The Witte Says...

Pining for the past...

2011-05-10T13:55:00.000-04:00

Happy Tuesday, everybloody! A few years back, I had my cd collection stolen out of my ever-so-classy Mitsubishi Eclipse and since that time, I have been diligently trying to replace each and every disk within it. Some, unfortunately, are irreplaceable (personalized mix cds, small time concert disks, my dad's music, etc...) but I am still trying to rebuild my collection to its former glory. To help put it in perspective, it was every cd I had collected and created since early high school, so we are talking several hundred cds easy. I have since been lucky so far to find most of the missing cds on the cheap (I love you, Salvation Army...), but some are still AWOL. So, with all that build up, I'm running down the top missing discs I still need for my collection to be whole again. Here we go...

13) Daft Punk - Human After All: For those in the know, I am a pretty big Daft Punk fan. I wanted to fight a dude for his Daft Punk shirt at a recent bachelor party because I thought he didn't deserve it because he looked like a douche. Either way, I have enjoyed Daft Punk ever since senior year of high school and saw their music videos in Germany. Their music stylings mixed with slightly retro anime animation worked wonders for me. Since then, I have been following their continuing career with much enthusiasm and interest (TRON was awesome...). As far as this album is concerned, it will never be their best work as it is filled with an overuse of repetitive loops and beats AND it happened to follow Discovery which is one of my ultimate albums. It's still a good album and I must have it for completions sake alone, even outside enjoying the band...
Songs of note: Human After All, Robot Rock, Technologic...

12) Phil Collins - ...Hits: Sometimes, you just want the sappy love songs or the heart rending ballads. Enter Phil Collins and his greatest hits collection from his very extensive body of work. This was released pre-Tarzan but truly captures the overall feeling of the bald pop star and former front man of Genesis. I get a lot of good natured flack for liking the Phil (you know who you are...), but like most things, even Phil Collins has his time and place in my musical repertoire. Sometimes I don't really want to listen to his B-sides; that's the joy and the convenience of a greatest hits disc...
Songs of note: In The Air Tonight, Take Me Home, Two Hearts...

11) Simply Red - Home: Here we have a blue-eyed soul group who had their greatest success in the 1980's. However, it would be foolish to sell this group short as they can still produce all-around solid tunes. Home is a disc of covers and songs inspired by recognizable works of other artists. For some groups, this might feel like cheating or a cop out. But for Simply Red, it really works. Each of the songs within that are influenced by others is done in a way that makes them unique and they own their version of it. Their stylings go from pop to jazz to dance and beyond within the span of this album and it has never disappointed. It may not push any boundaries, but not every album needs to...
Songs of note: Home, Sunrise, Fake...

10) John Mayer - Heavier Things: One of my favorite younger artists (comparatively; I listen to a LOT of old rockers...), John Mayer is often a treat to listen to. Spawned from and inspired by the era of Dave Matthews Band pop/rock, John Mayer is one of the few musicians that come to mind to have 'gamed the system' successfully. By that, I mean he entered the scene being a pure pop act with a smattering a blues and rock elements thrown in AND was successful. Now that he established himself, Mr. Mayer is able to tell the record companies what he wants to do and not always pander to the needs of 'the man', whatever that means. This particular album venture shows the beginning of the transition of John's music style from pop to the blues that he loves so much. As the album progresses, his passion for music definitely comes through in this piece of work...
Songs of note: Clarity, Bigger Than My Body, Come Back to Bed...

9) Genesis - Genesis: Oh, Genesis. Be you fronted by Peter Gabriel or Phil Collins, I totally dig your style. This particular album, led by the aforementioned PC, was one of the first albums I ever owned. It was a Christmas gift in the late 90's. Back then, I was WAY into Phil Collins, so obviously I was into his era of Genesis. Now, as an adult, I can actually more fully appreciate the songs within this album. Still feeling their prog-rock roots but beginning to shift towards the pop scene, Genesis (the album...) is full of strange, quirky, yet catchy songs that hold up to the test of time. I recommend this to anyone who thinks the Phil Collins-era of Genesis is only about pop and not worth the time of day...
Songs of note: Mama, That's All, Illegal Alien...

8) Michael Jackson - Thriller: Good Lord, is there anything anyone can say about Thriller that hasn't been said twenty times before? At this point, I sincerely doubt it. It's MJ, it's the ultimate in 80's pop, it's got both Eddie Van Halen AND Vincent Price on the same album, and it’s the number one selling album even before Jackson died. Thriller is just worth owning as it is polished, slick, and just a pleasure to put in and jam on...
Songs of note: Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', Billie Jean, Thriller...

7) 3 Doors Down - The Better Life: The boys of 3 Doors Down are a great example of the post-grunge style spawned from the loins of bands such as Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, and Soundgarden. 3DD's sound is more palatable and relatable than their predecessors and (by proxy...) more lucrative. Not that this is a bad thing; bands gotta eat too. This particular album came out at the end of my junior year in high school and we listened the hell out of it. To date, none of 3 Doors Down's other albums have match the success of The Better Life but it did succeed in establishing them as a solid rock act worth the plastic they are printed on. Kind of like ZZ Top...
Songs of note: Kryptonite, Loser, Down Poison...

6) ZZ Top - Afterburner: And speaking of the boys in beards, we have the long standing blues-rock group from Texas. These guys are so good, it surprises me how often they get glossed over in 'Awesome Rock Groups' lists. They are musically great, their themes are relatable and awesome (hot chicks and hot cars, man...), and they just ooze cool. Afterburner was released at the height of their more synthesizer period, but each song still contains the elements that make ZZ Top... ZZ Top. Due to the success of the previously released Eliminator, it is not surprising they would release a similarly synthed-up album. Want some solid rock tracks? Pick up Afterburner...
Songs of note: Stages, Planet of Women, Delirious...

5) The Darkness - One Way Ticket to Hell ...and Back: The short lived, glam-rock send up band known as The Darkness never achieved the mainstream success they should have. Not surprising; the media couldn't figure out if they were a joke band like Spinal Tap or a throwback group akin to Queen. The Darkness also waffled on that matter during interviews, so confusion was sown and, with their breakup, many have forgotten this little gem of a band. This is their second and last album (to date...) and, while it did not reach the height of Permissions to Land, it contained some solid glam metal tracks that are just fun to listen to and rock out with...
Songs of note: Is it Just Me?, Dinner Lady Arms, Girlfriend...

4) Spinal Tap - Break Like The Wind: Going from a pseudo-fake band to a full on fake band, we have the dudes from Spinal Tap. This album was procured during my tenure at camp and I was blown away. I thought this actually legitimized Spinal Tap as a 100% real bad. I was wrong. Break Like The Wind was released around the time of the movie sequel to 'This is Spinal Tap'. Oh well. Either way, this silly album features a plethora of guest artists such as Dweezil Zappa, Slash, and even Cher. While the Tap is surprisingly talented musically, each song on Break Like The Wind is full of silly humor, double entandres, and strange, nonsensical metaphor, all of which add to the charm of this album...
Songs of note: Bitch School, Diva Fever, The Sun Never Sweats...

3) The Eagles - Complete Greatest Hits/The Very Best Of: So far, this two-disc set of Eagles hits has been the only thing to dislodge Thriller from the number one album slot. This was a temporary dislodging, but it proved the sheer might of this collection. I highly recommend this set for any Eagles fan, be they the casual radio-listener type or the hardcore, 'I own them all on vinyl' type. It contains the best of both the Frey years and the Henley years and there would be no reason to not own this compilation. I enjoy Greatest Hits discs as they are easier to listen to and you don't have to switch out discs to hear what you want. This may change in this iPod era, but we'll see...
Songs of note: Take it Easy, Life in the Fast Lane, Hotel California...

2) Fleetwood Mac - Rumors: Rumors is a staple of 70's rock and quite possibly one of the best composed albums I've ever owned. Many of the songs differ greatly in theme, style and sound, but they have been blended together in a wonderful piece of art that is relevant in any time period since its release in 1977. The stories have been expounded upon by various news sources about what was going on with Fleetwood Mac at this time, so I won't go into it here. I will say (with apologies to the band...) that I am glad for the listeners’ sake that they had the troubles they did back then. The level of heightened emotion each member felt then came pouring out into their music and lyrics. Rumors is a triumph of rock music and if you do not own a copy, remedy that...
Songs of note: Go Your Own Way, You Make Lovin' Fun, Don't Stop...

1) Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication: And so we come to the end of the list with an album that really caps off 90's rock with a bang. If there is a better album that exemplifies this period in rock music (specifically mainstream rock music...), I don't know what it is. Californication feels like a giant opus for the Chili Peppers, helped partially by the length, but also due to the level of surface emotions in this album. RHCP hit on all their strengths in this album; they get funky, they rock out hard, the slow it down for introspection, all of which can be seen to varying degrees in each of their previous albums. But it took Californication to really bring it home and cobble it together as one giant package. My only complaint: it can get a little long, but I really can't pick any songs to remove. It's one of the few albums to actually make me tired while listening to it. It's just a great big road trip. Let's put it in perspective, though; I've bought this album three times before. I guess I have a forth coming up...
Songs of note: Scar Tissue, Californication, Purple Stain...

This week intentionally left blank...

2011-05-06T22:52:00.001-04:00

A little game review for a little game...

2011-04-28T13:33:00.000-04:00

In my down time/off time, I have a penchant for playing games. I am no stranger to Civilization 4 (I'm kicking some serious tail as Chairman Mao in a Terra campaign...) as well as a variety of other online and console games. When I don't have much time to mess around or needs some mindless/numbing entertainment, I drift towards simple flash-based games that abound on the internet. Recently, I discovered a game on onlineflashgames.org that really works for me on multiple levels. The game in question is 'Tower of Heaven'...

Game play is delightfully simple. Jump and move your little... whatever he is towards the exit to advance. At the beginning of each level of the tower, a text box discouraging you from the 'path of righteousness' appears and has varying levels of snarkiness for you to read. Obstacles (such as spikes and pits...) appear in your way to destroy you so you cannot reach the top of the tower. An interesting twist to this is that as you progress, the game will give you rules that are an instant kill if you violate them. A couple examples are, 'You cannot touch any living thing (such as vines, grass, and butterflies...)' and 'You cannot walk left (more annoying than you can imagine...)'. The game play is also very linear, which is no surprise for an online flash game, but this is not a detractor either. It's straight forward and simple and that's good for me...

Here's why I love this game: The graphics are done in the style and colors of the old school Game Boy (read: blacks, browns, and greens...), the sound effects are also appropriate to the style, and (last but certainly not least...) the soundtrack is f'ing fantastic. The composer is on deviantart as FlashyGoodness and has made a plethora of video game music as well as large variety of video game remixes. This dude has the chops, let me tell you. Beyond that, this game succeeds where many others I've played failed. It is very easy to make an homage game that is rather half-assed. It takes real talent, then, to make a game that shows the great affection the creator has the genre. The graphics and music blend together perfectly with the play style and make playing it a joy each time I load it up...

I give this game a solid A all around. I would pick this game up even after I beat it because of the music and of the challenge level. As of this blog post, I still haven't finished the game. Level 11 is smacking me around resoundly. I trust I shall complete it though. But unlike many other games, I'm in no hurry to do so. Game on, friends. Oh, and let's not forget you can find the link to the game here...

Keep your shirts on, hipsters...

2011-04-22T16:04:00.000-04:00

Back again and this time, it's a movie review. You know how you see a movie preview and hear a lot of hype about it and it REALLY gets you pumped to see it? And in that same preview, there are a dozen or more reason why you THINK the movie will appeal to you and be just one hell of a ride? You wait and you wait and (sometimes...) you miss it in the theaters and mourn the loss. And then you get to actually see the movie and it is a complete and total let down on a level you cannot appropriately describe. I have had this experience many, many times and guess what? It happened again. I don't normally go off and negatively review a movie (I like talking about things I actually enjoy...), but this will as close as I get for a while. Let's just jump right in with the Witte's Review of 'Scott Pilgrim vs. the World'...

Good lord, where to start? I suppose a synopsis is in order, but I won't give too much away if you still want to give this film a shot. It starts with an 8-bit rendition of the Universal Studios theme (pretty cool, if nerdy...). Then, we are introduced to Scott Pilgrim and his band, Sex Bob-omb, right off. They have a sort of odd indie/post-emo sound that Scott's current girlfriend, Knives (ugh...), thinks is awesome even though the rest of the band go on and On and ON about how they are pretty sure they suck (double ugh [more on this 'ugh' later...]...). It needs mentioning that the majority of the characters are extremely depressing and whiny for no damn reason. We are then shortly introduced Ramona Flowers, the object of Scott's affections and the motivation for the rest of the film. He breaks up with Knives to be with Ramona and Knives has a bit of a breakdown. Sex Bob-omb is scheduled to play at a battle of the bands against Scott's ex-ex-girlfriend (more and more whine...) but the journey is punctuated with battles between Scott and Ramona's evil ex-boyfriends. These battles are further punctuated with video game and comic book references, making them more fun and unique than your usual action movie. In between each battle there is an attempt at character development (fail...) and then another battle. This back and forth of story eventually leads Scott to the final boyfriend. I'll leave it there as to leave some surprise of the ending for those who still want to see it...

I'll start with saying it takes 30 minutes before the first battle starts, and that first 30 minutes are quite painful to get through by the end. The characters are introduced but not very well developed and end up being very one-dimensional and shallow. Probably the best character (even by the end...) is Scott's gay roommate, who actually shows a bit of normalcy and depth compare to the other characters. We know little about each of the characters, though I can imagine this would be alleviated if I had read the comics first (people who saw 'Watchmen' without reading it first might feel the same way...). Even so, the characterization is weak in the context of the movie. The majority of the characters are extremely whiny and depressing, but for no reason that is discernable. The band members have all the marks of being in high school for all their complaining, but each of them (minus Knives...) is 20+ and (as far as I can tell...) have little to no reason to be THIS whiny...

The movie gives us little reason to commiserate with the characters and their issues. This might also be a factor of my age and the maturing of my movie palate. Each of the band members prattle on about their 'suckness', but little is shown to back up that opinion. Many of the important characters are annoyingly narcissistic and it makes me not care whether I see them develop or not. Scott and his band are portrayed as if they are in high school and thus act as if they are still under the social pressure of high schoolers. However, this does not pan out as the movie goes for a variety of reasons. They are not in a situation that bombards them with social disapproval and have chosen a hobby/profession that would (inevitably...) either preclude them from ridicule or be forced out due to harsh unpopularity. However, their audience seems to either care very little or avidly like them as a band (especially by the end...). Plus, they can actually play so the talent part is out. Further, they are put forward as trendy, semi-nomadic, mostly attractive hipsters. This doesn't jive with the social outcast vibe the movie was trying to give us. This movie is trying to tell us that this kind of people are not cool or in and (frankly...) that is who this movie is pandering to; the pretensious cool kids who are too cool to think they are cool (ya dig?)...

Wow, that was cathartic to say the least. I'll move onto a positive note; the actual fights. Most of them are actually pretty good. The choreography rivals to any modern martial arts movie and the effects used are seamless. It was nice to see comic book styled sound effects accompany the hits as well as having an announcer denote combos and K.O.s (a la Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat...). I was less than impressed with the CGI monster during the band battle as it show less innovation and originality compared to the other fight scenes, but on the whole, the fights were the best part of the film. I'd even go as far as saying that if they release a 'Fight's Only' DVD version, I'd by it. Though (as I was told recently...), that's why God made the scene skip button on the remote...

This will kind of segue into my next up-note for SCvTW; the evil ex-boyfriend's themselves. This is where the overall silliness comes into play and the movies are the most fun. The villains are over the top and seem to have a bit more depth than our main characters (sad...). Specifically, two of the exes stand out from the pack and only because of the actors they chose. These are Chris Evans (whom you know as the Human Torch and Capt. America to name a few...) and Brandon Routh (the Reeves look-a-like from Superman Returns...). Having established super hero actors in this kind of movie inspires me to think of what this movie could have been with a little extra effort. 2 of the 7 exes are already in the comic genre; just make the rest other hero actors. There are enough young bucks in the field that it would have been easy and fun for the audience. However, what I got was enough to amuse me (if not completely counteract the whine...). I have to mention my favorite bit where Routh's character gets assaulted by the Vegan Police for breaking vegan law (one of the V-Cops is Thomas Jane, who you know as Punisher in the first reboot...). It's silly without being obnoxious and that fact is crucial to making these moments of the film better than the whole kit-and-caboodle...

So, my overall thoughts? I will say I don't regret seeing Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. However, I will likely not see it again or if I must, I will find something to do in between the fight scenes. I see the love note to video game fans there are attempting to send, but they didn't do it enough to suit me. I compare it to the love note Hot Fuzz sent to action movie fans; that movie (for me...) was the total package. SCvTW falls a little short for not doing enough. The effects are good, but the characters aren't worth the celluloid they were printed on. Might I have a different reaction after reading the comics? Perhaps, but I doubt I will ever based on what I've seen in the movie. Again, if you like heavy effects fight scenes and video game references, you might like this. If you hate non-purpose whiner babies, it's doubtful you'll make it far with this. I'll end with the thought I had midway through the film: "I thought that angsty emo-kids were the most annoying people. Turns out I hate whiny, pretentious hipsters even more". Take what you will from that...

We'll be right back...

2011-04-13T08:59:00.000-04:00

Going camping this weekend, so there won't be any decent post on here until next week. I should have a couple gems by then, but in the meantime, how about a suggestion or two for what to write about? I love reader suggestions (even if I don't fulfill them...) because it allows me to stretch out. Either way, see you guys come Monday of next week...

Casting call, part deux...

2011-04-04T12:18:00.000-04:00

Here we have another round of casting choices if it were even remotely possible to make an Earth/Universe/Paradise X movie. Let me tell you, it took some thought for this challenge (I hate phoning it in...) and with the length being what it is, we're going into overtime. Er, round three that is. I'll get to them as I get to them, but let's see who's on deck this time:

Reed Richards - Pierce Brosnan: Overcome with grief due to the loss of his wife Sue, as well as Johnny Storm, the former Mr. Fantastic has settled into Doom's castle and wears the armor of Doom as penance. He still works tirelessly to right the world’s wrongs, but is constantly a frustrated man. We need an actor who can seem to take the world's burden on their shoulders and remain strong. We need an actor who can play a tortured genius but also be looked up to by others. I'm tapping Pierce Brosnan to play Mr. Fantastic for this. It may seem odd to some, but I really would feel this performance as Pierce is a more than decent actor and this might give him a reason to stretch out (HA!) and do something a little different for a change. Plus, his voice can have a soft quality to it that I think fits the persona of this older Richards. Lastly, the ladies love Pierce, no matter his age...

X-51/Machine Man - Frank Welker: X-51 is the first character we meet in Earth X and he remains supremely important in the entire series. He is 'recruited' by the old Watcher to be his replacement. However, despite his being a machine, X-51 was built with a conscience and this will contrast with his predecessor’s method of Watching. This character would be 90% CGI, but you need a voice that can be very tragic, torn and conflicted as well as passionate and often sublime. This was the toughest on the list to fill, but I chose to go with one of the current masters of voice acting, Frank Welker. You've heard Frank in countless cartoons (Fred in Scooby Doo, Megatron in the original Transformers, Abu in Aladdin, check Wikipedia for the full list...) but might have never figured that one guy does so many different voices. He has such a range that I often have to check the credits just to find out if he did a voice or not. When you have a difficult decision, it's best to go with the best...

The Thing - Michael Chiklis: After the Fantastic Four disbanded, Ben Grimm settled down with Alicia Masters in New York and have a couple of kids; basically living the American Dream, even if it is cosmically powered. The Thing is one of the few characters that are very close to their main Marvel counterpart, in demeanor, in attitude, and in how he views the world. You might think this selection is a cheat, but I'll let you in on a little secret; casting Michael Chiklis was probably the most perfect choice regarding the Fantastic Four movies (from a fan boys' stance...). He's reportedly a fan of the series and it really shows in the performance he gave us then and Mike would give the same dedication if an Earth X movie was green lit...

Female Thor - Tilda Swinton: Thor was cursed yet again by Odin, by way of Loki's trickery, to inhabit the body of a female in an effort to teach the thunder god further humility. Part of this new curse also entails that if Thor sets foot in Asgard, he will never be able to leave again. The changes Thor experiences over the course of series are deep and very important to plot in each part of the trilogy. I went a little left on this one. There is a distinct lack of large, Norse women in movie worth sticking in this role. So, I went with Tilda Swinton. She's a really good actress plus she has a very intense feeling about her. Even though she is tall and lithe, she can project such power. Also, playing characters like the White Witch and the angel Gabriel were great primers for this role...

Loki - Jude Law: Of all the characters within the X trilogy, Loki changes the most drastically than most of the other Marvel characters. In the confines of Earth X, however, he starts out as most know him best; he's the Norse God of Trickery and Lies and fulfills this role magnificently. To play Loki properly, you need an actor who can make you trust him, but you feel like he would just stab you in the back if you try and double cross him. I'm grabbing Jude Law for this one. He's a very likable guy and plays many likable, sympathetic roles. Jude's also got some serious acting chops outside of character work he has done in recent years. But, every so often I feel like he could just destroy to someone's way of life if he wanted to. That's Loki to a T for me...

Dr. Strange - Vincent Price: Stranded astrally in the land of the dead before the events of Earth X, Dr. Strange is very integral to the overall story line of the X series. I do not want to give any of his parts away but while there will be betrayal from many sides, yet he will remain the Sorcerer Supreme. Yes, this is my second dead actor for this list. Since I can remember, I have thought that Vincent Price would have made an excellent Dr. Strange at any age. He has the poise, the grace, and the presence to be the Sorcerer Supreme. His older actor style fits well with the Dr. Strange aesthetic and would add a touch of class to what may turn into a super hero action romp...

Medusa - Sigourney Weaver: Wife of Black Bolt and Queen of the Inhuman race, Medusa has become much more subdued when we see her appear in Earth X. She is usually known for her fiery temper, but age has dulled her rage and taught her patience even in the face of adversity. A woman with an air of tempered royalty and underlying passion would be needed to play the Queen and I can think of few I'd rather see in this role than Sigourney Weaver. She is a tall and imposing women, capable of both savagery and gentleness (don't believe me? Watch Aliens...) in the roles she takes on. Also, I've got a crush on Ms. Weaver. Sue me...

Luke Cage - Michael Jai White: Known for his mercenary crime-fighting tactics, Luke Cage has grown up from his Heroes-For-Hire days and is now a prominent member of the NYPD. Still fighting crime, the man once known as Power Man is a respected crime fighter in his community, now legitimately taking out the bad guys. I went with Michael Jai White on this one because of his interest in the martial arts, the fact he is the right size for Luke Cage AND in shape for the role, and he has an intense presence about him. Plus, it might redeem him for making Spawn (I doubt many consider 'Black Dynamite' redemption...)...

Cyclops - George Clooney: After the X-Men broke up before Earth X began, Cyclops lived a solitary life speaking telepathically with Phoenix in the land of the dead and doing general good in the community. His relationship with the living Jean Grey deteriorated due to his bond with the Phoenix Force. Captain America sends him circus mutants to train as a new team of X-Men for the upcoming crisis in Earth X. Now, because we are to believe that this aging hero is able to take on a bunch of young mutants and come out on top to be their mentor, you'll need a guy who can show that being old doesn't mean you are weak. I'm going with George Clooney on this one. Much like Bruce Willis, he can still believably do action-type roles that are typically reserved for the 22 to 38 age group. Plus, it'd be a nice apology for Batman & Robin...

As always, your comments are encouraged and welcome (even the off color, tasteless ones...). I'd love to know if you disagree and who you'd see in the roles. This will be the last one of these for a while, but I will get to another round sooner or later. Hit me back...

Only the best for comic dystopia...

2011-03-29T08:55:00.001-04:00

Hey guys! Missed a full week for the first time this year. Not too shabby for me, actually; I've almost done more posts in 3 months than I have over the course of 2008 - 2010 (scary...). Other projects took precedent and I found I had less to blog about while I was at work. I had slipped back into my consumer role instead of remaining a reviewer. Let me tell you, it is tough to keep this up regularly AND keep the quality of the posts high. It may seem like a cop out, but I would rather not post if I don't have something worth posting. I don't want to fall back onto 'Top 10 list of X' or any other trick done to keep my numbers up. There is nothing wrong with lists in blogs; I have seen other blogs who rely on them too much when there is a lack of actual content though. I just don't want to be 'that guy'...

Anyways, onto the real deal. As an avid fan of graphic novels and collected editions of comic, I have quite the collection (probably not as big as you might think; that crap is EXPENSIVE...) which grows each year. And one of my favorites is Kingdom Come. In a nutshell, it's about DC superheroes in a future where the tensions of super beings are nearly bursting and the aging heroes (Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman...) come out of retirement to restore sanity to society before it is too late. Bad stuff happens, lots of heroes die, but in the end, order is restore and all is (relatively...) well. This graphic novel was done by the most excellent Alex Ross (check earlier comic posts for some Ross love [photo realism, baby...]...) and Mark Waid, who doesn't have the rep of Ross, but has been in the business for quite some time and holds weight on his own. Following the success of Kingdom Come, Ross wanted to do a similar situation with the Marvel Universe, albeit different enough that it didn't turn into Marvel's Kingdom Come. The end product was the Earth X series (spanning across the titles Earth X, Universe X and Paradise X...), which was piloted by Ross, writer Jim Kruger, and interior artist John Paul Leon...

This series (unlike Kingdom Come...) is too large and expanding to encompass into a paragraph or so, but it does break down a bit like it's DC predecessor: Society is spinning out of control (EVERYONE has superpowers now...), no one in the current generation is stepping up to reign it all in, so over the course of the series more and more old heroes step up to do what they do best; save the world. However, this series spans the ENTIRE Marvel Universe, hopping into alternate realities and possible futures and uses celestial beings, such as the Asgardian Gods, Galactus, Mephisto, and even Death itself. It is/was a treat for comic trivia nuts out there, but I would imagine that it was sort of confusing or overwhelming for the casual reader (this may be why it was not as successful as Kingdom Come...) since there is so much to take in. Even though they do recap the heroes origins and how previous events played out (at least those that lead to the current story...), there is still too much to take in for some...

That being said, I love the series. Not in the same way as I love Kingdom Come (that was a glorious love note to the DC Universe...), but the Earth X series is a great ride and I AM a Marvel trivia buff (specifically trivia that pertains to Marvel circa 1993 and before, which is what the X series relates to...). Because of the grand scope of Earth X and the look of the individuals, I have given some thought to who would fit into these aged hero roles if (in my own fantasy world...) they ever wanted to make it into a movie. They never will (much like the never will for Kingdom Come...) actually make a film of this convoluted and niche storyline, but it does get my movie imagination running to think of it. So let's get to it...

Captain America - Bruce Willis: In this reality, Cap is roughly 100 years old and fights for a dream that no one believes in anymore. He has become jaded over the many years fighting what he sees as an ever-losing battle, but fighting for the American Dream is all he knows. I picked Bruce Willis as he plays the action hero type well and retains this ability even as he ages (Sin City, Red, Live Free or Die Hard...). Actually, the real bottom line is that Bruce is a great actor and has a knack for playing this kind of character...

Iron Man - Anthony Hopkins: Tony Stark has sealed himself off inside his mansion as he is the only person left without 'mutant' super powers and has rebuilt robot versions of the Avengers as they have died in combat. He is a paranoid old man, trying to hold on to a past world that has been long gone. Mr. Hopkins is a fantastic actor who can play a wide variety of roles. Playing a grizzled and paranoid Tony Stark would be a cinch as well as a treat to see. Several of Anthony's characters (Zorro, Hannibal, etc...) have been given an obsessive quality which would serve him well as an aged Stark...

Namor - Robert Patrick: Cursed by Franklin Richards for killing the Human Torch, half of The Submariner's body burns without killing him when he is in contact with the air. The only thing that can stop it is constant submersion into the ocean, which prevents him from interacting with the surface world without constant, agonizing pain. I have thought for some time (ok, shortly after T2 came out...) that Robert Patrick had the chops to be Namor and he has aged gracefully enough that he would fit the demeanor of an aged Namor. He's sinister and sly enough that it would be quite fun and a pleasure to see to say the least...

Black Panther/Panther-Man - Tony Todd: Due to the population of Earth being mutated into super beings, Black Panther had been mutated into an actually animal man: along with the power and savagery of a panther, his head now is that of his namesake. He still rules Wakanda with Storm by his side as queen, as well as with Hank McCoy (the Beast...). As this would be completely CGI, you need a great, powerful voice to go along with the Panther-Man. You could pick several mighty voices for this (Michael Dorn, Keith David, etc...), but my pick is Tony Todd, a veteran of many horror and thriller movies. He has the right delivery and tone to match the kind of role while adding an unknown and unexpected quality to the character...

Spiderman/Peter Parker - John Ritter: After the people of Earth all gain powers, Spiderman retires and is revealed to be mild-mannered Peter Parker. He lives a life of despondency as no one needs a man with spider powers if everyone can just save themselves. At this point in the story, Mary Jane has died, but after they had a daughter, May (more on her in a minute...). This will be one of the few instances where I will pick a dead actor, but I think this one fits well. Before John's death, he played a slightly dumpy dad on a prime time sitcom so this juxtaposition fits well. Mr. Ritter has always felt like an everyman to me, and that's really what Spiderman should be (you know, minus the spider powers...). John proved to his audiences that, while he may not be one of the great actors, he is a solid one and gave consistent and enjoyable performances whenever he was on the screen...

May 'Mayday' Parker/Spidergirl - Olivia Wilde: The daughter of Spiderman and Mary Jane, she inherited her father's powers, if not his sense of responsibility. Before the events of Earth X take place, May has become bonded with the Venom symbiot, but professes to her father that she is in control, rather than the suit controlling her. I'll admit it: I picked Olivia Wilde after seeing Tron: Legacy and thinking that she was great in it. She is athletic enough to fill the role as well as being able to portray the attitude of the semi-estranged daughter of a super hero legend. The fit feels natural...

The Skull - Tom Felton: Integral to the beginning and the end of the Earth X series, this young teen is the most powerful telepath to exist. When his powers manifested, it destroyed every active telepath on Earth (Prof. X, Jean Grey, etc...) as well as activated a need to conquer and control. He took the Punisher's symbol, painted red, and set out on a crusade to conquer everyone on the planet. Ignore what you have seen earlier today as it was a spoiler, but now it is gone. This one is kind of a cheat as Tom Felton (you know him as Draco Malfoy...) already played a sadistic blonde teen, but honestly I couldn't think of anyone better. He's got that domineering bully stereotype down pat...

Wolverine - Danny DeVito: In this reality, Wolverine and Jean Grey left the X-Men after Xavier's death and started a life together. This was mainly due to the fact that Cyclops was in love with the Phoenix Force rather than Jean herself. Unfortunately, once there was no need for the X-Men, Wolverine began leading a life of laze and the 'happy' couple began to resemble the cast of 'All in the Family' rather than hardened heroes. I picked DeVito because, well, look at him. That's Danny DeVito. Period. He's belligerent, he's uncouth, he's short, he's heavy. DeVito...

I will stop there as this post has gone MUCH longer than anticipated. I will create a second (or more...) post for other character/actor combination for this same topic. But, for now, I hope you've enjoyed this beginning piece of fantasy mumbo-jumbo. If you are familiar with the Earth X series and wish to add your own thoughts, feel free to. I'd love to know who would fit where...

Hee-Haw ::clank, clank:: Hee-Haw...

2011-03-14T12:22:00.000-04:00

Hitting it early this week with a video game review and an odd little game it is. In the 80's, the video game field was dominated by a few main types of game: You had your action platformers (Super Mario Bros., Mega Man, Castlevania, Metroid, etc...), your top down adventure/puzzle games (Legend of Zelda, Bomberman, Final Fantasy, Fester's Quest, etc...), and your various sports simulators (Pole Position, Tecmo Bowl, Jordan vs. Bird: One on One, Excitebike, etc...). Granted, that is an over simplification of the field, but an appropriate one never the less. However, there were a handful of games to break this mold do something uniquely different (yeah, I said it...). One game in particular is a great love from my childhood (you too, tall guy...) and that game is the simply titled M.U.L.E...

M.U.L.E. is an economic strategy game with cooperative elements. The setting is that the players are settlers (aliens, humans, even robots...) on a distant planet and need to not only make a good settlement for yourself, but also increase the overall productivity and value of the entire colony. The game play goes as follows: you are granted a plot of land to which you will work for a resource of your choice (Mining for Smithore, Crystite for Crystite, Energy for Energy, and Farm for Food...); to do this, you purchase a M.U.L.E. (Multiple Use Labor Element) and outfit said M.U.L.E accordingly and place it in the plot. After this point, you can hunt the mountain wampus (???), assay the land for crystite levels, or go to the pub for gambling (this ends the turn...). The turns are timed so you must be quick to make sure you get everything done you need/want to. After this, the plots' resources are gathered and the players take part in the auction phase. Each resource is bartered for 'cash' from either the store or the players who are in need of a particular resource. Resources can also be bought from the store (if it has any to spare...). Lacking particular resources causes bad things to happen during game play (less time in a turn, higher M.U.L.E. prices, etc...). Finally, the leader board is displayed, showing the ranking order of each of the players. Scores are determined by land amount, total number of resources, and cash level. The turn then starts again. Over the course of the game, players can receive beneficial or detrimental messages that affect everybody or just an individual player (Pirate raid the store, M.U.L.E. goes crazy, solar flares, receive an inheritance, etc...). The total point level at the end of the last round determines how well your colony has done and how often supply ships will return to your colony with supplies...

I first experienced this game in the 90's after moving back to Maryland and befriending my buddy, Brian (that's two shout outs in one post, sir...). His dad had it and it was an excellent breath of fresh air after playing games like Super Mario and Tetris religiously. The strangest part of it, even at the tender age of 8 or 9, I really got into it (as did Brian and his siblings...). We got into this strange habit as the messages at the beginning of the turns scrolled across the screen (with dial-up buffering slowness, it seemed...), we would read the messages like a jerky robot. For some reason, even though there wasn't a lot of hilarity in that, that aspect of the game stuck with me almost more so than any other part of it (only slightly more so than the 'walking in place' glitch during the auction scenes...). I would even speculate that my love for complex and intricate board games can be traced to extensive playing of M.U.L.E. It was definitely my gateway game (suck it, Settlers of Catan...)...

The competition in M.U.L.E. is a much more cerebral challenge and requires a different skill set than what is required for platformers or puzzle games. In effect, this game played much more like a board game than a 'standard' video game. The level of resource management and economics within M.U.L.E. had not been seen before in a video game and, while the concept did not take off from here, the ability to effectively create a multiplayer game on the NES and that you could create a dynamic and interesting game in this era video games without the need for enemies flying at you, laser blasts, or power ups. While very easy to get into, M.U.L.E. is a layered, if not complex, 8-bit game whose influence can be seen in other games, video or otherwise down the line. It is the grand daddy to many games of its genre, even if they don't realize it (Will Wright even dedicated The Sims to its creator!)...

A last point: M.U.L.E has proven popular enough (even in cult-ish status...) that individuals have created their own clones of M.U.L.E. to varying success. My personal favorite: Planet M.U.L.E. It has excellent slick graphics and the people who created it really took the time to fine tune the details. I very much enjoy the modern remix of the M.U.L.E theme at the beginning (I do enjoy some techno...) and everything I have played with it, it is a perfect recreation of the mechanics and game play. If you are interested, please click here and give Planet M.U.L.E. a download. You won't be sorry (but your free time will...)...

The Midnight Sons ride on...

2011-03-11T16:55:00.000-05:00

It's time I did another comic review and pulling from my most often read binder-o-comics, what do I come across? Spirits of Vengeance #2 from 1992. I came across this particular issue before the tender age of 10 and, due to the local librarian being a friend of the family, she would give me a bunch of comics when they cycled their stock (yes, my Lodi library branch used to carry semi-current issues of comics back in the 90's...). I have a bad feeling most of their 'stock' was recycled back then, but at the time, I was just stoked to get free comics. My copy even still has the check-out date stickers still attached (if anyone cares...). Enough pointless nostalgia; on to the issue...

A little backstory for this one; during the 90's, Ghost Rider was revamped and rebooted with a new human host (Dan Ketch...) and a trendy, 90's look (read: bulkier and spikey...). This new Ghost Rider proved so popular that a whole line of comics dedicated to the darker characters of the Marvel Universe sprung up (at least for a couple years...). We had the Nightstalkers (Blade, Frank Drake and Hannibal King...), a revamped, edgier and hipper Morbius, the Living Vampire (who you have seen as an on-again, off-again Spiderman villain...), the aforementioned Spirits of Vengeance (Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze, and [ugh...] Vengeance...), and some fairly obscure or non-characters known as the Darkhold Redeemers (look 'em up if you are honestly interested...). Their biggest thing was an event that put them head to head (with Dr. Strange backing them up...) with the demon queen Lilith who wished to plunge the world into darkness. In the end, these 'Midnight Sons' saved the day with little losses, but none of these individual series (save Ghost Rider...) never attained the awesomeness that was attained at this time in Marvel history. The art was all solid (we're talking pre-Chapter 11 Marvel here...), most of the characters were dynamic, gritty, and very cool, the storylines and dialogue weren't forced compared to most other comics, and the whole of them (especially Spirits of Vengeance...) felt very natural on the whole. I still have this feeling even today; nearly 20 years after the issues debuted...

Anyways, onto the issue itself. We begin with a hitchhiker getting nabbed by our villain of the issue, Steel Vengeance (have we picked up on the theme of 90's comics yet?), and killed so she could paint with his blood (why else?). She is the sister of another Ghost Rider villain, Steel Wind, who had been rendered comatose due to GR's penance stare (a little dab'll do ya...). After the killing, we skip to Ghost Rider and Johnny Blaze (the 'first' Ghost Rider [don't ask...]...) racing towards Blaze's carnival where his family is atop of fiery motorcycles (it was the 90's...). After getting there, Ghost Rider falls into a coma-esque state where his flames went out but he remained in skeletal form (read: a skeleton in biker gear...). While Blaze was checking in with his carnival family, Steel Vengeance showed up and started blasting the carnival with her assault motorcycle (they never say that, but it's the only thing I can call it...). Blaze is knocked out, so she proceeds to beat up on the non-responsive GR and getting increasingly frustrated doing so. Eventually, Blaze awakens and demands of his family to locate his gun (did I mention it spews Hellfire rounds? Cause it does...) and, while he searches, the carneys distract her with a small TANK(!) and the acrobat midget nearly gets killed fighting her. Blaze shows up at that point (gun...blazing...) and takes Steel Vengeance down and is about to kill her, but Ghost Rider awakens and wants to give her his Penance Stare (tm...). This attack fails, as she has sold her soul for power and is unaffected by GR's stare. She breaks away with the Rider and Blaze in hot pursuit and ends up driving off a cliff, swearing to return (go with it...). We end with a panel of Lilith and a clairvoyant servant watching the action from a city with a dark and pithy remark...

Bottom line, this is by far one of my favorite comic book issues to own. I actually own two copies; my beat up one from when I was a kid and a better condition one that I keep with the rest of the Spirits line. The art is fantastic and comes from a time in comic art that was nearly the last of its era before the Chapter 11 bit. The interior art is penciled by Adam Kubert, while the cover was done by his brother, Andy. These guys' father is the well-known comic artist Joe Kubert (another day, another time...), so good comic art is in their blood. I have a lot of the Kubert's issues (as well as their contemporaries...) and this one doesn't disappoint. The story itself made me want to hunt down other issues as a kid to see who Steel Wind was, who this Lilith character was at the end, why Dan Ketch was missing INSIDE of Ghost Rider, and why was Johnny Blaze a carney? The ending is silly (just keep driving but away from the ravine OR use some of those spikes to hang on to the wall...), but whatever; it doesn't detract for me. Also, I have to mention the layout of the issue as I draw a great deal of inspiration from, not only this issue, but others of this era of Marvel as it's very well done. The pacing is very well done and I aspire to that in my own work...

I recommend this particular (and several others of this time...) for their artistic quality if not the story. The art itself is very well proportioned (give or take...) and lends itself to believability of the characters. Ghost Rider, Blaze, even Steel Wind to a point, while products of the time period they were released, they have a high level of sophistication in their design and realism in their quality. If you want to know what the Witte would aspire to be like (at least in the realm of comic creation...), look no further than Spirits of Vengeance vol. 1 #2. It's definitely worth your time to pick it up...

(Disclaimer: The third image is not from Spirits of Vengeance #2. I just liked the picture and the quote...)

Ah, faeries, dancing under the moon\ A Druid land, a Druid tune!

2011-03-09T23:11:00.000-05:00

Falling behind in general, but chew on this, non-believers...

Day 6

A much better morning, indeed. Not only was it comfy and dry, it came with a full traditional Irish breakfast (with an amazing view...). And when I mean full, I mean FULL. Check this:
-cereal...
-toast...
-juice...
-French pressed coffee...
-English style bacon...
-sausage links...
-an egg (fried...)...
-black pudding...
-scones...
-tomato...
Damn, that's good...

The itinerary consisted of three goals:
1)See Queen Maeve's grave...
2)See W.B. Yeats grave...
3)Get to Tara's friend Catherine's home in Strabane...

So, first things first: Queen Maeve's grave. After finding the area, getting to the site was a challenge in-and-of itself. I can imagine that many of the pagan persuasion would consider the trek up the steep (very in some parts...) hill as a pilgrimage of sorts, and I don't blame them. I felt I had accomplished something once I reached the top...

The Queen's grave itself was more like a cross between a tomb and a cairn (size plus materials used...). Regardless what the monument was, I was suitably impressed and satisfied with the site/sight. It was at this point I did two things a stereotypical, ignorant tourist would do. One, I ignored the sign saying, 'Do Not Climb the Grave' and went to the top. This, again, was worth it. To see a stormy panorama of Ireland stretched all around me; the feeling was nothing short of magical. I'm not much for religion, but it was as close as I've come in a long time. And two: I took stones from the grave. I really shouldn't have, but they were small and not all for me. I can now say I have 'The Bones of Maeve' (By the way, if you don't know who Queen Maeve was, look her up...)...

On to Yeats. I only know this figure by reputation, as I am not usually for poetry. I do know W.B. Yeats was, and is, a highly respected and regarded author and poet in the literary world. After my experience at Maeve's, one might think I'd have a similar experience at Yeats' grave. I didn't...

So, with the two major sites to see out of the way, it was off to see Tara's friend, Catherine, in Strabane for the weekend. Catherine knows Tara through an online RPG within the Pern universe (years before the term 'MMORPG' was popularized...), as well as another Irish native named Marion. Catherine, and her husband Colin, were gracious enough to open their home to us free of charge for three days, so I was looking forward to getting to know some new people fairly well (the two bottles of wine we brought should help...)...

It was quite a long drive to Strabane, so Tara and I had to amuse ourselves. Our main topic: concepting a new addition to the Tycoon computer game series, Wine Tycoon. Due to our love of wine these days (thank you Ithaca and the Finger Lakes...), it was an easy topic for us to jump into, but a very in depth idea once we got going. We think we covered everything: Grape types, soil content, hazards, equipments, world regions, customer needs, and a bunch of other things as well. To put it in perspective, we talked about the whole idea for over an hour and a half. That feels like a long time to brainstorm a computer game...

Meeting Catherine was neat, I'd have to say. While we waited for her husband, Colin, to return home from work, we played the get-to-know-you game. Apparently, Catherine knows more about me than I could ever realize (she follows Tara's blogging...). She made us a nice dinner and we actually went through three bottles of wine between the four of us. Being tired, we made light conversation till evening's end, sharing a few more drinks and then retiring. Good people, though it's shaping up to be an alcohol-filled stop. It behooves me to mention that our hosts are 35 and 42, so their tolerance is a bit higher than Tara's or mine. Hang on, liver; it's going to be a bumpy ride. Zzzz...

June 18, 2009
Nicholas C. Witte

Enjoy these other pictures of the day:

Insert Irish Joke Here...

2011-03-02T21:58:00.000-05:00

Day 5

The Witte is grumpy. The weather was unbelievably bad last night. Combine a leaky tent, an absorbent sleeping bag, wet clothes, and little sleep, grumpy is really an understatement. To top it all off, the car had a flat tire due to a slow leak (yet another victim of Ireland's deceptively treacherous roads...). Thankfully, by 9:00 AM, we had a new tire and were fairly none the worse for wear. I also discovered how widespread (and parasitic...) Tim Horton's truly is...

It seems ironic then (or at least weirdly coincidental...) that we would see some of the more depressing parts of Irish history. Lunch was taken in, after yet another (however unappreciated this day...) picturesque example of Ireland's landscape, at the memorial of the Famine Walk. For those unacquainted with the event, in the 1840's (during the Great Potato Famine...), 600 starving Irish walked 12 miles to beg for food from the lord of the land, and were subsequently denied. 200 or more died on the return trip, hence the memorial. Many, many years later, Nelson Mandela made the same walk to honor the dead and for all the symbolism that the distance meant. You may think it's a little odd to stop and have a meal at the site of dead and starved Irishmen. It is...

Our journey took us to the town of Murrisk, where another Famine memorial had been erected. This one, rather than the standard, respectful cross monument, was a stylized, artistic bronze ship, laced with floating skeletons. I have to say, I took the standard memorial much more serious than the artistic one. To each their own...

Due to the inclement weather the previous night, a B&B was in order and boy, were we looking forward to it. We spent at least an hour hunting one down on our route (probably more than an hour...) and we finally settled on one in Drumcliffe (the town W.B. Yeats is buried in...). A little pricey, but after last night's disaster, the B&B comforted us, both physically and psychologically. Hopefully, the next day will be better than the last...

June 17, 2009
Nicholas C. Witte
Guinness Count: 4

P.S. European TV has lots of boobs...

As usual, more bonus pictures for your enjoyment...

DROP IT!!!

2011-03-01T15:47:00.000-05:00

Let's dial it back one more year to 1987. Aretha Franklin is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a squirrel shut down the Stock Exchange by burrowing in a phone line (awesome...), both Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Star Trek: The Next Generation debuted to great success, and Paul Verhoeven unveiled his dystopic crime film, Robocop (also to great success...) set in a slightly futuristic, crime-ridden Detroit (at least the future as viewed through 80's style Ray-Bans...) and features the aforementioned (and quite possibly the most famous...) cyborg crime fighter laying down the law...

We enter a world (set in an ambiguous near future...) where the crime rate in Detroit is basically an epidemic, cops are being killed every week and are threatening to strike, and the overall management of law enforcement is being handled by the mega corporation, OCP. It is revealed that the company is planning on releasing an automated policing unit as the human police force is seen as unable to handle the job. After a disastrous unveiling of the ED-209 (an AT-ATs smaller cousin...), the Robocop program in accepted and begins production. This leads us to our tragic hero, Murphy, who is gunned down the first day on the job in Detroit (kind of a reverse to the cliché'...). His still (barely...) living remains are claimed by OCP and integrated into the Robocop hardware, allowing a human brain to operate what amounts to a man-sized tank. Robocop then goes about the city and prevents many crimes, both big and small (ripping off a convenience store [look for old Marvel comics in this scene...] to stopping a hostage situation...). Eventually, the human side of Robocop reasserts itself and he begins remembering his old life, his old family, and those who brutally murdered him. So, after hospitalizing one hoodlum and tracking down another gang member of tried to kill him, Robocop busts into a cocaine processing plant (god, I love the 80's...) where the rest of cop killers are. He nearly kills the leader of the gang (the dad from That 70's Show...) before being reminded that he is a cop first and cannot take the law into his own hands. Also revealed is that the head guy at OCP is the money behind the crime lords in Detroit, which leads Robocop to attempt to arrest the head OCP guy. Unfortunately, a protocol in Robocop’s programming prevents him from arresting OCP members and a functional ED-209 was waiting to take him out. Fortunately, Robocop outsmarted the machine by toppling it down the stairs but was then greeted by the remaining police force (under OCPs payroll...) and was shot up, forcing a retreat to the steel mill where he was nearly killed at the beginning. OCP guy hires the rest of the cop killing gang, arms them with futuristic grenade launchers, and sets out to kill our hero. But, through cunning and smidgeon of good luck, the gang is whittled down to the leader. Robocop becomes trapped under scrap metal, but the leader becomes cocky and gets close enough for Robocop to stab him in the neck with a spike, killing him. Afterwards, Robocop returns to OCP to deal with the money man. Revealing proof to the board that he killed the creator of Robocop, the villain tries to take the owner of OCP hostage. But, the owner fires the money man which removes the OCP protocol and allows him to take him down by blasting him out the window. As Robocop leaves, the owner asks his name and his simple reply is, 'Murphy'...

This movie is a science fiction staple for me and I pass it on to anyone who enjoys the genre. Robocop is more subtle science fiction though as it takes place in a near future, it is based in a recognizable city, and there is no mention of space travel, aliens, and the like. It is especially fun for those who dig realistic fiction and dystopia vs. utopia universes. While the contrasts between the two aren't as pronounced as in other films (The Matrix, Demolition Man, etc...), it is a more logical progression into the future as there are no laser guns, no flying cars, etc. It's just regular people being put down by 'The Man'. Because of the amount of bloodshed and bullets, this typically gets lumped in with the general action movie genre (due to the aforementioned sci-fi subtleties...) but that is a bit of over simplification of the kind of movie Robocop is...

It warrants mentioning that Robocop can be perceived as an early pop culture champion of the cyberpunk movement. Let's look at the facts: Robocop exists on an Earth where a giant corporation wants to change their environment (read: Detroit...) to fit their ideal of perfection and go to many lengths to do it. Murphy is first a normal working Joe (read: lower class...) and then is dropped further in status (read: near dead...) before being changed by the corporation to bear their standard into the future. Robocop then turns against the 'overall' wishes of the corporation and becomes an autonomous unit, capable of free thought, judgment and actions. He is still bound by his prime directives (Serve the public trust, Protect the innocent, and Uphold the law...), but is able to act more heroically, meaning more compassionate and human. Granted, we don't really get to see this until the second movie, but the principle holds true. He's a plugged-in rebel who fights for the good of the public and that makes him a cyberpunk hero in my book...

One last point of note: There have been several articles written to point out the biblical metaphors within Robocop. I've read a couple of them and can (sort of...) see where they are coming from. List them in the comments what you picked up on...

I get rattled, baby...

2011-02-24T13:53:00.000-05:00

Let us turn to the Way Back Machine and take a trip back to the grand ol' age on 1988. Compact discs outsold vinyl records for the first time, both Nine Inch Nails and Milli Vanilli were formed (taking both ends of the spectrum here...), the most excellent Megaman 2 video game was released, and Magnum P.I. drove off into the sunset in his red Ferari for the last time. But, most importantly (at least as far as today's post is concerned...), the supergroup Travelling Wilburys released their album 'Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1' to great critical and public success...

A little history first: if you are not aware of who the Traveling Wilburys were, they were a supergroup (in every sense of the word...) formed by Roy Orbison ('Oh, Pretty Woman'...), George Harrison (The Beatles...), Bob Dylan ('Blowin' in the Wind'...), Tom Petty (The Heartbreakers...), and Jeff Lynn (Electric Light Orchestra [ELO...]...) by chance that they all happened to be in close proximity to each other and were doing some separate side projects. Someone (who knows...) said something to the effect of, 'Hey, let's cut a record, guys', and so the Travelling Wilburys were born. Let's look at this a moment: You have one of the great rockabilly musicians, a Beatle, an icon of 60's and 70's counterculture, a highly successfully musician of the Americana variety, and the lead of one of the most successful prog rock bands of the 70's and 80's. How could this fail? Thankfully, for the world at large, it did not fail and proved that there are musicians who are in it for the love of playing music with your friends and not (just...) the cash. Either that or they are great actors as well...

It turns out that I love this album and never knew it. I picked up the album at Salvation Army (my one-stop shop for cds...) because I found the song 'Margarita' a couple years back and really got down on it. So, I thought, 'I bet the rest of the album is pretty good too, what with that lineup and all'. I got the surprise of a lifetime as I began to realize that this album wasn't an unknown to me. About three songs in, it dawned on me that I had heard this whole album before, but nearly 20 years ago. A wash of nostalgia hit me and I was transported back to a small town in Ohio when I was just a lad. I even called up my mother and asked about it. Apparently, this is one of the soundtracks of my childhood. It also may explain why I cling so vehemently to classic rock over many modern rock styles; it's in my blood, plain and simple. I was programmed at an early age do enjoy most music pre-1990 and I guess it worked (thanks, Mom and Dad...)...

The album content is definitely greater than the sum of its parts (and the parts are fantastic on their own...). 'Handle with Care' is reminiscent of Tom Petty's 'Learning to Fly' (actually, that analogy is backwards...), but allows you to really get the power of Roy and George as well as their combined power in the bridges. 'Dirty World' is mostly done by Dylan and is quirky, sexually laden song that is just fun to sing (what does he mean by 'He loves your bottled water'?). 'Rattled' is a throwback to the days of rockabilly (I could see Elvis doing this one...) and Jeff Lynn sings it expertly, though I'd have loved to hear Roy do it. 'Last Night' is a Roy/Petty number, with the rest backing them up. It's a story, literally, about a nefarious woman the singer met up with 'last night'. It's a bit repetitive, but still pretty good. 'Not Alone Anymore' is an Orbison ballad and suits his singing style (always good to hear from the Big O...). 'Congratulations' is mostly a Dylan number about loss and probably my least favorite on the album due to the repetition and Dylan's voice (not much of a Dylan fan here...). However, because of its slightly annoying distinctiveness, it tends to be the most memorable song on the list. 'Heading for the Light' starts out like an ELO number but you can almost feel the Beatle undertones. If the Beatles (the band...) had lived past 1970, I can imagine that this is where their sound would have headed. I'm not sure exactly where 'Margarita' fits in the genre list, but it's a pretty cool song. It builds in intensity and has a quirky mix of folk, country, surf, and rockabilly rock. Very catchy. 'Tweeter and the Monkeyman' is...indescribable, but is apparently a poke at Springsteen (Click here to experience it...). The last song, 'End of the Line', is a sweet, on-the-move number with a touch of melancholy as this is one of the last songs Roy Orbison put down. The music video shows a rocking chair with a guitar in it in Roy's place and is a little sad without him there...

Where I a divinely powered being, I would have created a universe where there is ALWAYS a Traveling Wilbury band. As members get too old to do it or move in different directions or what have you, other rock artists should take up the Wilbury banner and keep the tradition alive. Were I to reform the Traveling Wilburys today, I would use the following artists in various incarnations in the future:
-Paul McCartney to replace George/Roy...
-Eric Clapton...
-keep Tom Petty...
-Joe Walsh and/or Don Henley from The Eagles...
-Dave Grohl to represent the 90's...
-Jack White...
-The Edge from U2...
-Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top...
I don't know about many artists from the 90's and 2000's that would mesh with this more classic rock sound, but I'd be up for some suggestions to add to this grouping...

I highly recommend this album if you are a fan of any of the artists who contributed to 'Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1' or are just a fan of classic American rock. This is a very fun album (though I bet it was more fun to make...) and definitely is on my top 25 album list, if not higher. All the songs are very catchy and easy to get into. In recent times, there seems to be a resurgence of artists getting together to lay down some fresh tunes (Jack White and Dave Grohl have been notorious for this...) for the sake of doing something different and just playing some rockin' music. I feel they are continuing a tradition is older than they imagine. Rock on, everybody...

How Are Things In Connemara?

2011-02-21T13:08:00.000-05:00

Maybe two this week?

Day 4

An early up and off to the ferry for another fun filled Irish day, and what a day it was. The road to Connemara was filled with sights both natural and not, so in some ways, this was Ireland at its finest (including Ireland's wonderful road system, which makes most American roads look like a stroll through the park...)...

I was fairly drowsy until lunch, but I do recall green, rolling hills and quaint little lakes and sheep. Lots and lots of sheep. For gas, we stopped at what I can only describe as a back country Irish strip mall (not as bad as it sounds...). The craft store boasted some of the finest in Ireland so it was worth a stop just to satisfy our curiosity...

We were drawn to a huge statue of a man (turned out to be the Connemara Giant...) and at his base were the words, and I kid you not, 'The Connemara Giant, carved by the Connemara Craftsmen in 19XX, for no reason at all.' You gotta love the Irish sense of humor. This trip is shaping up just right. After a while in the gift shop (and a quick change of pants...), the Irish countryside awaited...

For lunch (for reals, this time...), we pulled over for a pastoral picnic amongst the largest Irish mountain range, the 12 Bens. These mountains reminded me of a cross between our Rockies and Appalachians; green like the east coast, but very treeless like most of the west. Very lovely indeed. Did I mention a butt load of wandering sheep? Cause there's a butt load...

After seeing signs for some sort of music workshop (perking my interest...), it seemed to be a worthwhile side trip. Rather than being an activity center, it was literally a workshop where instruments were made, specifically bo'hdrans (pronounced bow-run...). The salesman, who was surprisingly Texan with a Scottish partner (small world, no?). Long story short, I bought an Irish drum for my father as a Christmas gift (I hope he enjoys it...). I almost want one for me; they're pretty cool...

Cong Abbey was our next stop, which turned out to be ruins (pretty cool; America needs better ones...), a usable cemetery, and a pastoral, verdant back area. If weather had permitted, we'd have walked through the verdance. But Irish weather (such as it is...) persisted and drove us back to the car. In the rain, we pitched our tent and prayed. See you in the morning...

June 16, 2009
Nicholas C. Witte

As before, have some bonus pictures on the house (and yes, that is the Giant from the back...):

Motivation is the key...

2011-02-16T17:54:00.000-05:00

Another comic post, but this time in a more serious vein (serious comics?). The motivation for any hero to take up the mantle or cause is fairly straight forward and easy to understand; they want to do good for humanity by using their skills to make the world a better place. But today, we're going to go over the motivation behind two specific events from two comic universes (universi?) and compare the effects of these events on the heroes in question. First, we'll analyze Iron Man's motivation behind his decision in the 'Civil War' arc, then take a look at a moment from 'Superman: Grounded' and compare their effectiveness, appropriateness, and believability...

Roughly 4 years ago, Marvel Comics released a huge crossover event called 'Civil War' (one in a loooooooong string of huge crossovers...). In a nutshell, a reckless tragedy involving a team of lesser known heroes way out of their league, destroyed a small town and killed hundred (all caught on TV, I might add...); calling into question how should superheroes be regulated. This split the hero community between those believing that being registered and regulated by the government for accountability's sake vs. those who believe that heroes should act outside the law since those who were sanctioned could be pointed at targets regardless of right and wrong. The heads of each faction were Captain America, leading the said against regulation, and Iron Man, who leads the registered heroes side of the fence. Iron Man took up the side of regulation when one of the victim's mothers assaulted him emotionally at her son's funeral. She screamed at him that his flagrant attitude towards the law and society over the years inspired a younger generation and precipitated the actions that killed her son. This struck a chord with the armored billionaire and pushed hard for the regulation of the hero community. This inevitably lead to a showdown between the two factions (as well as their leaders...), ending in the surrender, capture and eventual assassination of Captain America...

Now, let's jump to today, but switch universes: after an event which caused the destruction of the New Kryptonians in DC comics (look it up; it's too much to go into here...), Superman was feeling disconnected to the people of Earth. More specifically, he felt removed from the people of America, to whom he had sworn to protect (Truth, Justice, and the American Way and all...). To this end, The Man of Steel set off on a walk (see why it's called 'Grounded'...) across America to help the average person with their daily lives and attempt to reconnect to the everyday, average American (good luck, big guy...). He makes stops at various cities and makes a show trying to connect and going through some self-doubt to show how he is growing as a person and rediscovering what it means to be human. The series is still ongoing, so there is no wrap up yet like with 'Civil War', but the moment in question involves a press conference Superman gives and a grieving woman comes up to him and slaps him (smooth...). She tells him how the love of her life had an inoperable brain tumor and she knew Superman could fix it. But when she tried to contact him (I'd love to know more about that...), all she was told is that he was 'prevent[ing] some big interstellar crisis' (is that all...) and that Superman was 'doing something important'. Her husband died and she blamed The Man of Tomorrow as he could have used his super abilities to save her husband. This moment further spurred Superman to take his journey across the country...

How do these moments stack up to each other? Both speak to how the populace of each universe view and regard their hero population and it is for this reason the 'Civil War' moment is more poignant that the one from 'Superman: Grounded'. In Marvel, the public are not always on the side of the hero and often regard superheroes as much in fear as in adulation (look at what Wolverine, the Punisher, and Hulk do on a regular basis and tell me I'm wrong...). So a public outcry over the reckless nature of young heroes in the Marvel universe is to be expected if not a complete given. By having the mother assault Tony Stark and make him realize that his hedonistic nature contributed to the idea that anyone with powers could do whatever they please, it speaks to the maturity and evolution of the character of Iron Man and that he is willing to become the role model and take responsibility for his actions (Uncle Ben would be so proud...). In a different time, Iron Man and Cap would have been on opposite sides, but having the split this way and forcing Tony to choose between his brothers-in-arms and what is good for the people of America is good story telling and good character development...

In contrast, the moment in 'Superman: Grounded' does not work for me as motivation for Superman to try and reconnect with the Untermensch (if you get it, you get it...). The idea of Superman has been built upon that most view him as a god and that he is a well respected and well loved member of society. This also leads to the fact that the people of DC's Earth lean on their heroes more than Marvel's seem to. When you have protectors such as Green Lantern, Superman, and Wonder Woman around, life can go on a bit more recklessly than it might otherwise if such demigods didn't exist. Also, the responsibility of the safety of man, accidental or otherwise, is now placed on super beings able to do the impossible at the drop of a hat. This moment is the case and point of the attitude towards supers in DC comics. Granted, we are supposed to feel bad for this widow, but to have her displace the blame onto Superman (he was battling Kryptonians in space to save Earth, for God's sake...) is a bunch of weak sauce. Superman, as close to a deity as he might be, cannot be everywhere at once and it is childish, even in the face of the death of a loved one, to blame him for something that is small potatoes in comparison to Earth's safety...

What it comes down to is cause in the end. Iron Man's actions (as well as many Marvel heroes...) as a super hero can be traced as the inspiration for the actions of later generations of heroes. His recklessness and lack of responsibility for his actions is transferable to the next generation. It makes sense for him to be personally affected by the tragedy when put into context by a grieving mother. However, Superman did not cause the husband's tumor, much like he did not cause an inescapable flood or a terrorist bombing. Does he have the abilities to stop said catastrophe? Absolutely. Does that automatically make him available to handle every potentially tragic event that may, and probably will, occur in life? Hell to the no. Superman's sin is being gifted with these powers and having a populace that unfairly treats him like a miracle on a stick. I feel sorry for the Big Blue Boy Scout...

Guilty as charged...

2011-02-15T11:53:00.000-05:00

It's true that we all have some kind of guilty pleasure in this world. For some, it's a television show or movie that really speaks to them (that goes out to all you Sex in the City and Jersey Shore watchers who aren't proud of it...). For others, it can be food related, be it chocolate, fatty foods, or some other cheap snack food (mmmm, cheese food product...). For me, I have a handful of musical guilty pleasures, some of which I am proud of and others not so much. Today, let's talk about the extremely radio friendly Bryan Adams...

Bryan Adams is one of those artists who seem to have always been around, which is likely because of his radio friendly sound. The Canadian rocker has been spinning chart worthy hits since the very late 70's and has been able to continue this trend until modern times (not an easy feat for many, more publicly accepted acts...). However, I would be willing to speculate that between the mid 80's to early 90's shall be remembered as Mr. Adams heyday. During this time, we received such hits as 'Cuts Like a Knife', 'Run to You', 'Heaven', 'Summer of '69', 'Can't Stop This Thing We Started', and 'Everything I Do (I Do it For You)' (which you may remember from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves [quite possibly a guilty pleasure as well...]...). While this time period was the greatest success for Bryan, he has still found more than enough work, what with doing movie soundtracks, music collaborations with artists from all stripes, and writing songs that (despite never reaching the top spots...) still receive solid airplay...

I would imagine that a lot of my peers aren't fans of Bryan Adams due to his seemingly corporate sound, the idea that his brand of rock may feel like he 'sold out', and that the sound of his edge is a weak sauce (read: pussy rock...). Bryan has been around as long as many, better regarded (at least among my friend group...) bands, such as ZZ Top, The Eagles, and Heart (more on them later...). This seems contrary to critical reception of Mr. Adams, as he has been nominated (94 times!) and won a great many awards over his 40 years in the business, including a Grammy, an American Music Award, and 18 Juno Awards. Granted, most I know don't give much thought to awards as they can be quite political at times (read: pointless...) and they don't necessarily add up to great musical talent. An indicator sometimes, but never an absolute. Friends of mine would tend to listen to harder contemporaries of Bryan Adams, such a Def Leppard, Aerosmith, and Van Halen and lump Mr. Adams in with lighter bands such as Wham!, Sting, and Journey...

I enjoy myself some Bryan Adams and I won't lie or hide it. I do, however, get a little sheepish if the topic comes up. My music collection is full of a wide variety of song styles; from the poppiest pop to some serious heavy metal and most styles in between (I like to think I appeal to all types...). But, since I am known for enjoying some serious rock, the knowledge of my affection from Bryan Adams' music is a little off-putting. I would imagine most would feel it is beneath me to have most of his albums and public rock it out, but I don't mind (usually...). While I'm not as big a fan of his slow ballads (they feel REALLY long...), I think his faster rock tunes are solid, especially when compared to much of modern pop rock. He's a great guitarist (I do love guitars...) even when his lyrics aren't the deepest. I get very pumped when I hear 'Can't Stop This Thing We Started' and 'Summer of '69'. I can't help; I think they are great songs...

I believe Bryan Adams is the bridge between pop and rock, at least in the context of 80's and 90's rock. He's not as hard as most hard rock and metal bands of the era, but he is by far more solid than the majority of pop music that came out at the same time. Given the choice, I'd listen to Bryan Adams over most of his pop contemporaries (and even some of his rock contemporaries actually...) much of the time. Does that make me a weak rock fan? Nah, it just means I'm diverse in my love of the rock. Tell me; what is your musical guilty pleasure? Go on, it'll be fun...

Pryde (In the Name of Love)...

2011-02-11T16:21:00.001-05:00

Looks like its two comic style posts this week (wee...). Today, we're going to look at an obscure piece of animation, one that seems to go under the radar, even in this YouTube generation. Few think to even look for this cartoon and, since it never took off, you'd have to have a friend like me tell you about it. Most comic fans remember, or at least know about, the 90's X-Men cartoon on Fox (and love it to pieces...). What many people don't know (or forget about...) is that in 1989, a pilot for an X-Men cartoon was released, titled 'Pryde of the X-Men'...

In the 1980's, the youth market were flooded with cartoons that definitely did not treat their audience as seriously as many cartoons do today (except all you Pokemon knockoff shows [jerks...]...). For example, let's look at most episodes of He-Man: There is a problem that, it turns out, only He-Man can solve. Something bad is going to happen, tension builds, He-Man is summoned, he performs some Herculean effort, and the crisis is averted, wrapped up in a neat little moral before the credits rolled. Rarely are any innocents in any real danger as the villains didn't want to kill people, just lord over them with 'EVIL'. Even natural or cosmic dangers felt too big to be REALLY threatening and, since He-Man IS the 'Most Powerful Man in the Universe' (and won 3rd in the bikini contest...), you could be assured that he would always save the day. The same could be said of G.I. Joe, Transformers, Thundercats, and basically all action-adventure shows of the decade. No one died and the status quo was maintained (again, wee...). As kids, we bought these situations because the heroes were big and bold and the villains were over-the-top and mostly ineffectual and we loved seeing the good guys win in the end, regardless of the issues at hand, the ridiculousness of the outcome, or the stapled on moral lessons...

But, to speak of the X-Men pilot in question, it has all the elements of its 80's brethren: Magneto is a super hammy version of himself (I'll destroy the world with a comet!) and employs the 'Brotherhood of Mutant Terrorists' (why?), the bad guys give up with little fight (or sometimes with NO fight...), the heroes really seem to be in little danger (Nightcrawler is the closest to being in trouble...), and the same/similar voice casts is used for the characters (let's give it up for Frank Welker...). As it is 1989, this almost seems a parody of what had come before, but I know this is not the case. Parodies of that nature would be reserved for the 2000's and beyond. I can imagine the main reason this did not take off. Due to when this came out, much like the advent of alternative/grunge over hair metal, the market was over saturated with this kind of kids show and the formula had grown tired. This did not press any boundaries and would thus leave us without an X-Men cartoon until the fall of 92...

Not that there was no good within this (failed...) toon. On the contrary, the biggest bonus it has going for it is the art and animation. Coming in at the end of 80's era cartoons, it has all the polish the genre could muster and made it look good (better, in fact, than the last handful of the 90's era X-Men episodes...). Not only was the animation sophisticated, but the characters were all spot on for their time in the X-Men. The costumes were all of the 80's era, and while some were a bit ridiculous (I'm looking at you, Colossus...), they were authentic and accurate (what's up, Brown-and-Tan Wolverine...), just as the 90's counterpart were (different styles, same dedication...). And, while the voice talents were many you would recognize from Transformers or G.I. Joe, I can't fault their abilities to bring the characters to life in a dynamic manner. I do prefer the relative unknowns used in the 90's version, though...

I would be remiss if I did not mention a hidden (near forgotten...) bonus that came from the production of this pilot. As a kid, I remember very fondly playing the arcade game of this pilot in malls wherever I lived. It was a great game, which supported at least 4 players and played like a standard beat-'em-up game, but with mutant special powers added in. Most of them didn't make much sense (Wolverine's 'laser claw', Nightcrawler's strange damaging teleport, Colossus's 'RRRRAAAHHHH!!!' ability [don't ask...]...), but it was great fun and nice change of pace to play a full team of X-Men with your buddies for a change...

I do have some questions, though (as most fans of X-Men do after watching this little goodie...):
-Why is Wolverine Australian?
-Why is the White Queen in the Brotherhood and throw bolts of light?
-Why is Wolverine Australian?
-Why does Colossus sound like a stereotypical dumb Russian?
-Why does Prof. X give the 'Key' to Kitty Pryde, who he's known for exactly 10 minutes to protect?
-Why is Wolverine Australian?
-Why do the X-Men stay with their beaten opponents?
-Lockheed? Dazzler? Dumb Blob?
-Finally, why is Wolverine an Australian?

I give this pilot a B and mostly for nostalgia's sake. Most people who grew up on, and enjoy more, the cartoons of the 90's will be constantly rolling their eyes at this one, from the cheesy intro song to the hammy villains to the infallible heroes. But it does score points for animation proficiency and faithfulness to character designs (if not completely to the characters themselves...). If you are a diehard X-Men fan or dig the toons of the 80's, it's worth a watch or two. If you are more of a casual fan, I'd recommend waiting to find a fan that digs this kind of thing. Click hereif you want to begin the journey into Pryde of the X-men...

And Aran, Aran so far away...

2011-02-09T22:12:00.000-05:00

Missed a week...

Day 3

Up-an-attem, bright and early, for to catch a fairy...er, ferry. We caught the ferry in Rossaviel after hanging about for a couple of hours. Apparently, things don't really get going until after 9 in the morning or so. Me and Tara did get a chance (while we waited for Ireland to wake...) to munch on some unique UK goodies. Being processed by the Cadbury company, their chocolates are more rich than our home grown Hershey's and Nestle's, but at a similar cost. We are so missing out on the good stuff...

Anyways, the ferry and the island. Nothing much to say about the boat. It was full, but not crowded. I napped. I'm finding it difficult to properly stay awake yet, but I imagine it will come to me, given time. Right off the boat, we were dumped into probably the busiest area on the island and were immediately scooped up for a bus tour. This was handy, since biking the island would have been SUPER tiring and we would have never really known what we were looking at...

So, Aran Island (best known as the home of Samus...in the future...on another planet...) is an island of around 800 people, part of which is transient tourists. More than half of the cars there are mini-tour buses, since there really is no place to go. Plenty of pubs, though, much like the rest of Ireland. The island contains over 7,000 miles of hand built, loose stone walls (not like pebbles or small rocks, but good sized stones, uncemented and properly stacked...). Apparently, this wall building trade has nearly died off and has become a near art form. Specialists are hired by other countries (like Norway...) to build these walls for a considerable cost...

Anyways, back to the island. Pretty indeed, but on the whole, not much to say about it. The hostel was decent (very...hostely?), but nothing else. The pub, Joe Wattie's, was real good though. Good decor, layout, everything. Well, almost. The two entree's Tara wanted most were out (seriously, how can an Irish pub run out of Traditional Irish STEW!?), but mine was there (a burger, I believe...). We picked Joe Wattie's due to its reputation (among locals...) as having the better pub music on the island. I wasn't disappointed. The duo played a bunch of songs I'd never heard before (not saying much, really...), but the biggest treat was that they played The Mermaid Song. That's right; the old Camp Ware, meal time stand-by (I think we even did it at Lexie's wedding in lieu of TCCB...). Few not in-the-know wouldn't appreciate hearing it (or any camp song for that matter...) out here in the wild, as it were.

That's all from Aran Island. Tune in next time for The Road to Connemara. Back to you, Tom...

June 15, 2009
Nicholas C. Witte
Guinness Count: 3

As a treat, have a couple extra pictures...

If I go crazy...

2011-02-08T10:58:00.000-05:00

Probably the most iconic superhero in the business is Superman and for good reason. He's got an extremely recognizable (near garish...) costume and a symbol that anyone knows from a distance. The S shield is likely even more recognizable than Batman's symbol as it has changed the least since it first débuted in the 1930's. Further, his power set (while rather generic...) is memorable in that many comic book fans think of Superman when the idea of flight, heat vision and the like are brought up. And it is the power set that we shall discuss today; specifically the topic of invulnerability and super strength...

It's no secret that Superman can take most anything thrown at him, be it missiles, super strong opponents, or even meteors. The impact may throw him back a ways, maybe it would even 'hurt' him, but he sustains no real lasting damage (after all, he is The Man of Steel...) unless it is a ridiculous level of damage or the opponent is his match or his better in strength (see Doomsday...). Further, Superman can dish it out as well as he takes a hit. He has shifted tectonic plates, moved the moon, and punched 'reality' so hard that it changed (ok, that was Superboy Prime, but the principle is still sound [and it's ridiculous...]...). It's likely that Superman could honestly solve a majority of the world’s problems by a mere application of force, but he doesn't because of his upstanding, 1950's morality. This level of power also means it is nigh-pointless to have him stopping everyday crime. No one would commit petty crimes with a Superman around (that's for another post altogether...). However, this amount of power and toughness comes into question when we bring in Kryptonian or Kryptonian-esque beings on par (power-wise...) with the Big Blue Boy Scout...

To set the stage, let's say we take a body builder and have him punch a dude who is not a body builder. The guy who got punch will fly back farther than if he had also been a body builder. It's an application of resistance and force; pure physics if you will. Now, let's bring in Superman and an average, comparable Kryptonian (Zod is good...) or Captain Marvel (Shazam for those of you who need clarification...). If a Kryptonian punches something (or somone...) that is not supernaturally tough, the target will go flying. But, using the body builder analogy, Superman should react to a Kryptonian/Shazam punch as if he were a normal guy getting hit by a normal guy. Because of The Man of Steel's inherent toughness, the reaction of his getting sent through the air/through walls/etc. should not occur...

There is a hidden statement when we see Superman take a punch in such a way (and it may be a trifle...). When he gets hit by such a being/force/what have you, not only does his inherent invulnerability become negated, the force of the blow overrides his ability to fly as well. Superman has been shown to be able to turn on a dime and have fine control of his ability to fly, but when he gets hit by such a force, this ability becomes lost until he lands. Afterwards, his flight returns as normal. Again, I realize this is for effect alone and makes combat with Superman better, but by having the Man of Steel react in such a ways makes a statement that has never been explained completely enough for my tastes...

In specialized instances (being surprised, getting hit with a large object with Kryptonian force, etc...) though, I can understand seeing Superman sailing through the air or getting beaten down. It would be similar if someone got sucker punch or knocked a guy out with one punch. And I also understand the need to use such effects in comic books; seeing Superman smashing and getting smashed by a powerful opponent leads to good combat panels and makes a comic that much more exciting. I get it. It would not nearly be as much fun if Superman got punched by Zod and he reacted as if I got punched by, let's say Brian. Not that exciting, really. Now, my knowledge of physics is limited so the original analogy may be flawed due to lack of science know how. However, this is how the subject of invulnerability vs. super strength (with a dash of flight...) is being handled in a not quite believable manner. Prove me wrong, folks...

Blaaaaaaaarrrrggggggggghhhh......

2011-02-04T11:00:00.000-05:00

Who doesn't love zombies? It's a wonderful little subgenre of fiction that gets a lot of attention (maybe more than it deserves, but that's speculation...) for what it is. The idea of zombies tends to fluctuate in popularity (much like most fads...), going from a mere glimmer on the pop culture radar to society wide obsession level. Currently, zombies are still going strong, but we definitely are waning away from the 'obsession' level (over exposure will do that...). However, we're going to talk a little about a game spawning from this undead obsession and it's called simply 'Zombies!!!'...

Game play is pretty straightforward: The game is governed by a series of die rolls and tile placement. The players are trying to make their way out of a zombie infested city to a helipad and, subsequently, safety (a la Romero-esque zombies...). The city is a tile based board that grows each turn. Each player flips up a new tile and lines up the road squares so that no road dead ends at a building. Each player is a 'shotgun guy' and must mow their way through an army of zombies, picking up equipment along the way (with die rolls, action cards and equipment cards...). Beyond moving their own piece, they must also move the zombies at the end of their turn (per another die roll...), which effective allows the player to impede (read: screw with...) the other players' progress. Each player starts with 3 health and 3 bullets; bullets aid combat rolls, health gets you out of unwinnable scraps. When your health is gone, you go back to start and halve your zombie kill collection. You can also win by having 25 zombie kills in your collection...

In contrast to the last board game I reviewed, this game is almost completely driven by luck. It has die rolls, a deck, and a random game board each time it's played; there is little in the way of classic strategy. The best you can do is try to facilitate your zombie kills and block off the other players with the new tiles and hope for cards that mess up your opponents. However, this game just drips with flavor. A mad dash to escape an undead ridden city is fantastic and is simple enough to get into. There is very little in the way of complicated rules, so once the game gets rolling after the first few turns, the kinks (if any...) are all smoothed out. Having your friends all do their best zombie impression, however, is probably the best part of the game. My favorite moment while playing Zombies!!! has to be reading from the Zombie Haiku book (find a copy, it's delightful...) with Tyson & Vicki. Awesome...

My one complaint: Zombies!!! can turn into a very long experience. If you have poor die rollers (we have a few...), killing zombies becomes problematic, which means moving towards the goal is even more problematic. Further, if you die, you often have an even bigger zombie army in your way, slowing you down further. It's definitely not Monopoly level of length, but it can get moderately tiresome if you die a lot and have trouble moving through the zombie horde. The cards are supposed to facilitate an easier time of it, but it never ends up being that way (at least not for my group...). This, in turn, makes me nervous for the multiple expansions that have been released. As fun as they look (they even released a version where you play as the zombies and try to eat all the humans [awesome...]...), I would be afraid that it would add too much length, offsetting the fun level. I could be wrong, and I certainly wouldn't pass an opportunity to try the expansions, so I would approach the other versions with subdued excitement...

Final thoughts: This is a very fun game, if a bit mindless (not a bad thing; just a label...). It won't stress your brain muscle much, but very, very enjoyable, especially with the right people. Zombies!!! is a must have for any hardcore zombie fanatic and would be a great gift for the casual gamer. If you ever want to blow holes through the undead, this'd be the way to go...

Grade: Solid B+...

No man is an island...

2011-02-02T22:16:00.003-05:00

I was challenged by Brian (my true and faithful follower...) that I should rise to an earlier challenge posted by a radio station I don't really listen to. I'm not sure of the full details of the challenge, but I believe it goes something like this: 'You are stuck on a desert island and you can have 10 songs to keep you company. What are they?' Brian did his own and you can find them here. Not to be outdone, I have thought long and hard about what to put on this list. It wasn't easy at all, though such a decision should not be really. Let's cut the crap and get to it. Here is the Witteman's Widget of Desert Island Music:

As this seems appropriate (and since Brian set the precedent...), I'll break down the why for each song in a short paragraph:

1)How Long - The Eagles: I love me some Eagles and this song encapsulates their 40+ years in the music business. The harmonies are fantastic and the blending of Glenn Fry's and Don Henley's vocals are fan-friggin'-tastic. The song itself is very infectious and it is hard not to sing along with it. While not a complex piece, it does warm the heart and keep me company like an old friend...

2)Baluchitherium - Van Halen: Ramping up from the realm of classic/southern rock is this instrumental from one of my favorite hard rock/heavy metal bands. It has a soaring lead that tells it's own story and a driving bass that never lets up. For being stranded on an island, this little piece not only play well on the ears, but drives me to do tasks such as manual labor and exercise. It makes me feel powerful and, by being empowered, this will save me from abject loneliness...

3)Limelight - Rush: This is quite possibly the most perfect rock song I have in my collection. The guitar hooks in this are incredible, Neil Pert's drumming is supra-excellent, and Getty Lee's vocals rise like a cathedral without becoming a screech. I cannot adequately profess my joy of this song enough. Were I required to put together just a top five, or even a top three, song list, this would make the cut even then...

4)Runnin' on Empty - Jackson Browne: This song is on this list for one reason and one reason alone: Hope. I cannot tell you how upbeat I get when this song comes on the radio and I want that feeling to follow me to which ever island I land on. Also, much like Baluchitherium, this song has a tendency to get me up and moving with it's driving rhythm and up tempo vocals. This song also emphasizes the fact that, even though I might be all alone and 'runnin' on empty', I can still make it through...

5)Digital Love - Daft Punk: From the realm of rock, we detour into the land of techno/electronica and find a selection from my all-time favorite techno group. This one is chosen due to it's lack of repetitive music, pop-infused sound, lovey-dovey lyrics, and a lead at the end that hints at Van Halen level of technique. It's an extremely light song compared to most on here and the pop flavor runs off of it like water. By adding a song such as this, I prolong the despair I may end up sinking into...

6)Times Like These - Foo Fighters: Another empowering song regarding solidarity, it is also one of my most favorite songs ever. It was a toss up between this one and Everlong, but won due to the overall more positive vibe I get from listening to it. The song is very powerful and is a contender for the hardest song on the list. In such a lonely island situation, when things are looking the most grim, put on this song and remind yourself that it is indeed 'times like these we learn to live again'...

7)Running from an Angel - Hootie & the Blowfish: This is a fun, almost folksy piece that bring me great amounts of enjoyment each time I hear it. It was never a radio hit, but it was a wonderful find after purchasing the album. I love to just sort of dance around like a white dude to this one and just enjoy listening to the music. Also, thankfully Hootie's range is right in mine so singing feels natural. It's a good friend to have on your island...

8)Ventura Highway - America: I have adored this song for well over two decades at this point. I cannot picture my life without this song in it. I get very vivid pictures of traveling down the road with a friend or two, casually so. There is an air of nonchalance and a laid back energy that helps mellow up the days where stress may build. Also, I find this song is a very hopeful, if strange lyric-wise, song and I listen to it when I am feeling down in the dumps to pick myself back up...

9)Faithfully - Journey: Quite possibly the greatest rock ballad of all, Faithfully gives us another song of soaring vocals and excellent guitar work as we wind the list down. The message that, no matter how far apart we may be, I will be yours faithfully is both powerful and cathartic In the dark times of isolation, when hope and drive seems all but gone, Journey's eternal song of heartfelt love can shine through. The epic level of such a mighty, mighty song cannot be overstated and I would be a fool not to bring it along to the island...

10)Aqueous Transmission - Incubus: A late, almost dark horse, entry to the list is this very odd little piece, but one I cherish. I have fallen asleep many nights listening to this story song with a smile on my face. It is a dreamy, flowing song that stays mellow like a calm river and soothes the nerves on even the most troublesome days. It's affect on me is almost zen-like in nature. I can allow myself to be taken by this song and lose myself in the lyrics, the music, and the mood. The pieces just all fit together beautifully...

So there she be, friends and neighbors. Not what you might choose for certain, but we all go into the 'desert island' situation for different vantage points. I took it from more of a 'I will eventually dive deeper into lonely despair and need the company of up tempo numbers to pull me out of it' standpoint. I treat these songs like I would companions and have chosen them according to qualities I would look for in people. Makes sense? Not completely, but I bought it. What would YOU have picked?
New Widget
http://grooveshark.com/playlist/My+Widget/43128285

Wolverine AAAAATTTTTT SEEEEEEEAAAAAA......

2011-02-02T08:24:00.010-05:00

Let's (belatedly...) hit February hard and give 'em a comic book post to chew on, shall we? It's no secret that if I had to choose my favorite comic book character, Wolverine would likely be on the top of that list. Yeah, I realize it's not all that original for a fan boy to think Wolverine is all that great, but he's got a lot that people find interesting; a tragic story line, a rigid code of honor, a reluctance to kill with the tools given to him, an internal war between civility and savagery...Ok, let's be honest: He's got unbreakable metal claws, he's hard to kill, and pines after the hot redhead, just like you did in school (you know who you are...). Boom. As far as today is concerned, we will be looking at Wolverine #44 (vol. 2...)...

We start with our hero reminiscing (while needlessly wearing tattered...cloth, I guess...) about days gone by and experiences on the sea. This leads us into story at an undetermined time in Wolverine's past. Logan is plagued with dreams of floating, golden babies, which is strange enough. He ends up on a cruise (lord knows why; he sticks out like a sore thumb with that hair [maybe the babies told him to...]...) and meets up with these pregnant women. After a short conversation, one of the women dives into the pool and is quickly (and brutally...) murdered in broad day light. No one saw the murderer, but ol' Wolvie has some suspicions. The party breaks up and Logan dons his brown and yellow costume (my personal favorite costume of his...) and gets down to business. Meanwhile, one of the other women is killed and strung up in the elevator. We then finally see our killer; he's a monster with a lot sharp teeth, sharp spikes, and sharp claws. They fight briefly and the monster slices an elevator cable (innocents in danger...), forcing Wolverine to stop fighting and grab both ends of the loose cables (more on that later...). The monster escapes and, following a brief frackus with security, Wolverine rushes to the last woman's room just as the monster does. He tackles the monster into the water and they fight, all the while the giant rotors (the 'screws', as mentioned in the issue...) get closer. The monster gets sucked into them and is chopped to bits while Wolverine swims away. The issue ends with Logan and the last woman sharing a heartfelt moment...

I've had a copy of this comic book for longer than I can remember. It was a coverless copy even when I received it back in the very early 90's and its condition shows its love. Tara bought me a cherry copy a couple years back, which meant a lot (if you don't know why, I can't teach you...), so now I don't have to be nearly as gentle with the original as I have been. As far as the contents go, the story is alright (written by mega-veteran Hulk author, Peter David...). It's in the vein of a suspense monster movie, but quick (it IS a comic book issue, after all...) so there is little in the way of development and more of a headlong plunge into the final battle. The art, though, varies from really good to absolutely great. This came out during my favorite era of comic art, so I dig a little Marc Silvestri on the cover and Larry Stroman did a bang up job on the rest of it, giving the relative realism of the time while still putting his own spin on it. The inker, Dan Green, should definitely be given a shout out as there is a ton of great panels where the inking was everything. There is great mood in the panels and very simple shots keep up the pace until the end...

Not that I have no problems with this issue. As a kid, I totally bought that Wolverine would just crouch there in rags. I would have thought, 'Oooh, I wonder who Wolverine just fought? I bet it was Sabertooth and Lady Deathstrike!'. As an adult, however, it seems a little pointless. I'd imagine he'd just rip them off by the time this panel happened and/or changed clothes, though I know why they used it. It's very evocative of the character. Next, the scene in the elevator. Regardless of how strong Wolverine really is, I don't buy that he can hold an elevator car aloft without it slipping through his hand (check the singular status...). It's not a question of his bones; it's just not possible for someone at his assumed power level to do this. Not buying it at all. Further, the battle in the water needs to be addressed. My problems are twofold: 1) Adamantium is heavy (it was once said that he had 300 pounds of adamantium laced to his bones...) so, even with Wolverines augmented strength, he'd have to constantly swim to stay afloat. Augmented strength does not give augmented buoyancy. And B) Why didn't Wolverine get sucked into the rotors with the monster? I can suspend my disbelief for the floating thing, but this completely defied conventional logic and physics. Sure, it wouldn't have killed him, but he doesn't have anti-rotor pheromones or whatever. I may be getting picky as I age, but these just seem a little silly, even in the realm of comic book physics...

It's a very groovy one-shot Wolverine comic. It does not serve to forward any of the Wolverine plotlines of the time, but that's ok. #44 served more as a break in the storyline to develop the character a little and branch out from what was happening then (we were knee deep in the mind wiping cover up and the Shiva program and all back then...). Silvestri was the primary artist at the time (and still did the cover and first page...), but I would imagine this was an effort to allow another artist shine and give Mr. David a crack at writing a Wolverine story. This is definitely one of those issues I still pick up and read to this day, even though I know the entire thing by heart. It is well drawn, well written, and well paced. I feel I can draw a lot from this particular issue and apply to my own comic projects. If you see me and I happen to have it around, give a read and tell me what you think...

To all things...

2011-01-31T20:35:00.002-05:00

Evening and, once again, well met to all of you. Well, the end of January is nigh and 1/12th of this new year is gone. With it goes the many, many (countless many, actually...) new years resolutions, failed or not, made by an untold amount of people across the globe. Why do I bring this up, you ask? This blog that you have all so graciously enjoy for a month was just that; a new years resolution. For longer than I can remember, there have been so many hobbies I have always said that I CAN do, but I then I don't actually do them. I've never felt the need to prove my ideas in that regard as I 'know' what I can (or should...) be able to do. For this, the year of our Lord 2011, I decided to actually prove my worth and do something that I said I could do but have never actually done...

So what did I learn from this experience? Well, first off, I don't think I have it in me to consistently post once a day, every weekday. Sometimes, I'm too busy with work and home life, I don't have time to churn out a QUALITY blog entry (therein lies the important distinction...). I do not want to get to the point where I am phoning in this blog and just make short posts about random crap I think of (far, far too easy and then what's the point...). For each post, I want to showcase something in my life that I have enjoyed or (at the very least...) caused some kind of emotional reaction within me (for good or for ill...). By using pop culture items I am interested in inherently, this prospect was made so much easier. But it was definitely a more difficult prospect that I realized at the outset...

Where we go from here is uncertain. My intention was to do this blog often enough that posting would become habit and I got close to that idea. While I did make enough posts for each weekday in January (yay...), what I more succeeded in doing was making myself anxious for something to blog about. Close enough, I suppose. However, I did promise to unveil my entire Ireland journal on this blog and we are still fairly early in the journey yet and I will attempt to continual daily blogging until the end of the travel log. I am hoping (cross your fingers...) that by continuing until that goal is complete, I will have gotten into a better groove and just keep going on and on until I tire of it. I have not grown tired yet, I am just tapping myself out too quickly and I need to find my blog voice or at least define it better than I have already. Maybe something will spring force as this blog evolves from its nascent state...

As a great man once said (you know him if you know me well enough...), 'Excelsior!'. I'll leave you with that...

We prere'd the crap out of that day...

2011-01-31T09:46:00.006-05:00

Seems I missed a day again. This will have to count for last Friday (problematic at the very least...), which is kind of odd since what I will go over today happened on Sunday, so it wouldn't have been an issue then. Cop out? Perhaps, but it is a good topic none the less. So, Big Brian (yeah, I said it...) and I decided that, after such a long hiatus, it was time for us to blow some cash and have some geektacular fun, just the two of us. And we're off to Glen Burnie for the Mirrodin Besieged M:tG prerelease...

A little prere explanation: Before the official release of any Magic: the Gathering set, Wizards of the Coasts sends out a set number of booster pack boxes to locations across the country for the use of having a Limited tournament (a type of event where only the very most recent cards are allowed...). Each player is given six boosters with which to make a 40 card deck (lands are comp...) and then the players are paired off, standard elimination style. If you do well enough, you could win additional boosters as prizes. Usually, those who do the best are those who randomly receive the biggest bombs (REALLY good cards...) as well as factoring in proficiency at deck building. If the deck building skills are comparable between two players, the game is often decided which player pulled the better cards from the outset. Further, larger locations may also run booster drafts, which allow X players to pull-and-pass packs, taking a card one by one and then making a deck with their choices. At the end of the day, each player walks home with a promo card and (at least...) six booster packs worth of the current block sets, all for the cool price of 30 bucks for one sealed flight (drafts and additional flights cost extra...)...

This then brings us up to Mirrodin Besieged, the second set in the Scars of Mirrodin block (this block being a sequel block to the original Mirrodin block back in 2003...). When last we left Mirrodin (a metallic world where life is infused with metal [the trees, the people, everything...]...), the elf Glissa had saved the day, the green sun had been created, and the turmoil within that set had been (to one degree or another...) appropriately resolved. Fast forward 7ish years (real world time...) and enter Scars of Mirrodin/Mirrodin Besieged. Life progressed as normal on Mirrodin (whatever normal happens to be for metalish beings...). However, the once defeated Phyrexians (M:tG's overarching baddies...) have returned and insidiously invaded Mirrodin, right under the noses of the (un...)natural inhabitants. The Phyrexian forces have finagled their way into every aspect of Mirrodin life, which brings us to the end of Scars. Within Mirrodin Besieged, the Mirrans have noticed their planet being overtaken by the Phyrexians and fight back finally, splitting the planet into two warring factions (Mirrans vs. Phyrexians, if you hadn't guessed by now...). Mirrans favor the red/white philosophy (Mountains/Plains, attacking bonuses, cheap fast creatures, lots of removal spells, etc...) while green/black is the purview of the Phyrexians (Forest/Swamps, poison counters, regeneration, big stompy creatures, wither away forces and resources, etc...). Blue, then, is split in twain between the two factions, subtlely supporting both sides of the war(Islands, card drawing, charge counters, evasions, temporary removal, etc...)...

This prerelease was different than the others I have been to, specifically because the players had to pick which warring faction to play as. This affected the cards you would get (Mirrans got more red/white cards, Phyrexians got more green/black...) in each Besieged pack. Rather than getting a standard booster with a standard assortment, players received three Scars packs and three Besieged packs of their faction. I chose Phyrexian and Brian went with Mirran (we wanted to see how each side fared...). Brian did not pull cards that were so great, but I pulled decently. I built a very solid green/black/artifact deck and it played fairly well each game. My problem: no real bombs to speak of. Many solid cards, but nothing that was really game changing/ending (see: Blightsteel Colossus, Massacre Wurm, Creeping Corruption, etc...) so I had to rely on my deck building skills over just 'getting lucky'. I would be remiss if I did not mention that Brian is very integral to my continued deck building skills. He is great for bouncing ideas off of, though sometimes I feel I may use him as a crutch (though one of the few times he wasn't there, I won packs...)...

My first match was against a Mirran deck, but the guy didn't really seem to know what he was doing (at the very least, he was not a good deck builder...). I smoked him 2-0; he played very little cards and my efficient deck just ran him over (like a boss...). Second game, I got a beat down quite a bit (I went 1-2...). This guy played a Phyrexian deck like mine, but ended up pulling better cards from the get go. He was faster and his bombs were very bomb-y (the above Massacre Wurm made multiple appearances...). I was able to poison him out one game, but it was for naught. My last game (1-2 again...) was a beast to play. This guy was running multiple awesome cards (Venser, Black Sun Zenith, Sunblast Angel, etc...) in a strange (but effective...) black/white/blue combination, but my 'Little-Deck-That-Almost-Could' pushed through enough poison to end the game. That guy was pissed. However, game two I got mana screwed (not enough resources to cast my spells...) and then he just beat the crap out of me in game three. Good matches, even if I won no prizes...

Final thoughts regarding the prere: I have missed it and it was a lot of fun. However, I will say the overall match ups were a little dull(ish...) as you could almost guess what you would see once you figure which faction the opponent was playing. The variable of deck types were reduced a bit (I was very pleasantly surprised to see black/white/blue in round three...), but the game play itself was a delight. Brian and I hadn't played a prere since Lorwyn in 2007, so it was nice to get out and do it up right. This time, it was a local store rather than a big convention hall so it was a bit of a different experience (less of an event and more like a Friday Night Magic...). I am highly looking forward to the next prere tournament, but will satisfy my cravings with the occasional one on one draft that Brian and I do so well. Until next time, enjoy gaming folks, however you find it...

LOOK! You see? The Cliffs of Insanity!

2011-01-26T21:39:00.008-05:00

Another day in (Irish...) paradise...

Day 2

Very tired this morning. Jet lag caught up to me big time. But after much poking and prodding from Tara, I was roused. After a light breakfast (one step in my weight loss plan...), we hopped into the car for the day to begin. First stop: Dunguaire Castle...

The castle was actually smallish from the outside and, since it cost for the tour, we decided to walk the grounds. We got some nice pictures and, all in all, it was a nice first stop. It got me ready for the next item: the Cliffs of Moher. Before the cliffs, we passed through some gorgeous scenery (though I am seeing very little that isn't gorgeous...) and drove on one of the worlds curviest roads; the aptly named Corkscrew Road. Anyways, onto to the cliffs...

The Cliffs of Moher (colloquially known to many Americans as 'THE CLIFFS OF INSANITY!!!'...) were very impressive and stretched for miles down the coastline. Despite being fairly touristy for a national natural monument (though I suppose no more so than any in the states...), the cliffs were a treat. I got to see my first puffins AND an honest to God raven in the wild. Tara and I spent a long while trying to decide where that bit in The Princess Bride was filmed; we think we narrowed it down to a couple sections. Got to try my first Irish soft serve there, too (delicious...)...

Lunch next, then it was off to the Burren. The Burren was an odd area, topographically speaking. The whole area is (mostly...) limestone, but due to time and erosion, the ground looks like this: Most of the ground was flat stone and the rain had grooved the land into an intricate rivulets that were dark and deep with hardy grasses growing in most of them. Very cool. The Burren also contained two man-made monuments: A ring fort and a grave marker (called a portal, I believe...). The grave marker resembled a part of Stonehenge, just thinner stones. They actually call the flat stone areas 'pavement'. Weird. Going back, the ring forts (scattered across the island...) are structures used, and later modified, since ancient times (BC...) up to the 15th - 16th centuries. Though each is different, it was quite unique and interesting to be within something so old and still around...

The rest of the evening was spent at camp. Tara and I walked a bit on the beach, ate some packed dinner, and bedded down for a drier night than the previous one. The itinerary tomorrow: The Aran Islands...

June 14, 2009
Nicholas C. Witte

Bonus - A cute picture of me and Tara at Moher...

Oops or Ba da BAA DAAA...

2011-01-26T10:08:00.007-05:00

OH CRAP!!! MISSED A DAY!!! THE GOOD TIMES ARE OVER!!! Alright, calm down, take stock and rally. ::shakes head vigorously:: Brrrururrur. Ok, here we go. With Tara out of town, stuff crops up that I don't normally deal with and it crimps the free time with a vengeance (to say nothing of Dude Night...). So, to make up, I will have to do TWO posts today to catch up to my goal of one a day. So long as I can do this, I will still count it as a success and keep on going. By the by, I'm going with gaming today and a relatively new game to boot. No more foreplay: This is GoldenEye 007 for the Wii...

This particular game is a strange reboot/sequel/reimagining of an extremely popular and memorable game for the Nintendo 64, GoldenEye 007(f'n duh...). The 64 game was freaking fantastic. Beyond the storyline itself (I only played a handful of mission, but I was told that it was very faithful...), it is renowned for its replayability with multiplayer death matches. I cannot tell you how many countless camp hours I (and my Ware brethren...) spent shooting the crap out of each other, Bond style. We learned the layouts of each of the levels by heart and knew exactly the best sniper spots, the best location for proxy mines, and exactly where to find all the body armor. The graphics (now extremely dated...) were on par for that time in 64 gaming, but it was obvious that more time and effort was given to said level designs as well as weapon design diversity. Before GoldenEye, we would see this kind of FPS in PC games (like Doom and Duke Nukem...) almost exclusively and it was GoldenEye that proved it could be beyond successful on a console. I am not much of an FPS guy and I LOVE playing old school GoldenEye. It goes beyond nostalgia or the enjoyment of the Bond franchise. It was just a solid, fun game...

This brings us to the younger brother of the polygonized version of Bond. As far as graphics go, it is a delight. The settings and characters are very smooth and lifelike and (I'll say it...) on par with most FPS around. It may not reach Halo level of detail, but it's damn good. There are changes to the Classic levels and some are almost to the point where I didn't even recognize I was playing in the same level until much level. The designs of the levels remained similar, but the details and additions to the level skewed my perception to the point where you would have to convince me it was an old level. The 64 just didn't have the capabilities to do what the Wii does (also f'n duh...). I cannot honestly comment on the changes to the story as I haven't played any mission, but I've heard there are small changes to the overall story and it works well enough. Further, they brought the game play style in line with more modern FPSs (Halo, etc...) in that you get one main BIG gun and a smaller side arm. This is a significant departure from the past where each character had a Bag of Holding or access to Hammerspace to carry all the weapons. It's not necessarily a bad thing; it's just the changing of times...

Here's the biggest (subjectively...) change between the two games: they switched the Brosnen Bond with the Craig Bond (as well as some of the other characters to their more modern counterparts...]...). I am honestly not 100% sure on how I should feel about the change. On one hand, I feel the purist in me screaming 'FOUL!' and wants to see a slicker Brosnen sprite in this 'new' game. I mean, c'mon, it's GoldenEye! It's his movie, for the love of Pete! However, I can understand the desire to update it for a modern audience as Craig is the current Bond and GoldenEye came out over 15 years ago at this point. Also, FPSs aren't what they were in the mid-90's so if they were going to give it an overhaul, they probably figured why not just go all out instead of cherry picking the updates. Then again, maybe Pierce didn't want to do it at all. Who knows? I think at the end of the day, though, I would have wanted a more faithful character adaptation. It could be argued that I want it from a nostalgic standpoint, but that's what this part of the game should have been...

Final thoughts on the Wii version: Quite enjoyable, at least from a multiplayer stance. But that is why I (and many others...) really want to play GoldenEye. Die hard Bond fans might want it for the story, but the casual gamer (or even the casual Bond fan...) will pick it up for this reason. It's realistic, it's action packed and fast paced, and it never gets old (even when you think it does, you always come back to it...). The Wii controls took some getting used to, but I eventually got on par with more seasoned players (I'm looking at you, teeg...). Do I prefer it over the 64 version? Not really. They are almost separate beasts with the change in game play style, but since I don't own a 64 anymore, I would be more likely to pick up and play the newer version. I'm honestly not sure how the Virtual Console version compares yet; no one I know has it (does that tell you anything?). I am curious, though; Do you have any fond or interesting stories from playing GoldenEye, either the old or the new version. I'd love to hear them...

Bald Travolta?

2011-01-24T08:18:00.008-05:00

I had quite the weekend with plenty to talk about. I enjoy having enough spare time on my days off to take in a movie or two (even if it's at home...), especially if the movie(s...) is just mindless fun. Guess what? That's exactly what I'm gonna talk about today (HUZZAH!). Most know I'm a fan of many over the top action movie, particularly those from the late 70's through the early 90's. I'm not sure if this one is supposed to be a throwback, a send up, an homage, or what, but it would have fit within this grouping say 15 years ago. Today, we're going to look at From Paris with Love...

This little gem stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers as James Reese, a ladder climbing CIA agent who gets assigned with John Travolta as Charlie Wax, an over-the-top secret agent with an unorthodox style of getting the job done (fairly standard buddy cop setup...). Reese must prove his worth by helping Wax uncover a terrorist plot to mess up some kind of political summit, all the while dodging countless bullets, taking part in foot/car chases, discovering traitors and the like. Further, Wax's attitude and modus operandi (oh yes...) basically drag Reese from gun battle to gun battle, getting him into loads and loads of trouble. Luckily for Reese, Wax is also very good at getting him out of said trouble (think Mary and Pippin from LotR, but with guns...). I don't want to spoil this movie (in case you're a fan of this kind of flick...), but there is a bit of a twist in it, so I am holding back on plot details (for now...)...

All in all, this was a pretty good movie, even if it was a bit predictable. Standard action movie fare, for sure, but quite enjoyable (if you like to turn your brain off and watch some gun fights...). It was co-written by Luc Besson, who you might remember from such movies as The Fifth Element and Leon the Professional (two highly rated flicks by moi...) and his flair for film once again shows here, albeit a bit more polished that The Professional. Meyers plays the budding agent type fairly well; intense in a nubile kind of way (a departure from The Tudors...). Travolta (a more than seasoned actor at this point...) really looked like he was having fun with Charlie Wax. I think Travolta has played most kinds of characters by now and it was much fun seeing him as this particular kind of character; narcissistic to the core, brash and in-your-face along with a devil-may-care attitude. The character definitely harkens back to the roles of Schwarzenegger, Stallone, Gibson and Lundgren during their heyday of being action stars and I love it for that...

My only complaint is that the movie could have been 'more'. I was expecting more slugfests from Travolta (say, with a rival/enemy agent who's as bad ass as Wax...) at some point and I didn't get my wish. Also, they could have made Reese tougher than he was. It kind of felt like Wax just kept dragging him by the collar from one scene to the next. But, would I recommend this movie? Sure would, just not to everybody I come across. This is definitely a dude movie, through and through. It's a sit down, veg out with a bag o' popcorn, and turn off the brain kind of show. From Paris with Love will certainly never win any awards (nor does it need to...), but it sure beats the hell out of Battlefield: Earth...

Grade: a solid B and the hope a sequel wouldn't suck...

An odd little review...

2011-01-21T16:08:00.002-05:00

Hoo-ha, e'erbody! Certain things tickle my funny bone more than most; pratfalls, my ridiculous friends doing ridiculous things (I'm looking at you, Matt...), the comedic stylings of vintage Looney Tunes cartoons. But a web cartoon that capture my attention and keep it's funniness is rare to find. Lucky for me, I found one. I am an avid viewer of Homestarrunner.com (if you've never heard of it, allow me to introduce you to the interwebs. Interwebs, this is somebody who lives under a rock...) and have been since 2001. They build their comedy mostly on nostalgic pop culture references (which I dig...) and ridiculous antics from strange cartoon characters. However, one toon in particular found that perfect balance of homage, nostalgia, ridiculousness and humor. Enter: Shopping For Danger!...

A quick aside: Cheat Commandos are a 'toon-within-the-toon' in the Homestarrunner universe, much like Itchy and Scratchy in The Simpsons or Terrance & Philip in South Park. The 'show' itself parodies most 'boy' shows during the 80's into the 90's; i.e. a good of fighter/military/tough guys who fight a group with an over-the-top villain (read: G.I. Joe vs Cobra...). However, these guys take the parody to directly referencing what each show would do: Instead of inferring to buy action figures and the like, the slogan of the Cheat Commandos is literally 'Buy All Our Playsets and Toys' sung in a very patriotic manner. The concept alone is very cute, but it is this particular episode that has won my heart...

Herein lies the plot synopsis in case you do not care to watch the toon: We begin at the Cheat Commandos base playset, when a Blue Las-alert goes off, signifying that Blue Laser is up to no good! In reality, they are shopping at a grocery store and will save a lot of money. The over enthusiastic leader type (Gunhaver...) stirs the other Commandos into a frenzy, but leaves behind the dorky type (Reynold...). They try to prevent Blue Laser from checking out, but Reynold has accidentally set off a rocket launcher, destroying part of the base. The Commandos return, mistaking Reynold's mistake for a Blue Laser attack. It ends with Gunhaver cry vengeance in the next episode (literally...), while Blue Laser cleans grout as it is (apparently...) a key to defeating the Cheat Commandos...

It's the little things that make this episode near and dear to me. The plot itself is a parody of any ridiculous plot that you might find Cobra do in G.I. Joe, but beyond that, I found the adherence and the references to the little things from my childhood to be paramount. Example: when there'd be a jokey or uncomfortable scene, a 'dopey' piece of music would play. It feels very He-Man to me, but so many 80's cartoons used this trick, I can't say it's just from one show or another. Changing scenes by using the title logo is straight out of West-ian Batman show which was then used in countless kids shows since then. It's hard to pin point each and every reference and why they are great (to me...) since the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts in this case. The Brothers Chaps (creators of the H*R phenom...) out did themselves and showed there love for the genre in this short, but very sweet cartoon...

You can find the link to the toon itself here. If you give it a chance, and happen to love 80's cartoons like did (and still do...), I think you'll really dig what these guys did. While your at it, peruse the site and see what else Homestarrunner.com has to offer. There hasn't been as many updates as there has been in the past, but I still swear by the site...

The Hood vs The Cowl...

2011-01-20T16:08:00.003-05:00

Comics today, but specifically the moving pictures variety. I had the opportunity to watch Batman: Under the Red Hood recently and I was very pleasantly surprised. Not that I actually had a much of an opinion one way or another (I have read the comic version already...), but I had been putting it off because I hadn't really heard much of anything about it at all. I am very glad I gave it a chance and here's hoping you will too...

A little back story: Semi-way back in comic book history, Dick Grayson retired as Robin to become Nightwing and a contender in his own right (a very acceptable and logical character move...), but Batman ended up needing a Robin to back him up. Enter Jason Todd: a spunky kid from the streets Batman took in to prevent him from entering a life of crime. However, it is shown very early on that, since Jason grew up hard on the streets, even at his young age, he did not have the remorseful drive that Grayson or Wayne has. He is far more reckless and got into more trouble than he solved. Flashforward many issues: The Joker kidnaps Jason in a building a beats him nearly to death with a crowbar (very brutal even by most Joker standards...), then leaves him to die in a warehouse that is about to explode. Here's the tricky part: the public voted on whether Jason Todd was to live or die (he was never as popular as the original Robin...). The public voted death, so the second Robin died in an exploding warehouse; just another ghost to follow Batman around...

SPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERSSPOILERS

Flashforward again: This time, we are very near the present and within the confines of the 'Red Hood' story. A new vigilante enters the scene, calling himself the Red Hood (side note: that was also the first 'moniker' of the Joker...). He runs amok within Gotham's criminal underbelly, but kills the bad guys rather than helping the police lock them up. Batman (with Nightwing in tow...) scour the city in search of this deadly hoodlum. Meanwhile, he kidnaps the Joker and severely beats him with a crowbar (Symbolism, thy name is...) but doesn't kill him. Chases upon chases abound when finally Batman has the Red Hood cornered. We then see who the Red Hood really is: a resurrected Jason Todd (a cosmic calamity brought him back; i.e. Superboy punched the multiverse [ugh...]...). The final showdown happens with Jason giving Batman the choice of either shooting the Joker or shooting his former (dead...) partner to save the Joker. Batman gets out of it, everybody lives, and the bad guys escape. Hey, it's a comic book...

As far as the movie is concerned, it actually a very, very faithful adaptation of the story. The violence level is about on par (some toning down is expected...), even if a lot of it is off screen. It isn't implied that Joker beats Jason with a crowbar; we here sound effects and see shadows of the act as well as more blood than usual. Similarly, one of the cyber-bad guys head explodes and another thug gets immolated on screen. A serious cartoon for a serious audience. The action is well paced and I would imagine it is more of an exciting surprise if you don't know Red Hood's secret (though the toon is self contained, rather than a decade’s long waiting period like in the books...). The voices are also a very solid addition, though I still wanted Kevin Conroy as the Batman. John DiMaggio did a really good job, even if I could tell he was kind of channeling Mark Hamill (check the laugh...) as the Joker. Even the comically frustrated Black Mask worked for me...

Even if you have no feelings toward the Jason Todd character or have little knowledge of who he is, the story itself should be compelling to most who want a little twist into the Batman mythos. Even Batman, who is often the most human of supers, can't seem to die. But to have an actual, on-screen death affects him directly and impacts him in a lasting, meaningful way (like his parents, but much more 'in your face'...), makes the character seem more fallible. And this is important to the continued intrigue of the character. He's not Superman who can shrug off everything and save the day. At the end of the night, Batman is still a man, and it's one of the reasons we dig him so much...

Grade: A+ and the wish that more animated comic book experiences were like this one...

Don't know when I'll be back again...

2011-01-19T21:11:00.005-05:00

Here comes another entry from my Ireland journal; this time I wrote from a different country. Remember, these entries are verbatim and reflect my mindset at the time. Some of the opinions on these pages may have changed over the course of the trip. Enjoy...

Day 1

If moving from Ithaca the way I did was an experience, then getting to Ireland was a cluster fuck and a half. To be fair, I am still on the proper flight, but let me explain:
-First, I got little sleep on the first flight. No biggie; that happens to everybody...
-Then, customs went smooth with few questions. Bonus...
-Backtrack: the flight into Birmingham was quite painful, due to the fact my ear kept refusing to pop. Even in the air now, my left ear feels full. Bad start to the day...
-Next, the baggage claim. My info wasn't clear on if I transfer the luggage myself (that felt right since I was changing airlines...) or they do it automatically (this is the correct one...). Originally, no problem. I had like 40-45 minutes till the flight. Here's where is all went south...
-I first went to the wrong terminal. Stress builds...
-I find the proper terminal, however the Aer Lingus gate has closed for check in A HALF AN HOUR BEFORE THE FLIGHT. I'm screwed big time...
-Nearing tears (to be fair, it would leave me stranded IN ENGLAND...), I happen across a mother/daughter team who did the same things I did (It's an American thing. We screw up alot...)...
-We then go to rebook the flight (which would seriously crimp the budget...) and come to find out our boarding passes are at the US Airways gate. Frantic, adrenalized energy sets in...
-RUN!!!
-Jump the security check line. RUN!!!
-Boarding pass and passport checks out. RUN!!!
-Get on the plane and quiver with relief/terror/etc...

Two points of note this morning. One, if you arrive on one airline and will leave on another one, isn't it natural to assume your ticket will be picked up at the NEXT airline? Yes. Is that the reality of the situation? Hell no. At least, hell no in England/Europe. And what the crap is that 'closing check in early'? It doesn't leave any time for stragglers, late comers, or emergencies. Now, maybe it's my spoiled American ways, but it seems a little too...overly efficient, let's say...

And speaking of efficiency, number two; the British security check points. They are tight, efficient (I said that...), and a model for the rest of us. EXCEPT: They are quick almost to the point of careless (almost...). I didn't have to take off my shoes (American airlines only?) and I didn't even get an obligatory pat down. Maybe we should be taking a cue from them, albeit tightened up for good measure. I mean, who wants to copy the English, yes?

Seeing Tara made up for the crappy day in spades. I know it was only a couple of weeks being apart and all, but it was a stressful couple of weeks and I've gotten used to having her around. Though, I suppose it was good she wasn't around for the move. I needed all the space I had and then some...

The next part of the day was mostly uneventful. It was a long drive back to our campsite (it only FELT longer than its 4+ hours...), and I was quite drowsy. After some caffeinated beverages, we played catch up and got all kissy faced. Ireland DOES have some pretty country sides, by the way, even if some of it is a bit dull. You could see much of the same in Pennsylvania that you could see here. Dull aside, it is pretty neat to be here. A new place and all...

Our first city tour was in Galway, which I swear was like a modern themed, year long Ren Fest. All the shops were flush with the next and a wide variety of buskers and street merchants abounded. Tara's not much of a city girl, but I sure as heck am (...wait...)! Despite that, we took a walking tour of the town, went to St. Nicholas' cathedral (SUPER stained glass windows. Primo tops...), saw like seven couples making out, then we had dinner...

Since it was my first real meal off the plane, I went with a traditional Irish lamb stew with a Guinness and Tara went with haddock. The food was great, the ambiance was great, the service was ok. Three thumbs up!!!

Afterwards, there's little to tell. We got home, bedded down, got busy, and went to bed. It was a good first day. Tune in tomorrow for...The Cliffs of Moher!

June 13, 2009
Nicholas C. Witte
Guinness Count: 1

Sean Connery INNNNN SPAAAAAACE...

2011-01-18T13:47:00.004-05:00

When most people think of space travel, they tend to veer towards the Star Wars/Star Trek spectrum (nothing wrong with that...). The flashing laser blasts, exotic worlds, creatures beyond out contemplation; all of it displayed for our viewing pleasure. But there is far more out there (movie-wise...) for us to enjoy, often times forgotten when there are most comfortable, flashy franchises to be had. Consider the first two Alien movies: very un-flashy, understated sci-fi flicks. No laser blasts or beam swords, no magical elements what so ever and a general grounding in futurealism (Dig it...). They gave us a dirty or 'used' universe, rather than the utopia of Star Trek. Even Star Wars has a certain utopia-esque feel to it, despite the conflict (everything felt very bright and clean, even on sandy Tatooine or murky Dagobah...). But I digress. The movie in question for today is a movie from 1981 starring Sean Connery called Outland...

Apparently (I found this out after seeing the movie...), the storyline is a variation on the western High Noon. I've never seen High Noon. However, I will say that the story is very much like many western movies you might have come across; a sheriff rolls into to town (Sean Connery as a Interplanetary Marshall on Io [a moon of Jupiter...]...), finds some shady business going down (the manager is dealing narcotics that causes mining workers to work harder but make them psychotic...), vows to stop it at all cost (his family does not approve and he could get killed...), has a big gun fight near the end (both hit men explode in the lack of atmosphere of space...), and basically shuts down the bad guys for the good of the land (The Marshall rejoins his family, mentioned in a space age post-movie scroll...). While very linear, the story is well paced and does keep the interest of the audience over the entire film. You want to see just how The Marshall will get out of this sticky situation...

Now, the way the film is shot and the setting that it takes place in would feel very comfortable within the confines of the Alien universe (at least up to the second movie...). The style of rooms, the overall grittiness of general setting, the lack of the fantastical elements in many other franchises, the reliance on fairly modern implements such as modified shotguns, florescent lights, and obviously clunky mechanical machines for jobs rather than streamlined...anything really. Also, the use of green computer displays and early 80's graphics and fonts lends itself to the idea of what space travel might have been like if we had not progressed beyond the technology of the 80's. Combined, it makes it an easy leap from this movie to Alien; I was halfway expecting to see something specifically related to the aforementioned franchise appear in the background...

Further, unlike some more modern sci-fi movies, we actually build an emotional attachment to the characters, as they are normal people (similar to Vasquez, Hicks, and Hudson...). Flawed, human, and actually complex. Connery is not some superman character who never misses and doesn't get hurt. He's an aging Marshall, he gets shot and bleeds, and he can't just take a hit and get over it. By the end, he's been put through the wringer and seems to win by sheer will alone. The lead 'heavy' is just a man who wants to control his colony and make a lot of money doing it. He's no sinister archvillain out to kill everyone; the stress of not being able to have business as usual and not being able to get rid of the Marshall takes a noticeable toll on the character. The Marshall's lieutenant is a corrupt cop, but wants to do right by the Marshall. He agrees to help the Marshall be a spy and even shows a decent amount of shame (at least before he gets bumped off...). Even the female doctor (Connery's foil who almost acts like a western deputy...), while wooden at times, actually manages to grow as a character by the end and realize that things don't need to be as they are...

Among the great many pieces of crap sci-fi movies of the 80's (I'm looking at you, Masters of the Universe, Earth Girls are Easy, and Howard the Duck...), I'd rank this one very high. It's not the epic that Star Wars is, nor is it the rip roaring action event that Aliens is; what it is a solid story built upon a simple concept and executed seriously. And therein lies the key; the entire staff of this film (the actors, the writers, the director, all of them...) treat this movie with a seriousness that occasionally seems lost to modern day film makers. The setting could be anywhere and I believe it would have been presented in a manner that I would find appealing. It seems that modern science fiction are two concerned with how much money to throw at the effects, rather than developing good stories and characters (I'm looking at you, Battlefield: Earth, Pandorum, and The Fountain...). Hollywood could take a page or ten from this oft forgotten sci-fi tale...

Grade: Solid A-

...And she don't care...

2011-01-17T17:20:00.003-05:00

I love me some board games. This is as much a fact as my hair is brown or favorite color is green (most of the time...). Barring most 'children's' board games (Chutes & Ladders, Candyland, and the like...), I'll play anyone, anytime. Don't misread this statement; I'm not the King of Board Games. I have been known to lose give or take as much as I win. I just love to play. One particular board game of interest is a rather tricky one for me to get a handle on strategically. I rarely win at this one at all, but I still will jump in (lightly begrudging, of course...) when there are others who are better at it or enjoy it more than I. The game in question is: Ticket to Ride...

The setting is...set in the turn of the century America. The players represent a club of travelling tycoons with a wager on who could travel the furthest by rail (insert your favorite blustery, vaugely british/rich drivel...). The game play is very simple (almost deceptively so...): You pull your routes (Random 3, keep at least 2...), then you can do 1 of 2 things on your turn. Either draw train cards (only one that's face up if it's a locomotive/rainbow...) or play enough train cards to make a route (from 1 track up to 8...). You get different points per amount of trains played, as well as points for completed routes and if you have the longest continuous connected route. That was longer than I originally anticipated. But, once you get into the game it is crazy, crazy simple to play and replay...

I may have stumbled up why I am not as good at Ticket to Ride as I am at other games (partially thanks to my lovely wife Tara's insight...). Consider: I'm very damn good at Small World (another game for another day...). There are few games that I have played that have more player on player interaction than Small World. It holds the game together, at least for a guy like me. Now, back to Ticket to Ride; there is very little to no player on player interaction from game to game. What Ticket to Ride DOES have is great player on player TENSION, and this is important to making Ticket to Ride unique. In essence, TtR gives each player their own puzzle to complete and they must complete it faster than the other player else too many obstacles get in the way. However, one player cannot do anything PROactive about what the other players do (other than guessing what the other players will do next and taking the cards the other players might want [poker-type players might be quite good at TtR...]...), but must be REactive to the board state as it changes...

It is here where I lose my game playing mojo. I am better (mayhaps even excel at times...) at games where I can pit my skills directly against another player(s...) skills and have sort of a battle of wits and wills during the game. But, in a game where you can do so little against the other players, my skills founder and it shows. I get frustrated that an area can get locked away by the other players and there is NOTHING to be done about it except adapt. Don't get me wrong, adapting strategies is cool with me. I find it to be a necessary skill for a good game player to have. But, when the only thing you can do to 'adapt' is just find a new route to your destination, adaptation doesn't help as much as it would in a game like Settlers of Catan...

Now, you may imagine that this is an overly scathing review of TtR, but I find it to be one of the most frustrating games I've ever played and still not figured out yet. It's the challenge that brings me back to it each time. It is so simple in execution; and that is the exact reason of my frustration. I'm at a point in my board gaming career (yeah, chew on that idea...) that a game such as this should be more easily beaten than the luck I've been having. But, this is a game for anyone who has, or wants to, venture out into the wide world of grown-up board games. It's simple to grasp, it's not cutesy, it appeals to many different kinds of people. I recommend this game highly; I just may not want to play it with you all the time...

Grade: A...

In brightest day\In blackest night...

2011-01-14T09:34:00.004-05:00

The hobby of comic book collecting has been quite the passion of mine for many years now. In fact, I have deep, close friendships that haven't lasted as long as my love for comic books (scary...). The art, the stories, the characters, all of it; I can't get enough of the good stuff. In amongst my collection is an unremarkable issue of Tales of the Green Lantern Corps. It is not a number one issue, there was no new or breakthrough characters introduced (at least not for roughly two decades...); it's just a standard 80's comic and it's one of my most cherished. I've had it forever and it shows. Let's have a read...

Here we have it; Tales of the Green Lantern Corps No. 3 for a mere 50 cents 25 years (or so...) ago. Long before Paralax Hal Jordan, decades before Spectre Hal Jordan, we just had plain old GL Hal Jordan, an everyman leader of the GL Corps. He's a brave warrior who wants nothing more than to serve like the rest of the Corps (not original, but we buy it...). This was back when Hal walked the line between badass space warrior and silly hero who creates boxing gloves with his power ring. In this particular issue, there is definitely more of the badass Hal going on. We start with part of the Corps returning to Oa and finding the other half of the Corps recently trounced by an evil Gaurdian of the Universe and an army of pseudo-undead. After a short convalessence, the remaining Corps members (realizing they have very little of their 24 hour ring charge left...), fly off to fight their enemy head on...

Along with the evil Guardian, Krona, is a personification of death known as Nekron. He wants to enter the world of the living and make it more deathlike, I suppose (also not terribly new, but always a popular villain goal...). He returns the rogue Guardians mortal form to him and, in return, Krona leads the undead army into the land of the living in a bid to take over the universe. Here's the readers digest version (ask me to borrow the issue some time...): the Corps shows up to stop the undead army, some die in combat. Realizing that Nekron has near limitless forces to send out, Hal wants to shut down the portal to Nekron's realm, so the rest of the Corps charge Hal up with extra power and he jets into the dead realm. Instead of just blasting the crap out of Nekron (too easy a jump...), Hal reactivates all dead GLs in Nekron's realm, who distract him while the good Guardians finish shutting the portal. The spirit of Hal's ring's previous owner (wrap your head around that one...) pushes Hal out and the day is won...

This piece of a comic book is great. It's everything I want in most comic books, a clearly defined good and evil, virtuous heroes, dedicated villains, colorful art (a definite influence on my CosMick story...) and a generally happy ending. It's very contained within one or two issues and it doesn't cross over with any other books/characters needlessly. If you ever see my copy of it, the pages have grown slightly yellowed and soft due to years of reading over and over. It's a very solid issue and I never get tired of flipping through it...

Grade: A...

With all the convenience of the 80's...

2011-01-13T23:01:00.005-05:00

It has been stated that I highly enjoy the preparing of foodstuffs. So it should be no surprise that I have a few choice cooking gadgets to aid in the process. Over Christmas, I added a vintage, brand new device to my repertoire; one I've been wanting since I was a kid (if you can believe that...). Thankfully, now I don't have to wait for my mother to die to get one. Ladies und Gentlemen, I give unto thee - The Kabob-It...

When I was a kid, my family would occasionally bust out the Kabob-It and have some bite sized food for dinner. As a kid, I thought the Kabob-It was way cool; not a whole lot has changed since then. Mom would cut up some meat and veggies, skewer them up, and each of us would get two sticks of food for dinner (plus some filler dish, like potatoes or rice...). It was a ball, at least for a kid growing up in the mid 80's through the mid 90's. We didn't use the Kabob-It that often, though. I imagine that it was because it was a little bulky and cumbersome and even too fragile to keep out on a regular basis. As I got older, I made Mom promise me that I would get the Kabob in the will (understand: I was a teenager telling a 30 something mother about what I wanted upon her demise...). She would laugh and usually say yes. I hadn't thought about the Kabob-It much in a long time, until...

My family is a huge fan of yard sales (future blog post...) and we have pretty good luck finding great deals on interesting items. I nearly bought a 5 foot iron wrench for 30 bucks cause I thought it was cool (Tara thanked me later by not not marrying me...). Occasionally, my family is also great at keeping secrets, especially around the holidays. For Christmas, I unwrapped a fairly big box that contained a mint condition Kabob-It. The skewers were still in the original plastic, the wire was tied together with the original twist tie, even the manual was cherry. I can only imagine someone received this as a wedding gift or a college present or something and didn't think they would ever use it. Suckers. Well, their loss is my gain and I am now the proud owner of a working Kabob-It in fantastic condition...

This very evening, I used the Kabob-It for the second time and made beef with pirate sauce and Italian peppers (my own concoctions...) for our standard Thursday night dinner with friends. Coupled with this was white rice and some red beans w/ rice (protein for the vegetarians...). We cracked some wine (a Riesling, a Tugboat Red, and the rest of the Rosa Regale...) and made a meal of it. It seemed to go over well. It did, however, enforce some facts about the Kabob-It; it is only really good for dinners for 4 max or hors devors (say it phonetically; it's fun...) for a party. There is too much prep to do for more than a 4 person dinner, especially breaking it up between vegetarians and carnivores. It'd just be quicker to use a skillet or grill. It certainly wouldn't be cooler, though. I highly recommend finding a Kabob-It or buying a modern day equivalent. I love using it, and I think you will too...

More money = More wins (usually...)...

2011-01-12T15:18:00.005-05:00

It's no secret that I am a Magic the Gathering fan. I've been playing the game since middle school (read: mid-90's...), and have enjoyed the game on a variety of levels. It's great fantasy fodder, the game play is unique and has great variety to it, and it's easy to get into and teach (given enough time...). I applaud Richard Garfield for coming up with the bare bones of the game as well as the scores of MtG design teams who, 4ish times a year, give us new cards to play with. However, there is one aspect of the game I don't think I'll ever really become a part of: the Pro-Tour crowd. Let me explain...

I used to keep up on the most current sets of Magic. A new set would come out and I'd rush to any store that would sell them to crack open some new cards (and Oh! that new card smell...). It's part of the reason I have such a large collection. But after a while (say, post Mirrodin...), I stopped buying so many cards. Not surprising, really; about that time, I was in college for a while, no real job, no more allowance from Mom and Dad, then I started bouncing from place to place (don't ask...), so buying Magic cards had to take a back seat until I got my act together. In fact, I really didn't start purchasing cards again until Time Spiral came out, and did I love the ever-loving hell out of that set/block. But even then, I have never gotten back to my old buying habits. In the end, it's probably for the best...

The previous paragraph was for the following statement: Pro-Tour players buy specific, powerful cards to make specific, powerful decks to compete against specific, powerful decks. Despite previous dreams to the contrary, I have never been nor will I ever be amongst this group of Magic players. I have neither the time nor the resources nor the desire anymore to become that obsessed with Magic. To win at the tournaments, you gotta have the best strategies and the best deck with the best cards, regardless of cost. I love the game, don't get me wrong. But I don't love the game like this. Case and point: when I go to prereleases (the only Magic tournament I ever frequent...), I look out for the dollar rare box for fun and exciting cards to round out my collection or to make a quirky deck idea I've been kicking around. I will not spend dealer price for Magic cards (150.00 dollars for a Bird of Paradise [a couple years ago] is just ridiculous...). Once I saw a guy trade a huge stack (probably well over 100...) of cards AND drop 30 bucks for one card. In this game, I'll always take quantity over quality, thank you very much...

BUT (there is always a but...), I would be remiss if I did not mention a moment in my life that I did indeed pay merchant price for an individual card. The card in question is pictured: Force of Nature. As a youngling, I felt a very visceral reaction to the card itself; The name is killer, he looks like the Hulk with a Predator head, he's a huge trampling creature with a unique cost (I'm a sucker for huge uniqeness...). In the late 90's, I paid 8.00 dollars American for that piece of cardboard. I doubt I've even played with it 10 times because the actual execution of the card in game is not so good. He requires too much dedication in a deck that I don't normally build. I keep the card, though, as a reminder: Don't waste your money on cards with little practical application. Magic, in the end, is merely a game and you have to get more out of it than what you pay for it. Buy the Force of Nature is one of the few times I can say that I have not gotten what I've paid for. Lesson learned...

You take the high road and I'll take the low road...

2011-01-11T21:53:00.003-05:00

Verily and well met, ye travelers. I had the unique opportunity a while back to take a trip to a place I'd always wanted to see someday. For graduation from Cornell, Tara's parents funded her a trip to Ireland and decided to have me join her part of the way through (I think it was a security measure in the end...). We had a blast and a half in those green hills, let me tell you. Actually, I will do just that. While over there, I kept a journal (a classy gift from TJ...) of what we did and saw each day I was there. So, now it's 2011 and once a week I'll be posting one day of my journal on this blog as well as some choice pictures. So...

Day 0

Flight day! Finally, the stress is ending, at least for the moment. Moving was...an experience. Despite the fact that nothing felt right about it and there were set backs aplenty, it was all completed with relatively few hitches. It also proved what stellar friends I have, especially Jon. I honestly could not have done it without him in every sense of the word. Props to Nick & Kate too. They really made up for the past (don't ask...). But if it weren't for Brian & Tj, Jon would be a best man. Bar none. I owe him BIG after this...

As far as the rest of the day(s...) went, a paraphrase will suffice: Load the cars, do the last errands, drive down, switch the cars, drive again, unload the truck, sleep, unload part of Tara's, (re..)pack, drive to Philly, and here we are. As I write this, the plane is trafficking on the runway and we will be on our way to Birmingham; stop 1 of this magical mystery tour...

(Shortly later...)

Something needs to be said still. Those two bottles of wine for Tara? Yeah, I semi-forgot to mention their existence. No duty was levied even if they were discovered. So, that leaves us with the following:
-The wine was NOT discovered in the process of loading the baggage, meaning no duty AND raises concerns about the security of Philly International...
-The wine WAS discovered, but has no duty attached for whatever reason (This is preferable...)...
-The wine WAS discovered, but no one really cared to do anything about it. Troublesome...
-The wine WAS discovered and subsequently taken out of my bag, for any one of multiple reasons, pre-boarding. Disappointing, but understandable...

This raises a concern (potentially...) about the safety of shipped goods. If the win was indeed not found, then it falls into the category of the wine I sent Mom for Mother's Day. Wrapped in a folded beach towel, the USPS were none the wiser. Hopefully, that is not the case with US Airways. Otherwise, yours' truly could in Biiig trouble ::shudder, shudder::. Don't dwell on it, don't dwell on it, damn it! Ok, good...

The time has come to sign off Day 0. Take off has commenced and I've unloaded all that I wish (for now...). Shortly, I shall ascend and be graced with England's shores. It's my first time so I'm stoked. Journalling will be regular, if haphazardly timed. Ah, there we go. Engines are at maximum thrust as of ..................(it was a fake out...)...............................(we are so going to be late...).......................................................(bunch of assholes...)......Screw it. I'm reading Skymall. See you in the UK!

June 12, 2009
Nicholas C. Witte

Mashups and a surpise guest...

2011-01-10T08:06:00.000-05:00

Good morning, music lovers. Originally, this post was going to only feature two artists and explore the pros and cons of each. Turns out there is a third entry to this particular interest of mine that needs exploring. The interest in question is the lovely and complicated art of the mash-up. For those not in the know, doing a mash-up involves taking two or more songs and editting them together to form something new and different. Some of them are good; others, not so much. I myself have even attempted a mash-up or two (don't ask; they were awful...). But the following breakdowns will explore three such artists who (in my most humblest of opinions...) are truly great at the mash-up style...

First up is the guy that caused me to realize just how much power and versility mash-ups could have (TJ introduced me to this artist first, so mad props to him too...). This guy goes by the moniker Girl Talk. His style of mash-ups is definitely more chaotic and frenetic, but he manages to find pieces of music that fit together in ways you would never have imagined. His albums are designed to be listened to as a whole (as he is more of a DJ and thus give the full club experience...), which is interesting because I find him to be a master of epic moments. His type of mash-ups contain a heavy use of rap and r&b (not for everybody...), but add a nice dose of classic rock, metal, and alternative for the rock kids to enjoy. I find his songs to be very freeformed and flowing, with each piece of a recognizable song either meshing with or crashing into the next. This method of creating a mash-up also tends to lead to less cohesion between tracks, which presents less of a full story per album, but just a hodgepodge of interesting blends of styles and songs. Click here and here to see just some of GT at work. Keep your eye out for the Kanye West/Blackstreet moment and Busta Ryhmes/The Police moment(NSFW...)...

We move from the chaotic to the coherent and take a look at a gentleman who goes by the name DJ Earworm. A California-based DJ, he has come into a certain amount of fame by taking the 25 top pop songs of the year and creating a new song with bits and pieces of them. Not just a song, mind you, but a piece of music where the lyrics and music line up to tell a different story than any of the artists may have originally intended. He brands the project 'The United States of Pop' and it is an appropriate title. Each USofP is a slice of our year long interest into pop music. If Girl Talk is the indy, ecclectic friend that spends most of the time living in the basement, then DJ Earworm is his more social acceptable brother that his parents are more visably proud of. Not that it makes him better or worse than GT; it is, however, different. DJ Earworm's focus on songwriting within a mash-up allows him to create music that actually shows an interesting psychological insight to our musical taste from one year to the next. Recurring themes (such as putting your hands up, dancing, etc...) show what we wanted to hear for that particular year in pop music. Beyond the enjoyment of the mash-up, this insight to the American music consumer was fascinating to me. Click here and here for the 2010 and 2008 for the better (to me...) mixes that DJ Earworm has given unto us...

And finally, a recent (and awesome...)find for me: Rock Sugar. I cannot stop listening to what these four guys are creating. These dudes take 80's pop music and 80's rock/metal and fuse them into glorious, powerful songs that would never had occurred to the normal among us. Largely parodic (seeing as the lead singer is the voice of Wakko from the Animaniacs...), I am affectionately going to refer to them as a spiritual successor to Spinal Tap in what they do and how they are doing it. Even though the band has a false background (they were stranded on a desert island with nothing but a 13 year old's cd collection from the 80's and tons of batteries [true story...]...), the musicians involved with this little crazy project have some serious chops. What I like about these guys, almost more so than Earworm or GT, is that they do this stuff live rather than take samples and make something new of them. They needed to actually sit down, figure out chord progressions, assemble the lyrics to match parts of the songs, and probably tons of other details that I don't understand (being that I am relatively less than a musician...). I am absolutely purchasing the cd from Amazon the moment it goes down from 100.00. Click here and here for a little taste of Rock Sugar...

It's elementary...

2011-01-07T13:56:00.000-05:00

I recently watched the newest version of Sherlock Holmes with my lovely wife, Tara, who hadn't seen it yet. We both enjoyed it very much and I doubly enjoyed watching it with her since I got to see her reaction to it and discuss the movie with her finally. I find it to be a delightful interpretation of this very old franchise and it definitely is a Holmes for a newer generation. I shall digress below...

Story wise, it was very linear but still very intriguing (potential SPOILERS...): We begin with Holmes and Watson concluding a case against a man, Lord Blackwood, about to sacrifice a woman for some sort of nefarious purpose. He is caught and sent to prison. Here's where we actually begin to learn more about the person that is Holmes, rather than the character (if that makes any sense...). We find he is a sad and lonely genius with little social tact (or just ignores it, dealers choice...), while Watson is shockingly normal, about to become married, but is still impressed, intimidated and fascinated by Holmes. So much so that he runs around London with Holmes, disregarding plans with his fiancé to help solve an even bigger case. Lord Blackwood is scheduled to be executed, but mysteriously survives the execution, despite Watson verifying his 'death'. Holmes is eventually contacted by a secret society that believes in magic and is afraid of Lord Blackwood, who practices 'dark arts'. Further added into this mix is Irene Adler, a former romantic interest and female rogue who constantly vexes Holmes. Without giving any more away, Holmes and Watson run about London, getting in and out of danger, look for clues and eventually figure out Blackwood’s endgame scheme and prevent it from occurring...

Robert Downey Jr. is very excellent in this role, especially since it is a Sherlock we are not used to seeing. In the past, we have seen Holmes as a tall, thin English gentleman with a penchant for the violin and a high class demeanor. However, RDJ gives us an extremely disheveled, abrasive Holmes who is not afraid of throwing his incredible knowledge about. This Holmes is actually a lot like a Victorian version of House, M.D. in this manner. Instead of the typical hunting for clues and putting the pieces together in relative safety, this Holmes gets into the fray, gets into fights (and takes his hits like a man...), and is a much more hands on version of the detective. It is very much like they took equal parts James Bond, Batman, and a dash of Tony Stark and came up with a delightful riff on the stuffier version given to us in the past...

The portrayal of Watson by Jude Law also deserves lauding. The old way we have seen Watson (in some of the more memorable versions...) is the fat, bumbling version that misidentifies clues, to which Holmes then corrects him and informs the reader/viewer what's REALLY going on. Law's Watson is much like a more stable but less risky version of Holmes himself; he loves the adventurousness of Holmes' life, but without Holmes, Watson may well have turned into just another doctor. Watson may not know as much about 'everything' as Holmes seems to, but never comes across as bumbling or foolish, nor does Holmes treat him in this manner. Law's Watson can hold his own in a fight and comes across more of Holmes' equal instead of a mere sidekick and glory-spewer. The way Jude played Watson is more along what we would see from the old Holmes (perfect posture, sharp looks, respectful, and EXTREMELY English...), but used this character type to balance the kind of Holmes played by Downey...

To condense the rest into a paragraph does not do it justice, but I will try my best. The side characters (Lord Blackwood, Irene Adler, the Chief Inspector, even the thugs...) are all very dynamic, even if they are all completely original. I will say that none of their performances are stale, wooden, or otherwise unenjoyable. This shows great choices by the director, Guy Ritchie, and his casting team, as well as the script that was used. The story itself was definitely your standard mystery, but was very fun to watch it play out. 'Whodunits' have been, and are always, very popular over the decades we've seen them, and this is no exception. It keeps you interested to see just how Holmes and Watson are going solve the case and just how far the villains (and even the heroes...) are willing to go to meet their goals. The setting is fantastic and even trendy, as Steam Punk-esque settings and scenarios are certain at least on the verge on being IN right now. Victorian-era ANYTHING seems to be very popular as it lends itself to a certain kind of class not seen in other eras...

I cannot think of anyone I would not recommend this movie to. It has appeal on so many levels that you would honestly just have to hate watching movies to not like something in it. The characters are great, the story is fun, the action is believable AND dynamic; it's all around good time. I especially appreciate the work that Robert Downey Jr. has been giving us as of late. It's nice to see that, despite his troubled past, he still has the ability to entertain...

Grade: A+ and waiting patiently for the sequel...

Food for thought (and your belly...)...

2011-01-06T13:42:00.000-05:00

How's about a recipe? One of my favorite things to do is cook, especially for those I am closest to (you know who you are...). I try to make all sorts of delights to tantalize taste buds for others. If the food were just for me, I'd make it super damn simple. However, I might as well use all those classes and years of experience and give of myself to those I love. The following is one of my favorite full meals to make and do so quite often...

Caribbean Cola Chicken

Ingredients/amounts:
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts - 1 per person...
Bacon, thick-cut - 1 to 2 strips per breast...
Mushrooms, sliced - 2 - 4 slices per breast...
Monterey Jack cheese - 2 - 3 slices per breast (about 3 in. long and less than 1/4 in. thick...)...
Ham, deli/thin-sliced - 2 - 3 pieces per breast...
Two liter bottle of Coca-Cola...
Garlic, salt, pepper...

1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees...
2) Spray a 9X9 pan with non-stick coating (good for 4 to 5 people...)...
3) Filet the breasts and open like a book. Tenderize with a meat hammer...
4) Sprinkle salt, pepper, and garlic to taste...
5) Wrap mushrooms and cheese in the ham slices. Place at the top of the breast...
6) Roll up the chicken breast and tuck the ends underneath. Seal with bacon...
7) Place each roll-up in the pan. Pour the Coca-Cola over the breasts until the tops are just covered...
8) Bake for 40 minutes. Done when the edges of the bacon are just crispy black. The cola in the pan will become translucent...
9) Lift out with tongs and enjoy...

Two nice dishes for this extravagance range from simple to slightly complex. The easy: purchase some fresh green beans, cut off the stems and steam. The flavor and texture give a nice counter point to the main dish as well as the following other side dish...

Coconut Pineapple Rice with Lemon Grass

Ingredients/amounts:
Coconut milk - 2 cups...
Jasmine rice - 1 cups...
Lemon grass - 1 to 2 stalks...
Pineapple, chunked - Half a can, drained...
Coconut, shredded - Optional...

1) Lightly smash the lemon grass with a rolling pin or other heavy object...
2) Place in the pan with the coconut milk and rice and bring the mixture to a boil...
3) Lower the heat to a simmer, cover and simmer gently.
4) After 15 minutes, check to see if the liquid has been absorbed. Check every 5 minutes until you have the desired consistency...
5) Remove from heat and fluff the rice with a fork...
6) Remove the lemon grass and add pineapple. Let sit for a few minutes before serving
7) Serve with the shredded coconut on top if desired...

Finally, to top off the meal with just a dash of sophistication, I like to serve a crisp, tart white wine with the meal. My preference: The Blues from the Lucas vineyard in Ithaca, NY. The citrusy tartness and clean aftertaste allow the flavors of the food to mingle together with the wine without being overwhelmed or underwhelmed. The Blues is one of my favorite wines of all time, so it should not be a surprise I like it with one of my favorite meals to both prepare and serve. There is no adequate desert to accompany this meal; the foods are so rich and heavy that by the time I'm done eating, I am far too full to think about any sweet treats.

If you choose to use these recipes and have a delightful evening with someone (or some ones...) special, let me know. The art of making food for friends and family is something I hold near and dear to me and sharing the wealth with others, strangers or otherwise, only increases my enjoyment. Until next time, food lovers...

I am a Dreamland Champion...

2011-01-05T14:17:00.000-05:00

For today, I'm going over my thoughts on one of my favorite original NES games: Kirby's Adventure. Long before I beat Super Mario Bros., Adventures in the Magic Kingdom (my family is a bunch of Disney-philes...), or any other one player game (M.U.L.E. doesn't count...), I distinctly remember beating Kirby. My buddy Brian got it for Christmas one year and we played the hell out of it. It was awesome. Let's get started...

In a nutshell, you play as Kirby: a light pink roundyman with flippers and dark pink shoes. You can fly, suck up enemies, and take their powers (if they have any...) for yourself. The mission: play through multiple levels to find the boss and retrieve the pieces of the Star Rod. After you defeat King Dedede for the last piece and you think you're done, out pops the villain Nightmare for a showdown in space. Once Nightmare has been defeated, all is returned to normal in Dreamland....

This game absolutely rocks all the way around and back again. It is easily one of the tops games to be released for the NES and it was also one of the last. The SNES had already been released, so Nintendo had to up their game (literally and figuratively...) to get as much life out of the NES they could. The graphics are top notch, containing all the elements that made 8-bit gaming great, while hinting at what 16-bit games were then doing. The music was as advanced as the NES could muster, containing complex melodies and beats that never grew tired. The render of all the different animation levels put many NES games to shame...

As far as gameplay goes, the word 'versitile' does not do it justice. The standard game play has you flying, running, swimming, jumping, getting new powers every other minute, spitting out bad guys, looking for secret doors and puzzles. On top of that, it gives you dexterity games for extra lives(the Claw Game, a western Shoot-Out, and an Egg Swallowing game...), warp zones, a museum and an arena for easier access to certain powers. And the powers! You can grow spikes, spew fire, make ice cubes, turn into a stone, get a UFO, explode across the screen, turn into a wheel, scream into the mike; the list goes on and on. And you may think playing a cute pink blob would be emasculating. It's not at all. Everything about this game is enticing, addicting and all around a good time...

If you have never played this Kirby game (I can't comment on the others...), you are missing out on a truly great experience. Beyond the love of Nintendo, beyond nostalgia itself even, Kirby's Adventure stands out amongst it's peers of the 8-bit era like a king. Few games have given me as much pleasure (or even continued pleasure...) as this game does. I never thought I'd utter these words: I love that cute pink blob thingy...

Grade: A+ and fingers crossed for the Megaman 9 treatment for Kirby...

It can be truly said, that I have a bat in my belfry...

2011-01-04T21:33:00.000-05:00

Day 2 and a late one at that. For this post, I have decided to compare the performances of the Joker given to us by Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger, and Mark Hamill (I honestly give little thought to the late great Caesar Romero...). Each actor has given us his own unique spin on the Clown Prince of Crime and each has seemed fresh and has been a delight to watch, time and time again. Seeing each on the screen, big or small, causes us to watch the film (or tv series as the case may be...) over and over...

First up, good old Jack Nicholson from the 1989 Batman film. Mr. Nicholson started the role as a on-the-edge gangster and became the Joker after a toxic accident involving the Dark Knight (very close to the Joker's actual origin...). In this version, a younger pre-Joker killed Batman's parents, in effect causing him to become the Joker X-ty years later (not exactly meshing with the books, but I'll take it. Jack plays the Joker closer to the Silver Age version of the comic character (with a bit of the sinister borrowed from the Bronze Age...) what with the outlandish get-ups, the sadistic joke props, and the lethally playful nature his exhibits when destroying the world around him. His every delight is to make the world around him as mad and terrifying as he is and will sacrifice everything, from objects of his affections to his henchmen to the entire populace of Gotham itself, to reach this end. He's obsessive, psychotic, deranged, and suitably warped and I love it. Jack Nicholson, while not a suprising choice for the role (he DOES do crazy well...), was a more than appropriate choice for the role and it's a large reason I keep this film near the top of my favorite lists. If only they hadn't killed him at the end of the movie (DAMN YOU AND THE PRECEDENT YOU SET, TIM BURTON!)...

Now for the oddly wonderful performance by Mark Hamill in the 90's animated Batman series, as well as the occasional cameo in film and video games. Of all the actors to take on the role, Mark has done it the longest and in more things than anyone else. To be honest, I didn't learn that the Joker was Luke Skywalker until the animated series was on the decline and I caught his credit in Mask of the Phantasm (it's a pretty damn good movie, animated or not...). Up until this point, I always wondered what Mark managed to do after Star Wars and I'm glad it ended up being something that comes close to the pop culture appeal of Skywalker. Mark added something to the Joker that both Nicholson and Romero were missing (to one degree or another...): that large dash of anarchist crazy the Joker should always have. Sure, he had more of the gimmicks of previous incarnations, but he was just as happy blowing up buildings for no reason than following some plan. And that ever changing laugh! Jack was good but he was no Mark Hamill in this department. Further, each time they ask Mark to do the Joker in a video game, it's always a delight to hear that voice again (it's a generational thing...). If I could get one voice down pat, it'd be Mark's Joker (Lord knows I've tried...).

Last (but certainly not least...) is the late Heath Ledger's performance in The Dark Knight. I'll admit it (even if you won't..) that I was nervous when I heard that the dude from Roar and A Knight's Tale was going to be The Joker. No way that was going to work out good for anyone. We were all wrong. Ledger turned Joker from the Clown Prince of Crime to a serial force of anarchy whose only goal is to destroy. He managed to channel pieces of past Joker performances (Jack's affinity for gangsters and chemicals, Mark's ever changing laugh, some of the gaudiness of Romero...) and keep the role fresh and new. Despite Heath's passing, it is this role that kept (and still keeps..) the audience coming back for more. Watching the Joker just bring Gotham down around Batman's ears is beyond a delight. Like any good Batman media piece, the villain (in the end...) is always more interesting and fun than the hero himself. Me, I was sold after the 'magic trick' (That Was AWESOME...) on the fact that this was going to be one hell of a ride, all the way to the end. My hat's off to Mr. Ledger and it's a shame that he passed before we could see more of what he could do with the Joker...

So who wins? Who takes the cake with the poison Joker gas inside? It's a tough one objectively; each actor gave something to the role that each other could not give. Do I stick with the older, crazed gangster clown who 'created' The Batman? Or should it be the animated criminal with the higher body count than his other cartoon brethren? Perhaps it should be the mutilated chaos bringer with a knack for bombs? As I write this, the Jack Joker just shot Bruce in Vicki's apartment and left as a plane farting, so it's hard to be completely detached. Let's do this: The 'Most Faithful Award' goes to Mark Hamill as he embodied all aspects of the comic version at one time or another. The 'Crazy but Effective Award' goes to Heath for dismantling the mob, blowing up banks and hospitals, and creating Two-Face (also not true to the comics, but whatever...). Finally, Jack gets the 'Mastermind Award' for, despite being dropped into toxic waste, took over the mob, created elaborate schemes to kill everyone in Gotham (twice...), and his awesome henchmen (I'm looking at you ninja blade feet, bald guy with a boombox, and Bob...). Did I pick a favorite? Nope. Will I ever? Doubt it. I'm strangely comfortable with that fact...

Welcome back\Your dreams were your ticket out...

2011-01-03T08:42:00.000-05:00

How lovely a new year. It's like new fallen snow, just waiting for my man-sized feet to slog through the pristine countryside. Ahhhh. That's right, folks: It's 2011 and time for another serious crack at the blog-o-sphere. Only this time, it's personal. Last year, I resigned myself to two posts a month as a doable amount of personal blogging. I was generally happy with the results. However, the wedding got in the way about mid-year and then I didn't pick it back up post-October (so sad for my fans...). But, with the advent of a new year, it seemed appropriate to give it another shot and try to be the writer I claim to be...

Now, the way this is going to work (boldly, I might add...) is that, for as long as I can, I will blog 5 days a week. It goes without saying that this is a bit more than 1 every 15 days (give or take a month...). However, by giving myself a task of this magnitude, I am requiring myself to not become complacent with the status of things and actually do something constructive/productive on a daily basis. Here's how it will break down:
- One day for something music related...
- One day for something movie related...
- One day for something game related...
- One day for something comic related...
- One free day...
This will give me enough leeway to explore my interests and not let the blog get stale and dull (well, dullER at any rate...). So, without further ado, I'll take Music for 100, Alex...

Now, I will review Tron: Legacy in a future post (mayhap even on the morrow...), but because I have been listening to the soundtrack since I received it (and thanks to my long-time reader, Brian, for the gift...), it seemed more appropriate to start with the soundtrack rather than the movie itself. If you don't like it, stop reading here...

I love Daft Punk, so it comes as no surprise that I love the album. Daft Punk was asked to score the movie soundtrack and I can think of no one better suited to the task of creating all the music for a movie based on a digital world. These guys are masters of electronic beats and have used all their skills to craft a score that is beyond appropriate for the movie. They have blended orchestral music (an 85 piece orchestra no less...) with the electronica stylings they are known so well for to form a composition that merges seamlessly with the film...

My one and only complaint: Many of the tracks are too short for me. Now, in terms of film music pieces, these pieces seem fine while they are backed by action sequences, moving landscapes, and your general film goings-on. However, as stand along tunes, I could use a little extension. However, despite the shortness, each track is filled with so much awesome that I feel the need to go and see Tron again just to have that experience all over again. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes Tron, Daft Punk, or just digs the electronica scene...

Grade: a solid A and a prayer for a new Daft Punk album, just to keep the vibe going...

And the tension/How it builds...

2010-09-28T09:47:00.001-04:00

Good morning all. It's time for a much belated post on this nigh obsolete blog of mine. I'm ok with that. An event is one short time period away from happening again; something I've waited 4 years for and is finally coming around. I'm quite excited and as geared up as I can be, given the circumstances...

Tomorrow marks the return of the Great Designer Search held by Wizards of the Coast. The prize was a six-month internship in Washington state where the winner will (for all in tents and porpoises...) be a WotC employee. It's any amature game creator's dream, barring you actually play and enjoy Magic: the Gathering. Actually, scratch that. The possibility of working with one of the largest (at least the most well known...) game company in the country, if not the world, should be an aspiration to any creator wanting to hone their craft and actually get your ideas out of the basement and into the spotlight. An internship with WotC would definitely be a big step in the right direction...

Four years is a long time to wait for this. I'll be the first to admit my skills as both a creator and a player aren't what they were back then. At that time, I was just moving in with Tara and Brian and I were only just entering the wide world of non-American board games (I almost said unAmerican...). This means we were still playing a bunch of Magic more so than other games and my attention was focused. Also, that was when Time Spiral (the Magic nostalgia block...) was in full swing and any waning of my desire had been dashed. I loved Time Spiral alot and I really don't care if they don't consider Time Spiral to be the success they were hoping for...

Let's cut to now: Much has changed since then. I'm getting married, I've branched out from Magic quite a bit gaming-wise, I don't play Magic as often as I used to want to, my desires have matured, I started a comic book. But I still want this very much. Working for one the head gaming companies would be a dream come true. I am prepared to take six months out of my life to do this, and I love it that Tara is behind me in my desire 100%. My worry is that I don't have the chops to make it happen...

Last time, I only made it past the essay writing part. I try not to belittle that, but it was only the first round. The essays I submitted, though, were some of the finest I'd written (both I and others have said the same...) and I was very proud of them. Still am, too. My test taking skills were less than par to say the least. I think I scored around 50% or so. Put that in perspective; there was 35 questions or so and you were only permitted to miss upwards of 5 to even be considered for round 3. However, I did follow the competition religiously and created my own cards based on the criteria Mark Rosewater posted online (and thanks to Brian for helping me out and grading and such for that...). I will say I was disappointed in more than a handful of the official submissions as I truly feel I could do better, especially in the early rounds. Some might call that hubris; others call it sour grapes. I call it just being a better designer (at that time...) than some who have better 'book' knowledge of the game...

What to do? I worry that, should I succeed, that it will throw my life in upheaval. Let me tell you, I have had enough upheaval to last a lifetime recently, what with the wedding and car troubles and getting settled into my job and all. I don't worry about not succeeding; I feel the deck is partially stacked against me (not to be a pessimist, but I do look at the facts...). I will do the best I can as far as I get. There is a part of me that NEEDS to do this for satisfaction alone. I feel the need to prove that I can at least throw down with others who aspire to the lofty goal. I did the same thing by going to a PTQ years before the GDS happend. I guess we'll see what happens come Wednesday and Rosewater delivers unto the masses. Wish us luck...

The wait is (getting very close to being...) over...

2010-07-23T23:06:00.000-04:00

Hey there, hi there, ho there! Yes, I know it's been over two months and yes, I know I've missed a couple of wine posts. Unfortunately, that won't happen today either (though I do have a couple of delightful California wines to talk about...). No, today we discuss patience paying off and keeping the faith even though all hope is lost. I am of course talking of the recent announcements of Marvel vs Capcom 3...

It has been roughly 10 years since we last looked on the roster of MvC2 with new eyes. It was an awesome game (and still is, for that matter...) and I will play it whenever I get the chance. MvC2 was sort of the culmination of 2D fighters for me from the day I stumbled across the arcade version of X-Men: Children of the Atom in the 90's and fell madly in love. This love carried over into Marvel Super Heroes (this one based on the Infinity Gauntlet miniseries...), but sort of tapered off with X-Men vs Street Fighter and Marvel vs Street Fighter (I hadn't played an actual Street Fighter game in probably a decade at that point...). However, my illicit love for the series was rekindled with Marvel vs Capcom and then to fuel the inferno, Marvel vs Capcom 2 was released a few years later. I (along with many of my geeky brethren...) have been waiting so very, very long for this day...

With that little intro out of the way, let me go on record saying I am WAY TOO excited for a game a year away from release. But the coverage of MvC3 has been extensive and I have begun to obsess over it (think of it as my Gulf Spill, except way better and less hazardous to the environment...) constantly. I'm not 100% sold on the graphics as of yet (oh 2D, how I miss thee...), but even the short roster released has me stoked: we've got Dante and Trish from Devil May Cry (an awesome game...), Deadpool (Marvel's current big shot, money making popular guy...), Super Skrull (slightly obscure, but an awesome inclusion because of it...), along with some old standards (Wolverine, Hulk, Ryu, Morrigan, etc...). Apparently, the final roster will be around 30 (a bit lower than MvC2's 56...), so I'm hopeful for more quality new guys to beef up the lists...

Which brings me to my REAL reason for writing this post (oh, you didn't think I would just write some vague praise for an unreleased game, did you?), which is my wants for the roster of MvC3. Now, since this post has gone on a bit, I'll try to keep the reasoning short. Without further adieu, I give you:

The Witte's Wants for Marvel versus Capcom 3

- Mega Man: The blue bomber was always one of my favorites playing MvC2, and I would hate to see the little guy get the axe...
- The Punisher: With Chris Redfield's reliance on fire arms, I'd like to see ol' Frankie throw his skulled shirt in the ring and duke it out with the other big guys...
- Nightcrawler (with swashbuckling action...): There was a time when 'Crawler was a fun loving, Errol Flynn-esque adventurer, and I want that back. Give the brother a sword, his teleportation, and Spidermanlike agility, and he'd be some fun...
- The Bionic Commando: This guy was unique, as far as main characters on the NES go. Using his bionics in an arena would lead to some fun situations...
- Mystique: Cheap selection, but the MvC franchise doesn't have a copycat character (that I know of...) yet. Similarly, the Taskmaster would fill that niche similarly, if in a bit of a different way...
- Iron Fist: A Kung Fu master with a finishing move of sorts, he seems a shoe in for a fighting game like MvC...
- Namor, the Sub-Mariner: He's one of the oldest Marvel characters and enough going on with him that he wouldn't be just another powerhouse beater. Plus, he may draw the ladies with his bare, chiseled chest...
- Ghost Rider: I always thought GR was pretty cool (and I won't let Nick Cage take it away from me either, damn it...), and having him in a fighter like this would also add to the all around coolness of both games...
- Ash: Someone one made a great MUGEN character, so I kind of had to throw him on there...
- Cable: Another one from the old one, I had a lot of fun with Cable when I played this alot, so I hope he returns...
- Sandman: Here's a guy who could do so many things with small bits of silicon. If we lose Venom, I hope we gain him...
- The Vision: My favorite character whilst playing the old beat-em-up Avengers game; he's got enough abilities to match up with the other heavy hitters...
- Puck: Another one on the size scale of Mega Man, it would be interesting to see how they would integrate this acrobatic dwarf into the mix. Plus, he's got one of the best pun names in the business...

You might have noticed I chose mostly Marvel characters. To be honest, that's where most of my info lies. I don't follow Capcom closely enough to develop a relationship with most of their characters, so I went with what I know. Tell me, fair reader: who do you want to see, duking it out in the next installment of Marvel vs. Capcom...

Sweet 'n Sassy...

2010-05-12T10:13:00.000-04:00

Welcome, wine lovers, to another segment of The Witte's Wine Reviews. Since I have been doing a lot of reds, I decided to switch gears and go for whites in April. The following two wines are solid standbys that didn't push any boundaries but also were a delight to drink. Let's get to it...

First up: a 2008 Gewurztraminer from Chateau Ste Michelle in Washington state's Columbia Valley. It has been said the Gewurz grape makes wine to compliment the spiciest of foods and this one is no exception. A delightful nose of fruits leads into flavors mimicking the nose, with floral notes, citrus and pleasant spices. The finish was cool and crisp, blending well with the fajitas we had that evening. This particular wine is semi-dry, giving only a hint of sweetness, adding to the whole experience rather than overpowering it as in some wines. I would say, after finishing this bottle, that I will compare other Gewurztraminer wines to this one until I find its equal. I haven't had many of this variety, but this makes me hopeful for the future. Ste Michelle is a solid winery to choose from and I would recommend it to any wine lover...

And now, from the Columbia Crest Grand Estates is a 2007 Riesling, also from Washington's Columbia Valley. I am starting to get the impression that this is an excellent area for wine selection. Everybody knows that I dig the Rieslings (as do many in my circles...) so it is no surprise I enjoy this one too. I would categorize this as a sipping wine, a wine to be enjoyed when the mood strikes you, and a compliment to most meals. Like the Gewurz prior, it is cool and crisp and tastes of subtle fruits and tang. It finishes with body, but no overpoweringly so, allowing a satisfyingly slow consumption. The nose, like most Rieslings, it bright and vibrant, which leads into the tasting. As with all solid Rieslings, get this one and share it. You won't be sorry (by the by, I couldn't find a picture for the 2007 variety so you are stuck with the 2005...)...

There was a third wine this month, purchased on a whim based on price, age, and difference to what I would normally pick. The vineyard was Talus(?) and it was a 2003 Chardonnay. Apparently, chardonnay only last 2-6 years in the bottle. It tasted like carmelized green beans. Blech. For the month of May, Tara brought me a Muscat and a Merlot directly from California. Can't wait to try them, and as always, it's always a fine time for wine...

The Ever Evolving Playlist vol. 2...

2010-05-11T22:27:00.000-04:00

Here's we go again. I can't say I've gotten all that I wanted off my vol. 1 list, but I did find enough since then to warrant a second list. Thankfully, they will come at such a pace to not overdo the gimmick. A special thanks to the Pandora radio station, without which there would be no list for this post...

1. Peter Gabriel - The Book of Love
2. The Darkness - Out of My Hands
3. Soundgarden - Spoonman
4. Hyper - Cascade
5. Them Crooked Vultures - New Fang
6. John Mayer - Who Says
7. Owl City - Fireflies
8. Chable & Bonicci - Ride
9. Cursor Miner - Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
10. Whitesnake - Is This Love?
11. The Crystal Method - Smile?
12. Stevie Nicks - Rooms on Fire
13. The Who - Baba O'Reily
14. Jim Croche - I Got A Name
15. Kaskade - Steppin' Out
16. Mumford & Sons - Little Lion Man
17. Yes - Our Song
18. Crosby, Stills & Nash - You Don't Have to Cry
19. Zircon - Ladder to the Sky
20. Hanson - Thinkin' Bout Something

As with the first list, here are some recommended tracks for your enjoyment...

1. Moonbabies - War on Sound
2. Van Halen - Dance the Night Away
3. Aerosmith - Come Together
4. Metallica - I Disappear
5. Gypsy Kings - Trista Pena
6. Foo Fighters - Wheels
7. Bruce Springsteen - Held Up Without a Gun (live)
8. ZZ Top - Planet of Women
9. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - Runnin' Down a Dream
10. Steely Dan - Reelin' in the Years
11. No More Kings - Sweep the Leg
12. Fleetwood Mac - You Make Lovin' Fun
13. The Alan Parsons Project - Where's the Walrus?
14. MC Lars - Space Game
15. Sufjan Stevens - Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois
16. George Michael - Freeek!
17. Modest Mouse - Dashboard
18. Temple of the Dog - Hunger Strike
19. Gin Blossoms - Follow You Down
20. The Proclaimers - I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)

As always, enjoy...

Anne McCaffrey would be proud...

2010-04-27T12:44:00.000-04:00

Tara and I went to see 'How to Train Your Dragon' last night as a date movie (She does love some cute critters...) and it was pretty good. Not so cute to turn most adults off but still pretty appropriate for the kiddies. I will say DreamWorks is getting better and better about their animation of people. The skin tones were nigh spot on (even if they still have kept the goofy faces...), the big dragon looked good enough to be used in Clash of the Titans (also not a too terrible movie...) and water effects are still incredible. The voice acting was decent, using Gerard Butler as the stock 'I'm the gruff talking leader' of the vikings and well as using Jay Baruchel (that skinny guy who plays awkward well...) as our hero. If you want a light movie to see, this wouldn't be bad to choose...

I must make a note of a feature I wasn't completely sold on: the 3-D experience. Normally, Tara gets a bit ill if she sees a 3D picture, but this was all that was available for us to see. So, she sucked it up and went for it and didn't get sick at all. But (and I think Tara agrees with me..), the 3D actually detracted from the total movie watching experience. Now, I know some people SUPER support the 3D movement these days, but there wasn't enough going on in 'Dragon' (i.e. crap coming at you...) to really warrant providing it in 3D. The glasses tend to wash out some of the colors, making it appear to be projected on parchment paper. I checked the colors to see if I was right a few times during the movie and Tara agreed that we should have seen it in 2D...

My other beef with 'Dragon': the ending. I won't spoil it completely, but I do get tired of the 'subjugated people can't stop the tyrant, but with a LITTLE extra effort (as well as a pseudo-life lesson...), they can destroy adversity'. 'Dragon' isn't alone in this; I've seen this in several movies over the last several years. Beowulf did this (despite that I couldn't reach it with a weapon, I can reach it without if I force myself...) and it was ridiculous. FF: Rise of the Silver Surfer did this (now that I've seen true sacrifice[?], I will stop my master...) and I was super pissed. Granted, my anger stemmed from my geek side (Galactus wouldn't be dumb enough to give the Surfer that much power, nor do I believe that after countless planets being destroyed, seeing Sue Storm's sacrifice would turn himself around [see?]...). Either way, it brings us to my point: from a story's standpoint, given countless implied opportunities to topple adversity but never have without token motivation, the way the characters win/destroy the big baddies/etc. seems ludicrous to me. At the very least, give me an existing rebel faction where getting sufficiently motivated fits. Otherwise, rewrite that sucker...

Despite that extremely long rant on the ending, I do recommend 'Dragon' for a fun movie to see in 2D, especially if you want to see something you don't have to get too involved in. This isn't bad; not every movie needs to be a noggin' scratcher. We need these simple fun movies to balance out the others. See it or definitely see it on dvd asap. You won't be sorry...

Your heart will thank you...

2010-04-19T13:49:00.001-04:00

Hello, wine lovers! It's time yet again for a monthly review of two newly tasted wines. For March, I decided to go with a highly recommended red Italian wine as well as a red from Ithaca, which we procured on our last trip north (God, I love Ithaca wine...). Unlike last month, however, these two wines were a treat to drink...

First up, a fine 2007 Chianti from the Da Vinci vintners in Italy. Normally, I am not a fan of dry red, but this one was special. I was immediately taken in with an intense nose, combining berries and oak. Upon tasting, the oakiness combined well with the dryness, but left a very busy feeling within my mouth. The dryness pleasantly left after swallowing and finished well, only leaving a hint of flavor behind. It has been said that dry reds often pair well with pasta dishes, and this one was no exception. I would also have enjoyed this for sipping with a group of friends. Further, the Da Vinci vintners (from the town of Vinci no less...) have designed a very pleasing label, perfect for display. While this wine has been the most expensive so far (not that expensive in the grand scheme, really...), it now ranks highly on my lists of reds to purchase...

Our next wine, I have to admit something. I cheated on this one. I've tried this wine before. I'm a fraud (boo hoo, wah wah...). It counts, though, because I've never bought and drank a whole bottle of this wine. Anyways, on to the review. This is an Estate Red from the Hosmer Winery in Ithaca, NY. There is no date with this one, but Tara mentioned that blends (like many 'Estate' blends at other wineries...) often DON'T include the date, as they use grapes from multiple years. This red holds many superficial similarities with the previous Chianti (actually, with it being a blend, it probably has similarities to most reds...), but holds its own with unique qualities. The nose on this was more fruity than woody, which in turn carried over into the tasting part. This was a much more plummy wine than the previous, but still carried a nice body with some dryness. Interestingly enough, this wine dried in the mouth in a different area than the Chianti (lips vs sides of the mouth...). Drinking this wine goes well with meat dinners, but I don't know if I'd drink this alone were I in the mood for wine. I will take a point away from Hosmer as the label was a bit boring and uninformative. Doesn't make this a bad wine, though. Bottom line, this is a solid red if you like reds...

April is half done by the time you read this post. This month has a delightful Riesling (kind of a cheat; Rieslings are a go-to wine...) coming, but I just can't decide where to go with the other half of the month (less than half actually...). Any suggestions?

Would you like some cheese with that...

2010-03-12T21:49:00.000-05:00

As promised, per my New Years Resolution, here comes two more wine reviews for your reading pleasure. Unfortunately for me, the wines were less than a pleasure to drink. These two definitely weren't awful (and I've had some awful wine...), but they were more...well, let's allow my review of them speak more of my mind...

First up, a 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon from the Turning Leaf winery in California. It has a very rich red color and a very dry nose (not always a good sign for me...) and it's flavor matched it. While in most cases this would be a plus, in this Cab Sauv, not so much. The dryness and oakiness overtook the fruit flavors that lie beneath it, leaving it tasting like a generic dry red wine than an individual. However, after a few days uncorked and breathing, it developed a much richer flavor, balancing out the dryness and making the drinking much more pleasurable. Turning Leaf gets points for presentation (nice label and all...) and having a wine that improves with some time, but this will not be a wine I will be revisiting often. Not a fan of many dry reds, anyways...

Next, a 2008 Pinot Grigio from the Lumina winery in Italy (my second European wine...). Like many Pinot Gris I've tried, this has a fresh and fruity nose. However, like the Cab Sauv I just mentioned, it's flavor fell into the realm of the generic. Nothing really stood out other than tasting like 'wine'. In its defense (also like the Cab Sauv...), a day or two open and a more unique flavor came forward. An interesting note: this Pinot Gri has a screw on top rather than a cork. I wonder if this (as with some others I've tried...) affects the taste and longevity of the wine or if it's all in my head. Either way, this particular wine will take a back seat to my preferred ones. Nice try, Lumina...

Now, despite my earlier mentioning of not enjoying dry reds too often, the next review contains at least one if not both wines being red and dry (I haven't broken into wine #2 yet...). Reason: these wines, more than any other, are ones that I need to slog my way through to find the gems. Thankfully, the first is a keeper, so that's something. Till then, it's always a fine time for wine...

What time is it...

2010-03-10T13:02:00.000-05:00

ADVENTURE TIME!!!

A smattering of years ago, a short toon made itself aware to me via Youtube. The toon in question: Adventure Time. It. Was. Hilarious. Surprisingly, enough it has remained funny even if it has waned in the eyes of some. It's a sort of random assortment of cartoon moments and cliches and still manages to be fresh. I look at it as a parody of the more ridiculous elements of modern cartoons, but not in such away that it smacks of meanness, spite, or ridicule. Not only is it geared toward the young, it is also a sort of love note to us adults who enjoy an absurd yet harmless show...

A quick bit of info: Adventure Time was created by Pendleton Ward and was nominated for an Annie Award. The toon detailed the exploits of Pen (changed to Finn) and his magic dog Jake. They battled the Ice King and rescued the Princess. That's where the normal parts ended. We are introduced to a Rainacorn, an Iceclops, a lost elemental, Abraham Lincoln in the past...on Mars, and then we see ninjas stealing an old mans diamonds. Cah-razy... Afterward, it developed a cult following due to its' aforementioned random absurdness and easy to use catch-phrases, such as 'Rhombus!' and 'Hey sloppy milkshake...'. Further, since being discovered on the interwebs, people have wanted to show turned into a series. And now, finally after 4 years, Cartoon Network is going to give us what we wanted. Awesome...

Now, I've seen some of the promos for the new show and I am pleased with the results. The animation style is slightly different, but not too much. They did change a few of the voice actors (which is moderately understandable, since it's been 4 freakin' years...), and here I do have a complaint. I have no feelings about the actors for Finn or the Princess, but they changed the Ice King's voice from Charles Adler to Tom Kenny. While I have nothing against Tom Kenny (his biggest claim to fame is Spongebob...), Charles Adler voiced The Cryptkeeper from Tales from the Crypt. And that's just cool on so many levels. I am glad John DiMaggio has returned to do Jake's voice, for he is also to voice of Bender on Futurama. Awesome...

Here's the link to see the original short. Also, check out the other, newer bits from the up and coming series and tell me what you think. If I missed something awesome, point it out to me...

It's fun to resolve...

2010-02-15T21:12:00.000-05:00

I'm not much of one to make and/or keep new years resolutions. That's why I always quit smoking (FYI: I don't smoke anything...) every year for the past decade or so. Let me tell you, that's a joke that gets funnier with each and every year. So, outside of the usual hopes I have for this new year (weight loss, do more of the things I love, etc...), I decided I would actually make a keepable resolution. As an aside, here's my list for making a resolution you can guarantee to keep:

-Keep it simple (stupid)...
-Make sure it is something you enjoy or that is fun...
-Group participation helps motivation and adds a layer of fun to the task...

So, this year I have decided to try two different wines a month. After living in Ithaca for a year and a half, I have developed a taste for wine, especially good wine. However, living in Maryland (a state not known for good wine...)has cut down on the amount of good wine I drink. That being said, I decided I needed to be more adventurous and try wines, even kinds I am not known to enjoy. The guidelines for this challenge are that the two wines must be either A) a kind of wine I've never tried before (i.e. Riesling, blushes, Cab Sav, etc...) or B) from a winery I've not had a particular wine from (i.e. I can have Riesling from two different places...)and C) I have to review them in the month following. The purpose of this exercise is to not only broaden my wine horizons, but to also truly discover what I like and what I don't. It's the only way to be sure...

The first wine up for review is the 2007 Riesling from the Sun Garden winery in Germany. This wine was a delight, as Tara and I had a bottle on a date once and now it's become a wine of choice (especially when New York Riesling is unavailable to us...). Germany is the right climate for this kind of wine and Sun Garden doesn't disappoint. It has a wonderful floral nose that transfers well into the fruity tones within the mouth. Unlike some wines like this which finish poorly despite a promising start, the Riesling finishes very clean and refreshing. This wine would be paired well with a variety of foods, from fruits and cheese to light luncheon foods. Also, I have enjoyed this wine all on it's own...

The second wine of January has become a personal favorite (though it isn't true for others I know...). The wine in question is the 2008 Moscato from the Beringer winery in California. From the first glass of this wine, I was hooked. It bears many similarities to another favorite wine, the Pasa Tiempo from Six Mile in Ithaca, so it isn't surprising how I enjoy this. Like the Riesling prior, it has a bit of a floral nose, but the taste and texture is very sweet and reminiscent of honey. The Moscato also finishes very refreshing, not cloyingly sweet as some similar sweet wines. The muscat grape is known for producing very grape-y, very sweet wines, but this wine lacks the grape flavor and transforms into a very delightful experience. However, because of its inherent sweetness, this wine is best used as or during desert. Also because of it's sweetness, it is easy to overdo the amount you drink. Not that I've done this...

That's all for now. February's wines have already been selected and are pending review. While I won't reveal what they are yet, I will say they are not as enjoyable as January's wines, but that's sort of the point. I actually hope I find as many wines as I don't like as those I do. That way I can actually go to restaurants and pick out a wine I like and can recommend to my friends...

The Following Is...

2010-01-20T09:41:00.000-05:00

What you are about to read is a consolidated version of an actual interview that actually happened in December with actual real people, actually...

ME: Thanks for sitting down with me today, me.

ME2: No problem, me.

ME: So tell me, how did your writing challenge in November go?

ME2: Oh, it was great! I got all sorts of ideas down and basically had a brain dump on paper. I was so utterly pleased with myself...

ME: That's interesting, because if I look at my records, that really didn't happen. And since I am you (goo goo ga joob), why not give me the REAL story?

ME2: Damn ME!

ME: Go on...

ME2: Well, it turns out that the challenge was indeed more...challenging than I truly realized from the outset.

ME: In what way?

ME2: For starters, my initial apathy and lack of self-discipline pushed me into pushing back how much I would do in one day. That, when coupled with other distractions, such as work, chores, various planning events, and others too many to mention, meant I put each issue off and put it off and put it off and put it off...

ME: Ok, ok I get it. So what did you manage to accomplish in that month?

ME2: I did manage to stay true to basis of the challenge, so I did not work on any other projects at all during the month of November.

ME: That's...good?

ME2: Actually, this was harder than you might imagine. My mind tends to wander and begins to dream up ideas and potential projects at the drop of a hat. It took a bit of self-control to NOT do even a preliminary write up of the handful of ideas that sprung up in my mind.

ME: Ok, so far you've managed to do nothing in November, by both design and by lack of discipline or whatever. I want to know what you ACTUALLY did during NaNoWriMo.

ME2: I did get one issue done.

ME: So, Denim Avenger #3?

ME2: Not really.

ME: CosMick #3?

ME2: Not so much.

ME: Um...Centropolis #1 featuring Grey Harkin, Vampire Detective?

ME2: That would have been awesome.

ME:...

ME2: What? It would have.

ME: So...

ME2: The Sparrow #1

ME: What I am hearing is that your effort to catch up on some of your current comic ideas, instead you chose to write a single issue on a character who hasn't even been concept drawn yet?

ME2: Yep, that sound about right.

ME: Awesome.

ME2: That origin story had been rattling around in my mind for months and it was nice to finally drop it down to paper.

ME: The words escape me.

ME2: To be honest, the whole experience (if you want to call it that) was a bit of an eye opener, like when me and Jon finally realized we can't churn out an issue a month, even on something as simple as Denim Avenger. We are too busy and the process takes longer than we truly gave it credit for. While I am not proud of only completing one issue, I do appreciate what I gleaned from that month.

ME: Which was?

ME2: That I need to knuckle down to do what I want. That I can't let idea of the dream be dragged down by harsh reality. That I have to look at what I can do honestly and plan accordingly. That I shouldn't get down on myself for failing to do a task beyond what may not even humanly possible.

ME: That...that was actually kind of beautiful.

ME2: Yeah, I'm a little proud of it.

Happy Day of the Dead (with all due respect to George Romero)...

2009-11-01T13:16:00.000-05:00

When I said tomorrow two days ago, I meant the tomorrow AFTER tomorrow, which is today. Cause everyone knows that two tomorrows are better than just one. Also, I had a puppy to watch, a party to attend, and a illness to which I am still fighting (let's give it up for all the H1N1s in the house [god, I hope not]...), so it wasn't a conductive day for blogging. Also, this will likely be my last post in the month of November, due to the writing challenge I gave myself (look it up...). That all being said, here's why Halloween is the most disappointing holiday...

Here's the facts about Halloween DAY: It comes at the end of the month so all of October is gearing up for this one magical spooky day. However, once November 1 rolls around, that's it. No more Halloween for anybody. Tara and I even got heckled in Ithaca on our way to a party in the first part of November (Granted, we ARE talking about Ithaca...). If you look at any store, they shift almost immediately in Thanksgiving/Christmas mode, and it makes me sad...

I do love Halloween. I love the spirit of it, all of the atmosphere, everything. It's also no secret I love Halloween more than other 'major' holidays. Most other holidays don't have such build up for one day of festivities. Check it: Valentine's Day and St. Patty's Day fall in the middle of the month so less build up for (basically) inconsequential and misinterpreted events. Celebrating Christmas is drawn out over all of December and part of January, lumped in with New Years. Winter decorations stick around until companies decide to throw up Valentines Day decor. Easter is tricky to classify since it always jumps all over the calendar, but in the same vein as Halloween, it's all over after the ONE day. Then there's the 'US' holidays which are just reasons for most of the populace to pretend they are more patriotic than they typically are on a daily basis...

Here's what I want: companies, facilities, and whatnot need to extend their spookiness until mid-November. I still expect to see Thanksgiving decorations out November 1, but I still want to see ads for haunted houses. I want people to feel comfortable having Halloween costume parties after October 31. I mean, you paid/made that costume. Let's wear them out and party to the grave, baby. That is all...

Double Feature: Flying Objects Attacked and Tilted Carrion Eaters...

2009-10-30T21:37:00.000-04:00

I love Dave Grohl. I think he's probably one of, if not the most, talented musician in modern rock today. He's also one of the busiest (check out his wikipedia page...), so we get plenty of Grohl munchies to satisfy our urges. The reason I bring Diamond Dave up is that he's got not one, but two musical updates coming out very soon and they both sound great. While they have different sounds, both releases show that Dave is not a rock musician or an alternative musician or any other label. He's just a musician who loves his craft and enjoys performing for us, the listener...

First up: The Foo Fighters are releasing a greatest hits album November 2 (holla if it's your birthday... [HOLLA!]) and thank goodness. I used to think that a musician or band had to die or disband to warrant a greatest hits album. At the very least, you ought to have an extensive library of songs to warrant a list that isn't just the radio played songs of your few albums (I'm looking at you, Creed...). That being said, I think that Foo Fighters deserve a greatest hits album for a handful of reasons...

As far as modern bands go (read: bands formed in my life time...), FF has stayed around and prosperous while some of there contemporaries have fallen by the wayside (pick your favorite, I have mine...). They've had hugely successful albums, still grab significant airplay, and win awards consistently for their efforts. While they've evolved (who hasn't...), the Foos have managed to derive a sound all of their own, and I'd like to think it's mostly thanks to Mr. Grohl. Not that the band lives or dies because of Dave, but I believe it's his talent that enhances the group's efforts and makes them the rock powerhouse they are today...

I said before that Dave keeps himself busy, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that he has formed yet another ensemble band (he's been in so many, he may have broken the term 'Super Group'...) called Them Crooked Vultures. They've got a QotSA member, Dave, and a Zep member (look 'em up...). Their debut album drops in November and they've released a single called New Fang and it is pretty damn good. Unlike the Foo Fighters, their sound is more like Eagles of Death Metal and their ilk (Tj calls it 'ball-to-the-walls' rock 'n roll...). Definitely not a bad thing at all, however, it does further show how broad Dave Grohl's taste in music reaches to. I'm looking forward to that album and what TCV gives us...

That is all for now. Tune in tomorrow where I shall a thought on Halloween and why I discovered, in my aging, that it is the most disappointing of all the 'government sanctioned' holidays. By the way, the Foo Fighters released a new song off their greatest hits album and it's called Wheels...

It's coming...

2009-10-07T20:57:00.001-04:00

With November less than a month away, it is time to prepare for that month long event that many aspiring writers attempt in some form or another. I am of course speaking of NaNoWriMo (incidentally, does to 'No' stand for 'novel' or 'November'?). For those unacquainted with NaNoWriMo, it goes like this: a writer challenges him or herself to write a novel of more than 50,000 word in the month of November. The prize is as simple as the challenge: you get to say you've written a novel. The challenge of that much constant writing (more than 1600 words per day...) is daunting to many would-be authors, leading to some unfinished works...

Now, this author is taking it in a slightly different vein (I do have to be me...). As I am not exactly in novel writing mode these days, I am going to use NaNoWriMo for a unique writing challenge: I am going to write one comic book issue per day for the month of November. This will include dialogue and coherent notes for the artist. I will also be giving said issues for editting to those who care and aren't doing NaNoWriMo (Hi Jon, Jesse, Brian, etc...). However, per the rules of NaNoWriMo, I will not change anything of each issue until December 1...

This task is extremely daunting, and I'll tell you why. If one is writing a typical, run-of-the-mill novel, it will have a few characters that stay the focus of the project. This means you can travel with said characters as the story grows around them. Not so with comic book issues. I don't intend to write 30 issues of one character. The way I handle characters and stories these days, I need a break and/or write about something else. So I don't have the luxury to rest up between sessions; I just have to keep plugging along...

So, all that being said, here's what I'm doing to prepare myself:
- No actual issue writing until November 1...
- Keeping track of my various ideas I brainstorm...
- Work on other projects until NaNoWriMo starts...
- Catch up on my single issue reading to set the mood...
- Unearth other possible stories written and forgotten...

With all else going on (job hunting, back-to-schooling, vague wedding plans, household duties, puppy watch...), it's been a challenge just finding enough time to pump myself up for this. I can only imagine it will get harder next month when I put ink to paper. Oh yeah; I'm doing it old school, pencil and paper style mostly for NaNoWriMo. I know that some of my compatriots have been trying to ween me off of it (sorry Crash 'n Klein guys...), but I'm not there yet. Wish me luck...

The Ever Evolving Playlist vol. 1...

2009-09-22T21:22:00.001-04:00

Here's a list that I'll constantly update with songs I want and cross off those I acquire. Ready? GO!

1. Alphabeat - Fascination
2. U2 - Get On Your Boots
3. Kanye West ft. T-Pain - Good Life
4. Justice - Dance
5. Eminem - Like Toy Soldiers
6. MGMT - Electric Feel
7. MGMT - Electric Feel (Justice Remix)
8. Justice - Genesis
9. Paul McCartney & Wings - Jet
10. Eminem feat. Dr. Dre - Guilty Conscience
11. The Cranberries - Linger
12. Cece Peniston - Finally
13. The Wallflowers - One Headlight
14. U2 - Get On Your Boots (Justice Remix)
15. Band of Horses - Islands on the Coast
16. Billy Joel - Sometimes a Fantasy
17. Common - I Used to Love H.E.R.
18. Temple of the Dog - Hunger Strike
19. ACDC - Thunderstruck
20. Martin Sexton - Diner

As an additional bonus, here's 20 songs you ought to check out (yes, you)...

1. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Carry On
2. Journey - Faithfully
3. Royksopp - Alpha Male
4. Copeland - Pin Your Wings
5. The Darkness - Growing On Me
6. America - Ventura Highway
7. Ben Lee - Catch My Disease
8. Sarah McLachlan - Possession
9. Paul McCartney - Ever Present Past
10. John Mayer - Slow Dancing in a Burning Room
11. Cary Brothers - Who You Are
12. Los Lonely Boys - Onda
13. Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and Tortoise - Thunder Road
14. Hootie and the Blowfish - Running from an Angel
15. Matisyahu - Jerusalem
16. Velvet Revolver - Fall to Pieces
17. Simply Red - Sunrise
18. Bruce Springsteen - Girls in their Summer Clothes
19. Foo Fighters - Band on the Run
20. Blind Melon - No Rain

Enjoy...

The Ladies...

2009-09-09T08:00:00.000-04:00

You know what I love? Strong women. It's true. From a very early age I've been drawn to the ladies that are tough, strong, 'don't take no shit', but still retain that feminine quality about them. This is a hard balance to achieve, as usually there is too much of one and not enough of the other. However, balance is possible (what's up, Tara...), but since that combination of qualities is rare, that makes those special ladies all the more special. So, with that in mind, I give you:

The Witteman's Top Ten List of Screen Ladies who are Sexytough...

10) April O'Neil from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - I've read that a lot of fans aren't crazy about this actress being April (probably because of the ridiculous banana yellow raincoat she wears...), but I think she's great. She has that cute sexiness I love, but also has that moxie-filled spirit that is so essential of being Sexytough. Without any training, she not only mouths-off to the Foot Clan, she prepares to defend herself with Raph's sai. Granted, she's taken out quickly, but it's her spirit that I admire. This April, more than most others, combines the best of quaint femininity and New York tough gal. And that's Sexytough...

9) Lucy Lawless - This one is a bit cliched for any fanboy to include on a list such as this, but she does play great, strong ladies and still retains a lot of sexiness. I suppose that's why she keeps getting those types of roles. We all know her from Xena: Warrior Princess (Raimi and Tapert, you geniuses...), but she has shown up in recurring roles, such as in Battlestar Galactica and in Spartacus. Along with Xena, her one-time appearance on Burn Notice (personal favorite...) gives her all the reason to be on my Sexytough list. Keep it up, Miss Lawless...

8) Commander Uhuru from Star Trek V: The Final Frontier - Many of you (especially you older readers...) probably grew up at least knowing who Lt. Uhuru was on the original Star Trek series. If not, she was the communications officer on the Enterprise, and a good looking one at that. Also, she was, either one of or, the first African-American character on TV. But it wasn't until the movies came out (barring the occasional moment on TV...) that Uhuru really toughened up. The particular scene I refer to is the distraction dance she does to lure the bad guys out and then holds them at gun point. IN THE NUDE. While she has had other bad ass moments, this scene takes the cake for Uhuru being Sexytough...

7) Sarah Connor from Terminator 2: Judgment Day - I'm not including T1 for a reason: she's too much a chased, 'Damsel-in-Distress' type, even after she grows a pair near the end. No, T2 is where she really shows development as a character. The need to preserve what's most important to her drives her to any end, and that shows. She doesn't shirk in the face of an opponent that overpowers her in every respect, but shows a vulnerable, feminine side at the right moments as well. If we're being honest, Sarah's more sexyTough than Sexytough, but who's counting...

6) Beatrix Kiddo from Kill Bill vol. 1 & 2 - The ol' QT gave us a very deep and entrancing character in Beatrix Kiddo. In vol. 1, she is very bad ass, kicking tail from start to finish, while teasing us with hints of her vulnerable past. In vol. 2, we see Beatrix softer beginnings and dealings with people that are very affectionate. She still kicks it here, there and everywhere, but she is shown to be a very feminine women with a hidden soft side. Thanks to both Quint and Uma for this wonderfully Sexytough lady...

5) Fiona from Burn Notice - This one's a fairly recent addition to the list, but she does come from my current favorite TV progrum. There's nothing like a gun-toting Irish woman, let me tell you. She's got it all; the looks, the attitude, the sass, the unstable temperament. Yummy. Unfortunately, I've seen little else with that actress in it, and what I have seen, it's not so Sexytough. I can only hope that with the popularity of the show and Fiona, she'll find more similar work in the years to come...

4) Gail from Sin City - Gail marks the shortest on-screen time of any on this list. She appears briefly in 'The Hard Goodbye', but really gets to shine in 'The Big Fat Kill'. Now I love Sin City; it's one of my all time favorite movies (true story...) and there are a lot of Sexytough ladies in it, especially in the Old Town sequences. But it is Gail that embodies the most Sexytoughness of them all. She is feminine and aggressive, passionate and primal. She's the best eye-candy in the whole movie, hands down...

3) Halle Berry - What can I say about Miss Berry? Not a whole lot actually. She consistently gets strong roles in most movies she's in, and even if they aren't particularly strong, Halle brings her own strength to the role, making it stronger than before (get all that?). I cannot pin down her best Sexytough role; it could be in Die Another Day or Swordfish or even as Storm. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that I'd even be willing to watch Catwoman. Once...

2) Marion Ravenwood from Raiders of the Lost Ark - Oh Marion. I have such a crush on you. Even though you're old enough to be my mom, you are still cute as a button and the eternal girl next door. She is the perfect foil to Indy, with enough sass and moxie to keep up with Jones. Hell, she punches out Nazis and Communists. What isn't to love? Now everyone chimes in on 'The Best Bond Babe', but I'm putting it out there that Marion is 'The Best Indy Babe' ever (I said that long before Indy 4...). She hung in there when What's-their-names from Doom and Grail would have given up, and that's what makes Marion Ravenwood Sexytough...

1) Ripley from the Alien movies - Time to come clean: this character probably started me down the path of loving strong and sexy women. I cannot help but be drawn in on multiple levels by this character. Not only is her anguish believable, her quest genuine, but she has probably one of, if not THE, coolest fight scenes in movie history. But throughout her ordeal Ripley remains both attractive AND charismatic, something not everyone can do, especially under duress. I would be led by this Sexytough vixen against a horde of Aliens any day...

So there you have it. My favorite Sexytough screen ladies, forever immortalized in this geeks blog. They must feel so proud...

Couldn't leave it alone...

2009-09-03T16:42:00.001-04:00

I'm not usually one for noticing current events enough to then comment on said events later. That being said, a headline caught my eye that seemed so absurd, so outlandish, I can't leave it alone. Also, I'm a product of my generation (read: Saturday morning pop culture), so when it shows up in the news, I take notice. So, without further adieu, here's the (brief) article...

The Green Ranger joins MMA

Now, I've already emailed this link to the friends I knew would give a crap about this kind of announcement (unfortunately, that means most/all of my known readers...), so this is not new to some. It was one of those stories I had to click on. I couldn't help it, I swear...

Let me explain something: I know little about MMA fighting and the UFC. I do know it is about super buff dudes just wailing on each other till one gives up. Now comes the ridiculous parts: I know they hired and promoted a homeless guy (whose name I've forgotten) AND said homeless guy got knocked out early in the first round. I know that former WWF (yes, I still call it the WWF...) member Brock Lesner has transferred over to the UFC to make a 'name' for himself (whatever that means...). I also know that a lot of people take this kind of 'sport' REALLY seriously...

Even with all that being said, I have to draw the line at the FREAKING Green Ranger joining their ranks. It is just super ridiculous. I am not commenting on the man's martial arts ability. From what I remember, he was one of the more talented cast members (even if a lot of it was dance-esque and leaping like a freak...), so he most likely can compete. All together though, it's just absurd. The man was a beloved, and semi-complex, character from a lot of the current 16 to 24 demographic. Now, I don't know if the UFC wants more viewers in that bracket (could be), but even thinking about it gets the 'What the hell?' juices flowing...

Not much more to weigh in about the topic. It was too 'huh?' to leave alone. I hope he does well and proves me wrong. I mean, if you liked the first two seasons of Power Rangers, you'll probably root for the guy. As I recall, he was the good looking, bad boy, rebel type during this point. Plus, they did give him the coolest weapon and Megazord EVER. Yes, I stand by that. Screw that talking saber or anything else after that point. The Green Ranger summoned a Godzilla-esque robot with a trumpet-esque daggerflute. Go, Green Ranger, GO!!!

Gimme an M...U...G...E...N! What's that spell...

2009-08-12T14:07:00.000-04:00

Probably one of the most boring things you can do is watch someone play a great video game. They are having all the fun and you are stuck watching said fun. Sure, it can be entertaining (certainly there are some games worth watching...), but in the end, it gets dull. Especially dull if you also never get to play yourself. That's a one way ticket out the door for me. However, there is always a exception to the rule. The exception for me is M.U.G.E.N...

Superman vs Thor

If you are unaware what Mugen (as I will write it for the rest of the post), it is a gaming engine for computers to allow characters from most 2d beat-em-up/fighting franchises to be put together for a battle royal. Think of it as a customizable fighting game where you control the roster. I am way behind this in all ways; conceptually, thematically, everything. It feeds my desire for cross-overs and fighting games. So far, all that I have seen has been most impressive. Characters I never would have guessed to be in a fighting game can be in there. Odd examples:

-Ash from Evil Dead...
-Strong Guy...
-The cast of Family Guy...
-An escape key (huh?)...

Now, it's a fact that I don't exactly do a lot of research before I post on this blog. It pops in my head and I write. So, what has puzzled/intrigued me about Mugen is the (what I consider) truly unique characters and what they can do. Step back a moment: I understand repainting previous characters to look like the ones you want. I understand uploading dialogue from a variety of media for the voices. What I haven't been able to grasp is (to me) creating unique characters with unique attacks with lines I don't know where they came from. Take, for instance, Thor. He has only appeared as a support character in previous game, so there isn't a lot to work with. An amature programmer figure how to do him, and he has a graphic intensive move set. It just impresses and astounds me what people can do...

Wonder Woman vs Jean Grey

Someday, I'll download the program for Mugen and make my own roster. If it has online multi-player, more the better. I do hope that one day (and maybe that day has come) Mugen can be ported to a Wii or an Xbox or whatever the current popular game system is (and that I already own [c'mon, Gamecube]). If you are a fan of fighting games, customizablity, or even seeing a specific character or franchise in a video game, check out some of the online Mugen videos. Just make sure to watch the ones with the sound effects and not the ones with the metal or techno music. I love video game sfx...

Admission is free...

2009-08-06T11:26:00.000-04:00

My eyes water and ache. My head pounds painfully in time with my heart. My fingers; they tremble and shake. I have become irritable. The time has come to admit it, publicly for all to see. I am an addict, but I have no shame. Look, ye readers, what has its claws into my very soul:

This game, released in the 1980's from the former Soviet Union, is easily one of the most addicting games I have ever played. And I do mean EVER. Since hooking my Nintendo up, I have enjoyed playing many NES games I haven't played in years. However, now that I have been (spoiled by...) playing modern games with advanced AIs, I find that many of the games I used to enjoy more can be beaten through pattern recognition, muscle memory, and constant repetition (thus lowering the overall fun level of some games). Not so with Tetris...

If you are unfamiliar with Tetris (how many of my generation isn't...), the point is to drop blocks (every shape composed of four square blocks...) to eliminate lines of blocks to reach your goal. The beauty of the game is every time you play it, it is different. It's like you build a puzzle while, at the same time, you undo it. It requires great hand-eye coordination and quick thinking. AND IT'S SO DAMN ADDICTING! If there never was a 'Tetris Anonymous', there really should be. Even in today's realm of modern games, I know few others that I would play for hours and hours and hours like Tetris. Super Smash Bros. maybe, but Tetris is so simple a game. It's perfect...

My family and I, back in the day, would have Tetris competitions every so often. Let me tell you, we can be a competitive bunch. Thankfully, it's all in good fun. But the thing I loved about our family Tetris time is that we would always turn off the sound and put on The Alan Parsons Project (usually The Instrumental Works). If you don't know them, look them up (This post is about Tetris, sucka!). Beyond enjoying APP, Tetris would speed the music up once you reached the top, throwing you off your game (Dad would get so mad...). Also, since APP usually has a good beat, it was ideal for playing the game. As a result, I can't help but think of Tetris when APP is on. Thanks Dad...

If you've never played it, you are missing out. Then again, if you haven't played it, you don't have the addiction inside you. As a kid, it was almost embarrassing to be in a Pizza Hut, just staring at the in store console because you didn't have a quarter on you. Think about that: I wanted to PAY to play a game I already owned. Now THAT is addiction. Thankfully, weening is a process I think that, with time, I can truly be free of it. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go play some Tetris...

Have you seen water so white...

2009-07-29T15:30:00.000-04:00

I just came back from a trip to West Virginia (not tops on people "To Go To" list I've heard...) where yours truly went white water rafting with the fiance's bro and dad. It was a ball and a half, let me tell you...

So, after a moderately grueling 6-ish hour drive and a night camping, we showed up to the rafting...dispatch...area...thing. They provided a really nice breakfast buffet (to which I may have indulged in a smidge more than I ought...) and the three of us just hung out until it was our turn to ship out. I've never really spent this much time hanging out with Tara's family, so it was nice to finally get to know them better. Once we got on the bus, I found myself surrounded by all sorts of folk; what I would call the cream of the folk of West Virginia (the typical stereotypes are fading away the older I get...). Boisterous and gabby, everyone of them...

On the river, we were put with a guide who really was the physical stereotype of a West Virginia; accent, temperament, everything. As the day progressed, Eric (our guide) proved that a THICK accent and slight mispronunciations hid a quick wit and an intelligence that the partying country boy style contrasts with. He was quite a character, but he did know the river. I couldn't have asked for a better guide. And, as is par for the course on these kinds of trips, he graced me with the nickname 'Redbeard'. I wonder why...

The rapids were very good, though my experience is limited. I got a more than decent workout on the trip, that's for sure. Early on in the trip, a rapid knocked me out of the raft and into the river. Surprising, but I was fine. Thing is, I remember being pushed up and out of raft, but the video (yes, there is video footage of my folly...) shows me being pushed and rolled over the side. Live and learn. I do have to say that hearing my voice outside my body is still a VERY weird experience...

All in all, it was a beautiful day. I give high marks to Class VI River Runners and their program for the New River (which, I found out, is the second oldest river in the world...). The skies were clear, though it did rain after we got off the river, it wasn't too hot, the company was light and fun. It is most definitely a trip I will take again...

You know what I like...

2009-07-24T14:03:00.000-04:00

Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord! Unfortunately, I'm not old school enough to have played it on the oldest of systems (read: pre-NES), so I cut my teeth on it during the dynasty of original NES. On the other side of the coin, I was out of loop for every sequal they ever released after the first Wizardry, so PGMO is all I've got. Regardless, it still to this day holds a special place in my heart, and here's why...

If you've never played Wizardry, here's the reader's digest version: Create a party of adventurers, fight through monsters and assorted baddies, get treasure and experience, and you do this long enough to be powerful enough to beat the end boss Werdna, thus saving the kingdom...or whatever. Too long for you? Let's put it into a recognizable phrase: It's a dungeon crawl. Period. Essentially, this game is Dungeons & Dragons for the NES (it even uses Hobbits instead of Halflings, how'd they get around that?)...

It's also one of the first of its kind, making it the granddaddy of several genres. It is a very early RPG (as far as video games are concerned), so it set the stage for games like Final Fantasy years later. It was also unique in that you travel in first-person view. While combat is turn based (much like future RPGs), you open doors, descend/ascend floors, flip switches, etc. in first person, which at the time was unheard. One of the few other games with 3D elements that I know about is super pointless and lame (can we say Fester's Quest?...). Best of all, I was just getting into D&D at the same time, so I could game with my friends (hey Brian) and then if I didn't get enough, I could go home and game some more. Sweet...

As much as I enjoy this title, I have an issue or two. If you ever play this game, be prepared to exercise ALOT of patience. Character creation is a chore in multiple ways, especially if you've gotten to the luxury of point-and-click RPGs on a computer. To maximize a character, you have to slog through the whole creation process over and over and over and...::SPLARG:: Tweaks me out just thinking about it. Once you finally have your party of six (I recommend 2 Samurai, 1 Cleric, I Thief, 1 Mage, and 1 Wizard, you make it into the dungeon. To get anywhere, you need to do some serious leveling up. This means seeing the same baddies over and over, returning to town to heal, rinse and repeat. I can't get through Floor 3 with level 6 characters, so be warned. Also, don't let anyone die. It's expensive if your party makes it back, and if they ALL die, you start all over with a new party. Blech. Now there is an option where you can go down and find your dead team and bring them back to town, but by that point, your new party should be on par with the old. Like I said, blech...

That aside, I highly enjoy PGMO (just before my party dies) and I recommend it, not only to RPG lovers, but also to you nostalgic NES fans. It's unique in that it came out during at era of Mario and Link and Samus and is still very well thought out and fun. The designers took this project seriously and it shows. If you'd like an old(er) school challenge and are a fantasy lover, keep an eye out for a copy of your own or find an online MOD. Imaginations recommended...

Finally...

2009-07-09T16:10:00.000-04:00

After all this time, ye readers few, I can get back to this thing the kids call a 'blog'. But understandable, my hiatus was. Moving out quickly, unpacking the important items, repacking for Ireland, going to Ireland, coming back into moving right into our new place (give or take a day or two), unpacking and setting up said new place, visiting with people. It's a process, believe me. I've lived a lot of my life out of boxes, but this is first time I'm (basically) away from my parents in that respect. Shocking...

So, here in Laurel I sit. I am on the lookout for a few things; some are necessities, others not so much. So here go:

- A comic/gaming shop (a combination or one of each)...
- The cheapest grocery store around...
- A decent, close second-hand store...
- A theater...
- The best job I can find...
- The closest college with a good Education program...
- A gym...

As you can see, I've got my work cut out for me. These are, in no way, in order of importance, but I will let you infer an order to the list. An eye is being kept out...

Super stoked about the apartment, though. I'm getting all my old gear back and weeding out all that I have sort of out grown or no long have a use for. It's cleansing. The stereo's back as well, which I have missed up in Ithaca. Now I can rock this joint with all manner of musics. Speaking of that, I have been weeding through my mysterious cd collection since moving in and let me tell you, it's been an education. I think I have been keeping around half of the cds I bought without knowing what a band was like. That means I will admit to having spent a bit too much on curiosity and broadening horizons and the like. I hope you guys like music as gifts...

Last item, there's a party at my place coming up (don't worry, you'll be invited...) which Tara and I are excited about. It's an alcohol party in which we will share out special finds with friends and they with us. We're calling it our 'Liver Let Die' party (my idea...). It's also a housewarming event so that our friends and family will know where we live and how we live in it. Should be a lot of fun...

From Ithaca with Love...

2009-05-31T22:38:00.000-04:00

Well, faithful reader, my time in Ithaca draws to a close. In a scant few days, I shall embark back to the loving arms of Maryland, leaving the cool New York climate behind me. I can say, without a doubt, that I will shed a tear for this era of life gone by. I view it as the last vestige of my 'childhood', if you will, ending. Why, you may ask? Let's look at the facts:
-I am in an extremely adult relationship (fiance > girlfriend)...
-I have fewer and fewer 'in-school' friends (Jon's still one of the best, but his number is few and far between)...
-Now, I have a 'family' to support (hi, Tara) and be supported by...
-Thoughts of a career are welcome now (any ol' job vs. satisfying work)...
-And so on...

To those who know me, it's not as frightening as I have imagined it in years gone by. I've grown very comfortable with the person I have become, despite how others see me (no one in particular, so none of that speculation jibber-jabber). I'm still the lovable, eccentric, random dude I always have been, but in many ways, I've matured. They say rock bottom is a college education, and while I may not have ever hit bedrock, I've come close enough to worry. After all this, and all the things I've learned, I am ready to be THIS adult...

So, enough of this self-indulgent bull, let's get on with the TRUE meat and potatoes of this post (for all of you who suffered through all that). We have ourselves yet another musical post. Here's a list of songs I've learned of, loved, and acquired in the year and a half in Ithaca. Even with its wide variety of artists and style, this list still more than adequately represents my unique, eclectic musical taste. And, without further ado, I give thee:

The Witteman's Ithaca Mix CD (and you can take that to the bank)...
WARNING: SOME VIDEOS MAY VARY FROM THE ACTUAL RECORDING. VIEWER DISCRETION IS SCORNED...

1. The Eagles - How Long
(Proving that old guys can still have chops...)
2. Bruce Springsteen - Girls in Their Summer Clothes
(Same as above, but The Boss never went away...)
3. Foo Fighters - Long Road to Ruin
(Please, please, PLEASE give us some more music!...)
4. Bruce Springsteen - Radio Nowhere
(Still The Boss and still rocks the house...)
5. Snoop Dogg - Sensual Seduction
(It's good to see rappers have a sense of humor...)
6. Mylo - In My Arms
(Repetitive, but on the whole, very catchy...)
7. .38 Special - Caught Up in You
(CLASSIC ROCK, FOREVER!!!...)
8. Linus Loves feat. Sam Obernik - Stand Back
(Now HERE'S a remix that is respectful and unique, all at once...)
9. Rick Springfield - What's Victoria's Secret
(Refer to my review in a much, MUCH earlier post...)
10. Paul McCartney - Ever Present Past
(See old guy comment...)
11. Mariah Carey - We Belong Together
(My only true musical sin...)
12. Jimmy Eat World - Electable (Give It Up) (It's the first song...)
(These guys are proving they have to moxie to stick around...)
13. Dragonforce - Heroes of Our Time
(Journey meets Slayer meets Nintendo...)
14. Daft Punk - Human After All (Justice Remix)
(Man, my favorite techno band and one of my favorite remix groups...)
15. Van Halen - Baluchitherium (It's the best I could do. I'll play my copy when next we meet...)
(Truly an epic instrumental rock piece...)

If you know me, then none of this should come as a surprise. If you don't, now you know a little more about this guy (and knowing is half the battle...). This list is not ranked top to bottom or first found to last found. Rather, this list is assembled as I would burn them onto a cd for listening enjoyment. By clicking on the links and listening, you can find out for yourself how this would all play out. If I got it off by a little, tell me. What would you do?...

Totally Legal...

2009-05-23T23:23:00.001-04:00

This month left intentionally blank...

There's nothing more important...

2009-04-26T21:55:00.000-04:00

We all come to points in our lives that demand our full and undivided attentions. These life altering moments can be grand, exciting, painful, or simply intriguing. Regardless of the feelings and emotions they inflict upon us, these life points rip us out of our day to day routines to contemplate the fantastic and the special. Today, I talk of marriage. Specifically, my future marriage to Tara Flynn (not the porn star, sorry guys)...

We started dating over three years ago after a whirlwind adventure of hiking and seduction on Assateague Island. The debate still rages, but I maintain that I was seduced rather than the seducee. You decide, my friends. After a brief stint of separation (anxiety), we 'declared' us to the world shortly there after during a visit of mine to Ithaca, home to Cornell University and my fiancé’s soon-to-be alma mater. The details from this point and today aren't really anyone else's business but ours, BUT after a year and a half or so of dating, we decided it would be prudent to live together to see if we could stand to live together long term. It turns out we can...

Here are two pictures of the happy couple pre-engagement and the wedding of our friends Roger and Zeph. Yes, the one is of us in pirate garb (Want to make something of it?). We are even more adorable in person, let me tell you. So here's to you, Tara. Thanks for wanting to make a life with this geeked out rock'n roller. The next chapter is sure to be an exciting one...

As promised (the top half)...

2009-04-09T10:56:00.000-04:00

I really gotta cut these posts down for length. I fear they may become unreadable and I'm tired of doing two-part posts. Starts to set a precedent. But, without further ado, I give you:

The Witteman's Top Ten List of Characters That Should Be In The Next SSB Game (Seriously)...

#5 - Like Mouser, hailing from the second game in a major video game series, it's fan favorite, Tails! Yes, Sonic's sidekick has more than enough chops to make it as a Smash Bros. Much like Luigi is to Mario, Tails shares similarities to Sonic (speed, items, kills enemies the same way...) but also has developed his own unique characteristics (flight [always cool], adept with machines...). Hopefully, for Tail's sake, these unique aspects can distance himself from his progenitor and not make him just a clone of Sonic. Lord knows we don't need another Link/Young Link/Toon Link, Capt. Falcon/Ganondorf, Lucas/Ness, Pichu/Pikachu, Fox/Falco/Wolf (you get the point...). If Tails can only be done as a clone, then perhaps Knuckles would be a better SSB choice. But, seeing as Tails came first, the flying fox gets first crack at the roster...

#4 - After playing (weeks upon weeks) of Super Smash Bros. Melee, Little Mac was one of the first characters I wanted included in the series. Ol' Green Trunks has a lot going for him: He's the main character of a very popular and nostalgic game, his theme music is simple yet powerful, and, while he may seem to have a simple move set (he IS a boxer [punch, punch, and...punch]), he would be a quick and evasive opponent (slipping and dodging attacks, blocking physical attacks without his shield). While Little Mac does make an appearance as an assist trophy in Brawl, it seems like a cop out to my fantasy roster. One can only hope that the new Wii Punch Out will breathe life into the tiny titan and Little Mac will rise in the ranks to Smash Bros. status...

#3 - To be honest, the Battletoads, Rash and Zitz weren't originally on this list, mainly because I forgot their game existed until just recently. Thank God for VNES.com. So, after playing Battletoads again after many years, it dawned on me: these guys are way cool, they've got the moves, mixed in with the right blend of obscurity and nostalgia, and all-in-all, the Toads are very in-theme for Super Smash Bros. Anthropomorphic amphibians in a beat-em-up game equals awesome (always). The only reason imaginable why these guys have been slipped under the radar thus far is plain old obscurity (when last we left the Battletoads, the year was 1994...). But if that's their own reason why, bring them back to us. Battletoads in Super Smash Bros.: Make it happen...

#2 - Oh, Toad. How they have forsaken you. After being the beefy guy in Mario 2 and one of the fastest characters in every Mario Kart, as well as having cameos in many other Mario games, you'd think Nintendo would give the little guy a little more respect. Instead, the decided to put Dr. Mario in Melee and made Toad a weapon for Princess Peach(for shame!). He is the last 'unique' member of the Mario family not to be a Smash Bros. and, even if there is no other reason why, Toad should be in the next SSB installment. The nice thing about him is his flexibility; (as mentioned above) he could be designed as a heavy, strong fighter or a quick but weaker attacker (both of which the Mario family lack). Either way, Toad is (or at least SHOULD be) a shoe-in for the next Super Smash Bros...

And the #1 character deserving of a Smash Bros. position - You know him, you love him, you can't live without him, Capcom's poster boy, Mega Man! There is absolutely no reason why this character isn't a Smash Bros. yet. Everything about Mega Man makes him THE prime candidate for the game: He's got the history, he's got the popularity and is a well respected character, and he's got more unique moves than TEN Smash Bros. Granted, they won't all be doable (sorry, Flash Man...), so we'll have to pick from the cream of the crop (hello, Metal Man, Magnet Man, etc... [to say nothing of Rush, Beat, the Megabuster, etc...]). Beyond Mega Man's versatility, you'd be hard pressed to find any gamer worth his salt who hasn't played, seen, or at least heard of Mega Man in some fashion. It is this notoriety that should make our favorite Master Robot slayer and auto include for the next Super Smash Bros. game...

So there you have it; all 10 of my suggestions for a SSB roster update. There are couple of other characters I could have mentioned, but these were the best. And it's only the best for this blog. However, I can admit I might have missed a good one or two. Who's your best idea for an addition to Super Smash Bros.? I really am curious to see what else might be out there and merely forgotten. Hit me back...

As promised (the bottom half)...

2009-04-05T19:35:00.000-04:00

"Mawwiage...Mawwiage is what bwings us togevvah, today..." Truer words have never been spoke. Marriage is a truly excellent concept, both for people and for ideas. It is no secret that I am beginning the early planning steps of a marriage (thanks Tara!), but this post is not necessarily about this kind of festivity. I shall be getting to my own plannings in further posts. No, this one (judging by the title) is more of an idea marriage...

I would be hard pressed to find a geek or nerd who didn't enjoy crossovers in fiction, even on the most superficial of levels. Indeed, the popularity and lucrativeness of crossovers can be seen in movies like Aliens vs Predator and Freddy vs Jason, but also within other genres as well. Comics do it from time to time (almost too often sometimes...), and we gamers get the occasional video game crossover, too. I would argue that one of the best crossover (read: idea marriage) games, across the board, would have to be the Super Smash Bros. series. It's got everything in there: nostalgia value, great gameplay, kick ass graphics, and religious adherence to the characters. And so, in honor of this great marriage of video game ideas, concepts, what have you, I give you:

The Witteman's Top Ten List of Characters That Should Be In The Next SSB Game (Seriously)...

A bit of criteria for this list o' mine: No outside franchise characters (No Marvel, DC, movies, tv, etc...), No characters ORIGINATING from a head to head fighting game (No Street Fighter, Mortal Combat, etc...), and No Final Fantasy Characters (There are just too many to choose from, etc...). Anyways, on to the list...

#10 - Hailing from Mario 2 (and marking the only villain on the list), it's Mouser! Yes, this bomb chucking rodent-in-shades pestered Team Mario back in 1988 and would make an excellent addition to the SSB villain gallery of today. Unlike the other heavy...um...heavies, Mouser is light on his feet and hard to catch, making him a foe to be reckoned with. Plus, King Wart bears too much of a resemblance to Bowser. The only marks against him is that Mouser is a fairly obscure villain (unseen as an actual villain since Mario 2) and his move set is very limited, forcing developers to flesh Mouser out beyond his inception(kind of like how they did with Capt. Falcon, yes?). Despite that, this villainous rat is very in-theme with the Smash Bros. series and would meld quite well with the other characters within...

#9 - What can be said about Toe Jam & Earl? They're pretty weird, that's what. Fortunately for us, they have been a lot of fun, too, and would fit in nicely with the other Smash Bros. characters, albeit in that 'hanging out with your weirdly cool cousin' kind of way. This quirky duo has the potential to expand on a concept used by other characters; the multiple character per player. The player would control either or Toe Jam OR Earl at a time (read: Ice Climbers), BUT a command could switch between the two, opening different move avenues (read: Pokemon Trainer or Zelda/Shiek). Here's the thing, though: Developers would practically have to invent the ENTIRE move set for TWO new characters from scratch and, in truth, the popularity and pure knowledge of Toe Jam & Earl may be too low for execs to give their ok on the idea. Never the less, these two funky aliens deserve a place in the SSB ranks for, if nothing else, their odd coolness that most long time gamers realize...

#8 - Now here's a character (and a franchise) that needs to be returned to its rightful owner. Ryu Hayabusa from Ninja Gaiden can trace his ancestry all the way back to the NES and has stayed the main character of the series ever since (impressive since he's been ported to Sega then to XBox...). Ryu has quite the bag of tricks (as any good ninja should)to bring to the Super Smash Bros. table (throwing stars, fire circles, shadow helpers, wall climbing/clinging[UNIQUE!]), making him a off-the-bat hard hitter. Plus, Ryu's a friggin' ninja, man! That being said, the man is not perfect. He is a non-cartoon human character (making the feel closer to the 'real', thanks Snake...)who is, more often than not, out for blood (read: a Grim and Gritty dude). Sure, he has fought monsters, but Mario or Kirby never took it to an opponent the way Ryu does. However, that aside, Ryu is still a major contender for a Super Smash seat; more than worthy to meat the other Bros. in combat...

#7 - One of the coolest and quirkiest character concepts is that of Earthworm Jim(If you don't know, look it up, foo!). You don't get much more 3rd party than you do with this guy. With his totally tricked out battle suit (including a blaster), the ability to use his wormy body as a tool, and a myriad of worlds to draw from, EJ's got skills to rival any of the current Smash Bros. There is a question lurking, however: Is there enough interest in the character to include him in a SSB game? It seems he hasn't made much of an appearance since 1999 and any newer games appear to be either cancelled or 'In Production'. Plus, the addition of Jim does push the risk of taking Smash Bros. in a new direction (don't ask me which one), and there are those out there you may not want to take that risk. But when you have a character like Earthworm Jim, a surreal, ridiculous, and downright fun character, it is a risk that is worth taking...

#6 - Another character originating from the NES of yore, Simon Belmont first shined as the protagonist in the original Castlevania and, while the series has branched out from its humble beginnings, I would argue he still the most recognizable hero from the series, if not at least the most nostalgic. Any old school gamer has probably played the early Castlevania games and should remember the HUGE inventory Belmont can acquire. With this in mind, and adding to it the plethora of thematic elements to Simon, his moves should be easy to come up with. Not that Belmont is without his flaws. Much like Ryu Hayabusa, he is 'human'; i.e. not a cartoon like Mario or a fantasy character like Link. Speaking of Link, these two share many similarities (item tossers, ranged attackers, a whip...), which would require Simon to be tweaked so that he wasn't just a cheap, knock-off Link clone. Because when you get down to it, the great vampire slayer from Castlevania is no mans clone...

Next: The Top Half...

WE'RE BACK!!!...

2009-03-22T21:56:00.000-04:00

I was going to make this about Super Smash Bros., but something truly wonderfully awesome has happened tonight and I feel the need to spread the joy around. After several years of spartan music selection (considering what came before), the hard drive with all my digital music, every song I've ever gotten and put on the computer, has magically began to work again! It is a true miracle and I am happier than you can imagine...

Now, those close to me might say, 'Hey, what about you and Tara and the big to-do and all...' That is for another post for another day. You know, after the fact. No, tonight the joys of my own music selection are almost back to where I was before I moved up here. Thousands upon thousands of songs are mine once again, and once I combine them with the iTunes (eventually) and all the songs I acquired whilst up here, I shall feel a certain amount of peace of mind...

So here's my advice to you, kiddies: Don't put all your crap in only one format. If that format becomes lost (say, a crashed hard drive or assholes take your collections out of your car cause you are too damn dumb to lock your car...), have at least one back up in a different format. Since I thought I lost both in a very short time lapse, it was more devastating than I would care to explain. Even if you burn your cds onto a drive, don't get rid of the hard copies. Store them away until you need them again or run out of storage room or whatever. Such relief you can't buy...

Next: A Smash Bros. post...

Part DUECE!!!...

2009-03-05T13:08:00.000-05:00

Finalizing the review of Hulk vs Thor, so here it comes...

The story involves Loki, god of mischief and Thor's brother, trying to find a way to kill of his brother once and for all. And, despite all attempts in the past, the only thing that came close to beating Thor was the rage machine himself, The Hulk. So Loki, along with the Enchantress, capture Banner, turn him into the Hulk, then proceed to physically REMOVE BANNER FROM THE HULK!!! Ok, I can't actually be that upset over this. I had to accept it when Jean Grey did it during the Onslaught saga. So, with Banner gone, Loki gains control of Hulk and sends him rampaging through the streets of Asgard. As can be expected, Big 'n Green mows through gods (yes, plural), dukes it out with Thor a bunch, Loki loses control, Hulk rampages more, and then Hel (Norse goddess of the underworld, kids) gets involved, restores Banner to Hulk, and that's where it ends. I gotta say, after I wrote 'Hulk rampages more', that was where I was comfortable stopping...

Gotta make this good, so the good points first. Like Hulk vs Wolverine, the costumes and art are spot on, if a bit stylized. If you want my opinions on that, check out the other post. But I actually have to praise the art further, because, unlike in HvW, there was more material to be faithful to. They really did nail it and it was all believable in the context of this story. The other item that made it a bit more enjoyable than the movie that came before it was the ending, and more like it actually had one. While HvW ends ambiguously (groan), HvT ends with Asgard being saved, Hulk returns to Midgard (Norse for the Earth, kids), and the heroes win the day, or as much as you can call getting your crap kicked all over the mythological planes by the avatar of all destruction (apparently)...

That segues nicely into my biggest problem with this pile: Hulk takes on the majority of the Norse pantheon and rips it to shreds with barely a mark on him. Yeah, I know, the madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets, but this is plain retarded. Big movers and shakers like the Norse gods barely slow Hulk down, but Wolverine holds his own? What kind of precedent is being set here? Are we allowing Wolverine to be this powerful or is it just that the Norse gods can't get their shit together and, oh I don't know, BANISH HULK FOR ALL ETERNITY TO SOME ABYSS IN THE ABYSSAL PLANES?!?!? (ok, I lost my way in that rant). Still, I know Hulk is the 'ultimate wrecking ball on legs', but these are FREAKING GODS!!! I kind of want to see what kinds of berzerkers and barbarians would have worshipped Hulk as a god now. Friggin' sweet...

The other issue I have is that, even though Loki lost control of Hulk, Hulk continued rampage and destroy his way to the sleeping Odin, I guess with the intention of destroying him(?). The Hulk I remember reading wouldn't mindlessly go towards a shiny light to destroy it. He'd make his way out of Asgard in a couple of leaps, just to be left alone. That's all Hulk really wants in the end is to be rid of Banner (check, at least for a while) and to live alone. After Loki was gone, there would have been no motivation or remote reason to go after Odin. A liberty that must have been taken, I suppose...

Style: See HvW, mostly. As I said before, way to go artists for making the art incredibly faithful, despite your own spins on it. Get these guys and gals more jobs and better scripts to work with...

Story: While HvW was in the realm of the absurd, HvT went with acceptable and Buh-Horing. It was predictable, flat, and not all that interesting to watch. Yes, this ending was better, but that was the best part about it. It was over...

Voices: Meh. Nothing really worth writing about. Not great, not awful...

Grade: D+ to C- and a plea for a redo. Art alone cannot make this piece all that worth my while. They could have stepped it up a little, but I get the feeling someone was trying make an easy buck with this two set. Gave my copy to my roommate. He couldn't get through them both, that's how disappointed he was. If you want to opinion on this, post here. Or better yet, find me, ask for my copy, then give it back with your own review. Tell me I'm wrong with this review...

The Witteman's Review of....

2009-02-24T10:32:00.000-05:00

Hulk vs Wolverine/Hulk vs Thor...

Lionsgate released this two feature set of action packed animated films recently, and I was intrigued by the previews and clips youtube had to offer. It's no secret that one of the biggest on going battle feuds within Marvel comics is between Wolverine and the Hulk. But, it does make for good cinema to have the god of thunder to go up against the ultimate Marvel powerhouse. Let's begin...

Hulk vs Wolverine is up first and, unfortunately, I have but one word for it: Disappointing. Now, it wasn't completely disappointing, but overall, I wanted something else, or at the very least, something more. Our films starts with our favorite Canadian berserker being called in by the Canadian government to take care of the Hulk, who's been rampaging across the Canadian countryside (I never thought I'd write 'Canadian' so much in one sentence). This is reflective of, not just the plot, but the actual dialogue lifted from Ultimate Hulk vs Ultimate Wolverine (to which I am not a HUGE fan of the Ultimates line, but this picture won me over):

Adding a high note, Wolverine is garbed in his 90's suit rather than his modern suit, which I definitely prefer (though not against the yellow and brown suit). Anyways, after a slightly long tracking sequence, Wolverine meets up with Bruce Banner, Banner turns into Hulk, and combat ensues. To the creators' credit, there was an adequate use of blood and profanity that you would expect if these characters were to actually exist without going of the top for shock value. I suppose that's the highest marks I can give this piece is treating the characters with an adult mindset than just for kids, which happens to many comic-to-cartoon adaptations (Thank God for Batman: The Animated Series)...

So, after what seems like a much too short combat sequence, Wolverine's villains show up, take down both Wolverine and the Hulk, and drag them off to the Weapon X facility. Wait, WHAT?!? Yes, they felt the need to throw *ahem* plot into a feature that would almost be better as just a combat vehicle. So, we see a surprisingly good adaptation of the Weapon X storyline via flashback, and subsequently find out that it was in fact Weapon X who wanted both the Hulk AND Wolverine as their weapons. I mean, I guess since the combined efforts of Sabertooth, Deadpool, Lady Deathstrike, and Omega Red couldn't...stop...

WAITAFRIGGINMINUTE!!! Neither Deathstrike or Red were Weapon X victims!! Sure, they fall into the 'We Hate Wolverine With Every Fiber Of Our Being' Club, but Omega Red was a damn TARGET, not a member of Weapon X! Oh god, continuity is a harsh mistress. And I know Deadpool is the 'Merc with a Mouth' and is sort of a more popular character nowadays, but this interpretation is just annoying and you are just waiting for Hulk to rip his head off (he doesn't). After the inclusion of *sigh* Weapon X, the film takes a decidedly more anime style (especially in Deathstrike and Red's case), but not enough to make me shut it off. Since the villains can't decide between killing off Wolverine or self-preservation against RAGE INCARNATE(!!), they get their crap kicked all over the place...

As the movie draws to a close, Hulk (for some reason) decides to tear the ENTIRE COMPLEX DOWN. Seems more prudent that he would just escape, but hey, I'm just a fan. After these moments of special effects-ery, and swatting Wolverine with a skyscraper-esqe pylon, the Hulk leaves his wake of destruction behind him and returns to the Canadian wilds where he is free to roam in piece. OR IS HE?!?! Wolverine still happens to be conscious and (oddly enough) rechallenges the Hulk to begin where they left off 45 minutes ago. The movie fades to black as these two unstoppable forces leap back into the fray, as if this battle will continue for eons upon eons...

Style: It was a nice mix between accepted American imagery and anime styled combat. Believable and not abhorrent, though their choices on some of the little details perplex me. But, as I said, these are little details...

Story: Did we really have to throw Weapon X in there? It would be like throwing a trip to the Negative Zone in the 'Death of Superman' storyline. Unnecessary. A slugfest with these two heroes would have carried itself. Also, how do end it with a non-ending? Why not use 'parting with grudging respect' or 'not meeting after the collapse of the facilities' or 'one letting the other go their separate ways'? Very unsatisfying in the end...

Voices: Quite good on the whole. I even like they got the guy who played The Kurgan in 'Highlander' to be the voice of Sabertooth. The Wolverine voice even evoked a bit of Cathal Dodd, the voice of Wolverine in the 90's...

Grade: C+ and a free pass for a redo. The story and some of the in-movie styles and portrayals bring the grade down a smidge, but on a good day, it might be graded a B- as well. I recommend this toon to others, mainly to get their reaction. Perhaps I have been too harsh, or not harsh enough. You tell me, fellow viewers...

Next up, Hulk vs Thor. Stay tuned...