iconogeek

Tonight, we got that going for us… Episode 29

iconogeek — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:16:50 +0000

Episode 29 kicks off with Chuck and Jason realizing their getting old (maybe). The conversation moves to keeping in shape, internal clocks and Jason doing dumb things at the gym. The guys get a little serious and discuss the glut of celebrity deaths, Michael Jackson’s transgressions and accomplishments (especially Thriller), Farrah’s awesomeness, Ed McMahon, and David Carradine.

OK, so on to some geek stuff: The Sherlock Holmes trailer and the mystical number 3 (do things really do happen in threes?). Chuck then tries to convince Jason to get on Twitter by playing the international angle. Chuck gets a FlipVideo HD for his birthday and he and Jason discuss the benefits of truly portable video, the iPhone video capabilities, and tweeting the apocalypse.

(Yes, we know the audio quality dips at this point - we blame Skype, but it’s free so what can you do?) Jason relates his experiences with every single film released in the last month (no spoilers though) and Chuck pipes in with “UP” (because that’s the only one he saw). After the tears, Jason lays down his reviews of The Hangover, The Taking of Pelham 123, Year One, Transformers 2. Chuck and Jason then move on to discuss Shia LaBeouf’s rising star and almost get kicked “off the air.”

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Tonight, Jay finally doesn’t like a movie…Episode 28

iconogeek — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 03:11:43 +0000

Episode 28 starts off with dedicated commitment as Chuck tries to convince Jason to get on Twitter. While Chuck feels his argument has merit, Jay remains unconvinced and brings out the big guns when he calls on Harvard to help his case. Did Chuck win? You be the judge. Chuck and Jay then dive into the Outlander DVD and discuss it’s true awesomeness and its connections to Old English Epic Poems. Jay then offers his review of Terminator Salvation and we find out if all the bad press is deserved. BTW, if you are interested in some good movies about time travel check out Time Crimes and Primer.

We then discuss E3 and some of the great stuff coming out of this year’s biggest gaming show including the Beatles Rockband game, the new Halo: Reach trailer, Left4Dead 2, Splinter Cell Conviction, Metal Gear, and the Sims.

Links:

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Tonight we get LOST…Episode 27

iconogeek — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 03:10:42 +0000

Episode 27 kicks of with horrible segues, scriptwriting dreams, and tales of fish. The podcast then continues the JJ Abrams love from the last podcast as Chuck and Jay discuss the LOST season finale and their thoughts on waiting 9 months for the next season. Jay then expresses his desire for the new Terminator flick and Chuck concurs. The episode rounds out with some Outlander, SNL, and Incredibad

Links

Oh yeah, check this week’s poll in the sidebar!

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Tonight, we’re having trouble with Tribbles…Episode 26

iconogeek — Tue, 26 May 2009 02:32:54 +0000

Episode 26 forges ahead with Jason’s incredibly inconvenient day job, Chuck’s office logistics and the trials of remote family tech support. A blistering review of X-Men Origins: Wolverine is followed by Chuck and Jay’s dual viewpoint (fan and non-fan) review of Star Trek.

Links:

This episode’s poll: What’s your favorite Star Trek? Check it in the sidebar –>

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LOST’s juicy season finale

iconogeek — Sat, 16 May 2009 02:34:47 +0000

Mario Perez/ABC

I gotta tell ya, I looooved LOSTS’s season finale. I saw Cesar’s tweet just after the airing and I think he may have had some issues with it. Hopefully I can divulge some of the awesomeness to bring him back around.

1. We finally meet Jacob.
Excellent way to introduce this Oz-like character. Hanging on the island in maybe, what, the 1600’s? Maybe Ben can answer this question, but I am sure the type of ship sailing into the island in the first 10 minutes of the episode will give away the year. And who is the other character and what is their relationship? My bet is they’re brothers, maybe even Cane and Able. Now for those of you that listen to the podcast you’ll know I am not a very religious man, but I do find the mythology and stories surrounding christian religions (heck, any religion for that matter) fascinating. So I think I’d love to have some catholic mysticism injected here. Thoughts?

2. Jack finally gets back to form
So he finally has a purpose again…saving everyone. He has something to fix again. And in true “Jack-fashion” he’ll do whatever he needs to do to fix it. Also, I love the 180 degree turnaround in Jack’s concept of faith - the pragmatist is almost entirely gone.

Oh, there’s more…

3. Locke really is dead
OK, weird. I’m very interested to see how Jacob’s “friend” pulled this one off. However I love the idea of the “Loophole” - a loophole for what? Also, who are these other disciples of Jacob? As I write, I just realized that Jacob may indeed be a Jesus-type character. Hmmmmm. I ask again, thoughts?

4. Sawyer’s dilemma
I’m pretty sure the H-bomb went off and the white screen (which was how Supernatural ended its season as well, BTW) wasn’t a camera effect to trick us in to thinking it went off. I think Sawyer really doesn’t want Jack to complete his destiny because he finally likes where he is. He’s come to grips with “Sawyer” and is ready to leave all that behind, his death wish is gone. Although I thought Julia’s issues where a little too convenient and counter to her character (she always seemed stronger than that), it did give Josh Holloway a great opportunity to show some impressive acting chops.

5. Myles’ realization
I think Myles is the only character to actual come to the island and get what he came for (and live to get it). He finally knows why his father left and what actually happened.

6. More info on Richard
Still not enough, but the plot thickens…

OK, so some questions now…

Is that a guitar in Hurley’s guitar case? Is it Charlie’s? Why is he always carrying it?
Who is Richard, really?
Why are these people on the island and who the f’ are they already?

OK, that’s it for now. Penty of time over the next 7 months to mull this over.

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Number 2 in a series of the worst kids games

iconogeek — Wed, 13 May 2009 14:28:00 +0000

Apparently the purpose of this game is to prevent the other children from accessing the blocks to build their own castles, towers, etc. You win when none of your friends are able to build anything. The win is bittersweet however, since you typically don’t get a chance to build anything either since you spent all your time blocking your friends.

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I’m a Marvel…I’m a DC…It’s f’n brilliant.

iconogeek — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:05:19 +0000

Thanks Doug for the link.

‘Nuff Said.

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Wolverine (I hate movie reviewers)

iconogeek — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:49:16 +0000

Yes, I hate movie reviewers. I am including myself to some degree, although no one is paying for my opinion. I read the reviews for Wolverine yesterday before seeing it at the midnight showing and all of the bashing had me concerned. Don’t believe the bullshit. It’s a great, fun(ny) and action packed start to the summer movie season.

Hugh Jackman was great, fully embracing the character and story and making even preposterous scenes feel genuine. This is another case that depending on your knowledge of the original comic books your mileage may vary as far as overall enjoyment. If you’re going to get pissy about every little detail not being carried over from the books, or about the filmmakers taking certain liberties then you’ll have some issues. If you haven’t read the books or are more forgiving, I think you’ll enjoy the crap out of this like I did. However, I do wish Deadpool, Agent Zero and Gambit got a bit more screen time because what was there was simply awesome.

Only 3 things got me, and all were FX related. First is Cyclops… who in general I just don’t care for, but the younger version is on screen a few times and the eye-beam gets to do some spectacular damage. Here is the first issue. Where does the eye-beam effectiveness end? It cuts through buildings but then it just stops? Seemed like they got lazy and didn’t want to have to animate another building falling down.

The other two were just crappy/weird FX that felt out of place when compared to the rest of the polished pieces throughout. One is a mirror shot with Wolverine’s claws… looked crappy and plastic. The other was a close up of Wolverine shredding a fire escape. Watch for those two and see if you agree.

Anyway, I think you’ll have a good time if you’re a fan of the X-men movies or the Wolverine character. It tells a great story, explaining a lot about the character and his motivations, his rivalries and attitude. Don’t listen to toolbag reviewers (including me) and go check it out for yourself.

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Tonight, we’re doing a PODCAST…Episode 25

iconogeek — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 04:14:50 +0000

Episode 25 (The classic) begins with Jay and Chuck exceeding their 140 character limit and argue the merits (and demerits) of Twitter. Jay launches into his review and spoiler of Crank 2, Chuck recommends Guitar Hero: Metallica and Jay holds a Rock Band 2 party. The grand Twitter argument continues as Jay and Chuck butt heads on “why tweet?” and references to Skittles.com’s amazing use of social media. The third topic rolls into view as Chuck enjoys the hell out of Gears of War 2. The show wraps with a discussion of the Dead Space Trilogy and musings on fatherhood.

Links:

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A cheap way to smash a pumpkin in a fountain with your friend Wayne Hanson.

iconogeek — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 15:05:07 +0000

Messing With My Head

I just found my new favorite band.

What do you get when you take the solid, pop rhythm of Cheap Trick, the crunch of Smashing Pumpkins, temper it with Fountains of Wayne’s melodic bubblegum, AND top it off with a surprisingly grown up Hanson?

You get Tinted Windows, and it is quite possibly the best merging of 4 different groups I’ve heard in a while. It takes all of the signature sounds of each and makes a single, very catchy, very poppy, very fun summer hit.

While I love all types of music (my itunes library is VERY eclectic), I always gravitate towards this music, I think because it’s just fun, period. I did it when I first heard Fuzzbubble (thanks Kev), Fountains, and of course Cheap Trick (Which I played until the tape broke - yes I said tape…as in cassette tape). I’m excited for the album and will offer a full review when it’s released.

Now go check out Fuzzbubble already!

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Twitter. Seriously people?

iconogeek — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 16:49:07 +0000

So I was having this conversation with a good buddy of mine the other day about some of our friends getting on the Twitter bandwagon. I was very happy to find another individual that felt the same way as I did.

Internal dialogue. That’s essentially what goes on. 140 characters or less of random babbling about:

This girl on the train is hot. (not gonna happen buddy)
Man, this sandwich is tasty. (congrats tool, your keyboard now has mayo on it)
I’m late for class. (stop typing and get to class dumbass)
This rash is spreading. (glad you’re far away)
Other bullshit. (see above)

Fortunately some talented people decided to put together a video that sums up how my buddy and I feel about it. I’m sure that some will say ” either you get it, or you don’t” or “it’s not for everybody” in some assinine condescending fashion, and you know what? I’m glad I don’t get it. Scientoligists probably say the same shit.

So… really?

Wait.

No, really??

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I gotta say, it’s pretty awesome.

iconogeek — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 01:28:54 +0000

I reciprocated a Follow on Twitter and decided to check out some links. Well, this guy Walt’s show “Awesomeology” (http://www.awesomeology.com) is indeed quite awesome. I mean, how can you mix commentary on bacon, beer, whales, and YouTube morons successfully? Apparently you use Awesomeology (I guess that makes him an Awesomeologist?).

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Top 5 best TV commercials, right now (as I see it).

iconogeek — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 02:45:30 +0000

In no particular order other than my stream of thought.

1. KIA Soul. Hamsters chillin’? Come on, All I need is some Dynamite Hack and we’re good to go.

2. Hulu. Alex Baldwin is just plain awesome. He gets the Cadillac for this one.

3. Hulu. Seth McFarland just cool, and whenever he can jump out and visit the really-real word is welcomed.

4. Quiznos. Oh man, this one is just plain wrong. But DAMN, if it isn’t funny!

5. ETrade. “Shankapotomus” - ROFLOL that’s all I need

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Sometimes a good Frak is all you need: Episode 24

iconogeek — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 03:42:58 +0000

Episode 24 kicks off with Chuck’s hating of 24 and why Redemption wasn’t that bad. But the guys kick themselves to get back into the topic their supposed to discuss…the series finale of Battlestar Galactica!

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Dicks leak Wolverine workprint

iconogeek — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 15:21:09 +0000

So apparently an early version of X-Men Origins: Wolverine was leaked on the internet. It’s missing key scenes, finished effects, and finalization but clearly this sucks for all involved in the making of the film. Certainly from a creative level (it’s not finished), and less so (I think) from a financial level and here’s why. A film like this which has, arguably, the most popular Marvel comic character AND a rabid fanbase that has been aching for a Weapon X story is going to get butts in the seats opening weekend.

Think of it as a fast-rip Band-Aid.
The idiots that leaked this (seriously, what’s the f’n point? If you’re a fan, then an unfinished print may be “cool” but from the geek standpoint, wouldn’t you want it to be presented at its best?) are catering to the same fanboys that will go see this film multiple times in the theater. A leaked, unfinished print will only whet the appetites of fans if the movie’s good. If it sucks, then it won’t matter, you’ll loose some initial opening weekend revenue due to bad press, but that’s your own fault for putting together a shitty movie. I don’t think that’s the case though. From what I’ve seen, this movie is a fanboy’s wet dream, especially on the heals of Watchmen.. we are even more pumped to see this film.

Although there are many posts by people who have seen the vid, they complain that “it IS finished,” and “The pacing sucks,” and “there’s no story” - but I gotta tell ya, each one of those comments can easily be addressed with editing and additional footage. Do these people seriously think that this stuff hasn’t been shot? Or that several weeks of additional editing won’t completely change/tighten a movie? STFU, wait for actual release.

In the end, I’d be interested in seeing numbers or stats about the actual harm this leaked print does to final box office. But I’m not quite sure how you get those.

I have not seen the leaked vid (nor do I want to), I want to see the final film it all it’s claw-poppin’ beauty, period. Seeing this film on the big screen with the cast of characters it has (Deadpool? Come on folks!) is going to be an experience I’ve been waiting for since well before days of future past.

‘Nuff Said.

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Touch Not, Lest Ye Be Touched

iconogeek — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 14:34:27 +0000

Ok guys, since I am apparently the biggest dick on this site, I felt the need to review Tales of the Black Freighter before the other softees did. I don’t know if it was evident from the most recent podcast, but I was not enamored with Watchmen. It really had nothing to do with what they left out, and what they changed or any of that, it was more a fact that the movie just can’t be made with the source material provided. Now I’m not about to say I hated the movie completely because I liked nay loved certain parts. The way they Snyder altered the ending for example…better than the book. Rorschach was awesome and Jackie Earl Haley was the highlight of the whole move. In fact I agree with one of the commentors that an all-Rorschach movie would have been sick. Nonetheless, I left the theater feeling underwhelmed and under-entertained, but in reality I don’t think it could have been better, unless they made a miniseries…and at that, who knows. Now, onto the supplemental material that was released this week. As a whole, it was much better than the theatrical release. The Black Freighter story is very gritty and dark, it is certainly not for the faint at heart. Snyder and Co. left no stone unturned here and gave me exactly what I wanted…a faithful replication of the story within a story. Gerard Butler’s voice over was ominous and angered. As Chuck and I left the movie we both were wanting more of the MinuteMen back story…well you will get that here with the Under The Hood interview by the original Night Owl. It is done in such a way that it seems like you are watching a 60 Minutes-like show from the 1960s with Seiko commercials included. As such, a lot of Sally Jupiter’s story shone through here as well as the original masked vigilante Hooded Justice. When Watchmen come out on BluRay, I will rewatch both in tandem and I feel that this may change my opinion for Watchmen, even possibly raising it’s iScore for me…nah.

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The moral of the story is “don’t get a dog”: Episode 23

iconogeek — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 04:33:52 +0000

Episode 23 kicks off with remembrances of winter, Chuck’s trials and tribulations of owning a dog, and multi-function remotes. Chuck and Jason then eagerly launch into their discussion of the Watchmen movie. The podcast concludes with Jason’s reviews of three new games: Street Fighter 4, Little Big Planet, and Resident Evil 5.

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Tonight, the K-count is going up, Episode 22

iconogeek — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 05:09:16 +0000

As Episode 22 kicks off with a serious PEBKAC issue and Clive Owen’s penchant for firearms, Jason and Chuck pick up the pieces of their shattered Oscar talk, High Jackman’s performance, and Jay’s shame. On the docket: Slumdog Millionaire, The Dark Knight, Taken, Watchmen, and Coraline.

Links:
http://soleyne.com
http://www.imdb.com/boxoffice/alltimegross?region=world-wide
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm
Smodcast

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Who Watches the Watchmen?

iconogeek — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 21:01:13 +0000

Well… um… we do? I mean it’s out now in theaters.

Luckily that question is not the only one I have answers for today as we were able to catch the Watchmen at a midnight showing last night.

Here’s another question: Was it any good?

Hell yes it was. Brutal, graphic, pretty to look at, well paced, well acted and it hit a very large majority of the books major points right on the head.

Here is where things get tricky. If you did not read the book, you’ll likely be confused as hell at times and you’ll probably be surprised by the overall adult nature of it. You see this is not the Xmen, or Spiderman or any other average comic book. The majority of the ‘heros’ have some heavy pyschological issues, 0 superpowers and are basically masked vigilantes that the majority of society would like to see locked up permanently. The only guy that actually has any real super-type abilities is mostly devoid of emotion and really doesn’t give a shit about the human race.

So if you read the book and loved it and you’re not a detail nazi (ZOMG!!!11!! RORSHACH IS SUPPOSED TO GO HOME FOR HIS SECOND MASK!!! THIS MOVIE IS RUINED!!!) then you’ll love it. They pulled no punches when it came to the graphic nature of the novel, so don’t be surpised to see shredded flesh, attempted rape, a bunch of breasts, compound fractures, blue penises (penii??) and more.

Bottom line is this. It’s not for everyone, but for the fans of the graphic novel it seems like the movie version you could have only hoped for.

BTW: yes the ending has been changed and that entire plotline that goes into the construction of the ’squid’ has been scrapped, but I think it’s for the best. The movie’s ending not only performs the exact same function, it actually feels more legit.

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Tonight, a serious question: Brad Pitt or Ryan Reynolds, Episode 21

iconogeek — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 04:31:02 +0000

Chuck and Jason kick off this just legal podcast with tales of Jason’s intimidating presence. LOST is back and in big way and Jason and Chuck weigh in on the total excellence that is the new season and offer their theories of what’s going on. The Superbowl movie trailers and how they completely kicked ass is up next with anticipation (or not) for GI Joe, Transformers 2, Star Trek, Fast and the Furious, Year One, Land of the Lost, Angels and Demons, and Race to Witch Mountain. The podcast concludes with Chuck’s thoughts on Benjamin Button and Jason lays down the newest DVDs.

Associated Links

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Charles Widmore is Alvar Hanso.

iconogeek — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 03:12:28 +0000

OK, so we’ve been given a TON of info in the episode. I love the pendulum, very cool :). Dharma doesn’t seem to be a mystery now (to me at least). I guess they are (were) a scientific organization working on the island doing experiments with biology and electromagnetism. The one thing that I am confused about though, is are they still around? In season 1, there was a Dharma supplies drop, so they must be still around and still think they have functioning operatives on the island (at least until Keamey shows up). But they haven’t been in the story line for a while…or have they?

So here’s my theory…Widmore is Hanso. The Dharma Inititive is his company that he set up to exploit the island in his quest for power. This is why Richard and the Other-Others battled against Dharma in the past and recruited Ben to help them wipe Dharma out on the island. They want Widmore to stop the exploitation of the island. I think that after that Widmore, at some point, was banished from ever returning to the island, which is why he needed the Initiative to get back to it. I think he dedicated his life and resources to finding that Island again, and when he did (using the pendulum)

This theory also explains a little bit more about the confrontation with Ben and the we-can’t kill-each-other pact they have. Ben clearly made a deal with Widmore after Richard assisted him in destroying the Dharma Initiative on the island. What tht deal is, is still a secret, but I am sure we’ll find out.

Think about it, Widmore protects his interests in the island by masquerading as Alvar Hanso. That way he can keep his legitimate enterprises going, while he keeps the more clandestined “Island” business going.

Thoughts?

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Sony releases it’s next, great product and it’s a real POS.

iconogeek — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 21:51:45 +0000

OK, so if you have have young kids nearby do NOT play this it is riddled with explitives, seriously… EXPLICIT.

I really can’t believe that Sony has actually come out with this. It’s seems par for the course for them, but not sure if now is the right time for this. Well…you be the judge.

Sony Releases New Stupid Piece Of Shit That Doesn’t Fucking Work

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BSG, I got my eye on you.

iconogeek — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 22:21:19 +0000

Too soon? Sorry for the groaner

So, I have this love/hate relationship with BSG. I’ve been a fan since the old days and I even watched Galactica 1985 as well (The Starbuck/Cylon episode…none better). I’ve enjoyed the new show with a couple slips in which I just stopped watching altogether. I never put it together until last night, when I was watching this Friday’s episode (on TiVo) and was just starting to get that uncomfortable feeling again. The one where I think “I just don’t want to watch this” it’s too much.

Too much blood, too much anger, too many machinations. It just felt like it went off the track.

But then I realized, I’m uncomfortable because, while this is SF and fantasy, the themes are real - almost too real. I was thrown by Gaeta’s mutiny at first, but then I realized that it wasn’t a shark-jump. Gaeta was always a man of conviction when he felt he was doing the right thing. Even when he was working for the Cylon shadow gov’t on New Caprica - he fed the resistance info. He was always about anti-cylonism.

So if Gaeta’s motivations where sound, then maybe, just maybe the show wasn’t off track as I originally felt. It’s no secret that BSG is actually a very powerful drama wrapped in a SF package and I guess I had to come to grips with that more. BSG is an incredibly layered show with some of the best writing in any SciFi show. Once I realized that I wasn’t getting my escapism from BSG (far from it, BSG makes you think), I gave in.

The fervor I had for the show in previous seasons is back. And just like LOST, I’m excited to see where it goes.

I’ll end with a salute to Saul Tigh (played by Michael Hogan). He started as my least favorite chracter, but he’s steadily become my favorite. Hogan’s raspy growl and colorful language brings an emotionality to the Adama/Tigh pairing that (until recently) was required to balance Adama’s stoicness. He makes the eye patch work (especially as he compensates with the rifle scope - genius!) and his loyalty should be an example to the entire crew. I’m along for the ride with this mother frakker, All hail the XO.

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The Jin is back!

iconogeek — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 03:19:54 +0000

Yes that’s right! Unfortunately he’s stuck back when Russo crashed on the island so this is going to be interesting. It’s funny though how he always gets into situations where language plays a part. All of his main storylines revolve around it (especially Sun’s sneaking around and learning english). I’m excited to see him back and I’m intrigued about this. So is Jin now at the same time as Sawyer, Locke and crew? Has he been shifting the whole time, just out of it?

Also, as pointed out by Doug in a previous comment, Miles is indeed the baby son of the Dharma Initiative instructional film guy (what IS his name?). This was clinched this episode with Faraday’s comment about length of time on the island affecting the neuro-disorder with the time jumps.

I saw Ben being the catalyst for the blood sample debacle a mile away, it seemed like a logical way to get Kate to WANT to leave and go back to the island. Still curious about Ben’s end-game though.

It is also clear now that Jack is back to his old tricks. He told Kate that he “could fix this.” This of course goign back to Jack’s need to fix anything broken. He now has a purpose and that singularity that he exhibits to confront this purpose is back in full swing.

Best line this episode: “Who was that?” asks Syaid…”My lawyer.” says Ben, in a matter-of-fact tone that was perfect.

Good episode.

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Aliens+ Resident Evil+ Event Horizon= Dead Space

iconogeek — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 21:31:38 +0000

So I had some downtime recently and I finally got around to playing and completing a couple of games. I’ll try and review some of the others ( Fable 2, Gears of War 2 and Metal Gear Solid 4) but Event Horizon came up in conversation today, and Dead Space became my first target.

Dead Space casts you as an engineer sent out on a rescue mission to find out what went wrong on a mining vessel in deep space. The game sets the story up pretty well, and its not long before you’re seperated from your team and the action begins. It’s apparent from the get go that not is all as it should be on the derilict ship. “Necromorphs” as the game refers to them (essentially the reanimated corpses of the fallen crew) are your main adversary throughout the game. They take on a variety of shapes and sizes and without exception they are all fairly grotesque. They make a great foe throughout the game, giving you a few genuine shocks and scares. In addition an interesting mechanic is implemented, wherein headshots (the defacto killshot in most games) are ineffective and the best way to take down the enemy is through dismemberment. This results in a lot of good-bloody fun.

I’d say the big star is the ship and its atmosphere. It may come accross as a bunch of greenish corridors, but the feeling of dread that the designers conveyed through graphics and sound design really make it seem if you’re in a haunted spacecraft. The designers also mix up a good variety of believable locales while still remaining within the confines of the story. The ship is in total dissaray, and when you’re not looking over your shoulder for necromorphs, you’re preoccupied with zero gravity areas, zero oxygen zones and some nicely scripted cataclysmic type events.

This was a game I couldn’t stop playing until I got to the end. For me, thats the mark I look for. Great Resident Evil-like gameplay, tense atmosphere, interesting story, fun-upgradeable weapons and gear as well as an awesome final boss fight made this one a winner in my book.

One last thing. Before I played the game I watched the set up story on dvd. Dead Space: Downfall is a full lenght animated feature that sets up your characters arrival at the beginning of the game. I love animation. I love movies. I love games. I have 2 things to say about this. (1.) It’s a good thing I got it from Netflix and didn’t buy it. (2.) It pretty much sucked. Not horrible horrible… but for me of all people… the same guy who enjoyed Deep Blue Sea to not really enjoy it, well… that’s saying something.

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The unplanned anniversary: Episode 20

iconogeek — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 03:55:41 +0000

As Episode 20 kicks off, Jason and Chuck realize that the iconogeek podcast is indeed 1year old. Happy Birthday to us! First stop Jason gets infected by the Zombie virus and proceeds to play every PS3 game he owns, finishes and shows his love for Metal Gear 4, Fable2, and Dead Space. Chuck then geeks out on his Nikon D40x DSLR and goes back to highschool as he and Jason bond over fstops.

Chuck’s childhood Jedi collaborator stops and becomes a believer in Guitar Hero World Tour (Chuck’s new favorite distraction)

Chuck and Jason then run through the great crop of TV. Battlestar Galactica is back, Chuck eats his words, and Jason drops a hint about a new BSG spinoff. Jason makes Chuck’s day by delivering some great Watchmen news and teases some new trailers: Franklyn, Outlander, Crank 2, and Taken.

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Nothin’ Like A Good Ol’ A$$ Whoopin’

iconogeek — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 04:05:31 +0000

I know I haven’t posted much in quite a while. Call it what you will, but I just saw The Wrestler and was inclined to give you my highly critical opinion.

For starters, I loved it. From the opening credits with the panning wrestling Promo’s from the 80’s and even the Ram-green font, to the final image of Mickey Rourke (more on him in a moment) giving his fans what they wanted, I was hooked. Darren Arronofsky’s use of a documentary-style single camera shooting made this movie feel very authentic.

As an avid wrestling fan in my younger days, which I’ve since let fall by the wayside, Mickey Rourke sold me 100% on his performance from his first elbow drop, to the final RamJam. Not only did he deserve the Golden Globe for Best Male Actor, as well as his forth coming Oscar win…this was one of my top 10 performances in a while. I don’t know whether it was the 80’s vibe he exuded, the low IQ he was portraying as a lovable fuckup with many apparent prior transgressions, or just his overall “badassness” but Mickey Rourke has some chops. I can’t say I’m well versed in his Filmography (besides SinCity of course) but I’ll surely be adding some of his flicks to my Netflix queue.

Marisa Tomei was phenomenal as the odd relationship between the two characters unfolds throughout the films 115 min run time.

That said, even if you weren’t a fan of the Hulk Hogan’s and Iron Sheik’s of the 80’s, you will dig this movie based on the incredible character development and Rourke’s painful attempts to reconnect with his daughter (a very solid Evan Rachel Wood). It seems as though this year’s Oscar season is full of very strong candidates…while I haven’t seen a majority of the noms yet, I can’t imagine many of them containing a better lead performance than this one. Check it out.

*Note - Bruce Springsteen’s song written and titled for this movie did not go unnoticed…I loved it

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Well, looks like I’m lost again.

iconogeek — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 04:20:56 +0000

So, just as I finished telling myself “They’re giving us all the answers! Time travel, they’re unstuck, Ben did it, they need to get back and save everyone.” LOST throws me a curve and does what it does best - gives some answers and leaves even more questions.

So here are some thoughts:

1. The whispers heard in the jungle throughout the first several seasons are not only Others, but could be the time travellers as they jump through time. The people in the current time-frame can’t see them, but can hear them, somewhat. I’m thinking this because of something Faraday said - “If it happened, it can’t be changed.” Maybe to themselves, they are slightly out-of-phase? OR, maybe I’m just tired
Ben is wicked devious. It’s so hard to read him though. What is his end-game?
What’s the deal with the butcher?
Does anyone else think it’s funny that Jack is now going on faith?
Sun is now a badass! I’m am curious to see what happens when her and Ben meet.
So Locke is not dead. I am pretty sure he will come back to life on the island - maybe through a time incident, but he will come back.
I love the fact that the Dharma Initiative is back in the game. We lost them a bit, but now maybe we’ll find out who the hell Hanso is.
Anyone else REALLY intrigued about Richard now?

OK, that’s it, not a very substantive post, but I had to do a bit of a brain dump. OK, gotta run and catch some Z’s.

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Hey Steve, we’ll keep the light on for ya.

iconogeek — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 03:03:25 +0000

So the news of Steve Job’s medical leave of absence has circulated and I just have to say that our thoughts are with Steve’s family and friends and we wish him a speedy recovery.

I will admit that I’m a fanboy, I make no bones about that. I credit Steve Job’s and Steve Wozniak with creating the method to my madness. I’ve always been into computers, having learned Basic on a PET and had a VIC20, Commodore64, and then my Dad’s Leading Edge which I programmed Lotus123 and dBase on. I mention the Leading Edge (which was MSDOS, BTW) because when he went down to the local computer shop to buy it, I was drawn to a Macintosh Plus (running MacPaint and connected to a LaserWriter) sitting right by the front window. Oh, it was beautiful. It didn’t look like any of the other computers, and It was the first time I’d seen a GUI, hell the first time I used a mouse. Even so, I sat down and within minutes had drawn out a rather impressive looking pirate that the salesman let me print out and take home.

From that point on, I wanted a Mac. They were too cost-prohibitive at that point for a teenager who needed a car, so I waited. I bided my time on the Commodore and then PC’s through college. SUNY Cortland (my alma mater) had a Mac lab, but it was only for a select few who knew the password. I was an art student and you just didn’t use a computer for art back then unless you were a photographer (I wonder what they’d think of Joshua Davis or Erik Naztke now) - and even then it was only used for plate making for Lithography. So I watched them through the glass like Ralphie watching his Red Rider BB Gun.

When I graduated college, I knew I needed to get a Mac, so I collected my funds from summer construction work and got myself a Mac IIvx. Thus lead the slow and steady slide into eschewing the pencil and plunging headfirst into digital design. I’ve grown nostalgic for pen, ink and paint; but when you begin to think Command-z will erase that line on the paper you’re just too far gone.

As I got deeper into the MAc, I proceeded to attend the east coast MacWorlds in Boston, NY, then Boston again and would make it a point to see the keynote every time. Steve just embodied this amazing enthusiasm for Apple and the work they were doing and I found it inspiring. The roar of the crowd when he stepped out on stage was exhilarating. The thought that this guy was a rockstar was crazy, he’s a company CEO, a geek. But nonetheless, he held the stage, commanded it, and you watched and hung on every word.

So will Steve be missed for the next 6 months? Sure. After all, it was Steve’s dream, chutzpa, charisma, and talent that helped propel Apple to what it is today and helped to create some of the most elegant software and hardware around. But it’s Apple’s cadre of super-talented people that enable Apple to do this. The notion that Apple will fail without Jobs is ludicrous. The great products will continue to flow and Apple will continue to drive the industry with innovation. Of this I am sure.

So Steve, rest up and get better. We’ll see you at the next WWDC.

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The Walking Dead chews my face off.

iconogeek — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 01:02:48 +0000

So I may have been a little late to the party. Cesar has been evangelizing this series for some time now and I jumped on the bandwagon fairly recently. However I feel that I need to do my part and let my legions of fans ( Hi Mom!) know exactly where I stand.

If you like any of the following: Incredible art, fantastic storytelling, thought provoking dialogue, deep characters, rollercoaster action and gut renching drama ** then use some of that Christmas money grandma sent you and order the first Walking Dead. Once you read the first, you’ll have to continue through the rest. The ninth volume comes out in graphic novel form this week ( or if you’re Cesar, last week) and if it shapes up anywhere near as tense as #8, I may have to get some medication.

If however you like puppies, rainbows, happy thoughts and feel good moments… you may want to take a pass. This graphic novel, and yes I realize this is just a book, is not for the faint of heart. (I deleted a line here that was just too disgusting to post, sometimes I even gross myself out. trust me on this… you owe me one )

So if you’re not a fan yet, get cracking. If you are a fan let’s talk. True iconogeeks already have an outbreak plan of some sort. So here’s a question… If it comes tomorrow, who are you?

Are you a Rick?

A Carol?

An Andrea?

A Glenn?

A Tyrese?

The Governor?

It’s never too early to start planning.

** also ok if you like zombies

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Oh Jack, you got me again…DAMMIT!

iconogeek — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 03:43:31 +0000

I gotta say I think I’ve been Jack-rolled. You know, “Jack-rolled” - the 5 season old network-TV phenomenon that gets unsuspecting viewers to watch yet another shark-jumping episode of 24. Yeah, I definitely was…how is that that none of these villians can get anything done without compromising a law enforcement agency (or the President himself, for that matter).

You know, I’ve been a 24-hater since the second season. Ever since Kim had her “Dr. Greene” moment and had every conceivable tragedy happen to her - I just couldn’t do it anymore. The amazing, tense writing and action of season one had me hooked. But then the same shit kept happening. How come it took them this long to close down CTU? An agency riddled with that many leaks, charged with anti-terrorism?!?!? Uuugh.

Needles-to-say I had to watch the episode. The wife likes the show, so i thought I’d give it the benefit of the doubt and see if it could capture the old magic.

Nope.

Tony Almeida is a bad guy? Really? He was FUCKING dead. Come one, this isn’t Melrose Place, they couldn’t come up with a different vehicle to get Jack back?

OK, so let’s talk about what I did like:

Colm Feore. Every since “Storm of the Century” he’s been the man.
Janeane Garofalo. Interesting casting choice, of course we need to fill the socially akward hole left vacant by Chloe. So far, nice job.
The FBI’s digs. Plain, Steel Case desks and partitions. This is really what a gov’t agency office looks like. The old CTU had too much high-end hardware and ridiculous-looking software.
Jack didn’t say “Dammit” yet, but he did say “We have to do it My Way.” Uuugh.
Peter Wingfield. Methos is awesome. Nuff Said.
Colm Feore. Wait, did I say him already?
The rounding out of the Robocop cast. Seriously. Peter Weller, Paul McCrane, Kurtwood Smith, Ray Wise.

OK, so I’ll probably give the 3rd hour episode a shot and see, but I don’t know. I am SURE Tony is running something that is a big-picture thing and he’s doing the wrong thing for the right reason…but again?!?!?! IT’s the same story over-and-over-again.

Can’t…look…away…must…stop

dink…dink…dink…dooooooooo

..sigh..

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Fable 2 DLC coming next Tuesday.

iconogeek — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:47:07 +0000

Fable 2 is definitely one of my favorite games of the past year. After beating the main campaign I still found myself wandering around towns with my dog at my side, beating random people and dodging diseases from pesky prostitutes.

By the way, the dog in Fable 2 is much better than a real dog. No fur, no smell, no picking up dog crap, no walking, no biting.

So needless to say I was pleased to learn that the Fable 2 DLC: Knothole Island will be available this coming Tuesday, January 13th for 800 Microsoft points from Xbox Live. Opens up the new island, new quests, armor clothes and a bunch more.

The develop has more info here.

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Tonight, the trap is set and the game is on : Episode 19

iconogeek — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 01:24:44 +0000

Chuck and Jason welcome in the yuletide season with this special Holiday themed episode. They begin by discussing Chuck’s mish-mash heritage and then move into the top 10 Christmas movies (iconogeek style). Next stop Chuck and Jay discuss TV with the end of the Heroes: Villians arc, anticipation of the final Battlestar Galactica season, and Dexter.

Jason gets Chuck one of the best geek-related gifts this holiday season with the Wanted, Special Edition DVD. The podcast wraps with the promise of the next possible great Holiday movie with “The Spirit.”

The iconogeek top Christmas movies:

A Christmas Story
Die Hard
Lethal Weapon
The Ref
Christmas Vacation
Scrooged
Gremlins
Elf
Batman Returns
Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas
Reindeer Games

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Minority Report is now.

iconogeek — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 15:25:21 +0000

g-speak overview 1828121108 from john underkoffler on Vimeo.

Well, maybe not the movie’s premise, but the slick gestural computer system Tom Cruise used to find future offenders is. This is incrediby insane and starts to make the ridiculous “cyber space” trips in movies like Hackers and Johnny Mnemonic start to seem almost plausible. I love it when life imitates art

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Best. Day. Ever.

iconogeek — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 15:18:28 +0000

Well, maybe not the best day. But if you’re a fan of the steadily downward sloping Heroes, then this past Monday was indeed the best day ever.

I’ve been lukewarm on Heroes for a while. Last season was a bust, severely damaged by the writer’s strike. This season seemed to get moving , but it was still a little “meh.” Well “The Eclipse, part II” finally got the old chutzpah back and I’m excited to see where it goes.

With the genius casting of Breckin Meyer and Seth Green as small town comic shop employees (owners?) Tim Kring and crew where able to capture what made this series great in the first place. The wonder and awe that came from actual, real people possessing what used to only exist on the inked page. By using the comic shop as a storytelling tool, the viewer is both in AND out of the story; “Kirby plaza doesn’t count, they never actually even talked” - friggin’ genius.

Being a long time comic reader and huge X-Men fan, I was always intrigued with the melodrama that ordinary people with extraordinary abilities faced. The Cockrum/Clarement years that pitched a perfect allegory for racism and put it in a fantastic realm of super powered mutants set me on the path of believing in the characters and the amazing storytelling that accompanied them.

Heroes recaptured that for me in its first season. But from the second season through the beginning of the 3rd, various ridiculousness and especially Hiro’s shark jumping idiocy almost pushed me out the door. And for those of you that listen to the podcast know, jumping the shark is a series killer for me.

Finally, the show feels back on track, and with the cancellation of Pushing Daisies (a travesty, I know) the possible (probable) return of Bryan Fuller to fold bodes even better news. So, what stood out?

Peter wasn’t an idiot.
Finally, the youngest Petrelli finds his strength. Consequentially, without his powers intact. Although, I am sure now that the Eclipse has ended he has them back, at the very least his absorbing powers.
Hiro did something right.
Seriously, about friggin’ time
Matt Parkman is back on track.
I felt for a while that Greg Grunberg’s character was on the verge of getting eaten by the smog monster (LOST reference, anyone?). The hilarious attempt at reading Speedster’s father’s mind sans powers was excellent.
Claire gets her groove back.
Getting killed is the best thing to happen to her since, well not getting killed.
HRG kicks ass.
He does, he really does. HRG contiunues to be the most consistently excellent part of this series.
Ando speaks REALLY good english.
Seriously, where did that come from?
Mohinder is back, sorta.
Get this guy back on track. His new storyline is too Jeff Goldblum for me.
Meyer and Green.
‘Nuff Said.
Nathan is a bad guy.
Well, not really, but he is a politician. He’s doing the wrong thing for the right reason. I’m real interested to see where it goes.
Sylar is back and badder then ever.
Zachary Quinto’s Sylar is the second best thing on the show (to Jack Coleman’s HRG) and it’s awesome that he’s back as the villain. He was interesting “good”, but he’ soooo much better “bad”.

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Tonight somebody calls a plumber : Episode 18

iconogeek — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:44:01 +0000

As Episode 18 kicks off, Jason is intrigued by Chuck’s son’s iPod ‘s playlist. Chuck’s wife does a graduate project on the iconogeek podcast as Chuck reveals that the iconogeek logo won a national design award! Jason then reveals his wife’s affectation and utter terror with zombies. Jay’s been catching up with Battlestar Galactica and Chuck warns of the impending “suck” in season 4. Chuck reminisces about Space: Above and Beyond and compares Star Trek to BSG.

Jason then sparks a conversation about David Duchovny and lays down his review on RocknRolla and the Guy Ritchie character cannon. As Chuck preps to watch “Shoot ‘em up,” he feels compelled to justify his disdain for “Crank,” “Air Force One,” and “24.” Jason attempts to poke holes in Chuck’s 24 shark jump theory by playing the porn card. They then discuss the Tr2n trailer and how cool the original Tron was in its day.

The show wraps with the great slate of DVD’s coming out this month.

Associated Links

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Awesome new Vista feature…really

iconogeek — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 12:34:43 +0000

Seriously, I stumbled upon this while looking at FuckedCompany.com which unfortunately seems to be down right now. For those of you unfamiliar with FC (really? you haven’t heard of it) it’s a great site started by Philip Kaplan that has been documenting fucked companies since the dot com bust (stuff like layoffs and interesting C-level memos). But I digress, I followed a link over to Ask Pud (Kaplan’s blog) and he posted a rather cool video about a new Vista feature he discovered. I thought I would share: http://ask.pud.com/2008/09/10/wonderful-new-windows-vista-feature/

Here’s the vid:

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Get Lyrics and album artwork for your iTunes library

iconogeek — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 20:23:47 +0000

If you’re like me, you’ve been slowly trying to organize your massive amount of music in your iTunes library over the past couple of years. If I’ve got 15 minutes here or there, I’ll go and get some album artwork and lyrics. The only problem is that it takes FOREVER…FORever…forever.

I’m also a huge fan of automation, I’m big on Photoshop actions to make my life easier, so when I found Doug’s Scripts for itunes, I was suitably interested. Essentially, this guy has written a shit ton of automated applescripts for iTunes and boy I found a doozy for my lyrics and album art hunger. First, you need to get “Needle Drop” and install it- what this does is let you play the tracks in your library for a specified amount of time, then move on to the next, and so on and so on.

Next step is to grab “GimmeSomeTune” from Apple’s site. This is the program that allows you to download art and lyrics for a playing song (among other things). Together, these two apps let you quickly run through your library and download the lyrics and artwork if the song doesn’t have any.

Here’s what to do:

Install Needle Drop - just follow the directions
Run GimmeSomeTune, you’ll see a musical note show up in your menu bar
Click that music note and choose “Preferences” and click on the “Artwork/Lyrics” button
Click the “Fetch Cover Artwork…” checkbox (I chose to keep the album art with the audio file. Not sure the difference, other than increased file size, which at current storage prices really doesn’t matter)
Click the “Fetch Lyrics…” checkbox
Close the Preferences window
Look for the “S” logo between the Window and Help menus in iTunes - that’s where you access the Needle Drop script (and any other scripts for that matter). Click it and select Needle Drop
Choose “6″ seconds for the duration of the play and “0″ for the starting time.
Watch and enjoy.

Mines been running all day, just make sure you check on it every once in a while, the GimmeSomeTune app seems to stop running for no reason (maybe it’s sleep, I’m not sure yet). But, it’s performing as promised, very cool

********************* UPDATE 10/12 *********************

OK, I came across a bug when doing this. All of the artwork while displaying correctly in iTunes, was all wrong on the iPod. Sometimes is would match and sometime sit wouldn’t. Even on artwork I had previously set myself and for purchased items. I re-synched but that didn’t help. The solution, I found, was to restore the iPOd to the factory settings (just dock the iPod, select it in the left hand column in iTunes, and click “Restore” on the Summary page). That did the trick!

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Tom Brokaw for President!

iconogeek — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:06:01 +0000

Seriously, this guy is OWNING the debate. I could have swore he just said “ONE minute bitches!” I’m waiting for him to break out Master Blaster and start the “2 men enter, 1 man leaves” chant.

I almost didn’t watch this debate since I was sure it was going to be the same old finger pointing. But as soon as Brokaw laid down the law. I was in for the haul.

He’s got my vote.

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Abrams and Lindelof attached to Dark Tower film/TV adaptation.

iconogeek — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 13:00:01 +0000

So I was digging around and came up with this incredibly tasty morsel:

http://www.slashfilm.com/2008/09/02/damon-lindelof-updates-the-dark-tower/

Essentially, King sold the rights for The Dark Tower series to JJ Abrams and Damon Lindelof for $19. Yep, that’s right nineteen bucks. Damon expresses that this will probably happen after LOST wraps. It’s an exciting proposition. I think Abrams and Lindelof can do a good job. Roland’s story is such a complex tale and I think if anyone can do it, these guys can.

I am currently reading the last book book now (I took a break to read Watchmen). I’ve been a fan of this group of stories since the came out and I for one, am very excited about this development. I’ll continue to dig up some info and post any developments.

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Attention Iconogeeks! Special Assignment!

iconogeek — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:16:40 +0000

Ironman is now on DVD. If you have yet to see this movie we must insist that you turn your computer off immediately, go to your local BestBuy, Blockbuster, Supermarket or 7-Eleven (yes, they are selling this absolutely everywhere) and purchase the Ironman DVD. If you have already seen this movie, you should still go and buy it.

I picked it up the other night and we watched it again and it really was just a damn good time. If you are on this website, their should be no question in your mind about whether or not this is a must own.

You. Must. Own.

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Tonight, I’m wearing a full body condom. Episode 17

iconogeek — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 02:02:51 +0000

As Episode 17 kicks off, Jason and Chuck welcome their special guest, Brett, to the show. We begin with a casual stroll down Speed Racer alley and then discuss Brett’s affectations towards Chuck’s dog, Juno. The guys discuss Burn After Reading quickly then move into Brett’s chosen profession and the accuracy of Scrubs.

While the Heroes season premiere waits patiently on all of their DVR’s, Chuck expounds the virtues of TiVo and ponders why anybody would watch live TV anymore. Brett breaks down the Heroes Season 2 DVD as Jason breaks down the week’s and next month’s DVD releases.

Jason then steamrolls into a pro-PC rant rallying off the “Vista Salesman” post from last week. Sides are taken, boxes are tweaked and the chips fall where they may, enjoy the sparks! As Jason finishes his rant, he ends with what is probably the worst analogy ever (seriously, it’s pretty out there) but it does lead into our title.

The geek wars continue as Brett talks about Batman comics, Chuck romances Loco Roco, and Jason plays Warhammer. The show ends on a high note comparing the humanity of modern day heroes.

Associated Links:

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Why should I hire you to be my Vista salesman?

iconogeek — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 12:51:50 +0000

Look, I don’t have as much ire for the Microsoft ads starring Jerry Seinfeld and Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates than everybody else seems to. I did get a chuckle out of them. If taken a face value (and in a world where Justin Long and John Hodgman don’t exist), they were OK. Not $10 million OK, and not kick off a $300 million campaign OK..just OK.

Trying an image campaign like this is tough. Apple has succeeded in making Windows Vista look like a pathetic mess through its MAC/PC ads. Curiously enough though - Microsoft Office seems to fair pretty well in image from those commercials. This campaign is obviously trying to play on the hipness of the MAC/PC campaign, but it just can’t match it. When it comes to marketing Apple has always been the lead horse - ever since the 1984 ad, they haven’t stopped (They couldn’t, their market share was so small relatively - and still is - that they needed to separate themselves to survive). I am sure Cesar or Jason (my Windoze-using fellow iconogeeks) will chime in here about the virtues of Windoze, but me and Brett (my fellow MAC-using iconogeek) know the truth…if you use a Mac, you’re just, well, “cooler.”

Trying to make Microsoft look hip by admitting it is out-of-touch with real people just makes it seem desperate. Microsoft is an enormous company with tons of bad-will over the past years and to get past that by dropping Seinfeld in the mix just doesn’t make sense. The fact that Microsoft pulled the ads and is now laying some bullshit about an intended “teaser campaign” is ridiculous. They yanked them because they aren’t working. It doesn’t matter if I felt they were kinda clever, the bottom line is that they didn’t work, and they won’t work. Maybe Microsoft should just concentrate on releasing an OS that doesn’t suck, instead of dropping $10 million on a latex salesman.

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Because Burn Before Reading would be too difficult.

iconogeek — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 21:12:31 +0000

Clooney, Pitt, Swinton, Malkovich and McDormand in a film by the Coen brothers.

Obviously, this should interest you.

I’ve been following this one for some time now, and I was definitely not disappointed. Burn After Reading is easily one of the most entertaining movies I have seen this year. To prepare mix: 3 parts funny, 2 parts bizarre, a splash of violence… sprinkling on a few sex toys for good measure.

The entire cast give fantastic performances that should not be missed. Clooney the neurotic womanizer, Pitt the personal training dumbass, Malkovich the asshole, Swinton the cold bitch and McDormand the ditzy self desctructing center of it all. What I admire most is the stretch of some of these characters, except perhaps Tilda Swinton playing the exact same role she played in Michael Clayton. She still did a great job, and it was what the role called for but I’m hoping she doesn’t end up type cast for future gigs.

As I said, everyone was great. I would have to single out a non headliner in the form of J.K. Simmons (aka Juno’s dad or J Jonah Jameson). He nails some of the best lines in the film as a detached, unflinching CIA director. His only concern being that the entire case/situation simply just go away. It’s just about worth the price of admission for him alone.

The Coen brothers, after No Country for Old Men have returned back to the offbeat, seedy characters that made Fargo, O Brother, Lebowski and Raising Arizona such entertaining films. I’m not sure that this one will win an Oscar like No Country (only because the academy is filled with a closed mindedness to anything that can be percieved as ‘main stream), but I am sure it’s far more enjoyable.

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Get a grip and Frag those Mother Scratchers!

iconogeek — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 22:22:22 +0000

Holy shit, I just came across this on the Times website. I’ve always been a fan of gaming (of course) but especially anything that immersed you more into the game. My absolute FAVORITE was at Jillian’s in New York. It was a Mech game in which you (and 5 other friends) climb into pods as if you are actually the pilots of the Mech. It was a completely immersive experience with small TV screens with different views, booming sound effects and force feedback. Insane.

Well, THIS thing looks to bring a whole new experience to home gaming. Take a look at the video below:

If anyone has direct experience with this thing, let us know! Not sure how much it costs, since I don’t think it’s available in the US yet… but can you really put a price on fun?

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Is you is, or is you ain’t Fringeworthy?

iconogeek — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:47:35 +0000

So last night was the premiere of Fox’s new JJ Abrams’-produced “Fringe”. I’ll start by saying that Fringe is like a cross between X-Files, Lost, and 24. Allow me to expand on that statement.

Fringe is like X-Files because of it’s basic premise. Crazy things are happening and it’s up to a wiley boy/girl team to get to the bottom of all the craziness. You have your stiff, enigmatic government suit who is in charge, some interesting side characters, but truly the focus here is on Anna Torv’s “Olivia Dunham” and Joshua Jackson’s “Peter Bishop.” Olivia is the FBI Agent who doesn’t believe but really does. Bishop is the skeptic scientist. Oh yeah, and the whole conspiracy theory stuff.

Fringe is not like X-Files because of it’s basic acceptance of these strange things. Where the X-Files showed you the baddies and crazy things, essentially Mulder was the only one that saw this stuff. Even when Scully was getting abducted, she still held fast to disbelief. This show goes for the gusty and puts it all out there - melting people? Check. Bad guy with a motive? Check. Interesting twist? Check. Continued intrigue? check. Everybody sees they crazy stuff? Check. The basic idea here is wrapped around science, no aliens here and I like that. I wouldn’t be surprised if Hanso makes an appearance.

Fringe is like LOST because of JJ Abram’s and his amazing storytelling sensibilities. Abrams certainly comes from the Joss Whedon school of tough female leads and I like that. All of his heroines are believable and multi-faceted (Kate and Sydney anyone?). Fringe shares a common soundtrack with LOST especially on the outros to a break. The crescendo of dissonance is a welcome reminder that this show is really not all in your face…you do need to look deeper (if you dare Muuuhhahawahawhhwhwhaaa).

Fringe is not like LOST because it wrapped up the first story in the Premiere! Seriously, a nice complete, contained story with a lead-in to a larger enjoyable story arc. Good thing too, because I think my brain only has room for one LOST right now, and I’m still recuperating from last season.

Fringe is like 24 because it’s heroine will do anything to save the people she loves. I mean…well you’ll see, if you didn’t catch the Premiere, Fox is airing an encore (check your local listings). Just like when Jack Bauer gets in all sorts of insane situations (torture, etc.) Olivia jumps into dangerous situations no questions asked (or very little for that matter) - It’s Bishop that is the voice of reason.

Fringe is not like 24 because right now it doesn’t suck. Ever since they killed off Dennis Haysbert’s Palmer, I was done.

In the end, I enjoyed Fringe, it provided a welcome escape from a stressful day and gave me enough thrills and homages to keep me entertained. A couple notable items:

The titles
They are beautiful. Amazingly rendered and placed into the scene so as to become a character. I kept looking (upon location change) for how they where going to do them next. Excellent.
John Noble
As the crazy Dr. Walter Bishop, he’s Dr. Emmet Brown, CSM, and Jeffrey Goines all rolled into one.

My only gripe with the Premiere is that by the end of it, the characters where a little too neat and wrapped up. I know they want to get the stories moving, but I would have liked to see a little more strife, it was a little bit predictable.

On a whole, I’m going to give the Premiere of Fringe a 7. I think it was a solid opener with some complicated plot points, but all-in-all, I think they pulled it off. I’ve set a season pass on TiVo and I will continue to watch.

Well, what do you think?

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Where tonight we’re not just dangerous…we’re Bangkok Dangerous! Episode 16

iconogeek — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 02:43:56 +0000

As the 16th episode of iconogeek kicks off, Chuck and Jason delve into the much-anticipated “Preschoolers” HBO series, adventures in parenting, the dangers of Capri Sun, and why pets suck.

The term “Postal” is discussed and Chuck and Jason put it to the listeners to coin a new term. After which the discussion turns to Bangkok Dangerous, Elvis, Bubba Ho-tep’s sequel, and how cool Bruce Campbell is.

Chuck tasks Jason with reading Watchmen in preparation for the film, then the two discuss Fox’s bogus lawsuit against the WB and touch on the amazing story that is Watchmen.

The show continues with Jason professing his love for Tilda Swinton as the conversation moves from “Burn After Reading to Michael Clayton. RocknRolla enters into the conversation as Jason marvels at Guy Ritchie’s crazy cast of characters and then finishes up with a quick review of Babylon AD. But not before Chuck allows himself to lay into Doomsday once more (as if the post wasn’t enough).

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Otherwise known as the Ryan Reynolds boy-crush hour : Episode 15

iconogeek — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 03:03:56 +0000

This week, as Jason waits with bated breath, Chuck recounts his latest (and really first) fishing trip and consequent visit to the ER. Afterward, Chuck and Jason discuss Tropic Thunder and how epic the DVD will be and why it’s the best film in the Stiller cannon.

Apologies abound as Chuck and J realize that their summer movie roundup ended a little early. Chuck quickly moves the conversation to Wolverine: Origins as Jason seizes the opportunity to lambaste Chuck on his Ryan Reynolds man-crush.

As Gears of War on Xbox 360 makes an appearance via Terry Tate, office linebacker, Chuck and Jason get nostalgic for Resident Evil’s wonderful dialog. The podcast rounds out with the new Death Race and the original Death Race 2000 with accolades to Robert LaSardo.

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For Your 1-Stop Zombie Shopping Needs

iconogeek — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:04:31 +0000

Apparently Amazon understands that there is a market out there for the few of us who want to be on alert/ready when WWZ happens.

Almost everything you need to ready yourself for most Zombie Scenarios can be purchased here.

http://www.amazon.com/zombie-killing-weapons-survival-items/lm/R2PL8FOY8C78JF

This list also includes the Zombie Survival Bible; I call it Bible because its far more than a guide. I’m not trying to learn how to Macramé, I’m trying to survive zombies and calling it anything other than a Bible is an insult to this god-send scripture and I for one will not befoul its worth by addressing it as a “guide”.

‘Nuff said!

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Thunderous Laughter and a tropically good time.

iconogeek — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 19:13:51 +0000

“I got an extra ticket to Tropic Thunder tonight”

And that was all I needed. This last week has been busy as hell, so a move this weekend was not on the agenda, but when fortune reigns down the funny, you best pick it up.

Tropic Thunder had me crying with laughter from the first frame. Seriously, the first frame. The movie kicks right into Stiller’s outrageous brand of comedy right from the get-go. Typically, I’m very lukewarm on Stiller (Starsky, good; Fokkers, bad). His movies are funny, his comedy is funny, but a lot of times he just pushes it too far for me (mostly in the jump-the-shark category). Plus his mugging and overacting sometimes get a bit too much.

But in this movie, he keeps it reigned in, except for a few spots which actually make sense for his character. The entire film (within a film) is satirizing Hollywood, stars, and producers but does it in such a way that outsiders can appreciate it. Robert Downey Jr. is self deprecating throughout the film with his oscar-winning Kirk Lazarus (whose name is more telling than you think). His performance is amazing and I hope the academy recognizes this (although the fact that this performance is in a comedy…probably not) since for most of the movie, you can’t even recognize Downey Jr. at all, Just Kirk Lazarus. Just watch for Lazarus’s awakening moment, it’s quite impressive.

Jack Black reigns it in as well and plays it pretty tight (for Black). His “Fatties” movie pokes obvious fun at Eddie Murphy (or is it homage?) but the character has an interesting turn about halfway through the movie. Also, watch for the other over-the-top-Stiller-dialogue with Black’s character later in the movie. Don’t worry, you’ll know it when you see/hear it.

Cameos abound and Tugg’s agent is excellent (I’ll refrain from telling you who it is, just see the movie) and surprisingly is one of the only sane characters in the entire film. And while Tom Cruise’s lecherous Les Grossman (whose name is AS telling as you think) is certainly a prick, Cruise plays him loose and with abandon I haven’t seen since Magnolia. I’ve always been a fan of Cruise (I could care less about his private life and religious affiliations) and this role shows that he’s not afraid to take a risk in an attempt to break the “Cruise-mold” - shaved knuckles, sweaty armpits and all. Bottom line: his movies are entertaining and he’s a great actor.

Speaking of sane (and believe it or not, the Hero - at least that’s what I think) Jay Baruchel, typically an Apatow side player, makes a great performance as the only truly combat-ready dude in the outfit. His geeky Kevin Sandusky kicks surprising ass and holds his own with this veteran crew.

From the first frame Brandon T. Jackson’s Alpa Chino sets the stage for what to expect from this movie but quickly turns it on it’s ear. His retorts of Downey Jr’s “blackification” are some of the funniest stuff in the film. I was crying (literally crying) at one point (”For 400 hundreds…”). Watch out for Jackson, you’re gonna see a lot of this kid.

Oh and Danny McBride’s overzealous pyrotechnician is awesome. This guy is going to be the next up-and-comer, just watch (that’s two - Stiller’s got a good eye)

Overall, the look and production value of the movie bely it’s satirical comedy and present a serious war movie. The action and effects are top-notch, it feels like a big Hollywood flick as it’s supposed to- and I like it. The 70’s soundtrack (and direct scene homages) give you the feel of Platoon, Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket - you name it, it’s in there.

So, leave the kids at home, grab some Milk Duds and see this in the theater, THEN go buy the DVD because the extras are gonna kick ass - oh they’ll kick ass.

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