AfroUnderscoreStud's movie Reviews on Newgrounds

[Blockhead: Episode 4]

Great, the best Blockhead yet.

Once again, just like the last one, that was great, definitely the best in the series so far without a shadow of a doubt, so damn close to a 5/5, but not quite there, it was still damn great though.

The opening sequence has to be the best so far, I loved how it started off in a psychiatrist's office and how you made it seem like all along Blockhead was just part of some crazy guy's imagination, but then you had him show up and interact with the psychiatrist to prove that he existed and to change the story back to what it was before, it still left the possibility though that Blockhead was actually part of some crazy guy's mind still, an issue that I hope to see dealt with in a future episode and then perhaps you could finally reveal the truth in the very last episode of the series. the only thing I wasn't too keen on in this scene was the spitting in the face, it seemed a little over the top and also overdone, but it wasn't really all that bad.

Again I wasn't too keen on how you chose to use pictures that you'd played around with in photoshop at the start as it just gave the impression that the movie was going to be awful, again though fortunately it wasn't. I did like the different tune though, it was nice seeing the usual tune in a halloween style.

I liked the little sketch involving Blockhead not knowing what Halloween was called and it was a great way to start by having him instantly talking with his sub-conscience, it was a great way to instantly set the story up by giving you all the facts you needed to know in a humourous way, I liked how you chose mid-January though, most people would have chosen another special event of the year like Christmas if they did something similar, so it was nice to see something different.

It was great how someone actually turned up at his door as well, you could have had it so he was just wondering why nobody turned up, fortunately you didn't though and you had some funny sketches. It was even better when it turned out to be an insurance salesman and Blockhead asked him what he was supposed to be. It was nice to see the element of the tongs from the previous 2 episodes recycled again, it's always great when an old joke from a series gets revived.

I loved the following conversation between Blockhead and his sub-conscience, it was great to see everything explained and it was funny to see why Blockhead's sub-conscience looked the way he did. This scene had some really funny jokes amongst it and I have to say it was done to perfection.

I wasn't too keen on the next little sketch, it started out fine with the woman turning up asking Blockhead to apologize to the insurance salesman, but the tongue just seemed a little too much and not at all neccesary, it just wasn't that funny at all.

I loved how Blockhead then went trick-or-treating and it was funny when the old lady gave him some of her clothes, also it was nice to see an old character back in the movie. I wasn't too sure what happened at the second house, did the guy there beat him up or something? What happened just wasn't shown at all so it wasn't too clear what exactly it was that happened. The last house had to be my personal favourite, it was pretty funny to see him just grab the vase and then quickly run off.

You ended it marvelously too, it was great how after a short conversation, Blockhead's sub-conscience shot himself and then how a hole appeared in Blockhead's head, it was definitely one of the best parts of the movie and it again was done to perfection.

The main idea to the movie was always going to work, 'an idiot celebrates halloween on the wrong day', but you pulled it off especially well and it was great to watch throughout. I'm still loving the interaction between Blockhead and his sub-conscience too, it's an aspect of this series which is done to perfection. Anyway, well done, great job, keep up the great work.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

4/5

The-Swain responds:

It occured to me that you are more interested in the intellectual dimension of the cartoon, the part that challenges your ability to predict or understand what people tend to regard as normal. I'm sure that even though you may not have enjoyed the physical dimensions, such as spitting or hitting people with his tongue, you'd probably be willing to admit that it was necessary to establish BH's lack of self control (even if you didn't think it was funny). I knew the tongue thing wouldn't please you as soon as you explained that the spititting wasn't your favorite part, but that's understandable. But I'd rather that you were happy with the plot and the performance instead of the way it looked; animating takes a long time to do, but inventing the story and vocalizing it is always much harder. This means that someone appreciating that facet of my cartoon is much more rewarding to me.

Oh, and at the second house, there was nothing left to guess. BH asks the guy some inane question and then moves on without event (he discards the clothes, which you can see lying on the guy's walkway when BH leaves).

But I have to say, your review is almost as thorough a look at Blockhead as I give myself when I am writing a new script for him. I am very, very thankful that you took the time not only to write as carefuly as you did, but that you examined the cartoon just as efficiently. It was a tremendous insight into the cartoon, the likes of which it is very hard for me to come up with myself. Thanks a lot, and I'm happy you enjoyed it!

[Blockhead: Episode 3]

Much, much better, I loved it.

That was great, definitely much better than the last one as this one was just constantly funny throughout and I loved every second of it, it was better than the first one too, it wasn't only the length that did that, it was the humour too.

I loved the first little sketch at the drive-thru fast food restaurant, it was just done to prefection, I liked how it started off parodying the drive-thru restaurant's to perfection with the guy repeatedly offering him more stuff when he kept telling him he didn't want it, the event at the end of this sequence wasn't expected at all which just made it even better.

Again I wasn't too keen on how you chose to use pictures that you'd played around with in photoshop at the start as it just gave the impression that the movie was going to be awful, fortunately it wasn't.

The combination of the two different graphical styles was fine this time, it definitely worked a whole lot better than before, they just seemed much better put together.

I loved how you had him watching the cheesy romantic drama, you had the romantic done to perfectiona nd it was nice to see something different done, it was nice to see a break in stlye and to have a different element of humour introduced.

I liked how you had him go up to the chipmunk on his windowsill and had him talking to it really fast before eventually pushing it off, it was very nicely done, this was a point where the movie could have gone sour, but fortunately it didn't. I also liked how you had him boasting to his sub-conscience about what he'd just done, I also liked how an element from the last episode in the case of the tongs got brought up. I really liked the part where Blockhead went "You're smiling aren't you?", I loved that whole little sketch involving the smile, it was definitely my favourite part of the movie.

I liked the next part where you had Blockhead rabbiting on and on, really quickly, to the children outside his house, it was funny how he kept going on and on while they just couldn't even hear him.

I liked how you had his sub-conscience decide to leave him and then how you had him run outside and get run over by a car, strangely enough this scene was actually funny, most jokes involving people getting run over tend to be terrible and they get even worse when they're too obvious, but this one worked really well and I loved it, so well done on that.

I'm hoping the next one will be as good as this, as this is beginning to look like a really good series in the making, the idea of having an idiot with a fairly smart sub-conscience works really well and it's great to see the interaction between the two. Anyway, well done, great job, keep up the great work.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

4/5

[Blockhead: Episode 2]

Not as good as the first one, disappointing.

I didn't like the first section with the old lady at all, every joke was just nothing original at all and each one wasn't funny the first time it was used either. The part where she got run over had to be the worst part, as you just knew it was coming, I was hoping it wouldn't but it did and I literally groaned.

Again I didn't like how you chose to use pictures that you'd played around with in photoshop in the intro as it instantly gave a bad impression.

Again I didn't like the combination of the two different graphical styles either, it looked better than before this time though which was a good thing.

The one part of this I did like was when you went to the view of his subconcious and you saw that the guy wasn't there and then he walked in, it was pretty funny and it worked really well. I also liked the line "what was it he asked, not expecting a real answer", it was a really nice line which worked perfectly.

I didn't like the fridge scene at all, I didn't like how you completely changed the visual style of the movie to pasted images, especially since they were of a poor quality, there were far too many blurs around them. The jokes to it weren't anything original either, someone saying that an items something completely different than what it actually is, is far too overdone and there just didn't seem to be any humour in it.

I wasn't too keen on the rest of the jokes after either, as they were too over the top as well as being overdone and I just didn't find them funny at all, partcularly the eating of the toaster. I did like how at the very end he instantly walked away from the T.V., it got the fact that he was dumb across perfectly, due to him losing interest after 5 seconds.

I was disappointed by this one, it was mainly the humour that let it down as the jokes didn't seem to be anything original, the jokes you used have just been done far too many times before and some of them weren't even funny in the first place, which just really let the movie down. Had you been more original and made the movie more interesting like the first one this would have been much better.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

1/5

[Blockhead: Episode 1]

Good, but it was too short.

Well first off I have to say it was good, I liked it, it was definitely funny and the humour was there right from the start, the only problem was with the length, it just seemed too short and there wasn't really that many jokes in it, it should have been longer as it would have made it much better and it would have got a much higher score.

I liked how right from the start you started with a funny joke, it just instantly got my attention and got me interested in the movie from the word go, I expected a constantly funny movie and that's what I got. The idea of basing a movie around a really stupid guy doesn't sound like it would make a good movie, but it did, I especially liked how Blockhead was talking to some guy that wasn't even in the room with him and it generated some sort of interest into what was going on, was that guy his subconciounse mind telling him or what? It was a nice little concept and the thick jokes worked really well.

The only complaints I have about this other than it being too short is that I didn't like the merge of the two graphical styles with Blockhead and his surroundings as it didn't look that good next to each other. I also wasn't too keen on how you chose to use pictures that you'd played around with in photoshop at the start as it just gave the impression that the movie was going to be awful, fortunately it wasn't. Also the sound quality of the fat bloke's voice seemed a little poor when his voice got loud and it just didn't sound too good. My only other complaint is a minor one, the size of the window seemed a little too small, I checked it out and w=525, h=375 seems to be the best way in which to view this, that complaints not really a complaint though, just a reccomendation.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

2/5

[Pencilmation #2]

That was awesome, even better than the first one.

Once again I loved it, it was everything the first one had, but with some story and some more great original ideas in it. I loved how you had the pencil interacting with what it drew, like where it moved the cannon right at the very start, it was a brilliant touch and it worked really well, it was very nice to see and I also loved how you had the pages flicking over for each different part of the story. I also liked how right at the very start of the story you had the stick figure drawing the castle with the tip of a pencil, again a very nice touch to see a drawing, drawing something itself and it was even nicer when the pencil rubbed out the castle, it got a few chuckles from me. I also liked it when you had the stick figure grab the pencil and drag it into the paper, it was great how the pencil ended up becoming a drawing itself and it was great to see the stick figure using it. the story to this was excellent and it was really fun to watch the puny pencil-drawn stick figure attempting to beat the mighty pen-drawn stick figure, by only using the pencil to draw things. I especially loved the quicksand sketch where the pencil-drawn stick figure made the quicksand only for the pen-drawn one to push it away so it would effect the pencil-drawn one instead. I also really loved the end sequence, it was done to perfection, it was a great idea to have the pen-drawn stick figure, become a stain by walking into some spilt tea/coffee that was on the paper, a very original idea. The part right at the very end with the massive marker pen coming in just made it even better, and the expression on the stick figures face was perfect.

The music in this one didn't seem to fit in with the action as well as the music did in the last one, it still fitted in really well, just not as good as previously, it was just the start though where it didn't fit in all that great. I also wasn't too keen on the scrolling down the page to show the opening credits at the very start, it didn't look too good, perhaps it would have been better if you'd flipped the page over and then gone back to the first one to continue on with the little animation sequence that you had going on.

Anyway, well done, brilliant job, keep up the brilliant work.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

5/5

[Pencilmation #1]

Brilliant, very stylish, I loved it.

That was just brilliant, I loved it, the whole style with the pencil drawing everything was just done to perfection, this was just completely different from every other flash movie, definitely one of the best animations I've ever seen, I literally applauded this, it really was that damn good. Okay the idea of a pencil drawing things and having a story progress has been done many times before, but never before has it been done this good and you used some things that haven't been done before with this style of movie as well. It was great to see the pencil interacting with the stuff in the movie, such as poking the stick and turning the gauge to fill up the tank with water. It was also great when all the stuff animated by itself without the pencil making it happen, the whole thing was just really very nicely done and I especially loved the ending where the tip of the pencil came off and the stick figure picked it up and used it himself, it was a very original idea and it worked amazingly. The story to this wasn't an interesting one, but story isn't what this movie was going for and what you did have was absolutely perfect. I'm really looking forward to seeing the next one, if it's better than this then it's just going to be absolutely amazing. Anyway, brilliant job, keep up the brilliant work.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

5/5

[Our First Halloween]

Is that it? It needed more to it.

It was too short and not much really happened in it and it also seemed a little too cliched and unoriginal, most of the stuff wasn't anything I haven't seen done hundreds of times before, there was some funny jokes in it but it never really got particularly interesting.

The start was good with Smiffy hiding and Jo making him come out and his costume was fairly funny to see, okay it wasn't an original joke at all, but it still worked and it was funny.

The next part with the Dustbin Fairy routine was fairly okay, it seemed a little corny but it definitely wasn't bad. Though the part after that where Jo fell marked the moment where this movie started to get boring, falling jokes are just overdone and they're very rarely ever funny.

The next part where the kids turn up at the door, Smiffy wasn't happy and he threw sugar over them, was just a part that's completely overdone, the effect it had when it was first done worked, but since then it's just been repeated over and over and the humour it once had is now completely gone. Then you used another overdone joke with the fat kid and having the bag fall on top of him just seemed far too over the top and it just didn't seem neccesary.

The next part was good, while it was again an overdone joke, it was an overdone joke that actually works apart from when it's done really badly, this wasn't done badly and it was great to see the reaction from the Christian woman due to what she thought was happening. The part where Jo opened the door could have been better though as it wasn't particularly interesting and the use of the tumbleweed made it far too cliched.

The next part was dissapointing, as you just suddenly decided to end it and not really all that much had happened in the movie, it would have been much better if you'd continued on from there and had some funny events taking place.

The whole movie did really seem to be lacking in events, it was just a couple of trick-or-treating mishapsalong with two other jokes, which just wasn't enough. The sound quality of the voices was poor and it really showed when the voices got louder and it showed far too much when the kids went 'trick or treat', the poor sound quality somewhat let the movie down and made it seem worse than it actually was.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

0/5

[BadGuys3:BatteredMonsters]

Disappointing.

Well I must say, I was rather disappointed by this, the last two were great but this one didn't seem to be that interesting, it kept seeming like it was going to lead somewhere, but it didn't, which was a shame. It wasn't that funny this time either and the only time I laughed was right at the very end when the trick or treaters spoke in the sewdish accent that's been used in every episode so far, it was funny because it's been a recurring factor within this series. The swearing jokes didn't work too well this time, as they just seemed too forced, like you were only putting them in because that's what this series is about, the context just didn't seem right this time and it didn't really work. You should have had more going on in it, as not much really happened, some trick or treaters turned up at a door and some random monsters appeared every now and then, it just really wasn't too interesting to watch, you should have had some more interesting lines amongst it and some sort of interesting to watch event taking place, also perhaps you could have used more than one location, as only using the door seemed a little bland, perhaps you could have shown some action from inside the house that didn't involve the trick-or-treaters. Where the guy was moving his head the animation wasn't very well, one minute he was looking right, then forward and then left it was just a sudden jerk rather than a flowing movement as he moved his head and it didn't look all that good. I was impressed with the sound, never before have I seen the use of two speakers done so well from a flash movie, it was great to hear the sound coming from one speaker and then at another moment the other, it just really made me wish that I had surround sound, excellent job in this factor. I'm surprised by the pace at which your releasing these episodes, you'd think that surely they'd be terrible but they haven't been, they've been good movies, okay I didn't like this one, but it still wasn't a poor movie in terms of skill, it just wasn't very interesting to watch, so seriously well done on making good flash at such a quick pace. I'm pleased to see that this episode isn't where your series is headed though and I'm definitely looking forward to watching the next one.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

1/5

ChrisNosal responds:

Paragraphs are your friend, use them. ;)

I decided to use just one camera angle because I wanted it to sort of be from the perspective of the kids. Like we stopped at the house with them.

As for an "interesting to watch event," I felt like that's what I was doing with the blue guy in the background. He had a chainsaw, then he was dragging a body, then you hear the chainsaw, then he shows up with the bloody bowl of candy...

And people talk about how I crank these out quickly, but really, it's just the 3rd one that's like that. I spent a few weeks on #2. And I'm spending a few on the next one. This one is just different because it's a holiday thing. I can understand your point of view though.

Thanks.

[Warhammer 40k Tribute]

A bit too short, not much really happened.

At first it didn't seem too bad and it seemed like a fairly nice start to an episode, but it was just too short and nothing really happened, there was just a bit of fighting and a few deaths, there wasn't really any significant events taking place and there didn't seem to be any story behind the battle. It was dissappointing when you had the crate open and the guy walk out only for you to suddenly end it, as that was the moment where the movie looked like it was actually going to go somewhere and that something interesting was about to take place, but instead you just ended it. It would have been nice if you'd had some story to this and had explained why the battle was taking place as it would have just made it much more interesting to watch as it would have drawn you in to the action more and it would have given a reason for the fight to be taking place rather than it just seeming like yet another violence movie. You had the characters nicely done and they resembled what they were supposed to be perfectly. The sound wasn't too good, the music and the sound effects seemed too loud when they both played at the same time and it didn't sound all that good either, you should have had one louder than the other by a significant amount so that it would have sounded better. It was also hard to make out what was being said on the occasions where there was something said, you should have made the voices more audible and perhaps you also could have added some subtitles just to make it clear.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

1/5

bumblebeetuna responds:

youve obviously never played warhammer and cant apreciate it i suppose, as for the random violence thats how the 40k universe works.. and ive created a tribute to it not a series

[O.N.E.]

Nice concept, but it wasn't very interesting.

When it first started, I liked it, as it was a great concept in using little dolls as the characters and making everything else appear big, but it wasn't really very interesting to watch as not much really happened, it was just some dolls dancing, which at first wasn't too bad, but when it just became them dancing over and over to different songs it just got boring and repetitive as you were basically watching the same thing over and over again. You should have tried spicing the dances up a little so that each one had a different feel to it and you could clearly distinguish one from the other, doing so would have made it seem much less repetitive thus making it much more interesting to watch. Perhaps you also could have had them mvoing around the room as they were dancing instead of having them in the same location each time as that too would have given a slightly different feel to it making it more interesting. It also would have been nice if the characters had been interacting with some of the objects around the room as they were dancing as you could have done some very interesting stuff by doing that. You also should have had more interactions between the characters, as your message was that 'music is the universal language' so really the characters should have been dancing together for most or all of the songs instead of just the last one, as it would have got that message across much more clearly as the dancing seperately didn't really communicate that message. Perhaps making the characters more clearly from different countries would have improved on that message as well as it would have been clearly showing that the same piece of music can have the same effect on people no matter where around the world they live.

Anyway, on to some good parts of this. the sound fitted perfectly with the actions pretty much the whole way through, well done on that. Also well done on the graphics, the style you used worked really well, I'm fairly harsh with my graphics score, but you got a 10 for this, I don't think I've given a movie a 10 for graphics for over 2 years, so well done.

Peace Out, Afro Stud

0/5(sorry about that, while the movie itself was a good flash movie in terms of skill, I vote for how much i enjoyed the movie, rather than how good it is in terms of flash skill. It works both ways, poorly done movies will get a high score if the story is really enjoyable and I like watching it. 5/5 for flash skill though)