss off the copyright fascists, Kevin Macleod's music was out of place and didn't fit the situation. I mean, it's one of those rare cases where music from the actual show would have helped. On top of that, the voices, while good sound alikes, had acting that sounded phoned in. I see that you were going for bad acting on purpose, but it only worked in one movie. (Star of the North Fist) Plus, it would be nice NOT to have RicePirate in everything.
Finally, the content of this cartoon suffers from having an overused joke that not very well executed. To be honest, this joke was done several times before and much better. (Peixeaquatico's Anime Fight comes to mind.) Furthermore, I suggest that you look up Vegeta Becomes President by biIIgates, which was funny and didn't rely on a worn-out premise. On second thought, consider studying the cartoons by the Fleischer brothers, Bob Clampett, Chuck Jones, Tex Avery, Terry Toons, and Ralph Bakshi.

What's Good:
-Good animation at times
-Nice colors

What's Bad:
-Overused subject and joke
-The music was unfitting
-Mediocre voice acting
-Passionless

Overall: You may get bent out of shape upon reading this, but a six is all I can do. However, it would be nice to take my suggestions as a means of doing better. (3/5)

nalem responds:

I just wanted to make a parody of a cartoon I love. Sorry you didn't enjoy it!

Also, I would like to say, quitting your day job and working 14 hours a day for 13 months on the projects you love is far from "passionless!"

I draw 5 webcomics, I fulfill commission requests, I storyboard and animate my own cartoons. I work hard and I do it gladly! Not every one of my works is going to be good, and that's ok. I'll just keep working harder! :)

So I don't mind if you hate my work! That's perfectly fine! Just don't assume I'm passionless just because you disliked 1 cartoon I made. :)

[SMB: The Mushroom Hero 11]

Nice!

Even though this is horribly unoriginal, the execution was well done considering the girth. It was obvious that you were influenced by Alvin Earthworm and Flamezero, but put quite a bit of thought into making your series distinct enough to accept. To tell you the truth, I have nothing against sprite movies as long as they're well made and creative.

Animation: You did a great job on importing those graphics, along with the variety/customization that was implemented. It made this feel quite dynamic and lively unlike a certain MK/SF crossover that won't be named. However, when it came to the customization, the Original characters were just recolors/frankenstein edits with questionable colors. I would recommend that you study color theory for a bit, along with other 8-Bit/16-Bit/24-Bit game graphics.
Sound: The music you chose fit every situation perfectly, and the same can be said for the sound effects. However, DBZ sound effects are overused, and I think you should get some music from the Audio Portal next time. For the sound effects: try Kirby Super Star, Rayforce, Raystorm, and '80s Transformers. As for Music: Consider xenith800, Dythen, Deshiel, Z-Raven, TimmyDope, Elfire, NemesisTheory, Box-Killa, Maverlyn, Durn, Bosa, and Papkee. On the other hand, I like your sparse use of DBZ voice clips.
Content: As said before, this is horribly unoriginal considering the obvious influences. However, your direction, writing, and fight choreography made up for that. It takes a delicate hand to do what you and Alvin Earthworm have done without fucking it up. The pace is fitting and well-balanced unlike certain top-rated submissions that end up on the front page these days. The only other gripe with this is the filesize, but in your case it was well worth the wait.

The Good:
-Great direction
-Well-written
-Clever fight choreography
-Good music and sound effects

The Bad:
-Better sprite customization
-Horribly unoriginal
-DBZ sound effects are overused

Overall: Here's a nine from me and will look forward to the next episode. (4.5/5)

[Yoshi Hates Castles]

Pretty funny considering the subject.

While this isn't anywhere near as good as the one by Golfinho, this was pretty funny none-the-less. Plus, I'm also appreciative that you didn't submit this as a video considering that it would've been pointless. (Save it for Stop-motion, live action, 3D CGI, and overly large .swf)

Graphics: Not bad when you consider your angle variety and fitting color selection. However, the animation is a mixed bag. On one hand, I like what you did with the thwomps, but most of it suffers from a lack of easing. Thus, it looks very wooden and I would recommend that you study movement for a bit.
Audio: Mason did a great job as always in the music department, but the voice acting came off as an afterthought. It felt really unneeded.
Content: While this isn't your best submission, but I thought it was pretty funny considering the subject. (Mario has been done to death over the years.) Your direction was excellent considering that you're an adept action director. For a first time at comedy, you did a good job with just one joke.

[+]
-Good direction
-Funny
-Nice music
-Small filesize

[-]
-Weak voice acting
-The animation could have been a bit better
-Overused subject

Overall: Here's an eight from me. (4/5)

MOC-Productions responds:

This is a very fair review. And I'm aware Mario is done to death, but I always wondered why no one ever went into this topic. Regardless, I agree with everything you said. The animation could've been better. The voice acting I blame entirely on myself since I gave Shock little to no direction on it. Of the 48 hours we were given, I only was able to clear up about 20 for this, so everything is really rushed. But I've always wanted to participate in Movie Jam even if it meant steering REALLY far away from my usual style. I'm glad I was able to finish, but I think it just goes to show that when it comes to comedic animation like this, I have no clue what I'm doing lol.

Anyway, thanks for the detailed review. Those are rare to come across these days. I'd love to hear what you think of the "Madland" trailer considering I spent much more time on that (even though it's just a trailer).

[SF: Fight or Fetish?]

Better than your last SF cartoon.

Victor, I was thinking that you were losing it after SFII - Satire Edition, which wasn't funny. However, upon seeing this twice, I can say that you have redeemed yourself in terms of fighting game parodies. Plus, it's nice to see something in the vein of the 2000-2003 stuff that doesn't rely on superfluous, unconductive bullshit that has been plaguing this site since '08. Honestly, I'd watch something that's funny/well-made in standard definition over a total suck-fest presented in HD with After Effects overkill. With that peeve out the way...

Graphics: You did an excellent job on importing the sprites, they didn't look distorted due to improper scaling and the use of individual sprites to simulate body language. I think more sprite animators should consider looking into that to improve their craft.
Audio: Nice use of audio portal music, and the voices are decent.
Content: This is what makes this worthwhile unlike many of the frontpage submissions that are just lacking in this department. I thought this was pretty funny for a very short skit, and if there is something I learned that most people on NG have forgotten: Bigger DOES NOT equal better. With that being said, it would be nice of somebody did a sprite movie involving any of the following:
-Star Ocean
-Tales of Phantasia
-RosenKreuzStilette
-Skyblazer
-Touhou Project
-Spawn
-Eternal Champions
-Sailor Moon (any game)
-Metal Max
-Energy Breaker
-Bubble Bobble
-Mr. Gimmick
You may not have heard some of these games, but think of it as a way of keeping sprite movies fresh.

The Good:
-Funny
-Small filesize
-Good voice acting
-Good spritework and staging
-Fitting music and direction

The Bad:
-Street Fighter is starting to get stale

Overall: Here's an eight from me. (4/5)

[Yogi Bear-Dropping a Load]

It's about time that Early HB got more coverage on here.

As a fan of Early HB and classic cartoons in general, I have to admit that this is easily the best Hanna-Barbera flash on NG. Plus, it just so happens that John K himself is a fan of '57-'63 HB cartoons before they went to shit. With that aside, here's my review...

When it comes the animation, you did a great job on that part. It looks a lot more lively than what was made back then considering that they had to work on obscenely low budgets. As for the 'rough' spots, they looked like the animation of an actual episode of that cartoon. However, the only problem with this is that your backgrounds weren't textured properly. Maybe do some still life painting as a means of learning. Then we have the audio, which is well done considering that you had to do the voices yourself though Ranger Smith sounded a bit off, along with the recording quality. Then again, I don't know anyone who can do such distinctive voices on here. I would also mention that you were smart to use Hoyt Curtin's music, which was perfect. Anything else would not have worked out so well. Finally, the content of this piece. I have to agree with what BIG G said about the R&S influence, which worked considering that you had the comic timing that was (almost) Spumco quality. This was pretty funny in spite of a few dry spots here and there. The only other flaw worth mentioning is that there's no preloader. If you still have the source file, I suggest that you download this site's free preloader and add it to the first frame of your cartoon with a stop(); command.

What was good:
-Mostly great animation
-Funny
-Underused subject
-Great music selection

What wasn't so good:
-The acting, while good, could have been better recorded.
-Backgrounds could use better textures.

Overall: Here's a nine from me. (4.5/5)

LeeJayAnimation responds:

Thanks for the review! I've been trying to upload a version with a freeloader, and hopefully it works now! If not I'll have to keep re-uploading it until it works out!

As for the backgrounds, you're right. I tried to make them as simple as I could as to not take up a lot of space, but they still did. I made them separately in Photoshop, so next time I'll probably just make them in flash, and add some more shading/coloring into them! Also, the Mic quality is a good pick-up, too. The voices of Boo-Boo and Ranger Smith were done by some friends of mine, we'll definitely work on the Mic quality next time!

Thanks for the review, though, I'll definitely work on those issues!

[Romney Hate Black People]

Great as always!

I think people are missing the point of your ad spoofs considering that they're making fun of the political ads more than the actual candidates. If Jeremy really wanted to piss people off, he could have made a cartoon about Obama and Romney sixty-nining each other. Then again, that should be left to Catoblepas, Golfinho, and Wooden Sneakers.

Animation: For something as simple as this, you did a great job timing those pieces and the colors you chose are great. Plus, I liked your use of gesture in this. As much as I love an animation of high caliber, it got the point across.
Sound: The background music in this was fitting considering the concept of this, and the voice acting was also great.
Content: Just like your last attempt at satire, I was laughing hysterically. It was really clever with the actual language from the original ad, but twisted to a level of ridiculous that would put South Park to shame. It's pitiful that most of the reviewers of both this and the previous spoof missed the point. However, you weren't the first to make fun of political ads when you factor in Sardonic Samurai's own mockery.

The Good:
-Nice graphics and fitting animation
-Funny
-Great voices
-Actually poignant unlike some people's attempts as political humor.

The Bad:
-The fact that most people will miss the point.
-Not the first to make fun of campaign ads.

Overall: Here's a nine from me. (4.5/5)