Vs (film)

Vs (also known as All Superheroes Must Die) is a 2011 American independent superhero film starring Jason Trost, James Remar, and Lucas Till. Filming took place in Los Angeles, California. Vs premiered in Toronto, Ontario, at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival on October 26, 2011

The film received mixed reaction, praising the acting and storyline, but criticized the limited story and narrative.

Plot

Vs centers on four superheroes (Charge, Cutthroat, Shadow, and The Wall) who awaken in a seemingly abandoned town to find themselves stripped of their powers, and at the mercy of their abductor and Arch Nemesis, Rickshaw (Remar). They are shortly thrust into a series of psychological challenges where the stakes include the lives of a town full of kidnapped innocent civilians as well as their own.

The film opens with Charge/John (Trost), Cutthroat/Ben (Till), The Wall/Charlie (Valmassy), and Shadow/Jill (Merkley), waking up in a seemingly abandoned town, all bearing strange injection marks on their wrists. They soon discover television sets through which their nemesis, Rickshaw, whom the group thought Charge had defeated some time ago, explains to them that he has staged a game all across town with innocents' lives at stake, and that he has also taken away their powers. To prove this, he executes a civilian near Cutthroat's location, then instructs the heroes to head to a meeting ground. Once there, the four have a brief personal reunion, in which the group realizes that Charge still retains some of his abilities, before Rickshaw interrupts them, giving them new orders. Charge assumes command of the group almost unanimously, with the exception of Cutthroat, who appears disgruntled with the others' decision.

Vs. (video game)

Vs. is a PlayStation video game developed by Polygon Magic and published by THQ in 1997. The game, a 3D fighter, features 20 polygonal, gang-based characters (designed by former Marvel Comics artist Kurtis Fujita) brawling in a two-dimensional environment. Players select different members of each gang to fight rival gangs on their respective turfs.

The title is a port and an American localized version of Fighters' Impact, which was released only on the Japanese PlayStation and in Japanese arcades.

Gameplay

Players select a game mode to play then select one of the sixteen initially available fighters based on American gang stereotypes. Each fighter represents one of the four different street gangs. Four bosses become available for selection upon certain conditions being met. Twelve different arenas based on real-life locations are used for combat, fighting styles used include karate, aikido and kung fu, among others.

Reception

The game drew some criticism from parents and religious groups for including a pimp character named Slim Daddy among its fighters, however, the game was not a big success by any standard, and the controversy faded quickly.

Vs. (Pearl Jam album)

Vs. is the second studio album by the American rock band Pearl Jam, released on October 19, 1993 through Epic Records. After a relentless touring schedule in support of their 1991 debut album Ten, Pearl Jam headed into the studio in early 1993 facing the challenge of following up the commercial success of its debut. The resulting album, Vs., featured a rawer and more aggressive sound compared with the band's previous release. It was the band's first collaboration with producer Brendan O'Brien.

Pearl Jam decided to scale back its commercial efforts for Vs., including declining to produce music videos for any of the album’s singles. Upon its release, Vs. set the record for most copies of an album sold in its first week, a record it held for five years. Vs. occupied the number one spot on the Billboard 200 chart for five weeks, the longest duration for a Pearl Jam album. The album has been certified seven times platinum by the RIAA in the United States.

Recording

For its second album, Pearl Jam felt the pressures of trying to match the success of its debut album, Ten. In a 2002 interview, guitarist Mike McCready said, "The band was blown up pretty big and everything was pretty crazy."Vs. was the first Pearl Jam album to have production duties handled by producer Brendan O'Brien. It was also the band's first album with drummer Dave Abbruzzese, who had joined the band in August 1991 and toured for the album Ten. Rehearsals for Vs. began in February 1993 at Potatohead Studio in Seattle, Washington. The band then moved to The Site in Nicasio, California in March 1993 to begin recording. Abbruzzese called the tranquil recording site "paradise" while lead vocalist Eddie Vedder said, "I fucking hate it here...I've had a hard time...How do you make a rock record here?"