TME Ink

2013-03-07T23:59:00.002-08:00

The cost/selling of games

Will the cost of games go down?

A little disclaimer before anyone gets to into this, I am not saying any of these things will happen for 100% certainty, but are instead predictions and reflections on the game market. Now that the disclaimer is out of the way let the reading begin!

The cost of gaming has been generally for a long while around $60 (USA standard) so will this price go down in the future? Everyone thinks that the price should go down, and it will.... ish. Think of games that are free to play, but have a cash shop system. This may happen to anyone playing http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2011/06/10

So in the end, games can end up costing more then a simple 60$, and can cost more by DLC (down loadable content). A very good example of this would be Magica. Magica itself costs $9.99 to buy. To get all the DLC, the customer must pay $40 to get all the DLC separately or in a bundle of $34.99. For cheap games, the DLC can make the price as evidently shown sky rocket! So to answer this in a full but ambiguous answer, it depends. Depends on the consumer's willpower to think, process, and not buy on a whim (so for most people it may end up being more).

$60 dollar games!

These games however even with the immense DLC have still reached under $60. So why are there still $60 games out there? The time it takes to produce the game, resources, and experience are what make games $60. Most blockbusters or triple A games are $60, as well as many titles for any consul. This is slowly but definitely changing, and the future for this question is a little too iffy for a full answer. Since big games are run by big studios that are run by publishers, the money may not be less for those big games. However, little games like Baby boo boo drip drop that has terrible game play or art, and limited hours will most likely within the next decade turn to digital purchases, and become cheaper then $60 for every consul game.

There is no need for a tittle, the picture says it all, so gotcha! Used games and turning them back in have been a huge thing in the past. Now with everything going digital, will used games become a major business again? Well why not? Okay, there is one reason why not, and that is everything is digital and established. So two in one, but the games being digital makes sales just another number, and what does it matter to buy a game back? The fact that this system has been established and was prosperous means that someone may make a business out of used games. That said, it has also been established to not buy back digital games so one brave entrepreneur must boldly buy and sell where no being has bought and sold before (used wise that is).

Digital Games!

As much as people dislike the idea, these shelves of games may one day disappear. But why arn't games cheaper if bought digitally? A question that isn't answered with "they are greedy bastards." Instead the issue goes back to establishment. Games are established to be the same price digitally or physically because people would then only buy the games online. People would lose money (okay maybe a little greed is in here) from shipping, and physically making the game plus games on shelves cost money to mass produce, digital copies are once again just another number. In order to not make everything online, and slowly bring about change companies are making the prices equal, but will the game prices change in the future for digital vs. physical. In the long run the prices should change but most likely will not. Instead games will be harder to find physically since less are needed to be produced, and games digitally would grant more profit so why make a ton of physical games?

This has been a slight deviation from the normal game review, but hopefully it answers some questions on gaming costs and was enjoyable, keep reading every two weeks!

From -wizo

2013-02-21T21:39:00.001-08:00

DungeonLand

Muhahahahaha

Yes the dungeon master (DM) laughs at the fate of the heroes who dare enter his/her theme park! Really there is a laugh button and the game records how many laughs per minute the DM does. Besides this, the DM controls the theme park that was created in a dungeon like fashion, with pesky heroes now interfering with the nefarious plots for.... a theme park..... ok. There is the plot of the game, simple and full of nonsense just like the game. The DM tries to kill the players through traps, monsters, more monsters, special monsters, curses, buffs, and constructions within a mana and card system.

The Nuisances

The heroic heroes are a fat mage, gruff warrior, or bank robbing rogue. These three classes have three sub classes where two can be unlocked in game play. The heroes are not overpowered. Lets let that sink in, because at times the heroes will feel weak like they should when confronting a whole theme park of monsters and..... stuff. Nevertheless, these players can persevere through teamwork since there are combos, and special abilities geared toward working together. On normal, when the game damage input/output is even the players should win, and do most of the time but higher difficulties is the issue. When playing on hard or very hard teamwork is essential or the DM will win.

Fun Facts!

The game's tone and picture imply that the game play is full of comedy and strange things like a phoenix giant chicken. This is true! The game does have a light hearted feel, and a lot of re playability. To encourage re playability, despite purchasing the game for around ten dollars currency can be earned in game (not bought) for new clothing, subclasses, perks and items. Another fun and speculated fact is that the game seems to be inspired by D&D and other games like Dungeon Keeper to a point, and combined together brilliantly. The game is centered in a theme park, there has to be some fun and facts, but thankfully NO CLOWNS.

The Issues

The game is meant for multiplayer and the developers have said they don't intend to work on the bots and single player aspects of the game. The only problem with this deceleration is that the game has three out of the four maps without the player being the DM. With only one map where a player can be the DM, this is confusing. A big enjoyment is squishing friends as the DM, not just playing with them to hack and slash through a park which can be fun, but not wholly fulfilling. Aside from this issue, there were many bugs when the game started, and mostly they have been fixed. The last issue is communication. In order to talk, there is a key to start typing, keeping the player immobile, and then type out a message. The game is very fast paced, and either the players are on the same page with higher up levels, or they will die.

The Verdict

While this game seems fun, the drawback of communication drastically reduces the appeal. However, the idea of DungeonLand is solid plus sort of new, and can appeal to many people so the appeal aspect is kind of balanced. However, this game will only be truly fun if four (or three) friends play together and preferably in the same room. If anyone has friends they can play DungeonLand with and these friends are interested, then get it. Otherwise this is not a buy if someone is antisocial and hates people, or wants to get seriously into DungeonLand without those friends. Therefore the game gets a

4 out of 5.

Wizardry online

2013-02-07T23:56:00.001-08:00

Wizardry Online

Concept

Wizardry Online is based on the previous Wizardry franchise that starts way back in 1981, to Wizardry 8 in 2001. These games have all been single player, and rely on a party system. This is, a party needs a rogue to open chests, priest to heal, wizard to do certain spells, and a fighter to not get slaughtered or waste spells (along with other various classes). Therefore the MMO version of Wizardry makes every player one particular class.

The BADDDD

Well, the image of the game is there. The graphics are well... interesting? Not very up to par with today's graphics? This is a game franchise that has thousands and thousands of devoted fans, and the graphics are like this? Despite the graphics (which are never mentioned in reviews generally) think of the Wizardry franchise described in the concept. The games were meant for single players to control a party. Therefore, if a party doesn't have a thief, people can't get treasure from treasure chests without major complications. Along with other issues, playing by oneself is virtually impossible, and at level three people should have groups there on for the rest of the game. This is despite the fact the supposed fan base is all SINGLE PLAYER. Maybe making everyone have a group, or somehow be able to play individually would enhance the experience and speak to the audience, but sadly no this game does not do that.

O sorry thought the bad section was done because there was a picture break? NOT EVEN CLOSE! There are bonus points there in the picture, this was originally from Wizardry one where when starting if the player was patient they rolled for bonus points from about one to twenty five (a little more). In the online version the difference is between 1 and 60! Therefore in order to make a character worth playing the player must spend hours rolling and just sitting in front of the computer. When people die they can also lose their character permanently, making not only the play time worthless but the hours to role the character worthless.

The Good!

Only in games that are 0 or .5 out of 5 can have nothing good, but even then if the player looks hard enough there is some good. The skill tree implementation causes the player with some classes to potentially be able to solo the game. Along with that potential, changing classes can also make the game interesting since the player retains some skills from the previous class. The game caters to the nostalgic feel by using a lot of ideas from Wizardry one. This leads for an easy way to make expansions for the game.

Conclusion

The game has some potential, but a lot of the spirit of Wizardry has been corrupted. Sony's creation has marred the great idea of Wizardry, a game never meant to become multiplayer. Honestly it would be a tough game to do. The only way this could have worked is with something completely new and innovation never done before. Sadly, this was not done and Wizardry online gets a

1.5 out of 5

Sanctum review

2013-01-24T23:39:00.000-08:00

Sanctum!

Concept

The game Sanctum is meant to be tower defense. What makes this game different then the other ten thousand tower defenses out there? Simply, that the game is put into first person. This not only makes the view different, but allows to player to have a greater impact on how the game develops. How does this give a greater impact? Simple, the player can upgrade and use different guns on their person. This gives the choice of upgrading not only what towers, but if the player wants to upgrade towers in general. Besides that monsters spawn, try to reach a point that is made into a maze by the player, and send thousands of drones to die for glorious cause of dying in the core! Yes the core is the thing the player must protect, and if the player wins they get to see a little dance from their avatar and all the other NPCs controlling the towers (or so it seems).

The good!

The ability to use different guns as mentioned above adds a unique element to the game. Instead of building a frost tower, the player can freeze monsters with their gun, and when monsters enter a slowing panel the player can upgrade the freeze gun enough to stop monsters in their tracks. This again allows for strategy, but what to build or upgrade can cause a dilemma, and make the player think on what really to do. When a gun is on cool down, the player can switch to a different gun making more choices to upgrade a secondary gun or not, as well with the different types of monsters and gun uses. Just like towers some guns are better for aoe (area of effect), while others are better for single target. Sanctum makes the player constantly involved giving a role that would otherwise be assumed as a spectator making the game far more engaging then most tower defenses.

The bad.....

There is multiplayer, but it seems tacked on. The aspect of having the game put into first person makes certain controls (wasd) used constantly, making typing almost impossible. In fact how one person types is that the the player stops what they are doing, press enter, type, then continue on. Remember how earlier it was mentioned that things are always going on with the game being extremely engaging? This causes major issues, making multiplayer go against what the game at its core was meant to do. Other than that the levels can be difficult, so while more engaging than most tower defenses only someone interested in the previous tower defense game genre will get what they paid for.

The Verdict

While the game is drastically more engaging then most tower defenses, the game still is a tower defense. That said, the game doesn't have any leniency toward new players in the genre. If a new player wants to learn online, it makes the game difficult going against the core concept to make Sanctum unique from other tower defense games. For any veteran and die hard fan of tower defenses, this game would be an excellent buy. For anyone else, maybe try a free tower defense game, see if its enjoyable then and only then consider buying this game. Sanctum gets a

3 out of 5

Faster Than Light (FTL)

2013-01-17T22:12:00.003-08:00

Faster Than Light!

Concept

Faster Than Light makes use of an old idea; what happens inside a space ship when combat happens? There are old decrepit games that players used to use in order to emulate this scenario in Star Trek, or Star Wars on paper. The days have come when these players can now play a digital game where there isn't a huge fuss over which genre is better! But for those that have not played these games, FTL (Faster Than Light) deals with assembling crew to repair a ship, repel invaders, and utilize where energy goes to. (shields to live, weapons to destroy, or even in worse cases taking away oxygen for shields.)

The Good!

This game has a ton of replay ability, unlocking new ships, new strategies and completely random encounters or zones make each experience playing through unique. There are not very many games like this, but FTL pulls off the make and usage of ship and crew very well. The weapons are divers and charge randomly making micromanaging essential for not only those weapons, but for the crew while weapons are being shot. While playing the time is shot, meaning that time goes by quickly so that eight hours can pass without batting an eye. The extension of this, is if a person does play that long, then a certain addictive quality may ensue onto the player making him/her come back for more even if the frustration of a ship being destroyed happens again and again.

the bad.......

People who don't get addicted to Faster Than Light will get bored of the game after at max eight hours. A major factor to this is the difficulty. Easy is as expected, but normal takes a jump to what most games would call 'hard' due to decreased resources, and increased enemy strength with more unfriendly encounters. This may not sound like a lot, but the difference in challenge is drastic. The repetitiveness of the game will bore people to tears, and can be played for a while but the fact that the game is an hour long then repeats causes submission to lose what edge the game had. The game is also single player only, and facing AI can only be entertaining for so long when it is the same thing over and over.

The Verdict

Anyone who has played this type of game on paper by themselves should get Faster Than Light. The issue however is the low amount of time a person can stand playing the game. For people who want to spend hours and hours on one single game, this probably isn't the best buy but for those wanting a game that is only an hour long, can come back to and won't kill the desire to play FTL, then FTL is probably for them. Do not infer from this review that the game is bad, but rather specified towards an audience. Also burning people alive in a space ship with no shields is always fun. Faster Than Light gets a

3.5 out of 5

Guest Review: Hotel Rwanda

2013-01-15T11:56:00.001-08:00

Hotel Rwanda is the gripping, true-life story of Paul Rusesabagina, an unassuming hotel manager whose actions help saved over a thousand Tutsi’s from the murderous Hutu militia during the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

At the movie’s onset we’re introduced to Paul Rusesabagina (Don Cheadle), the hard working manager of the Swiss-Belgian owned Les Milles Collines hotel located in Rwanda’s capital city of Kigali. Immediately it becomes obvious that Rusesabagina is a man who has earned the respect of his workers and those in authority over him. He is smooth, agreeable, and able to talk his way in and out of situations other men wouldn’t be able to handle. He’s been able to do this because he doesn’t abuse the privilege he’s been offered.

The genocide was a result of the Hutu people deciding to overthrow the Belgian backed Tutsi ruling class, and as a result Paul finds himself between a rock and a hard place. He’s a Hutu and his wife Tatiana (Sophie Okonedo) is a Tutsi. The movie progresses as the Hutu Interahamwe militia begins to harass and beat Tutsi’s in Kigali.

Tatiana asks Paul to use his influence and authority as manager of the Les Milles Collines to protect local Tutsi’s, but Paul, who faces an inner struggle throughout the first half of the movie, refuses and doesn’t want to step up to the plate quite yet. He’s convinced that it won’t get out of hand, but even if it does he’s only willing to use his stored up political and social capitol to save or protect his own family.

The movie takes the time to develop multiple characters simultaneously. Joaquin Phoenix is introduced as a well-intentioned journalist who wants to use his pictures and words to influence the world to step in and stop the genocide, while actor Nick Nolte (a colonel with UN peacekeeping forces) is forced to stand by and watch in horror as a massacre begins.

As events unfold an interesting dynamic develops between Paul and his wife. On one hand he’s in denial of what’s happening and doesn’t want to get involved for fear he’ll burn his stored goodwill before he can use it to save his family, but on the other he realizes he is able, and ultimately, has to help those around him or they’ll die.

Paul finally caves and realizes it’s up to him to save his wife’s people from his own. He uses everything at his disposal, and bribes local officials with pleasantries like beer. Once the supplies run out, he turns to other means and manipulates those in control. At one point he even tells a Hutu commander he needs to save him as a witness for his war crimes trial.

Hotel Rwanda is a movie you need to prepare yourself for mentally and emotionally. While it begins at a slow pace, it ends up moving at the speed of a freight-train. It’s a story of humanity at its worst, and finest. It’s a story about a man who has to face himself, and realize his time to be true to himself is now or never. In my opinion this is one of Don Cheadle’s best roles and if you see it for no other reason than his acting, he makes the movie completely worthwhile.

Zack Mandell is a movie enthusiast, writer of movie reviews, and owner of Movie Room Reviews which has great information on movies and actors. He writes extensively about the movie industry for sites such as Gossip Center, Yahoo, NowPublic, and Helium.

2013-01-10T22:00:00.001-08:00

Past vs. Present

People are still wondering if they should buy this game or not, even after XCOM has been released for quite a while now. One reason may be that everyone who talks about this games says Enemy Unknown is just like the original game back in the 80s. Of course when people looked back at the game in the 80s they saw this.

This meant that in order to leave the landing craft, there is a 99.9% chance that one person will die, and on some missions likewise that 3 or 4 people will die just leaving the craft. The new version is not as bad, and has much better graphics than the blocky cubes stacked on cubes of old. Other than that and a slight change in the story, the only other notable difference is the leveling system of soldiers, ways to patrol the world, and a memorial too look back on the many soldiers the player ends up leading to their deaths. Don't worry, the soldiers still make the auuugggghhhhh sound when dying (slightly different though)!

Game Components

This game is a strategy game where the player is in charge of an organization to defend the world from hostile aliens. One would think the story is summed up there, but the story continues eventually describing each alien race and what brought them to how they are in present game time. The ending however makes the story seem just tacked on, lacking, and not given a whole lot of thought. Besides the story, the game play is extraordinary. The application of cover (with or without) and the ability to destroy cover with explosives adds a new spark to the tactics implemented by the player. Mobbing everyone to one spot doesn't work well, in fact that is a great way to get everyone killed. The game has different difficulties but on normal the game is not hard, and neither is the difficulty of the alien threat unchallenging. In other words, the game system wise is well done, and psychologically the worry of "should that soldier move there or there?" can tear at the player, becoming paranoid of the unknown which is what the game strives for.

The Verdict

All these other reviewers are not wrong in saying that XCOM is a good game, but again there is something that they miss and just tack on a great score without thinking. The story that was put onto XCOM was definitely tacked on, the ending proved it making the climax seem immense, but at the same time cliche and disappointing. Honestly, if the story didn't expand to include the origins of the species raising the expectation and didn't at the end show a story was just slapped onto XCOM, then this game would be perfect. The game is still worth playing or purchasing if anyone likes strategy games. But as it stands, XCOM due to trying to add elements and doing it wrong or just lazily gets a

4 out of 5

2013-01-03T19:01:00.001-08:00

Towns

Concept

This game is on Steam, and has been looked at by many people who are interested in the concept of the game partly because, well, its Steam sale time.The game is the sweet love child of Majesty and Minecraft, or Dungeon keeper and Minecraft, well many games that use RTS (real time strategy) with Minecraft. The goal of the game is to make a town, and keep the villagers alive. The player starts with nothing, and harvests materials, then makes workbenches and other places to convert raw materials into a better form. Think of the Minecraft crafting table. Eventually the player can delve into dungeons, recruit heroes, and mine various materials to enhance the village.

The good

The game has randomly generated worlds so that re playability is very possible, and a huge part of the game. the game provides challenges, such as not letting 5 of the 11 civilians die in the first minute. The ability to construct an entire town from nothing and somewhat help the civilians is a great past time and very rewarding. civilians can be somewhat self sustaining, maintaining a quota of food and keeping the quota going if the surplus runs out making less hassle for the player. The player can spend hours on this game, and after those hours pass only will someone realize how long anyone has played the game. The game is in alpha/beta, so there is potential for this to become a dream fulfilling game and the dungeons add a whole new level and world to explore enhancing the game play further.

The bad

Did I mention that the game is in alpha/beta? There will always be issues when a game is in this stage. The main issue is acquiring new civilians. The way to gain new people is by making personal rooms and keeping civilians happy. This doesn't seem to be an issue, except what keeps people happy? Decorations make sense and do, but being idle and doing nothing is the best way to make civilians happy. This discourages the player to do things, and is a serious detriment to game play. Civilians want to die. Civilians go fight anything in the beginning in order to die, and that is why to have the 11 starting civilians for three days is almost impossible. The Game gets boring. After a town is established, and people explore there is nothing to do if the player wants to keep civilians happy. after two or three hours of rigorous building and playing, the game becomes dull, and this needs to be fixed.

The verdict

Contrary to the happy picture, the game is in beta/alpha. If you are a person that loves building games with little control over villagers, and loves the ideas or aspects of minecraft buy this game, maybe. The maybe is because while the game has many issues making Towns seem like a waste after quite a few hours are put into it, again the game is in beta/alpha.The game has the potential to be a 4, or even a 5, but at the moment

Towns gets a 2 out of 5

Quick Thoughts: That's My Boy, Men in Black 3, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

2012-12-28T18:01:00.003-08:00

Hello I am the movie encyclopedia and if no one else will see it, I will.

I go to the theater on average about twice a week. Because of that, I tend to see a lot of movies. Now while I do enjoy writing my long and detailed reviews, sometimes you really don't have a lot to say about a movie. Sure you could pad your review out with multiple paragraphs dedicated to the plot of the movie, but if you can sum up your thoughts of a film in less than a paragraph, it doesn't really seem worth writing out the entire review. If I can help it, I'll write a full review with pictures, details and thoughts, but I think it would be nice from time to time to share my quick thoughts on a movie in lieu of a full review. If nothing else it will empty out my drafts section and help me move on to newer releases.

First up...That's My Boy:

That's My Boy is a joyless, mean spirited film devoid of any laughs or heart. A useless bum of a father who had sex with his teacher when he was thirteen finds himself mooching off of his socially awkward but successful son when he's facing potential jail time. Sandler turns up the annoying to 11, playing a cross between The Waterboy and Billy Madison...without the charm. Andy Samberg mostly stands around looking awkward and uses his only skill, whiny yelling, anytime a scene "feels" like it's falling flat. Jokes about pedophilia, statutory rape, incest and child neglect only add fuel to this burning tire fire of a disaster. Please avoid this film like the plague.

MY VERDICT: ABOMINATION TO CINEMA

Next up...Men in Black 3:

Men in Black 3 is a return to form, both for Will Smith and the series as a whole. After the more kid-oriented Men in Black 2 failed to impress, I was worried about the future of the series. Luckily Men in Black 3 is darker, funnier and more intelligent than the previous film, though still not as good as the original. Will Smith is charming, Tommy Lee Jones is grizzled and grumpy and Josh Brolin steals the show playing a young Agent K. Flight of the Concord's Jemaine Clement is both daunting and hilarious as the villain, though sometimes his antics drag a few scenes down. Overall it's an enjoyable, fun, sci-fi film that fans of the original will no doubt enjoy.

MY VERDICT: SEE IT

And finally...Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter:

Based on the bestselling book of the same name, I had high hopes going into this film. While it probably wouldn't be as good as the Daniel Day-Lewis Lincoln quality-wise, I was hoping for an exciting, supernatural romp that showed the more badass side of the 16th President of the United States. While there IS some fun to be had with intense action sequences (most notably on a train), most of the film feels bogged down with unnecessary exposition or scenes that drag out longer than they have any right to. Acting is solid enough across the board and the 3D is certainly well done, but nothing to really write home about. Forgettable but enjoyable fare.

MY VERDICT: RENT IT

So that's about it for my first installment of quick thoughts. Let me know if you enjoyed them or want me to do them again in the comments below and I will see you next time.

You gonna die, I'm gonna die, we all gonna die. Just not today...

2012-12-28T16:51:00.002-08:00

Hello I am the movie encyclopedia and if no one else will see it, I will

I often wonder how some movies get green-lit in Hollywood nowadays. I can understand wanting to adapt a novel, a video game or a comic into a film because it comes with an inherent fan base that will want to see their favorite characters put onto the screen. Sometimes it works (The Dark Knight) and sometimes it doesn't (The Spirit), but it will make money no matter what. Then there's Battleship, based on the best-selling board game that has graced our kitchen tables for over 40 years. Who thought this would be a good idea? Board games don't really come jam-packed with stories or characters and have rarely ever seemed like a good idea for films. The 1980s classic Clue worked because it had something to go on, but Battleship is just two people trying to guess where the other person's boats are. But Hasbro, Universal and Peter Berg obviously saw something since here we are with a Battleship movie.

The story follows Alex Hopper (Taylor Kitsch), a Navy Weapons Officer with a bad reputation who happens to be dating the Admiral's (Liam Neeson) daughter (Brooklyn Decker). His brother (Alexander Skarsgard) is a decorated Commander who got Alex into the Navy after a brush-in with the law a few years back. During the biennial RIMPAC (Rim of the Pacific Exercise), Alex gets into a scuffle with one of the other officers and is threatened with being discharged from the Navy. After getting himself sorted, he and his crew head out, but before things can really get going, aliens attack and devastate most of the ships. With nobody from the outside able to assist, it's up to Alex to stop these aliens once and for all.

Battleship is a film that, once you get past the stupidity of the concept, could theoretically work on paper but fails completely in the execution. Countless plot holes, cheesy dialogue delivered without a hint of wit or humor and jokes that, when they are made, fall flat on their face. Jon and Erich Hoeber are competent writers who have done a good job with films like Whiteout or Red, but it seems like they really phoned it in with this film. Maybe it's the source material and Hasbro giving them nothing to work with. Maybe it was Peter Berg insisting that bigger is better. Who knows really? At the end of the day, the screenplay is laughable, bloated and lazy. By the end I found myself laughing at the fact that I paid to sit through it.

The acting works for the most part, but being a competent actor in an abysmal film isn't much to be proud of. Kitsch does a good job making Alex likable and gives him a youthful intensity that actually helps the film. Bad film or no, he's trying his best to win back audiences, and for the most part he succeeds. Rihanna (how is she in this film by the way?), Neeson, Decker and Skarsgard on the other hand are all given very little to do in the movie and their performances are passable, if not totally unremarkable. The best actors in the film are definitely the aliens though, since they never have much to say. You know you're film is in trouble when CGI is outdoing the real people.

Overall Battleship is a bloated, badly written, poorly directed joke of a film that people should stay far, far, away from. Even as a "so bad it's good" it barely works, as there is little joy to be had from this film.

MY VERDICT: ABOMINATION TO CINEMA

Promise me you'll never go to Silent Hill.

2012-10-29T23:41:00.000-07:00

Hello I am the movie encyclopedia and if no one else will see it, I will.

Back in 2006 Christophe Gans and Roger Avary took a risk by releasing a film adaptation of the original Silent Hill video game. It took a lot of liberties with the original source material, the biggest being the gender swap of the main hero, but it was nothing if not ambitious and it certainly had its fans. I was definitely not one of them. The Silent Hill franchise has always had a place in my heart and while it wasn't as terrible as most video game adaptations tend to be, it fell short of any expectations I had and I left feeling disappointed.

Fast forward to 2012 and Michael J. Bassett (Solomon Kane) has decided to skip Silent Hill 2 and adapt his interpretation of Silent Hill 3 onto the big screen. I was incredibly hesitant towards this decision for multiple reasons, mostly having to do with plot inconsistencies that were bound to show up, but the biggest reason is because Silent Hill 3 is one of my favorite video games of all time and is indeed my favorite entry in the Silent Hill series, despite the second game being the most critically acclaimed.

Like my choice in favorites, my thoughts on Silent Hill: Revelation (not to be mistaken with Resident Evil: Revelation) aren't in the popular opinion and really boil down to a simple formula: Have you played Silent Hill 3? If yes, did you enjoy it? If yes to both than chances are you'll either love, or at least somewhat enjoy Silent Hill: Revelation. If no to either, you will absolutely abhor this incoherent mess of a film. I'm in the former, although I do recognize where problems exist.

The story follows Heather (Sharon from the first movie), a teenager who is being haunted by Silent Hill. No matter how far Heather and her father Harry run from the town, it finds ways of creeping back into her life. Whether it's a nightmare, a vision, or an outright attack from one of the ghostly members of the town themselves, it always follows her. When she's followed by a mysterious private eye who is investigating Heather and Harry, she hides out in the local mall in hopes that they can confront him, or at least lose his tail. When Harry never shows up and the man is murdered by a resident of Silent Hill, she enlists the help of a local boy named Vincent, who, after learning Harry has been kidnapped by the people of Silent Hill, helps take her to Silent Hill.

Silent Hill 3 worked best in its atmosphere, but the story was far from compelling. In that sense, the film feels like a direct adaptation. A good number of scenes have been lifted straight from the game and while it does create an unnerving and creepy atmosphere, the dialogue and overall plot are shoddy at best, insulting at worst. The worst of it though is in the original scenes or scenes that try to tie-in to the original movie. When it's stealing from Silent Hill 3 it's creepy, compelling, atmospheric but totally unremarkable in the writing department. When it's an original scene it feels rushed, confusing or sticks out like a sore thumb. Continuity was never on the director's mind it seemed and for fans of the original film it will definitely create some anger and disappointment.

In terms of acting it's all over the board. Adelaide Clemens does an admirable job as Heather doing the best she can with what she has. Most of the time it's looking scared or confused, but effort is effort and when you consider most of the other cast, I'll take what I can get. The adults (Sean Bean, Carrie-Anne Moss and Deborah Kara Unger) do a decent job with what they have, although most of them don't get enough screen time to really make an impact. The worst is probably Kit Harington, who I actually enjoy in his other work, but in this he is painful to watch and I couldn't wait for him to get off the screen.

The strongest part of the film, and quite possibly the saving grace of the whole thing is in the technical aspects of the film. The music is beautiful and memorable, the 3D effects are some of the best I've seen in a long time and the lighting works amazingly in setting a tone. The special effects are also a sight to behold, with most of the creatures looking really incredible and a good number of them stuck with me after the film was over. Some effects were better than others, a few looked like they were pandering to the 3D audience, but overall it earns high marks across the board.

Overall Silent Hill: Revelation isn't as terrible as I thought it would be. As an adaptation of Silent Hill 3 it does a solid job getting the mood and atmosphere correct, but like Silent Hill 3 the writing and acting leave a lot to be desired. It's hard to recommend this film to anyone, but I can't really damn it completely either.

MY VERDICT: AVOID IT (1.5 out of 5 stars)

The Pull List-November 2012

2012-10-28T22:42:00.003-07:00

Hey everybody and welcome to the new and improved TME Ink. More importantly, welcome to the newest edition of "The Pull List," a monthly series in which I list off the comics I buy every month and the reason behind doing so.

My tastes in comics have changed drastically since the last time I did one of these. For one, I'm not really a "comic noob" anymore since I dedicate a good portion of my week to writing about/reviewing/discussing comics. Because of that, as well as a shiny new library card, I've read close to 120 graphic novels and pick up roughly 6-10 comics a week from a wide variety of publishers. Admittedly I still mostly read the big three (DC, Marvel, Image), but I've dabbled in books from all over, independent or otherwise. A good number of comics (especially DC) are still on here from last time but needless to say things look a lot different since March.

With that said let's get into my Pull List for November 2012. A note though before we begin: I'm separating my pull into the different publishers as well as separating them depending on whether the issue is an ongoing, a miniseries or a cancelled series about to end. Hopefully that doesn't confuse too many readers.

MARVEL ONGOING:

All New X-Men: $3.99-

I will admit I'm a little hesitant towards this title, only because it seems like an excuse to retcon a large number of flaws in their narrative, but with the writing team involved, and because I'm such a big fan of Jean Grey, I'm willing to give this title a shot...even at the dreaded $3.99.

Captain Marvel: $2.99-

One of the biggest surprises of 2012 for me was picking up Captain Marvel #1 and realizing just how amazing it was. Kelly Sue DeConnick is a brilliant author who took a character I was otherwise "meh" about and made her into one of my new favorite Marvel heroes. The stories have a ton of heart, a boatload of action and a great sense of humor. If you could only pick up two Marvel titles every month, this should be one of them.

Daredevil: $2.99-

Speaking of "If I could only pick up two Marvel titles," Mark Waid's Daredevil is the other one. Honestly if you could only pick up one Marvel title, this should be it. Whether it's the art, the darkly brilliant plot with a great sense of humor (in yet a hint of sadness), or the fact that he's just awesome, Daredevil deserves your hard earned money and a place on your shelf.

FF: $2.99-

I've never been a big fan of the Fantastic Four. Maybe it was the movie's scarring me for life, maybe it was the inability to tell what was going on during half of the stories or maybe I just didn't care about the characters. Whatever it was, chances are if it had "FF" or "Fantastic Four" written on it, I wasn't going to buy it. That was until I read Marvel NOW: Point One and read the FF story in it. From the first page I was in love. Not just because Mike and Laura Allred are brilliant, but because the story was sweet, touching and left me wanting more in the best way possible. I can NOT wait for this book to arrive. Just wish it wasn't at the END of November.

Gambit: $2.99-

Gambit is not a perfect book. Then again neither is Gambit himself. The plots can sometimes lead nowhere, the art is iffy at best and the villains/dangers are either too over-the-top or pose no threat whatsoever. That being said, the characterization of Gambit and the amount of fun he has while doing all of his crazy antics make this at least worth checking out if you're a fan. I know I am.

Hawkeye: $2.99-

Clint Barton aka Hawkeye is one of my favorite heroes in the Marvel Universe. He may be smarmy, cocky, arrogant, misogynistic and sort of a douche, but he has a ton of heart, dedication and most importantly...he's human. People sometimes don't realize just how human he is (especially authors) but Matt Fraction is here to show us just that. We are only 3 issues in right now (with the 4th coming out in November) but I have yet to be disappointed. Every issue has been better than the last. If nothing else, issue #3 has my favorite panel of 2012. If you read it, you can probably guess what it is, I won't spoil it for the rest.

Red She-Hulk: $2.99-

I'm not going to sit her and pretend I know a lot about the Hulks. Honestly they've never appealed to me for some reason. I like seeing them in the movies, and if they're involved in a team I'm fine with them, but on their own usually I can't stand it. Red She-Hulk changed my mind, despite starting at issue #58 instead of issue #1 like the rest of the new Marvel NOW titles. It's a simple action title without a ton of backstory and it's just fun. We'll see how the title develops down the road but right now I'm happy with it. Who knew I'd find a Hulk title I liked?

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man: $3.99-

Miles Morales. The name that has launched so many arguments and discussion among Spider-fans. Despite what you think of him, Ultimate Comics Spider-Man has been some of Brian Michael Bendis's best work in years and every new issue seems to be better than the last. Obviously it had a slow start, one that I complained about for the first 6 or so months, but once he put on the costume, things became awesome.

Ultimate Comics X-Men: $3.99-

Since Brian Wood took over for Nick Spencer with issue #13, Ultimate Comics X-Men has turned from an entertaining but flawed tale of redemption to a journey of survival for a ragtag group of mutants just trying to live in this mutant-hating world. Whether it's the characters, the action packed scenes, or the quiet moments with the characters, each issue seems to outdo the last one and most of the time this ends up being my favorite read of the week. I realize Ultimatum and Ultimates 3 probably turned off a lot of people but give this book a chance, it's worth it.

Uncanny Avengers: $3.99-

Avengers vs X-Men has divided a lot of fans. Some people loved it, most people hated it and thought it was a cheap cash-in to take our hard earned money. Me? I enjoyed it but felt there were too many tie-ins. I had a number of friends stop reading series because of the books becoming a part of AvX. What does that have to do with UA? Well if the first issue was any indication...everything. While the second issue was pushed back for unknown reasons (most series are getting two issues in their first month), I want to see how this series turns out. I have a feeling I might drop it in favor of DeConnick's Avengers Assemble or Hickman's Avengers in December, but I want to at least give this book a first arc chance.

X-Treme X-Men: $2.99-

Real talk? I love Dazzler. I know more than a few people hate her but I love her. So to see her headlining a book is awesome. If you want to know what X-Treme is about, let me put it to you this way:

What if Terry Gilliam wrote an X-Men story in the style of Kingdom Hearts?

Essentially that's what X-Treme X-Men is and I'm loving every minute of it. Be sure to pick this up if you get the chance. I can't wait to see this story reach it's conclusion.

MARVEL LIMITED/ENDING:

Amazing Spider-Man: $3.99-

One of my favorite books from my childhood is coming to an end. I realize that after all the Clone Saga and Brand New Day stuff people were ready to burn this book at the stake, but I always loved the book. Was it perfect? No. But it was Spider-Man and it was HIS book. It was the original, it was the real deal. To see it end is bittersweet, but I know that Spidey's future is bright, even if it may not be Pete behind the mask after issue #700. We'll see.

Avengers Academy: $2.99-

This is one I'm pissed about. Since issue #1, Christos Gage and everyone involved has put out fantastic story after fantastic story. Since issue #21, each issue has gotten progressively better to the point where the last issue was one of my favorite single issues of the year. But now it's ending so we can get a Hunger Games rip-off. I'll read it, but I wish this still could have lived on somehow...or at least had 40 ISSUES (who ends a book at 39?)

Punisher War Zone: $2.99-

Poor sales can be the death of many series. Probably one of the best cases in recent memory is that of Greg Rucka's Punisher ongoing. That being said, Rucka gets to at least end his series properly with the limited series Punisher War Zone. The art has divided some but overall it's been a great series so far and I can't wait to see how Rucka ends his time with Frank Castle.

DC ONGOING:

Batgirl: $2.99-

People were mad when Barbara Gordon was named Batgirl again. Not only did it take her out of the wheelchair, but people like Stephanie Brown and Cassandra Cain were left nowhere to be found. That being said, Gail Simone has done a fantastic job with Barbara and each issue feels fresh, fun and original. With the upcoming tie-in to Death of the Family, it will be interesting to see her interacting with The Joker again.

Batman: $3.99-

Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's Batman is a fantastic example of a team coming together and creating a perfect product. It's Batman at its finest and it continues to impress me every month. Every Bat-fan should read this.

Batman Detective Comics: $3.99-

I'll admit I was not a huge fan of Tony Daniels run on Batman: Detective Comics. The first 3-4 issues weren't bad but after that it seemed like he lost a bet and was forced to write the worst possible Batman stories he could think of on a month to month basis. And at $3.99 I was shocked people were still buying it. But then John Layman, the man who inspired me to read comics again with his work on Chew, came aboard and I decided that maybe things were starting to look up for the series. I'm still slightly hesitant to pick up more than two direct Bat titles (Red Hood and Talon don't count) but I like what I've seen so far.

I, Vampire: $2.99-

The story of the rise, fall, rise again and subsequent fall into madness of Andrew Bennett has been one of the most fascinating reads I've ever had the chance to experience. Month after month I have no idea what to expect and that is one of the biggest compliments I can give it. Gorgeous art, wonderful stories, you owe it to yourself to buy this book.

Justice League Dark: $2.99-

Speaking of things looking up when a new writer takes over, Jeff Lemire taking over Justice League Dark was the best thing ever to happen to this series. The first arc wasn't bad by any means and the tie-in with I, Vampire was great, but when Lemire took over it breathed new life into the otherwise unremarkable series. Lemire's first arc ends this week and his next one begins at the end of November. I don't know what lies in store for the team but I can't wait.

The Phantom Stranger: $2.99-

I'll admit I'm not a fan of Dan DiDio. I'll also admit I've never heard of The Phantom Stranger before this series. With that being said, I've enjoyed the first two issues of this dark and mysterious book and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for this book.

Red Hood and the Outlaws: $2.99-

The little comic that could ladies and gentlemen! After one of the worst first issues I've ever had the misfortune to sit through, Red Hood and the Outlaws has turned into a flawed, but wholly fun book that is as exciting as it is funny. It still has it's rough moments but it's charms outweigh its flaws by a large margin.

Sword of Sorcery: $3.99-

Four dollars can sometimes crush any dreams I have of reading a book, especially if it features an established property I know next to nothing about. But I usually give each book a fair shot, even if at four dollars it's usually only one issue, and lo and behold this book surprised me. I'm not totally in love with the Amethyst story, but the Beowulf story far and away makes up for any problems I have with the former story. Maybe I'll grow to love Amethyst as time goes on but right now I'm coming and staying for Beowulf.

Talon: $2.99-

The Court of Owls was a big deal for the Bat family a few months back. Little did I realize that this would spawn such an amazing spin-off. I could sit and blab about what I love, but instead just go read my review over at Talking Comics since it will explain everything.

Team 7: $2.99-

All four of the "third wave" New 52 titles are currently on my pull list. I would have never thought that back when it was first announced. Anyway Team 7 is awesome. Seriously...read it. Don't believe me? Here are my reviews of the zero and first issue over at Talking Comics. I have nothing but high hopes for this series.

World's Finest: $2.99-

I'm not going to lie, I still don't really know where this book is going. I mean I'm enjoying it, it's fun, flirty and full of great action, but the direction of the book is kind of lost on me. Power Girl and Huntress are two of my favorite super heroines and Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti's run on Power Girl is one of my favorite runs in comic history and while this book has the same spirit, it needs to find its reason for existing soon or I may have to drop it. Still worth checking out for fans though.

DC CANCELLED:

Grifter: $2.99-

I saw this coming a mile away but I never really cared. Whether it was Nathan Edmonson or Rob Liefeld, Grifter was a fun, bombastic comic that was void of any depth but made up for it with awesome 90s action. I knew it stood a snowball's chance in Hell of lasting but it lasted 8 issues longer than I had anticipated and so for that I congratulate it. At least I still have Team 7 if I want my Cole Cash fix.

IMAGE ONGOING:

Mind the Gap: $2.99-

As a fan of mystery novels (and someone who dabbles in them occasionally), I can't help but love Mind the Gap. Mixing a fantastic mystery with a hint of the supernatural, all wrapped up in brilliant plot twists and turns makes for one of the most solid and consistent books to come out every month.

Revival: $2.99-

Tim Seeley is a brilliant author and he's mixed three of my favorite things in his latest comic Revival: mystery, supernatural and Twin Peaks. While the last one is more of an influence rather than a type, it's hard not to see the parallels to my favorite show of all time. Each issue is more twisted and brilliant than the last and I'm really curious to see how this whole thing turns out.

Saga: $2.99-

Brian K Vaughn is one of the greatest authors to ever put a pencil to paper. Saga is probably one of his best works to date. After a grueling 3 month wait, the next issue arrives in November. If you aren't reading this series, go buy the first trade. I'll wait. Seriously. There is no way anyone who loves comics can not be reading this comic. You must buy it. NOW! Ahem...anyway, it's great.

So that about wraps it up for this month's edition of The Pull List. Hopefully you all enjoyed it and be sure to leave me a comment telling me what you think, what you're buying or anything else that comes to mind. Till then, take it easy and keep reading.

3 Years...Huh. Time To Re-Focus

2012-10-27T12:00:00.000-07:00

Three years...

I've been running this blog for over three years. Crazy when you think about it. Started as a whim after I watched Julie & Julia and ended up being a LAMMY award-winning blog loved by many. Granted since 2010 it's devolved into an afterthought for the most part featuring only sporadic posting, but it never completely stopped.

Well I had a vision. Not like crazy psycho vision but a vision of a better future for the blog. A re-focus if you will. And that re-focus starts this Sunday. It's been 3 years and I want to continue doing this until Blogger shuts down or I'm forced to stop writing. Here's the updated scheduling from now on:

Monday-New Release Reviews (Can range from 1-2 depending on how many movies I see during the week.
Tuesday-Backlog Review (aka older reviews, reviews from films earlier this year, basically whatever has been in my drafts section for the past year and a half).
Wednesday-New Comic Day (Chances are there will be a few posts on this day. One will probably detail what I bought with a short reason why. Later that night I might have a one sentence review or maybe I'll just talk about something comic related)
Thursday-Trailer Talk Thursday/Gimmick Day (Check out some trailers or post something completely gimmicky or random that may or may not be a one-shot)
Friday-TV Time With Travis (Discuss what I watched that week and what I thought)
Saturday/Sunday-Days Off (Figure I could use the weekend to relax and not have to stress about putting something out. Might post a Pull List once a month though on Saturday or Sunday though. You never know)

If I think of something else to pepper in during the week I'll post it but this is my general schedule from now on. If you still yearn for more of me though I am extremely active and vocal on Twitter and will respond to pretty much everything that's sent to me. If you aren't already following, there is a button over to the side that will rectify that. Otherwise you can find me over at Talking Comics, where I usually post 2-3+ articles a week. You should visit the site anyway though since it's one of the best sites on the internet (no bias here).

Ya'll take it easy and I will see you all Sunday.

Diablo III Video Game Review

2012-09-17T22:56:00.001-07:00

Lately the last few years many game title including III has not been a great game, Diablo is no exception. Blizzard implemented an auction house with real money run by players, and all gameplay had to be online for a hack and slash game for those that didn't know this. Now the fun of a hack and slash game is to work alone or with friends to aquire amazing items and have fun smashing things, blowing them up etc.. With people always wanting to do the most efficient thing possible, why play 120 hours when people can get the best items for $20? Even at minimum wage this saves money by saving time, and they break the whole point of the game by doing this. Afterwards people have the best gear they can get and when the best is attained with nothing else to work for, people lose interest in a game since there is nothing really more to attain in a hack and slash.

The difficulty is joke. The whole game on normal is really just a tutorial till the player attains everything except better gear, even every skill. As a wizard, kiting wasn't needed at all, tanking was a viable option and that means something is very wrong with any game when a wizard can tank. Nightmare and hell increase in difficulty that may be appropriate steps in the game, but when a player reaches inferno very few could pass the second act for a long time. The beginning and end game are in essence screwed. The classes also seem lackluster, and very few are fun to play. The idea where a character can be customized to do what the player wants was not incorporated into Diablo. There are 25 skills for each class, but at the same time there are usually only ten best skills for a class and the other 15 aren't used making skills kind of limited to what the designers want, not the player. The skills are also always the same, yes there are runes but they only augment the abilities not change them or make a new ability.

Diablo tried many new systems like arcane power and the demon hunters hatred/discipline which were interesting and somewhat balanced. Blizzard tried using the newly common system of using weapon damage for all skills and the ratios worked fairly well. However the idea of a wizard using a great sword just sends a bad vibe about the game when a player sees that. Diablo still continued to contain a great story worth mentioning since it is the real redeeming light of the game, but not worth $60. The creatures and the abilities are very creative, but become a pain to deal with when even minions of a boss have so many abilities that they can't really be killed, or at least killed easily. In the end the fact that the number of people that dropped Diablo are correspond to the number of people dropping WOW tells that people aren't pleased with the game itself.

Verdict for Diablo 3:
3/10

Veep Review

2012-06-14T11:19:00.001-07:00

by Hugh Kelly-

Veep, HBO’s new original comedy series from the creators of such British entities as “The Thick of It” and “In the Loop,” is quickly becoming a comedy favorite of mine. To be perfectly frank, I think I was hooked from the pilot, which I must have watched ten times in succession. I think show had me at “weapon’s grade retard.” Any show that says something like that is a show for me.

Veep stars Saturday Night Live and Seinfeld alum, Julia Louis Dreyfus, who plays the bumbling, frantic Vice President of the United States, Selina Meyer. Rounding out her crew, the supporting cast, is My Girl and In The Loop star Anna Chumskly, who plays Chief of Staff, Amy Brookheimer; Arrested Development alum Tony Hale, who plays the Veep’s incessant right hand man, and who also seems like a grown up Buster Bluth. Timothy Simmons, Reid Scott, Sufe Bradshaw, and Matt Walsh also round out the talented supporting cast. At first, I was a bit skeptical about Anna Chumskly as a lot her lines fell flat, but as the first season played, she seemed to comfortably grow into her character. She seems like the straight man to me, but Veep doesn’t need much of a straight man.

My first encounter of anything Veep was not Veep in itself, but the 2009 film “In the Loop,” which was written by Armando Ianucci, for which he also received a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar nomination. I immediately fell in love with the profane, brash, over the top English characters struggling to mediate with their fellow American diplomats an unforeseeable, unfortunate gaffe in speech that ultimately, in the film, leads to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The film is sort of an updated version of Stanley Kubrick’s classic Dr. Strangelove, which is also one of my favorite films.

Veep premiered on Sunday Aprill 22, 2012, about a month ago, and I’ve been in love with it ever since. I must have watched the pilot alone ten times back to back. I was hooked. HOOKED I tell you, you croissant dildo eating motherfuckers! I should write in the same vein of the show, right? From the first viewing of the pilot, I gathered that Veep would be about many, many things. To list a few, Veep is about people, it’s about politics, it’s about people fucking politics; it’s about politics fucking people; and most of all, Veep is about the vortex of the never ending bullshit that consumes the workplace of a politicians. In a way, it represents the never ending politics that controls your average Americans workplace and life. But at the end of the day, Veep is about the people, and some of those people are fucking idiots.

From the get go, Veep has been an awfully self-assured show, but not in a smug or narcissistic way. In a way that is hard to find early on in television shows particularly comedy/sitcoms. In a way that is refreshing to see a show that knows what it’s doing, and does Veep has not struggled to find a voice; it already has a brash one coming from the brilliant Julia Louis Dreyfus, who anchors the show with the kind of innate psychical bravado that is so richly needed for a character like Selina Meyers. Louis-Dreyfus is also excellent at conveying the many, many swifts of mood pitches of a character as overwrought as Selina Meyers. Her performance represents the political news cycle perfectly; a new crisis forming at every intersection. Her performance also takes into the effect of the chaos of a woman in power, and the often unfair sexual and sexist politics it takes to win in politics. While Selina Meyers has power, the Vice President has no fucking power whatsoever, and the show makes this very clear at the level of disrespect some of her colleagues often show her. As it’s often said, no one grows up wanting to be the Vice President, and that’s for good reason. What I love about Veep is that it manages to deliver these mood shifts all in one piece, and one blisteringly funny piece, at that. Many shows, I’m thinking more recently of NBC’s Smash, would not be able to carry the many weights on it’s back. While it’s fun to hate watch a show like Smash become a train wreck due to it crumbling under it’s own weight, it’s even funner and richer to watch a show like Veep become something brilliant and succeed.

Veep uses many avenues of comedy to it’s affect. Some of the very funny sight gags are the Veep misinterpreting a couch move with a very flagrant and frank Washington pundit in the pilot; Selina’s self absorbed posters when talking with her daughter, and Gary’s out of place tissue wielding hand in the season finale are just a few to name a few. There are too incredibly funny snot inducing many quotes for me to even try to list off. Did I mention about Selina telling someone to shove a croissant up their ass to use as a dildo? However, of all these, my favorite gag has to be the simple, “Sue, did the president call?” “No.” This gag is done in nearly every episode, and never not funny, because Julia Louis Dreyfus and Sufe Bradshaw really deliver it with the amount of anxiety that is too scary to not laugh at. As an improv student myself, it’s also really terrific to hear that the cast is given free reign.

Veep is a refreshing show to come into our lives in this day and age of political bloodbath. Particularly during this election year. Although with all the clean jobs and filibuster reform talk seeming to make Selina Meyers left leaning, they haven’t actually stated what political party she belongs to. That may or may not be refreshing to some, but it certainly is ballsy to do in a show about American politics. And I do admire the many great cajones of Veep. Veep has so been joyfully been renewed for a second season, so more colossal screw-up’s are to ensue. It’s sad to think that these are the politics that have been running the U.S. Government for the past 200+ years. That’s why we have to laugh.

Lastly, I want to give a shoutout to Cassandra Newman, a friend of mine who I costarred with in community theatre. Cassandra is a really terrific extra, and she was an extra in the pilot episode during the scene where Selina makes a retard gaffe after her speech has been pencil fucked.

The Online FPS-A Brief History of Shooting People in the Face

2012-06-14T10:50:00.001-07:00

by Joanne Lewis-

First person shooters (FPS) allow us to experience the rare, the impossible, the dangerous without the rigorous physical demands of actual participation. For over thirty years we’ve wrought mayhem at the wheel of horrific war machines, or slipped beneath the skin of superhuman bullet magnets, our weapon of choice floating before us, leaking lead like a sieve in a rainstorm. Every wonder accomplished from the safety of our computer screens. Online worlds have flourished, becoming photorealistic landscapes. The once computer controlled victims of our gaming urges have become flesh and blood; avatars driven by real human opponents. Today, legions of us fight across these computer generated battlefields, competing in ways never thought possible.

How did it all begin?

Back in 1974, Steve Colley designed Maze War, and Jim Bowery, Spasism. These were the first examples of games utilising a first person perspective. Despite appearing extremely primitive, and their audience amounting to nothing more than a collection of their industry peers, they were the first waypoint on the road to the games we know today. In 1980, Atari’s 3D tank shooter Battlezone hit the arcades. Vector based monochrome graphics introduced a generation to the immersive first person experience, pushing the limited hardware for all it was worth. Despite commercial success, advances were slow. Many developers were reluctant to explore the complications arising from a 3D perspective. By the early 1980’s an influx of affordable home computers were attempting to satiate the needs of arcade gamers. Unfortunately, offerings were generally poor, requiring tech engines way beyond the capacity of the 8 bit personal machines.

The year of change

It wasn’t until the early 1990’s that developers made leaps forward, experimenting with 3D roaming engines. The home market had evolved; 16 bit machines were now prevalent with enough power under the hood to manipulate solid expanses of colour and texture, creating a narrow, yet recognisable world. In 1991, Id software released Hovertank 3D, a maze exploration game coupled with an elementary shooting mechanic. It caught gamers imagination and in 1992, id released Wolfenstein 3D. Containing full 360 degree movement, health packs and interchangeable weapons, the game was revolutionary, acting as a gene pool for every subsequent shooter since. If designer John Carmack was ignorant of their genre defining product at the time, he can’t fail to see its legacy now. ‘Doom’ followed, again from id, with improved tech, selling more than 3.5 million copies, securing the FPS as a proven cash generator. It also opened the doors on competitive play over a LAN network; our first inkling of the joys of multiplayer.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr Duke Nukem

By the mid 90’s the FPS gaming revolution was in full flow. Tech was increasing in significant ways. Developers were writing their own game engines, stamping a recognisable identity on their wares. 3D Realms released Duke Nukem 3D to critical acclaim, giving gamers a real taste for walking in the boots of a serious badass. Not only graphically impressive, it represented a marked improvement in level design, encouraging players to explore a fully realised world. Id Software was quick to follow with Quake, giving birth to the madness of multiplayer. Proving a technological masterpiece, Quake allowed gamers to extend their experience by engaging in co-op and competitive head to head play over the internet. As it took hold, a new ‘electronic sport’ was born, and a new community with it.

Fragging

Toward the end of 1999, both id software and Epic games released solely multiplayer incarnations of their previous FPS titles. Respectively, Quake 3 and Unreal Tournament. Modes of play: Death match and Capture the flag, gave players access to a lightning fast, visceral gladiatorial fight, all rendered in a new standard of 3D accelerated graphics. Both achieved commercial success. Counter Strike, a component of the Half Life Universe developed by Valve, enjoyed similar and still commands a fanatical following to this day. All were instrumental in securing multiplayer as an equal element of any single player game. In addition, a new lexicon was spawned, introducing such terms as ‘rocket jumping’ and ‘fragging.’

Master Chief

Until 2001 the home PC had held domain over the hardware hungry multiplayer shooter, citing superior tech specifications to that of the home console. This gap was soon to recede. With the launch of Microsoft’s new console, the Xbox, success was staked on the release of Bungie Studio’s Halo: Combat evolved, a fairly repetitive game saved by an exemplary game engine. It was to be proved a safe bet, not only shifting millions but recruiting the same number of competitors to its online army. Several highly successful sequels followed, securing the Halo franchise as a staple of the Multiplayer FPS world.

Battle of the behemoths

Infinity Ward was formed in 2002, comprising the entire team behind EA’s Medal of Honor: Allied Assault. In 2003, under publisher Activision, they announced a new series of FPS games; the Call of Duty (COD) series. Along with Treyarch, an amalgamation of previous developer Grey Matter, year on year sequels are released, dominating both the PC and console market. In 2007, Infinity Ward released the seminal Modern Warfare, taking the series away from the stagnated battlefields of World War 2 and establishing it in a present day setting. The polish and balance of the revamped multiplayer helped win over a multitude of fans and to this day retains a heavy online presence. By selling in excess of 13 million copies, not only has it has found the commercial success usually decreed the province of the Grand Theft Auto titles, but installed feverish anticipation for its sequels. Modern Warfare 2 and 3 both arrived amidst a furore of global hype. Online play is fast paced and brutal, for the most part against a highly skilled twelve year old savant. The average adult male has little chance of making an impact in the COD universe. Heading into a death match, still reeling with adult thoughts of work, mortgages, the pros and cons of a cash isa, he or she is dead before covering five paces, shot in the head from the other side of the map.

EA’s Battlefield series has spawned numerous sequels since its inception in 2002. In a similar vein to COD, they have emerged from the skirmishes of World War 2 and now reside in the modern day. Focusing more on teamwork and objective based combat; they offer a more compelling, cerebral experience to the run and gun tactics employed in their more explosive counterparts. The recent release of Battlefield 3 in close proximity to Modern Warfare 3 has pitted both series against each other. It’s fair to report that COD won hands down in sales but from a quality perspective, many believe Battlefield has been victorious.

Fighting 4 ever

With new content continually released for existing titles, an engaging multiplayer facet has kept many games from lounging forgotten in a draw. Gone are the days when titles would be ignored once the single player campaign had been thoroughly exploited. In fact it would seem that today, less effort is afforded solo play, with more value placed upon open world competition. A credo more in line with the true spirit of the word ‘games.’

Just Because You Can't See It Doesn't Mean It Isn't Real

2012-05-15T16:21:00.000-07:00

And now for something completely different.

It should probably be mentioned that there will be a fair amount of bad words used in this post, more than you are used to seeing. But it isn't going to be there for a gratuitous injection of naughty language, like a kid who just learned how to use a swear word. No, because, you see, I don't do that. My swearing is for accenting a certain point or idea.

Ok, have I gone far enough? I think I have.

Titty sprinkles.

Sorry, I had to get passed the word limit for the main page preview.

Seriously though, there will be some profanity here, not excessive amounts, but definitely some. So if you object to potty language, please stop reading.

Here we go:

Being an individual takes a lot of work and it seems like it can never be achieved. There really isn't a lot of originality left in this world, or that's at least the way it appears to all of us. That's okay though. My whole problem is when people try to force other people into living like they do.

When you first meet me it's pretty easy to tell that I'm a laid back person. I'm not real excitable, I don't twitch and squirm when I'm trying to sit in one place and I'm not the most expressive person when I talk. You wouldn't be able to tell from my writing, but that's just how introverts work, or so I'm told.

One thing I've never understood is why people think they are leading such an amazing life because they constantly have a packed schedule. It has never made sense to me. People who talk about living life to the fullest are always, constantly doing something, going somewhere, running errands or what not. I get some people have to do that, parents and people with demanding jobs for instance, but for fuck's sake, learn how to sit still! Then they want to make me feel bad because motor is rarely in overdrive. I like to sit back and enjoy the world around me, observe and learn. These people with their hectic schedules are constantly running around thinking they are living life when in fact, and I believe this whole heartedly, you're missing more than you're experiencing.

I know what you're thinking, "You want me to 'stop and smell the roses, right?'"

No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying, stop and sit the fuck down! Just look at the roses, notice them, maybe even touch them, get to know them. Ask yourself, "Why are these roses even here? How did they get here?" I want you to understand that they'll be gone soon so you should take the time to appreciate them.

I just hate how people look at others and think, just because they don't have jammed packed schedules, that means they aren't living properly. Look, I enjoy what I do. I enjoy not having a schedule that never ends. Stop trying to make me feel bad because sometimes I'm just doing nothing. Truth is often I am doing something, I just don't want to tell what I'm doing. That's for me to know and you to find out.

Seriously though. I think if more people were to realize that you don't have to jam a million things into a day then, on the whole, those same people would be much happier and more relaxed. There's no patience out there anymore. Technology isn't helping that either. With basically the whole world at your fingertips via blazing fast internet, people's expectations of timeliness has reduced to mere seconds. Everyone wants everything done yesterday and if it takes any longer than two days ago, well, then, that's just goddamned absurd. (As an aside I just want to mention how awesome it is that a little red line didn't appear under goddamned. Good for you Google Chrome)

I guess the heart of my rant is that people just need to take more time out to appreciate everything around them. Don't just give them the obligatory sniff, sit down, spend some time with it. Get to know more things, maybe then you'll gain a sense of caring and responsibility for yourself, EVERYONE else around you, and the limited time we have on this amazing rock. Honestly, you've really haven't anything to lose. Get out there and do nothing! You might be surprised.

Soon to come: My thoughts on the declining intelligence of American citizens.

D Strong Reviews-Nightwing #8

2012-05-08T10:22:00.000-07:00

This brisk issue is a direct crossover with the other Bat-titles as “Night of the Owls” continues to cut its bloody swath throughout Gotham City. The narrative flip-flops between flashbacks depicting Dick Grayson’s regenerated great grandfather (and chief Owl) William Cobb’s history with the city and Nightwing’s efforts to put a halt to the Court of Owls’ attack on the Gotham’s elite citizens. The Cobb storyline chronicles his early history and tells us that he was orphaned at a very young age in the beginning of the 20th century and was adopted into the world of Haly Circus thereby jump-starting Dick’s lineage in the new DCU. In the present day, while in the middle of the “Night of the Owls” craziness, Alfred issues a warning to all allies of the Batman within Gotham that the Court of Owls’ assassins known as Talons have laid waste to forty citizens so far with no end in sight. The next target is the city mayor and unfortunately for him our hero reaches his destination just to see the mayor lose his head (literally) at the hands of the Talon. A brutal battle ensues between Nightwing and the assassin that leaves both combatants injured but ultimately the victory goes to Nightwing. As he’s dispatching the Talon, a surprise attack leaves our hero down for the count and its not too pretty for Dick right now! To be continued!

D Strong Reviews-Batgirl #8

2012-05-07T10:21:00.000-07:00

The action picks up where we left Babs off in the previous issue doing battle with the henchmen of New Jack psycho criminal Grotesque. As Batgirl dispatches one goon, she leaves the other to flee to his boss Grotesque. It turns out , the goon she lets get away happens to be a subordinate to another Gotham City rogue, The Clown Prince of Crime himself- The Joker; it also happens that this particular fellow was present on that infamous night depicted in Batman: The Killing Joke when Barbara was shot and crippled. Following the fracas in the sewers on the B-side of the storyline, its back to Barbara Gordon’s civilian life as she deals with a visit from her long absent mother. This time Mother Gordon reveals the reason why she abandoned her family so many years ago…Barbara’s younger brother, James Gordon jr. is a certified PSYCHO. We learn this in a revealing flashback where young James has shown and admitted casually to his mother that the family pet has brutally died by his diabolical hands; and as he coldly tells her this he also says the same fate could befall his ‘beloved’ older sis and possibly dear ol’ dad all due to the fact that Mrs. Gordon is a ‘bad’ mother. This incident and the pure creepiness of James jr. is what pretty much led Mrs. Gordon to abandon her family as she felt emotionally crippled and shamed that she could’ve mothered such a child. At last, Barbara has a better understanding of the situation altogether. Back to the A-plot, its round 2 for Batgirl and Grotesque as she finally dispatches the criminal with practically no effort, but the battle isn’t without casualties as the accomplice to Barbara’s shooting is now fatally wounded by Grotesque. With his dying breath he reveals that it was indeed, he that generally had a crisis of conscience and alerted the paramedics to Barbara’s condition after being shot and is partially the reason why she can walk again. The issue ends with a new guest in Gotham city…the adult James Gordon jr. and it looks like things haven’t changed much for him! Next issue promises to be a “Night of Owls” crossover so stay tuned!

Even at my age, in my work... I haven't reached perfection.

2012-05-05T19:52:00.000-07:00

Hello I am the movie encyclopedia and if no one else will see it, I will.

Deep in the heart of Tokyo, in a place where you'd never expect it (in a subway station), sits one of the greatest restaurants in the entire world: Sukiyabashi Jiro. To the untrained eye it looks like a simple family-owned sushi shop but to everyone who has ever eaten there, they can tell you it is anything but ordinary. Run by Jiro Ono and his son (with another location also run by one of his sons), documentary filmmaker David Gelb takes a crew inside this 3 star Michelin restaurant so that we can get an idea of who the man behind the counter really is.

Though regarded by many as the best sushi chef alive, 85 year old Jiro believes that his quest to perfect the art of sushi will never end. He dreams about it, spends almost every waking minute thinking about it and meticulously crafts every piece of fish as though it was Van Gogh painting one of his masterpieces. He loves his work, and deeply cares about it in ways that most people wished they could care about anything. The hard part, and one of his struggles, is dealing with what will happen after he dies. His son works diligently beside him, Jiro taking plenty of time to teach him and help him in whatever way he can, but at the end of the day Jiro will always be the master chef. He's a one of a kind and many believe that his son will never live up to his fathers reputation. Will Jiro's son ever surpass his father? Will Jiro's quest to perfect the art of sushi ever end? What of his other son, who runs a similar restaurant but in a fashion that is exponentially different than his father? These and more are questions we are presented with as the film goes on.

Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a brief film, clocking in around 80 minutes, but even if it was longer David Gelb's impeccable pacing is some of the best I've seen recently (documentary or otherwise). It never feels rushed, most scenes, with the exception of maybe one or two, run perfectly and you can tell that Gelb was making this film for a broad audience, not just those who are used to documentary films slow, more deliberate pacing. The cinematography is great as well but I will say, see this film on a full stomach because even if you hate sushi, Jiro and Gelb make everything look delicious. It's food porn, but brilliant food porn.

Jiro himself, as well as his son, are fascinating characters who are extremely passionate about what they do. You can see that they pour their heart and soul into everything they do. Jiro especially is fascinating to listen to because the way he describes everything, from making sushi to the art of sushi is intriguing and heartfelt. You feel his struggles and his hardships because you really care about him as a person. If you can get behind and care about the subject of your documentary then you've done a good job.

Love or hate sushi, Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a brilliant documentary and one that should be enjoyed by everybody.

MY VERDICT: OWN IT (4.5 out of 5)

Prototype 2 Game Review

2012-05-04T19:12:00.000-07:00

Plot: Sgt. James Heller has lost everything that he holds dear and blames one person for that: Alex Mercer, the protagonist of the first game. After a battle with Mercer, Heller is infected with the Mercer virus but instead of dying is turned into an Evolved which gives him the same powers, albeit weaker at first, as Mercer. He's quickly captured by Blackwatch but before they can kill him he escapes and tentatively sides with Mercer, if only for the sole purpose of ending the virus and stopping Blackwatch. He teams with his old priest and freedom fighter Father Guerra and together they try to stop things before they get out of hand.

Gameplay: The gameplay is similar to the first Prototype-a third person, open-world game where you go around destroying things and causing mayhem with a bunch of powers that you level up and modify as the game goes on. Prototype 2 has a more open-ended mission structure, giving the player complete control over what he wants to do and if offers a lot more varied and unique powers that Mercer didn't have in the first game.

Good: The sense of destruction and mayhem is doubled in Prototype 2 and it feels like you are a bigger threat then you were in the first game. The AI is more fair and varied with less cheap deaths and controller throwing frustration. Heller is a much more sympathetic character (despite his tendency to swear like Samuel L Jackson every two seconds) then Mercer and you feel his struggles as the game goes on. The city itself feels bigger but never empty. There's plenty of side-quests and collectibles to find so it just adds to an already long (10-12 hours) game. It's a good stress reliever game.

Bad: The mission variety is pretty thin with most missions playing the same or the same with only a few variations. Traveling can be cumbersome at times, especially when are travelling across the city for one mission. Unless you are totally leveled up in movement early-on, you're screwed. Heller's mouth gets comical after a while and despite liking him as a character, some of the things he says are weird or downright rude. Some cheap deaths still remain, but they ARE less than before.

Overall: Prototype 2 is a much more fleshed out and developed game then its predecessor and it's a fun, albeit repetitive and sometimes cheap, game that any fan of open world destruction will enjoy.

4 out of 5

There was an idea to bring together a group of remarkable people, so that when we needed them, they could fight the battles that we never could.

2012-05-04T11:48:00.002-07:00

Hello I am the movie encyclopedia and if no one else will see it, I will.

After 12 hours of film building up the hype to a fever pitch, after countless years of development and writing, after all the marketing tie-ins that you could possibly throw into a product, it's finally here: The Avengers. Earth's Mightiest Heroes gathered into one movie to fight alongside (and sometimes against) one another in order to save everyone from certain destruction. Captain America (Chris Evans), the first Avenger and former poster child for the United States Army. Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the demigod who fought his brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and saved Asgard. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) aka Iron Man, the egotistical billionaire genius with a suit that makes him as powerful as any other hero. Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) aka Hulk, a scientist fighting against a monster raging inside him. Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) aka Hawkeye, the archer with a knack for never missing. Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) aka Black Widow, the super spy who fills out a catsuit better than most could dream. And of course Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson), the man behind it all who brings these people together. After all that has happened, does the film live up to the hype? Depends on which hype you're looking at.

You see there are two hype trains rolling down the tracks right now. One is the hype that Marvel, Disney and the past six (yes I count the terrible 2003 Ang Lee Hulk film) films have established and the other is the hype that fans and critics have built after seeing the movie. These people are saying that The Avengers is the greatest comic book film ever and will vehemently bash anybody who even breathes in the wrong direction when it comes to this film. I only agree with one of these hype trains. Marvel has done a fantastic job building these worlds and establishing these characters and Joss Whedon and everyone involved does a brilliant job crafting an amazing film. But I hesitate to throw "best" at the movie only because while it's certainly the funniest, biggest and most action action packed comic book film I've seen, its only lacking area is in any true depth or sense of danger. Unless you've seen the previous films you might be a little lost on who most of these people are. The film does a good job re-establishing and reminding you of who most of these people are but most of the character development is saved for the heroes own film. In terms of danger, you never really feel like these people are going to fail, you know they will win at the end of the day. With some other films (cough Dark Knight cough) you aren't as sure and it takes some of the wind out of the film.

Nick Fury and SHIELD are in the possession of an unlimited power source known as the Tesseract. One day the Tesseract starts to act up and out pops Loki, who steals the Tesseract, enslaves Hawkeye and Dr. Selvig (from Thor), and levels the SHIELD base. Loki plans on unleashing an army and enslaving the human race because freedom, at least in his mind, is overrated. Fury decides that to restart the Avengers Initiative and gathers Iron Man, Black Widow, Hulk and Cap to go find and capture Loki. Along the way Thor joins them (although not without some initial disagreement) with the idea that he wants to take the Tesseract and hold his brother accountable for his crimes in Asgard. That's really all I can say without spoiling the rest of the film but needless to say a lot of things blow up, get shot and are destroyed. The action is intense, always a joy to watch and I found myself bouncing up and down with excitement on many occasion.

The story isn't anything we haven't seen before but Joss Whedon's lightning fast wit and impeccable pacing makes it all seem new again, or at least appear to. The film is split into two halves, the first half bringing everyone together and establishing the characters motives and major conflicts with the second half being an all out brawl in the middle of New York. It seems simple when you write it out but everything builds up well and by the time it does reach New York you are already as pumped as you'll ever be. Like I mentioned before there IS a lack of danger or any real threat since you know these guys will win in the end, but it's a well written film and unless you really think about it, you'll enjoy every minute of this film. Even the post credits scenes. Yes, there are two, so make sure you stay for both of them.

The acting in the film is actually improved from the heroes previous films. Evans and Hemsworth both feel more comfortable with their roles and have grasped some more of the nuances of their character. Cap is still a straight arrow trying to adjust to living in the future, but despite his old ways he knows how to lead and you really feel for his character. Thor struggles with protecting Earth (and the woman he loves) from afar while also dealing with his brother who, despite being evil, is still his brother in the end. Stark is as snarky and egotistical as before but you can see that there is still a man underneath it all, especially now more than ever. Downey owns his role and if anybody stole the show, you can easily make the argument that it is him. Johansson's Black Widow and Jackson's Fury are also both improved with the real surprise being Johansson. Usually I don't care for her all that much but she does great with a more fleshed out Natasha and proves to be more than just eye candy in a catsuit. Jackson is Jackson...take it or leave it.

The two new additions, Ruffalo as Bruce Banner and Renner as Hawkeye, do well but Ruffalo is certainly the better of the two. He captures the hectic and almost neurotic nature of Banner better than Edward Norton and Eric Bana ever could and he has a heart and humor to him that makes him a joy to watch. He plays off everybody extremely well and his Hulked out self looks amazing. Third time is the charm I guess. Renner does well with Hawkeye but his role isn't really big enough to say much more. He's good, he does justice to the character but that's about it.

Overall The Avengers is a wonderful, action packed blockbuster with brilliant writing, intense action, great acting, big laughs and is a joy for everyone whether you read comics or not. I hesitate to throw around the term best when it comes to this movie but you get what you paid for and more and you shouldn't leave the theater disappointed.

MY VERDICT: TOP FILM (5 out of 5)

I've been in resturants all night, all I got served was lead.

2012-05-03T21:54:00.002-07:00

Hello I am the movie encyclopedia and if no one else will see it, I will.

It doesn't really take a lot to sell me on a Jason Statham film. Is he kicking ass and taking names? Is he mumbling and chewing all of his words like a dog with peanut butter? Is he a hitman/cop/bounty hunter/guy in the wrong place at the wrong time who somehow knows martial arts? Is Neveldine&Taylor nowhere to be found on the film's production credits? Is it at least competently written? If the answer is yes to all (or at least a majority) of the questions then chances are I probably will go out and buy a ticket without any hesitation. Don't get me wrong, Statham is not my favorite actor and a majority of his filmography is nowhere near Criterion quality, but there is something enjoyable about watching Statham do that voodoo that he does so well.

In Safe, Statham plays Luke Wright, a former cop turned cage fighter who, after refusing to throw a fight, has everything taken away from him. He loses his house, his money and his wife is brutally murdered with the promise that anybody he ever befriends, helps or talks to will be murdered as well. While all this is going on, a 12-year-old Chinese girl named Mei, who has a knack for remembering things, is taken by the Triads and used as a walking ledger of sorts. She remembers all the numbers, locations and people so that they don't have to write anything down.

A year goes by and Luke is now homeless and on the brink of suicide while Mei is brought to America to be used for some business in town. Mei and the Triads are attacked by the Russians and after the Russians kidnap her, she soon escapes and finds herself wanted by every criminal organization and corrupt official in town. Luke sees what's going on and brings it upon himself to save and protect Mei from all harm and danger.

On the surface, Safe is a predictable, paint-by-the-numbers Statham film. It's nothing you've never seen before and it's certainly been done better. It bogs itself down with a ton of exposition and explaining and some of the dialogue is definitely on the cheesy/kitschy side, but in the grand spectrum of Statham movies, it's right down the middle. Statham does his usual shtick, so if you like what he does normally, chances are you'll like his performance in this. The other acting is pretty average but nobody besides Mei and Luke get a ton of development.

If it sounds like I'm being harsh, I'm not, I'm just pointing out what everyone probably already expected. Like I said before, "on the surface." But I decided to dig a little deeper than I usually do and pay attention to the movie from a technical side and this is where the movie surprises itself. Honestly I don't think it expected to be as well shot and edited as it ended up being. From a technical side this film is actually quite good and a step in the right direction for "typical Statham films." The soundtrack is appropriately placed and adds tension where needed, the sound design is Bourne quality with every gun and fist sounding heavy and hitting with the right bang or thud and the cuts/edits/cinematography are all hectic but controlled at the same time. It does things that a normal film goer wouldn't give a second thought to but re-watching Statham's filmography it seems leaps and bounds better than the established norm.

Overall Safe is a competently written and acted film that hits all the beats that Statham films have been known to do. Predictable, yes, but entertaining nevertheless. On a technical side, however, it shines as one of Statham's better shot and made films, even if the script and everything else makes the film just okay. If you like action films and you like what Statham usually does than you can do a lot worse in terms of films. Just don't expect the next Snatch.

MY VERDICT: RENT IT (2.5 out of 5)

D Strong Reviews Young Justice-“Performance”

2012-04-08T23:22:00.000-07:00

The YJ Team goes undercover at Robin’s original home the Haly International Traveling Circus to locate a thief stealing weapons technology across Europe. But a thief isn't all they find as they become embroiled in yet another adventure rife with daring due and an entanglement with one of their most dangerous adversaries yet…The Parasite. Trust me, the YJ version of this guy it totally nothing to mess with! I enjoyed this one mainly because its finally a showcase for Robin/Dick Grayson whos kind of been in my opinion neglected character-wise thus far but this episode makes up for it. So if you’re a Robin/Nightwing or plain ol’ Dick Grayson fan, this episode will have you grinning ear to ear

D Strong Reviews Young Justice-"Agendas"

2012-04-08T09:53:00.000-07:00

Its Thanksgiving time ‘round Mt. Justice but up at the JLA Watchtower, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman meet with the other members of the Justice League to discuss expanding the Justice League's roster. Many suggestions are made and some taken into great consideration for possible future membership of the League. Superboy decides to return to Project Cadmus to investigate a rumor by Lex Luthor that the top-secret genetics lab has created another Superman clone. When he discovers this to be true, he learns that the clone, code-named “Match” was the first attempt to clone Superman from purely Kryptonian DNA. The resulting clone is far more unstable, the battle that follows is rather hard hitting also sharp-eyed fans will notice a few easter egg nods to another well known DC villain in the process. In the aftermath, Superboy reluctantly decides that the clone needs to remain in cryogenic stasis. He also learns that his DNA is mixed with that of a human - Lex Luthor himself, and that Luthor can shut Superboy down with a simple phrase(“Red Sun“). At the JLA Watchtower, the Justice League have finished their deliberations as to possible recruits. Definitely some good action going on here and Superboy making a way for himself is another bonus, Lex being his badass self and a recall to Superman the Movie was definitely unexpected.