Comics & Dakine

Japan Expo: Hey Amie Lynn Hey!

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Sat, 23 Aug 2014 02:35:00 +0000

Amie Lynn going CQC with all her fans

It's been a long time, I shouldn't have left you, damn...times up, sorry I kept you my C&D fam! Well, besides you hearing my nonsense on the Comics Conspiracy podcast and of course trolling on my other internet steez.

So... I am here reporting from the Japan Expo in the Bay Area (yeah, not France) taking in good live music, killer grinds, a wide variety of dance performances, and of course some button-mashing fun.

I also had the sweet opportunity to sitdown and talk story with none other than world-renown Amie Lynn, aka Miss Habit.

Got the full interview on soundcloud for you which is a nice intro to this fly mama for new and longtime fans of the cosplay killa herself. (I was kinda intoxicated--half from beer, the other half, well..from her habitness?!!?!) . M-A-Y-L-A-Y. YES... don't judge me.

Apologies for the background noise as our room next door was a bit rambunctious. Thanks again for all the laughs Miss Habit and be sure to say hey to her at NYCC and stalk the hell outta her and dat rape-face here.

This post was written by:

big O

The Purge is Coming!

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 21:56:00 +0000

Like you, we are spending a good amount of time in the local theatres this week. So why not get some free shiz in the process?! We are running a great giveaway in partnership with Universal Pictures. To enter in our The Purge giveaway, jump on twitter and warn your friends #The Purge is Coming tweet on the theatrical release date of June 7 with the #SurviveTheNight and of course a mention of @comicsanddakine (us!) We will select from some of the most creative pics attached in theme with The Purge, or the most retweeted and the winner will be announced in the next few weeks to follow.

Thanks for getting in on the fun and enjoy a great survival quiz below to see if you will survive!!

The story of The Purge:

If, on one night every year, you could commit any crime without facing consequences, what would you do?

In an America wracked with crime and overcrowded prisons, the government has sanctioned an annual 12-hour period in which any and all criminal activity--including murder--becomes legal. The police can't be called. Hospitals suspend help. It's twelve hours when the citizenry regulates itself without thought of punishment. On this particular night in 2022, plagued by violence and an epidemic of crime, one family wrestles with the decision of who they will become when a stranger comes knocking.

When an intruder breaks into James Sandin’s (Ethan Hawke) gated community during the yearly lockdown, he begins a sequence of events that threatens to tear his family apart. Now, it is up to James, his wife, Mary (Lena Headey), and their kids to make it through the night without turning into the monsters from whom they hide.

This post was written by:

big O

hawkeye vol. 1: my life as a weapon

noreply@blogger.com (pearly) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:46:00 +0000

I am probably the only girl in the universe who doesn’t swoon over hawkeye, but after reading hawkeye volume 1: my life as a weapon, I think I may be a bit of a swooner. A semi-swooner to say the least. hawkeye, volume 1: my life as a weapon written by matt fraction and illustrated by david aja and javier pulido collects the first 5 issues. This story arc focuses on clint barton, a.k.a. hawkeye, on his life when he is not throwing punches with captain America and the avengers. The story begins with an adrenalin rush with hawkeye falling out of building with his bow and arrow in hand. Matt fraction’s writing is impeccable as always (have you read Casanova? Enough said). Fraction's writing shows us a side of Clint Barton that we don’t see in the Avengers.

Reading this comic, I found myself really liking Clint. I liked his compassion as he rescues a wounded dog from a bunch of degenerates. I laughed out loud at his sarcastic banter with Kate Bishop (future hawkeye). Fraction’s Clint Barton is a guy I wanna hang out with and get to know (and not because he knows captain america). He is personable with a bit of inner angst and the underdog. Fraction reminds us that Clint may be an avenger, but he is an ordinary guy so to speak but with an extraordinary ability to aim and to attract trouble. This storyline is a fun ride that takes us with Clint as he fights slumlords and the like on his time off from the avengers.

The art in this is amazing. David Aja’s line work and subtle facial expressions are divine. His talent lies in his use of a few pen strokes to convey a vast array of emotions. Javier Pulido’s artwork is also strong, although I am more keen to Aja’s work, Pulido’s style holds its own next to Aja’s.

Pulido maintains the less is more approach. His fight scenes in this are nothing short of brilliant. If you still have doubts about this hawkeye, just take a look at the cover. Pretty bad ass. You can’t judge a book by its cover, but in this case, you can. let me know what my fellow readers think. give me a holla! xo, pearly

This post was written by:

pearlypearle

Friday Night Clix - Batman Vs.

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 00:19:00 +0000

Hello peoples!! This Friday at 730 pm we will be busting our weekly Heroclix pop-up event at my LCS Comics Conspiracy : Batman Vs. Along with The Dark Knight theme being in full effect, we will have some craft, dark beers on hand for the 21 +up to try.

For those of you not well scripted on the dark beer tip, Beer Advocate has one of the best lists and is a regular resource for when I wanna drank outside of my go to brews (IPA of course).

Here are some of the finer deets to our dope-ass clix thang: Come equipped with a 600 pt team that is only constructed of the new Batman set and another team that is put together with just about anything you damn want (but can only run 150 pts from BM).

Prior to the start of every game, you will roll-off to select what you run (Batman or not) and what your opponent plays, including who receives map choice. No guantlet, no dupes, no BFCs/feats.

Winner and fellowship pull from available prize support and please pre-reg at the Wizkids Event System and of course you can join in on all the shit-talking at our FB event page.

If you don't know what Heroclix is or have never played tabletop, turn-based strategy games, no worries!! We gotta great mix of new and longtime clix regulars that can get you started and of course playing with a beer in hand always helps. Tell a friend, come through and as always BYOB! Look forward to seeing you out to get your clix on !

This post was written by:
big O

Premium Rush: A Seriously Fun Ride!

noreply@blogger.com (pearly) — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 21:35:00 +0000

If you know me then you know my knees go weak for Joseph Gordon Levitt (who I affectionately call "JGL." Yeah, we are that tight). Anyhow, when I first saw the preview for Premium Rush in the theaters, I was needless to say, totally giddy. Bikers. NYC. Beardos. JGL. Who could ask for more?

Upon glance, I thought this movie was going to be a total rip off of Quicksilver. If you need to google that movie, then you are not as nerdy as I. Quicksilver was a movie that came out during the mid 1980s and stars a very young Kevin Bacon. Bacon plays a big time stock market finance wizard. After he makes a wrong choice and loses all his money (boohoo), he decides to leave the yuppie world and be a bike courier. Totally realistic right? I know. Just bear with me. Quicksilver is the bible for a lot of bikers. One cannot help but drool over Bacon's white fixed gear bike that he proudly hangs in his loft. Watch the preview for Quicksilver here. I love this movie Quicksilver and although my heart pitter patters for JGL, I couldn't help but think, hey this is some sacred ground here for Premium Rush to mess with. Much to my surprise, I really enjoyed Premium Rush. It isn't Quicksilver, nor should it be, but it does glorify being a courier in one of the coolest cities around.

JGL plays Wiley, a bike messenger, who works with his ex GF, who is also a bike messenger (ah, young love). Wiley picks up a package that contains something that a dirty cop, played by Michael Shannon tries to retrieve from Wiley. The movie combines a weak love story with high bike action scenes. The camera work was great. I recommend seeing this film on the big screen so you can experience the high octane bike scenes weaving in and out of traffic. At least these couriers all wear helmets. Safety first, kiddies. The map and alternate route sequences were neat and I liked it. The acting by Michael Shannon as the dirty NYC cop was rad. He made the film. Oh and yes, JGL looked adorable in the movie. Sigh.

This post was written by:
pearlypearle

Amateur Cosplay Diary: Cosplay Reflection & SDCC 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:38:00 +0000

With SDCC 2012 in just a few days, my twitter feed is chock-full of friends and internet friends sharing all the ways they are preparing for this yearly nerd mecca. Many of the people I follow are fantastic cosplayers. I myself have been prepping for SDCC and wanted to share a "diary" of sorts about my own involvement in cosplay.

I have always been a huge fan of costumes in general. Halloween was always my favorite holiday. I always had a costume prepared for Halloween and I refused to ever outgrow my love of wearing costumes.

And then I discovered cosplay. Before I went to my first con, I knew about cosplay thanks to the glory of the internet, which I was lucky enough to have access to since the age of 12. Well, having the internet that early was unlucky in some ways as I was too afraid to admit to anyone that I even had an email address as it was considered weird sixteen years ago, but that's neither here nor there. Please do me a favor and don't do the math to figure out my age, ahem.

Anyhow, I remember being amazed at seeing my favorite characters come to life. Playing endless hours of Street Fighter II and then seeing a real-life person dressed up as Chun-Li was astounding to me. It was like she walked right out of the screen. I grew up on Archie comics, but was introduced to a larger world of comics while I was in high school. Seeing more real-life people dressed up as characters from those comics: Wolverine, Storm, Spider-Man, Batman and so on, blew my mind.

Finally, I attended my first con. It was San Diego Comic-Con 1999. I had a blast. Guess what my favorite part was? Seeing other fans dressed up as their favorite characters.

Photos from SDCC 1999 with my little brother.
I uh, was awkward in high school, okay?

It was incredibly exciting to me seeing everyone in cosplay and I decided that I wanted to be a part of it. There were two problems though. 1. money and 2. I didn't know how to sew. Also I had some self-esteem issues and thought that there was no way I would look as cool as others.

In 2002 I gathered up some courage and decided to jump into to the cosplay world. I thought to myself "I dress up every single year for Halloween, why should I be shy about dressing up for Comic-Con?! Just do it, Crystal!"

After pondering my favorite characters, I decided to go with Elektra. Kind of ambitious considering I had no idea how to sew (I still don't really). But I went to a fabric store, picked a red fabric that I thought would be fitting for the costume, got a few yards of it and went to work. I measured my bust, waist, and hips then just guessed that I had to double that then sew it into one piece to make it fit. Through all the stumbling and fumbling, somehow I managed to put that cosplay together. The boots were the one part I thought I should buy because I wasn't willing to guess how to begin making boot covers. They should be flat boots but alas, I went with heels because it's all I could find in shiny red at the time. I even got a real pair of sais (and snuck them in past security). I wasn't incredibly proud of the costume overall, but I had fun making it. In the end I decided that it was my love for the character that counted so I should rock it anyway.

That's me as Elektra! SDCC 2002.
Instead of staying in character I kept smiling during photos
because I was excited that anyone actually recognized me.

I remember thinking to myself that some people might recognize me as Elektra (I thought only some because I thought the costume wasn't that great). I thought maybe a fan or two would give me a high-five because we both love the character. But I figured that overall, that would be about it. I planned on walking around the con as I usually did like everyone else.

Little did I know that doing cosplay was such a big deal once you yourself are in a costume. Yes I got excited when I saw others in cosplay and I would always ask for photos. Seeing them would put a huge smile on my face. But I didn't think that would happen to me in such a ho-hum cosplay. I was shocked at the reactions I got. All the compliments, the cheers and the camaraderie that came with cosplay was truly overwhelming. It felt amazing to share in this love for a fictional character with strangers. And really, while I was in costume and speaking with other fans, we were no longer strangers. We were friends. I will never forget that experience.

I only cosplayed once after that. I loved American McGee's Alice and decided to alter a regular Alice costume to be more fitting for McGee's Alice. In retrospect I wish I put more blood on that costume, but again it was fun talking to other fans about our love for the character and the game.

Always forgetting to stay in character.

My adventure in cosplay was put on pause after that, my love for it endured. I adored the cosplay greats from afar and always marveled at the work that fans put in to bring characters to life. I think part of the reason I stopped was because others were so amazing at it and I, well, I tried. But I figured why bother if others do it so much better? I didn't want nor expect to be the best, but I figured that my cosplay is likely to be considered laughable so I should probably stop doing it. That I should just enjoy others work.

I was always insecure about what others thought of me -- did I mention that? I always figured someone would make fun of me for embracing things that I enjoy. Or make fun of me because I'm not that great at it. Even after my two positive experiences I grew afraid and I stopped.

It was silly. But last Halloween I decided to return to cosplay. I stopped being afraid. Even if I am not that great at costume-making, even if someone does decide to make fun of me, who cares? I enjoyed making those costumes. I enjoy cosplay. I love these characters. That's really what it's all about, right? Also, I was older. Insecurity has a way of starting to wane as you get older.

I decided to cosplay as two characters over Halloween 2011. The first was an easy one since it was store purchased and based on the movie, and thus I only loosely consider cosplay: Silk Spectre II

With Kick-Ass and two of the guys from C&D

The second cosplay I put a lot of work into: Poison Ivy

I glued every single one of those damned plastic leaves to that bodice. I even glued them on to my shoes! I even did a version of her when she has green skin, sans the legs. I was headed out and about and didn't want to leave remnants of green paint on her furniture when I sat down.

It's a cosplay I will be rocking again for this years SDCC. Only this time, I'm going full body green! Head to toe. No tights. I even got some green contacts that I will hopefully be able to wear comfortably. I've never worn contacts before so I'm a little nervous but I think it will really bring an extra something to the cosplay.

My second cosplay for SDCC 2012 will be Wonder Woman! I wanted to not try something too difficult as I'll be putting a lot of work into upgrading my Ivy cosplay. So I found a good base to start with: a Wonder Woman dress that I found for super cheap! It needed a lot of work though:

It was a dress and it was way too short to even wear as a dress. The belt looks OK in the photo but it wasn't sewn down to the bodice and so it was flying around and flapping everywhere. The tiara was super tight on my head to the point where I think I'd pass out if I wore it as is. I have super tiny rwists and the gauntlets were super baggy on me.

The past week or so I've completely chopped it up and reworked it as you see here:

Now the bottoms are shorts, the belt is completely reinforced onto the bodice and the gauntlets fit! Not pictured is the tiara which I can now just pin into my hair. Also not pictured are the boots I purchased. My last step before SDCC is buying some rope and spray painting it gold. I really wish I had time to order blue contacts to really make the costume pop, but alas, that may have to wait until next time.

Overall, I am definitely not as professional with my cosplay as others, but cosplay is something that makes me happy. I enjoyed cosplaying because I love these character. I meet others that love the characters too and them enjoying my cosplay really makes it ever better. Through cosplay I get to meet others that cosplay as other characters I love! We chat and we bond. It reminds me why it's so much fun and why we cosplayers do what we do. I can't wait to be among others in cosplay at this years SDCC!

What will you be cosplaying as? :)

This post was written by:
Crystal

'Game of Thrones' Season 2 Summarized in a 8-bit RPG

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 07 Jul 2012 00:26:00 +0000

We here at Comics & Dakine absolutely love Game of Thrones. Many of us also love gaming, so of course we can't help but share this gem. College Humor really outdid themselves with the first season 8-bit RPG recap and their back again with the recap of season 2.

It makes us wonder why there isn't a real 8-bit RPG game for Game of Thrones.

SPOILER ALERT: definitely don't watch the video if you have not finished watching Season 2!

Check it out below:

There are so many lol-worthy moments that should have animated gifs, but in order to avoid spoilers, here's just one from the video:

Perfect, no?

This post was written by:
Crystal

Review - The Walking Dead: The Game - Episode 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 23 May 2012 01:57:00 +0000

With the explosive popularity of the television series, it's no surprise that the The Walking Dead property would venture on to other forms of entertainment: a video game. As a fan of video games, survival horror, zombies in general and both The Walking Dead comic books and the television show, it's no surprise that I have been looking forward to playing the game (albeit with some hesitation, which I'll cover towards the end of this review).

The Walking Dead: The Game is within the realm of the graphic novel canon and follows a new group of survivors -- and even some familiar faces pop up along the way. Players take on the role of Lee Everett, who also happens to be convicted of a crime. As Episode 1 of the game begins, a zombie apocalypse is in bloom, resulting in a dark but opportune second chance for Lee. As Lee tries to figure out what is going on around him, he meets Clementine: a smart but scared little girl that was left alone after her babysitter became a walker.

Watch the trailer:

As you progress further into the story, Lee continues to meet more characters and more about what is happening around Lee unfolds. Conversation options and choices are presented to you, all of which impact how other characters perceive you and the course of the storyline. The control over what type of impression Lee gives to others through dialogue choices gives great a great sense of customization.

At times fighting zombies require some fast reflexes which provides a satisfying challenge for most. The one nitpick I do have about that is that the story is so engaging that at times I forgot to be on my toes and I reacted to slowly and thus, I died. Luckily you can jump right back in without having to go too far back into the story.

It is obvious that a large amount of work and thought that went into each new character and this new entry in The Walking Dead universe. The pacing of the story is spot-on and constantly engages the player with either the suspense of flesh-hungry zombies or the unfolding of Lee's and other characters stories.

So why my initial hesitation about the game? When I first heard about the video game, I read that the main character would be an African-American who is convicted a crime. For the most part, minorities in games are largely underrepresented. So to hear that the main character is both African-American convicted of a crime made me raise an eyebrow as it's an unfortunate but common stereotype. Telltale Games really excelled at not only making Lee a relatable character but one who breaks assumptions about the stereotype.

The game truly surpassed my expectations.The Walking Dead: The Game Episode 1 stays with me even after I completed it. I find myself thinking about every single character. I wonder if I made the right decisions and if I said the right things. There is no "right" or "wrong" as it all depends on how you want to play the game of course, but the conversations and characters all felt very real. I was also genuinely nervous as I played through some portions of the game as many of zombie attacks are intense. I want to know even more about Lee than I learned through Episode 1. I want to see where the story takes him and those around him.

If you're a fan of the comic books, the television show, zombies, survival horror, or any solid game with an engaging story, The Walking Dead: The Game is right up your alley.

5 out of 5

This post was written by:
Crystal

'The Avengers' Smash in Half-a-Bil!

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Mon, 07 May 2012 22:29:00 +0000

Just about a week has passed since Joss Whedon and the rest of Marvel Studios/Disney has delivered on hefty expectations of bringing the biggest, baddest Superhero film ever. And they did it in ways that I think nobody really expected. First off raking in over half a billion of skrill worldwide ($640 mil to be exact and of that over $220 mil in the US). Secondly, breaking every damn opening weekend record for any film, be it of the comics-genre or any other for that matter.

When I say that heads were surprised about this-- of course I meant the masses. Marvel knew that they had put in work to pull off this massive feat. The last record holder was the Harry Potter franchise-- and that took a decade and 8 films to build the near-cult following, interest and fanbase that made posing with a wand and a scarf...dare I say..cool.

The Avengers was a fanboys wet dream on the big screen as it brought the monthly serialized comicbook experience to real-life by pulling off the never before continued (well kinda, right?) plotlines through a series of distinct films over the course of 10 years- Hulk 2, Iron Man, Thor, Iron Man 2 and now The Avengers-- with for the most part all of the major talent intact (minus Edward Norton and Terence Howard). And these films were faithful to the source material-- be it JMS and Coipels new look Thor fitted to the T on Chris Hemsworth or Tony Stark's love for women and flying high (yeah, was smart how they didn't make him a drunk though).

Alright, for those of you that have not yet seen the flick...stop reading now unless you want SPOILERS.

Art by Joey Spiotto featured in Los Angeles Gallery

So now that we are all tuned in what made this film better than the top grossing Marvel Studios film (Iron Man) before it? The answer is the grand scale that the brand alone that The Avengers brings.

For the same reason The Avengers books are a bigger draw than Iron Man (or any single hero book not named Batman) in the shops. Where individual titles dissect a single character the team books are where you get the massive, larger than life stories that bring together our fave heroes to take on the crazy badass villians- Loki, Red Skull, Skrull Empire, Ultron, or Thanos (click on the pic --> to take you where I hope The Avengers 3 should take us).

What I loved from the film was a continuance of themes I loved from past films-- Tony Stark in all of his zing! moments, Thor as the ever-loving older bro to poor adopted Loki, Scarlet Johansson jumping around in butt-tight skimpies and Agent Coulsen going out like a champ. To keep it real, Evans wasn't the best cast teamlead though he improved as a supporting piece in the film vs holding it down as the main guy. Johansson was fantastic in a scene where she pulls the rug under Loki, but otherwise she needed less dramatic camera time. Clark Gregg stole most of the show with his lil-bigman approach to things. There wasn't one moment when I really took myself out of the 2 hour + viewing experience thinking the film wasn't believable, hella cheesy YES. But totally believable.

The Avengers will not win any Oscars at The Academy Awards or other film awards for that matter but it has proved that this comicbook thang is a serious cashcow in the theatres, licensing and etc cause we all know that the paper doesn't come from the funnybooks. For those of you that missed Joss Whedon's other bombass masterpiece- Astonising X-Men. Go read it and you will appreciate this flick so much more for his craftsmanship in balancing out the epic action sequences and ROTFL-copter comedy.

Oh one more thing, bring on the Skrulls vs. Kree then give us more of muthaeffing THANOS.

This post was written by:
big O

SFIFF55: Target (Mishen)

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 07 May 2012 03:02:00 +0000

Courtesy of San Francisco Film Society

In 2020, the upper-class citizens in Target (Russian title Mishen) are obsessed with youth. Looking youthful and staying youthful. Not an incredibly unbelievable obsession for upper class citizens to have, or any citizen really, as we have always been constantly bombarded with miracle creams and surgical procedures to stay looking young.

We first meet Viktor, the Russian Federation's minister of natural resources, and his wife Zoya (Justine Waddell). Our first glimpse of Zoya is startling as her face is hidden behind a disturbing yet beautiful looking mask - a mask that we assume features special anti-aging technology when Viktor comments that in the two years she has used it, she hasn't aged a day.

Courtesy of San Francisco Film Society

Hints of advances in the future continue to be given in a variety of ways, from ads posted around Russia and topics that are discussed among the characters. Viktor use special glasses that measure the amount of good and evil in any inanimate object or even in a person. We also meet Zoya's brother, Mitya (Danila Kozlovsky), a TV host of a strange and over-the-top reality contest show that comes off as reality TV from today but on steroids.

Viktor reveals to his wife Zoya that he has a special trip planned for them. The trip and what it entails is kept a secret from Zoya and even the viewers as we only learn the details as she does. Mitya joins them on this trip and they first arrive to an isolated small town of 50 people not far from an abandoned astrophysics complex. Joining them is Nikolai (Vitaly Kishchenko), a customs official, and Anna (Daniela Stoyanovich), host of Mitya's favorite radio program Chinese for Dummies.

The group takes a private plane with guides from the town to the astrophysics complex. Upon entering it is explained that the radiation well - the Target - is a fountain of youth. That one night spent in the well will result in stop the process of ageing.

From there the film explores the changes in demeanor in each character and how their relationships change. Disposable income and the prospect of never ageing and thus the potential to never die is examined. Concepts pertaining to government, ethics, and the privileged also come into play, but with the film clocking in near 154 minutes it becomes difficult for the average film viewer to follow and stay engaged with the various splinters the plot decides to explore. At times it seemed even the film forgot where it was going with a plot line before jumping to another interesting plot line, and then the film would become unfocused yet again.

With mindful editing, Target would be one of the best films that utilizes sci-fi to examine the various concepts and drama it touches upon. It'll likely find at least a small following amongst art house film fans that can stick with the film despite the length - its exploration of how people react to "living forever" is indeed intriguing. Unfortunately, for most movie-goers, there are far too many moments in the film that drag on for too long, causing the film to flounder and ultimately making it difficult to stay interested.

This post was written by:
Crystal

Nas Is Like...Good Again?

noreply@blogger.com (Trey) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:04:00 +0000

I wonder what Nas thinks about his legacy. Does he sit in his favorite chair, press play on Nastradamus and turn the volume up, nod and think to himself, "This shit is underrated"? Does he ever wish that the crowds at his shows chanted for "You Owe Me" alongside "New York State of Mind"?

Judging from his recent output, my guess is no. Nas has more momentum (or at least goodwill from his core fans) than he's had in ages based on last year's "Nasty," this year's "The Don" and a few memorable guest appearances like "Triple Beam Dreams" with Rick Ross. None of these songs could possibly be made with hopes of siphoning from Drake's fanbase. Nas just doesn't care anymore. He's making music for himself. Or maybe he's making music that he hopes gets his critics off his nuts. Either way, we win.

And now we get "Daughters." With a title like that, Nas fans naturally expect the worst – some pandering nonsense rap that reeks of hypocrisy considering the tone of the overall body of his work. But God's Son actually delivers one of the best conceptual songs of his career. He raps with real emotion about the trials of raising a daughter in our modern Internets age, and he actually makes sense.

Bravo, Nas! Now just make sure the rest of Life Is Good matches the quality of your singles. Then the discussion will turn to whether you can put together two classic albums in a row.

This post was written by:
Trey

SFIFF55: Wu Xia Attacks from Many Angles

noreply@blogger.com (Trey) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 16:02:00 +0000

Photo by We Pictures Limited. Courtesy of San Francisco Film Society.

Plot? Who needs plot?

Nearly all the great kung-fu flicks of the '70s and '80s featured thin plots revolving around revenge. Cast a charismatic hero with fists of fury and a villain with evil written all over his face, then hire a great choreographer: you had yourself a possible classic on your hands.

Now that the "advancement" of technology and special effects are such a crutch, the audience needs more. Your shaky cam makes us sick. Your CGI-assisted stunts make us yawn. Unless you're really raising the action bar (everyone take a moment to salute The Raid: Redemption), plot is a must. So thank god for director Peter Chan and screenwriter Aubrey Lam, who delivered the excellently layered Wu Xia to the San Francisco International Film Festival for Friday and Monday screenings.

Synopsis time: Liu Jinxi (Donnie Yen) is a man living a modest life in 1917 China with his family of four. After Liu heroically thwarts a robbery by one of China's most wanted criminals, a particularly astute private investigator named Xu Baijiu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) starts checking into Liu's past.

Like any good cop, Xu must deal with his deep-seeded quandaries about the philosophies of law and justice while pursuing information about Liu. His investigation mimics the audience's viewing experience – he picks away the petals of Liu just as we slowly figure out what this film is really about. As a result, Wu Xia remains unpredictable without resorting to a series of forced red herrings.

Final verdict: It's not scheduled for any more SFIFF screenings, but you should definitely see it if it pops back up in U.S. theaters or DVD/blu-ray.

This post was written by:
Trey

SFIFF55: Choked

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 00:07:00 +0000

With the start of Spring comes one of my fave times to chillout for days in a filmhouse thanks to the oh-so-glorious SFIFF, known to the masses as The San Francisco International Film Festival. In their 55th year they bring more of what you would expect in what has become one of the biggest draws on the Int'l Filmfest circuit. After bruising through the program guide-- circling the must-see flicks to the ones that pique my curiosity and even marking up the more obscure to get out of my normal tasting menu-- I went with Choked as my first go see of the Fest.

Courtesy of San Francisco Film Society

What got me hyped about Choked, the first feature film of writer/director- Joong Kim-hyun was that at first I thought this was a product of the K-pop sensation from Shinee.

Yeah, so I was wrong about that. After watching the trailer and then reading the press kit I was hooked on the intimate words of the Director:

“Is being poor the saddest thing in the world?
Do not say it isn’t so. You’ll turn to stone as soon you say so.
I hoped it wasn’t so. I wanted to believe that poverty wasn’t the origin of such sadness.
Yet…
Is it capable to hurt for someone else? Is condolence even possible?
Hold on. Do not lose hope.
I could not bring myself to say these words.
But I still want to hurt instead and console.
I want to do the impossible.
I want to tell all the stories I’ve heard and the stories I believe everyone already knows.
Stories that are all about me and all about you.

Straight up I connected with what this film could be and as I walked through the doors, jumped in the nice, comfy plush seat in one of the screening rooms and watched on. Being a major fan of Korean films I was anticipating a lot of drama for your mama, hopefully some tasty scenes of dripping sex and of course some blood-splat violence. Again, I was wrong at least for the most part.

Choked opens with the protaganist Youn-ho (Um Tae-goo) who plays the role of a struggling lower-level salaryman looking to earn his keep for his family and future in a recession-ridden Seoul. Thanks to his swindling mother, Hee-su (Kil Hae-yeon) and horrible selection in a gold-digging, fiancee-- we are taken on a depressed ride of Youn attempting to arise from his own personal Hell.

Kim in true Ozu (that reference is for you Bucky!) fashion gets you hooked into the emotional turmoil that is played out between Youn, his mother, his fiancee and another woman- Seo-hee (Park Se-jin) that claims to have been scammed by Youn's mother.

Mid-way through Choked I was reflecting on my own family history and struggles with poverty-- on different occasions thinking about how difficult it is to do the right thing with so few resources. That genuine feel of being devoid of rationale and pure desperation is what made a few filmgoers in the crowd cringe, myself included and not have the strength to bear as Youn fell deeper and deeper in his storm of bad judgements. Kim pulls this off without the physical violence and shock factor that I have been programmed into thinking is Korean cinema.

Through the story we are treated to Seo-hee and Hee-su's deep connection that shows how we make family when we are let down by our own blood. Choked is a riveting, emotional blackhole that will suck you up dry of any goodness you are feeling. Be warned.

Two more showings that will be played during the SFIFF55, hope to see you out!

This post was written by:
big O

The Unsung Heroes: R2-D2 Builders Club

noreply@blogger.com (betty geek) — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 23:20:00 +0000

Yes, everyone loves the 501st Legion. But what about the R2-D2 Builders Club? Have you heard of them?

I didn't until I went to WonderCon 2012 last weekend. On Sunday, the crowds died down and fans took their time exploring the booths and presentations of artists, geek clubs, and most noticeably, the R2-D2 Builders Club, tucked towards the back.

The club was founded in 1999 by Dave Everett and is an internet fan based club with over 5000 members worldwide.

I met some of the builders, including David Annetta, who briefly showed me some of the detailed manuals to build different kinds of droids.

It was so interesting, I was actually considering (and only for three seconds) of building one myself. However, after discovering answers to the following basic questions, I had to reconsider.

How much does it cost?

Hmmm, it depends. One of the other builders mentioned his was $1500. David couldn't recall, but said that it can be as much as $40K.

What is it made out of?

Generally, wood, plastic, metal, and fiberglass.

How long will it take?

David said he is halfway done with his droid and it has been 3 years. Another builder mentioned that he finished his in 3 years.

I would so love to find time and build one of these bad boys for RC fun at fan conventions.

The builders at WonderCon comprised of engineers, an electrician, an architect, IT, etc. It made sense, right?

I have complete admiration and respect for these builders. The displayed droids had all the bells and whistles. In fact, I also saw several RC controlled droids roaming around the convention.

Over the years, the club has gathered information from Star Wars exhibits, photos, and actual screen used props to produce blueprints in order to build their droids.

I find this amazingly, geeky hot. Or is it just me? :)

For more details and information about the club, please visit www.astromech.net

This post was written by:
Betty Geek

Image Expo- Return of the Comic-con

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:38:00 +0000

A lifelong reader but only started experiencing comic-cons circa 2008. Don't get it twisted though-- I know that comiccons have really been more like Hollycon for the last 10+ years. At Wondercon or SDCC you get the chance at bumping shoulders with the big screens best and brightest stars and behind the scenes puppetmasters. We still have a place where fellow nerd brethren can convene with other lovers of the culture, busting their cosplay crafts, rocking mad gaming skills and learning the inside shit on whats next from the Industry's top creators.

The big difference from the early 90's to now...millions of inflows coming in to barrage the equally massive con-goers that have also jumped in numbers from say the first Wondercon that started in Oakland with say 8000 people to last year's WC in SF that was reported to have close to 40K peeps. SDCC is closer to 200K.

Yesterday, Image Expo brought things back to the 510 in the very same building that the first Wondercon hit in 87. Making way to the show in the surrounding hood off of Broadway exists not one sign of a big show taking place, which made me feel like is this really the right day of the Expo? Entering the doors of the Oakland Convention Center was the first sign that Image Expo was here with an 8 1/2 x11sign that showed the Image Expo logo and in bold printed this way with an arrow.

Cruising through around 3pm brought me back to the local shows I attended as a kid that was all about the love of comics, toys and other goods with maybe a hundred others or so. Image Expo hits on all this but of course with a very thematic Image-feel in everything you see with all the backing of the brand and creative.

All the big-time writers and artists that strengthen and power Marvel/DC with Image links were on hand be it the original creators- Mark Silvestri, Erik Larson, Whilce Portacio, Todd McFarlane, to the killer talents that run shit now-- Brian K. Vaughn, Jonathan Hickman, Robert Kirkman and more.

One of the most creative cats in the game, Jonathan Hickman

For anyone that is not into the orgy of crowds that usually fill the hallways and fight for the schwag /giveaways gotta roll thru Image Expo to experience what is actually a pleasant, relaxing and non-crazed con experience.

Today's activities will be filled with everything WALKING DEAD, many comics-related announcements, and special panels that let you get up close and in the mind of your top Image creators.

Was shocked to not have to wait the usual 30 deep in line or so to chat it up with Marvel Architect, Jonathan Hickman and wax philosophic on the best book ever IMO- Nightly News and whats next for Dr.Doom, Valeria and the rest of the Power Pack in FF.

Was really great to see an environment that was calm and devoid of the usual star-gazing groupies looking for a story to share with their friends despite their non-participation in the real shiz of this biz. So this year the Bay lost Wondercon to Anaheim but gained Image Expo. Not a bad thing at all-- come thru today and tomorrow for the show. BOOM!

This post was written by:
big O

Click, Push, Click, Push- A Noob No More!!

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 23:48:00 +0000

It has been a mere 4 months since I got totally consumed by heroclix and I can say with over 40 games under my belt --over half of em being in tournaments-- the honeymoon is officially over. Luckily, I am located in a locale that is a hotbed for tabletop gaming with several shops to play, compete, trade and just post with other clixers.

I went from casually stopping by a few spots every other week to now having a fairly regimented schedule where I hit-up 3 to 4 different venues a week to compete and play this damn thing.

So many layers to the strategies in playing this game that I can now recognize, being equipped with a basic understanding of positioning and the PAC.

Sure, you can simply pick from pieces that you connect to or are familiar with but a lot more of the fun comes in the game when you make use of theme (or generic) teams that give you a bonus to your map roll based on how many players you have in your build and of course the almighty probability control (allows you to re-roll a dice roll or you can make an opponent do such).

My homies Trey and Henry have also gotten deeper into the game which is great being that they can act as a tether in making sure I don't go all rainman and gamma geek to the point that my GF breaks up with me...ha, playing yo.

Along the way I have actually even won a few of the tournaments which have been for me at least, was based less on skill and more on crazy, lucky rolls.

Through the process of learning the game which you can only really do by playing-- HCRealms has been an incredibly, vast resource be it for the various forums on team building, strategy, trading and anything else you can think of really.

Trading on the Realms has definitely been one of the more fun, addictive and interesting experiences that I never would have thought I would find myself investing time in. When you buy clix, having dupes is guaranteed so when you can't bust physical trades in shops with the peeps you play with-- realms is a great alternative, unless you just need the skrill and you sell it on Ebay.

Like the saying goes, ones trash is anothers treasure. This adage has worked wonders

for me as I have been able to pull trades on some real, fly pieces that I would have otherwise had to buy on Ebay for say $50 and up. Some of the choice pieces that I have scored on realms thru itrader were Cosmic Spiderman, 75th Anniversary Hal Jordan, Barry Allen (pictured right), the Arkham Clown Prince of Crime, and White Lantern Sinestro.

And now things have come full circle as I recently proposed to have a regular heroclix night at my LCS and he agreed!! How sick is it that I was just pulled into clixin by some regulars at our shop and now we are busting Friday Night Fights at Comics Conspiracy on the regular?!

Dope indeed!!!

This post was written by:
big O

Mixed Plate Comics- Week of 2.15.2012

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 04:46:00 +0000

Hey ya'll!! So between the daily grind owning me the last few months and going on the deep end in heroclix-- I have eventually found my way back into the piles and piles of backlogged, neglected comics. This is actually my first week of reading through all the weekly pulls since...dayuum way back in December (helps that it was a light week)...oh the shame.

Alright enough about me and on to those panels of goodness. This week I read: B.P.R.D. Hell On Earth: The Long Death #1 / Daredevil #9 / Green Lantern Corps #6 / Nightwing #6 / Birds of Prey #6 / Wonder Woman #6 / Winter Soldier #2 / Batman #6 / Catwoman #6 / Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi- Force Storm #1 and the most killer of these sequential art experiences were ...
5 Wonder Woman #6 Brian Azzarello, Tony Akins & Dan Green

I am not as well scripted in Greek mythology as much as some of my other friends though being a diehard WW reader for the last 6 years. With that all said the last 6 months of Azz/Chaing's Amazonian ride is easily the most immersive and entertaining take on WW period. No comparison yo.

How fucking sick and ballsy is it to see (okay doesn't actually show her doin it but that makes our imaginations run with it even more!) Diana rip up some centaurs with her bare-ass, bloody hands.

The visual representations of Poseidon as a tentacled, nasty-ass, frog giant and Hades as a candle-face burning kid were ill-mastered by the crazy craftsmanship of Tony Akins--who steps in for Chaing as a super-sub.

Loved this ish and lets hope to see that naggy, preggers chick get killed off already in the next arc ; P

4 Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi- Force Storm #1 John Ostrander, Jan Duursema & Dan Parsons

But of course all of the Jedi comes from some mysterious, flying Pyramids from space! As straight redick as some of Ostrander and team's concepts were in ish 1-- I was still invigorated and felt appeased at what was a solid start to the untold story of the beginnings of the Jedi/Sith.

Cool shit experiencing all of the familiar races and worlds of Star Wars being repped even from over a millenia ago- but again some of the deets were way overgeneralized-- like the gathering of those that were born with the force versus those that were not.

Appreciated the SW ode to history, religion and mythology that were borrowed from and infused into this seriously daunting, audacious script but you all know this prequel of all prequels had to be told!!

Duursema and Parsons page by page storyboards were on point and the imaginative, especially the ancient costuming and use of blades before there were lightsabers kicked Mandalorian ass.

The force hounds owned it while those weird, prawn-looking force lightening-wielding bosses were meh. Look forward to ish 2 and the continued fleshing out and explanation of the beginnings of this rich, Galactic-sized story.

3 Winter Soldier #2 Ed Brubaker, Butch Guice & Bettie Breitweiser

How do you follow-up ish one of the soviet snipers (yes, Winter Soldier and Black Widow) that we can't get enough of?!

Well, throwing in a rat-a-tat-wielding Gorilla that sports a jet-pack to battle the duo and throw in the G of all G's in the Marvel U--muthaeffing Victor Von Doom!!!

Let's just say that you don't know who Ed Brubaker is but loved the Black Widow (Cornell) or Spiderwoman (Bendis) books that were out over a year ago-- if that's the case-- you just have to add this gangsta title to the pull-list.

Brubaker & Guice tag-team us into what is another killer spy vs. spy, noir-esque storyline that reads faster than you expect and makes you get kinda pissed that its another 30 days till we get some more of Marvel's own Mr. and Mrs. Smith (which Brubaker promised this book would feel like).

2 Batman #6 Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo & Jonathan Glapion

Batman vs. the Court of Owls comes to its maniacal crescendo with Bats reliving his ancestors cursed path of being manipulated, hunted and killed off.

Watching on as Talon and the Court succeed in the mental breakdown of Bruce is enthralling and a rare glimpse of the Batman in a vulnerable, nearly broken.

Would have been great to see his mental safety mechanism- Zurrenrah, kick in but we all learn that Bats actually planned every chain of event to pull the carpet from Talon and the Court.

A real close one here for the Dark Knight, so imagine how he will be able to face multiple Talons...

1 Catwoman #6 Judd Winick, Guillem March & Tomeu Morey

This book and creative team is still my go to in the New 52 six months later. Selina Kyle rips apart a meta in true Tyson-like fashion along with the rest of some dirty-rotten GCPD. Cats wins her score until some other badass steps in. March and Morey are easily my top art/colorist team of all the monthlies and just bananas how somehow Gil's art is improving and taking on an almost Van Sciver (who is the greatest artist in comics IMO) likeness.

Bats and Cats have a real, crazy moment as Selina continues to unravel into her shattered, dark self. Thank you all for your continued readership and see you at Image Expo!!

This post was written by:
big O

RE:GENERATION movie review - Ultimate Remix of Musical Genres

noreply@blogger.com (betty geek) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 19:52:00 +0000

When I saw the trailer for RE:GENERATION, I was definitely hyped. The documentary was straightforward: five influential DJ's collide to write, record, and collaborate a brand new track with an assigned musical genre like country, classical, soul R&B, etc. Each DJ took on a different musical style and approach to the challenge which was entertaining and wonderful to watch. Skrillex, for example, created a track with The Doors and Mark Ronson (did I mention he was hot) conjured some of my NOLA memories by formulating a jazz piece with Trombone Shorty, Erykah Badu, and Mos Def.

The documentary had me hooked from beginning to end. Amir Bar-Lev, the award winning documentarian, pieced the DJ's experiences together smoothly without any *hiccups*. DJ Premier was the perfect catalyst character for the documentary. Primo's track with Nas was the shit. The classical rhythm and the hip hop beats flowing behind them with Nas' rhymes was sickness.

Anyone who loves and appreciates different musical genres, DJ's, and music documentaries, I strongly recommend watching this.

The next showing is February 23, 2011 in select theaters or catch it on Blu Ray later this year.

감사합니다! (thank you), Hyundai, for sponsoring this music project.

This post was written by:
Betty Geek

Mass Effect: Invasion #3 Stumbles but #4 Wraps it Up Nicely

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:07:00 +0000

While Mass Effect: Invasion #1 and #2 were solid entries to the Mass Effect universe, so I dived in to the next two ready to immerse myself yet again.

With the third installment, Invasion started to flounder. Both #1 and #2 had a good amount of development to keep pushing the series further while still climbing towards a climax. The third ends up on a plateau, offering only panels of more action on Omega. This would usually be exciting, but only one significantly important moment occurs in what otherwise is filler, seemingly written just to hurry up and get to the last installment.

Mass Effect: Invasion #4 brings it back on track however. We get to see perspectives from both Cerberus and Aria as they try to outwit each other to gain control over Omega. The ranks within Cerberus itself also gets put to the test, as those within Cerberus wonder what the true intention was by trying to take control of Omega. The ending, which I'll leave up to readers to find out, is satisfying.

We're left with things to ponder as we wait for Mass Effect 3's release. Though I didn't think it was possible, #4 leaves us with an impression that the Illusive Man is more of an enigma than we all thought.

Mass Effect: Invasion #3 and #4 is available from Dark Horse.

This post was written by:
Crystal

C&D's Top 10 Kanye West Songs

noreply@blogger.com (Trey) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:33:00 +0000

UPDATE: mrbucky made a fancy Yeezy playlist. Listen away!

Does any rapper – nay, musician – nay, person – in the world garner as many opinions as Kanye West?

The answer: Only the President, Kim Kardashian and, of course, Tim Tebow.

The reason: He's put together a string of this millennium's most beloved (and best-selling) albums, he has a penchant for drinking one too many on nationally televised award shows and, at the end of the day, god-dammit he's killin' this shit.

So when One Week One Band tried its hand at ranking West's top 10 songs, we naturally had to respond with rankings of our own.

A few details, then straight into the list: Only songs from Kanye's five studio albums were eligible – so no non-album remixes, freestyles, Watch the Throne cuts or G.O.O.D. Friday freebies. Four of us participated (Big O, Crystal, mrbucky and Trey), each submitting a top 10, with #1 being worth 10 points, #2 worth nine, etc. To prevent outliers from making too big a dent in out aggregate list, songs that made two lists got an extra point, and songs that made three lists got two extra points.

Amazingly, not a single song made all four lists. And our top 10 actually has 11 songs, since there was a tie for number 10.

1. Diamonds from Sierra Leone Remix (27 points, made 3 lists): Though the original version seems to be a missed opportunity to shine light on the issue of blood diamonds, the remix certainly makes up for it. Shirley Bassey’s “Diamonds Are Forever” swirls into a pulse-quickening beat, resulting in a majestically haunting sound that captures the very essence of Ye’s lyrics: I thought my Jesus piece was so harmless til I seen a picture of shorty armless. -Crystal

2. Gold Digger (24, 3): I realize that the over-played-ness of this infectious track diminishes its cool in some folks' eyes, but if you aren't smirking when this track plays... then your soul is as dark as Old Scratch himself. -mrbucky

3. Power (21, 3): It's like Snap looked into the future and knew the most important musician of 2010 would catapult its concept to a whole other level. -Trey

4. Lost in the World (18, 2): Auto-tuned Bon Iver + an urgent techno track + a Kanye flow that includes Michael Jackson scat should by all means be a mess. Instead we get an insanely emotional and powerful cut that represents living in our oft-confusing modern times. -mrbucky

5. Touch the Sky (17, 2): The moment that uplifting brass hits, a big smile creeps across my face. No one can resist a Curtis Mayfield sample. Produced by Just Blaze, Ye compliments the cheerful beat with equally cheerful lyrics. “Touch the Sky” is a fitting title for this feel-good song. -Crystal

6. Flashing Lights (14, 2): The rise of symphonic strings with hypnotic bass and synth claps results in a head-bobbing favorite that begs to be played over and over. Combine that with lyrics about a fame-hungry lady and a music video featuring the curvaceous Rita G murking Ye in the trunk with a shovel?! Perfect. -Crystal

7. All Falls Down (11, 3): What rapper hasn't lamented female materialism on wax? But how many are willing to look in the mirror without stepping off the soapbox? Also: I bet Lauryn Hill wishes she had cleared that sample. -Trey

(tie) 7. Jesus Walks (11, 2): While most modern name-checkin'-the-big-JC songs fall into the Stryper category, KW manages to make this militant confessional-esque song, well... incredibly cool. We should also note just how much balls it took to release such a non-secular hip-hop track when this came out. -mrbucky

(tie) 7. Spaceship (11, 2): Straight flipping the slavery angle on some robotic George Jetson shit. Haunting use of some dixieland shit. -Big O

10. Good Life (10, 1): Relax your mind and let your conscious be free. Erick Sermon said it, but Yeezy and T-Pain epitomized it on this baller anthem. Kinda makes you wonder if the people complaining about Watch the Throne's occasional excess had ever listened to Kanye before. -Trey

(tie) 10. Get 'Em High (10, 1): Ye invited Common and Talib Kweli on this track and still shined brightest. This is where he arrives lyrically IMHO. -Big O

This post was written by:
Trey

New Lords of the Underground and Rampage: Tales from the Crypt

noreply@blogger.com (Trey) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:14:00 +0000

Dust fills whatever air the cobwebs don't occupy. You could cut the smell of mothballs with your index finger. There's a coffin in the room. A coffin in the room!? Who keeps coffins in their house? It has to be empty, right?

*Creak* What the...?

*Creak* What was that?

*Creeeeeeeeeeeeak* Oh my GOD THAT COFFIN IS OPENING WHAT IS IN THERE A VAMPIRE OR ZOMBIE OR-

Oh. It's just some rappers from the '90s rising from the dead for another shot at hip hop glory.

The first faces to emerge are a group of guys likely unimpressed with Jay-Z's constant references to moving the Nets to Brooklyn – New Jersey's own Lords of the Underground. Some of their more rabid fans may be familiar with their 2007 album House of Lords, but the last time I saw these guys they were promoting their third album Resurrection on the goddamn Ricki Lake Show in 1998. That was a shocking and horrible experience for someone who regarded their 1993 coming our party Here Come the Lords as prime evidence of the superiority of early-'90s rap. (A belief I maintained until a recent conversation with Big O where he made some derogatory comments about LOTUG. I listened to that album again, and now it's hard to forgive some of the album filler's simple ryhmes and bland topics. A handful of songs still knock though, especially "Chief Rocka.")

So now a new LOTUG track makes its way into the hip hop MP3 blogosphere. It's called "Say Yeah," and the group (or maybe just Mr. Funke – my ears don't detect any trace of Doitall) actually sound improved. Long-time collaborator K-Def cooks up a nice piano-laced, boom-bappy beat, and lines like "kicked out of Paris / Too many croissants, yo" bring a smile to my face. The drab hook is sure to keep this off any Best of 2012 lists, however.

Hulkshare download via 2DopeBoyz

Next up is Rampage. You may know him as the guy who grabbed cameos on the "Flava In Ya Ear" remix or "Woo Ha! (Got You All in Check)" – that's because he's one of the great beneficiaries of hip hop nepotism, blessed to call the über-talented Busta Rhymes his cousin. Rampage had a pretty hot single in 1997 called "Wild for Da Night" that was primarily gassed up by a sinister beat and classic Busta chorus. Rampage works best as a sidekick – Rampage:Memphis Bleek :: Busta Rhymes:Jay-Z.

Now, out of seemingly nowhere, Rampage comes out with "Zig Zag Zig" featuring Biggie's ol' buddy R.A. the Rugged Man. Busta's cousin relinquishes the mic after one verse, turning it over to the more-capable Rugged Man. R.A. sounds fresh despite dropping '90s New York rap references like "I was born pissed off, I stay hatin' / I walk the streets lookin' like I'm Onyx with the mad-face invasion."

Zig Zag Zig feat R.A The Rugged Man by Felony Muzik

I wouldn't expect these fellas to spend too much time outside of their basement wood tombs. But these songs were at least a ray of light when wading through post after post of boring blog rap.

Check these guys out in their early '90s prime:

Lords of the Underground – Flow On (Pete Rock Remix)

Rampage – "Wild for Da Night"

This post was written by:
Trey

Best Tracks of 2011!

noreply@blogger.com (mrbuckyk) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:53:00 +0000

Lot's to talk about, so let's dig in. Please note tracks are listed alphabetically by artist. My OCD mind (when it comes to entertainment) would not allow me to list them any other way.

Adele: Rolling In The Deep. Probably the most ubiquitous song of twenty eleven and rightfully so… I came for the voice and stayed for barnstomping drum beat.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYEDA3JcQqw&ob=av2e

Battles:Ice Cream. First off, I love the wacky slightly ADD video for this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_wKWqKJDfw&feature=relmfu Secondly, the song is a mish mash and all over the map and I love it. PS Check out the drummer’s kit. It be bananas.

Beastie Boys:Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win. While I think this is my favorite track of theirs last year, it looks like I listened to Say It more. Santigold goes with the Beasties like peanut butter and pickles y’all. BONUS: Ad Rock’s flow on Nonstop Disco Power Pack was top’s for me this year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEgduwsINW8

Chemical Brothers:The Devil Is In The Beats. This song is a variation on an earlier track on the Hanna soundtrack called “The Devil Is In The Details.” It’s more funky and technoish. Great cut off of a great soundtrack from a highly underrated film. Check it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKlRD9Wkyw0

Cut Copy: Need You Now. This song would play perfectly over the end credits to a movie or during any part of a John Hughes era 80's film.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2xovJyBo-0&ob=av2e

Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi Feat. Jack White: Two Against One. Damn it was tough picking a cut from the Rome album. It is insanely solid and one of my most listened to of the year. This would make the perfect opening track to a Bond film.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UibsjY5K-c

Destroyer: Kaputt. Man! What is up with the 80’s synth love that happened this year (See Drive soundtrack success)?? This is another track that feels right out of the 80’s and makes me nostalgic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puu3IvKnSb4&ob=av2e

Fleet Foxes: Grown Ocean. The Fleet Foxes tend to be very mellow and somewhat sad bastard-ish (see album title) but thus cut ends the album optimistically. I dig it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pgv6dKV03dA

Jay-Z & Kanye: Otis. During the year of Occupy Protests, it takes balls to make such a song like this where it is wall-to-wall swagger rap. But balls they have and I am thankful for it… otherwise we would have missed out on this wonderful bon mot : “Last week I pulled up in my otha otha Benz.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoEKWtgJQAU&ob=av3e

Lana Del Ray: Video Games. This is song is equal parts haunting and beautiful. It is also a great lesson in how the same internet community that first built you up, will quickly try and tear you down. It was weird seeing all the hate being thrown at Miss Del Ray.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HO1OV5B_JDw

Mayer Hawthorne: A Long Time. Another artist that I slept on forever… and was shocked to hear what he sounded like after seeing numerous pictures. This Steely Dan-reminiscent song is catchy, poppy, and modern while feeling steeped in 70’s funk.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4iIsE1PBhE&ob=av2n

Okayplayer Allstars (Mos Def): Next Universe (The Bollywood Remake). If I ever get to make a 70’s Blaxploitation flick, this song is going to be all over it. PS Check out Breathe & Stop on this remix album.
http://teasearecords.net/okaybollywood.cfm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O79cWF0Hyr4

The Roots:Kool On. Kinda like a more subdued Roc Boys track from the Roots heavy heavy heavy concept album. The other standout track is Make My whose last half makes me want to sit on my front porch with friends and drink 40’s and make fun of passerbys.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGKGgnI1PZc

tUnE-yArDs:Powa. I avoided this band forever cause of the way they spelled their name. I am an idiot. Maybe my favorite song of the year. The first time I heard this song I thought it was incredibly sweet… then I looked the lyrics… and holy shit. It should only be played in the strip clubs. Merrill goes full blown Prince by the end of this gem. Old Prince that is… and by that I mean good Prince.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e31dpx-XGfI

TV On The Radio: Second Song. This starts amazing and then changes up around the 1:20 mark… from there it gets more amazinger.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwYM2t22h_E&ob=av2e

Wilco: I Might. Wilco has this crazy wizard blood magic ability of making their songs sound as if they came from another era yet also sounding completely modern. This is 60’s psychedelia…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POYKND5Dv7Q

I hope I've introduced you to something you haven't heard before and now dig!

This post was written by:
mrbucky

Rappers That Justin Bieber Can Eat on the Mic

noreply@blogger.com (Trey) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 01:08:00 +0000

Singing makes Justin Bieber tons of cash. But the kid would obviously rather be rapping. He's dropping YouTube freestyles, rapping live on hip pop/R&B stations and guest flowing on Chris Brown's horrible rap album. Hilarious, right?

The funniest thing about it is that he's not that bad. His breath control is solid, and his content can be pretty funny – like when he dissed Tom Brady for stealing his haircut. He is susceptible to simpin' (rapping about his girlfriend, he says Personally I think she is perfectly perfect. *Barf*), but he's still better than a lot of rappers.

Which brings us to the point of this post: To list the rappers that Justin Bieber could smoke on the mic RIGHT NOW. Go!

Mac Miller
Drake
Big Sean
Lil' Wayne
Lil' Mama
Lil' Bow Wow
Lil' B
Lil' Cease
OJ da Juiceman
Will.I.Am
Will Smith
Wiz Khalifa
V-Nasty
Soulja Boy
The guy in that Rebecca Black song
Cowboy Troy
Lupe Fiasco
Kid Rock
Kid Cudi
Kid from Kid 'N Play
KRS-One
Meta World Peace
Allen Iverson
Chris Brown
Andy Samberg
Andy Milonakis
Abed from Community
The bros from Far East Movement
Evidence from Dilated Peoples
Everlast

Feel free to add to the list!

Tom Brady vs. Justin Bieber from Kenny Mayne

This post was written by:
Trey

Click, Push, Click, Push- Enter Da Noob

noreply@blogger.com (big O) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 00:20:00 +0000

Me and Bettygeek gettin our Clix and swerve on

So many of my close friends/fam and regular C&D readers know that a shitload of my extracurricular time has been sucked up by the gaming phenomenon known as Heroclix and in my case, Herocrack.

For those of you not in the know-- Heroclix is a turn-based, table-top gaming system that has been around for over a decade-- focally centered around the comicbook universes of DC and Marvel-- but has also gotten into other nerdery worlds like horror, videogames, movies and so on.

Main goal in this shiz is search & destroy. The fun part is talking shit and watching some peeps sulk in their attempts to not lose their fave characters. And with that in mind-- despite my noob status-- #1 priority is always stomping the heart, or as Miyamoto Musashi calls it in The Book of Five Rings- "making a collapse (in your opposition) when their rhythm becomes deranged"

Yes, this a strategy game afterall so who better to reference than Musashi or of course Lao Tzu (Art of War). Okay enough with getting all tantric (yes, I know I am stupid and not using this term right). Heroclix makes use of a dope little sculpt of a character on a dial that keeps track of its power & abilities (PAC), along with a card that explains more of the characters attributes in detail. Here is one of my fave go to pieces of late that has helped me in my first, few actual tournament experiences.

Artwork courtesy of Wizkids

First off, a heartfelt middle finger to my homie, Gage, another regular of Comics Conspiracy, along with Ryan, Scott and Bryce that initially sucked me into this awesome addiction.

And mad love to Geek Pinata, Soonirvana (both pictured to your right) Toby and Betts for helping me struggle with my problem by taking in the mad, geeky fun and actually jumping on the clix-life themselves.

Trey went as far as spending hours on YouTube tutorials-- taking notes and all-- to help lead the crew with deciphering some confusion / individual interpretation of rules of engagement, lines of fire and etc.

After a few months of taking turns chilling at eachother's pads, beating down one another's top pieces and what not-- I took the plunge into playing at a few of my local gaming shops. This came at perfect timing with the release of the brand, spanking new Heroclix set, The Incredible Hulk, which was released this Wednesday and of course involved thematic tournaments for a chance to win some exclusive pieces for the high score winner.

Of course, I had no hopes of winning shit being that I still was working on getting the flow of the game, memorizing PAC and limited to the few strategies I had under my belt-- let alone playing against some seriously, formidable comp (one of the cool guys pointed out that 2 cats playing were National champs--hwwaat?!) The shops I hit up were Game Kastle (Heroclix nights on Wednesdays) and the other, Legends (theirs is usually Tuesday or Thursday).

Both shops were dope, comfortable and surprisingly helpful in supporting my noob-ness, though some of the players were straight up on saying they wouldn't be giving me the same leeway in the next few weeks. Ha!! Love it!! Those same players after the first few rounds of tourney play were kicking my ass, but I still got some good rolls/hits in too and went as far as telling em to "click it"! Effing awesome.

If you are in the Bay Area, Game Kastle is one of the more competitive spots to play, so you get exposed to a lot of different strategies-- Legends is still formidable but a lot more comfortable and laid back and I heard that Gaming Collection & Toys was chill on Saturdays.

Expect more coverage soon on some of my clix-life that could hook you in too if you are a fan of comics, gaming and just relaxed, chill shit-talking. Heroclix is super-accessible, fun and right now is one of the best times to start playing with new sets coming out through the next months that have some of the sickest, comic-accurate sculpt designs, playability and oh shit, the nationwide tourney for Infinity Gauntlet starts in a few weeks yo!

As I continue playing and learning I will share some of the illest strategies, team combos, top pieces and most hilarious shit-talking I have heard while playing or experience through some of my fam. Here are some of our other go to pieces that we have been bustin' in our match-ups:

Phoenix, Ragnarok, Larfleeze and Maxwell Lord are regular first round pickups

Betts goes with the Iron Men and Supergirl, while Emperor Joker and Wolvie is a newfound fave for me

This post was written by:
big O

The Throne Is Safe: Jay-Z & Kanye West in San Jose

noreply@blogger.com (Trey) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 20:36:00 +0000

Photo cred: www.mercurynews.com

When I decide I want to see a movie, I avoid all trailers, reviews and interviews with the stars so that I enter the movie as ignorant as possible. Same goes for concerts – I haven't looked at a YouTube concert footage or setlist for the Watch the Throne Tour since I bought my tickets for the December 14 San Jose stop a few months ago.

So imagine my surprise when the spotlight comes on and Kanye West is wearing a leather kilt.

I won't go as far as to say he pulled the look off, but Yeezy and Jay-Z's phenomenal aptitude for rapping overshadowed any odd fashion choices. (Jay was in his standard all-black-everything streetwear, if you're curious.) It also overshadowed the moving stages, sporadic fireballs and Tron-esque laser lighting.

Have you performed "Gold Digger" on Def Jam Rap Star? Or tested your "Big Pimpin'" flow at a karaoke bar? If so, you know that rapping like these two guys is not easy for even a short amount of time. And yet these guys came out and performed for over two hours with no backup. They didn't even lend a hand to each other, and both pulled off the entire performance without so much as a wheeze or gasp.

The only negative of the performance was the lack of collaborators. Songs like "All of the Lights" and "No Church in the Wild" had recorded versions of Rhianna and Frank Ocean, respectively, on the hook. You obviously can't bring Rhianna on the road just to sing a few hooks (and you know Beyonce is not having that), but bringing somebody along to handle these moments would have been nice.

Best moment: Jay-Z performing "Public Service Announcement" and "U Don't Know" – two Just Blaze-produced album cuts – back to back.

Playlist:
H.A.M
Who Gon Stop Me
Otis
Welcome to the Jungle
Gotta Have It
Where I'm From
Nigga What, Nigga Who
Can't Tell Me Nothing
Flashing Lights
Jesus Walks
All Falls Down
Diamonds from Sierra Leone
Public Service Announcement
U Don't Know
Run This Town
Monster
Power
Made in America
New Day
Hard Knock Life
Izzo
Empire State of Mind
Runaway
Heartless
Stronger
On to the Next One
Brush Your Shoulders
I Just Wanna Love U
That's My Bitch
Good Life
Touch the Sky
All of the Lights
Big Pimpin'
Gold Digger
99 Problems
No Church in the Wild
Niggas in Paris x3

This post was written by:
Trey