Big Hero 6

It is very rare for me to watch a movie without reading spoilers first, even for something that I definitely want to watch. Nope, my hospitalisation was not a reason. So basically I came to the cinema only knowing that Big Hero 6 is based on some Marvel story, people generally find it very hilarious, Hiro's brother died, there is a guy called Wasabi, and there is something unusual with the antagonist.

The story is actually more down-to-earth and less superhero like. The main character is a 14 year old genius, Hiro Hamada. Similar to all genius young boys, he mainly uses his talents for gaming as he already knows what school is going to teach him. His brother, Tadashi, is also a genius who is studying in San Fransokyo Institute of Technology (no typo there, the name of the city is a hybrid between San Francisco and Tokyo) bring Hiro to his lab, show him his research (Baymax), introduce him to his classmates and to see what his classmates are doing with their talents.

The trip inspires Hiro to enroll and he invents microbots for the school convention to gain admission if his invention can impress the professor. I am not gonna mention what microbots can do but basically it is something revolutionary that even the owner of a renowned technology company, Krei Tech, is interested in purchasing it. Audience is hinted that this guy will be the bad guy.

At this point my bladder could not hold it anymore so I missed the part where Tadashi died. During his emo time, Hiro accidentally activates Baymax with his "ouch" and hilarity ensues. As a personal healthcare assistant, Baymax will do anything to help Hiro recover from his symptoms and this includes doing all the superhero things to solve the mysteries surrounding Tadashi's death.

Cartoon+comedy combo definitely scores for me. However, that does not blind me from seeing some things which can be improved. One example is how the team formation is rather 'forced'. Wasabi, Fred, Tamago, and Honey Lemon are essentially Tadashi's school mates so it is kinda weird to have them suddenly as people that can console Hiro and quickly form some emotional bonds.

I thought the "twist" was Tadashi did not die and he turned out to be the antagonist. Lol.. I was wrong. But I honestly feel that the final showdown is a mismatch between a personal revenge vs the level of catastrophe created. There are plenty of things which tug my heart strings but the mismatch at the final conflict kinda reduce the impact.

Overall, I think Big Hero 6 offers something very fresh. It is definitely not something that Marvel (or superhero stories) usually offers. Hiro's personality as a pubescent boy is spot on. Baymax is a robot but his "personality" is awesome. I think it is amazing that the voice actor (I shall refrain from using the word seiyuu lol) is able to inject personality into a robotic voice. Surprisingly, Aunt Cass and Fred are the more memorable supporting cast.

During my post-surgery emo-ness, how I wish I have a Baymax. Could he solve my hernia without a surgery?? Sigh.. if he asks for my pain score, my answer will be zero. The pain in the heart and mind is more than the physical pain. Grrrh.. I shall not pepper this movie entry with my personal emoness.

Now I am wishing for a life-size Baymax plushie which I think will be very cute and comfy to hug :) Hehe...