This is (at this point) one of the very best Nintendo DS games out there, but yeah, you gotta love pinball.

In a nutshell, there are a total of six boards you play as you take a pinball-game-approach to whacking Mother Brain. Achieving one of the many sub-objectives on each board gives you an artifact, until finally you qualify to compete in the Artifact Temple.

All you *really* need to know is that there is quality fun to be had with this game. After having owned it for many months and fallen in and out of playing it, I surprised myself by scoring a personal best of 16,531,500 (over two morning busrides). This was after not having played for around a month. You'll find you get the knack -- the feel -- for the boards so that sporatic play-times still yield ridiculously fun results.

The only reason I gave this a 9 rather than a 10 was that it felt like it was missing *something*, perhaps a bit more discoveries or one or more unlockables wouldn't tipped the balance. VERY highly recommended.

The Wild Thornberrys movie is proof that just because a film is animated doesn't mean its a family film. If you're a fan of the television show, you'll love the film. If you've never *seen* the television show, you'll still love this great movie.

THE PREMISE
Eliza Thornberry tromps around the world with her parents (the producers and star of a nature show) and has a special gift that nobody knows about: she can talk to animals. The catch is she can't tell anyone.

THE STORY
It's your standard family fare: greedy poachers are illegally killing endangered animals. Don't confuse "standard" with "bland" though, because the writing is sharp and the voice acting is great (as I've come to expect from Klasky/Csupo). When Eliza learns that a large herd of elephants is going to be slaughtered, she does her best to thwart the poachers.

You know how it's going to end from the moment you "get" the story, but that doesn't kill this movie (you forgive such things in a family film). I was interested in the goings on right up to the end.

COMPLAINTS
The music. While some of the music seemed very appropriate, there were a couple of montages that seemed forced. Donnie (the family's adopted animal-like child) gets a little too much airtime, but I'm sure that's to appeal to the "crazy fun" angle that little boys love and that parents cringe at.

FINAL WORD
Worth seeing if you like cartoons or family films. The unique look of this Klasky/Csupo creation makes the film stand out amongst a bunch of Disney-knockoffs and typical CGI fare.