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Annette Kellerman wants an IRON MAN of her very own!!! Plus Footage Of Our Own Flying IRON MAN!!!
Hey folks, Harry here... AICN's Annette Kellerman is not a comic book savant, however - she will own your ass when it comes to gore & nudity in film, the New Kids On The Block trivia and she will drink Tony Stark under the table. But even though she didn't know much of anything about Tony Stark... and IRON MAN - she came and had her mind blown. Before we get to her review - let's take a look at the video of our very own Jet Pack Man dressed in the most awesomely funky IRON MAN costume in the history of mankind... and let's see him FLY!!!
Near perfection. Those were the words on my lips as the credits for IRON MAN began to roll. This film is exactly how the summer movie season should be kicked off. With a thoughtful, kickass bang.
Aside from hanging out with a group of comic book geeks and hearing all their various rants and raves throughout the production of the film, I really came into this screening not knowing much of the storied Tony Stark and his alter ego. I had high expectations following the onslaught of amazing trailers- which sometimes makes me nervous about being let down by the final product. Alas, IRON MAN not only met those high expectations, it totally exceeded them in many ways.
I'm a total sucker for a good hero movie, but sometimes storyline is sacrificed for action and explosions. To cultivate a great hero character, serious back story is a must. Director John Favreau does a great job quickly establishing our lead as a genius, dapper, lothario and then just as quickly smashes that persona into bits as Stark is forced to question the most fundamental blocks on which his life and success were built. As many of you probably already know, war torn Afghanistan substitutes for Vietnam as the backdrop for Stark's personal epiphanies while forcing the audience to face the hard questions of war as well. I love when a shoot 'em up requires brain power in addition to a good appreciation for special effects. And speaking of effects, there were many times throughout this film that I had to remind myself that what I was seeing wasn't real. I'm not a fan of big, over-hyped action sequences where the lead actor suddenly looks like he or she stepped into a playstation game. What I do love is a good mix of CGI and practical effects. Though there were a few inescapable moments of total CGI-ness in a few spots, Favreau's effects team made me believe that there was a iron clad man wreaking havoc on baddies. Shit looked great.
Robert Downey Jr. may just be my new favorite superhero. I've been so pleased with the recent trend in action filmmaking that pairs talented, seasoned actors with roles that could be misconstrued as fluff. To me it has breathed new life into a genre that might otherwise be getting tired. Instead, however, I am delighted to behold a new crop of superhero films with the caliber of talent to match the over the top summertime theatrics. Downey now tops this list. He so perfectly captures the brazen yet conflicted Stark character with such gusto, you just can't help but love him. Oh yeah, ladies, he's really nice to look at too. For the fellas' fodder, Gwyneth Paltrow simply glows as Stark's longtime loyal assistant Pepper. Once again, it is so refreshing to see an academy award winning actress take on the role of sidekick and totally imbue the character with a charisma that would've been completely lost on the starlet du jour. Hefty supporting performances by Jeff Bridges and Terrence Howard pushed the mega talent meter even higher. In an attempt at not giving anything away, I'll just say that it was extremely fun seeing Bridges take on his role full throttle, and despite my previous IRON MAN ignorance, Howard's turn as Rhodes has me practically begging to see War Machine in action.
Hats off to John Favreau for kicking off my summer with near perfection. IRON MAN has set the bar so high, I'm actually now a bit nervous about what the rest of the season holds!
Until then,
Annette Kellerman
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Can't wait to see Iron Man though
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Apr 30, 2008 4:44:04 PM CDT
Whenever this site has a female review a comic film...
by industrykiller!
It always seems to be just a flat out rave. Not to mention they are typcally way off base at the end of the day. I would love tos ee a female reviewer that isn't just a fangirl.
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...but I loved it! Bring on the Stark! I'm loving how this movie is pleasing both neophyte and geek alike. Hey, it's just a movie in the end but it certainly looks worth my ten bucks! Go Favs!!
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drink some alcohol, then fly around on jetpack.
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Yes, he's alive, and in perfect hibernation. I need that fuckin beer!
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Yikes, people.
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Mr Jet Pack with a beer earlier in the day - though I may be manufacturing the memory out of hope.
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Better than I expected by a long shot. Would have liked a bit more action, but as is always the case with origin stories, exposition takes the front seat here, which is fine. RDJr did a fantastic job and all the characters were likeable and multifaceted. Really fun film.
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Thanks, Annette. Good review. With so many other "Iron Man" reviews coming out recently, I'm glad you shied away from giving a whole lot away while summing up what you dug.
I'm seeing this on Saturday. -
and a fake leg.
quite a few fetishes covered. -
Don't forget the tiara.
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All the reviews of this movie and noone has one nice thing to say about it? ;o) hehe
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Apr 30, 2008 5:32:48 PM CDT
Annette, Are You Really A Cartoon Cyborg As Depicted Above?
by laserpants
If so, wanna go out for a drink? You seem to have large... ideas and a shapely... vocabulary. Lets go see Iron Man together, or perhaps Speed Racer, or perhaps... lets make a film of our own that I promise to never post on the internet (much)? But I bet you hear that from all the geeks. No, but, seriously, I like you. Lets go for out for a drink and mayhem.
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it's a space station.
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Just FUCKING STAY AFTER THE CREDITS ARE ALL OVER... I watched it Tijuana (Mexico), it opened today and you can go right now!
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She's made out of skin and hair and everything. Does that mean I don't want to fuck other women? Especially cartoon ones with impossibly perfect figures and magic powers? NO! Of course not! I don't discriminate between fantasy and reality like you, you goddamn racist! YOU'RE RACIST AGAINST CARTOON GIRLS!!! YOU BIGOT!!! GET OUTTA HERE GHOST!!! GEEEEEEEEEET OUT OF HERE GHOST!!!
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Don't worry, Jones will kick its ass.
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does in the movie
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TELLING SOME TO GET A GIRL AND GO OUTSIDE.HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!THANKS, FUCKING NIPPLE HEAD, I NEEDED THAT LAUGH. YOU HAVE MULTIPAL DUMB FUCK POST IN EVERY SINGLE TALKBACK AND YOU HAVE THE FUCKING NERVE TO TELL SOME ONE ELSE TO GET A GIRL AND A LIFE YOU FUCKING ASS LICKING DOUCHETARD.HEY SNITCHY, DON'T THINK THAT DADDY DIDN'T SEE YOUR LITTLE LIE ABOUT BEING A PUBLISHED AUTHOR. RELENLESSLY POSTING IN EVERY TALKBACK DOESN'T EQUAL BEING AN AUTHOR BOOBOO. POSTING ADS IN AN ALTERNATIVE WEEKLY LOOKING FOR A "SWEET DADDY TO LOVE ME, WHO ISN'T TOO WELL ENDOWED AND NOT A CONVICT" DOESN'T MAKE YOU WILLIAM FAULKNER YOU BLEEDING CUNT. -
...yikes.
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...I was 14 in '77. Stood in a line that circled around the then "Cinedome" in Orange County, California. Had a GREAT time doing it, and knew NOTHING about the movie. I was completely pissed off when Han split with the reward! My buddy, who thought Luke was cooler, kept saying "see! I TOLD you Han's a douche!" Of course, when Han saved Luke's ass he didn't say a word. The other cool thing? We walked out and snuck RIGHT BACK IN for a second showing.
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I was just looking at that gif of Harry again. Lot's of fun for sure but It'd be so much more at a Bond retrospective.... or a Michael Jackson concert.
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and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me?
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What a wonderful set of pajamas!
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HELL NO, WE WON'T PAY IT'S MICHAEL BAY.
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wrong TB.
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But with way less people and I didn't see a hot girl with a fake leg. I did however get my picture with Harry so I know he was there
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Must I go on?
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Im only 16, so I didnt see Star Wars in '77, but I did see the Phantom Menace in '97, and it probably felt the same.
Thats right haters, it was pure magic in the eye of a child. -
I've got the perfect comeback to ANYTHING you say...."you're 16!"
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because of the rocket pack footage they used over and over and that was 30 years ago. I would have thought the technology would have been perfected by now. At least enough to fly more than 30 seconds.
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I've got the perfect comeback to ANYTHING you say..."YOU'RE A STUPID, GAY, LOSER, WITH NO LIFE and everyone hates you!"
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i didn't know he had been cut from the film and i was waiting to see him...saw a screening tonight in TO
it was a very fun movie! -
...had a blast. A few good laughs, some great effects and a perfect Tony Stark. The War Machine nod was great. I'd forgotten how hot Paltrow can be, too. # 2 should be even better. Just wish I'd waited till the end of the credits...
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Actually, 2sdaychicken, that was an entirely DIFFERENT experience. In fact, I'll be more bold -- IT WASN'T EVEN CLOSE. Not to put words in his mouth, it's also not what Soylent was actually referring to in a larger scheme of things. The truth is, the lines and enthusiasm for PM were built in. The giddiness for seeing PM on its opening weekend resulted from 20 long years -- think about that, 20 YEARS, 2 full decades -- of people ALREADY being exposed to SW, of having the fan base growing and growing and growing, all of whom could now finally see a NEW film as a true community geek experience. And PM also came after geek film experiences had become more common place. So in the case of PM you literally had excited geek parents bringing their geek kids now. In the end, PM was every marketing executive's dream simply because of the pent-up demand and obvious brand name recognition that now existed out there.But seeing STAR WARS during its original run in '77 was the total OPPOSITE. No one knew anything. There was no AICN. There were no high end glossy film magazines -- hell, there was no Net and digital photos which you could download and examine on your deluxe monitor in pristine digital color. At best...if you were a true dyed in the wool geek...you were out buying things like Forrest Ackerman's FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND so you could look at a few black & white stills that were printed on low end newsprint paper stock. In short, there wasn't much to find and there DEFINITELY was not the level of spoiler material that is so readily available today. Boy, again it seems hard to believe, but there was actually a time when to find out "what" a movie was about, you actually had to go and SEE it!Not to get into age revelations, but I was a teen in '77 and can admit to being SUCH a SW geek that I used to go to a local theater on Saturdays just sit through multiple showings because I couldn't get enough of it. Hell, that also shows you how times have changed 30 years later. For those of us old enough to remember, yes, there actually was a time when you could go up to the window and pay ONCE to go in and see a movie, after which the theater wouldn't usher or push you out -- they would just clean up around you. In other words, you could just sit there as long as you wanted, go restock on soda and popcorn, and see the damn movie again and again if you wanted. Man, I can recall sitting through FANTASTIC VOYAGE and THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD and THE LAND BEFORE TIME the same way.But as for '77 -- and as much as I love my Net browsing and as much as I enjoy talking online with fellow geeks far more immediately -- there really IS a magic that's been lost. A magic of discovery. Of a film just coming out of left field and NO surprises were ever ruined for you. And even for those of us who were die-hard comic book and sci-fi/horror movie geeks back then, SW still managed to come out of left field and blow us all away. The most common and now somewhat cliched anecdote you hear about '77...about sitting there and suddenly having your eyes pop out in total shock and amazement as the Star Destroyer first came into frame and then feeling your heart pounding and ready to burst in excitement...is totally true. In that regards, Soylent was right. For those of us who were there, it was a moment in time when we knew that we were actually experiencing film history being made...that all the rules were being thrown out the window. Hell, it affected me so much that it pushed me into film school and then becoming a creative writer. And I'm not alone -- what geek who is in their late 30s or 40s, who was a teen at that time, can't point to '77 and SW as being perhaps THE cathartic moment that pushed you into certain things? PM was a media driven event, it was a blockbuster movie with high grosses for sure, but it was hardly the life changing event that SW was in '77.I hate to be a romanticized old geek, but as much as I love going to the movies (and I do go all the time) NOTHING has ever equaled what happened in '77. Of course, I'm eternally optimistic that someone will raise the bar again. Which is why right now I have my fingers crossed that Cameron and AVATAR will blow us all away and show us the next generation of filmmaking, but we'll have to see how that all works out!
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...After all that, I'm really hoping IRON MAN delivers. I'll be there this weekend for sure. I just think Downey jr. has absolutely been killer in the previews and commercials alone, he just makes me smile seeing him as Tony Stark, so I agree with the reviewer that he could be an all-new high point in terms of the RIGHT actor being perfectly cast and thus imbuing a comic character with full life. All in all, fingers crossed, I'm hoping the geek in me will have a smile a mile wide this weekend.
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coz a lot of the film critic reviews are panning this....After Cloverturd i wouldnt trust a word the industry bootlickers say...
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and leave it upstairs with Flynn...
System's got more bugs than a bait store. -
I had "Great Monsters of the Movies", and it was what brought movies into my life. Paperback, black and white, newsprint stock. It was great. Ahhh, the 70's.
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there was nothing...the guy at our screening said to make sure to watch for something after the credits and there was NOTHING. the whole theatre boo'ed
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In reliving my youth and seeing STAR WARS in '77, I forgot what made me want to post in the first place! I'm also old enough to remember growing up on LOST IN SPACE and can also fondly remember watching TV and seeing Guy Williams step out of the Jupiter 2 and suiting up to fly around in that same type of Jet Pack. As a result, my brother and I always laugh about this -- that was the freakin' SIXTIES and everyone thought it would be the future. We all thought that by the Seventies or even the Eighties...certainly 20 years out...that we would ALL be flying around by jet pack. And yet here we are in 2008 and we still got zip!Boy, with today's gas prices and gas guzzling SUVs and everything else, whatever happened to THAT futuristic dream? Man, something sure went wrong along the way!
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Nothing Jubba? I went this morning (OZ time) and ironically everyone left except for me, and there as Sam Jackson saying (SPOILER) he wanted (SPOILER) to talk about the (SPOILLLLEERRR) Avenger initiative (SPOILER END).
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He doesn't need a Jetpack to fly....I'm just sayin'...
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Heh. Now I really AM sorry!
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Yet another brilliant post. Indeed, Gotham's publisher is none other than Craigslist/Casual Encounters/M4M.
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Just got back from the first public session here in australia. make sure you stay to the end!
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On a double feature with The Last Remake of Beau Geste with Ann Margaret, Michael York, and Marty Feldman. I shit you not. Yeah, there's absolutely no way to compare Phantom Menace in terms of experience and phenonemon. There had never been anything like this before. No video games, no space battles, nothing. Not that the movie didn't rip off Westerns and martial arts films, but I didn't know that at the time. It was pure magic.
Since they didn't have the Fury ending after the credits, I hope someone posts it somewhere. Not that Iron Man isn't worth a 2nd screening, but with all the other movies and my limited budget, I usually only see a film the second time on DVD.
And yes, this review is correct. This movie does indeed rock. Best Marvel film ever, in my opinion. -
No Fury at the Chicago showing.
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May 01, 2008 12:52:13 AM CDT
I HAD A "DISCOVERY MOMENT" WITH FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING
by bringingsexyback
Never read the book and didn't want to see the movie, and it blew me the hell away. I was numb afterwards, it was so great.
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but i cant say i am gushing like most reviewers are. For me Rob Downey Jr. was absolutely Stark in the flesh and the scenes where he has the Iron Man armor are dead on like the comic perfectly. The Iron Man/Iron Monger battle at the end was a little short but still great...perfectly executed....I only wish for ONCE the major battle would take place in the daytime. It feels like a special FX cop out to me. Major battles take place in the day in comics sometimes. Bridge's Obadiah was pretty great....evil like the comics but he seemed to have no heart at all which was not like the comic one who felt guilty enough in the end of off himself with a repulsor blast to the head. I woulda like to have seen Stane go out that way but i guess that doesnt work in PG-13. Rhodey was ok. NOt in it enough...the War Machine reference was pretty weak...i woulda at least like the name dropped or something. Hope he can suit up in the next one and do more. Paltrow's Pepper Potts was totally the damsel in distress and she felt totally phoned in. I seriously felt like it was Phoebe from Friends as Stark's assistant. Not cool. Paul Bettany as Jarvis is nice but I didnt like that Jarvis was just a computer system. The Mandarin reference was pretty weak in tht the terrorist group was called 10 Rings....hope this develops better in the next one. The SHIELD guys were pretty annoying actually...just looking like regular CIA spooks there as a plot device and to make jokes all the time about SHIELD's long name. Meh... But overall the Iron Man scenes (as few as they were) were perfect...about as perfect a translation of a superhero himself from comic to screen as you can get. Hope to see more of that in the future.
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AGGGGH!!! I was prepared to stay and my girl was prepared to wait it out with me but then mid credits the screen goes blank and house lights come up! CRAZY!! Please once this hits the US someone post on here with a spoiler warning about what the post-credits scene is!!! So frustrating...
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My girlfriend loved the movie and knew nothing about Iron Man but the end totally ruined it for her...and me....with Stark just blurting out to the world that he is Iron Man. She said it was ridiculous and I agreed. I guess they felt ok with that since in current continuity everyone knows Stark is Iron Man but it took like 40 years of stories to get to that point....I mean jeez drag it out a little ya know? I guess Jon Favreau wanted to be a rebel and skip all the slow build to secret identity reveal by just having the main character out himself at the end of the first movie! ...ah well...i digress...
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May 01, 2008 1:14:26 AM CDT
One last thing...saw the new Indy 4 trailer in front of this.
by dogmatic
and... it was awesome! I loved every line Indy delivered! My favorite is when he and LeBeef are in a cave reminiscent of the beginning of Raiders and Indy gives a worried look and tells LeBeef "Don't touch ANYthing" and the way he said to him "Come here genius." with that classic Indy sarcasm and smirk...even a bit reminiscent of old Han Solo. And the action was great too! Indy throw double punches a big a Russian who barely feels it reminded me of the Raiders mechanic fight and Indy jumping from one jeep to another to punch out some guys and Indy telling his sidekick to "..put your hands down you're embarrassing us." YEAH!!! INdy's back! Thank God! Iron Man was pretty great but it was still just lead-in for Indy 4 for me!
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START SPOILER Aren't you completely missing the point there? Obviously your view was coloured by the 40 year comic history, but in the context of this film with the last couple of hours of Robert Downey Jr.'s deadpan hamming doesn't it make COMPLETE sense he'd say in effect "no O.K. you guys got me, I'm him". Surely now they're 10 times more likely to dismiss it not to mention they think he's a shell-shocked loon after the earlier P.R. disaster? END SPOILER.
I really liked the movie but I just wish I hadn't watched the trailers which as everyone is saying gave too many of the big beats away. That ending totally worked for me.
Strangely though I did get the after Credits bit (I'm in OZ), and thought it was just sort of gratuitous. Don't be too upset if you don't get it, American comic nerds! ;)
Yeah Indy trailer was cool - Blanchet is an awesome Russian Dominatrix. Go Aussies! -
SPOILER AGAIN - It also makes sense after he'd sort of put his foot in his mouth by introducing the superhero thing that he'd overcompensate that way. Like I said, he shoots his mouth off and from the start of the movie it gets him into trouble. Worked for me. END SPOILER AGAIN.
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in her mouth!
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Check it out here! http://tinyurl.com/58v8yr
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jumped the border from ELP and fought with all the little kids being celebrated for "Dia del Niño" in line for my spot to see a kick ass movie!!!...
Action sequences are good, still did miss some of the parts that you get to see in the trailors...I guess they're saving that for the ULTRA-SUPER-DUPER-CAN'T-GET-ANY-BETTER-THAN-THIS blue-ray edition available sometime soon(december?)...but will soon see the movie again though!...
Only raises my expectations for TDK though... -
Err, I mean Ironic name - you wuss! It snowed in the Blue Mountains and you can't go sit in a nice comfy cinema because of some rain? Pfft!
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...that I spent with playing Pilotwings on the SNES.
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I'm seeing Shellhead tonight so I don't wanna risk any more spoilers! Lookin' forward to it. Nice cartoon doppleganger, Annette. You sure know what we boy geeks like.
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though only 6 will survive. Yeessscch!
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Poor girl needs to learn to string thoughts past individual sentences so that whole paragraphs can maintain the same tense.
Also, alas means to regret, honey. -
does anybody know if this Kellerman ever posted a review before Harry announced he had a girlfriend? I smell a Yoko here.
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Was definitely said after the credits :)
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That is, Stark to the press conference (not the post credits bit) is completely in character for how Stark is written and played throughout the film. I laughed when he said it, laughed again when it immediately cutto the credits, and as I waited through the longest credit reel in history, the more I thought about it, the more it fitted Stark, both before and especially after his personal journey in the film (gawd, I hate phrases like "his personal journey" - a pox on McKee! - but this time it fits).
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But the 'I' word right after it. Which is VERY contemporary comics continuity.
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I'm not Yoko- unless you think she could've posted a Fight Club review when she was 12. I've been contributing off and on for quite some time now...
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Big Dumb Ape is not so dumb. He nailed exactly that SW experience that shall not be seen again. Pity.
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