Captain N: The Game Master - Movie Edition

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Captain N: The Game Master - Movie Edition
Faneditor Name:
Original Movie/Show Title:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
1989
Original Running Time:
297 minutes
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
86 minutes
Time Cut:
215 minutes
Time Added:
4 minutes
Synopsis:
Season 1 of "Captain N: The Game Master" is cut down from thirteen 23-minute episodes into an 86-minute, self-contained movie that can be assumed to bring the story to a close without the need to view later seasons.
Intention:
I wanted to condense Season 1 into a feature-length film, focusing on the six episodes in which Mother Brain gets close to victory. I also rearranged the episodes for high-low-high-low-high alternating levels of intensity.
Additional Notes:
The source for this edit were the 2007 North American DVDs from The Shout! Factory. The ripper software used was DVD Shrink 3.2.0.15. The editing software used was Womble MPEG Video Wizard DVD 5.0. The DVD-authoring software used was Womble DVD Editor.
Other Sources:
I re-inserted the cover versions of the songs "Shakedown" and "Danger Zone" that had originally played during "Kevin in Videoland" and "Mega Trouble for Megaland", respectively (these had been replaced on the DVD release with a jarring, clearly-out-of-place piece of instrumental music). However, I took these from airings on The Family Channel, which had slightly sped up the episodes in order to fit in more commercial breaks. I had to slow the songs down to fit into the DVD footage (the Season 1 episodes on the DVD set were taken from "clones of NBC broadcast masters", according to producer Brian Ward). While The Family Channel apparently was able to speed up the footage without changing the pitch, I'm not that tech-savvy, so the songs and Kevin and Lana sound a bit lower-pitched than they should during those moments. Also, some tape hiss is present.

For the closing credits, I used "You Came Out of Nowhere" by Belinda Carlisle from her 1991 album, "Live Your Life Be Free". This song is meant to be about Kevin from Lana's perspective.
Special Thanks:
Neglify and reave for the cover art
Release Information:
DVD
Special Features:
trailers
Editing Details:
I have been a fan of "Captain N: The Game Master" since Season 1 on NBC. It's what inspired me to get a Nintendo Entertainment System, and I eventually created the first Captain N website in early 1997.

Being a huge fan of the series (despite, and sometimes because of, its numerous flaws), I decided to try to turn Season 1 into a feature-length film that ends in victory.

I cut the episode selection down to the six most dire situations (five actually, since one two-parter is involved) and then cut out a bunch of the really silly stuff. Including room on the DVD-5 for my trailers was also a factor in cutting down the footage, but I believe it made the overall story more focused.
Cuts and Additions:
Kevin in Videoland

*cut episode title; inserted series title
*cut Lana's mentions of her father's disappearance and her failure
*cut showdown between Eggplant Wizard and Kevin
*cut fighting among N Team
*cut Kevin and Simon's argument over warps
*cut Simon leading them to warp
*cut both Kongoland scenes
*cut Lana / Mother Brain scene on Metroid
*cut arrival on Metroid
*re-inserted "Shakedown" during run through Metroid's corridors

How's Bayou

*cut entire episode except one shot (see below)

Nightmare on Mother Brain's Street

*cut all Metroid scenes
*cut Lana asking what a pizza is
*cut naming of the Captain N Special
*cut Malkil scene
*cut Simon trapping Kevin
*cut first Seven Warp Dwarfs scene
*cut Kevin freeing himself
*cut second Seven Warp Dwarfs scene
*cut Mr. Videoland Universe contest

Videolympics

*cut opening scene on Metroid
*cut narrative transition to palace
*cut Kid Icarus' "Nice try, Kevinicus" line
*cut Kevin suggesting work-out
*cut all training scenes
*cut baddie meeting before games start
*cut score announcement after wrestling match
*cut Mother Brain ordering King Hippo
*cut electric maze dash
*cut King Hippo getting First Sacred Treasure
*cut King Hippo coming back
*cut Mother Brain ordering Eggplant Wizard
*cut Eggplant Wizard getting Second Sacred Treasure
*cut competition montage

Mega Trouble for Megaland

*cut recap
*cut opening scene on Metroid
*cut Simon deciding to stay behind
*cut Simon in Kongoland
*cut Lana in Yankee Stadium
*cut Garbage Man
*cut N Team's attack and deaths at Big Eye and subsequent restart
*cut Simon and Kid Icarus sneaking past King Hippo and Eggplant Wizard
*cut N Team arriving back at Big Eye
*re-inserted "Danger Zone" during run through Cuts Man's corridor

Mr. and Mrs. Mother Brain

*cut episode title; inserted still image of palace
*cut target practice
*cut Simon borrowing love arrow
*cut Duke's reaction to room-cleaning
*cut opening of fanfare
*cut Metroid scene
*cut narrative transition back to palace
*cut Simon's proposal
*cut all wedding preparations
*cut narration establishing Forest of Forgetfulness
*cut Mount Icarus scene
*cut wedding march
*cut Kid Icarus' two misses

Three Men and a Dragon

*cut entire episode

Simon the Ape-Man

*cut entire episode

Wishful Thinking

*cut entire episode

The Most Dangerous Game Master

*cut entire episode

Happy Birthday, Megaman

*cut entire episode

Metroid Sweet Metroid

*cut painting scene
*cut baddie laugh during flower-gathering
*cut Kevin's "back to normal" line
*inserted shot from "How's Bayou" of Mother Brain de-digitizing right after Metroid is sent off
*cut Lana giving Kevin his Power Pad and Zapper back; fade out on potential kiss

*typed up new closing credits; added song

In Search of the King

*inserted still image of palace as post-credits establishing shot
*cut entire episode except Lana talking to picture of her father (film coda)
*kept in end-of-episode DiC logo
Trailer

Captain N Game Master Fanedit Cover
Faneditor Name:
Original Movie/Show Title:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
1989
Original Running Time:
297 minutes
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
86 minutes
Time Cut:
215 minutes
Time Added:
4 minutes
Synopsis:
Season 1 of "Captain N: The Game Master" is cut down from thirteen 23-minute episodes into an 86-minute, self-contained movie that can be assumed to bring the story to a close without the need to view later seasons.
Intention:
I wanted to condense Season 1 into a feature-length film, focusing on the six episodes in which Mother Brain gets close to victory. I also rearranged the episodes for high-low-high-low-high alternating levels of intensity.
Additional Notes:
The source for this edit were the 2007 North American DVDs from The Shout! Factory. The ripper software used was DVD Shrink 3.2.0.15. The editing software used was Womble MPEG Video Wizard DVD 5.0. The DVD-authoring software used was Womble DVD Editor.
Other Sources:
I re-inserted the cover versions of the songs "Shakedown" and "Danger Zone" that had originally played during "Kevin in Videoland" and "Mega Trouble for Megaland", respectively (these had been replaced on the DVD release with a jarring, clearly-out-of-place piece of instrumental music). However, I took these from airings on The Family Channel, which had slightly sped up the episodes in order to fit in more commercial breaks. I had to slow the songs down to fit into the DVD footage (the Season 1 episodes on the DVD set were taken from "clones of NBC broadcast masters", according to producer Brian Ward). While The Family Channel apparently was able to speed up the footage without changing the pitch, I'm not that tech-savvy, so the songs and Kevin and Lana sound a bit lower-pitched than they should during those moments. Also, some tape hiss is present.

For the closing credits, I used "You Came Out of Nowhere" by Belinda Carlisle from her 1991 album, "Live Your Life Be Free". This song is meant to be about Kevin from Lana's perspective.
Special Thanks:
Neglify and reave for the cover art
Release Information:
DVD
Special Features:
trailers
Editing Details:
I have been a fan of "Captain N: The Game Master" since Season 1 on NBC. It's what inspired me to get a Nintendo Entertainment System, and I eventually created the first Captain N website in early 1997.

Being a huge fan of the series (despite, and sometimes because of, its numerous flaws), I decided to try to turn Season 1 into a feature-length film that ends in victory.

I cut the episode selection down to the six most dire situations (five actually, since one two-parter is involved) and then cut out a bunch of the really silly stuff. Including room on the DVD-5 for my trailers was also a factor in cutting down the footage, but I believe it made the overall story more focused.
Cuts and Additions:
Kevin in Videoland

*cut episode title; inserted series title
*cut Lana's mentions of her father's disappearance and her failure
*cut showdown between Eggplant Wizard and Kevin
*cut fighting among N Team
*cut Kevin and Simon's argument over warps
*cut Simon leading them to warp
*cut both Kongoland scenes
*cut Lana / Mother Brain scene on Metroid
*cut arrival on Metroid
*re-inserted "Shakedown" during run through Metroid's corridors

How's Bayou

*cut entire episode except one shot (see below)

Nightmare on Mother Brain's Street

*cut all Metroid scenes
*cut Lana asking what a pizza is
*cut naming of the Captain N Special
*cut Malkil scene
*cut Simon trapping Kevin
*cut first Seven Warp Dwarfs scene
*cut Kevin freeing himself
*cut second Seven Warp Dwarfs scene
*cut Mr. Videoland Universe contest

Videolympics

*cut opening scene on Metroid
*cut narrative transition to palace
*cut Kid Icarus' "Nice try, Kevinicus" line
*cut Kevin suggesting work-out
*cut all training scenes
*cut baddie meeting before games start
*cut score announcement after wrestling match
*cut Mother Brain ordering King Hippo
*cut electric maze dash
*cut King Hippo getting First Sacred Treasure
*cut King Hippo coming back
*cut Mother Brain ordering Eggplant Wizard
*cut Eggplant Wizard getting Second Sacred Treasure
*cut competition montage

Mega Trouble for Megaland

*cut recap
*cut opening scene on Metroid
*cut Simon deciding to stay behind
*cut Simon in Kongoland
*cut Lana in Yankee Stadium
*cut Garbage Man
*cut N Team's attack and deaths at Big Eye and subsequent restart
*cut Simon and Kid Icarus sneaking past King Hippo and Eggplant Wizard
*cut N Team arriving back at Big Eye
*re-inserted "Danger Zone" during run through Cuts Man's corridor

Mr. and Mrs. Mother Brain

*cut episode title; inserted still image of palace
*cut target practice
*cut Simon borrowing love arrow
*cut Duke's reaction to room-cleaning
*cut opening of fanfare
*cut Metroid scene
*cut narrative transition back to palace
*cut Simon's proposal
*cut all wedding preparations
*cut narration establishing Forest of Forgetfulness
*cut Mount Icarus scene
*cut wedding march
*cut Kid Icarus' two misses

Three Men and a Dragon

*cut entire episode

Simon the Ape-Man

*cut entire episode

Wishful Thinking

*cut entire episode

The Most Dangerous Game Master

*cut entire episode

Happy Birthday, Megaman

*cut entire episode

Metroid Sweet Metroid

*cut painting scene
*cut baddie laugh during flower-gathering
*cut Kevin's "back to normal" line
*inserted shot from "How's Bayou" of Mother Brain de-digitizing right after Metroid is sent off
*cut Lana giving Kevin his Power Pad and Zapper back; fade out on potential kiss

*typed up new closing credits; added song

In Search of the King

*inserted still image of palace as post-credits establishing shot
*cut entire episode except Lana talking to picture of her father (film coda)
*kept in end-of-episode DiC logo
Cover art by reavelify (DOWNLOAD HERE) image

Trailer

Trusted Reviewer reviews

2 reviews
Overall rating
 
9.5
Audio/Video Quality
 
9.0
Audio Editing
 
9.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
9.0
The nostalgia factor is high on this one, but I'd reckon you could show this to kids today and they'd love it.
The basic premise is simple: a video game princess (Lana) is being threatened by a bunch of baddies and sends for a prophesied "game master" to come conquer the video game worlds. Enter Kevin, a good-hearted 15 year old kid who's really good at video games, a bit desperate for a girlfriend, and perhaps just a bit of a slacker. Throw in an odd selection of old skool NES characters as sidekicks, and you've got the recipe for some great episodic TV.

The challenge here is in making this work as a movie, which...honestly it kind of doesn't. There's just no hiding the episodic nature of the story, but I will say that the editor does a great job selecting episodes that do give a feeling of a whole arc. There's a definite beginning, middle, and end, plus a lot of high points in the middle. There's the wacky olympics episode, the one where Simon Belmont falls in love with Mother Brain, and don't think I didn't notice that as many different outfits as possible were included for Princess Lana. (If you want to be oddly turned on, look up her voice actress!) Yes, perhaps part of the desperate appeal of the show was that Kevin legitimately got the Princess at the end of most episodes, unlike Mario (who was conspicuous by his absence.) If you're into Smash Bros and Ready Player One, you can have a lot of fun with the cameos here from Donkey Kong, various Mega Man enemies, and Kid Icarus characters I knew nothing about.

Technically, the visual editing is pretty great, with only one fade out that seemed a bit overlong to me. Most of the trims within episodes were smooth otherwise. The audio is also mostly good except the reintegration of the songs. While fun moments, the quality is fairly poor and jarring. The file itself has a nice menu and several other fanedit trailers, though the size seems rather large for all this. All in all, this edit delivers a fun experience for little kids and grown up ones too, and made me wish there was a sequel for Season 2 of the show with Game Boy, the King, and more wacky cameos.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
Digital
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 1 0
Overall rating
 
8.7
Audio/Video Quality
 
9.0
Audio Editing
 
9.0
Visual Editing
 
9.0
Narrative
 
8.0
Enjoyment
 
8.0
A/V Quality: Very good DVD5. 9/10

Visual Editing: No major issues. Nitpicks would be a couple times when using a still frame as an establishing shot it felt a little abrupt. 9/10

Audio Editing: One minor issue, bad fade out on dialogue mid-sentence. This may have been fixed in the final version, I'm not 100% sure. 9/10

Narrative: Calling it a Movie Edition is a bit of a misnomer. It’s not structured like a movie because it’s a Nintendo cartoon from the 80s. This feels more like an animated Captain N Storybook, which worked fine for me. All the stories felt complete and there are overall character and story arcs that pay off. The editor had a clear goal of turning Captain N Season One into a single 90 minute sitting. And he succeeded. 8/10

Enjoyment: I had a blast watching this. Some parts were groan-worthy but I smiled and laughed a whole lot. Recommended for 80s Nintendo children. 8/10

Recommended drink: "Boss Battles" (blueberry vodka, blue curacao, Sprite)

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
DVD
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0

User reviews

1 review
Overall rating
 
7.8
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.0(1)
Audio Editing
 
7.0(1)
Visual Editing
 
8.0(1)
Narrative
 
8.0(1)
Enjoyment
 
9.0(1)
Overall rating
 
7.8
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.0
Audio Editing
 
7.0
Visual Editing
 
8.0
Narrative
 
8.0
Enjoyment
 
9.0
Sound quality was inconsistent in several spots. For example during the "Shakedown" and "Danger Zone" montages, the sound was much quieter and of much lower quality than just before and after the songs.

Video quality was also shaky in spots (like literally shaking). That is likely from the source, and not a result of editing. One transition looked like it used an interlaced stillframe as an establishing shot though, which was kinda bad.

I didn't really like how commercial breaks, and end of episodes were handled in many occasions. Most/all of these spots could have just been setup as a regular transition from one scene to the next without the need for the fade out/fade in break which would have maintained better immersion and not felt as episodic. Though some that did transition one scene to the next were faded poorly. Example, when Eggplant Wizard called mother brain on the banana phone, his voice faded out while he was still speaking.

Regarding the narrative, the first 15 minutes and last 15 minutes did a good job of starting and closing a movie feel. The middle though didn't really escape the episodic feel.

Overall - technically speaking, this is a below average edit. However - in the enjoyment category (which is arguably the only one that really matters) - I score this edit above average. This is largely due to originality of the chosen material and nostalgia. So, even though I acknowledge that this fanedit has its flaws and could have been edited better, it was still a great walk down memory lane, I'm happy to have watched it and would recommend it for anybody who watched Saturday morning cartoons in the 80s or early 90s.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
DVD
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