FightingSeraph's movie Reviews on Newgrounds

[Nap]

Splendid!

For a first flash movie, I have to say that you did an excellent job. Plus, it's a breath of fresh air for those who are tired of the same old shit. Lets get started...

Visuals: Smart choice on the use of silhouette, and the animation was excellent. Plus, Clever use of tweening at that last part of the dream sequence. Did I mention that your color selection is top notch as well?
Sound: Nice music and the non-use of sound effects also accentuated it.
Content: The only problem I see with this is that this wasn't the first flash that dealt with dreams. However, your take on it was distinct enough to separate it from similar movies on here. With that in mind, your direction is excellent and pacing superb. In other words, I look forward to more flash from you.

[+]
-Great art and animation
-Nice music
-Magnificent direction and atmosphere

[-]
-Not the first dream-themed flash movie, but distinct enough to be considered unique.

Overall: How would you like a ten?

Spillkaidah responds:

I will gladly accept a ten :D Thanks for the in-depth review. And i know... dreams have sadly become a dead horse. I conceived the idea for this right before Inception came out so i was pretty disappointed. I knew i'd have to put my own spin on it.

[Mortal Kombat FAILtality]

Best MK parody ever!

Even if this is just a variation of MK Mishaps, I can't dismiss it simply because I was laughing hysterically at this one. As much as I love your sprite fights, this has cemented your position in being one of NG's best comedians. Now, I must review this...

Graphics: It may have graphics ripped from rom files, but I don't have a problem with that. However, when resizing sprites, make sure that you keep track of the individual width and height of each one so they don't look all distorted. That way, it'll look professional like Proxicide and Alvin Earthworm's stuff. Kudos for not overusing the Flash 8+ filters like the latter.
Sound: Great music selection with the MK3 Select theme remix, and clever use of voices from the following:
-Call of Duty Black Ops
-Team Fortress 2
-Portal
-Street Fighter 4
-MK Trilogy and Armageddon
-Evil Dead: Regeneration
-LoZ: Ocarina of Time (I sense that you happen to be a N64 fan)
-Jurassic Park
Content: At first, I thought "What, another one of these?" However, upon viewing this, I was laughing at every skit. It's amazing that you managed to make something as unoriginal as this into something funny. Clever usage of Callback humor regarding the following parts:
-Jax & Sheeva
-Stryker to Sektor
-Cyrax, Nightwolf, and Mileena
Plus, great job on having Hauzer, Jon Talbain, and Felicia from Warzard and Darkstalkers. Not to mention that you had the balls to kill off Akuma/Gouki after he killed Shao Khan.

What I liked about this:
-Funny
-It's been years since a noteworthy MK parody has been mentioned here.
-Clever sound selection
-Nice use of Warzard and Darkstalkers characters.

What I didn't like:
-Unoriginal. (Too much like MK Mishaps)
-Sprites look distorted at times.

Overall: R1665, here's your ten and I would mind seeing you do the following:
-A stop-motion MK cartoon
-Something like this with characters from MK 4, Deadly alliance, and Deception.

[The Noob Adventures Episode 2]

That was pretty damned funny!

As much as I like your Circuit Skirmish flash, I will not knock you down for doing a cartoon based off of Minecraft. (Although I haven't played it) Now, on with the review...

Graphics: It may be the same as your other Minecraft cartoons, but you recreated the cubic look of that game in flash and that's what counts. Plus, good job on the lip sync. However, I think that you could have taken a few liberties by exaggerating their movements and facial expressions.
Music and Sound: You and your friends did a great job on that, so no worries here.
Content: With the rise in Minecraft popularity, it was tougher on your behalf to make something top tier. Fortunately, you succeeded in that by making me laugh, and the action part was great without overdoing it.

[+]
-Funny
-Great audio
-Nice direction and staging

[-]
-The visuals, while good enough to get the point across, could have been exaggerated a bit.
-Minecraft spoofs may not be horribly overdone, but have become increasingly common.

Overall: Jim, here's another ten from me, and I would like for you to finish up the next Circuit Skirmish.

Falconer02 responds:

Now THIS is a review! Awesome! Everyone take a look and emulate this style!

And yes, I MUST finish CS. It's sooo much work thhhooooo...

[knife training]

Nice loop.

For a simple test animation, this is much better than what I can do right now. Judging from your signup date, I see where you're coming from: I signed up here in 2001, got flash in 2004, a tablet in 2005, and have been doing artistic studies since 2008. Now, on with the review...

When it comes to animation, it's a lot harder to animate a figure drawing than let's say, a flour sack, without it looking stilted and awkward. (Even with a rotoscope, it ain't easy.) However, what you have done is excellent, there aren't any mistakes in the proportions or the anatomy. Plus, I like your color selection. On the other hand, while I did like the use of blur effects, next time, I suggest you cut back on the filters because if used too much, they result in major lag. In addition, the lack of lighting on the woman clashes with the dark background.
I bet if you teamed up who lacks your drawing and animation skills, but knows a thing or two about storywriting/direction/etc., you'll be top dog in no time. (I know quite a few who can use your talent.)

What I liked about this:
-Excellent animation with nice colors

What I didn't like:
-The fact that this was a test
-The woman could have used some shadows, but since those individual drawings have volume and structure; I won't knock you down.

Overall: I usually keep my animation tests off of the portal and in my file dump, but personal preference won't stop me from giving you a nine out of ten. In other words, that day and six hours paid off quite well.

[SRM Needs a Roommate!]

That was pretty damn funny!

Cam, this really shows how frame-by-frame makes something good into something GREAT! I've been a fan of frame-by-frame flash since I first came to this site in 2000, and it makes quite a difference. Need proof, take a look at Miss Dynamite 8-16 then watch 17-24 and you'll notice a difference in their quality. Enough of that, on with the review...

When it comes to the animation, this and your music game spoof are a whole lot better than the old segment-tweened cartoons that you used to do and I love your use of perspective. It may not be up to par with Adam Phillips, Sunny GOES, or Ferguson Winston, but gets the point across. However, I think you could learn a few things from old cartoons that were made in the '30s up until the '50s to help up the ante. The Audio is also great seeing that you went as far as record your own sound effects, and Xander did a great job on the music. While the voice acting is good, they could have been a bit more expressive. Last, but not least, the content of this is well-done. Your direction and staging are excellent, and the script was really funny. In addition, it's nice to see another SRM cartoon with an original plotline. (Note: I don't have a problem with the parody/skit ones as long as they are good.) What's next? SRM and Mel performing abortions on celebrities? (Okay, that may be too salacious for your taste.)

[+]
-Great direction and staging
-Nice animation and perspective
-Funny
-It's nice to see an SRM cartoon with an original plotline.
-Good sound

[-]
-The animation and voices, while good, could have been more expressive.

Overall: Here's a nine out of ten from me, and I look forward to more of SRM.

Battosai810 responds:

Glad you liked the toon, and some good comments here!

I'm not going to get Adam Phillips good unless I end up working at Disney, but I hope to keep getting better the more toons I make. I should look into more old school animation; Max Fleischer cartoons are an inspiration of mine but something I need to look into further. Noodle arms and such are a lot of fun, and really fit with this aesthetic.

What about the animation wasn't expressive enough? Not having pupils hurts how much they can express themselves a bit, but now that they're not symbols I'm moving their eyebrow/lids around a bit more. I'd love to hear any suggestions to make that aspect of my animation better, since it's pretty important!

Also, thanks for the comments on the story, staging, and writing. If I really wanted to, I could write lazy videogame parodies all day like some bizarre talented version of Tim Buckley. Unfortunately that's what a lot of folks want, but I'm glad you appreciate more original stories like this one. Your idea is a bit out there for my stuff though!

I'm glad you enjoyed this, and look forward to more SRM in the future!

[Simple Tests]

Funny, but could have been a bit better.

I personally HATE meme humor, but I found this to be kind of funny. (You're not the first or the only one who hates that shit.) Truth is, I think that you and Jake (Lazy Mode Comics) are incredibly talented and deserve to be up there with Adam Phillips and RobsH66. Now, on with the review...

Animation: I really dig your style, which is a nice throwback to '90s cartoons and newspaper comics. Plus, the animation is just excellent (it also helps that it's frame-by-frame). However, I suggest that you use the Flash 8+ filters as little as possible since they can cause older computers to lag significantly.
Sound: Great job on the voice work, music, and sound effects. Next time, rather than put a link to Ebonyte's voice demo, add him to your portal buddies list.
Content: While I did chuckle a bit, this tended to drag. I suggest that rather than write out your jokes on a script, you draw them out on the storyboard. On the other hand, you have a good sense of direction, which is important in animated cartoons. Plus, it's also original, and that's good when the idea works.

What I do like:
-Mildly funny
-Great art and animation
-Nice sound
-Original
-Good direction

What I didn't like:
-Could have been funnier
-The blur effects were unnecissary.

Overall: Dave, here's an eight from me.

ScaredyDave responds:

Thanks for all the kind words and feedback! I actually don't know how to make Kevin (Ebonyte) credited correctly >.>' Truth be told I thought I was doing it right, but just recently figured out I wasn't. So if anyone wants to help me out with that, that would be superb!

[The Sugar Claws: Iiii-vii]

Surreal and sublime!

I'm usually no fan of flash comics due to the slideshows known as Thamesis, Broken Saints, and Faux. However, rather than go the 'motion' comic approach, you chose to make it more like a regular print comic. A wise decision on your behalf, Celx.

When it comes to the art, I really like the style that you drew this in. It's really whimsical and a fresh breath of air in a pool of anime/Ren & Stimpy/Simpsons imitators. Plus, I also like the use of subliminal text in the background, along with the 'one color, multiple shades' approach. However, I suggest that you increase the contrast between values because the panels can be hard to read at times. Also, I bet if you teamed up with someone who is really good at animating, this could end up in the Top 50. The music was well chosen as it helped set the mood that you were aiming for. On the other hand, I think that you could have used a few more songs from the Audio Portal. (Try Arnas, Helbereth, AukeSam, and Obsidian Snow.) As for the content, it really shows that you have the mind of a storywriter. I haven't checked out Cooljaw, but this series has a sense of originality and the presentation is excellent. Surprisingly better than many of those flash cartoons that have 4.00 scores, but have terrible plotlines.

Likes:
-Original
-Nice art style
-Clever music selection
-Great atmosphere
-Well written

Dislikes:
-Needs stronger value contrast.
-The fact that this is a Flash comic.
-Could have used a few more songs.

Overall: Celx, as said before, I bet if you teamed up with a really good animator, this will have a much higher score. Here's an eight on my behalf. (I originally was going to give this a seven, but you get a one point boost for something that was a great read.)

Celx-Requin responds:

If I ever do a DVD of my comics they will be motion comics, but yeah I feel the best way to experience my stories is at one's own pace. I'm trying to iron the contrast issues out as I approach the end of the series.

The final product will use one extra song from the audio portal, additionally the story is heavily inspired by music, and each chapter title is that of a particular song that directly influenced the story.

For example chapter four's title is from the song "Black Swan" by Thom Yorke, and the chapter has a few of the songs lyrics hidden in the background.

Lastly CoolJaw is drastically different from this comic in the sense it has a different artstyle, and is more graphic, violent, and "darker".

I think most people who've seen Cooljaw were expecting "The Sugar Claws" to be very similar, which may have been detrimental to my score.

It's sad because if you were to view the two side by side in terms of content I think "The Sugar Claws" stands strongly on it's own merit.

Anyway thanks for the review!
Sincerely,
- Celx

[Zetabrand: Weapons Collab]

Pretty badass team collaboration!

It may be yet another stick fight, but it was well done in my book. I don't mind stickmen as long as the movie is good and not the only thing you guys are doing. Aside from this, I'll say what needs to be said...

Art & Animation: It may be plain sticks, but the animation and the timing on them is phenomenal. A lot of people will get all pissed that you used sticks, but given the time that you guys took to make this, I'll let you slide. However, they could have used a bit of uniformity and the background could have been better.
Music & Sound: I don't have a problem with you guys using music from your CD collection and sounds from Video games. In fact, the Needless soundtrack and those Super Smash Bros. sounds fit quite nicely for this. However, the next time you're going to use sounds from video games, I suggest the following games:
-Gradius 4
-Kirby Super Star
-R-Type Delta
-Rayforce
Content: This is the only notable flaw that this has, but wasn't bad by any means. I mean, the choreography and the timing are professional; and I love what Tentionmaru did with the scarf. On the other hand, it's not that much different from Xiao Xiao, Ghostfight, Failed Containment, or Micwizard. Then again, You did a good job on keeping this collab from going over five megabytes. (I think more people on here should work on optimizing their flash.)

What's Good:
-Great animation and choreography
-Excellent pace
-Wonderful music and sound
-Novel weapon ideas.
-Passable filesize

What's Bad:
-Not very original
-The background could have been better drawn.

Overall: Although I would like to see you guys do a cartoon with fully drawn characters in the future; the fact that this was well-done makes up for whatever flaws that were mentioned in this review. Here's your nine out of ten.

[Alight]

Worth all the trouble.

It may be another tale involving loss and--to an extent--revenge, but you and your team have done an excellent job with this. Plus, I may be so bold to say that this is far better than Tarboy. Personal preferences aside...

Animation: This was another instance of someone who has submitted something that got the 4.4+ range and is worthy of it. I like how you and your students took old cartoon elements and used them for something other than music or comedy. That frame-by-frame is the kind of magnificent that a very few here have. I think that more people on here should study up on animation basics regardless of style or medium.
Music: It may not have music and voice acting, but the music was excellent and accentuated the mood that you were going for.
Content: As said before, it's another tale of love, loss, revenge, and creation; but the way it was directed and written was astounding. The angle choices were smart on your behalf, and you sure know a lot of shit about staging & composition. Plus, it sure as shit beats what the major animation studios are churning out.

[+]
-Masterful art and animation
-Top-notch direction and pacing
-Great music
-Something different

[-]
-The story, while nice, is somewhat cliche, but not everything needs to be 100 percent original.

Overall: I'm giving you and your students a ten out of ten, and keep contributing!

[Morphemon Duelists Ep.2]

Well worth the wait!

This deserves at least a 4.10 just for the solid writing and the fact that you had to do EVERYTHING yourself aside from what Hoblit did. I'm surprised that you aren't more popular because of this series. Plus, I also appreciate that you had the balls to submit 37 megabyte flash on here. Now, here's my review:

In terms of graphics, it's a whole lot better than the original; and I also loved how you implemented exaggerations and squash/stretch in this as well. It's like Marc M with actual effort. Plus, those backgrounds were also pleasant to look at, both the flash and digital painted kind. Not to mention that ZeeZee transformation sequence in the intro was rather neat. When it comes to the sound, the music that you did with Hoblit was excellent as well as fitting. Many people would have recommended that you search the Audio Portal, but it's not easy trying to find fitting music there. The voice work, on the other hand, is a bit of a mixed bag. On one hand, you had a lot of balls to do all of them yourself, and I liked many of the male voices. On the other, I think that you should've gotten Princess Aurora, Dellaciel, and/or Sapphire to do the female voices. However, considering all that time, I'll let it slide. Of course, there's the content, which was pretty fuckin' hilarious. When compared to a certain overrated segment-tweening animator, your ability to write comedy is excellent due to clever joke ideas and careful decisions on behalf of the character development. In addition, your direction for this is also praiseworthy with clever angle selections. It may have a huge filesize, but as said before: Well worth the wait.

What I do like:
-Good animation
-Great direction
-Smart writing
-Excellent music
-Funny as hell
-The male voices were good

What I didn't like:
-Huge filesize will probably put off those with slow connections
-Could have used better female voices
-Tended to drag at times, but the char. development compensated for that.

Overall: This is worthy of a ten in my book, and I'm looking forward to the next episode.