Speaker 1:
0:00
Welcome to your go-to source for entertainment. Wait for it Gaming.
Speaker 2:
0:06
Wait for it. Anime PLUS ULTRA.
Speaker 1:
0:11
Mr Eric Almighty and Phil the Filipino. Yeah, they've got you covered, and all you gotta do is wait for it.
Speaker 2:
0:31
This is the Wait For it Podcast. Hey, everyone, welcome back to the Wait For it Podcast. I am your co-host, phil Barrera, aka Phil the Filipino.
Speaker 1:
0:40
And I'm your other co-host, mr Eric Almighty, and for this episode we decided to highlight a movie that was starting to appear on our radars recently, with the highly anticipated sequel expecting to be a box office juggernaut in 2025. We had been hearing about a Chinese animated film that quietly came out in 2019 here in the States, and I have a feeling many of you haven't seen it either. So on this edition of the International Feature Series, we are covering Neja.
Speaker 2:
1:12
Yeah, eric, this movie came across my timeline I think it was over on Twitter because the second film had either already surpassed or was quickly approaching the $1 billion mark, which spoiler alert, guys it is now doubled as far as Nezha 2.
Speaker 2:
1:30
So we're going to be talking about both films here today. So you're probably wondering how is it that a film is now essentially the highest grossing film of all time and I've never heard of it. Well, listen, you combine the Chinese market with an animated story that I think holds its own, as we will discuss here today, and that's why you get the numbers that you are seeing here and that we will discuss this evening. So, eric, excited to talk about this movie that, like you alluded to, probably a lot of you have never even heard of up until recently, because you know when, when something makes a ton of money like this, it's going to turn some heads. So hopefully, we can be that kind of intermediary point between you and watching these films, because, eric, I tried to do a deep dive into this on youtube and you can't really, because the content just doesn't really exist yeah, and it should be mentioned that most of that two billion in revenue from the box office came from China.
Speaker 1:
2:31
So, even as we're talking about this now, this is as of right now, as of this recording, it is about to jump into the top five top grossing films of all time, and it is the highest grossing animated film of all time, most of that coming again from the chinese market, which is a big market fill in box office history.
Speaker 1:
2:53
But not in this way, never in this way. Actually, this is unprecedented. So I'm very excited to talk about this. We are going to speak spoiler free, because I think the main goal of this series is to highlight films internationally that aren't as popular or you haven't seen as much, and I think, with what we've said, although it's a high grossing movie in the box office, most of the people here that are listening to this podcast in the States don't even know this thing exists. So I think it's a great opportunity for us to talk about the first film, the second film and we might open up a spoiler discussion, if necessary, at the end of this episode. So make sure to stick around, if you've seen those two films, for that.
Speaker 2:
3:40
Yeah, yeah. And last thing I'll say before we start on the first film. I don't even think that Neja 2 has released inboxd states. The premise extracts a mixed yuan bead into a spirit seed and a demon pill. The spirit seed can be reincarnated as a human to help King Zhao establish a new dynasty, whereas the demon pill will create a devil-threatening humanity. Nezha is the one who is destined to be the hero, but instead he becomes a devil incarnate because the spirit seed and a demon pill are switched. Now we'll get this out of the way here first.
Speaker 2:
4:36
This film is originally in Mandarin, so of course you can watch this in with subtitles or you can watch it dubbed on Amazon Prime. It's relatively cheap. You can buy it for like $7 and you can rent it for $3.50. Or in my case, because I track my feet, I rented it twice, so I should have just bought the damn thing. But, going into this film, I think it's very important to let people know our opinion. Eric, I'm not sure how you felt, because I did start watching this in dub, but then I switched over to watching it in Mandarin with sub. You watched both, correct. So how do you feel?
Speaker 1:
5:14
Yeah, so I saw most of the dub the second watch through. I did watch it in Mandarin, in its natural state, mandarin in its natural state, and I've got to say the English dub is not bad, but it is not as clean cut as you would expect from like watching an anime English dub, and I think that was very prevalent. With certain voice actors in particular, I tended to notice that the ones that I've seen in anime before had a lot better of a job getting very close to the mouth flaps, but it is kind of distracting at points. I don't think it ruined the experience by any mean and I do think that this is a premise you guys just heard the synopsis right, right Like this is a premise that kind of could lend itself to a little bit of that familiar dialect to be able to understand and grasp the concept and the Mandarin, and I think the dub is serviceable to get you through that if that's going to be an issue.
Speaker 2:
6:32
Yeah, and you know, mandarin is probably one of the most difficult languages to learn. It's why whenever people try to portray it in film or television, it's usually pretty bad. It in film or television, it's usually pretty bad. I think Mood Night is probably the most recent example of how poorly that can go. So I would suggest watching it in sub. But you know, eric gave you a really good opinion there in terms of getting through it either way, to kind of give you guys the inspiration of this film, it tells the mythological origins of Nezha, who is a protection deity in Chinese folk religion, and the story is loosely based on the literary version of the myth that forms two chapters of Investiture of the Gods. There's going to be a lot of this.
Speaker 1:
7:22
This is what happens when you read Wikipedia. Man, I know.
Speaker 2:
7:26
A Ming Dynasty Shenmue novel, traditionally attributed to Zhu Zhonglin, which incorporates various existing myths into a wider narrative. So that is one thing Like one movie or one video I came across on YouTube is kind of like there was a lot of lore, a lot of backdrop when it comes to the origins of these characters and for somebody who didn't know anything about them it starts off. It's a very kind of basic to the point setup. It's got probably the most obvious bad, bad guy looking bad guy in animation history. So that wasn't really too much of a surprise when everything went down. But I think it's, you know, does a good job setting up the story right away.
Speaker 2:
8:10
And you know, one thing pop people probably want to know right off the bat is how does it hold up animation wise? And Eric, when I had, I hadn't gotten all the way through the movie yet, but you would ask me I'm at the gammy's after I had watched some of it. You know how I felt it and I said to you that I think when the animation is kind of just chugging along and there's not really a whole lot going on, it's not really my favorite. But when they kick it into high gear with some of these fight scenes and action scenes, man, it is another example that just displays the laziness we're seeing from other animation studios Disney. So we're getting a little ahead of ourselves, but I'm very anxious to see what kind of recognition this gets, because we are in award season a year from now when we're talking animation.
Speaker 1:
9:01
Yeah, I think when we talk about the sequel, some of those things may have been right?
Speaker 2:
9:06
yeah, not this one right yeah.
Speaker 1:
9:07
So for the first one, though it was, it was very good. It was very good, it was very serviceable. It's very much a kid's film. So there are obviously anytime you watch an animated film, you have to make that distinction. Uh, this is not for adults. That is from the humor alone you can kind of tell. But even the animation, like I don't know, it's almost, it's almost discreetly or it's like underrated, lee good, because it's something that on surface level, when you look at the character designs, for example, you're looking at it and it kind of gives you that same impression that dreamworks gave us for like a long time, until you, uh, wait for it, bingo, watch puss in boots and then you realize, oh shit, they're pretty good at animation and doing other things and they've had a couple other films other than that.
Speaker 1:
10:01
I think what's really special about this film is that this came out of nowhere. Again, this is not something that's happening overseas, where there's one Disney for China that is just trucking out films and making billions of dollars. This seemingly did come out of nowhere, and Neja 1 and 2 apparently both took about five years to produce, and there are thousands of people involved with this and over 138 animation companies that participated in the creation of those films. So I think that tells you quite a lot when it comes to how much is involved with this and how much work was put into it, and I think the first one does a really great job from an animation standpoint. I do think as we get to that conversation, the second one takes it to a whole different level.
Speaker 2:
10:56
Yeah, they made this first movie on a budget of 22 million US dollars, which is not really a lot of money when you're talking about I mean, this isn't the best example, but, like the game, grand Theft Auto 6 cost a billion dollars to make, supposedly probably. So the fact that they churned this out on that budget, like you said, relatively unknown and under the radar, and put together what is a cinematic experience that I wish I had gotten to see in theaters you know you're talking about five years ago oh my God, six years ago. We had never even heard of this until a month ago. So very, very impressive.
Speaker 2:
11:38
Let's talk about these characters here. Eric. We'll have to start with the main character, of course, which is Neja, and a character that I think intentionally is meant to kind of irritate and gross you out here in the beginning and kind of frustrate you. He's got a lot of Bart Simpson in him. If Bart Simpson were an evil world-ending deity. So I feel like there was a lot of inspiration taken from Bart here when it comes to the character, but he really wins you over very quickly, especially once you see just how he is treated and his backstory, and again, there's a lot of really good humor in those early days or in those early moments like when he's playing uh, you know the game with his mom. That made me laugh right out of the gate. What do you think about our, our main character, our hero here, when you initially met him?
Speaker 1:
12:34
so I love nasia. I love nasia. From the moment I laid eyes on him he was great. I understand that he is a little shit. He took the demon pill. I mean pretty straightforward stuff. They could have gone with that and it would have been a fun premise.
Speaker 1:
12:52
I don't know if this is too early to start talking about the, the themes of the movie and what the movie accomplishes, but I really, really really like the depth to this character. So this character is, you know, a demon child. He's causing ruckus, he's making ruckus, causing chaos, and he is destroy, uh, destruction, just living and breathing and walking. But there are so many moments in both films but definitely the first one to start where you see the humanity in that character and like there are little things that I appreciated, such as this character cries a lot and not like cry, baby cries, like for the sake of crying, but like to show that there is some emotion and feeling behind it. Like we talk about some of the things again not getting into too many plot details, but you talked about the way he's treated. Well, there's a scene that talks to that where he's kind of called out on it, like I don't really care, and he's called out on the fact that, yeah, you do, and he gets really emotional and just he like balls up his fist, you know, and you could kind of like it's a subtle things that this movie does through nasia.
Speaker 1:
14:04
That really worked and that also made the relationship with him and his parents a lot more effective by the film's end and going into the sequel for me. So those are the type of things that I liked. He's also really fucking funny I I found a lot of his stuff to be funny. Yeah, a little bit too many pee and fart jokes for my liking, in particular, especially in the first one, but it is, at the end of the day, the first one, at least. Second one's an argument directed to kids. So I just really like this character, phil, from the sake that they're funny. I love the character design of Neja and I also just love the fact that he's a sympathetic hero who's not afraid to cry and I don't know why, but that just like really worked for me.
Speaker 2:
14:51
Yeah, the depth of this character I think, at least upon the initial outset of it, because of how he's kind of presented, even down to, I think, his animation style, I think you're just led to kind of believe that once again, just to lean on that Bart Simpson comparison, that he's not really meant to be taken seriously. But also, bart is an incredibly layered animated character. That's why he's still around after 30, almost 40 years most likely. But yeah, I very much became endeared with this character throughout the course of the film and definitely carries over into the second one. We do get a mentor relationship there with a, with a character that I think is also very, very fun.
Speaker 2:
15:36
Now, that character is the one that, unfortunately, where a lot of the toilet humor comes from, that is directed at kids. A lot of that is pretty miss. I'm not sure how your son felt about it, but uh, you know, for us in our, in our 30s, are just like well, that's that's the part where you have to be like well, that that wasn't put in there to make us laugh, but some kids somewhere probably did, so that was uh, yeah, so getting to see him evolve over time and and then really take that turn into still trying to hide the fact that he wants approval, but still very much trying to gain that approval. I think that is not necessarily an original story, but it was presented very well and I very much enjoyed that. And then when we get that arc there in the middle, that's when we are introduced into another character, if you want to talk about them and their importance in the story.
Speaker 1:
16:28
Yes, so Ao Bing is the opposite of Nezha, he is the Spirit Pearl and he is a character that I really enjoy because he's like the complete opposite. It's the yin and yang situation that is happening here. They're complete opposites but they also have very similar issues in their life that stem from the situation that they are in, even though their situations essentially are reversed, and I really liked the implication that they just kind of become friends. Naturally I would like to have seen that fleshed out a little bit more in the first one. We could talk about maybe some critiques and stuff like that.
Speaker 1:
17:12
I think this movie is actually a little too short, where the sequel, I think, has a better grip on the time management there of its story. Not perfect by any means, but I would have liked to see them develop that more. But for what we did get, it was believable, like I just I just believe that story and I really enjoyed the relationship between the two because they are so different and you know, albing is is just cool, calm, collected, where nasia is is a hot-headed uh, you know troublemaker, and I like that dynamic a lot every friendship needs the, the straight laced guy, and that's definitely him, voiced by alex lee, I believe correct in the uh in the dub in the dub so for those of you that are gonna gonna go that route, so familiar voice there.
Speaker 2:
18:04
So, yeah, he is a very calming, seemingly level-headed presence but, like you said, not without his own issues and struggles. And when you you, you know obviously you given the story, you know the context of the story and, down to his look, you know who this character is if you're paying attention to the story. But it still doesn't make the reveal and you know the depth of this character any less interesting or tragic or however you want to feel about it. Yeah, I would have loved to see them focus a little bit more on this relationship, whether it be adding time or cutting elsewhere. Maybe a little bit too much time spent in like that training arc, you know area, because there are a couple times in the movie where they go back to the training arc, which is kind of strange. But I very much like this character and very much liked his design too, not only this one but one that we'll talk about a little bit later as well. So, yeah, cool character for sure, and really loved their chemistry and kind of their meet cute there on the beach.
Speaker 1:
19:16
Yeah, and this movie? It serves a purpose of setting up the world and setting up the sequel.
Speaker 2:
19:28
That's what the first movie's purpose is really there for.
Speaker 1:
19:29
Yeah, there's 15 post-credit scenes just to let you guys know there's a lot. Also. I think the last one was for a movie that's somewhat related but not related. What I heard was that this was supposed to be the start of essentially a cinematic universe. There has been no evidence to support that. That is actually what is happening and, based off of watching the sequel, I don't think that's real.
Speaker 1:
19:52
But there there was a lot of news that I kind of did my research on where that was the thought process and I could kind of see that with this film I could understand it. But I understand it more that again it really does a good job of the world building and setting up a sequel, and effectively and I think this movie does that because the sequel picks right up where we left off, which I think again adds to the appeal of this film. And I do think, phil, although it is a lot to digest, I do believe it is digestible as far as the story and the plot goes. It can absolutely be run of the mill at times and it can absolutely be convoluted at times, but I think overall it's very effective. So on the positive end, I also do want to call that out, I guess you know, before we talk about the sequel, too much. Is there anything else you want to talk about? Uh, positive or negative about nasia? Uh, for people that are thinking about watching it or have seen it, Positively.
Speaker 2:
20:55
I do want to bring up his parents, madam Ying and then also Li Jing. I thought they were very strong in their own separate ways. I mean, the mom is a badass, dad is a badass, and while we are led to believe that the dad just kind of has this very stoic, not incredibly emotional presence about him, but that is certainly not the case at all. So we're talking about again. There are storylines going on with these characters that we aren't even like thinking about until they're revealed later in very, very important times or very important segments of the film. So I think the parents were good. How did you feel about? We got to talk about the villain again, the the least surprising and the most villain looking villain I think ever created in animated history, maybe next to like jafar, if there's. Is there ever any any fan fiction where jafar is the good guy? That's shen gong, uh gong, bao gong bao.
Speaker 1:
21:53
Yeah, yeah, that's, that's good old shen, it's never.
Speaker 2:
21:57
It's never like there's no fanfic of jafar, like at a farmer's market just enjoying his sunday.
Speaker 1:
22:03
No, maybe we'll talk about maybe we'll talk about more about him in, uh, the spoiler section, uh, about how his character growth kind of happens progressively over two films. But uh, in the first film he is very much just your typical bad guy and he's very much the puppet master to the situation that is at hand. This movie kind of works around a time-based situation that is going to occur because of the situation that Nezha and Albing are in with the spirit pearl and the demon orb. So again, I don't want to get too much into spoilers for that part, but I would mention that again, very run of the mill and that's why my rating, I think, can't go much higher than where it already is. Like, I really enjoyed this movie, but there are just obvious things holding it back from being something that is like a masterpiece or utterly amazing. I mentioned Puss in Boots. Like this is not gonna reach Puss in Boots territory for us, but will I bring this up to people? Yeah, yeah, I will. I definitely will.
Speaker 2:
23:13
It'd be a fun double feature movie night, especially since neither one of them are really that long Now. We'll talk about in a moment the second one definitely feels like it goes on forever, but you could get through it with some friends, both of them in one night and have a really, really good time. And then the other thing I'll shout out is I won't give away what this. You know who this character is or really what they look like until later. But I also like Al Guang. I thought in the very limited time that they have in the first movie, very effective. I came away wanting to know more about that character and I'm glad we got it in the second movie.
Speaker 1:
23:50
Yeah, a hundred percent, and I think 100 and I think you know let's. Let's talk a little bit about the second movie, but not again. I don't want to really get into any plot points, because this is a movie that, as of right now, I think, is still out in theaters. As of recording this, I don't know how much longer it's going to be in theaters and I have a weird like thought or premonition that there will be a re-release when the dub becomes available. I don't know why I feel that way but I think it could happen.
Speaker 1:
24:23
So I would like to talk about, maybe, just our reactions going from the first one to the second one, and then, you know, we could talk about scores and stuff like that, before eventually opening up a spoiler discussion, because, phil, we saw the second one together and we didn't really talk about it very much, so maybe this will give us that avenue. But, with that being said, what were your thoughts seeing the first one and then getting ready a few days later to see the second one in theaters, and how was that experience?
Speaker 2:
24:53
yeah, I'm actually not going to read the synopsis here either because it's pretty spoiler heavy. So, again, very much suggest you guys see these for yourselves, so we don't give anything away here. But, yeah, very excited, really excited, after seeing the first film and wanting to know what was going to happen with these characters, because it's left very much open-ended and there's also, I mean, who who knew? I mean, well, this was 2019, so, like, post-credit scenes were still good, unlike now we're in 2025 where they're like what are we doing here, what are we even doing? So the post-credit scenes did very well and then you know, not having to wait six years to see the sequel, we just got to go see it right away and that was really really great.
Speaker 2:
25:36
So certainly, again, I suggest seeing this on a really big screen. It is colorful, it is loud, it and it is loud and colorful very early and often. So very excited going into the theater and once again surprised that, like more people don't know about this because it really well one. There's no dub yet, but it really does cater to, I think, what a lot of kids are are looking for in terms of animation, especially when you look at what anime are currently popular. So once this does get that re-release that you're predicting, eric, I do anticipate we'll see more of a bump than we are seeing in terms of box office numbers here in the US, because it's not very big, it's not a whole lot of money, which is to be expected, but I was very much looking forward to seeing the sequel. How about you?
Speaker 1:
26:27
Yeah, 100%, and I really enjoyed the sequel. We're not going to talk too much about it, we'll give our scores for both, but I really think it offers just such a different version of the character in the world compared to the first one. Like, I don't know if you agree with this, phil, but the first one is very set up based and story driven, where the second one very much is about being bigger and bolder when it comes to the animation and the action. Like, I definitely felt there was a huge increase in those areas where I think maybe the story took a little bit of a predictable-ness. That took it a step back from the first one and it was still very good.
Speaker 1:
27:13
But I also think that this movie struggled to balance some of the kid appeals and the darker natures of what it does, and I think most movies struggle with that with their second or third film in a franchise. But those are all minimal complaints and again, I really view Neja 1 and 2 as like a 1A, 1b type situation, which makes me really excited for what the third one will hold, and two as like a 1A, 1b type situation, which makes me really excited for what the third one will hold. And I will say this. There is one scene that me and Phil laughed harder than anything that I can recall in recent memory Honestly, maybe since we started the podcast.
Speaker 2:
27:54
It was it almost ruined. It came out of nowhere and no one else was laughing.
Speaker 1:
28:00
Nobody else.
Speaker 2:
28:01
Granted. There were only four other people in the theater.
Speaker 1:
28:03
It was like a 20-seat theater we were obnoxious for a solid 20 minutes after that scene. I do feel like I missed 20 minutes of the movie, so I do need to go rewatch it. And that's the thing, phil. I watched the first one in dub and I got to rewatch it a second time. Through that lens, I definitely want to see Neja 2 again, and I would love to see it again in theaters as well. So I mean that that's just a really big you know. Statement of confidence for that movie in particular.
Speaker 2:
28:34
big you know statement of confidence for that movie in particular. Yeah, in terms of budget, it went from the $22 million for the first movie American to $80 million American. So this is what they were able to do with $60 million more, which, yes, is a lot of money. But in the grand scheme of things, when you're talking about animation, you're talking about film that's not a big increase. So the fact that they were able to really implement those changes, those big time changes and again, nasia one looks great and nasia two really ups the ante.
Speaker 2:
29:05
The thing that that got me about this film eric is like what if the infinity war fight was just the whole movie? Pretty much. There are times where it does slow down, but it is like balls to the wall. It's like a fast, fast and the Furious movie. You guys, it is crazy.
Speaker 2:
29:18
From beginning to end we get new characters that were teased in the first one that are really good additions.
Speaker 2:
29:25
We get more fleshed out characters in this. It is everything that you want from a sequel, except that again, maybe it has its foot in the pedal a little bit too much and they could have slowed down or maybe even saved some stuff for the next one. But again, those are really like we're complaining about a movie being like super fun and super over the top, like that's just a really weird thing. It's not even complaints, it's just like man, you, what the hell do they have planned for that third movie, if this is what we got in number two? So that's one thing where I was like man, we could have maybe saved some of this. There are a lot of characters on this and a lot of characters on screen at some point, so you could have definitely parceled that out a little bit. But again, it was a really fun time and I would certainly go see it again, whether it be in sub or in dub, when we finally do get that.
Speaker 1:
30:20
Yeah, I definitely agree with that. And, phil, I think that's a great place for us to maybe talk about reception for these films, our particular scores, where they ranked in the international feature movies that we've done. I think this now crosses us over 30 on our letterbox list, so very curious where that's going to take us and where that landed for both of us. But again got to implore you guys check this out, at least the first one, and then if you don't catch the second one in theaters, I think it will be back, but if not, it'll be available at some point. I would be shocked if, at some point, both of these don't end up on a streaming service. So I think they will be more accessible. Just based off of the historic nature of how the second one is performed at the box office, even if most of it's in China, I think there will be notice being taken by at least one streaming company, probably Netflix.
Speaker 2:
31:17
I was going to say, netflix is knocking on the door right now.
Speaker 1:
31:20
It's there for them.
Speaker 2:
31:22
Yeah, I guarantee you this even has like the Netflix style of animation that they like. That they like. Yeah, no, it's totally their thing. It's made for Netflix.
Speaker 1:
31:32
It's got the international appeal yeah.
Speaker 2:
31:34
Yeah.
Speaker 1:
31:35
Now that's 100% it. But yeah, phil, how did this film perform out both films Neja 1 and 2? And then we'll get into our scores before we open up a spoiler section yeah, I've got a lot of tabs open here, guys, so bear with me.
Speaker 2:
31:47
Nasia one on rotten tomatoes 88 percent tomato meter score. That's only 17 reviews remember it's a six, six year old movie. A 98 to a popcorn meter score for users. Uh, nasia two has only six reviews, so it does not have a tomato meter score. But for uh, if you're curious, they are all certified fresh, but there's just not enough to certify it, I think, on the website, with a 99 popcorn meter score for nasia 2 up over on imdb, the harshest of them all 7.4 for the first film and an 8.2 for the second.
Speaker 2:
32:25
So again very high, especially for that second film, when, when you're looking at the letterbox grades, we have a 3.5 for Nasia and a 3.9 for Nasia 2. So we'll be interested to see how these numbers change as this film gains more popularity here on our side of the world. You're already seeing a lot more reviews pop up than I saw even just a few weeks ago, right, eric? So we're seeing a lot of those, a lot of people that are seeing the second one and then going back to the first, which I find very strange. But you do, you. So that's where we are at in terms of scores. Do you just want to go back to back for both of these? How do we want to do it?
Speaker 1:
33:02
Yeah, I think that's fair. Okay, I don't know about you. Mine are very close together and same on my list, so I'm probably going to be a little bit closer than you. I'd love to see where you ended up.
Speaker 2:
33:13
OK, yeah, for the first film, I gave it a three and a half. It is a the setup of all setup movies in terms now that we have seen the second one but still very fun. Has a lot of really, really great action scenes and now, looking back, just gives you the perfect amount of introduction to some of these characters. Could have used a little bit more, like I talked about, in terms of some relationships, but still very much enjoyed it and would recommend watching it to to friends and watch it with them as well. Uh, neja 2 I gave a 4. And that very much could change after seeing it a second time, just because, again, I think maybe I was just so overwhelmed and then that one moment in the film just totally threw us off, so maybe I need to go see it again and it can go even higher. I think probably even after the first watch I could go 4.25. But I leave it at a 4 right now, with room for improvement.
Speaker 1:
34:08
Yeah, that's completely fair For me. I gave both of these films the same exact score. I gave them both a four and again, I really think it's a 1A, 1b scenario here for Neja 1. I think I prefer it a little bit more. I need to see Neja 2 again to solidify that. The only reason I feel that way is because I feel like Neja 1 had a little bit more heart and a little bit more control over the narrative.
Speaker 1:
34:36
It was trying to tell Neja 2 though balls to the wall, crazy good. I think it's funnier than the first one. I think there's more action. I think there's a lot more things that are effective, but when it comes to the heart of the character and the film, I think the first one does it just a tiny bit better, and I don't know. That just means more to me than making it bigger, but not necessarily better. That doesn't always make it better. So again, both of them neck and neck Phil on my list for international feature. If you want to mention yours as well, mine are back to back together. I'm putting them right next to each other to reflect what I just said, and they are ranked 13th and 14th out of 30 on our international movies and shows that we've watched. The Raid is before it and films like Okja and Decisional Leave are after it. So that's my placement and, again, very respectable for the films that are in front of it, which are spectacular.
Speaker 2:
35:38
Yeah, for me I have Nezha 1 at 15, right behind Perfect Days and right in front of Ultraman Rising, so that is where the first film sits. And then the second one cracks the top 10 at number 10, right behind another round, and I actually dropped down high Nana for this. So, they're both force. You're a criminal.
Speaker 1:
36:01
Absolutely. I'm crying now. I introduced you to fucking tore me apart, dude. I love that movie. I don't you dare Fucking tore me apart, dude, I love that movie. I'm going to want to watch that again.
Speaker 2:
36:12
Boy talk about a movie that has a million different themes. It really is like the rom-com of RRR, the RRR rom-com. Man, if you just improve the music a little bit and the dance number, it's probably a five in my opinion we're getting off topic, but there is straight up just a music video towards the finale of that does not fit what is happening?
Speaker 2:
36:36
yeah, so nature 2, yeah, number 10 for me. Still, like I said, very much enjoyed it and uh cannot wait to see what happens next yeah, 100 and phil, I guess now I'll ask you we get here.
Speaker 1:
36:49
Is there anything on the spoiler side of things that we would like to talk about from either film? Would we like to open up that door? If so, this is going to be your warning listeners to either skip ahead or check out the films and come back. But, phil, anything that you want to tackle in the spoiler section, we can open that up.
Speaker 2:
37:08
Yeah, here is your youtube warning right now. You heard the man get out. Get out. Yeah, I would say so. What did you think about? Uh, what are your thoughts, because you're obviously a very big fan of base character, base set, naysha? What do you think of his ultimate form, naysha?
Speaker 1:
37:33
I like his ultimate form a little bit more in the second one yeah his ultimate form's cool. It's chill, you know, I definitely. I just love his base form like did they need?
Speaker 2:
37:45
maybe because you know, I mean, I'll bring it.
Speaker 1:
37:47
Yeah, i'llbing is literally, and again, let's not Because the age thing is confusing. They're three but they're like Teens technically, but Nezha is still a child.
Speaker 2:
37:57
That's right, that's what I needed to talk to you about, so that's all. Specifically, in the second one, we have to talk about time.
Speaker 1:
38:05
There's some questions there about Some of those things. I thought it was fine. I kind of like you know you're not a dragon ball guy, but I like that. That's kind of like his, his super saiyan. Like he gets the ring off, his true power is revealed and he has a different form, like that is very anime coded for me and I uh, I personally don't mind it. I love his base design, though. Like even when we talk, when we talk about the second one, when they kept changing his face to al bings, it was funny. I get it, I hated it, I fucking hated it, but not not enough to hate the movie, but I love, I really love nasia's design. What I'll say is about the second form is it's equally as cool with the spear and the ribbon, like the way it like hovers over his neck and stuff. Super fucking cool, the fucking flame circles that he rides.
Speaker 2:
38:59
Yeah, rings are cool, love it. You know, being a big fan of of shang chi, those were really neat as well. So I love the dragon designs really, really cool. And even though I wouldn't be able to like tell you their names per se, they do all have their own unique design which I very much love. And yeah, I thought that was real. I mean, you know dragons, uh, kaiju, you sold, I've sold, it doesn't? It's not going to take a whole lot for for me to be convinced? So, yes, so let's talk about this time thing. Because did they not establish in the first movie that like a like an hour up there was like multiple days in the real world? Was that not a thing? And then he spent a lot of time in the second movie like fighting all these essentially bosses?
Speaker 2:
39:46
yeah these three boss fights. Was that not a thing? I'm not making that up, right? No? I don't think so because remember, remember, the dad goes up to the gate and then somebody tells him what you know, an hour up here is multiple days down on earth, yeah, and then he goes and he spends several hours. He's there movie, he's there for a while. Yeah. So I was like, shouldn't the town? Yeah, nope, that's why the town's gone, because you took forever.
Speaker 1:
40:15
Which the decimation of the town. Crazy, yeah, crazy, that's where I was like. Straight up Pompeii style. And then they made sure to let you know yeah, that family from the first one dead, gone Didn.
Speaker 2:
40:31
And then they, they made sure to let you know?
Speaker 1:
40:32
yeah, that family from the first one dead gone, didn't like that. Remember the redemption arc of the bully? Yeah, that mom got the shit punched out of her dude. She didn't even get to recover from that she did have it coming. He punched the shit out of her. So I uh, no, I was definitely torn, I was definitely um taken aback by it, for sure. But yeah, there are some things. And again, I don't know if it's like a cultural divide or what it is.
Speaker 2:
40:55
It's a cultural divide.
Speaker 1:
40:58
Anyway, you got me. I'm thinking of the Super Bowl performance. Now I lost track.
Speaker 1:
41:06
I lost it. So but I do think that there are definitely some continuity issues from the first to the second one that you're kind of referencing with time. There are a couple of things like that for both films and that's what makes it a four, and I don't know that these will ever go to a four and a half, because it does feel like at times, like there are things in this movie that don't fit and they just either didn't have the time or didn't, maybe don't have enough experience to know better, because I don't.
Speaker 2:
41:34
again, it's not like a new studio, it's a bunch of animation studios working together, but maybe too many hands, uh, in the pot, I don't know I'm talking about a lot of side quests, a lot of storylines and a few too many, especially with the I don't have their names up in front of me anymore, but with the main villain from the first movie and you know his. What was that? His brother? Yeah, his brother that showed up Randomly, randomly, oh yeah, he's the Jaguar, you know. And also that fight scene in the waterfall Cool as shit Slapped.
Speaker 1:
42:14
Yeah, slapped, slapped, for sure.
Speaker 2:
42:17
So they're just juggling too many different families and too many tragedies and they didn't need to do all that.
Speaker 1:
42:24
Yes, and I think a lot of that gets lost when we have the sacrifice at the end. I guess you would call it a sacrifice the death at the end where the mother dies, and I felt like that could have been played a little bit better. It's still sad, still sad, but I think that could have been played a little bit better. There were signs of it. But again, I just, I think this movie is balancing a lot and I think it's doing it in the sake of that twist, which is not really a twist Like that guy's clearly the bad guy, the big, the big headed guy, big brain, mega mind, asian, mega mind.
Speaker 2:
43:07
So I was going to go Modok.
Speaker 1:
43:13
It's like a very clear twist.
Speaker 2:
43:15
This video is going to get to China and we're going to be weird, so much trouble. It's the opposite of RR. We talked so positively about RR that that community like embraced us.
Speaker 1:
43:27
No, no, we mean well, but but yeah, there was stuff like that, that, um, I I think it was a little bit too focused on doing also the fact that the dragon designs were really cool, but then they stopped switching into dragons and they were just human.
Speaker 2:
43:40
I didn't, I didn't really yeah, human designs weren't as cool.
Speaker 1:
43:42
I want dragons I want dragons, so how'd you feel about the?
Speaker 2:
43:46
uh, the, the pp dream switch in the in the t?
Speaker 1:
43:51
the pp switch was funny, it was uh, it was pretty good. You know again, it's better than the fart jokes.
Speaker 2:
43:55
None of the fart jokes were funny no, no, they weren't.
Speaker 1:
43:58
but again, the, the marmot, is that what you call it? A marmot, a marmot? I don't know how you? They're the, the big, the, the big squirrels that look like beavers, again doing the meme funniest, the funniest fucking thing I've ever seen.
Speaker 2:
44:13
Came out of nowhere, absolute left field. The most unexpected thing I think I've ever seen in cinema.
Speaker 1:
44:22
I think about it like people say they think about the Roman Empire. I think about it all the time.
Speaker 2:
44:27
This is our Roman Empire.
Speaker 1:
44:28
I think about it all the time.
Speaker 2:
44:29
No one will know other than us, because no one else is gonna see this movie nobody gets it.
Speaker 1:
44:34
We're gonna implore cory's gonna do an episode about it in 2026 yeah, now it's genuinely the funniest thing that's ever happened in cinema and I just it's the pause, it's the, it's the look down and then the look back and it's funny because, like you do think for like a second, like, oh, this kind of reminds me of that meme and it doesn't give you time there's no, there's no world where you're thinking, oh, they're gonna do the meme, so yeah, that's um, that's pretty much it.
Speaker 1:
45:07
And and then the after credits for the film. It kind of sets up the second one. We're going to see a lot more of Nezha's brothers, which we didn't really get a good look at until the end.
Speaker 2:
45:19
So very curious. I also don't really know why they're gone either.
Speaker 1:
45:25
That's where the world building, I think is, is pretty good, but only up till a point yeah it's enough to stay on board with the story, but yeah, there are some deeper things that that I think are lost there is the post-credits scene where there's beating the shit out of them because they have to reopen the door that went on for so long went on for a good amount of time but it was funny it was.
Speaker 2:
45:47
It was good though it was funny.
Speaker 1:
45:48
so, yeah, no, I think those, uh, those are some of the, I know, the main points that we definitely wanted to to discuss, um, and a lot from the second one in particular, this third one going to be nuts, still don't know what it's gonna look like like 2030. Yeah, yeah, it'll probably take that long.
Speaker 2:
46:10
We'll be. Will we get Nasia 3 or the next Spider-Verse film first, or GTA 6?
Speaker 1:
46:20
I hate that. Any of that's a conversation honestly.
Speaker 2:
46:24
Just so you know when this movie comes out, we will have PlayStation 6s. Yes, that much is for sure we'll have playstation sixes, and robert downey jr will be cast as what's a marvel villain they haven't used yet. They're gonna go back to kang, go back to king all right.
Speaker 1:
46:46
Well, now we've lost into the plot, watch this in five years and let us know if we're yeah, we're correct but I think that, uh, that kind of does it for the spoiler portion of this episode and also this episode in general. A huge recommendation by both of us uh, definitely a film that, with the right people involved, I think you could show it to pretty much anybody and they would take something positive away from the film, and I think you could show it to pretty much anybody and they would take something positive away from the film and I think most people would like it. Honestly, I think this this has success written all over it when it comes to american audiences. I'm sure there's some underlying reason why this movie isn't getting advertised here or shown in a lot of theaters. There's probably something we know what to know with. That we know why um, what?
Speaker 2:
47:30
that's not what we're going to talk about. If, uh at uh, some of these conventions we got coming up, will we see any? Anything, nasia? Um, that'll be interesting that will be interesting.
Speaker 1:
47:41
I doubt it, but he's just such a he's such a cute, like, like convention-worthy character. We didn't even bring up, like when he puts his hands in his pants, like that's so fucking cool dude Like yeah.
Speaker 2:
47:55
I Him and Al Bain. They're both so convention-ready.
Speaker 1:
47:59
We need Ivan to get a hold of this movie.
Speaker 2:
48:01
We finally watched Puss in Boots.
Speaker 1:
48:03
So that artwork's coming. We've told enough, for, just like you know, the whole time we've known him.
Speaker 2:
48:12
So that's, that's fine, he'll get to. He'll get to this one by the time. Last wish, by the way, take a shot take a shot.
Speaker 1:
48:15
This, uh, he'll, he'll watch the the first two, uh, when the third one comes out. So that's how that will work. But, phil, yeah, if you want to, uh wrap us up here, I think, uh, I think we've said everything that we can say, and if you're still here and you haven't watched them, what the fuck is wrong with you?
Speaker 2:
48:33
How dare you?
Speaker 2:
48:34
How dare you Go watch the movie and then go to the show notes of this episode and find our Linktree link, which is where you'll find everything you need to keep up with us on social media, the most important ones being Instagram, tiktok, our growing Discord channel.
Speaker 2:
48:47
We're also over on YouTube and we stream every other week over on Twitch. You can support the podcast a couple of different ways. You can tag us, let us know that you're listening, let other people know that you are listening, and head over to your podcast app of choice and leave us a five-star review, thumbs up, 100%, whatever it may be, and then on YouTube, like share, subscribe. You guys know the drill. All of that is greatly appreciated and as this podcast continues to grow and see new opportunities that you guys are coming across here in the new year, that's all because of you. So thank you guys so much for all of that. And if you find yourself maybe wanting to be a little bit more involved with the community and get some behind the scenes stuff and become part of a very, very fun, uh, exclusive crew known as the Weight Watchers, eric, we'll let you know a little bit more about that.
Speaker 1:
49:33
Yeah, thank you, guys, and thanks to our patrons Briar, stefan T3, kato Corey from the world is my burrito and vintage, and Bridget from retro AV rewind. Your support means the world to us and we'd love for you to join that community and support us there as well if you like our content. That's the best way to help us out. In return, you'll get exclusive access and behind the scenes access to episodes like this one. We're getting into a groove, so these episodes are starting to release earlier than ever on that platform. Make sure to check it out, give it a try, but if you're not able to, we totally get it. All the other stuff that you can do for free goes a long, long way the likes, the comments, the shares, the listens, the engagement, everything under the sun. With that being said, my name is Mr Eric Almighty. That is my co-host. Phil the Filipino.
Speaker 2:
50:38
And please don't forget, we release new episodes every Wednesday on the podcast, with bonus content on platforms like TikTok and Twitch, and all you got to do is wait for it. So I heard you're looking for a go-to source for entertainment.
Speaker 1:
50:47
Wait for it. Gaming. Wait for it. Anime Plus Ultra. Mr Eric Almighty and Phil the Filipino yeah, they've got you covered and all you gotta do is Wait for it.
Speaker 2:
51:07
This is the Wait For it Podcast.
