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‘The Last Guardian’ and the Fear of Having No Control

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The Last Guardian is a wonderful game developed by Team Ico. Although not pegged as a horror game intentionally, the game succeeds in delivering sequences which would instill fear in even the bravest folk. How, you ask? Well, by putting you in combat situations without providing you with combat mechanics.

The player’s character, a young boy, can roll into an enemy, staggering them for a second or two. He can also remove the helmets of fallen suits of armor, who serve as the game’s spectral enemies. However, each of these actions locks the player into an animation during which they are incredibly vulnerable, and neither of the mechanics are of any use whatsoever when there is more than one enemy.

The way in which you progress through the game’s mandatory action sections is by waiting for Trico, referred to as the “Large Man-Eating Eagle” in the Japanese title for the game, to dispose of the enemies that are hunting the boy. That’s fine—he’s programmed to beat them, so surely that will be alright. Surely…

Trico is definitely going through puberty, or something because he only really does things when he wants to do them. Not when he should, or even when he has to—he does things when he wants to, and that’s it. So, when you’re being chased by ethereal suits of armor in a dark room, who are attempting to pull you through a blue door from which a spoopy blue mist spills, there’s a chance that Trico might decide to step in. He usually does step in almost immediately, but whether or not he actually attacks the enemies is a different story entirely. A lot of the time he just jumps around, growling at the suits of armor as they drag you towards the spoopy door. Hit them, Trico. They’re suits of armor. They don’t even have ears to hear you growling.

It genuinely is incredibly nerve-wracking when you’re in a relatively small area, weaving through a mob of enemies as Trico gradually incapacitates them. Due to the fact that you’re entirely dependent on him during these tense situations, they genuinely become scary. You’re utterly powerless, and the only force on your side powerful enough to keep you alive is entirely out of your control. Before you know it, you hit a dead end, and there are two suits of armor closing in on you, with a spoopy door between you and them. Unless Trico, who is anywhere but where he is supposed to be at pretty much any given time, miraculously decides to save you, your fate is sealed.

I remember being at a certain point in the game in which Trico really delivered, though. At one part of the game, the player needs to access a room through a tiny passage high above the ground in order to unlock the main door so that Trico can enter through it. Upon entering the room, the player can see that there are rotating helmets which will come to life as suits of armor if he passes within their line of sight. The aim is to maneuver around the helmets in such a way that you never come into contact with the light they protrude; however, this is easier said than done. More often than not, a misstep leads to the rude awakening of six suits of armor. Desperately, I yanked at the chain to open the gate for Trico. Sensing that you’re in trouble, Trico’s nose is the first part of him to appear from under the ascending gate.

Pulling the chain out of sheer desperation now, only a moment passes before I’m hoisted off my feet by a suit of armor. However, Trico’s head has come through, and he ferociously bursts through from underneath the gate in a monstrous rage. Hellbent on destroying every suit of armor as quickly as possible, he targets the one carrying me first. I am dropped, and with his right paw, Trico sends the suit of armor flying off the side of the platform. A barrage of spears is loosed towards him, but this only makes him even more vicious. Within a few more seconds, all of the suits have been sent plummeting to their deaths. Trico, still consumed by rage, writhes in pain as I climb up his leg in order to wrench the spears out. He shakes the entirety of his body violently, and I’m sent flying from the beast’s leg. He calms down, and with yet another round of horrifying chaos behind us, we press onward.

The most fear-inducing aspect of having no control in The Last Guardian, though, is the sequences in the Antenna Rooms, during which Trico becomes brainwashed. Due to having no combat mechanics of your own, these sequences require you to allow Trico the Large Man-Eating Eagle Dog to eat you in order to progress. However, when this happens to players for the first time, it is absolutely terrifying. Trico’s pink eyes, asymmetric posture, and erratic jumping combine to create a sight that is beyond fearsome.

Knowing full well how powerless you are, the fact that this is just a game doesn’t even begin to make the section less horrifying. I survived for several minutes, expecting him to calm down. I was so engrossed in the game, that when he unexpectedly ate me, the visceral animation alone immediately instilled a sense of horror in me. I know you’re going through puberty, Trico, but there’s really no need to eat me.

The Last Guardian may not be a horror game by genre, but by affording you zero combat mechanics, and only an NPC’s AI to rely on, it succeeds in placing you into a position in which you are utterly powerless in the face of great danger. This is perhaps one of the most basic yet uncomfortably realistic ways of forcing you to confront true horror, for what other sensation could you possibly feel when you have no control over the outcome which will determine your fate?

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

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leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

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Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

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Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

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