Quarantine Control #175: Fetch My Stone Bros.

DC Staff | August 10, 2023 | Animation, Features, Movies, Reviews, Television | No Comments

It’s unreal to see a former president being charged with crimes and indicted, as what’s happened with a certain Donald J. Trump, but it was necessary. This is a guy who tried to overturn an election, and came closer than a lot of people thought at the time of the coup attempt, and is now running for president again to finish the job and stay out of prison should he be found guilty. He’s not hiding those plans either, to little surprise considering how unsubtle Trump has always been. There’s sadly a better chance of this strategy working than there should be, but only the people can prevent this from being successful for him, the only person he truly fights for.

Geoffrey Barnes

The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)
Source: Peacock
Episodes: 1 movie (with an inevitable sequel on the way)

The promotional campaign for The Super Mario Bros. Movie properly set expectations for the film. It was bound to be a fun adventure that worked as a far more accurate adaptation of the Mario franchise, including its themes and characters, compared to any previous movie and animated series — especially the memetically bad 1993 movie. (Credit to the 1980s anime movie for codifying a lot of Mario themes and characters outside the original Super Mario Bros. game, however.) It was also bound to look good, with the full financial backing of Universal Pictures’ Illumination Entertainment and Nintendo Pictures behind it. I was heavily skeptical of the film, especially considering some casting choices.

Yet, it was upon starting the movie that I realized it didn’t need to be more than a fun time, and it was. It also contained clues that old people like me, who hit the big 4-0 this year, were the real target audience rather than the young’uns.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie starts with the titular brothers, Mario and Luigi, operating their plumbing business, promoting how they’re the best in Brooklyn. (This came complete with the commercial that referenced the Super Show, which I had no idea was in the movie until it started.) It’s during an assignment that goes hilariously awry when the brothers are sucked into the Mushroom Kingdom, thus kicking off the real adventure. The movie then becomes about Mario finding his brother and stopping Bowser with the help of Princess Peach, and finding a way back home.

It’s worth writing out the plotline because of how, well, rudimentary it all is. You could have told an AI program to write out a basic synopsis for a Super Mario Bros. film story, and this would pretty much be what it spat out — perhaps even pointing out all the references to the franchise’s long lineage that needed to be there. The only key element that went against established Mario conventions involved Luigi being the one kidnapped by Bowser instead of Peach, from a team of filmmakers who knew how played out the kidnapped princess trope is.

I’m not endorsing having an AI program write such a synopsis, though I’m sure some have already done so. It should be here that anyone with a heart can see how writers and plot drafters in Hollywood have much to fear from studios’ desires to pursue AI as potential replacements, and it’s why they strike whenever necessary.

Don’t take me pointing out the largely generic plot as saying I didn’t enjoy it. As I mentioned above, the first big and real showing for the franchise on the big screen didn’t need to be anything more than a fun time, and it delivers that in spades. I won’t lie to anyone by saying I didn’t adore all the references stuffed into the film, because I very much did. The appearances of characters like the penguins, a Koopa with a Blue Shell, and especially the Donkey Kong Country characters and themes kept me engaged the entire time. The references and Easter Eggs for Mario’s legacy are the reason why I’m sure the producers had old people who’ve followed Mario for decades in mind just as much as the kids who love the franchise.

It also helped that the movie is a sight to behold the entire time. The movie may not have had a budget on par with Disney and Pixar’s best films, but that didn’t show in the final movie. The Brooklyn and Mushroom Kingdom locations looked great, alongside the animations. I was also taken by surprise with the solid acting performances. Chris Pratt is — sorry — pretty good as Mario, with Charlie Day and Seth Rogen providing similarly good performances as Luigi and Donkey Kong, respectively. Keegan Michael Key and Jack Black were exemplary as Toad and Bowser, respectively, to no surprise for the latter considering how much he loves video games. It was Anya Taylor-Joy’s Peach who I had to adjust to, whose voice was deeper for the character than I’m used to hearing. But I still enjoyed it by the end.

I appreciated the short runtime compared to how other movies, including in animated form, are getting longer. But this movie could have used another 10 to 15 minutes to give certain characters more screentime. It’s Luigi who gets shortchanged the hardest, who receives the most focus and development early in the film and is seldom seen afterward.

The paper-thin story heavy on references ensured that this movie would be critic proof, but those “flaws” didn’t hinder my enjoyment. There will inevitably be sequels, and perhaps spinoffs focusing on Luigi (maybe in a Mansion?) and the Donkey Kong franchise crew. The team has a treasure trove of ideas at their disposal thanks to Mario’s rich lineage. But there’s no way the team can get away with another threadbare story like this the next time around, something I hope they’ll focus on in the future. The Super Mario Bros. Movie was able to get away with elements that would have otherwise held it back thanks to the sheer lack of good Mario adaptations that weren’t unintentionally hilarious, but the producers shouldn’t press their luck again, lest they receive a whammy of a penalty. The next go-around should be as big of a leap as, say, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish was to its predecessor.

Illumination should also progress with a deeper story containing richer character development for the other movies they work on, potentially including a Legend of Zelda film, an adaptation that will require a deeper story and less reliance on franchise references. There’s no guarantee that I won’t let them off the hook if I see cool references in future Mario and Nintendo franchise films, but I do have standards, you know.

Joseph Daniels

If you recall, a couple weeks ago, I found myself watching the utter trash anime How Not to Summon a Demon Lord. I needed something to cleanse the pollution from my mind, and I did find some better anime, but I’m honestly not feeling up to sharing this week. It’s been a struggle getting myself to write this week, so I’ll just offer a short film and return next week to actually discuss something good that I watched. I’ll see you all next week.

This Week’s Short Film
Fetch (2023)

Angela Moseley

Today is the last day before I go in for surgery. The surgery will put me out of work for about six weeks, and I don’t see myself being anywhere near my computer for at least two weeks, if things go well. This will be my last contribution to Quarantine Control for a little while. As I wait to see you all on the other side of the surgery, I’ll leave you with an anime I immensely enjoyed.

Dr. Stone: New World (2023)
Source: Crunchyroll
Episodes: 11

After getting caught up with the Dr. Stone: Ryusui episode, I was fully ready to start Dr. Stone: New World. After Stone Wars, I was looking forward to Senku and the gang exploring new lands. In classic Dr. Stone fashion, getting to the point of being ready to sail, took some interesting detours. That’s okay because the process and science of creating things is most of the appeal of this series.

After Ryusui has agreed to help Senku and Ishigami Village pilot the ship, there’s still much work to be done. As the massive ship is being constructed, the village needs to find oil as a power source for their long journey. However, before that can happen agriculture has to be rediscovered in order to ensure the village doesn’t suffer food shortages. Eventually, oil is discovered and the Science Vessel Perseus is completed. Senku and the main cast, along with a number of Ishigami villagers join the crew. Their first stop is the island where the ISS astronauts crash-landed 3700 years ago. They need to gather value materials from the space capsule. Unfortunately, they discover more than just treasure awaits them on the island.

From the opening credits, it’s clear that Senku and the others do meet more humans. These people are not part of Ishigami Village, nor do they hail from the humans who were frozen in stone for more than 3700 years. Some of those humans aren’t exactly delighted to see civilization returning. The audience also learns that a member of Ishigami Village actually hails from the island where the ISS astronauts landed. I wish we’d learned more about these other villagers earlier in the season, as we barely get to spend much time with them before the animation returns to being on break.

The huge build up to the suspense that was revealed in episode 4 doesn’t pay off in this chunk of episodes. By episode 11, we get tantalizingly close to learning more about that reveal. This makes me wish the production studio had just given us a chunk of 22 episodes, instead of splitting the season into two parts. All the build up to Senku and his friends setting sail was important. As this show is just as much about science as it is action. Once we’re at the other island, so much significant stuff happens that it feels unfair to have to wait another four months for a conclusion to the New World arc.

Dr. Stone is very much a series driven by its plot and a love of science rather than character development. Senku is a character who never really changes, although he definitely changes the lives of other around him. The rest of the Ishigami village grows as they’re exposed to more technology, and they become more competent as helpers. That said, this show has never completely revolved around Senku and his genius. For as much knowledge as he possesses, this series has always played to the strengths of others. For example, Taiju turns out to be an incredibly competent farmer. Yuzuriha’s ability to weave textiles has been extremely handy. The physical prowess of the Power Team usually comes through in a pinch. I could go on and on about the important side characters.

So, I think I’ll make one more note. I really enjoyed Minami’s side story. She was originally introduced in Stone Wars as one of Tsukasa’s followers. In the old world she was a reporter. That made her invaluable to him for information on who to revive for his empire. Once Tsukasa is out of the story (at least for now), Senku implores her to use her skills, which is how they revive Ryusui. In New World, we receive a brief glimpse into her backstory. Senku creates a rudimentary camera for her, and she remembers the first time her parents gave her a camera as a present. Since then, she’s always had one by her side, which led her down the path to becoming a journalist. Since everyone was petrified, she worried she’d never be able to use a camera again until Senku came along. Although photography was not my chosen path, as a journalist, I can relate to her story. And it is these very human, very relatable moments that I absolutely adore about Dr. Stone.

At the end of the day, this show is as much about humanity and having a heart, as it is about the joys and importance of science. Having an occasional focus on action just adds to the overall fun factor of this show. Getting to partially learn about how petrification (the inciting incident in this series) works earlier than I expected is another nice bonus. The first half of Dr. Stone: New World is excellent, and at this point I’m eagerly awaiting the second half later this year.

The combatting of American fascism is one thing, but the fight against climate change shouldn’t be put on the literal backburner. Maui is the newest victim of this, with wildfires that have tragically killed several people and torched historical landmarks. This is truly the Burning Decade, and the losses from here will be catastrophic. Until next week.

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