Star Trek Theater 3000: Power Play (TNG Season 5, Episode 15

Written by Stuart Cooper

Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 5 Episode 21 "Power Play"

If you know me personally, or if you've ever seen me at a comic convention or nerd related event, it's usually pretty evident that I am a Trekkie. I've been a Trekkie for about a decade and I love it more and more every time I watch it. I think the show holds a lot of merit in terms of storytelling and underlying themes. The show can speak to you on a lot of different levels, and that's why I believe it has endured all these years. I decided to start reviewing one Star Trek episode a week. This will be coinciding with something I'm doing with my friends. My friends and I recently decided to randomly choose one Star Trek episode a week, watch it at the same time, and share our thoughts/and or riffs. This week's episode was “Power Play”, a gem from Season 5 of Star Trek: The Next Generation. The plot involved possession, ghost machines, a reserved Worf, and some pretty intense fighting. Let's dive into it.

In the episode “Power Play” the crew of the Enterprise intercepts a distress signal, which usually in science fiction means certain death, and of course they choose to pursue it. The crew arrives at a baron planet and Troi says she senses life on the planet, so an away team is sent down to investigate and possibly save whatever being is down there. This ignorant move results in Troi, O’Brien, and Data being possessed by orbs on the surface that are apparently the souls of a lost crew that was stuck on that planet. You still with me? I know that last sentence was heavy. After the orbs enter the bodies of the 3 crew members, they get back onto the ship and organize a mutiny of sorts. Troi, O’Brien, and Data hold crew members hostage in Ten Forward. It's soon after this that we find out the orbs from earlier were souls, and they are now possessing the crew members. One big question that has to be asked tho, how can a ghost possess Data? He has no organic matter to control, do souls have power over technology? This is never explained. I think it was merely a plot device that would give Brent Spiner another chance to act goofy and different. One cool little tid-bit. This episode featured Patricia Tallman (Night of the Living Dead 1990) as one of Worf's Security Officers! She unfortunately does not speak, and is only on screen for a few seconds.

After some tense hostage scenes, there is a confrontation between Worf and Data. A fight between the two is teased, but Worf backs down. Worf appears to be very weak in this episode, but at the end of the episode he implies this was only because he was “being reserved”. If you watch enough TNG, you know who would have won that fight. Another highlight in the episode was Miles snapping at Keiko and their crying baby. Data also threatens the baby at one point, just to emphasize how evil these ghosts are. Towards the end of the episode there is a huge moment of tension when Data picks up Picard and chokes him, then picks him up off his feet and holds him in mid-air by his throat. Just shows you that Data could really kill anyone he wanted, if he needed to. Soon after that scene the ghosts are hit with some type of wave and forced to leave the bodies of the crew members.

Overall the episode was a lot of fun and full of tension. The acting was spot on and tight. There were moments where main cast members really became vulnerable, and the villains proved to be rather menacing. I think this was a very effective story. It was also nice being able to see some of the actors act differently than they did normally. I'm sure Spiner enjoyed letting loose a bit. I would definitely recommend this episode to anyone who wants to watch a good one and done TNG episode. You get to see Evil Data, Evil O’Brien, and Evil Troi, what's not to love?

Retro Game Review: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (SNES)

Written by Stuart Cooper

I was lucky enough to witness two massive crazes when I was a child. The explosion of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, and “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”. Well when TMNT was starting to fall off the map, it was prime time for a children's show to swoop in and stake it's claim on Saturday Mornings. The show to do that would be “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”. The show was almost instantly popular and spawned so many toy lines and alternate series that I've long since lost count. I was one of those children who ate it up and had to have every toy, every game, every coloring book, all that good stuff. In terms of merchandising, Power Rangers might even have the Turtles beat. Well amongst the many items released during it's peak popularity, children were blessed with the opportunity to play TONS of Ranger games. I'm talking 3-4 games for SNES, Genesis, then ports to Game boy, Game Gear, Mega Drive, Tiger Handhelds, etc. They actually rushed the first line of games pretty quickly since the first game takes place before they even meet The Green Ranger, which was technically still in the first season. As a result, some of the games are good, some are not so good, but today I'll tackle the Super Nintendo version of “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”.

Now the game itself apparently differs depending on which console you get the game for. Most versions are a side scroller and the only differences being the bosses, but the Game Gear version is actually a partial fighting game as well. The Super Nintendo version starts off with the 5 rangers in human form, staring on as Rita for whatever reason, decides to show her face. There is pretty much no story, you start off in the city and you go through 7 different stages, all of which seem to be just random locations that have nothing to do with the story or show. So if you are looking for an enticing story element, this game won't have it.

On the plus side, you do get to choose between all 5 rangers and you can change which Ranger you are with each stage. Since there are 5 side scrolling stages, you can play 1 stage per ranger if you'd like. That is what I decided to do, so I could test each one and see if there was any difference. As far as I can tell all 5 rangers were pretty much the same strength. The red one seemed slightly stronger than the others, but that might just be my brain being influenced by the actual show. The one difference I did notice was the use of their special weapons. Each ranger has a special weapon like they do in the show. The pink ranger has a bow, the blue ranger as a little gun, the black ranger has an ax and so on. The pink Ranger actually shines when it comes to this because her bow can shoot arrows after you combo a few hits. This can provide you with some reach. Each level, except for the last two, stick to a simple formula. You beat up waves of Rita's “Putties” and when you get to the second part of the stage you are confronted by the boss and proceed to hunt him down while in your ranger outfit. At the end of the level you face the boss.

The bosses are really my favorite part since they are the shining stars of the show itself. As a kid I remember tuning in every week just trying to imagine what kind of deranged weirdly themed creature Rita's slave sculptor would conjure up next. The game kind of disappoints in it's selection but you have to consider when the game was released the first season hadn't even finished, so no Evil Green Ranger, Rita, Goldar, or Lord Zedd fights. To be honest I only recognized 2 out of the 7 bosses in the game, that being the Skeleton man “Bones” and the unforgettable petrifying “Eye Guy”. Fighting Eye Guy brought back some memories and made me want to re-watch that episode. As far as difficulty, unless you are under the age of 10 there probably won't be much. If you can understand very basic boss patterns and how to do jump-kicks, you'll beat this whole thing in about an hour. The last two stages of the game you actually get into your MegaZord form and it turns into a fighting game. You fight this incredibly random villain (that is not in the game previously), It looks kind of like a Gundam or something from Escaflowne. Very forgettable boss fight but it's cool that they found a way to get the Zords in there.

Overall I'd say this game is definitely worth checking out. I wouldn't say that if you still had to pay 50 dollars for it, but the game can be found for about 6 bucks on eBay or a local retro game retailer. I got my copy for 5 dollars. It will always hold some nostalgic value for me and it's a good side scroller. The cons would be the lack of story, lack of difficulty, no two player mode, and you can beat it all in an hour. If you loved this show growing up and you miss it, perhaps it's time to pop this cartridge in and say IT'S MORPHIN TIME!

Some bonus Rangers videos just because:

R.I.P. James Gandolfini

Written by Stuart Cooper

This week the world lost an incredibly talented man by the name of James Gandolfini. He was 51 years old and was most famously known for his role as Tony Soprano on “The Sopranos”. James demonstrated on several occasions that he was an incredibly talented actor. I first noticed him in the 90's classic “True Romance” where he has a rather brutal fight scene with Patricia Arquette. Of course his role in Sopranos is what captured most people's attention. He brought the character of Tony Soprano to life in ways no other individual could have. Some people even consider “The Sopranos” to be one of the greatest shows in the history of television, and I'd have to agree.

During the course of the Sopranos I can remember several occasions where moments of Tony's life struck a cord with my own, and there were several moments that left me thinking, left me emotionally connected to the material. That is the sign of a good actor and a well written show. So it was my pleasure to live during a time frame where I got to see those episodes as they aired. I was one of the many people tuning in to the finale, scratching my head and wondering if Tony Soprano was alive or not? I wish we had an answer, or a Sopranos movie, or something. But he already gave us 10 years of his life on that show, it's just another sign that it was good. Society couldn't get enough of Tony Soprano, and neither could I. That's the power of entertainment.

Without James Gandolfini I seriously doubt the show would have done as well. As an actor he also played many other roles in almost every genre. I recall seeing a couple newer comedy films with him exercising his comedy chops. He certainly had a unique character and appeal. The world definitely lost a legend. I hope somewhere, somehow, James is enjoying a bowl of ice cream and resting it on his stomach, in that big recliner in the sky. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and his baby he left behind. At least they can draw some comfort in knowing his work will continue to be legendary and I'm sure people will be watching Sopranos re-runs 100 years from now.

Here is a small sample of some of my favorite James Gandolfini moments:

What to Watch: MMPR: POWER REBORN

Something I'm going to try and do more on the site is bring up projects that need attention. I believe with the invention of webisodes and streaming media, the possibilities for new user created content is boundless. One new project I recently discovered was a Mighty Morphin Power Rangers fan film entitled "Power Reborn". The trailer for the fan film is already out and there is a kickstarter campaign currently funding the project. It looks like the first episode is due out this fall, and depending on the success of that and future kickstarter funds, we may get more. The trailer looks very promising and after looking at the project, it appears we may have a pretty interesting fan film on our hands. It kind of reminds me of what is being done with Mortal Kombat and the "Legacy" series on YouTube. Check out the trailer for yourself below. I'll also provide links to the Power Reborn pages, so you can show your support if you enjoy it!

Facebook: MMPR

Twitter: MMPR

OFFICIAL SITE: MMPR

What To Watch: Robot Combat League

Written by Stuart Cooper

What To Watch: Robot Combat League

Real Steel just became a work of non-fiction!

Last week was the debut of a show I never thought I'd see, a robot fighting show called "Robot Combat League"! You heard me right, the premise of that Hugh Jackman movie "Real Steel" has come to life...sort of. The show is a nice middle line between those old crappy Battlebots shows from the mid-90's and "Real Steel". Technology has not quite advanced to the level of "Real Steel" so the Robots are not totally wireless. They are more or less Robo-puppets. The robots are attached to a mechanism that reads the movements of the human. So like in "Real Steel" you control the robot by moving around in a suit of sorts. The movement is limited to punches and dodges. To say the movements of the robots are limited would be a huge understatement. They are not capable of super quick movements, but it's still a lot of fun. It's a live action Rock-em Sock-em Robots. The robots each have a unique look, which gives them character. I pick who I want to win strictly based on appearance of the robot.

The reality portion of the show is hosted by WWE Legend Chris Jericho! I'm a huge pro wrestling fan so I couldn't help but enjoy his hosting, tho it is pretty by the numbers. The stars of the show are various people from around the United States who have some type of talent they could contribute to robot fighting. Some are NASA employees, teachers, engineers...then you have people who are former boxers or MMA fighters, which explores the more barbaric side of the show. The show does unfortunately have that reality trash feel to it at times. You see a lot of that fake conflict stuff thrown in, an unfortunate trait in reality television. The show also tries to give each participant some kind of personality. In the first episode a Father-Daughter team really pushes the sympathy vote when they reveal they both have terminal illnesses, and that this is something they've always wanted to do. So how are you going to root against two people who just told you they are already dying? I thought that was a bit distasteful and exploitative. Other than those small complaints, this show is a blast! The actual fights at the end of the show are pretty enjoyable and while cheesy, live up to the "Robot Combat" name. I would recommend checking this one out, at least for one episode. If it's not your thing then I recommend the Robot Pro Wrestling episode of "Futurama"! Gender Bender is unfortunately not involved in "Robot Combat League".

Episode 1 of the Show:

Checkout "Robot Combat League" Tuesday Nights on Syfy!

Road To Wrestlemania: FilmEnigma's Top 10 Wrestlemania Matches of All-time

Written by Stuart Cooper

We're moving onto the number 9 position and boy is it tough to narrow it down. So many good matches and classic moments have taken place at Wrestlemania, I could make a top 20 if I wanted to. After careful thinking, the list has formed in my mind and it's time to get to one of my favorite feuds of all-time...The Undertaker vs. Kane! I have fond memories of watching the RAW and Superstars episodes leading up to Wrestlemania 14, it was surreal to imagine The Undertaker meeting his ultimate match. So let's dive right into it!

9. The First Time Ever: The Undertaker battles his brother Kane!

Wrestlemania 14 (1998)

Fleet Center in Boston, Massachusetts

19,028 people in attendance

Thoughts: The months leading up to Wrestlemania were quite thrilling. This time period for wrestling was absolute madness. You had the NWO in it's peak in WCW, Stone Cold's rise to becoming WWF Champion, Mike Tyson and D-X are hanging around...it's truly classic. Towards the end of 1997 The Undertaker entered a feud with Shawn Michaels. This feud led to the first ever HELL IN A CELL match. The match was a brutal classic that many still consider to be the best HELL IN A CELL match of all-time. At the end of the match The Undertaker's brother KANE made his debut. Kane proceeded to walk down the ramp and rip the cell door off it's hinges. The crowd went absolutely nuts when Kane destroyed The Undertaker using his own moves. For weeks following the Undertaker refused to battle his brother in any type of match. It wasn't until Kane cost the Undertaker the WWF Title at the Royal Rumble that the Undertaker began pursuing a match with his brother. The match was set, the heat was on. Wrestling fans had begun to grow accustomed to The Undertaker being a unbeatable phenom, especially in the case of Wrestlemania, so it was going to take a strong opponent to get fans into another Mania match. Kane was the perfect opponent for The Undertaker. It's like watching Superman vs. Bizarro, Green Lantern vs. Sinestro, Goku vs. Vegeta, The Double Dragons vs. The Shadow, it's that legendary Good vs. Evil, Light vs. Darkness battle. Kane had the same size, the same power, the same moves, and even The Undertaker's former manager. It looked like the Undertaker may actually be in trouble.

The match started off with the entrances and boy was Undertaker's memorable. This was one of the first real elaborate Undertaker mania entrances. Druids came out with torches and ushered the Undertaker to the ring. It was absolutely brilliant and really created that classic Undertaker deadman aura the fans love. The match itself was pretty fast paced and hard hitting. Both men exchanged finishers multiple times, there was a sloppy table spot by Undertaker, and ultimately after 3 Tombstone Piledrivers, the Undertaker got the win. Kane was really the first man to go the distance with the Undertaker (without cheating) and this would be the beginning of a long and storied love/hate relationship between the two brothers (kayfabe). The following month was the classic Inferno Match that I would say is almost as good as the Mania 14 match. This match is definitely better than their 2nd mania match that took place 6 years later at Wrestlemania XX. But that's another mania for another day...

Road To Wrestlemania: FilmEnigma's Top 10 Wrestlemania Matches of All-time!

Written by Stuart Cooper

Well the time is upon us. It's Wrestlemania Season! The Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber have now passed and it looks like Wrestlemania 29 will be John Cena vs. The Rock (Champion) for the WWE Title. I'm not exactly thrilled about that, but that's not what this post is about. I wanted to compile what I consider the Top 10 Wrestlemania matches of all-time. I judged these based on Wrestlemania moments, match quality, and crowd reaction. I'm probably biased towards certain matches, so if you have a favorite match that you don't see on the list, feel free to comment with your thoughts. It's very tough to narrow 29 years of wrestling into 10 matches, but I will give it my best shot. I'll be doing 1 match a day, for the next 10 days. The road to Wrestlemania has begun!

10. Hulk Hogan defends the WWF Title against Andre The Giant

Wrestlemania 3 (1987)

Pontiac Silverdome

93,173 in attendance(disputed)

Thoughts:The months leading up to Wrestlemania III were nothing short of pure gold. This would become one of the most historical periods in wrestling history. Hulk Hogan had been the WWF champion for 3 years and was absolutely on fire. He had become a household name. Throughout his title run he had never faced an adversary as large and menacing as Andre the Giant. The feud began when Andre aligned himself with Bobby "The Brain" Heenan and turned on Hogan. Andre had grown tired of Hogan's disrespect and popularity. This lead to the a challenge being made.

One on One for the WWF Title Hulk Hogan defeated Andre The Giant. The "bodyslam heard round the world" took place on that night. Hulk Hogan lifted up Andre (briefly) and bodyslammed him. Hogan is known for exaggerating this moment repeatedly in interviews! The match itself was not good by any means. Andre had already begun feeling ill and his back was really bothering him, so he was not able to move around very well in the ring. There was some classic moments that made this match memorable, and that is why it comes in at number 10. The crowd was absolutely mad for this match and considering it's 93,000 people, it's hard not to feel excitement when watching. The characters involved and the atmosphere is really what make this a true wrestlemania classic. The imagery involved in the match is also very memorable. I always think of the moment when Heenan and Andre are on the mini-ring going back down the entrance way after losing and Heenan looks absolutely blown away by what's happened. There would be a few rematches that followed but nothing memorable. If you want a good match-up between Hogan/Andre it won't be hard to find. They wrestled many times in Japan and other regional promotions prior to WWF! Needless to say, it was the clash of two huge wrestling personalities, and it's still talked about 25 years later.

Get Used to this guy because he will be back in the countdown soon...