Doctor Who - Carnival of Monsters Review (Revisited)

OK, its that time where I do yet another revisitation of a previous post and it will cover another Doctor Who story and this one is from the Jon Pertwee era and is one of my personal favourites, Carnival of Monsters. So, again here I will add some more detail to the performances section and flaws and one or two other bits to expand the content.   

So, with that all said let's take another look at this classic story.

And the usual warning is of course coming up...

PLOT SPOILERS ARE AHEAD!!!

STORY 

So...... the story begins with the Doctor (Pertwee) and his assistant Jo Grant (Katy Manning), who make a trip in the TARDIS to what the Doctor hopes to be Metebelis 3 (this turns out to be their first trip since the Doctor has been given back his freedom by the Time Lords).  However when they look around at their surroundings, they appear to be on a large cargo ship, which turns out to be SS Bernice, which as it turned out was a famous ship that went missing in the Indian ocean back in 1926 (although in reality this is fictitious and for the purpose purely of the story).  The Doctor and Jo however keep getting repeteadly caught as stowaways by the crew, and on escaping they get caught again, only to find the crew have no memory of the Doctor or Jo.

However the Doctor and Jo soon manage to find a white hatch in the floor of the ship, which none of the crew members can see, which they escape through, only to find themselves inside what appears to be a giant machine circuit board, which they try and navigate their way through to find a way out.  On breaking through a part of the wall of the machine, the Doctor and Jo find themselves in a marshland which is populated by deadly creatures called Drashigs, which the two of them have a close call with, but they escape back into the machine's circuit again.

And the Doctor soon twigs what has happened as he realises they are inside a miniscope, which keeps inhabitants in a miniaturised form, within their own habitats.  And the miniscope itself belongs to a travelling showman, Vorg (Leslie Dwyer) and his assistant Shirna (Cheryl Hall) who have arrived on the planet Inter Minor, and are looking for a permit to work there, however they are suspected as spies by the planet's tribunal panel members, Pletrac (Peter Halliday), Kalik (Michael Wisher) and Orum (Terence Lodge).

Regardless of this though, two of the tribunal members, Kalik and Orum quietly express their discontent at the present power situation on Inter minor with the current president, and on learning about the drashigs, Kalik is intruiged by them, and plans on releasing them from the miniscope to wreak havoc and force the president to resign.  Before Kalik can do this however, the Doctor eventually finds his way out of the miniscope and eventually reverts to his full size (as people and object return to their normal size when they are taken out of the miniscope's compression field).

The Doctor expresses his disgust and concern about the miniscope and he insists that he try and rescue Jo and the people inside and return them to their proper places in time and space.  And as the Doctor goes back inside the miniscope to rescue Jo, Kalik outside opens the panel to let the drashigs out, who soon emerge into Inter Minor to cause chaos and destruction, and its up to the Doctor to rescue Jo and get out of the miniscope before its too late......

THOUGHTS 

This is a nice leisurely Doctor Who story from the Pertwee era, and for me one of the most enjoyable things about it is that its tone is quite lighthearted, despite the threats and plottings of Kalik and the dangers of the drashigs (if you want to call it that!).

But the story itself, written by Robert Holmes is also very creative and intelligent, and once again the veteran Doctor Who writer provides some great ideas, the main one being the miniscope itself, and how it allows people to be within their own miniaturised environments.

Although the one thing that does at times threaten to bug the narrative is the repetition of the events on board the SS Bernice, as the ship crewmembers keep seeing the Doctor and Jo time and time again, but they have no recollection of them, and each time they lock them up, after they escape again, they forget who they are again.  But it also neatly shows that clearly the miniscope environments only last for a short period of time before they repeat themselves again, and that's the whole point I guess.

PERFORMANCES AND NOTABLE SCENES (Warning: this section may contain spoilers!)

As for the cast, well they are all in fine form here from the regulars to the supporting members.

Starting with Jon Pertwee who is great as the Doctor and he has his share of good scenes and lines.

And his notable scenes include the one where the Doctor enters a fistfight with Andrews onboard the SS Bernice.  And as the two men prepare to fight, Andrew warns the Doctor "I think I ought to warn you, I used to box for my school" and the Doctor replies "And I thought I ought to warn you that I took lessons from John L Sullivan himsefl!".  So when the Doctor quickly gains the upper hand in the fight, he hits Andrews below the heart who falls and the Doctor promptly says to everyone "Good afternoon!" and runs off with Jo.

Then there is the scene where the Doctor finally twigs that Jo and himself are in a miniscope and he says to Jo "By jinjo, I've got it!  I know what this is!" and Jo asks "What?" and the Doctor says "We're in a miniscope!".  The Doctor then continues to explain to Jo "Yes, you know, Jo, it's like, it's like one of those things, those glass cases that people keep colonies of ants in" and Jo asks if they are in some kind of peep show, which the Doctor says "Yes and you and I are in inside its works".
 

Jo however is disgusted at the notion but the Doctor asks her "Well, haven't you ever been to the zoo? Have you never kept goldfish in a bowl?" and Jo says "Well, yes but that's slightly different.  We're not animals".  However the Doctor says to Jo "We are to those creatures up there, Jo" and he puts on a circus voice "Roll up! Roll up! Roll up! And see these funny little creatures in their native habitat! Watch them go through their funny little tricks! Poke them with a stick and make them jump!". 

The Doctor then shares his anger with the situation as he goes on to explain that he was responsible for banning the use of miniscopes. So, he tells Jo "Oh no, believe me, I'm just as angry as you are. As a matter of fact, I had a great deal to do with the banning of these miniscopes" and Jo asks "You did?" and the Doctor tells her "Yes, I did. I managed to persuade the High Council of the Time Lords they were an offence against the dignity of sentient lifeforms". Jo says "But I thought the Time Lords never interfered" and the Doctor tells her awkwardly "Yes, well, they don't as a rule. But, frankly, I made such a nuisance of myself. Well, they banned the things!". 

And lastly there is the moment where the Doctor emerges from the miniscope and is restored to full size not long after but the leader of the tribunal on Inter minor, Pletrac is worried that the Doctor, whom he refers to as a "creature" may become hostile.  So the Doctor sharply replies "Will you kindly stop referring to me as the creature, sir, or I may well become exceedingly hostile!". Pletrac outraged by the Doctor's attitude says "Silence! The tribunal is deliberating!" and the Doctor testily says "The tribunal is not deliberating. The tribunal is arguing. And quite nonsensically, if I may say so!".

The Doctor then angrily tells them "Well, I'm sorry gentelmen but you are all in very serious trouble!" and he asks Pletrac is in charge, who tells him they are so the Doctor then says "Then you have allowed the importation and the operation of a machine that is expressly forbidden by intergalactic law!". The Doctor then goes to tell them that Jo is still trapped inside the miniscope "As a direct result of your carelessness, my young companion is trapped inside this machine, in a situation of extreme peril!". The Doctor then says he will let the incident slide if Jo is rescued "If you will allow me to rescue my young companion, and give what help I can to the rest of the unfortunates trapped in here, then I am prepared to overlook the entire matter".

And lastly there is the scene where the Doctor is about to re-enter the miniscope to rescue Jo and he has reprogrammed the miniscope to allow him to go back inside. So, the Doctor tells Vorg "Right, now listen to me. This is the phase one switch here. And this is the phase two. Now, don't touch the phase two until the last possible moment. Do you understand?" and Vorg says "I've got that, phase one, phase two". Pletrac however at this moment comes back in and warns the Doctor to stay here or he will be dealt with by the ICCA (Interstellar Constellation Correction Authority). So, the Doctor asks "Prison?" and Pletrac says "You are, by your own admission, a vagabond!" and the Doctor says "Oh yes, yes. Very much so" and he looks to Vorg and says "Phase one!" and Vorg pulls the lever on the miniscope and the Doctor disappears.  

Katy Manning also does a fine job once again as Jo Grant, the Doctor trusty companion, and Katy and Jon Pertwee always made a great team, and you can see their fondness for each other on screen is apparent.

As for her notable scenes, there is the scene where the Doctor and Jo are being held captive inside a storeroom and they try and piece together what is going on. So, the Doctor tells Jo about the SS Bernice and how it was famously known for its disappearance "Two days out from Bombay on June the 4th, 1926, the SS Bernice just disappeared off the face of the Earth". Jo, surprised says "But according to the calendar, that's today!". The Doctor then says "Yes, intriguing isn't it?" and Jo says to him "Shall I tell you something else intriguing? When we came in here that clock said twenty five to eight" and the Doctor asks "Well?" and Jo indicates to him "Now look at it!" and the clock shows the time as twenty to seven.

So, the Doctor then checks the door and Jo asks "Sonic screwdriver?" and the Doctor says "No, that only works on electronic locks, Jo. No, for this we need something far more primitve" and Jo suggests "Sekelton key?" and the Doctor says "They'd do if only we had any" and which Jo produces a large bunch of skeleton keys with a big a smile she says "Allow me, Doctor!" and the Doctor grins back.

Then there is the scene where the Doctor tells Jo that they are both in a miniscope and tries to explain it to her and Jo soon get's the idea of it.  So Jo says to the Doctor "Well, wait a minute. Do you mean that that Major Daly and all those people on the ship are in a sort of a peepshow?!" and the Doctor says "That's right and you and I are both inside its works".  And Jo asks the Doctor "And outside there are people and creatures just looking at us for kicks?!" and the Doctor says "That's right" and Jo, disgusted says "They must be evil and horrible!" and the Doctor "Not, necessarily, Jo, thoughtless, maybe".

So, Jo wearily says to the Doctor "So, here we are all cosily wrapped up with the other specimens!" and the Doctor tries to reassure her "Yes, but not for long, Jo. We'll soon get out of here".  However Jo doesn't share the Doctor's optimism and says to him as the Drashigs can be heard shrieking in the background "Will we? Seems to me we have a choice of being shot by those idiots on the ship, or eaten by those horrors out there!".

And lastly there is the scene where Jo is again caught by Andrews and the others as the Doctor sneaks away. So, Andrews in the scene asks Jo "Who are you?" and Jo says to herself "Here we go again" and Andrews asks her "You're not a passenger. Where did you come from?" and Jo challenges him and asks "How do you know I'm NOT a passenger". Andrews, puzzled asks "What?" and Jo says "Well, since none of you can remember more than about ten minutes ago, how do you know?!". Jo, then asks Major Daly "Can't you remember shooting the monster about twenty minutes ago?" and Daly confused asks "What?" and Jo tells him "It was you that shot it down, Major!" and Daly, confused asks "What?!" and Jo gives in and runs out.

The supporting cast are also very good starting with Peter Halliday as the neurotic Pletrac, who is so concerned with procedures and doing everything by the book.

Halliday has some fun moments in the story that include the one where Pletrac first enquires about what Vorg and Shirna do with the miniscope.  So Pletrac asks "From your data discs, it appear that you travel from planet to planet performing some kind of ritual with this machine? For what purpose?" and Shirna replies "We're entertainers" and Pletrac asks "Entertainers.  Explain the term".  So Shirna cheerily says "We put on a show.  You understand?" and she does a little tap dance and Pletrac, clearly unimpressed says "No!".

Another good scene from Halliday is when Pletrac confers with Orum and Kalik over what they should do with Vorg and Shirna. So, they speak in hushed breath and Kalik says "Amusement is prohibited. Its purposeless" but Pletrac says "Zarb is considering lifting that restriction. The latest thinking is that the latest outbreak of violence among the functionaries is caused through lack of amusement". Kalik then suggests that the functionaries (the alien slaves on Inter Minor that work for the trio) may eventuality rise up and take over but Pletrac says to him "Its not the functionaries that dream of power, Kalik" and Kalik says "One speaks one's thoughts". Pletrac however says "Your thoughts are as clear as your ambition" and Kalik angrily says "How dare...!" but Orum interrupts and says "Please!". Kalik then suggests of Vorg and Shirna "Since they presence here is clearly subversive, one moves that their application be rejected" and Pletrac objects "Opposed" but Orum backs Kalik "Supported" and seeing that he is outruled, Pletrac gives in and says "Oh, very well!". 

Then there is the scene where Vorg having given a fake document to Pletrac with the signature of President Zarb, who goes away to check out its validity. However, Pletrac soon returns and angrily says to Vorg "Not authentic! A forgery!" Vorg then pleads ignorance and says "But your worship, I had no idea. And my assistant and I travelled all the way from Demos believing that we would be welcome on your noble planet" but Pletrac remains unsympathetic and says "That is your misfortune!".

Kalik then suggests Vorg and Shirna have imported the miniscope containing miscroscopic alien creatures without a license, so he recommends that the miniscope be destroyed. Pletrac then speaks through a communicator on his wrist "Send the eridactor attachment to section two immediately!". So, the functionaries arrive with the eradicator and as Vorg protests "Stop! This is murder!" Pletrac tells him "Stand aside, you two!" and he says to the functionaries "Prepare to eradicate. Commence eradication!". The eradicator however fails to destroy the miniscope but Orum does suggest that as it is designed to destroy organic life that aliens inside will be dead. So, Pletrac pleased says "That is the main objective. Destruction of the machine is unimportant" and he leaves. 

Michael Wisher is also excellent as Kalik, the conspiratorial tribunal member, who wants to have a revolution in order to overthrow the president of Inter minor.

Wisher has some good moments too that include the scene where Kalik says to Vorg how it was his suggestion to help the Doctor and Jo escape from the miniscope.  And Vorg changes his tune from be accusational to flattering when Kalik admits to the suggestion and he says to Kalik "And a most merciful and compassionate gesture, your worship!".  And Kalik's conspiring tribunal member, Orum quietly says to Kalirk "Merciful and compassionate??" and Kalik smiles and says smugly "One has twinges!".

Another is when Kalik has a sneaky conference with Orum and he expresses his desire to start a revolution to overthrow President Zarb. So, Orum in the scene quietly asks Kalik "You expected the Drashigs to follow the Tellurians?" and Kalik says "They follow a scent blindly, so that primitive told us" and Orum asks "And what is to be gained by that?" and Kalik says "Possibly the world". Orum asks "What?" and Kalik explains "The Tellurians will try and escape" and Orum says "Yes" and Kalik says "The Drashigs will then follow them" and Orum asks "What good will that do any of us?" and Kalik tells Orum". So, Kalik explains "Listen, Orum. For thousands of years, ever since the great space plague, our world has stood alone and been the stronger for it. Now Zarb is trying to change our ways". Orum suggests that functionaries are becoming restless and need a distraction, so Kalik suggests "What the functionaries need, Orum, what we all need, is something to unite us. We need a sense of purpose. We need a new leader. We need a war!". Orum then asks "And how do you propose to achieve all that?" and Kalik says "By leading the rebellion against my dear brother Zarb!". 

Terence Lodge also does pretty well in his role as Orum, Kalik's fellow tribunal member who supports him in his devious plan to overthrow President Zarb.

And I will mention just one of Lodge's scenes which is the one where Orum expresses his concerns to Kalik over Kalik's plan to start a revolution against Zarb.

So, in the scene Kalik asks Orum "Do you think my plan has failed?" and Orum nervously says "Upon reflection, one is conscious of certain flaws" and Kalik asks "Indeed?". Orum then says "One gathers the intention is the escape of these Drashigs in order to cause a disaster that will reflect badly upon President Zarb and his regime" and Kalik says "Admirably put". Orum then says "To this end, one has sabotaged the eradicator in order to leave the city defenceless!" and Kalik tells him "Precisely. The bigger the disaster, the better for us" but Orum nervously asks "Yes, but is it not possible that one might oneself become part of that disaster?!" and Kalik says "There is a certain minimal risk". Orum however anxiously says "One has no wish to be devoured by alien monstrosities, even in the cause of political progress!".

Leslie Dwyer is great as the showman Vorg, who wears one of the most ridiculously garish costumes in the history of the show, which would probably give anyone a migraine just to look at it!  Dwyer has alot of fun playing Vorg and it shows as he plays Vorg as a charmer who is always chancing his luck and he also falls back on blaming Shirna if she suddenly starts talking real sense and he says "My assistant is an imagintive girl!".

Dwyer has some fun moments that include the scene where Vorg shows his relishment for the Drashigs and what an attraction they are in the miniscope.  And Vorg says to Pletrac and the other tribunal members "We will shortly be seeing the prize of my collection. The Drashigs!

They are, without doubt, the most evil, the most vicious and undoubtedly the most frightening form of life in the whole of the universe!".

Then there is the scene where Vorg, clearly impressed by the Doctor's defiant manner against Pletrac, thinks he is also a showman and he approaches him and uses some carnival lingo. So, Vorg in the scene says "I bet he understands the palare. Listen to this" and he walks over to the Doctor and says "Palare le carny?" and the Doctor looks puzzled at him and asks "I beg your pardon?" and Vorg says "Varda the Bona Palone" and the Doctor, clearly confused says "I'm sorry". Vorg then continues his carnival lingo "Niente dinari round here, y'jills" and the Doctor is then forced to ask "I'm sorry but I don't understand your language". Vorg, however insists "Oh you understand, you're a showman just like me!" and he introduces himself "Allow me to introduce myself. I am the great Vorg! And this beautiful young lady is Shrina, my assistant".

And last of all is Dwyer's funniest scene in the story, which comes near the end when the miniscope is damaged and he tries to repair it, so he asks Shirna to check a wire on the scope by saying "Well, put your finger on there for a minute, will you?".  And as Shirna points to a wire she asks "Here?" and she puts her finger on it and there is a spark and a loud crackle and Shirna yelps and Vorg says "Good!  That must be the live terminal".      

Cheryl Hall is also great as Shirna, Vorg's assistant, who wears a pretty colourful and kind of sexy outfit and her character actually speaks alot more common sense than Vorg himself does!

And Cheryl has some good moments that of course include her moment where Shirna tells Pletrac that she and Vorg are just entertainers and that "We put on a show.  You understand?" and she does her tap dance for Pletrac, who looks unimpressed and simply says "No!".  

Then thereis the scene where Pletrac orders their destruction of the miniscope much to the anger of Vorg who mutters to himself "Barbarians!". So, in the scene Shirna grumpily says to Vorg " Dim witted yokels, you said they were! Twist them round your finger, you said! Have them eating off of your hand, you said. Well, a fine mess we're in now, aren't we!". Vorg then looks a bit taken aback and asks "You're not blaming me?" and Shirna tells him "Well, I didn't want to come here, Vorg. I should have stayed with the All Star dance company" but Vorg dimissively says to her "Huh! That third rate bunch of hoofers!" and he does a little mocking dance.  Shirna however goes on and says to Vorg "At least when I was with the company I always had a few credit bars, and we never travelled by cargo thruster". 

And later on there is the scene where Shirna tells the Doctor how Vorg won the miniscope and doesn't really know how to work it.  And Shirna says to the Doctor "He won it, Doctor" and Vorg says it was during a great "Wallarian exhibition" and Shirna says to the Doctor "You know what gamblers the Wallarians are. Well, Vorg had the magum pod concession". 

The other supporting cast members include Ian Marter, who does very well in his first appearance in the show as Lt Andrews, one of the naval officers onboard the ship and his personality and manner is not entirely far removed from that of Harry Sullivan during the Tom Baker era when you think about it!

Ian has some good scenes also that include one where due to Vorg manipulating the settings on his miniscope, makes Andrews behave in a violent manner.  So in the scene Andrews prepares to fight the Doctor in a boxing match and he angrily says "Right!  I'm going to thrash this fellow within an inch of his life!".  And as Major Daly, one of the passengers onboard the SS Bernice asks the Doctor "Still sticking with that stupid story?" the Doctor says "Afraid so, old chap!" and Andrews then says to the Doctor "You'll regret it, sir. I think I ought to warn you, I used to box for my school!". 

Tenniel Evans is great as the old fashioned Major Daly and he delivers all his "old boy" lines with gusto.  And my favourite line of Evans in the whole story comes when we see the recurring sequence when all of a sudden a dinosaur appears and Daly's daughter, Claire screams and after it disappears, Daly comforts her.  And Daly says "There, there, there, my child. You'd better come and sit down. I've never seen anything like it in me life. I wonder if it'll come back?" and he comments on the dinosaur with the best line ever "What a head, eh? Gad, I'd love to have that on the club wall, what?!".

And last of all Jenny McCracken does a good job as Major Daly's attractive daughter,  Claire who is also a passenger onboard the SS Bernice and she also appears to romance with Andrews in the story.

Jenny's most notable scene however comes near the end of the story where after (SPOILER!!) the Doctor has restored all the inhabitants of the miniscope to their proper places in time and space that we go back to the SS Bernice where Major Daly and Claire chat with one another.  And in the scene they both seem to have a sense that they have had a very long and repetitive journey and Claire says to Daly "It does seem to have been a long trip somehow" and she suddenly thinks and asks "Daddy?" and Daly says "Hmm?" and Claire takes a moment as if she is trying to remember the events of the miniscope but then says "Oh, nothing!". 

DIRECTOR AND MUSIC

As for the direction, Barry Letts, takes the directing duties this time round and he does another great job as he perfectly paces the adventure and with it being a four episode story it never really lags at any moment.  However due to the production system of the time Letts could only be credited with one role at a time during the credits so his role was noted as being the director of the story and not also the producer.  Regardless of this, Letts had already directed several of the Pertwee stories and he does another fine job this time around.

Music wise the story features a pleasant, jaunty score from the regular show composer, Dudley Simpson, who provides his usual mix of string sections and electronic tracks that do date it to the period of the early 1970s it came from but its still an enjoyable score.  However I would have to say its definitely a score that is dependent on the story itself and its not really one I would go out of my way to listen to on its own, but that aside its fit for purpose.

Its also worth mentioning that a new version of the original Doctor Who theme music at the time had been arranged by Paddy Kingsland, who later worked on the show during Tom Baker and Peter Davison eras.  However the version of the theme tune was rejected by BBC executives at the time as it was pretty awful and the Delia Derbyshire version was used again although the alternate version did feature in an episode of this story that was added in error when the story was shipped to and broadcast in Australia.  This version can now also be heard on the BBC DVD release for what its worth!

FLAWS 
 
As for the flaws.... yes Carnival of monsters has one or two and to start off the main one is simply the Drashigs, who as the main monsters are pretty laughable, as they are just puppets, and Barry Letts, the director/producer once again shows his over enthusiam for CSO (Colour Separation Overlay, a popular special effects technique in the 1970s) and how naff it looks.

And just how bad the Drashigs CSO looks is particularly noticeable in the scene where the Drashigs break free from the miniscope (with help from Kalik) and lay an attack on the others however Vorg manages to save the day using the disintegrator gun.  And at this point you can't but help laugh and cringe at just how ridiculous these creatures look as they hardly the stuff that would make you cack yourself!    

Another issue is to do with the somewhat repetitive nature of the narrative, especially with the crew of the SS Bernice, which does threaten to become tiresome pretty quickly, but to the credit of the story's writer, Robert Holmes, it just about manages to keep moving along well enough so it doesn't drag too much.

I also found the dialogue of the dynamic trio of Pletrac, Kalik and Orum a bit silly at times as they sound more like upper class Englishmen complete with RP accents who keep repeatedly saying "one" all the time! So, all we get here is alot of "one has twinges" and "one must always be careful!" and "one is only speaking one's thoughts!". I mean these guys are aliens! Surely they should not speak in such a Victorian old-fashioned manner!

Then there is the pretty silly subplot about Kalik wanting to overthrow the president of Inter Minor, by using the Drashigs especially as Vorg manages to kill them off with the disintegrator gun, it doesn't make them that threatening as they were made out to be.  And the subplot was just a pretty naff excuse to release the Drashigs out of the miniscope, and you get the impression it doesn't have much relevance or bearing on the story other than that.

And last of all I have to say I found it a bit daft how the Doctor tells Jo early on in the story that he wants to leave the SS Bernice before they got captured and when they got captured he tells Jo "I told you we should have left when I wanted to". However the Doctor soon changes his tune a bit later on as Jo suddenly wants to leave as she doesn't like the situation but the Doctor tells her "Where's your scientific curiosity, Jo? Don't you want to know what's going on?". Now at this point they could have left in the TARDIS (well maybe!) before even maybe Vorg stuck his hand in to pick up the TARDIS within the miniscope but instead the Doctor does his usual and wants to stick around. However, I just found a bit strange how he didn't like things at first but is soon quick to change his mind a little later in the story.  

Anyway that's it for the flaws!

SUM UP

So to sum up, Carnvial of Monsters remains one of my favourite stories from the Pertwee era as it is light hearted, moves along at a plesant pace, features some fine performances from the regular and the supporting cast and its basically great fun.

And yes it does have some silly moments here and there and the Drashigs are just laughable as the main monsters of the story but that aside there is still plenty to enjoy in Carnival of Monsters and its still well worth checking out to this day.

Right, so that's it for now folks and I will be back again soon with another post hopefully before the end of the month.

Till then its bye again fer now!

Avengers Endgame Review

Well, for the first time in ages, I figured it was time I review a brand new film, which I recently saw at the cinema and the film in question is Avengers Endgame, which sees the conclusion of The Avengers films as we know them so to speak.

So, after Infinity War, does Endgame live up to expectations? Well, let's take a look...

And even though I will not say much about the plot I will still give the usual warning...

THERE MIGHT BE THE ODD SPOILER AHEAD!! (BUT HARDLY ANY HONESTLY!)

STORY

WARNING: THIS FIRST PARAGRAPH HAS A SPOILER IN IT!

So, the story begins 23 days after Infinity War ended with the villainous Thanos (Josh Brolin) having wiped out half the universe's population and we begin with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) trapped on a ship in deep space with Nebula (Karen Miller) who face the fate of dying from loss of oxygen. However, just as their fate appears to be inevitable, they are soon rescued by Captain Marvel (Brie Larsson) and taken back to Earth. So, they reunite with the surviving Avengers, who weren't wiped out by Thanos including Captain America/Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk/Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Natasha Ramamoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson).
 So, together they decided to track down Thanos and recover the infinity stones only to find that he has destroyed them to prevent any further use of the stones, which prompts Thor to kill Thanos in a fit of rage by beheading him.

The story then shifts forward by 5 years where Scott Lang/Ant Man (Paul Rudd) escapes the quantum realm he was trapped in and meets with Steve and Natasha. Scott tells them that there might be a possibility that they could use the quantum realm to travel back in time to recover the infinity stones and bring back the fallen Avengers and the rest of the population. So, Steve, Natasha and Scott pay Tony Stark a visit, who by now is married to Pepper Potts (Gwenyth Paltrow) and he has a young daughter. Tony refuses however to go along with their idea as he is afraid of losing his family in the process and also suggests it would be impossible.

However, not long after they go, Tony out of curiosity with some calculations, discovers that it would be possible to use the quantum realm and its not longer before he decides to go and help out his team mates to bring back everyone else... 

THOUGHTS

As a conclusion to the Avengers films as we know them, Endgame is an excellent Marvel film and it sees the Avengers series film end with fine style as there are plenty of moments of excitment, drama, suspense and of course fun. The film also continues on from Infinity War's intense themes but along with brings a stronger sense of hope as you could say that Infinity War was the Avengers answer to The Empire Strikes Back where the bad guys win, so here things have to be put right. The film also has plenty of laughs but its not without its emotional weight either and by the end you know things in the Marvel film universe will never be quite the same again.

PERFORMANCES (Warning: some minor spoilers might be mentioned but nothing major and there won't much in the way of notable scenes this time!)

As for the performances, well the Avengers ensemble (or assemble!) cast are all in fine form here as are the rest of the cast.

Starting with Robert Downey Jr who is great once again as Tony Stark aka Iron Man, and he provides the film's main emotional anchor (sorry for the cliche!) with Tony being a married man with a daughter and is now afraid to lose what he has but makes the tough decision to help the other Avengers to bring everyone else back.  I won't say how the film ends of course but this was to be Robert Downey Jr's final performance as Iron Man and he certainly puts in a fine one to end his run on the series.

Chris Evans next up is excellent again in his role of Steve Rogers/Captain America and this too is to be his final appearance in the Avengers series but don't worry I won't mention anything about the final moments of his performance either. Evans here also has one of the film's most notable lines where the Avengers put their plan into play to rescue the other Avengers and bring back half the universe's population that was wiped out. So, in the scene Natasha says to Steve "This is going to work" and Steve tells her "I know it is, because I don't know what I'll do if it doesn't".

Mark Ruffalo is also pretty good again in his role as Bruce Banner/The Hulk and this time around we get a different slant on his character as Bruce has now permanently taken on the form of the Hulk but managed to balance his own intelligence with the Hulk's physique.

Chris Hemsworth does great once too in his role of Thor, God of Thunder, but this time round, Thor has become a drunken overweight mess as he rules over his people in the New Asgard. Hemsworth also get's one of the film's funniest lines as one of his friends get's abuse from an online gamer playing Fortnite. So, Thor speaks to the gamer online and warns him "Hey, this is Thor, you know God of Thunder. If you don't log off this game right now, I'm gonna fly over to your house, find what basement you're hiding in, rip of your arms and shove them up your butt!! Now go and cry to your father, you little weasel!!".

Scarlett Johansson also reprises her role very well as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and this time Natasha leads several teams around the galaxy and feels great regret for her fallen Avengers and later on is forced to make a tough decision (which I won't say anymore about!). This I think is also to be Scarlett's final film in the MCU but I'm not 100% certain on that as I'm not a big aficinado of the series.

Jeremy Renner does well also in his role as the Avenger, Clint Barton/Hawkeye who has become a vigilante in the film before he is approached by the Avengers to come back to the team. Renner also plays an important part in the film later on during their mission to try and retrieve the infinity stones in their plan to ressurect the others.

Paul Rudd is also excellent again in his role as Scott Lang/Ant-Man, who helps the other Avengers in their plan to retrieve the infinity stones and is instrumental in putting the plan into place. Rudd also provides alot of humour to the film as he keeps referencing Back to the Future as an inspiration for the Avenger's plan only to be told that Back to the Future's take on time travel is nonsense!

Brie Larson does pretty well too in her role as Caron Danvers/Captain Marvel who (SPOILER!!) while she doesn't have a great deal of screen time here, she till plays a pretty big part in the Avenger's plan. Her limited screen time was deliberate by the film makers because they wanted to place more emphasis on the Avengers story and Larson herself would shortly after filming her scenes start work on here solo film as Captain Marvel.

Karen Gillan also reprises her role very well as Nebula, the adopted daughter of the villainous Thanos but this time around she has turned into a goodie after the events of Infinity War change her perspective and she fights as one of the Avengers. However things become complicated for Nebula in the film as her alternate universe counterpart from the past soon becomes apparent to Thanos but I won't say anymore than that!

Bradley Cooper also reprises his voice role of the CGI character, Rocket, a genetically engineered raccon and former Guardians of the Galaxy member, who helps the Avengers out with their plan also. Cooper's voice acting here is pretty good and he too get's some fun moments in the film but his character too has suffered as most of his crewmates have died to Thanos's act.

And while there are still quite a few other cast members to mention, I will finish by mentioning Josh Brolin who does a great job once again as the film's primary villain, Thanos, however this time around his screen time is a little more limited than in Infinity War even though he plays a central part here. I was also somewhat surprised to learn (or maybe not I guess when you think about it) that Brolin's performance as Thanos was a motion capture one in both films rather than an extensive make-up job.   

DIRECTORS AND MUSIC 

As for the film's directors, Anthony and Joe Russo, who are of course brothers (also referred to as the Russo brothers funnily enough!) do an excellent job here with the film as they have alot to juggle here with different storyline and so many characters. They also handle the film's epic action scenes really well, which easily rank among some of the most amazing and impressive ones that the MCU has ever seen. The Russo brothers also directed some of the most previously acclaimed MCU films such as Avengers: Infinity War and Captain America: Winter Soldier.

Last of all is the film's score by Alan Silvestri, which is a very fine one overall and I have to say that Silvestri's music has changed quite alot over the years as I really didn't recognise this as one of his scores. Back in the 1980's, Silvestri's scores were very recognisible as they always had those fast rising tempos but there is really not much of that going on here, which is to his credit that he has changed his music style over the years.

FLAWS

As for flaws...well I can't really go into the flaws here without spoiling anything but I guess the main one would be is that the film's running time at just over 3 hours is a pretty extensive one and it crams so much and does feel just a bit too overlong. The film's pacing however for the most part is pretty good but even at 3 hours, I think that MCU is taking things maybe a bit too far as every "epic" film nowadays has to have a super long running time and Endgame here is no different. So, perhaps if they trimmed the run-time just a little too even 2 hours and 30 minutes, it could have tightened up things a little bit more.

The only other flaw I will mention here however is that I think some of the film's characters are a little sidelined here, especially Thanos, as the main villain, his screen time does feel surprisingly limited. I would also have to say that Thanos's presence this time around just isn't quite as menacing even if Josh Brolin's performance is still very much praiseworthy. I feel the film's main driving story is the Avengers plan to retrieve the infinity stones and everything else, even Thanos, plays second fiddle to that.

Anyway that's all I'm going to say for now on the flaws.

SUM UP

So, in summing up, Avengers: Endgame is an excellent conclusion to the Avengers films as we know it and its a film that is both alot of fun but also has quite alot of emotional weigh to it. The cast are all on fine form too and the film's visuals and action scenes are pretty epic and awesome looking as you would expect from a film with a meagre 356 billion dollar budget! ;-)

The runtime does feel a bit too long however and maybe there are one or two other niggles I could mention but I won't go into them here (but I won't) but that's me just nitpicking and to be honest this is still a fine film overall and one that's well worth checking out if you have seen the previous Avengers movies. 

So, that's it for now and I'll be back hopefully soon with another post. Till then that's me off.

Ciao for now!

Top 10 Bloodborne Trick Weapons Part 2: No's 5-1

OK, so now its time for the second part of my list for my pick of the top 10 trick weapons in Bloodborne and here I will count down the final five and we will see, which weapons made it into the list.

So, with that said let's gear up and see what weapons made it into the top 5...

5. Kirkhammer 

So, at No.5 is the Kirkhammer, which is one of the main game weapons and by heck its a rather good one at that and it is easily one of the most versatile weapons in the game as it can essentially be a skill (less effective in scaling though for skill) and strength weapon rolled into one!  

The Kirkhammer itself comprises of two weapons in itself, as in its untransformed stage, its a silver sword and you carry a large square stone on your back in this phase but in the transform phase, you insert the sword into the stone and it becomes a large hammer. The silver sword phase on its own deals less damage of course but its faster attack speed makes up for this in a way whereas in the transform stage, the Kirkhammer will deal out some pretty brutal damage with a series of hammer strikes but these will be slower.

I have to say though I have rarely done a playthrough of the game (well maybe 2 out of 6!) without using the Kirkhammer as it really is alot of fun to use especially in its transform phase as it really does have the power to bludgeon enemies into oblivion! The Kirkhammer is also great for its animation of switching between both phases even if it does look a bit weird when you are running round with a huge hammerhead on your back! I found myself not using the initial phase of the weapon as much even though it is certainly faster to use the silver sword and in many ways more practical but at the same time its not quite as fun as its transform! ;-)

The Kirkhammer does have one or two issues though with the main one being it is a rather short range weapon as I found myself consistently at times missing the mark when trying to do a charged R2 smash attack as I wasn't close enough to hit them with it! Also its dashing R1 attack is a bit naff as you run towards enemies and push them back as this basically doesn't do as much damage and this can be quite annoying.

However these issues aside, the Kirkhammer is still a great weapon in the game and its one I have included in most of my playthroughs, which is a clear indicator as to how good it is and as such it deserves a place in the top 5.

4. Blade of Mercy

So, at No.4 is the Blade of Mercy, which you get from the assassin, Eileen the Crow either after she dies during her fight with the enemy hunter, Henryk or if you kill her, or if you defeat her sworn enemy, the Blood Crow of Cainhurst.

As for the Blade of Mercy itself is a superior skill weapon as it has an "S" scaling when maxed out at +10 and as such makes it essential for when pulling of visceral attacks. In its untransformed stage, it is a curved blade, which has a pretty fast and versatile move-set but when transformed, it becomes two smaller curved blades which you can deal out some pretty fast and ferocious combo attacks. Each attack in its own doesn't do much damage but when combined into a combo you can take down individual enemies very quickly! This weapon also scales off arcane and can be very effective for inflicting slow or rapid poisoning effects to enemies. It also has a very cool looking R2 attack where the player will perform a two-hit combo as they swipe the blades inward toward their enemies aswell as a nifty L2 attack where an overhead attack can be performed.

The blade of mercy doesn't have too many drawbacks other than maybe it is better suited for taking down maybe only two enemies at the most, so its not best suited against crowds given its very short range.  However, this weapon is still essential for taking down fast enemies at close range and you can deal out quick damage, which is what this weapon does best.

So, for me the Blade of Mercy is certainly one of the best weapons in the game and its fast and varied moveset make it a very cool weapon to use and one that deserves its spot at No.4.

3. Rakuyo

At No.3 is the Rakuyo, which featured in the Old Hunters DLC and its a very nifty looking eastern sword is used by the boss, Lady Maria (of the Astral Clocktower) and is a very effective skill weapon.

The Rakuyo itself in itself untransformed phase is a long thin sword that can break off into two parts when transformed with a longer blade in the right hand and short one held in the left hand. The great thing however about the Rakuyo is that it can be very effective in both states against a variety of enemies and it has a fairly fast moveset even if it is a bit slower than the Blade of Mercy and doesn't quite scale as well (Rakuyo has an A rating for skill as opposed to the BOM's S rating at +10).

Now both the Blade of Mercy and Rakuyo are pretty close together on this list as they are both awesome skill weapons but I had to put the Rakuyo a bit higher simply because it can be buffed with fire or bolt paper whereas the Blade of Mercy cannot due to its scaling with arcane alone negates it. Another bonus the Rakuyo has over the BOM is to do with its range as you can perform attacks with a little more reach and again it has some cool spin attacks and combos to play with.

The only real difficulty you will encounter with the Rakuyo is in actually getting your hands on one as you need to overcome two pretty brutal enemies to do so in the Fishing Hamlet area of the DLC as you need to fight two Shark Giants, who deal out some nasty damage and can even eat you alive! So, it took me five playthroughs before I discovered a cheese strategy to get my hands on the weapon WITHOUT having to directly fight these two shark douchebags!

Anyway that aside, the Rakuyo is definitely one of the coolest weapons in the game and its solid moveset, decent range, elegant looks and ability to buffed for elemental damage makes its one of the best and it deserves its place at No.3.

2. Saw Cleaver

So, of all the weapons that deserves the runner-up spot, you might find it a tad strange that I picked this one but by heck I really do have to say that the Saw Cleaver is hands down one of the most effective, versatile weapons in the entire game and for me its one of my favourites that has rarely ever let me down.

As for the Saw Cleaver as a weapon in its initial phase its basically a saw blade with a serrated edge, which is effective for damage to beasts but in its transform stage, the handle extends out to allow for greater range attacks. The Saw Cleaver is also a strength weapon albeit one that doesn't particularly scale that great as you get a "C" scaling at +10 but despite that this weapon is still great to use.

And just why is it so good in the game? Well, for me it comes down to the Saw Cleaver's attack speed as it does some pretty good damage at a fast pace against pretty much any enemy in the game, particularly in its untransformed stage, I would say its almost like the Longsword (a common sword in the Dark Souls series) of Bloodborne.  The weapon can also be buffed with fire and bolt paper and it has a "C" for Arcane scaling, which is not too bad. 

The only drawback however with this weapon is to do with its transformed stage, as you do take a hit on speed as the strikes become far more vertical in appearance and this can leave you a bit more vulnerable against fast enemies, so for this reason alone I would really suggest using the cleaver in its untransformed stage for general use.

Despite this however, the Saw Cleaver is a weapon I have used against a number of different bosses very effectively and I even used it to take down the hardest boss in the entire game, the Oprhan of Kos (twice no less!) so that says quite alot for it in itself!

So, the Saw Cleaver for me is a real workhorse of a weapon in the game and its fast speed, decent moveset and its ability to buffed and infused (with elemental blood gems) efficiently make it one of the best weapons in the game and it more than deserves the runner-up spot.

And before I announce the winner here are a few notable weapons that didn't make the cut...

Ludwig's Holy Blade - There's no doubt this is a pretty elegant looking weapon, which is similar to the Kirkhammer in its untransformed mode but then turns into a greatsword in its transform stage. Its a nice enough weapon with good range but something about its moveset doesn't quite do it for me, so while I do sort of like it, its not one of my favourites in the game.

The Holy Moonlight Sword - This is a similar story to the Holy Blade except this one I admit is much cooler thanks to the fact it has appeared in every Souls game aswell as Bloodborne (as the Moonlight Sword) and its arcane abilities are second to none. However, I still wasn't that compelled to use it in the game as its moveset and lack of speed still left me a bit cold but nevertheless it is a very cool looking weapon and I know its a fan favourite, so I thought I would give a mention.

Rifle Spear - The rifle spear is a weapon I very nearly put on this list but I really was tempted more by the Boom Hammer than this one simply because the BH is so eminently great for farming enemies such as scholars and werewolves although the rifle spear can do almost the same in a way. The rifle spear is pretty nifty in design too with its rifle attachment in the transform phase being able to use as a rifle, which is a nice touch. But its this weapon's R2 charged attack that really helps make it a solid choice as its one of the best thrust attacks in the game that does potent damage. Again I really like it but it just missed the cut.  

Threaded Cane - and the last notable mention is the final of the starting weapons, the threaded cane, which I have tried for a little while in my last couple of playthroughs and I actually do quite like it. The cane has a pretty good moveset in its untransformed mode and decent speed and in its transform mode it delivers good ranged attacks as a serrated edged whip. The only thing I'd say is that its a bit underpowered next to other weapons in the game but I still do quite like it all the same.

And so the No.1 trick weapon in Bloodborne (for me anyway) is....

1. Church Pick

Yes, so at No.1 is the Church Pick, which is another weapon that is found in the Old Hunters DLC and its a real cracker (sorry hate to sound like I am advocating violence here lol!) and for me it is basically a much improved version of the Hunter Axe with a more versatile and faster moveset. In short, this weapon is awesome!

As for the Church Pick itself, well in its untransformed phase, it is a large sword but when transformed it will change into an extended war pick that has greater range and can be used to take down multiple enemies at once. The Church Pick may not necessarily be a strength weapon as such as its damage output isn't quite as potent as the Hunter Axe and it is considered more a skill one but its speed and range make it a far superior weapon overall.  And for me as soon as I used this weapon in the DLC, it quickly became my favourite as its speed, range and moveset as mentioned are just so much better than alot of other weapons in the game and its a weapon that is very efficient in both phases too, which is not always the case with trick weapons.

As for its moveset, the Church Pick in untransformed phase can be used to carry out a successive series of thrust attacks, which are relatively fast in pace and can deal with alot of enemies effectively and its R2 attack in this phase is a pretty ground scraper that turns into an uppercut attack. In its transformed phase, its moveset is similar to the Hunter Axe only the moves are much faster and more efficient and it quickly take down a number of enemies at once. The R2 charged attack in the transformed phase is also pretty effective as it comprises of a charged overhead smash that can deal out some pretty heavy damage to foes and I found this attack particularly effective against the werewolves in the game.  The Church Pick is also very good against enemies that are weak to thrust attacks such as Brainsuckers and the Celestial mob.

As for my experience of using this weapon in the game,  I really found it to be great to use and was even very effective against a number of bosses too such as Martyr Logarius, Gerhman, Ebrietas, Laurence and quite a few more! And as mentioned there are numerous situations where the pick is perfect against crowds of enemies whether they be hunters, beasts or something even bigger and its a weapon that will rarely ever let you down. Sure there are stronger, more potent weapons in the game and even faster ones but the Church Pick finds the perfect balance between strength, skill and speed and that's makes the difference.

So, for me there is little doubt that the Church Pick is my "pick" (this pun was intended!) of the bunch and is my favourite weapon in Bloodborne as there are few in the game that can match its versatility alone and that's why it deserves to take the top spot.

OK, so that's it for now and I will be back soon with another post, which will most likely be my review of The Avengers Endgame, which I saw quite recently.

So, until the next one its bye for now!

           

Top 10 Best Bloodborne Trick Weapons Part 1 - No's 10-6

Right, since I have now played the acclaimed action role play game, Bloodborne through six times (yep honest!) I figured I would take a look at my pick for the best weapons in the game (by the way I hope this post doesn't appear to advocate violence in any way ;-))

So, these choices are my own personal preference and they will be based specifically on the trick weapons in the game and not the firearms (and not the Hand of Gratia either I'm afraid) and how effective they are overall for general use or specific use in certain situations.  So, just to clarify the trick weapons are the ones that transform into another form from their initial stage.

And with that all said let's gear up and take a look at my choices for the best trick weapons in Bloodborne... 

10. Tonitrus 

So, at No.10 is the Tonitrus which is essentially a standard sized mace that is infused with elemental bolt damage that is triggered to greater effect in its transformed stage as it lights up with electric bolts. This weapon is particularly good against kin enemies in the game, e.g. the celestial mob (blue headed aliens), brainsuckers, slime scholars and even some bosses such as Rom, the vacuous spider or Ebrietas, the daughter of the cosmos, who are both Great Ones all of whom are very vulnerble to bolt damage.

The only drawback of the Tonitrus is of course its durability as it can reduce in its effectiveness very quickly as it has only a durability rating of 100 and it weakens quicker in its transformed mode. So, its important when using the Tonitrus to make sure that you repair at a fairly regularly basis if you use it quite often in the game and it is certainly reason why maybe not to consider using it as your primary weapon.

However that drawback aside, the Tonitrus is still a very valuable weapon in the game as it can still dish out the damage to alot of enemies and therefore its worthy of a spot on the list. 

9. Boom Hammer

So, at No.9 is one of my weapons of choice from the Old Hunters, DLC, the Boom Hammer, which is essentially another hammerhead on a large stick that can be buffed in its transform phase to trigger an explosion on impact that inflicts considerable fire damage.

Now, I have to say that I wouldn't really use this weapon in every situation as it can be a bit too slow to use against fast enemies particularly enemy hunters and quick pace bosses such as Lady Maria as it would leave you too vulnerable to attack.

However where this weapon does shine is when you are dealing with groups of enemies in confined spaces or areas where you can take alot of weaker enemies at once. And as two examples of when I have used the Boom Hammer frequently are for farming blood echoes in the Lecture building as you can wipe out multiple slime scholars with this hammer at a time! In short this weapon is pure class for dealing with enemies that are vulnerable to fire damage as it can deal out some devastating stuff especially if you upgrade it all the way. So, suffice to say I have used it on every single playthrough I have done so far for farming purposes almost exclusively in itself!

So, for me its my favourite farming weapon and as such, the Boom Hammer definitely deserves a place on the list here at No.9.   

8. Whirligig Saw (pictured above!)

OK, I know this one tops alot of peoples lists or comes close to it who are fans of the game but I think the Whirligig saw just might be a little overrated for it to be that high. Having said that, the Whirligig saw is still alot of fun and a fine weapon to use in the game for the most part even if it might not be suited to all eventualities (but that's just me).

As for its design, this is easily the most original looking weapon in the game and its easily one of the coolest too as it comprises of a large stick and a circular buzzsaw head, which attaches to the stick in its transform phase and that's where the fun begins as you can use it as well...a buzzsaw on a stick! In its initial phase however you can also use the stick as a decent melee weapon to attack enemies with at a moderately fast speed to deal out blunt damage but there's no doubt that the transform stage is what this weapon is all about! 

The girliwig saw (sorry messing about for fun!) also has a serrated edge on the buzz blade, which allow for extra damage to be inflicted on beasts and it can also even be buffed with bolt or fire paper, which makes it ideal to dish extra damage but this is primarily a strength weapon overall.

I have to say however this isn't a weapon I found myself using a great deal in the game on any of my playthroughs but despite that its still alot of fun to use and there is no denying that when the player initiates the transform stage it looks pretty cool when you attach that buzzsaw head on!  Not only that but its L2 transform attack can be quite hilarious to watch and you can charge multiple buzz hits and keep walking toward your enemy as you hit them!

So, for me the Whirligig saw is great fun to use in the game and even though its not the best weapon, its definitely still one that's worth checking out and so it deserves its spot on the list at No.8. 

7. Chikage

At No.7 is the only true Katana shaped weapon in the game, the Chikage, which is actually an excellent weapon in its own right even if it still has some drawbacks there is alot to like about the weapon in the game.


For starters this is a katana, so what's not to like in that regard as they have always been pretty cool looking in the Souls series. Next up the Chikage has a pretty decent moveset and speed although it has to be said there are much faster weapons in the game than this one and it also does pretty good damage when fully upgraded. But in its transform stage, the Chikage can really do the damage as the blood damage it can inflict is pretty brutal.

However this comes at a cost to your player because the weapon will slowly drain your health in its transformed state and if you perform a strong attack in this phase, it will remove a chunk of your health aswell, so you need to use this weapon with caution as there is a strong chance you could die using it. Also even though the weapon scales of bloodtinge primarily it also scales off strength and skill but as a strength weapon you're not going to get much scaling potential as it has a rating of E!

Despite any of its drawbacks though, the Chikage is still a pretty cool weapon and it helped me take down a few pesky bosses in some playthroughs (namely Gerhman, who I managed to beat in one go with the Chikage!).

So, its definitely well worth putting on the list here at No.7. 

6. Hunter Axe

So, at No.6 is the Hunter Axe, which is of course one of the starting weapons you can access at the beginning of the game and its a pretty damn good one it has to be said.

The hunter axe in itself basically starts off as a standard size axe in its initial phase however as you transform its handle, it extends out and shapes the axe into what is essentially a halberd. And this weapon is great for handling crowds and being a strength weapon it will scale pretty well (although it does cap off as "B" scaling once it is fully maxed out so there are still better weapons strength scaling wise).

The hunter axe itself also looks pretty cool in its transform phase its a pretty badass weapon and its crowd control abilities are almost second to none in the game especially as its most effective attack (and indeed one of the most effective in the whole game) is the R2 charged spin attack, which causes the player to spin around 360 degrees to knock enemies off their feet!  The weapon's extended reach also makes it great to use for keeping your distance from enemies so they don't get too close and this can range from weaker enemies even up to stronger ones.

The only drawbacks here though for me with the hunter axe is to do with its lack of speed in its attack as again you might find yourself a bit vulnerable to faster enemies but then again you do have that great R2 attack at your disposal and if you time it right any enemy can be dealt with.  However due to the lack of speed and having to carefully time your strikes, the Hunter Axe has to be a bit further down the list here.

All the same, the Hunter Axe is still an incredibly solid weapon in the game and its extended range and its awesome R2 charged attack make it one of my favourites and worthy of its place at No.6.

OK, so that's it for now and I will be back soon with the second part of my list.

Till then, may the good blood guide your way! ;-)