#sunyotmedia

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Cinematic Moments - RRR 2022

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Cinematic Moments - Black Widow 2021

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Cinematic Moments - Barbie 2023

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Cinematic Moments - Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 2023

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Cinematic Moments - Super Mario Bros. The Movie 2023

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Must See T.V. Moments - Xmen '97 2024

Being just a boy In 1997, I learned the Saturday Morning Cartoon rules. They stated that you had to wake up early or you missed your favorite shows. Think of a world without the internet where you could view funny or exciting clips. During this time, you had to be in charge of your own continued entertainment. In the absence of social media, it felt powerful whenever I got to watch my favorite show as it aired live.

I loved X-men. Thr cartoon became my first introduction to the characters, holding my attention in extraordinary ways. Like most, when they announced X-Men '97, I had some excitement. I also had skepticism. Like many of you, I'd been burned before. Thankfully this time hit different.

I'm going to say very little about the events of the show. I want to keep Sunyot as Spoiler free as possible unless stated otherwise. I want you to watch it. If you're anything like me, and remember the original, I want you to feel the nostalgia. While watching X-men '97, I'm transported back in time. I'm sitting in my old house, on the floor, carpet between my toes. I'm staring up at our old fuzzy T.V. sucked into the action and the drama and the madness of their stories. These days, I find it hard to watch old clips because they made me sad.

Sometimes I come across nostalgic videos from the 90's and I end up longing for times when I laughed more; when all I used to worry about was if my baseball game would get rained out. Being so busy makes me feel like I'll never capture those old feelings in adulthood. Despite how hard creators may try, it's tough to make a grown man feel like a kid again. X-Men '97 on the other hand, surprisingly, wonderfully, did exactly that.

I'll keep the details of the series to myself. Let's just say that I ended the second episode with my jaw on the floor, and my feelings in tangles. While watching this continuation, I found myself sitting on the floor of my old livingroom, carpet between my toes, staring up at our old fuzzy television in disbelief. Even now, I'm in disbelief. I haven't felt this free in a long time.

So far, X-Men '97 is the real deal.

Cryston

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Cinematic Moments - Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 2023

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Cinematic Moments - Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 2023

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Cinematic Moments - The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings 2001

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Cinematic Moments - Black Widow 2021

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Cinematic Moments - Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 2023

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Cinematic Moments - Dune 2021

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Cinematic Moments - RRR 2022

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Cinematic Moments - Black Widow 2021

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Did you know in Dune... The planet Arrakis is the only known source of Spice in the galaxy, making it a valuable and strategically important world, constantly fought over by various factions.

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Must See T.V. Moments - Invincible 2024

*****SPOILERS for SEASON 2: EPISODE 6*****

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I'm in my T.V. Phase now...

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*******I MEAN IT. SPOILERS AHEAD******

The 'parasitic alien' remains a classic Super Hero villain. My personal first introduction to this villain came from watching Batman Beyond. In a two-episode Saga, Terry gets the opportunity to fight alongside The Justice League of his era. Naturally, he finds discord only to discover... well you get the idea.

This concept plays on one of our fears as people: being controlled. As gamers, we're so used to being puppetiers. Yet imagine Being the puppet. Imagine further maintaining a small hint of consciousness; an out of body experience where you watch your every action taking place. We might wonder if we'd still feel pain? Would we feel anything at all? The parasite would probably have a total lack of self-preservation, and that scares us.

This show still reigns as one of the best-written shows on television. Robert Kirkman handles tension so well. I'm avoiding reading the comics, but when I see an episode as good as this one it's very tempting. The series integrates so many layers, adding a density to the storytelling. Amazing story craft like this, in my opinion, is the cause of fiction withdrawal. I know the feeling well.

Sometimes, a series feels like it's speaking to you personally. It becomes a drug that taps directly into your veins. I keep a list of shows on my phone that give me this feeling. Maybe one day I'll share them. Really, I keep them to remind myself which shows give me the true feeling I'm searching for. I do this in the hopes of limiting my sometimes lengthy searches for new entertainment.

Let's start with the obvious.

Do you Ship 'Mark X Amber' or 'Invincible X Atom Eve'?

Fans of the series remain vocal about their preferences. And I get it. They prefer for Mark to spend the majority of his time as Invincible, the superhero. They want to see him at his most powerful, going on adventures, fighting alongside a crew, and receiving the admiration of beautiful potential partners. Seeing Mark in a more ordinary human life could feel less fun. And Amber is, in a way, a representation of that. Her groundedness reminds Mark, and the audience, that he's still just a guy. This can cause conflict between the audience and certain characters. Protagonists often serve a cathartic outlets for viewers. Fans of Twilight want to see the quiet, studious, normal young lady swept up into an extraordinary series of events. Seeing someone like themselves, allows them to live vicariously through the plot.

Likewise, superheroes serve as one of our culture's best self-insert fantasies...

This is good. This is healthy, I'd argue. Being able to explore yourself in an idealized fashion can help people create fragments of identity which can sometimes become the sparks of our moral centers. All that said, writers like Kirkman, understand that stitching these fantasies to universal human experiences are what make them memorable. It's the filtering of the wild through the boring that make our stories sing.

In real life, we have relationship problems. We screw up. We do poorly in school. We fail at our obligations time and time again, while the world forces us to push onward because our obligations are always with us. As Mark continues to try and do the right thing, his humanity outshines his Viltrumite heritage.

*****SPOILERS for SEASON 2: EPISODE 6*****

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Rexsplosion reads Home Decor Magazines - Invincible 2024

"I actually thought Rex died..."

This series plays with tension brilliantly. It also avoids having too many moments of relief. When the immediate danger fades, the characters still live in a state of worry. They're always waiting for the other shoe to drop. We learn something quirky about Rex, but only because he almost died. This semi-sweet moment humanizes him, yet emphasizes the ominous nature of the series. Our heroes have to take their happy moments when they can get them. The Team, now scattered, became a question mark. This world cannot afford uncertainty surrounding its heroes. We saw their near demise in Mark's absence.

And with a few quick scenes of Mark's loved ones, we're of where he's most vulnerable.

This brings me to my favorite aspect of the episode:

- The Fiction inside the fiction -

This will always be one of my favorite methods of storytelling. Seeing characters in fiction read or watch their own fiction lets us see how they relate to their world. Sometimes it's done through myths and legends. Sometimes in other clever ways...

When Mark receives a box of science fiction stories (stories written by his father) we are able to more directly relate to the character.

This look of wonder and skepticism on his face. This is all of us...

My father introduced me to Star Wars. He had the original trilogy on VHS tapes. He recorded the movies when one of the major networks aired them without commercials. I wore those tapes out, watching until my imagination expanded to the vastness of any epic tale; spilling over into my daily life sunshine I could carry in my pockets.

At this moment in the show, I am Mark. I'm sitting on my bed, hearing my father's voice as the story plays out on the pages and in my mind. And I'd wager, I'm not the only one.

In dramatic fashion, we now get to go on the journey inside this new universe. This fiction within a fiction is crucial as it becomes the notion of creation from the perspective of beings we know to be created. How funny is that. Funnier still, to Mark this tale plays as cinema. Whereas to us, it's still animated; which is a wild concept when thinking of sentience.

Even the title 'The Man with the Invincible Gun' ...feels like foreshadowing to me.

*****SPOILERS for SEASON 2: EPISODE 6*****

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I'm sure most of you caught on quick, realizing that these stories are based on Mark's Father's real adventures. I think it's funny seeing a character like Mark, superhero, space traveler, one of the strongest beings in the Universe, forget all that, and lose himself in the story. Again, this character trait displays Mark's humanity. Of course, he eventually realizes that these stories are far from lore.

Knowing his father, it's probably safe to assume these were not heroic journeys of an idealistic space explorer. More than likely they were unsuccessful Viltrumite invasions of unsuspecting alien inhabitants. I also think we'll at some point get to meet some of these aliens and learn the truth of these encounters. But still, it's fun to dream.

This episode makes me want to read a good book...

It also makes me want to write. It's been a while since I've done that either.

A few more things. Seeing the Seth Rogan alien makes me wonder when I'm going to be able to hear him as his own character because every time he talks, all I hear is Seth Rogan. His is the only character that does that to me. I'm hoping my brain eventually adjusts.

Also, let's readdress the title screen.

What does it mean this season? In Season 1, the answer felt obvious. The blood splattered across the title showed the surprising violence of the heroes world, which slowly dragged Mark deeper into its depths. In this season, the classic 'Invincible' logo cracks away to reveal a red one.

What's the meaning, I wonder. Mark might be one bad event away from turning into Omniman, a true Viltrumite warrior, like the Mark of the other Universe. And speaking of other Universes...

Our friend Giant-Brain-Outside-My-Body-Man returns to get a bespoke suit from a tailor with four arms.

This tells me that no matter the universe, timeline, or year, nothing feels better than wearing a fresh new suit. We also get to see him do a little multi-dimensional hopping.

I wonder which Universe this could be...

Cryston