Scorpion King 5: Book of Souls (2018)

So 2016 saw the announcement that Universal was trying again to build a bit of a cinematic universe (look guys you did it in the 40's - just build on that don't reinvent the wheel) called Dark Universe.  First cab of the rank - The Mummy (2017) which effectively canceled the existing Mummy/Scorpion King Franchise and killing a fourth movie with an Aztec Mummy (reportedly played by Antonio Banderis).

Imagine my utter surprise that 2018 had a new direct to DVD Scorpion King movie.  New actor Zach McGowan as The Scorpion King - the fourth in the franchise.

Zach came to Brisbane Supanove in November 2018, when was the movie release? December 2018.  So I couldn't have a copy for him to sign.  What marketing genius thought that was a good idea?

So I finally get the movie.  Matthius is working as a blacksmith in a small village having lost his kingdom and love interest again.  What's that like three now?
(from 1, 3, and 4 although 4 isn't as certain as the other two)  Maybe that's what causes his Mummy Returns heel turn - I'm sick of losing kingdoms)

And that's something that hangs over these movies - is this the one where he snaps?Where we see the start of his descent into villainy?  Because in all five Scorpion King movies, Matthius is pretty heroic.

The movie opens with the creation of The Fang of Anubis, a sword that steals the souls of all it kills.  A warlord Nebserek steals it and lays waste to  country.  He is obessessed with finding the Scorpion King.

The villains make the classic villain mistake - the hero is cheerfully minding his business - he might be on holiday.  The baddies hear he is nearby clearly the hero must be in town to investigate their evil plot, there is no other possibility.  We must attack first.  Our hero who would have cheerfully spent two weeks fishing and gone home is now aware of villainy in the area and he is rather pissed off that his holiday is ruined, someone tried to kill him, possibly that there is someone else died in the attempt. (my favourite version of this is Batman Forever)  Look Mathius would have been happy chilling in his smithy but you had to attack him and kill his friends.

He is left for dead and is rescued by Tala, the daughter of Balathazar (Michael Clarke Duncan) from the first movie and they quest to find the one artefact the Book of Souls that will destroy the Fang and release the souls.

It's an enjoyable movie, McGowan is good in the fights, the villain is suitably threatening making for a good final boss fight.  There's a nice twist on the nature of the book of souls.  There are some interesting new characters including a golem who is scared of fire.  (I kept thinking they were calling him gollum)

With or without McGowan, I'd be down for more Scorpion King movies.  (also I'd down for a definitive timeline )  

The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power (2015)

Victor Webster returns in this the next Scorpion King movie.  There is an another reference to The Scorpion King being a campfire story, a legend.

The movie opens and Mathius is a mercenary again, there's no reference to the events of the last movie but there is a reference to the first movie.

This movie could take place before three or after (I have to admit that there's part of  me that enjoys the idea that the chronology goes 2,1,4,3) 

I do kinda like the idea that we are getting legends of The Scorpion King each one is a standalone story with the Queens he has met and wooed.  Each adventure begins as a blank slate and Mathius is alone fighting as a mercenary, fighting for  a kingdom and winning over a queen only to start over in the next movie.  Chronology doesn't rellay matter.  Heck if he is immortal (as hinted in 2) then it may be a longer period between movie and he queen has died of old age.

Mathius has been training an apprentice Drazen who in a scene that gives a nod to Raiders of the Lost Ark betrays Mathius. and the ending references Last Crusade
Given Indy's influence on the Mummy movies that should come as no surprize.

There's a big speil that magic isn't real it's all just science except that there is true magic in the finale (and magic is real in the other movies in both this series and The Mummy movies)

It's an enjoyable movie with The Scorpion King fighting his old protege who has framed him for the kiiling of the king and the hunt for a legendary King's crown.
It's a fun romp that's enjoyable as long as you don't take it too serious.

The Scorpion King 3:The Battle for Redemption

It's 2012 and we have another Scorpion King movie and we are now on a third actor playing the Scorpion King - Victor Webster.

Webster most natby had been in Mutant X and Continium He's fine in the role not as muscular as The Rock but he can hadle himself in the fights.

This movie is a sequel to the First movie (so for those following on the chronology goes Scorpion King 2, The Scorpion King, The Scorpion King 3, The Mummy Returns prologue.)

The kingdom Mathius gained in the first movie has falled and Casandra has died,  we see Cassandra as Matthius remembers his wife and it's shots of Kelly Hu from the first movie.

Matthius has returned to being a mercenary and is hired by King Horus (Ron Pearlman).  Horus is facing rebellion from his brother Talus (Billy Zane).  Horus has sent the Book of The Dead to his ally King Ramusen (Temeura Morrison) and Talus is attacking Ramusen to get the book.

Matthius is sent with a Teutonic warrior Olaf,  the pair make a good team. 

There's a good plot were we discover that the book can release Warriors and they challenge Mathius and Olaf in a battle.

There is a suggestion that The Scorpion King is a legend.

The movie is enjoyable and ends with Mathius getting a new wife and kingdom.

The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior dir Russell Mulcahy starring Randy Couture and Michael Capon

Funny story,  when I first saw the poster and promotional material I assumed that Randy Couture had taken over the role of Mathayus from The Rock.

Seemed reasonsable except that Michael Capon, the blue Time Force Power Ranger was Mathayus and Couture was the villian of the story - Sargon of Akkad.

It's a nice little adventure with Mathayus as a boy, against his father's wishes trying out to become a Black Scorpion, the elite Akkadian mercenary force. His father is killed through dark magic.  He goes off trains for six years and returns to discover that the man who killed his father has upsurped the throne.

There's a nice touch once he discovers Sargon is a magic user where he is off to Egypt to seek the Osiris Staff (from The Mummy Returns)  but he his advised against that and seels the Sword of Domocles.

Firstly do not use these films as any sort of historical reference.  The first film says before the pyramids, this film a prequel has a character saying they were going to Egypt to see the pyramids.

The CGI is not good Sargon becomes a giant scorpion who is mostly invisible which hides many sins but not all of them and at one point Mathayus and his party encounter a minotaur.  I think he looks like the one seen in The Animated series, but we never get a good look at the beast.

This was made in 2008 as a DVD tie in for Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.  It must have done alright as they made another three after this (and could be planning more for all I know).

Capon's Mathayus is fine, he's younger and I could see how he became the man from the first film.  His female companion Layla is okay and the Greek poet Ari is quite entertaining.  The trio put me in mind of Rick, Evy and Jonathon from the Mummy movies.

I enjoyed this movie,  it's not the greatest film ever but it wasn't trying for that.  It's a simple revenge story with the first big adventure of the man who would become the Scorpion King.

The Scorpion King (2002) Dwayne' The Rock" Johnson

While The Mummy Returns was The Rock's movie debut, it was little more than a gloriied cameo and half of that was CGI. The Scorpion King was his debut as a leading man.

Seventeen years later and Dwayne Johnson is one of the busiest people in Hollywood but it wasn't a sure thing.

Watching The Scorpion King so soon after the Mummy Returns, there's big disconnect between the noble and heroic Matthyias seen in this movie and the villianous Scorpion King in the Mummy Returns granted there was some time between the two stories but as we get more sequels with a heroic Scorpion King the harder it is see Matthyias' heel turn  (The Scorping King 2 was a prequel to this movie but 3 - 5 are set after this movie)

I do wonder if the Scorpion King was never meant to be connected to the Mummy and the sudden success of The Mummy meant that they used ideas from The Scorpion King in the Mummy Returns.

There is an entry on TVtropes that Sommers considers the Mummy Returns Scorpion King to be the lookalike grandson of this Scorpion King.  Ican't find the actual source for that but It's an interesting way to look at two franschises.

The movie itself is quite enjoyable Sword and Scorcery film in the vein of Conan or Hercules.  (which reminds me I want to see the Hercules Movie that Dwayn Johnson made a couple of years back)

Kelly Hu as the sorceress Cassandra is quite good in her role and is quite able to handle her own in some of the fight scenes.  The Rock is charismatic and really good - it's hard to beleive that his is his second movie and first leading role, he hold his own with Michael Clarke Duncan's Balthazar.

Hey i wouldn't complain if every few years another DVD exclusive in this series was come out.
 

The Mummy Chronicles #1: Revenge of the Scorpion King by Dave Wolverton

The first of four YA novels starring Alex O’Connell as he learns to be a Madji. Alex is now 12 and the year is 1937.

Alex is on his first solo mission as part of his training with Ardeth Bay. Making for an interesting change Imhotep does not appear. Nope The Scorpion King is back.

It seems that the Nazi’s have heard the legends of the Army of Anubis, and the jackal headed god has decided that The Scorpion King should be the point man. (I wonder if they heard about that during a certain dig in 1936 in Egypt)

It’s a young adult spinoff of the Mummy series so Alex operates on his own for the most part without his parents, he does meet Rachael Stroeker, a Jewish German girl about his age, who is sabotaging the Nazis. Alex and Rachael battle the Nazis and various mummies to prevent the alliance happening. It clocks in at 130 pages and is a quick and easy read. I enjoyed the book and look forward to the other three books in the series

This is the End: The Mummy/Scorpion King

I've been on a bit of a 1990s Mummy kick lately.  Brendan Fraser's The Mummy (1999) was a remaginging of the 1930s Universal movie of the same name bringing back the mummified Im Ho Tep. 

The later Universal films all featured a mummy named Kharis, except for Abbot and Costello meet the Mummy which featured Klaris.  Hammer films also made several mummy movies but none of theirs featured Im Ho Tep and none connected to each other. 

The 1999 movie shfted away from horror and became a slightly more supernatural version of Indiana Jones.  There's a joke that the three best Indy fims are Radiers of the Lost Ark, The Mummy, and the Mummy Returns.

It might appear that the 2017 Dark Universe The Mummy starring Tome Cruise put an end to the franchise but 2018 brought a new entry that sparked me off on this search.  The Scorpion King 5: The Book of Souls.

So what do we have in this franchise?

Movies

The Mummy 1999
The Mummy Returns 2001
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emporer  2008

with the spin-off

The Scorpion King (2002)

Which is all the theatrical movies.  However Universal made

The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior (2008)
The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption (2012)
The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power (2015)
The Scorpion King: Book of Souls (2018)

None of which starred the Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson.  2 was a prequel  starring
Michael Copon, the Blue Ranger in Power Rangers: Time Force.

3 and 4 starred Victor Webster (Mutant X, Continuium)  5 starred Zach McGowan (Black Sails).

I've loved all the movies - the Scorpion King series have been fun sword and sandal romps.

There was also a two season animated series set after The Mummy Returns

Then I discovered the books;

All four theatrical movies were novelised by Max Allan Collins.

Dave Wolverton wrote a four book YA series The Mummy Chronicles which featured Alex learning to be a Magi.

There was also a tie-in Annual for the Mummy TV series.

1) Revenge in the Scorpion King
2) Heart of the Pharoh
3) The Curse of the Nile
4) Flight of the Phoenix

Then there were three different comic series

Only one of the three proposed issues of Chaos! Comics The Mummy: Valley of the Gods was released and was set during the O'Connell's honeymoon with prophetic dreams of the Scorpion King.  Chaos went out of business before the rest of the series could be released.

Next was Dark Horse's 2 issue The Scorpion King: The Akkadian Prophecy" set just before the Rock's movie (and before Rise of a Warrior)

Just before the third movie IDW released the four issue miniseries The Mummy: The Rise of Xango's Ax  set just before that movie.

The whole Scorpion King/Mummy franchise is a lot of fun to read/watch and I do hope that we will see more from this world.  The third movie set up a sequel with Jonathon moving to Peru just before the discovery of Mummies there.

I'm still waiting on several of the books to arrive but I'll review them when they arrive.  Actually I might do a Mummy March.