Josh's Inner Dorkdom Journal - Episode 3 (UPDATES)

Not much to talk about this week. Finally got through finals, so I’m out of school (but not work) for about 4 weeks. Having to deal with that, I haven’t had much time for dorkly-type things.
There is something I would like to address, though:
The War Z.

Josh's Inner Dorkdom Journal: Episode 2 (The Wii-U)

I know I said I'd probably update this article/journal every Monday, but I'm just too excited about this to wait until then...

Josh's Inner Dorkdom Journal: Episode 1

With this article/journal, I’ll be giving my opinions on current things that I’m digging on or excited about, as opposed to doing full-blown reviews (probably save those for later). I don’t know how often this thing will get updated, but I hope that a new episode will be available every Monday. Think of these as sort of “Facebook-style status updates about dorky stuff.”

Call of Duty: Black Ops II Multiplayer Review

I can’t help but, for the most part, feel ripped off every time a new Call of Duty title is released. It seems as though, after World at War, the series took a downturn and each title has gotten progressively worse. Is Black Ops II worse than Modern Warfare 3? Honestly, it seems about the same gameplay-wise, but due to some new mechanics, it definitely has the edge over its predecessor.

Perhaps the largest addition to this iteration of COD is the “Pick 10” system. In the past, your load out of weapons and perks consisted of a primary weapon, secondary weapon, grenade, tactical grenade and one each of 3 different perk types. BO2 takes that old system and completely throws it out the window. With the Pick 10 system, you are allotted 10 slots to put whatever you wish into your load out. For example, here’s my main load out that I use:

Primary Weapon: AN-94 Attachments: Target Finder, Fore-Grip, Silencer Perk 1: Blind Eye Perk 2: Cold-blooded Perk 3: Engineer, Dead-silence Wildcards: Perk 3 greed, Primary Gunner

Notice that in my load out I have a total of 10 items. Since I normally don’t use grenades of any type, I sacrificed those to give myself more options on my perks and primary weapon. I also got rid of my secondary weapon to free up one of my 10 slots. This is by far the best equipment system that COD has ever used. It is also the only good thing I can say about the game.

The 4 companies involved in the production of COD (Infinity Ward, Treyarch, Sledge Hammer, Activision) understand marketing and their fanbase extremely well, so they know that whatever they release, people are going to buy it. I’ve fallen victim to this on multiple occasions (MW2-BO2. That’s 4 games). I always hope that the franchise will either return to the glory days of COD4 and W@W or simply improve, but I continuously get burned. Because people keep buying the crap heaps that Activison shovel to them on a yearly basis, they refuse to innovate. Couple that with the fact that the games have been running on the exact same game engine for the past 5 years and you’ve got nothing but pure mediocrity.

These companies seem to have lost sight of what made them great in the first place (kind of like Square-Enix with Final Fantasy). What I’ll do here is show you COD’s lack of progression since COD4 in 2007. Ready? Here we go.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare – Infinity Ward Weapons: Well, duh. All “modern weapons.” M16s and the like. Each load out would consist of a primary and secondary weapon. The primary weapon could be equipped with 1 attachment such as a red-dot sight, or a silencer. Secondary weapons consisted of pistols and rocket launchers. Perks: COD4 was the first game to introduce the perk system. The player used 3 different types of perks that increased his/her abilities in some way. Only one per type could be equipped. Kill Streaks: 3 types. 3 kills=UAV, 5 kills=Airstrike, 7 kills=Helicopter Maps: Various sizes, all fairly balanced. Online play: Extremely good. Sure, there was lag, but it was nothing like what the series would eventually encounter.

Call of Duty: World at War - Treyarch Weapons: Same as COD4, only WWII based. Perks: Same as COD4, but with slightly different names assigned to certain perks. Kill Streaks: 3 Kills=UAV (Recon Plane), 5 Kills=Mortar strike, 7 Kills=Attack Dogs Maps: I may be biased to this game in particular since it’s my favorite, but in my opinion, W@W had the best maps of the entire series. And some of the largest. Having large maps meant that sniping could be somewhat useful. Online play: Extremely good depending on what gametype one played. The Hardcore game modes were the most balanced. Core modes were a bit imbalanced and could be extremely frustrating due to hit detection and lag compensation issues.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Here’s where things start to go south) – Infinity Ward Weapons: Unlike the previous 2 games, MW2 allowed the player to put more than one attachment on their weapon by using a certain perk. Perks: More perks were present this time around. Still used the 3 type system. Kill Streaks: Ugh. MW2 allowed the player to create custom kill streak load outs. Rather than use the simple 3, 5 and 7 method, player would have the option for how many kills they would have to get before earning a kill streak. By using a certain perk, the player could even set it to get his streak reward one kill earlier. MW2 also introduced the care package, a kill streak that when earned would send a box from the sky containing a random streak reward. MW2 was very kill streak heavy and this is what started the imbalance trend. Maps: The maps in MW2 were decent, but when having to deal with CONSTANT kill streaks flying around the map, the level of fun and actual skill involved was significantly decreased. Online play: Due to the above mentioned imbalances, online play was far too hectic and resulted in a lot of frustration for players (myself included) used to the 2 previous games.

Call of Duty: Black Ops - Treyarch Weapons: Same as MW2 Perks: Same as MW2 Kill Streaks: Same as MW2 (noticing a trend here?) Maps: Far too small. Few large maps. Most were medium to small sized. Online play: Same as MW2, but with a little less emphasis on kill streaks.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – Infinity Ward/Sledge Hammer Weapons: Same as MW2 and BO. Perks: Same as MW2 and BO. Kill Streaks: Same as MW2 and BO. (Yup. There’s a trend, for sure.) Maps: No large maps. All medium to small. Online play: Same as MW2 and BO. Game, as a whole, seems as though it’s just a map pack for MW2.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II - Treyarch Weapons: New pick 10 system. Great addition. Perks: Mostly new perks. Kill Streaks: Same as MW2, MW3 and BO, only instead of earning streaks by kills, one now earns them from game score. Maps: Same as MW3. Online play: Same as MW2, MW3 and BO on the lag level. The kill streaks are toned down significantly from the last 3 games because of being harder to earn.

What I’m basically trying to get at here, is that Activision basically keeps giving players the same game year after year with small updates. The same can be said for most EA sports games. Is Madden ’11 that much different than Madden ’12? No. There are a few extra modes and options, but the game is basically the same thing people have been playing for years. I’m all for the “if ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality, but the additions COD has received over the years have done nothing but make the game increasingly worse. Will COD ever get better? Not, unless the game buying public stops buying the games year after year.

In closing: Is Call of Duty: Black Ops II worth the $65 price tag? Absolutely not. Don’t believe the hype, people. Places like IGN are paid extremely well to review huge selling titles favorably (I believe it got over a 9.0 on there). My advice is to steer clear of this one. Trust me, unless you feel like paying $65 for some new, mediocre, maps and a new equipment system, you’ve already played this game… 3 times before.

Final score: 3/10

-Josh

Mario and Link team up....along with Maxwell?

WB Games announced today that the Wii U version of Scribblenauts Unlimited will include playable Scribblenauts versions of Nintendo characters (Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi, Link, Zelda, Epona, and a goron). Scribblenauts Unlimited will be available for Wii U on launch day, November 18.

I'm a big fan of Scribblenauts, and the Mario and Zelda franchises. So this excites me.

It's funny, Gamestop's Facebook page had a tease about it beginning Monday. Their banner had an image of Maxwell (main character of Scribblenauts) flanked by two bulbous shadowy areas. The text asked "Who's playing with Maxwell?" Folks in the internet had figured out who the shadows were within a matter of hours. And I for on am glad they were right.

 Without a magic notepad, I remain,

 - Nic


END OF LINE

Wii U Launch Thoughts

Given that the Wii U launch is just a hair over a month away, I figure it's past time that I, the resident Nintendo fanboy, weigh in on the September Wii U press conference and all the information that was revealed (and what information wasn't revealed). We're planning on doing a podcast about the Wii U launch in the coming weeks, so think of this as just a discussion of the major points.

If It's Not One Thing...

Sorry for not delivering on the content so far. I really hate this, as I was serious the other day about getting serious about posting content.

But my family and I have been moving for the past few days. Between the run up to the move, the move itself, the aftermath, and other things happening, I've had very little time.

And then there's this: So we have DishNetwork. We love DishNetwork. They have great channel packages, great quality HD, and an excellent DVR.  They also have this service called "Dish Mover" for when you move and want to keep using Dish (hence, the appropriate named service). It's quite convenient.

Monday was the offical move day, and thus the day of the Dish Move. The technician came, installed the actual dish in the new place (not an easy feat, given the foliage in the area), and hooked it up to our reciever, with the aforementioned DVR, which was filled to the brim (if harddrives have such things) with copious amounts of programming, including new episodes of the shows I'm going to review--episodes I had not yet watched (that's important to the story). The tech said that sent we'd now be picking up signal from different satellites than we had been, the occasional "complete signal loss" messages we were seeing were normal, and would end by the next day. You probably know where this is going. They didn't end. Rather, they stayed pretty steady. New episodes of shows were recorded throughout the week, although often they were so glitched up as to be unwatcheable (and creepy). So today I called them up, and let them know about the situation. They offered to send out a tech this afternoon. I took them up on that. And long story short, he determined that the reason for our low signal was that our almost-six-year-old reciever was malfunctioning and needed to be replaced. My first thought was, "And there goes our DVR recordings."

Indeed, they're gone. They're all gone, folks. Clone Wars. Voltron Force. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Thundercats. Castle. NinjaGo. The Looney Tunes Show. The Big Bang Theory. NASA Channel stuff. And a bunch of other shows/movies y'all either don't care about or would mock me for having.

So, I'm going to try this again, begining with episodes airing tomorrow. Hopefully our shiny new Dish reciever will cooperate.

Now recieving programming from satellites at orbital locations 110 W, 119 W, and 129 W, I am still...

 - Nic


END OF LINE

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 vs. Dead Or Alive 5 Opinions / Mini-Review

On release day, I got my hands on a shiny new copy of Dead Or Alive 5 for the Xbox 360. Not the shiniest copy, as that title goes to the Collector’s Edition (art book, soundtrack, a tin case, etc). I intended to purchase the CE, but unfortunately, it was a Gamestop PREORDER exclusive. Why is “preorder” in all caps? Because Gamestop, at least on their website, never stated that it was, in fact, a preorder exclusive. I had to find that out by calling around to several stores within driving distance, only to hear the clerks say, “Um… yeah… the collector’s edition is only for people who preordered.” Lame. Lame, indeed.

Clone Wars Interviews

News-A-Rama has three short video interviews with the three Jedi leads on The Clone Wars. Though there's nothing really revelatory here, it's good to see the three of them showing their enthusiasm for the about-to-start-its-fifth-season animated show.

Matt Lanter Interview

James Arnold Taylor Interview

Ashley Eckstein Interview


Less than three days to the premiere!

 - Nic

The Avengers Impressions

Tomorrow (Sept 25th), The Avengers arrives on Blu-ray to the delight of  millions of people. In light of this...and in light of the fact that we never did one...I thought now would be a great time to offer my informal review/impressions of the wildly successful superhero ensemble movie directed by TV's Joss Whedon.

Warning: Past this point there be spoilers.

I Am Not A Crook

So, almost none of you know this, but for a few months now I've been working on my own set of stories, set in my own fictional universe. I'm trying to blend some of my favorite genres (science fiction, fantasy, and a few more) into something that I hope will be original, entertaining, fun, and even thought provoking.

At this point, many of my characters will wield bows. One of the main female protagonists, herself a bow wielder, I'm currently envisioning wearing an outfit of green and brown.

So JJ Abrams and Jon Favreau come out with the show "Revolution" wherein the female lead, a bow wielder, looks like this:

Great, now  people will think I'm just ripping off an NBC show.

Thanks a lot McFlares-A-Lot and Happy Hogan!

 - Nic


END OF LINE

And So We Begin Again

Ok folks, it’s here! TV show premiere week. Although there have been a few already, and a few stragglers will be coming in the next few weeks, this is the week that majority of new shows are premiering, and existing shows are returning with new episodes. Given that we are only three guys, and we don’t have the time or inclination to watch some of those shows (I’m looking at you, The Mob Doctor), we won’t be reviewing every episode of every show. However, the shows that we watch regularly, we will hopefully review regularly.

My hope is that beginning today we can turn over a new leaf here at The Inner Dorkdom. We know, because we’re nerds and users of the Internet ourselves, that what folks want is regular content. And that’s something we clearly haven’t been providing.

Here’s my pledge: This far, no further! The line must be drawn here!

Some of the shows I personally intend to cover: Castle, The Big Bang Theory, The Clone Wars, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Voltron Force (when it returns), TRON Uprising (when I get caught up on what I’ve missed), and Transformers Prime (when I get caught up on what I’ve missed). Hopefully there will be more.

So, until tomorrow at the latest, I remain…

 - Nic

END OF LINE

!!! If The Man In Black On Lost Had No Clean Clothes One Day AndBorrowed A Shirt From Jacob, Would He Still Be "The Man In Black"?Huh? !!!

Wow, my trip to "The Island" was great. I found Jack's rotting corpse, didn't press the button in "The Swan" station, and successfully extinguished that annoying bright light in that cave because it was keeping me up at night. It was a great vacation and I have to say that "The Smoke Monster" is really quite nice when you get to know him. I have missed everyone and I hope to keep up the pace I set before on this site and bring you all great stuff going on in the world of entertainment. I can only explain my recent absence as a result of a time displacement anomaly that caused me to become unstuck in time and then chased for hours by "The Others". Luckily, I was rescued by "The Doctor" in the Tardis and given an Ood for my trouble (not sure what to do with the Ood). Unless I need to assist in a new war with the Daleks I should be back for the foreseeable future. We have lots of stuff to catch up on and I'm going to give it a go starting this weekend. I hope to have a book review, a movie review, Marvel news, video game reviews, and my thoughts on the Wii U (it's complicated). So stick around and hold on to your butts, because I'm making this up as I go along.

Todd "I Visited The Lost Island And All I Got Was This Lousy Ankh" B.

(Hasn't everybody secretly dreamed of a fanfic between Lost and Dr. Who? What? Nobody?.... Wow, what planet are you people from? Sheesh!!)

Avengers Re-Assemble!

Just in case you didn't know, The Avengers is returning to theaters this Labor Day weekend. We're definitely going to try and see it again.

Ok...that's all I got.

 - Nic


END OF LINE

An Overview of Christopher Nolan's Batman Trilogy

Disclaimer: Sorry about the lack of spaces that may be present in this article. For some reason, the blogger program messes up sometimes and removes them when I post from my phone. Also, watch out for MAJOR SPOILERS below!!!

Dark Knight Rises review from guest reviewer

Nic here. One of my fourth cousins, Parker, is a good friend of mine, as well as a connoisseur of films. Also, he loves the Batman. He and I have had discussions about the Caped Crusader, and in particular his film exploits as helmed by Christopher Nolan, for some time now. He was anticipating The Dark Knight Rises the same way I anticipated the Star Wars prequels.

Well, he's seen the movie, and has written a review for us. So, after the break, I invite you read his thoughtful analysis of the film.

"I kill me!"

No, no no. I'm not being suicidal. Entertainment Weekly is reporting that Sony Animation has bought the right to ALF, intending to make an ALF theatrical film.

This excites me, as I've missed Mr. Shumway over the years.


Lock up the cats!

 - Nic


END OF LINE

The Inner Dorkdom Podcast - Episode 7!!

So this is about two weeks old, but nonetheless, here it is! Listen in as the guys talk Batman, Star Trek, and other various things!

Download it here.


 - Nic


END OF LINE

Joss will return for the second assembly

Marvel.com is reporting that Joss Whedon, who wrote and directed this summer's The Avengers, will be returning to fulfill the same roles in the sequel, currently with appropriate title of The Avengers 2.

Check out Marvel.com for more info.

So, do you think this is a good move? Talk about it in our forums.


 My mother knowest I weareth her drapes.

 - Nic


END OF LINE

!!! Jimmy Stewart As Bane In It’s A Wonderful Dark Knight (The Dark Knight Rises Review With Spoilers) !!!

I've been putting this off for a while. Not because I didn’t know how I feel about the movie, but because of the tragedy in Aurora Colorado. I want to say that my heart goes out to all those people and their families. I have felt extremely close to this since I heard the news on the morning of the 20th. I distinctly remember Columbine and I can tell you exactly where I was when 9/11 happened. Those awful events will forever haunt our country and our lives. It is truly sad that Aurora has to take its place among those events. I felt that I was somewhat removed from Columbine because I was no longer in high school when it occurred. I also felt removed from the events of 9/11 because it was taking place in large metropolitan areas on high profile targets while I lived in a decidedly small community a good distance from the bustle of the big cities. Aurora, on the other hand, took place in a movie theater, a place of wonder and joy for many around the world. It felt to me that this had taken place in my world and in a place I felt safe and at home. I love movies and to think that this could happen in a place I go to forget the world around me is disturbing. I can‘t begin to imagine the pain, loss, and fear that took place in that community, but I do know that this cowardly act cannot break our spirit and take away the small joys that we have when we go to the movies. We cannot let this one evil man destroy our love of sitting in a theater with family and friends to enjoy, for a couple of hours, an escape from the cares of this world. I feel horrible for those people that were in that theater and have had a great movie tainted forever because one fool had to destroy peoples lives because of his own demons (if you want to destroy yourself don’t take other people with you). We must not forget those people and the lives that they lived. They will forever be more important to this world than the scum (I will not use his name because he doesn’t deserve that kind of care) who took them from it. God bless them and keep them.


On a different note, if you’ve been paying attention you know how I feel about the movie soundtracks of Hans Zimmer (Hint: One Note). But for all the uninspired music he produces he is one upstanding gentleman. Hans has written a song to honor the memory of those people who died in Aurora and to help those who are dealing with the aftermath. Simply titled “Aurora” the proceeds from the song go to the victims and their families and you can help the cause by purchasing the song through iTunes (it‘s only $1.29 and it‘s worth it). I may have issues with the way he scores movies, but that does not change the fact that he is one heck of a human being. Keep it up Hans, I’m behind you 100%.

Well, after that, my thoughts on the Dark Knight Rises, seem unimportant. Movies are certainly not more important than lives, but I know that if I stop these reviews, then in some way that allows the shooter to win. That can’t happen, and I won’t let it. Spoiler Warnings Abound!!! You Are Warned!!! I'm Not Kidding I Will Spoil The Movie So Bug Out Now If You Want To Stay Clean And Clear!!!

Spoiler Warning!!!

Spoiler Warning!!!

Spoiler Warning!!!

Spoiler Warning!!!

Spoiler Warning!!!

The Dark Knight Rises is first and foremost an end to the story Chris Nolan has been telling in the previous two films. Together all three movies (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises) constitute one large story that, for a comic movie, is extremely well thought out and highly detailed. I am a huge fan of the Tim Burton Batman movies (Michael Keaton was inspired casting) and I have been a comic book nerd for as long as I can remember (Batman is my favorite in DC comics, Wolverine in Marvel comics) so I have high expectations when it comes to comic characters I love and know well. Christopher Nolan has taken Batman and knocked it out of the park. Batman has always been a more realistic figure (if you can call someone who dresses like a bat and has a tank for a car realistic) and this is the aspect that Nolan plays up throughout the trilogy. That doesn’t mean that nods to the comic aren’t present, it just means that they might be represented by different things (more later). I have read that some people found the movie overly complicated. Really? It seemed to me that The Dark Knight was a harder movie to follow than Rises. Maybe that is because I have watched that film many times and had prepared myself for Rises. I also like to think that we are a more enlightened creatures who can handle bigger things from our movies.

The Movie clocks in at about 2 hours and 45 minutes and it needs every bit of that time to tell it’s story. If there is a criticism that I could level against the movie it would be that it was perhaps too short (I like to get my money’s worth). Strike that, I can also say that the score once again was underwhelming (sorry Hans). It just seemed to sound the same after a while (I’ve been watching the Olympics and hearing the theme written by John Williams so at this point it’s hard to get excited for Hans’s one note). I will limited my discussion of the soundtrack to those thoughts because I really like Hans (just not his music).

The cast for these movies has been unbelievable. Christian Bale was the perfect choice for Bruce Wayne/Batman (Yes voice and all). He can pull off both sides to the character in equal measure where as some actors could only manage one (Clooney, Arrrg). Charming as Bruce Wayne, determined and cool as Batman, to say he was born to play the role is an understatement. As much as Bale does a great job, the real standouts in this cast are Gary Oldman (there will never be another Commissioner Gordon), Michael Caine (I really wanted more Alfred), Morgan Freeman (I want to have a guy like Lucius Fox around), and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (John Blake or Tim Drake, coincidence? I don’t think so). They are all standouts in their respective roles with Gary Oldman stealing every moment he’s in the film and showing why he‘s one of the greatest actors working today (when he gets out of his hospital bed and takes out the guys coming to get him, WOW). Gordon-Levitt deserves special mention for his performance. If this is any indication of the future that he’s going to have on film, I can’t wait to see it (very ready for Looper). I don’t want to sound like I’m selling the other actors short, I’m not. Anne Hathaway is a great Catwoman, Tom Hardy is menacing as Bane (is he trying to do an impression of Jean-Luc Picard, cause you know he was a Picard clone  in Star Trek Nemesis, or a weird Jimmy Stewart? I can’t decide), and Marion Cottillard as Miranda Tate makes the most of her very surprising role (for everyone who doesn’t know !!! Spoiler Alert!!! she’s Ra’s al Ghul daughter Talia !!!Spoiler Alert!!!). The somewhat unfortunate problem that occurs (and is it really a problem?) is that everyone is so good that it’s hard to pick the best performance. Every comic to film adaptation should have that problem, think of the movies we would have (hey, like The Avengers). I also have to mention that almost everyone is back with the exception of Heath Ledger and Aaron Eckhart (we get a picture though). We see Liam Neeson as Ra’s and Cillian Murphy as Dr. Jonathan Crane, which was unexpected but very welcome. And I have to mention that one of Bane’s henchmen is played by Teal’c himself, Christopher Judge, how cool is that. We also get Nestor Carbonell (Ricardo Alpert from Lost) as the mayor, Matthew Modine as the deputy Commissioner, Juno Temple as Jen (but we all know that she really plays Holly Robinson from Year One), and William Devane as the President (doesn’t he always play the President, Vice President, Congressman, and/or hold some type of political office in everything he’s in?). With a cast like that, I could write an entire paper on their skills alone, but I’ll limit it to, “These guys ain’t half bad.”

When it comes to story, Christopher Nolan (and consequently Jonathan Nolan and David Goyer) have taken influences from the entire history of Batman, with a heavy emphasis on the 1970’s through today. While it’s not new for comic book movies to pull from different storylines to form the basis of a film, Nolan’s trilogy is like an overview of the entire history of Batman. From Bob Kane and Bill Finger’s early Caped Crusader, to the birth of Ra’s al Ghul by Denny O’Neill and Neal Adams, right up through Frank Miller’s “Year One” and “The Dark Knight Returns”. Nolan utilizes all of it to craft the definitive Batman story. The very fact that the “Knightfall” and “No Man’s Land” series are used in Rises speak to the willingness of the creators to dig deep into the lore of Batman and find meaningful influences by which to craft an intelligent film. Writers and Directors can really screw up a film by twisting different storylines together and altering the fundamental elements to suit a specific purpose (Example: Green Lantern). But Nolan has found the sweet spot by combining the different elements into a whole while retaining the spirit and intent of the original narrative (I feel like I’m writing a college paper on the intricacies and influences of Christopher Nolan’s Batman, which wouldn’t be a half bad title if I was). The fundamental difference between the fantastical world of the comic Batman and the grounded in reality Dark Knight of the films is the use of a supernatural element to place the printed Dark Detective in the greater world of aliens and demons found in DC continuity. Nolan chose to place his movies in a realm separate and apart from the wider world of Wonder Woman and Superman and to his credit (and to the credit of the wide choices Batman stories offer to a creator of any type) this strategy has proved extremely effective. Batman has always had the ability to move seamlessly between the greater universe of fantasy and the gritty detective drama that formed the basis for the origin of the character. This doesn’t mean that Nolan ignores some of those elements. He has placed subtle nods to some of the more outlandish ideas throughout the three movies. Resurrection is a recurrent motif in all of the comic worlds and Batman is no different. People die in a certain storyline only to return later on having been brought back to life via supernatural means (Superboy Prime punching all of reality and knocking Jason Todd back from the dead) or shown to have never been dead to begin with (Stephanie Brown’s faked death in “War Games”). These type of events are common place in comics but in the world that Nolan crafted people are meant to stay dead and those deaths have consequences. But Nolan has also found a way to acknowledge those elements while still retaining the reality in which he has placed his films. Liam Neeson returns as the seemingly dead Ra’s al Ghul (which is a story element throughout the history of the character) only revealed to be a hallucination of a battered and broken Bruce Wayne. In this way, Nolan gets to appease fans and still retain the atmosphere that has informed all three movies. Certain allusions are made to things in the comic such as the case with the prison that Bane puts the injured Wayne in after their initial fight. We see this prison dug into the ground with a round opening at the top which serves as the only way out. It’s called “the Pit” and it is most certainly a veiled reference to the Lazarus Pits that are used to bring someone back from the dead (in this case Bruce Wayne and Bane, metaphorically speaking). John Blake is another example of taking a less than realistic element from the comic (in this case, Robin) and adapting it to fit the world of the films (bye, bye Chris O’Donnell). In these ways, Nolan gives fans what they want without sacrificing the films artistic integrity.

This Trilogy of films have been a shining example of how to make a great film based on a comic. It has nothing to do with the tone of the film or how heavy the subject matter is. It has everything to do with the people involved with making the film. You could have the darkest, grittiest film you can make about a comic character, if you don’t have the talent both in front of and behind the camera it makes no difference. With the right people (those who understand and really get what the comic is about), you could make any comic, no matter the tone, into a hit film and a true money maker (Avengers, anyone?). Chris Nolan gets it, he understands how this character works and what motivates the stories that have been beloved by countless fans for over 70 plus years. If there was anything going right for Warner Bros. and DC comics when it comes to live action movies it was this series of films (the animated side of the DC universe is knocking it out of the park right now, so if you want good comic to film adaptations, I highly recommend these films). Marvel seems to be on the rise (pun intended) while DC seems to be coming to a conclusion of their film making (yeah, I know Man of Steel is coming, but come on, a realistic gritty Superman movie, read that again and listen to how it sounds, SEE). I sincerely hope DC and Warner Bros. can salvage there properties and start making good films that can rival Marvel’s offerings. As of right now, we bid a fond farewell to an incredible film series and say hello to an uncertain future when it comes to DC comic characters. But for the moment, Batman represents the pinnacle of comic storytelling. Nolan and everyone involved have given their all to bring the most ambitious and ultimately greatest comic book trilogy created to the silver screen. This film caps off an incredible summer filled with fantastic movie after fantastic movie and a banner year for comic book properties. There’s no reason to stop and as far as Hollywood is concerned (Especially, Marvel) it’s full speed ahead. Go see this movie if you’re a fan and if you just like really good movies. For all of you out there that have seen it and say, “I didn’t like it because it was too complicated (really?).” I say maybe it’s good for you to use your brains once and a while. I highly recommend The Dark Knight Rises and I praise Nolan and his crew for a job well done (It’s got a nuclear explosion in it, come on!). Until later go see a movie and enjoy your life because it is certainly too short.

"When Gotham is in ashes, you have my permission to come back and save the entire city and kill me in the process." -Bane (before rewrites)

Todd “Joe Kerr” B.

(If you don’t get the reference, check out the Batman Begins final scene where Gordon shows Batman the card from an familiar foe. The evidence receipt is signed J. Kerr, funny right?).

Just some video game fun

Saw this and thought it was very well done. Clever idea, very good execution.

 - Nic


END OF LINE

Coming Soon!!

I have an idea for an opinion piece I'm going to to about the current state of movie trailers. Hopefully I'll write it soon. But in the meantime, I present to you this video I found on Youtube. Consider it a teaser for the article.

 - Nic


END OF LINE

!!! The Discovery Channel Presents Deadliest Catch The Movie Starring Clark Kent !!!

Well, we saw The Dark Knight (my review comes soon, very soon) and in a word, WOW! Great stuff! Go see it, you'll like it. We also got to see the teaser for a small movie called The Man of Steel (or just Man of Steel, because the "the" would make it less dark and edgy). Color me unimpressed. My first thought was, Deadliest Catch the Movie (I fully expected Bon Jovi's Wanted Dead or Alive to start playing), and my second thought was,"WTF is this crap?" If they wanted me to go, "Wow, the Man of Steel trailer", they were sorely mistaken. The only indication of what it's about was the shot at the end of Superman flying (at least he wasn't jumping). The voice over, I found out later, could have been one of two, either Russell Crowe as Jor-El or Kevin Costner as Pa Kent (Jonathan if you want to get technical). Both great actors and I have no doubt that they will do fine in those roles (the voice overs do give me slight hope because they seem to be well written), but the rest of the teaser, nothing, nada, zip. Didn't feel a thing. No excitement, no holding my breath, no chills, just a whole lot a nothing. So far, Warner Bros. is 0 for nothing when it comes to this version of Superman. Maybe I'm wrong and maybe they'll pull a rabbit out of their hats, wait, who am I kidding no they won't. Superman will crash and burn and Warner Bros. will have to pick up the pieces. Wait, maybe I'm being to hard. I just know that the whole, "let's chunk everything that came before and do the dark and edgy thing" is seriously rubbing me the wrong way. Superman is the Donner movies, Superman is Christopher Reeve, and Superman is John William's score. Without those as a basis, the castle will crumble. I'll reserve final judgement for when I see it, until then give me something that get's me excited, quit jerking everyone around.

!!! Two Films Enter, Three Films Leave (The Hobbit News) !!!

Yeah, I want to be more broke!

No, seriously, I don't need these pieces of paper in my wallet (or plastic if you prefer). I can sustain myself on water and small rats that I hunt and kill, so that's fine, take my hard earned cash. Peter Jackson and Warner Bros. apparently are have a money crisis and they are looking to us, the movie going public, to take up the slack. Today, in a move that shocks and surprises no one, Peter Jackson announced that "The Hobbit" will now go from two films to three. He will be drawing on material from both The Hobbit and The Appendices of The Lord of the Rings books. While I wholeheartedly welcome the decision, I find myself lamenting my lost revenue, because that's another $15.00 dollars and also another 3 hours spent in a theater so there's also a reduction in my lifespan, but no biggie. Here's what PJ had to say on his Facebook page.


It is only at the end of a shoot that you finally get the chance to sit down and have a look at the film you have made. Recently Fran, Phil and I did just this when we watched for the first time an early cut of the first movie - and a large chunk of the second. We were really pleased with the way the story was coming together, in particular, the strength of the characters and the cast who have brought them to life. All of which gave rise to a simple question: do we take this chance to tell more of the tale? And the answer from our perspective as the filmmakers, and as fans, was an unreserved ‘yes.'

We know how much of the story of Bilbo Baggins, the Wizard Gandalf, the Dwarves of Erebor, the rise of the Necromancer, and the Battle of Dol Guldur will remain untold if we do not take this chance. The richness of the story of The Hobbit, as well as some of the related material in the appendices of The Lord of the Rings, allows us to tell the full story of the adventures of Bilbo Baggins and the part he played in the sometimes dangerous, but at all times exciting, history of Middle-earth.

So, without further ado and on behalf of New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Wingnut Films, and the entire cast and crew of “The Hobbit” films, I’d like to announce that two films will become three.

It has been an unexpected journey indeed, and in the words of Professor Tolkien himself, "a tale that grew in the telling."

Cheers,

Peter J

Straight from the horse's mouth. No word on whether the third one will be called "The Hobbit: Cash Grab" or "The Hobbit: It's All About The Benjamins". Be back latter with more cool stuff, so stay tuned.

Todd "You Shall Not Pass" B.

[ComingSoon.net]

New Podcast Episode Coming!!

Last night the three of us went to see the Star Trek: The Next Generation 25th Anniversary in-theaters celebration event. On the way up and back we recorded a little podcast episode. Once I get the files from Josh, I'll put it up for the world to listen to.

Oh, and The CloneCast will live on.

 - Nic


END OF LINE

!!! I'll Take A Bottle Of Jack And Some Nails, I Got To Go Build AHouse (Unofficial Punisher) !!!

Thomas Jane is the Man !!!

Marvel is the king right now. No question that they are dominating the movie world and there seems to be no end in sight. This is good, we need someone making good superhero/comic book films because apparently "No One Else Will". They have done well thru other studios with the X-Men and Spider-Man and have dropped the bomb with their Marvel Universe Movies through Disney. Then there is the other side of the coin, the 2nd and 3rd tier characters that have homes at different studios. I thought the first Daredevil movie was good, I liked the first Ghost Rider, and my favorite of the bunch was the first Punisher movie. For some reason, I don't know if it's Marvel not caring (maybe on purpose because of the rights) or the studio, that has the rights, is putting crap out to keep those rights for themselves, but the second films in those franchises have been a letdown. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance could have been great and there are flashes of that greatness in the film, but ultimately it crashes and burns on the crappy choices made by too hip directors. The second Punisher film subtitled "War Zone" had the exact same problem. It had everything in place to be a great movie (great action, great cast, set in New York), but fell short because of poor choices that didn't fit the characters. If this is Marvel's strategy for getting their character back in house it appears to be working. The Punisher has already reverted back to Marvel and their parent company Disney, while Ghost Rider is seemingly headed in the same direction. Yes, this is good news because then these properties can be used in the multitude of universe building stories that Marvel intends to continue rolling out in "Phases". Can you imagine Captain America having to fight the Punisher or better yet team up with (albeit reluctantly on Cap's part) Frank in order to stop some terrorist plot? Of course, the Punisher would fly in the face of all of Cap's morals and there would be very heated discussions (see: fight) and that would be awesome, but it could also be a very long time away.

!!! Keep It Secret, Keep It Safe (San Diego Comic-Con Part 2) !!!

So last night I told you all about the Marvel Studio's panel and various other things at "the con" (at least stuff I thought was cool). Tonight, I will try and finish what I started last night by giving you the lowdown on the really cool Warner Bros. panel that also took place last night. Both Warner Bros. (all two of them) brought their "A" game to show the very excited crowd the awesome things they have in store for the foreseeable future.

!!! The Nerd Apocalypse Is Here (San Diego Comic-Con News) !!!

It is finally here. The biggest geek, nerd, and dork convention in the world. So far it's been pretty good. Within the first three days, it's already beat E3 for big announcements and it doesn't appear that will change. Since there has been a lot going on both there and here (my life got a little crazy this week) I decided to put all the Comic-Con news in one post (at least the first three days). I've also got my review of Spider-man coming so keep checking back for that. Also my computer's decided to go on vacation this week, so I will try my best with what I got. Here. We. Go.

Batman: Earth One (Hardcover) Review

First off,I’ll say that I liked this book. Second,I didn’t “love“ it. I’m always down for a new Batman story (he's my favorite superhero, after all) and there have been many takes on his origin in particular, but honestly,this book reads like a rejected Batman Begins movie script. Don’t get me wrong,I think that Geoff Johns is a good writer,but it seems as though Earth One tries a bit too hard to change things and doesn’t really succeed.

!!! You Look Marvelous (News And Rumors) !!!

"Remember, it is better to look good than to feel good, and you look Marvelous." -Fernando Lamas (Billy Crystal) !!!

"No Todd, It can't be; I just sent you back to the future!
"No, I know; you *did* send me back to the future. But I'm back - I'm back *from* the future."
"Great Scott!" (Faints)
"Doc! Doc! Doc! Oh, fantastic."

I have finally parked the Delorean in the garage and I'm back from the future of the great San Diego Comic-Con. Oh, the things I have seen. Some good, some great, some bad, and some down right ugly. I can't actually tell you all the crazy stuff I saw because if I did I would be destroying the Space/Time Continuum. And as we all know, that's as bad as crossing the streams. But I can tell you a few things that have popped up the past few days and get you in the mood to "Party like it's Comic-Con 1999"!!! Thank You, voice of Prince that lives in my head. I always really liked that album where you were just a symbol and all. "Thank you, and let's forget about the whole symbol thing. OK!" Gotcha, moving on.

Sorry, folks. The Parks Closed. The moose out front should'a told ya.

It has been a strange past weekend and first of this week. The Fourth was a blast (pun intended) and it was good to share it with good friends and family. After that things just started to snowball. Sometime, you know how life will come along and punch you in the gut and say, "Get Up, I ain't through with ya!!!" Well this is what happened to me. Life beat the ever loving crap out of me and expected me to get back up. Well, I'm up but I need to catch my breath a little before I can start swinging my Right Hand of Doom. It will happen and justice and punishment will be swift and severe. (cricket, cricket, cricket..........)
Anywho, I have been away to long, but I am back. Let's touch on a few things and then I'll relay some cool information to you that hopefully will make you want to come and join us during the next few days (Comic-Con and all).

Marvel is "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong". They seem to be riding this wave all the way to the bank. I not talking just "The Avengers" and "The Amazing Spider-man". I'm talking about the absolute blitz that they have set in motion that, more than likely, will secure their dominance in the superhero world. We have news that the unnamed Marvel Movie Project. (See: Guardians of the Galaxy) will open in theaters on August 1, 2014. This at least confirms that we are getting another new Marvel movie that doesn't have Iron, Captain, or Norse God of Chippendale dancers in the title. Wait, I think that last one my have been about Mike and his magic wand. I can't be sure. If any of you women out there know what that's all about, can you please give us a "Whooooooo". I knew that you could. Now, moving on, Iron Man 3 will have a large presence at this years Comic-con and we will let you know if anything big breaks (like the flap Stark had installed in the suit that allows him to visit the little boys room, that thing breaks all the time). The new Wolverine movie entitled, huh?....."The Wolverine" (well, go figure) has started to cast for the roles that will be featured in the The Ol' Canucklehead vs. the ninjas retelling of Chris Claremont and Frank Miller's original mini series. This is being billed as a stand alone story, which is fine but maybe they can expand the brand in the future. It also looks like "The Amazing Spider-man" is cleaning up at the box office. Maybe not to the extent that "The Avengers" did, but I would say it ain't to shabby. This means we will get sequels and as far as I'm concerned that's fine. I have see the movie and in a couple of days I'll post my review. The short version is that it's really good (dare I say better than the first Sam Rami Spidey movie and on par with the second Rami Spideypaloosa for my favorite web head movie yet). I'll give you the full spoiler filled review as soon as I get it typed up. Oh, and DC, the warning shots are over. Just having one great movie franchise based on your characters (which will be ending with a definite clank according to Chris Nolan who said this week that "he's done" and "no more", so take that fanboys..... Sorry, I added that last part) ain't gonna cut it. You are dangerously close to letting Marvel sink your Battleship (arcane reference to outdated board game, check, realizing that is probably the reason your movie based on said board game tanked at the box office, priceless). Come on DC, pull it together. The Time is now!!! As alway, check the links below for more information from our favorite sources.

A few odds and ends from this past week for you to peruse. Comic-Con will be huge, from Man of Steel and Iron Man 3, to The Hobbit and Pacific Rim, I can't wait to see what will go on. Meanwhile, the crazy back and forth continues from the New Star Trek movie camp with Karl Urban (Dredd) saying today that Benedict Cumberbatch plays a great Gary Mitchell. Wait, What????? Gary Mitchell is the crazy guy that got the God like powers in the first episode of the original series titled "Where No Man Has Gone Before". This statement by Urban could be a ruse to lead us astray or it could be true. This is J.J. Abrams we're talking about. This news appears to have already been refuted when Roberto Orsi posted a list of characters from Star Trek lore that would not be appearing in the film. Interestingly, Gary Mitchell's name is on the list while Khan's is not. Come on guys, just quit playing and give us some real info. "It's like playing cards with my brother's kids!"

In Ghostbusters news, a new writer has been hired to make Bill Murray funny again (because apparently there is too much effort involved for Bill to actually try to improvise funny, ya know like he use to). Etan Cohen has been given the rewriting duties (See: make Murray happy role). He was one of three writers on Tropic Thunder (very funny) and the sole credited writer for Men In Black III. I guess we'll wait and see (for another 35 years).

Alright, that's it for me right now. I will be back tomorrow with some cool posters of upcoming films, some thoughts on the cool exclusive stuff you can get at Comic-Con, Preview Night, and much more. My Amazing Spidey review will arrive soon. Stay Tuned. Oh, and posters (yea).

Todd "Yep, Marvelous" B.

[Comingsoon.net]

One more thing, check out what the Make-A-Wish Foundation did for this little boy (here). Ron Perlman gets my vote for most awesome man alive. That is truly a wonderful thing and goes a ways (no matter how small) to restoring some of my faith in some of humanity. Nice Job, Guys!!! This just makes all the bad go away. Thank You, Ron, Thank You.

[Comics Alliance]

Quick Hits from Nic

Greetings from sunny Florida. We're on vacation celebrating my wife's 25th birthday. But I wanted to pop in with some quick news bits:

1. She and I saw Tyler Perry's Madea's Witness Protection the other day. Funny movie, that as with all Tyler Perry films (the ones I've seen anyway) has a good message (without being preachy). This is the most overt comedy film of his that I've seen, with he and Eugene Levy both bringing the funny.

2. While we're talking Tyler Perry, did you all know he's going to be the new Alex Cross, taking over for the iconic Morgan Freeman, in the 'reboot' being helmed by Rob Cohen (who directed some favorites of mine, such as DragonHeart and the third Mummy film...and is also known for films like Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, and The Fast amd the Furious)? Check out the trailer on Youtube. Liz and I are excited about it.

3. While we're talking Rob Cohen, I just learned he was a producer on the this-is-in-no-way-connected-to-the-plot-of-the-franchise-and-even-conceptually-it's-only-barely-connected-but-let's-give-it-the-franchise-name-anyway TV movie Knight Rider 2010 (which aired in 1996).

4. Voltron Force season 1 is now on Netflix. Despite the word of the haters, I found it to be a great continuation (yes, continuation) of the original show. All the original lion pilots are back, along with some new cadets. Gone is the robeast-of-the-week format of the original (although robeasts do show up often), and in it's place is a show that nicely balances on-going story with weekly stand-alone adventuring. Oh, and it's got the original theme song. (The original American theme that is, not the oh-so-catchy Japanese theme.) I recommend it.

5. Transformers Animated, which Josh and I believe to be the best Transformers show ever made, at least at the time it was produced (since then we've been given Transformers Prime which is quite good, but only time will tell how good), is now showing on The Hub. This is a big deal since the show inexplicably is not completely available on DVD. The first two seasons were released (although now they're out of print and hard to find), but the third and final season wasn't. This way one can see the whole thing (including the Die Hard episode...yes...that's what I said).

6. On the official Star Trek website, Hasbro has shown a teaser of their KRE-O (similar to LEGO) Star Trek line. Not suprisingly it focuses on the new JJ Abrams timeline. Very few details have been given, but they have released an image of the KRE-O Enterprise. I shall preface my opinion with the following: I didn't think the Abrams redesign of the original Constitution-class Enterprise was horrible (I'm talking exteriors only...the interiors are another story entirely, what with all the Apple Store and beer factory everywhere). It's not my favorite design, but it still feels like something Federation ship designers would cook up. Ok, preface over. This KRE-O version is...ok. It's not horrible, but it's not mindblowingly child-Nic's-dream-fulfilling awesome either. Quite frankly, I'm suprised how boxy it is. That might sound weird, given we're talking about building blocks. But take a look at some LEGO Star Wars ship sets and compare that with KRE-O Enterprise and I think you'll see what I mean. ... But I'm still going to want to get it when it comes out.

7. I watched the extended Clone Wars season 5 trailer. They go to Alderaan, and I saw what appeared to me to be some Falleen criminals...perhaps Black Sun?

8. TRON Uprising has premiered on Disney XD. I've seen the first three episodes (the second two on the Disney XD website). If you like TRON and/or TRON Legacy, I highly recommend it. The art style is quite striking, the story has great potential, there are references to both films (including...well...I don't know if I should spoil it...yes?....no?), the music is similar to that in Legacy, and Bruce Boxleitner himself does a voice on the show (I'll give you a hint as to what program he plays: his name rhymes with Ron).


And that's all I've got to say about that.

 - Nic


END OF LINE

!!! Let's Kick The Tires And Light The Fires, Big Daddy (Happy 4th Of July) !!!

President Thomas Whitmore:

"Good morning. In less than an hour, aircraft from here will join others from around the world. And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in the history of mankind. "Mankind." That word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore. We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps it's fate that today is the Fourth of July, and you will once again be fighting for our freedom... Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution... but from annihilation. We are fighting for our right to live. To exist. And should we win the day, the Fourth of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day the world declared in one voice: "We will not go quietly into the night!" We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on! We're going to survive! Today we celebrate our Independence Day!"

Happy Fourth of July, Everyone!!!
Remember where we came from and dream of where we can go.

We'll be back this week with more news, rumors, and reviews. Go enjoy your freedom.

Todd "Proud American" B.

Thanks Liz!!!

!!! Tell Me Doctor, Where Are We Going This Time? (Bruce Willis is Marty McFly) !!!

Looper, I Don't Even Know Her!?!

Time travel is a tricky concept to grasp. There are scientists that have theorized about the possibility of moving through space and time for many years. From Einstein to Carl Sagen all the way through to Stephen Hawking, some of the most respected men in the field of science have discussed the likelihood of actually traveling forward or backward in time. We may never see science and technology catch up to the theories, but that hasn't stopped Hollywood from mining time travel as a heavily used plot device. James Cameron used it to bring robots from the future back to kill the leader (and his mother) of the resistance opposing said robots. Robert Zemeckis sent Marty McFly back to 1955, then forward to the future, then back to the old west (I still don't know how they keep that movie series straight). Doctor Who does it consistently week in week out on TV. Everywhere you turn someone on some show or movie is traveling to and fro through the Time Stream (yes, I love DC comics and their crazy time and space hopping).

!!! Hallo. Vould You Like To Have A Roll in Ze Hay? Rolls, Rolls, RollsIn Ze Hay! (More Blu-Ray News) !!!

Inga: Werewolf!
Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: Werewolf?
Igor: There.
Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: What?
Igor: There, wolf. There, castle.
Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: Why are you talking that way?
Igor: I thought you wanted to.
Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: No, I don't want to.
Igor: [shrugs] Suit yourself. I'm easy.
-Young Frankenstein

Yes, as you can see, I love Mel Brooks. I own every movie he has made, and "Young Frankenstein" is one of the very best. The man knew how to get us to laugh at some of the most cherished film genres without making fun of the movies they were based on. Mel Brooks loved movies, and he grew up watching those Saturday matinees, that showcased cowboys, space men, historical epics, musicals, silent movies (on occasion), war films, and most importantly monster movies. Mel has worked in every genre of film that Hollywood can find, but does it with a wink and a nudge. It's extremely evident that Mel loves the original movies that inspired his comedies. That attention to detail and the care he takes with each of his parodies shows that he is a huge fan of motion pictures. Mel Brooks is an institution and, while there is a wonderful Blu-ray set of his movies out now, that's not what this is about. This is about one of the most exciting Blu-ray announcement that has happened this week (yes, even better than Indiana Jones, which is saying a lot).

There can be only one... Ryan Reynolds?!

If anybody knows anything about me,they know that I’m a HUGE Highlander fan. Something about immortal swordsmen slicing off other immortal swordsmens’ heads is just one of the most simplistic,yet entertaining things in the world. Sure,there were bad sequels… well… they were all kinda bad except for,in my opinion, Highlander III,but in all honesty,I enjoyed most of ‘em.
It was made known a few years ago that there was a Highlander reboot in the works.

!!! "I Will Love Him, And Hug Him, And Squeeze Him, And I Will Call Him George." Lucas Dat Is (New Blu-Ray Releases) !!!

I Got Two Words To Say To The Haters, "Bantha Poodoo!" ?!?

I stand before you this night to issue a dire warning about the future of our planet. Recent events have occurred that fundamentally alters the fabric of the universe. I say these things to prepare you and guide you so you might be stable enough to weather the storm that is to come. The events of the past two days have significantly escalated the time table for these momentous phenomenon to take place. As it stands now we are wholly unprepared to face the coming tide. I pray that you will hear these words and they will motivate you into swift action. It is coming and it cannot be stopped, but it can be defeated...

"Save us all, the world is coming to an end. Hide yo wife, hide yo kids, hide yo strippers, cause we all dying up in here!!!"-Antoine Dodson (of the near future)

!!! Put The Bunny Back In The Box And Other Sayings Of Nicholas Cage,Only Known Living Vampire (Blu-Ray Reviews) !!!

Did Kate Beckinsale Have A Nose Job Or Have My Standards Lowered (Yep, She Had A Nose Job)???

I Love Motion Pictures (no huge secret on this site)! I love to watch them, I love to talk about them, and I love to read about them. Even the history of cinema fascinates me and I can't seem to get enough. I am amazed by the process that goes into the making of a film. From lighting to special effects, from cinematography to craft services, ever step of a film's journey draws me into that world. There is a large section of the population who cares which star is dating who and how long it will be before Lindsey Lohan gets arrested again (apparently not long), but for me that stuff is nothing compared to the hard work and dedication it takes to actually bring a film to movie screens. Actors will always be needed and some I want to see succeed (Downey Jr.), but, unbeknownst to some of them, they are only a small part of the glorious machine that makes fantasy a reality (and sometimes reality an over exaggeration of itself). Movies are an escape, movies are dreams made real, and we can leave our everyday lives behind to spend a little time in those places. Not every movie is good, but there is good in almost every movie (maybe not Ishtar). Someone on every production in Hollywood gives everything they have to a film because they know that they are blessed to be working in the industry. That being said, there are decisions made on films that make me say, "What?" This brings me to this weeks Blu-Ray reviews.


I hope to be able to bring you reviews of movies that have recently been released on Blu-Ray and give you an idea of whether it's worth a purchase or a pass. I will say up front, from a technical standpoint, I am wholly inadequate to give you an informed opinion. Like my father says, "I know just enough to be dangerous." Yes, I have an HD TV and a THX 7.1 surround home theater system, but the best I can do if you ask me how a movie sounds and looks on Blu-Ray is "good" or "bad". There are websites that do a much better job in reviewing the technical aspects of the discs and I will leave that up to them (check out the links at the end). So, for the purpose of these articles, I will try to tell you what I thought of the films themselves and maybe a little about the special features. Remember, that when it comes to movies, "good" and "bad" are relative terms. I always say, "like what you like, take nothing back." Oh, by the way, if you like Ishtar, more power to you (even though you're weird).

I got a chance to check out three movie on Blu-Ray this past week. I enjoyed all three to varying degrees, some more than others. Like I said earlier, some movies are great, some are good, some have good elements but poor choices, some are bad, and some are so bad, they're good (why yes, I am referring to you "Mega Python vs. Gatoroid"). No matter what you like, just make sure that you enjoy ever minute of it. Life's too short not to have fun.

Let's start with the eternal one himself, Nic Cage. The man has been in some bad films, there's no denying that. But Nicky is like that crazy uncle that comes over for Thanksgiving dinner, drinks too much, and proceeds to tell of the time he and two strippers were stranded on a desert island and they decided they needed to repopulate the species (the strippers weren't very bright), so he became the king of the tribe he fathered and they still live on the island today, oh, and they almost sacrificed him to the volcano gods (strangely, that sounds like the plot to a Nic Cage movie). So, I like the man. I can't help it, he makes me smile. I finally got to see "Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengence" and it definitely contains all sorts of Nic Cage crazy. I liked the first Ghost Rider (as opposed to all of you who didn't) and I felt that it was close to the comics and their tone. I had high hopes for the second one and while I will say that the visual aspect of "SoV" is good, several creative choices derail this version of the character. This is one of those reboots that's not a reboot (it makes no sense to me either). Nicky's back as old flame head but no one else from the original makes an appearance here. Mark Steven Johnson is gone as director and replaced by Neveldine and Taylor of the "Crank" franchise. The Crank films are flashy, stylized, and over the top (see where we're going here?) and the studio hoped they would bring the same thing to Ghost Rider. Unfortunately, for the viewer and comic lover, that is exactly what they did. This is what I'm talking about when I say bad decision making. You have to have the right directors for the right movies, because when you don't bad things happen. That craziness they brought to the Crank films is all wrong here. Johnny Blaze might be crazy but he's not a clown. Nic Cage does a fine job being Nic Cage, but I would rather see him be Ghost Rider. You would think that when Ghost Rider is on screen (and the effects are impressive to look at) it would be the highlight of the film. Here again, bad decisions rear their ugly head. There is a moment in the film where Ghost Rider grabs a bad guy by the back of the head and proceeds to perform the "Penance Stare" on him. The Marvel Database explains it like this, "When in close combat, the Ghost Rider locks eyes with his victim and makes him or her feel every pain that that individual has ever inflicted on anyone else innocent in their lifetime." Neveldine and/or Taylor fail to convey that to the audience and Ghost Rider just appears to be staring longingly into the baddie's eyes.

Ghost Rider: "Oh, I love you henchman (deep demonic voice)."

Henchman: "Oh, I love you too, Ghost Rider (high-pitched girly voice)."

That's exactly what it looks like. I want to see Ghost Rider taking villains out like the bad@$$ I know he is, not staring at them for fifteen minutes. This trend continues when Nic interrogates this dude for information latter in the film. He is doing the crazy, I can hardly contain what's inside me, bit and then rushes off to use the info he just got to locate this boy (who may or may not be Danny Ketch, the second Ghost Rider). Thus follows an extended sequence of Nicky riding his motorcycle and changing into Ghost Rider. Why? Why is this scene here? I already know he turns into the Ghost Rider (from the helpful cartoon that you had at the start of the film and the previous film), I don't need to spend twenty minutes seeing it happen again (see, bad decision making). Just get to the Rider kicking tail, that's what I want to see (and had already seen in the trailer). The visual effects are great and I love the look of the Rider here more than I did in the first movie, but come on, these movies are suppose to be fun not tedious. Don't get fancy, boys, it does the movie and us no favors. I would be perfectly happy if Fox would let the rights to Ghost Rider slip back to Marvel and maybe they can pull a Hulk makeover for the match head. The rest of the film is just kind of there, the only real standout is of course, the always fantastic Edris Elba. He is always extremely watchable and this is no exception. If you are a fan of Ghost Rider you may want to give this a rent, if you're not forget this movie exists and go on with your life. All Hail, the vampire king!!

Next up, "Underworld: Awakening" is the continuation of that particular franchise. I like these movies (guilty pleasure) and, of course, i'm in favor of any movie that shuns the "I'm in love with a sparkly vampire and a werewolf that runs around without a shirt on" crap. A war between vampires and werewolves is a fantasy that all horror lovers have had at one time or another (Universal even put the Wolf Man and Dracula in a movie together, in the 1940's). Are these movies high art? Of course not, they aren't directed by Scorsese after all. That doesn't mean you can't enjoy them for the craziness alone. Plus, Kate Beckinsale in skin tight black leather, need I say more? My only real question about the movie is a fairly obvious one. What world changing thing does Scott Speedman need to be doing that he can't show up on set for two days (that's all it would have taken) and collect a small "I don't want to be homeless" check? Does anyone know the answer to that one? Does anybody really care? It cost more to digitally insert his face on some other actor's body than they would have had to spend to film him outright (they also had to pay him for his likeness, so now we're just throwing money away). Why not just kill him off screen and move on? There I just had to get that out. Now I am better. Moving on. If you are a fan of the Underworld series or just like fun movies with hot women (Kate Beckinsale in skin tight leather, remember?), then this is right up your alley. Go have fun.

My last review is most certainly my favorite of the three. I had a good time with Underworld, but I was blown away by "Chronicle". Where did this movie come from? If you haven't seen it then I'm not going to spoil it here. The story is fairly straight forward. Kids find crazy artifact, kids get superpowers, kids do cool things, and kids deal with good and evil. Sounds like any comic book origin story you ever heard, right? Wrong, this is so much more. Box Office Mojo says that it was made for 12 million dollars. I'll repeat that, 12 million. I sit here in awe of the amazing things they accomplished in this film on such a small budget. This is one of those films that defies the conventional wisdom that the more money you spend on a film the better it will be. Sometimes it's about the filmmakers and the creative people behind a project that make a movie work. Great ideas and great execution trumps money any day of the week. It's still amazing the things that happen in this movie. You really need to see it. Josh Trank, the director, is already being talked about to reboot The Fantastic Four for Fox and is it any surprise that the writer is Max Landis, son of John. Turns out Max is pretty awesome as seen "here". From what I hear, there will be a sequel. I hope they don't screw it up by NOT BRINGING EVERYONE BACK (just a subtle hint, Hollywood executive types)!!! Oh, and Chronicle is a found footage movie (I almost forgot that fact because the film is so good, unlike most of those flicks). The gimmick here is so well done after a while you hardly notice it. That is a testament to great direction and great writing. I could not recommend this film more. If you don't own it you should.

The picture quality on all three films is great (even the found footage of Chronicle). The sound mixes are full and expansive. The extras are decent though not comprehensive. Still, two out of three ain't bad. If you want specs and in depth analysis check out the links at the bottom of the page. I'll be back later with more news and rumors so, "hang on back there!"

Todd "I got a panty on my head" B.

[High-Def Digest, Blu-ray.com, and DVDfile]



That's pretty convincing, wouldn't you say?

Nic Cage as Johnny Cage, for Josh!!

[Nic Cage as Everyone]

Why do people want an FFVII remake so badly?!

Love it or hate it, Final Fantasy VII is probably the most popular game in Square’s Final Fantasy franchise. Released way back in 1997, Square used clever marketing tactics to basically dupe people into buying their huge-budgeted game. These tactics basically involved NOT showing any gameplay during ads and commercials, only CG cutscenes, and not really letting anyone know what they were buying. I remember thinking every time a commercial was shown, “People think this is awesome, but they don’t really know that it’s an RPG.” Around this time, RPGs weren’t rare by any means, but RPG fans weren’t exactly turning up in droves, either. For a lot of American gamers, FFVII was not only their first game in the series, but was also their first RPG. Because of this, FFVII carries a lot of nostalgia. I don’t consider myself a “VII hater,” but the game is, to me, nothing special. The three games released before it were much better and so were the three games after it, in my opinion. That’s not to say that I’m some kind of retro guy that says only the 8 and 16-bit games were good (FFX is probably my 2 nd or 3 rd favorite in the series). FFVII’s plot really involves nothing more than chasing the main antagonist, Sephiroth, from one place to another. Literally, that’s all you really do. Several years ago, as a way to show off the PlayStation 3’s graphics horsepower, Square released a tech demo that recreated the opening cutscene of FFVII using real-time, in-game graphics. This tech demo ended up looking better than the original game’s opening. Check it out: Pretty, huh? What Square didn’t realize was that they were opening up a can of worms that fanboys have been gobbling up for the 6 years since that tech demo was released. Anytime a new Final Fantasy game is either reviewed or revealed, fanboys come out of the woodwork, crying and moaning, “Where’s the FFVII remake?!!!!?!!!!” Instead of remaking FFVII, Square has opted to create full remakes on the Nintendo DS of older FF titles like III and IV. In my opinion, remaking the older titles makes more sense than FFVII. By remaking the older titles, Square can add a new perspective on games that originally were only perceived on a 2D playing field. FFVII already had 3D graphics, albeit mostly on pre-rendered backgrounds, but the older titles were all sprites and mode-7. If you’re going to remake a game, there should be a good reason. What would be the reasoning behind remaking FFVII? “Because it’s AWEZOME!!%)!)%!*%^” That’s not good enough for me and it’s apparently not good enough for Square, either. Recently Square CEO, Yoichi Wada said that he believes that if Square remade FFVII, the Final Fantasy franchise “would be done with.” In my opinion, the Final Fantasy franchise is already done with, but that’s a different article for a different time. But in all honesty, I can see what he’s saying. Wada went on to say that until the company makes a Final Fantasy that exceeds the quality of VII, a remake will never happen. While I don’t necessarily agree with Wada’s comments that a Final Fantasy hasn’t lived up to VII’s quality (VIII-X were all better games, in my opinion), I understand what he’s basically getting at: “We don’t want to make that game right now. We know you want it, but we don’t.” So there you have it, folks. An FFVII remake is inevitable at some point, but it’s just not going to happen right now or in the foreseeable future. I honestly wish that Square would spend their time developing some decent new IPs rather than putting all their energy into new Final Fantasy games, or give us sequels to some of their existing properties. A sequel to Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross, anyone? How ‘bout that?! -Josh Source: IGN

My Videogame Life Pt. 3 (The Conclusion!)

-The Present & The Future-

So after reading the first 2 parts of this whole thing, we’re finally up to the present day of gaming, but let’s backtrack just a touch. I haven’t really covered handheld consoles, so let’s do that real quick…

Make it Bigger!!

Last night at 11 pm Central Daylight Time all the Nintendos of the world (Nintendo of Japan, Nintendo of America, and Nintendo of Europe) had a simultaneous "Nintendo Direct" presentation. For the uninitiated, "Nintendo Direct" presentations are streaming video presenations created by Nintendo themselves and watchable on their websites (and in archived format on the Wii and 3DS). Nintendo uses these as opportunities to showcase software and hardware, and announce new software and hardware.

Usually this would be something I'd make sure and tune in for. But, whoo boy, I was sleepy last night. I fell asleep before 10! Wow!

And then my swisscheesed brain forgot all about the presentation until I was checking GoNintendo.com this afternoon. "Oh yeah, the Nintendo Direct," I thought to myself.

I won't take the time to recap the entire presentation here. There was a lot of good stuff in it, so check it out yourself if you're interested.

But I do want to point out one of the biggest reveals of the evening: the 3DS XL.

Many of you might be familiar with the DSi XL. It was the mammoth final iteration of the original DS. I have one (Liz got one for me for my birthday in 2010), and love it. In fact, I became so accustomed to its hugeness that when I recieved a 3DS this past Christmas it felt like I was playing the revolutionary glasses-free-3D handheld videogame system from Nintendo of Lilliput. Ok, I exaggerate a little, and the 3DS is an excellent system. But it is noticeably smaller than the DSi XL.

Enter the 3DS XL, a system roughly the same size as the DSi XL. (In fact, the entire form factor has a DSi XL feel.) In fact, the two screens are a whopping 90% larger than their original 3DS counterparts. Not only that, but the battery life has been extended a little bit also. To be clear, beyond this the 3DS XL is just a 3DS. No electronics or cpu specs have been altered. So this isn't like the change from DS Lite to DSi. This is a cosmetic upgrade almost exclusively. But that's fine with me.

Now here's the crazy part: It will be available starting August 19 of this year (the same day as New Super Mario Bros. 2 for the 3DS hits stores)! That's less than two months away. Talk about keeping info close to the vest (or, since this is Nintendo, should I say, "close to the overalls?"). It'll set you back 199.99 plus tax, but many retailers are already announcing "trade in your 3DS for a discount on a 3DS XL" deals. I just might take one of them up on that. (Liz is ok with it, since had a 3DS XL existed back in December that's what she would've gotten me.)

Major gaming and/or tech sites like IGN, GoNintendo, Nintendolife, Engadget, Gameinformer, etc. have all the details. So I'll just leave you with this comparison picture:

Now we're playing with power. (Bad, I know. But game systems don't have quotes.)

 - Nic


END OF LINE

Oh.. My... Goodness...

I knew this was being made, but I had no idea it was anywhere close to having a trailer. This is gonna be a great time at the cinema, folks... AGAIN!

-Josh

!!! Me Grimlock, Eat Michael Bay In Next Movie... Yum (Transformers 4News) !!!

This Is Michael Bay Directing; "You, Explosion, Again Only Faster And More Intense!"???

We have Transformer 4 news directly from the man himself. Michael Bay talked up the fourth film in an interview today. Here's what he had to say:

!!! Dr. McCoy, Cursed Earth Pizza (Judge Dredd Is Now Just Dredd) !!!

Bones, Are You Really The "Law"?!?

So, here we are a day later and to no one's surprise Lionsgate has released the "Full" trailer for their reboot of Judge Dredd, now simply know as Dredd. Was that so hard? Did I really have to go on a rant yesterday about the "teaser for a trailer" thing? I don't think so, Lionsgate. Guess what guys, your not even in the big leagues yet. Disney, Paramount, Warner Bros., Sony, Universal, and 20th Century Fox are your major leaguers, at best you guys are triple A ball. So, you need to dismount the pretentious horse and just release the gosh darn trailers already.

My Videogame Life Pt. 2

-The 32/64 and 128 Bit Era-

By the time the PlayStation was released in North America,the SNES was still going strong. Really,I (and nobody else,for that matter) had absolutely no interest in the thing until around 1996 when it was announced that the newest Final Fantasy title would be released exclusively for the console.

!!! Cloud Atlas Shrugged (I Am So Bored And Various Sundry Things) !!!

Ms. (?) Lana And Mr. Andy Wachowski Request Your Presence At The Premiere Of Their New Film, "Cloud Atlas". Cursed Earth Pizza Will Be Served And Entertainment Will Be Provided By Mike Wazowski, Please Leave Your Sparkly Vampire At Home, RSVP !?!

Wow, things are dead in the world of film this week. Either nothing is going on or they are waiting until later in the week (I'll get to that). So, first I hear the Superman news (bad stuff) then, nothin', nada, zilch. The fact that Hans Zimmer is doing the music for "Man of Steel" single handedly destroyed Hollywood (just kidding... kinda). This week has been pretty weak (that's me using homonyms... English, it's like a second language to me). Anyhow, I have been banging my head against a wall trying to find something to tell you guys, so here's what I got.

How To Play Mortal Kombat (MK9)

Since I need more people to play Mortal Kombat with, I’m gonna create a tutorial on how to get started playing the game. I’ll introduce you to fighting game terminology, strategies, combos, and general fighting basics in what I hope will be the easiest guide you’ll ever read.

What's goin' on here??

So last night Liz was watching Dawson's Creek on Netflix. (Watching "Apartment 23" with James William Van Der Beek, Jr. made her want to go back and rewatch the entire show. Coincidentally, Josh has also been watching Dawson's Creek. But fear not, Todd and I are still men. Anyway...)

One episode centered around a concert by the pop/rock group "No Doubt." Dawson and his actress girlfriend (!!) were trying to get backstage, as were Joey and the current-guy-she-might-be-dating, Eddie. Now, while it was on I was working on the computer, but I did glance up every now and then (don't judge). So one time I glance up, and I notice something. Something odd. I'm not going to say what it is yet. I'm just going to show you four screen-grabs.

Are you seeing what I'm seeing? Surely you are.
.
.
.
No?
.
.
.
.
.
Ok, if not, go do a Google image search for "Marty McFly" and then come back.
.
.
.
.
.
I know, right! What's that all about? Upon noticing this last night I immediately did a search on Google to get more info. I couldn't find where anyone had even noticed this, let alone explained it.

So I guess you heard it here first! The Inner Dorkdom: bringing you trivia about a 10-year-old episode of a nighttime soap opera!


Dork thinks he's gonna drown.

 - Nic


END OF LINE

Cleanse the Palette, Cleanse the Palette

Nic here, trying to get the bad "dark and edgy Superman" taste out of all of our mouths (I wholeheartedly agree with Todd's commentary on the Batmanification of Superman being a bad thing), by pointing to a Superman-related product that actually appears to be good.

I'm talking, of course, about LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes!

Y'all may not know this yet, but I'm a big fan of LEGO, and have been for a long time. Some proof:

1. My swisscheesed brain (i.e., I don't have the greatest memory) can't recall anything about my first day of elementary school, but can recall quite well when I got a LEGO cement mixer set for Easter.
2. I had a LEGO monorail set when I was a kid.
3. I made my own Star Trek: The Next Generation LEGO sets in the early 90's (thus foreseeing a time when LEGO would get into the licensed properties business).
4. I played with LEGO regularly through middle and into high school.
5. Even when I officially entered my LEGO Dark Ages (google it), I still jumped at the chance to dabble with them when over at Josh's house. (Josh is six years younger than me. As such my friendship with him was a great excuse to play with toys and play make-believe long after it was age appropriate.)
6. I let my nephews (17 years younger than I) borrow my Super Nintendo and all my games (which, incidentally, know one knows the whereabouts of), but they couldn't borrow my LEGO collection. If they wanted to play with my LEGO bricks, they had to do so at my parents' house.
7. My Dark Ages started to end in 1999 with the release of the first Star Wars sets.
8. I have at least 93 different LEGO sets, with an estimated retail value of more than $2,947.
9. That retail value figure includes seven LEGO videogames (a few Star Wars, one Indiana Jones, LEGO Rock Band).
10. Next year when my family, Todd's family, and hopefully Josh go to Orlando, FL, I've already demanded that we go to LEGOLAND.

Why am I telling you this? I'm not sure...hmmm....

Anyway, here's the point of this post: today the newest LEGO videogame came out for all major videogame platforms. The game is, as I said, LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes. As the subtitle suggests, this game isn't just about Batman and the Boy Wonder. No, the scope is much bigger. Other DC superheroes also are playable in the game. There's Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash (Yay Dawson's dad!!!), and the Man of Steel himself, Superman.

I haven't played the game yet, so I can't give you a review. But the folks who have, and have, say it's great. The addition of an original story, open-world gameplay, and voice acting (yes, the minifigures talk) take the already enjoyable LEGO videogame formula and make it even more enjoyable.

So if you have a chance, check it out. You can find reviews for the game at many of the major gaming sites (IGN says it's the best Superman videogame ever). In the meantime, I leave you with three of the game's trailers.

Miss Teschmacher!!!!

 - Nic


END OF LINE

!!! Wait, What? Oh No, They Ditnt! (Man Of Steel News) !!!

You Will Lick John Williams' Boots For This!!!

John Williams is a master! No ifs, ands, or buts about it. He has written more music that you instantly recognize than anyone else on the planet. He is a modern day Mozart, no "foolin'" (Def Leppard, 1983). I have recently been buying all the John Williams soundtracks I can find (for those interested, you can find them "here" and "here"). I have found that iTunes has a great selection of Williams' music. The other day I got the soundtrack to "Superman: The Movie". The Superman theme from that film is easily known worldwide by billions of fans. It is synonymous with the red and blue tights and the huge "S" symbol on the "Man of Tomorrow's" chest. To me, there will never be another theme for Superman. Bryan Singer knew this when he made his movie and Zack Snyder should know it now (oh, he knows, but he can only do so much). You see, the powers on high at Warner Bros. have a case of the "Dark Knights". They have decided that every DC Comics movie has to be "Dark" and "Edgy", or people won't come to see it and, consequently, they won't make a gazillion dollars off of it (because ya know, the Avengers didn't just make over a billion smackers and counting). So, what better way to do that than to chunk everything from the previous films and go with a Batmanification (my own word) to the entire world of Superman. Well, if Siegel and Shuster haven't already turned over in their graves they might as well get to turning and digging so they can get to China before they completely decompose, because that's a "STUPID IDEA"!! Superman is the opposite of Batman, that's why they are both the perfect friends and the perfect enemies. If you screw that up, you got two Batmans and one of them will kill the other (because there can be only one... Sorry).