Daily Dose of Awesome: Stay Puft Baby

Credit: @danmilano  and  @christastarr

20th Century Ghosts

Best New Horror

20th Century Ghost

Pop Art

You Will Hear the Locust Sing

Abraham's Boys

Better Than Home

The Black Phone

In the Rundown

The Cape

Last Breath

Dead-Wood

The Widow's Breakfast

Bobby Conroy Comes Back From the Dead

My Father's Mask

Voluntary Committal

New York City Fringe Festival 2009

*Originally published on 2/23/09



Like my blu ray article, this is not a comprehensive list of the events being performed, merely a sample. For more info, go to www.frigidnewyork.info/
The Hefner Monologues

Thursday 2/26: 7:30 pm Saturday 2/28: 10:00 pm Tuesday 3/3: 6:00 pm Thursday 3/5: 10:30 pm Friday 3/6: 7:30 pm Sunday 3/8: 1:00 pm

Join young John Hefner (yes he is related to Hugh, though they are estranged) as he relates tragically amusing stories about his life. Covering topics as seemingly mundane as a day in traffic court or a night out at a bar, Mr. Hefner relates his struggles to find an identity for himself when his name has already been established as iconic.

I gave this one first billing as I actually know John. It's true, we went to college together. I haven't seen his show, but I have read a few of his individual stories, the show in its entirity has been met with postive reviews. Many of the events described are described as "Hefnerian" (the concept is explained in his show as well as being formally defined on his website www.thehefner.com)

BAGS: Obsessions of a Hoardaholic

Wednesday 2/25: 9:00 pm
Thursday 2/26: 6:00 pm
Wednesday 3/4: 10:30 pm
Friday 3/6: 7:30 pm
Sunday 3/8: 4:00 pm

As someone with too many hobbies (movies, books, comics, and music) this show spoke to me even though I have only read the small descriptive paragraph. Lee Buckman goes a step further and hoards almost everything. By relating his seemingly bizarre behavior, he connects with the obsessive collectors in all of us.

Coffee Dad, Chicken Mom and the Fabulous Buddha Boy

Thursday 2/26: 10:30 pm
Friday 2/27: 7:30 pm
Saturday 2/28: 1:00 pm
Sunday 3/1: 7:00 pm
Tuesday 3/3: 9:00 pm
Wednesday 3/4: 6:00 pm

This one man show relates the stories of an eccentric family trying to get by in this crazy world in their own unique ways. Nearly selling out at a previous festival, Coffee Dad has been met with great reviews.

Are We Freaks?

Thursday 2/26: 9:00 pm
Saturday 2/28: 1:00 pm
Wednesday 3/4: 10:30 pm
Saturday 3/7: 7:00 pm
Sunday 3/8: 2:30 pm

This show, while still being comedy oriented, leans more in the science fiction direction. Consisting of four short stories. This show is about eight odd women looking for companionship. To my knowledge, they do not, at any point, begin chanting "gooble gobble gooble gobble", which is probably a good thing.

Brainstorming

Thursday 2/26: 9:00 pm
Saturday 2/28: 8:30 pm
Monday 3/2: 6:00 pm
Tuesday 3/3: 10:30 pm
Saturday 3/7: 2:30 pm
Sunday 3/8: 5:30 pm

Neither magician nor mind reader, Rory Raven will amuse and amaze you with his psychological abilities. From the look of it he acts in a similar capacity to the eponymous mentalist from the CBS show of the same name.

This is only a small taste of the options for performances to see at this year's festival. As you can see, while one man shows may all seem the same, each performer brings their own personal flair to the stage. If you're in New York over the next couple of weeks and are looking for something to see, you should peruse the menu of shows available at this year's Frigid Festival.

Family Guy season finale parodies Stephen King's work

I just discovered that the season finale to Family Guy, entitled Three Kings, is going to center around three works by Stephen King.  Fox's website gives a brief synopsis saying:

"After Peter discovers the writing of Stephen King, he imagines his family and friends in three of King’s most famous works. First, Peter, Quagmire, Cleveland and Joe – as 12-year-olds – travel along a railroad track on a journey of self-discovery narrated by Richard Dreyfuss (guest-voicing as himself). Second, Brian is injured in a bad car crash only to be “rescued” by his “number one fan,” Stewie. Finally, Cleveland and Peter become fast friends in prison."

The first story is a spoof of Stand By Me, a film that was based on King's short story, The Body.
The second one is a clear take on Misery.  Given that Brian has finally gotten his novel published, it's rather apt that he be the one to be held captive.

The final story spoofs King's short story, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, which was made into an Oscar nominated film.

I have a feeling the episode is going to parody the movie adaptations more than the books themselves.  Still, it should be interesting to watch.   Unlike, Blue Harvest, each book is only going to get a few minutes of time as opposed to a whole episode so a lot of it will probably be rushed.

Ghostbusters 3 in talks

*Originally published on 9/18/2008



It is truly a good time to be a Ghostbusters fan. With the announcement of a video game to be released on all major next-gen consoles, a wave of Ghostbusters fever has struck. Time Life has attained the rights to "The Real Ghostbusters" and has finally released the whole series in a deluxe dvd set, both movies will be coming to blu-ray, IDW will be releasing a comic and a manga may even be in the works. With all this buzz, I guess it was only natural for Hollywood to try to jump on the bandwagon and bring back the idea of a sequel to get their piece of the pie. Should the movie be made? I wonder.

For one thing, the video game was supposed to act as the third part. The original cast all got together to provide the voices and it was even written by Ramis and Ackroyd. If they release a GB3 then the video game just becomes another forgettable movie tie in game. Even if it is an above average game it will forever be categorized as such when it could be so much more.

No offense to the actors, but of the four, Ernie Hudson is the only one who's aged well. Bill Murray's hair is quite gray and the other two have let themselves go since Ghostbusters 2. But that's fine as the plot will involve them taking a new generation under their wing and mentoring them. I don't think this is the way to go. One of the things that makes Ghostbusters so classic is the characters. More over, the plan is to use actors from the Apatow crew, really? I enjoy those movies, don't get me wrong but I don't think that they're the guys to use for the next Ghostbusters movie. If you do decide to make it Ghostbusters: The Next Generation, I suggest you use the Braxtanfilm guys. I'm in no way affiliated with them, so I'm not in this for my own benefit. I have, however, seen both of their Ghostbusters fan films and know that they can pull it off. In fact, they are the only ones to pull off a "younger Ghostbusters" attempt successfully. If you go this way, it wouldn't be so much, teaching the newbies, but the already established younger characters needing the assistance of the old guard to take on a new threat that they can't handle (Samhain maybe?).

The ideal way to go, in my humble opinion of course, is to use a story that focuses on the original four. Live action may not be a feasible option but animation sure is. You can go with the traditional 2-D animation and make it a "Real Ghostbusters" movie. Many of us grew up watching that and would be delighted to see it come to the big screen. Murray, Hudson, Ramis, and Ackroyd can lend their voices and with the advances in animation you could put out a Real Ghostbusters movie worthy of the big screen. CGI is also an option. You can pull off more special effects wise if you went full CGI/ Motion Capture and make a more daring story. TMNT did this with some success so it would not be without precedent. As long as you don't aim it solely at kids, rather making something mature and well written that kids too can enjoy, you will be fine. It worked for both the early seasons of "The Real Ghostbusters" and with the DC animated universe. Speaking of which, along with Ramis and Ackroyd, you should hire J. Michael Straczynski as the episodes he wrote prove, he understood what went into making a good Ghostbusters story.

If I had to choose between the game and the movie I would choose the game. While I enjoyed Ghostbusters 2, many found it flawed and an inferior sequel. You need to be careful with this one. A lot of us grew up and fell in love with this franchise. Don't just put out something, stamp the Ghostbusters name on it and expect us to be happy. Like Timm and crew did with Batman, and like Favreau did with Iron Man, you need to craft this with the utmost care and precision. If you do that, I can get behind and support this.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Croutons

Do you want to know what the deal breaker on any salad is?  It's not the lettuce, tomatoes, or even the dressing.  It's the croutons.  That's right, those little cubes of crunchy garlic bread.  I freaking love croutons.  There was a day when I would get a salad, pick off all the croutons and hand the remaining salad to one of my family members.  I've gotten better about it since then, but the croutons still remain the highlight for me.  I could snack on those things on their own.  If I ever owned a restaurant, I would offer a big bowl of croutons as an appetizer.  If it was a buffet style, there would be a bin with nothing but croutons for people to scoop out as they see fit.  I'm kind of surprised they haven't caught on as an individual snack food as they really are quite tasty.  Now, you can buy boxes of them on their own at grocery stores, but as far as I know, it's generally for the purpose of adding to salad, and not solo snacking (though I did do that back when I worked at a grocery store).  Me, I enjoy them as is, although they adding them to salad is always beneficial.

Silver Bullet

You can read my review of the movie here.

Will the Silent Hill film ever get a sequel?

*Originally published on 7/7/2010



When it comes to making the transition to cinema, video games haven't had a lot of luck. Movies like Super Mario Bros and Street Fighter (both the original and the recent reboot) stunk to high heaven. While I enjoyed Resident Evil as a popcorn flick, it gets a lot of hate for not staying true to the source material. The one exception that proves the rule is Silent Hill.

When I heard that they were adapting the survival horror game as a film, I was really excited. The games have a cinematic feel, are often character driven, and thrive on the eerie atmosphere of the small town. In a lot of ways, it lived up to my expectations. It's an eerie movie and you can tell that they put a lot of thought and care in to it. The town itself looks exactly as it did in the game and the soundtrack is mostly leitmotifs from the various games.

It made a few changes, the mythology of the town is quite different in the games and the ending was overly sadistic, but all in all it was a good movie and it did pretty well at the box office.

There has been talk of a sequel for some time, although it's stayed in development hell. For a while, it was because the director had another project lined up. Given how many years have passed, it might be safe to assume that he is available. Even if he wasn't directing, Gans (the director of the first film) agreed to work as a producer, but hopefully he stays in the chair.

Sometime last year, they registered a domain name to promote the movie, but I checked it out and it only sent me to Sony's homepage.

Another recent caveat has arisen in that Roger Avery, the writer, is serving a year in jail. On the other hand, given the poor critical reception, bringing a new writer on board might be for the better.

The project is apparently still alive as mention has been made of production beginning this spring.

It will be interesting to see if the sequel is a true sequel and follows the same characters. It was made clear that they didn't escape the parallel dimension. There's one interpretation of the film that is consistent with the events, but certainly makes a sequel a bit more difficult. I won't spoil it though.

As far as those characters go, I'm not sure what else needs to be said. That story was kind of done. Maybe they have something in mind; I don't know, but you could make the argument that following the same characters again would result in a rehash. If the original movie's Wikipedia page is to be believed, the second movie will follow Alessa, but several years later (creating a parallel with Silent Hill 3, which did a similar thing).

With the games, each game is a self contained story. References are made to events in the previous games, but each character has their own reason for going to the town and have different experiences based on their own history and psychology. It would be kind of cool to see that approach taken with the movies.

The fact that there hasn't been any recent breaking news on the film suggests that this may never come to pass. Lord knows Hollywood always throws out potential titles only to ditch half of them at the get go. On the other hand, Watchmen was also a film that was talked about and put off for almost a decade. Never the less, it finally was made so there may be some hope yet for the sequel.

If the Fantastic Four movie can get a sequel, there really isn't any reason to deprive Silent Hill of one. At this point, I'm not really expecting one to come to pass, however I still hold out some hope that the project finally kicks into gear as I would certainly like to see it become a franchise.


**********



Interesting post script to this article, the movie did eventually get a sequel in "Silent Hill: Revelation" and it suuuuuuuuucked!!!!!!

Daily Dose of Awesome: JLA/Avengers

Comics love their major events. Every year, both Marvel and DC, hype up some major event that will involve all of the major characters and forever change the status quo of their respective universes. These events are hit or miss. There are some that are brilliant and well done, while others stink and were clearly made for sales.

Back in the 90's Marvel and DC put aside their rivalry for a short while and actually decided to occasionally write crossover stories between universes. Superman teamed up with the Fantastic Four, Darkseid tried to fight off Galactus, Spider-Man teamed up with Batman, and Punisher tried to hunt down the Joker. There were a few others, but many may remember the Marvel vs. DC story where fans got to vote on who they thought would win in a fight between various characters.

It was OK for the most part. The fights were brief and some of the fights made no sense (Wolverine beats Lobo? really?) but it had its moments.

There was another crossover that was made. This one involved both the Justice League (DC comics super-team consisting of heroes like Superman, Batman, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman) and the Avengers (Marvel's super-team with Captain America, Iron man, and Thor). It was an idea that had been talked about since the early 80's, but never came about due to legal reasons.

In September 2003, the first issue was released. The series was written by Kurt Busiek (who would later go on to co-write the awesome year long Trinity series) and the artwork was done by George Perez of Teen Titans fame.

The story was only four issues, but remains one of the most epic, well done crossovers I have come across. Crisis on Infinite Earths was a huge story, but it dragged quite a bit. Like Crisis, JLA/Avengers pits the heroes against an incredibly powerful enemy who has the potential to destroy both of their universes.

Both heroes are duped into collecting items from the other universe, and like Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe, both see the other as an invading force, which leads to conflict.

It was kind of weird to see Superman and Captain America act so out of character. Both of them justified it saying that they were acting in the best interest of their respective worlds, and it's later explained but it was pretty jarring.

The story has a huge scope, and features a wide cast of characters. One would think that character development would be tossed aside, but the opposite is actually the case here.

It's too bad that the heads of Marvel and DC are unwilling to do more crossovers as they were quite good. It doesn't have to be a common thing, but having the Justice League and the Avengers team up every five years or so would be a neat thing. It would be mutually beneficial to both companies as it would give Marvel readers an introduction to DC characters and give DC readers an introduction to Marvel characters. A Brave and the Bold type series that teams a DC character up with a Marvel character would also make for good reading.

The individual issues of JLA/Avengers are kind of hard to find, but the series was released in trade paperback form. If you're a fan of either team, both teams, or just comics in general, you should check out this series as it's a satisfying read on almost every level.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Enter Kazoo Man

Stephen King bibliography: The Running Man

You can read my review of the novel here.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Mantracker

My old roommate got me watching this show, and I have to say that it's one of the few good things to come out of reality television. It originally aired in Canada, but was picked up by the Science Channel. The first season episodes were only a half hour, but they expanded it to a full hour from the second season onward.

The basic premise follows a pair of contestants as they try to trek 40 kilometers through various terrains. The titular "man tracker" (real name Terry Grant), assisted by another local expert who knows the area, rides on horseback and tries to follow their path before they cross the finish line. The "prey" has 36 hours to make it to their destination.

It's like a non-lethal version of The Most Dangerous Game. Most of the episodes contain a certain degree of suspense as the contestants face various threats and endure different trials as they try to elude the ever persistent man tracker.

What's interesting is that there is no prize for winning. The only stake involved is bragging rights about whether or not you managed to go the distance. There is no million or even ten thousand dollar jackpot waiting for you at the end of the trek. One episode had bottles of champagne waiting for the contestants, but beyond that the motivation goes past money and into pride.

One way I think the show can improve is by giving man tracker a more definite way of "catching" his "prey". As it is, he has to block their path. More often than not, the contestants will dive into thick bushes and hide. Even though he's only ten feet away, he either has to wait or go ahead and try to cut them off. I say, give him a paintball gun and once you're hit, that's it. This would also eliminate the people who actually think that they can outrun a horse and try to engage in a race that they are doomed to lose. It would also enhance the hunting aspect, adding to the literary undertones that I alluded to earlier.

The show is entertaining. They do a good job of picking people who would make for compelling episodes. Either the pair sync up perfectly, or there's a complete dichotomy and one will prove useful and the other useless. There are some, however, who take it a bit too seriously. There's one episode where the contestant, after being caught, kept running around even after being caught and started screaming about how she hates him. I get that there's an adrenaline rush, but it's just a game, calm down.

Even if you're not a fan of reality television, I recommend checking this show out. I don't know if it lends itself to marathons, but it's definitely an hour well spent.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Holding out for a Hero

There is no two ways about it. This song is extremely catchy, it has a choir of backup singers, and it really gets you pumped up. Shrek 2 used this song to good effect, but it really stands well on its own as well. Listening to it always fills me with an odd geeky joy.

As if the song weren't epic enough, the music video (which you can see below) is flat out epic. What's a music video? Oh, for crying out loud. Okay, gather round children, Uncle David's going to give you a quick history lesson.

You see, back in the 80's a television station launched that played nothing but music videos. This historic art form was a way for musicians use the visual medium of television to promote their music. This station was called Music Television, or MTV for short. As time progressed, MTV started airing more and more non-music related material. It got to the point where the only time you saw music on MTV was 4 in the morning. Even TRL, a show that was based around the top 10 most voted for songs, became more about the talk show hosts taking up air time. Even when extended to an hour and a half, music videos were cut short to make way for more talking.

As a way of appeasing fans, they decided to launch MTV2, this time it would be all about the music. This seemed like an ideal setup. One station would have all music and the other would have the other shows. That didn't last long as the shows that took over MTV soon spread to MTV2 so now neither one really shows music videos anymore.

Back to Bonnie Tyler, there are times in the song where it sounds like she needs to clear her throat, but it actually seems to work here. Given the power she puts behind her lyrics, it's not surprising that her throat gets a bit raspy once in a while.

The music video is rather awesome. It has cowboys, explosions, a backup choir, neon lights, the whole nine. There's a quick nod to Superman, and I always enjoy Superman references, being a fan.

It's a bit retro. You can tell that this is a product of the 80's but it's awesomeness has withstood the test of time.

Stephen King bibliography: Cujo

You can read my review of the novel here.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Dog cuddling baby

I came across this picture via a post, which you can peruse here

http://thechive.com/2011/08/03/whatever-happens-dont-say-awwww-37-photos/

There are a bunch of other adorable pics, which I recommend checking out, but for simplicity's sake I just picked one and posted it here for your enjoyment.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Poorly placed NFL players

Daily Dose of Awesome: Guile's Theme

This is another one of those video game theme songs that I just love despite being generally indifferent to the franchise it came from.  I played a little bit of Street Fighter II back in the day, but I'm not an ardent gamer, so I don't quite have the connection to these franchises that others do.  Still, this theme is awesome sauce.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Olympic Dog Paddling

I'm generally pretty indifferent to the Olympics.  There are some years where I get into it, but a lot of times, I just ignore it.  This also holds true with Olympic swimming, but I have thought for a long time that they should add dog paddling to the roster in terms of races.  Why? I just think it would be funny.  Come on, can't you just imagine Michael Phelps and all of the other top swimmers in the world trying to swim a 100 m race by dog paddling?  It would be utterly ridiculous and that alone will make people want to tune in and watch it.

The only question is whether or not it will get old.  Sure, seeing it the first couple of times will be funny, but there's a chance that the joke will get old.  Considering that it will only come up every 4 years, I think enough time will pass between races that people will still be able to get a kick out of it for decades to come.

Doctor Who Season 5

Episode 1: The Eleventh Hour

*I should note that I did write and publish a review for episode 2 on Reviewstream, but they took it down for reasons I am unaware of and, thus, it has been lost.

Episode 3: Victory of the Daleks

Episode 4: The Time of Angels

Episode 5: Flesh and Stone

Episode 6: The Vampires of Venice

Episode 7: Amy's Choice

Episode 8: The Hungry Earth

Episode 9:  Cold Blood

Episode 10: Vincent and the Doctor

Episode 11: The Lodger

Episode 12: The Pandorica Opens

Episode 13: The Big Bang

Annie Wilkes and the modern fanboy

Annie Wilkes is every celebrity's worst nightmare.  She's an obsessed fan who let her admiration for a book series consume her life, so much so that she feels she knows the characters better than the writer who created them.  If anything is made that deviates from that vision of what the character should be, she goes nuts.

While the book was written decades ago, it still resonates.  If anything, I think it makes a bigger statement now than it did when it was first released.  With internet message boards being filled with trolls who will complain and nit pick ad nauseum, Annie's obsession almost seems commonplace.
But she's psychotic, you say? Have you read AICN's talk back section lately?  Have you scrolled through the wretched hive of scum and villainy that is the DC Comics message boards? They can be amusing and some people do bring thoughtful discussion to the table, but there is a lot there that proves every nerd stereotype right and then some.

Many posts will talk about how a certain writer doesn't get the character.  In some cases, they're right.  Characters (especially superheroes) can, have, and will get stuck with bad writers.  Still, these iconic characters are icons for a reason.  They can endure it and will survive.  Superman survived the red/blue fiasco, Spider-Man survived the Clone Saga, so on and so forth.

Criticism is one thing; it's even OK to not like a writer's work.  However, calling for them to die in a fire, like some did with writer Peter David, is crossing the line.  Message boards are ridiculous and can be, at times, unpleasant, but they are ultimately harmless.  Fans should be wary of the slippery slope that they prance around.

Annie Wilkes should act as a caution sign for all of us who are passionate about something.  Whether it's comics, literature, or movies, it is important to keep these things in perspective.  It may start out harmless, but the more you engage in that kind of behavior, the more likely you are to go bug nuts and to lose your sense of self as well as your sanity.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Brownies

I love chocolate, have since I was a little kid.  While one certainly can't go wrong with chocolate cake, the chocolate lover finds them self craving brownies more often than not.  It isn't without good reason, brownies are rich, fairly filling, and pack quite a bit of chocolate into each bite.

I find them especially delicious when they're covered in chocolate frosting.  Sometimes, when my parents make brownies, they add chocolate chips into the batter to add even more chocolate to the proceedings.  One might think that this would get excessive, but they would be wrong.  On the contrary, it's here where brownies really hit their peak in terms of flavor.

You might think that this post was derived from hunger, or even a craving for chocolate, or brownies in particular.  Oddly enough, I had just eaten a brownie, and my enjoyment of it was what sparked this post.  I encourage you all to do the same because while brownies may not be the pinnacle of nutrition, there is nothing wrong with the occasional indulgence.

Doctor Who Season 4 +Specials

Episode 1: Voyage of the Damned

Episode 2: Partners in Crime

Episode 3: The Fires of Pompeii

Episode 4: Planet of the Ood

Episode 5: The Sontaran Stratagem

Episode 6: The Poison Sky

Episode 7: The Doctor's Daughter

Episode 8: The Unicorn and the Wasp

Episode 9: Silence in the Library

Episode 10: Forest of the Dead

Episode 11: Midnight

Episode 12: Turn Left

Episode 13: The Stolen Earth

Episode 14: Journey's End





Planet of the Dead

The Waters of Mars

The Next Doctor

The End of Time

The End of Time part 2

Daily Dose of Awesome: Friendly's Grilled Cheeseburger Melt

This has been out for a while, but I still want to try this.  Sadly, there aren't too many "Friendly's" in my area so I haven't had a chance to.  I know, most people heard about this and responded with things like "that's disgusting" or "that's so unhealthy".  I don't care, I think it looks quite tasty.  Is it healthy? Heck no, but there's nothing wrong with indulging every once in a while.

Another thing to consider is the fact that you are not obligated to finish it in one sitting.  Often times, I find myself full and just bring the leftovers home, no longer is it a mark of shame for me. On the contrary, I prefer to do that as I am able to get more bang for my buck by squeezing two meals out of something as opposed to just one.

Heck, you could take one sandwich off, save it for later, and use the two slices of bread from the other sandwich to make new buns for an even split.  Then again, I imagine part of the fun is trying to eat it whole, I have no idea how you bite into that thing, but it would be interesting to see someone try to eat it.  Maybe one of these days, I'll get my chance.

Doctor Who Season 3

Episode 1: The Runaway Bride

Episode 2: Smith and Jones

Episode 3: The Shakespeare Code

Episode 4: Gridlock

Episode 5: Daleks in Manhattan

Episode 6: Evolution of the Daleks

Episode 7: The Lazarus Experiment

Episode 8: 42

Episode 9: Human Nature

Episode 10: The Family of Blood

Episode 11: Blink

Episode 12: Utopia

Episode 13: The Sound of Drums

Episode 14: Last of the Time Lords

Stephen King bibliography: Danse Macabre

You can read my review here.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Surfin' Bulldog

Daily Dose of Awesome: Batman tea set

I don't even drink tea and I want this!!

Doctor Who Season 2

Episode 1: The Christmas Invasion

Episode 2: New Earth

Episode 3: Tooth and Claw

Episode 4: School Reunion

Episode 5: The Girl in the Fireplace

Episode 6: Rise of the Cybermen

Episode 7: The Age of Steel

Episode 8: The Idiot's Lantern

Episode 9: The Impossible Planet

Episode 10: The Satan Pit

Episode 11: Love and Monsters

Episode 12: Fear Her

Episode 13: Army of Ghosts

Episode 14: Doomsday

Appleseed

You can read my review here.

Stephen King bibliography: Roadwork

You can read the article here.

Daily Dose of Awesome: David Hasselhoff with puppies

Doctor Who Season 1

Episode 1: Rose

Episode 2: The End of the World

Episode 3: The Unquiet Dead

Episode 4: Aliens of London

Episode 5: World War Three

Episode 6: Dalek

Episode 7: The Long Game

Episode 8: Father's Day

Episode 9: The Empty Child

Episode 10: The Doctor Dances

Episode 11: Boom Town

Episode 12: Bad Wolf

Episode 13: The Parting of the Ways

Metropolis film

You can read my review here.

The Langoliers TV miniseries

Part 1

Part 2

Daily Dose of Awesome: Suicide Mission (Mass Effect 2 Soundtrack)

 

Needful Things movie

You can read my review here.

The Collectionary

You can read the article here.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Megamind

After hearing good things about Megamind, I finally decided to check it out.  Unlike many things, this actually did live up to the hype for me.  The only caveat is that I think that you need, on some level, to be a fan of the superhero genre.  While I had a blast with this movie, my sister wasn't so impressed.  Sadly, that is the case with some things, but never the less, I highly recommend this movie.

It's not only very well written, but it is bright and fun, qualities that the superhero genre lacks more often than not.  The voice acting is also pretty solid.  Hard as it may be to believe, Will Ferrell actually reigns himself in for this (ironic considering he plays an over the top super villain), but it works quite well.  He actually gives the character nuance and depth.  With his backstory, it's easy to connect with him and see why he is the way he is.

I especially recommend this if you are a fan of Superman specifically.  Many of the jokes are based on the Superman mythos.  Almost from the get-go, I recognized that MegaMind was a more humorous take on Lex Luthor (with some Brainiac thrown in for good measure).  It goes beyond that, but it made it quite enjoyable to see how they toyed with the genre and the various tropes associated with it.

Also, the soundtrack is awesome.  Not only is Megamind a showman, but he has great taste in music.  I would recommend the soundtrack, but odds are you probably own many of the songs already.  Even so, the movie has quite a lot classic rock and it's nigh impossible to go wrong with adding it to your movie.

If you are a fan of superheroes (and, again, Superman in particular) I definitely suggest checking this movie out.  You can watch it on demand or rent it.  There's a pretty good chance that you'll want to buy it, but I'm wary of blind buys myself so renting first might be the better way to go.

Long story short, this movie's a blast.  I loved every second of it.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Kleptomaniac seagull steals golf ball

This article was originally published on 7/29/2009 and serves as the "pilot" for the "Daily Dose of Awesome" concept.  You'd think that I would have posted this first, but that's too obvious.  In any event, enjoy the video as it is quite glorious.


Hello, and welcome to my new segment "Daily Dose of Awesome". There are a lot of internet critics out there nowadays. You've got your big ones like Nostalgia Critic, AVGN, or Spoony, who have made names for themselves by finding movies, games, and other forms of media that are downright abysmal and metaphorically ripping them to shreds (rare exception to the case is Linkara, who literally ripped copies of DC's Countdown to Final Crisis to shreds). These guys are great at it, and their popularity has spawned others to go on to Youtube and try their hand at angrily critiquing old media.

I, optimist that I am, thought it would be nice to take a different approach and showcase things that are high quality and worth checking out. I was considering making a video series on this concept, and I still might. I would need a camera as all I have at my disposal are webcams. I'm mulling the option. In the meantime, there's no reason I can't put out a sample in text.

Today, I wanted to showcase a sports highlight I first saw on Sportscenter a while ago, and then found on youtube.  This is one of those things you really have to see to believe.

At a recent golf tournament, professional player Steve Lowery hit his ball and made a fairly decent shot. A minute later he watched in shock and horror as a seagull ventured towards it. At first, the bird just seemed to nudge the ball along, not really doing anything too damaging to Lowery's game. I don't know if the bird mistook the ball as an egg or what, but it managed to get a grip on the ball with it's beak and flew away.

As it stands, the story is fairly amusing but it gets even better. The bird loses interest in the ball two seconds later and just drops the ball in the water not too far off the fairway. The only way such a moment could have been topped was if the bird dropped it into the hole. As amazing as that would've been, I have to admit it would not have been nearly as funny.

What is the official rule on this sort of thing? It doesn't seem right to penalize the guy as his shot was perfectly legit, but golf is a stickler for the rules and the rules say that if the ball goes in the water, it's a penalty. Maybe extenuating circumstances allow him to just put another ball down where the first landed? I do not know.

I know, I basically told you what happens in the video, but I assure you, it does not come close to substituting for the joy that comes from actually watching the video footage. Even with the spoilers, I have no doubt that you will enjoy the video.

Stephen King bibliography: Firestarter

You can read my review of the novel here.

I also plugged another Examiner's review, said plug links to her review, so you can read her thoughts as well.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Hug your dog...or kitty

Not only is this picture rather adorable, but it's sound advice.

The Stand: Soul Survivors

Issue 1

Issue 2

Issue 3

Issue 4

Issue 5

Daily Dose of Awesome: Reading is super

Who is the Akron Hammer?

*This article was originally published on 11/18/2009.  I thought that it would be yet another piece that was now horribly obsolete.  However, thanks to Lebron moving back to Cleveland, this article has been given another brief window of relevance.


A lot of basketball players, athletes in general actually, acquire a nickname over the course of their career. Some try to give themselves nicknames while others usually pick one up from the media.

Kobe Bryant, for example is called "the Black Mamba". Why? I don't know, it has a ring to it though. Sports broadcaster, Colin Cowherd, has tried to dub him the "Italian isolationist" but that hasn't garnered as much steam.

While we're on the topic of Sportsnation, co-host Michelle Beadle has dubbed another athlete "The Akron Hammer". Colin is vexed by the name, however the name is spreading like wildfire. There are Facebook groups and Twitter feeds dedicated to making the name official. It was even used in an episode of Sportscenter.

"The Akron Hammer" was a nickname given to Lebron James (he was born in Akron) and as mentioned above, it has gained some momentum as far as legitimacy. While it started off as kind of a joke just to see if it would stick, it has become a phenomenon in its own right. There have even been shirts made featuring the nickname.

Beadle is pushing the name even harder trying to make it James' official nickname over titles like "the chosen one" or "King James". She argues that this is America and we don't have kings so it's more fitting.

Surprisingly, no one has asked Lebron himself about the title. If the nickname has gained as much momentum as it has (it even has a page on Wikipedia), one would think that it would come up in a press conference.

I hope someone does bring it up at some point, I'm curious to see how he'd react to the name. It would be pretty cool if he knew of the name, but it would be funny to see the perplexed expression on his face when some reporter informs him of the nickname that Michelle Beadle has given him. I think he'd be OK with it, I can't say for sure, but I would think that he'd be proud to have a nickname that gives his hometown a namedrop. Then again, maybe he doesn't care, either way, I'm curious to see what his thoughts are.

I myself am a supporter of the nickname, which is one of the reasons why I wrote this article. This nickname needs as much exposure as it can get. It's silly and fun, the "chosen one" is pretentious, while I have no problem with "King James," one could get vexed by the biblical comparisons seeing as he's just a basketball player, a very good one, but a basketball player nonetheless.

Some find the Akron Hammer to be a stupid nickname and are getting tired of it. That is, of course, your right, but the people who want to call him the Akron Hammer should feel free to do so as it is, in my opinion, a great nickname.

Sources

Sportsnation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Akron_Hammer

Daily Dose of Awesome: Yoda vs. Aliens

Daily Dose of Awesome: One Clap

I first discovered DJ Steve Porter through SportsNation, when they aired his Allen Iverson "Practice" remix.  I really dug it and thought it was a fun video.  Soon after that started to catch on, ESPN flooded their commercial breaks with similar remixes.   Some were OK, but the gimmick was starting to wear off.  It seemed like DJ Porter had his fifteen minutes and was about to fade off into obscurity.  Than I found out about this video.  This is great stuff right here, I'd say that this is the true sequel to "Practice".  I've listened to this a couple of times today already, and it's still a fun tune to listen to.  Or to put it another way, I guarantee that listening to this song is gonna be a fun ride, fun ride.

Classic Graphic Novel Review: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller

It had been several years since I last read this widely revered graphic novel. As such, I decided to dive into it to see if it holds up as well as the comic book community thinks it does. To be honest, I was going into this with something of a negative attitude. As I don't really care for Frank Miller's portrayal of Batman, I was all ready to come out with a negative view of this book. I was expecting it be a prototype for all the flaws that would permeate his later works.

On the contrary, the book is actually quite good. It's not perfect, mind you. Miller's interpretation of Batman still rubs me the wrong way for a lot of reasons (mostly the fact that he gets a, perhaps too, sadistic joy out of what he's doing), but it is still a good read and there is a lot to like about it.
I found the first half of the book to be much stronger than the second. The focus is on Batman and his influence on Gotham. It all works out very well, but then the book decides to try and tackle bigger issues and that's where the book loses me.

One of the biggest weaknesses, for me anyway, was Bruce's dynamic with the larger DC Universe. It doesn't feel right, like it's forced. This isn't much of a problem for a majority of the book, but the final act where Batman and Green Arrow team up for the "long awaited showdown" doesn't seem like something either character would do. I know that Superman and Batman butt heads on occasion, but they never showed this level of contempt for one another.

Beyond that, my only complaint is that a lot of the great stuff doesn't seem to get enough time. The return of the Joker was handled brilliantly. These two characters have had an oddly symbiotic relationship for years and this really hammers in that idea. The idea that Joker would go into a comatose state after Batman disappears is actually quite brilliant and having him come back just by hearing that the Dark Knight has returned really solidifies the idea that these two need each other, or at least that Joker needs Batman.

The book isn't a door stopper, but it is pretty dense. Each page has a lot of panels and a lot of dialogue boxes to read through. You can get through it in one sitting, but I think it would help to take advantage of the chapters and break it up a bit. Even if it is pretty enjoyable, arc fatigue starts to set in after a while.
One of the biggest criticisms of Frank Miller's work is his portrayal of women. While some of that does come into play here, it is a lot more balanced. Yes, Selina's a prostitute and Lana has put on weight, but Carrie's a good character; a bit undeveloped maybe, but she works out well enough. The police commissioner who replaces Gordon, while an antagonist in the sense that she doesn't like Batman, is tough without going into straw-man territory and she has very good reasons for not putting up with Batman's shenanigans.

The book has its problems, but it holds up well, all things considered. It still stands as a bookshelf staple for any comic collector. If you haven't yet, I'd say that it's definitely worth a read.

The X-Files mega-post

I was a big fan of The X-Files back when it was on the air.  It was frustrating because this was back when I was a wee lad with a bedtime and all.  The show aired on Sunday nights at 9 pm, which meant that I could only watch the first half of any new episode.  I usually caught episodes here and there during the summer, but it was vexing to say the least.




 Watching it again, I forgot how freaking good this show is.  It has a nice balance of creepiness and humor, the characters are likable and well developed, and it manages to bring a lot of variety despite the potential of falling into formula.

Some shows don't hold up well over time, but this one manages to be just as enjoyable now as it was back in the 90's when it first premiered.



Having gone on for nine seasons, collecting the series is a bit pricey, but believe me, the box sets were WAAAAY more expensive when it first came out.  You see, this was one of the first shows to get the DVD treatment, so they weren't quite sure how to price the box sets.  They later released "slim case" editions that helped lower the price, but those first box sets were not cheap.







In any event, this show is worth every cent.  The hours of enjoyment you'll get out of this show will more than make up for whatever the total price tag may turn out to be.  Even if you are already familiar with a lot of the major plot points, the show can still catch you off guard, which makes it all the more impressive.






  If you're already a fan of the show, I suggest giving it another watch.  If you are one of those rare people who has never heard of this show, go check it out right now.  Believe me, you won't regret it.


 


 






 





Reviewstream reviews


Season 1, Episode 1: Pilot

Season 1, Episode 2: Deep Throat

Season 1, Episode 3: Squeeze

Season 1, Episode 4: Conduit

Season 1, Episode 5: The Jersey Devil

Season 1, Episode 6: Shadows

Season 1, Episode 7: Ghost in the Machine

Season 1, Episode 8: Ice

Season 1, Episode 9: Space

Season 1, Episode 10: Fallen Angel

Season 1, Episode 11: Eve

Season 1, Episode 12: Fire

Season 1, Episode 13: Beyond the Sea

Season 1, Episode 14: Gender Bender

Season 1, Episode 15: Lazarus

Season 1, Episode 16: Young at Heart

Season 1, Episode 17: E.B.E

Season 1, Episode 18: Miracle Man

Season 1, Episode 19: Shapes

Season 1, Episode 20: Darkness Falls

Season 1, Episode 21: Tooms

Season 1, Episode 22: Born Again

Season 1, Episode 23: Roland

Season 1, Episode 24: The Erlenmeyer Flask


Season 2, Episode 1: Little Green Men

Season 2, Episode 2: The Host

Season 2, Episode 3: Blood

Season 2, Episode 4: Sleepless

Season 2, Episode 5: Duane Barry

Season 2, Episode 6: Ascension

Season 2, Episode 7:  3

Season 2, Episode 8:  One Breath

Season 2, Episode 9: Firewalker

Season 2, Episode 10: Red Museum

Season 2, Episode 11: Excelsis Dei

Season 2, Episode 12: Aubrey

Season 2, Episode 13: Irresistible

Season 2, Episode 14: Die Hand Die Verletzt

Season 2, Episode 15: Fresh Bones

Season 2, Episode 16: Colony

Season 2, Episode 17: End Game

Season 2, Episode 18: Fearful Symmetry

Season 2, Episode 19: Dod Kalm

Season 2, Episode 20: Humbug

Season 2, Episode 22: F. Emasculata

Season 2, Episode 23: Soft Light

Season 2, Episode 24: Our Town


Season 3, Episode 1: The Blessing Way

Season 3, Episode 2: Paper Clip

Season 3, Episode 3: D.P.O

Season 3, Episode 4: Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose




Chinga Stephen King examiner review

Daily Dose of Awesome: Pizza Bagels

Much like Stouffer's French Bread Pizza, pizza bagels manage to have a distinct flavor to them that you just don't get with other kinds of pizza.

While I've had pizza bagels before, it didn't occur to me until a couple of days ago to try and make them myself.  I usually went with the frozen bagel bites (which are quite good) and have, occasionally, gotten one at a bagel shop, though you don't see too many of those around nowadays.

Anyway, the other day, I realized that we had bagels, mozzarella cheese, and marinara sauce in stock, so I decided to take a crack at making my own pizza bagels.  As expected they were quite tasty.  Even better is the fact that they are easy to make.  All you do is spread some sauce on the bread, sprinkle some cheese on (you'll want to go heavy with the cheese for the best results), and pop it in the oven for 12 minutes.  The only mistake we made was not toasting the bagels ahead of time.  We just took them out of the package and put them in the oven and it resulted in very fragile bread.  It all worked out for the most part, but it was a bit messy.  I think toasting them will give them a better texture and make the bagels a bit more solid.

Also, you'll want to use some sort of non-stick spray as those things are a hassle to get off when using tin foil.  I figure it would've been just as much a hassle if they were placed directly on the pan, but we used foil as it makes it a bit easier to clean up.

If you're not one for cooking, these are a great addition to your repertoire.  It's kind of like cooking as you're using ingredients and not just heating up frozen food, but it is hardly convoluted and it is quicker and cheaper than delivery.

Daily Dose of Awesome: Batman The Brave and the Bold

I wasn't sure about this series when it first started.  I'm one of those people who was spoiled by Batman: The Animated Series and didn't think that you could top it.  The Batman was a prime example of this mindset.

This show took a different route and embraced the hero's comic roots, bringing in a sense of fun and silver age wackiness that makes the show a delight to watch.  It's just goofy enough to be funny, but not so goofy that you can't take it, the stories, or the characters seriously.



He may not be the grim urban avenger, but he's still Batman.  This show also took a different route in showcasing lesser known heroes, forgoing Superman and Hal for characters like Jaime's Blue Beetle, OMAC, and Guy Gardner.

The first episode I saw didn't blow me away, but upon learning that an episode would feature G'Nort, a favorite character of mine, I had to check it out.  Suffice to say, it filled me with geektastic joy.  A subsequent episode that featured Bat-Mite would cement this as one of my favorite shows on television.  I daresay, it's a flat out gem.





Sadly, the show will be coming to an end soon.  It wouldn't surprise me if WB started planning another Batman show, but this one will most certainly be missed.

A lot of times, the superhero genre has felt the need to "prove" its legitimacy by trying to be more mature or including adult content to show that it's not for kids.  This show took the opposite approach, embracing the cartoony nature, cranking it up to 10 and just having fun with it.

It's not the DCAU, but it's a blast to watch.  It's well written, treats the characters with respect and embraces all that's good about comics and the superhero genre in general.  Even if you're not a fan of the Adam West Batman, I think you'll grow to like this show.  Yes, it's lighter and more fun filled, but the character isn't treated as a joke, and you'd be surprised how well this show handles dark material.





If that's not proof enough that this show is glorious.  It made Aquaman cool, think about that for a second.  The DCAU tried, and most likely did get the ball rolling, but I think this incarnation did a much better job of showing off the character's potential by making him somewhat silly, but still very capable as a hero in his own right.  His gravitas and general characterization are also far more fun to watch than the brooding loner that was the DCAU Aquaman.

If you're a fan of superheroes, I highly recommend this show.  Even if you're one of those who feel like B:TAS was as good as it could get, I would recommend you check it out.  I'm the same way, it may feel wrong to embrace a lighter incarnation of the Dark Knight, but it's a very good show that stands on its own.

Pop of King archive 2010

Stephen King Decodes Movie Blurbs

In a fairly recent edition of Stephen King's Entertainment Weekly column, the author tackled the topic of movie blurbs.  Anyone who's watched television or read a newspaper knows what King is talking about.  These are quotes that are said to be about the film in question.  Most commercials will cite the film as one of the best of the year or praise the lead actor's performance. 

King takes some of the most commonly used blurbs, as well as ones that he found talking about new releases and translates them for us so that we have a better idea of the true meaning behind the seemingly straight forward quote.

For example, King says that when a blurb says that the film is one of the best of the year, it's not; or that when a movie is described as "delightfully funny" it simply means that you might get a chuckle or two at best. 

As said before, King found quotes that were used to advertise certain movies like the recent Sherlock Holmes, Invictus, andTwilight: New Moon (don't worry it's a rather mild quote and it's nothing that would rattle any cages).

It's an interesting take on the standard "rave reviews" that movies get.  Check it out and give it a read.

read the full article at http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20338349,00.html

Stephen King on J.D. Salinger's Legacy

As book aficionados know, author J.D. Salinger passed away a few days ago.  King took it upon himself to put his own thoughts down on paper and share them with the world in his latest edition of his Pop of King column.

King laments the loss of the author, but points out that he himself wasn't a huge fan.  King goes on to say that the man lived to 90 years old, as such, King states that the loss of younger authors like Beverly Jensen or Raymond Carver was greater since Salinger lived a full and long life.

King also brings up the possibility of unpublished manuscripts that may be discovered now.  He says it would be a great way for Salinger to give us more even beyond his own death.  

Stephen King discusses the fall of the Jay Leno Show

It took awhile, but Stephen King has finally weighed in on the Jay Leno Show fiasco that has been all the rage on the blogs and Twitter.  His latest Entertainment Weekly column tackles the matter and the master of horror expresses some joy over the failure of the show.

Interestingly enough, it doesn't really have to do with what NBC did, rather he's pleased that the show tanked because it signified a further encroachment on written, pre-scripted television material.  King points out that had the show succeeded, there would've been a glut of imitators.  

Whenever one network hits it big with a new show, others try to milk it for all it's worth.  One need only look at the reality show phenomenon to see this.  A better example would be when Friends first came out and hit it big, every network had their poor man's imitation that didn't even bother trying to be subtle.  We saw pilots for shows like Buddies, Partners, Acquaintances,Poozers, Pals, and Homies.  

King never makes a declaration saying he's on team Coco or anything of the sort, he likes Jay (and even expresses a degree of sympathy for his situation), but King says he would rather prime time TV remained in the hands of regular scripted programming.  It makes sense seeing as he's a writer and storyteller.

Stephen King discusses the Academy Awards

With the Oscars having aired not too long ago, it's only natural that Stephen King would make that the topic of discussion in his latest Entertainment Weekly column.  He doesn't so much do a recap of this year's winners so much as discuss the awards in general.

King points out that people generally fall into the category of liking the movies and loving the Oscars or the other way around. 

Like Stephen King, I fall into the latter category, preferring movies over the award, although when something great does come along, it's nice to see it get recognized.  As King points out though, the awards don't matter.   While it's fun to have a movie to root for, if it loses, that doesn't mean it loses any merit in your own opinion.  The fact that the Oscars tend to take dozens of other external factors into account only helps your case as far as deserving movies go.

Movies are pretty subjective, there are people who like Ghostbusters 2 over the original or who weren't impressed with Heath Ledger's turn as the Joker in The Dark Knight.  Try as you might, you can't really quantify movies in such a way to truly determine what's the best as different things speak to different people.  

Citizen Kane is oft hailed as the greatest movie of all time and I hated it.  I saw it twice and it bored me both times.  Zodiac is another film that wowed critics that left me wanting.  I'm sorry, when you make a movie about the Zodiac killer that is so long that even the killer loses interest and leaves (at the halfway point no less), you're doing something wrong.  That's my take on it, but a vast majority of people seemed to enjoy it.

The subjective nature of film is part of the fun though.  When you try to turn movies into a paint by numbers session, you end up with Oscar bait.  As it is, varying opinions can lead to interesting, and often humorous, discussions.  

Kindle vs. Ipad

With the release of Apple's new iPad, tech geeks everywhere are salivating at the fancy gadget. This got Stephen King thinking about e-readers in general.  In this month's Pop of King article for Entertainment Weekly, the best selling author discusses the pros and cons of the iPad as well as it's main competition, Amazon's Kindle.

He starts by relating how he wrote a short story exclusively for the Kindle called UR (which I will be reviewing in the future), which is about an e-reader that can access works from parallel dimensions.  Since then we've also seen the release of the nook and, of course, the iPad.

As far as the two products go, King states that he won't be getting an iPad.  He is content doing his e-reading on his Kindle and he says that for all the other things, he has his Mac computer.  

From here, the author assesses the threat that e-readers pose to bookstores, publishers and authors.  It's kind of ironic seeing as how with other mediums (movies and comics specifically) the general consensus is that digital distribution is the future.  

I don't agree with it myself, sure it's nice and it can be a great space saver for the avid collector, but people like showing off their stuff.  The convenience of having a whole library stored in one handheld device is a great one, but most would rather stock a shelf to house their book collection and use the Kindle on the side.   

The price of e-books also becomes an issue.  King brings up the fact that, for a while, Under the Dome was available for 8 bucks, which he states is less than half the price of the paperback edition and wonders why that is (maybe because there aren't any printing or shipping expenses? I don't know.)

Here's where it gets rather interesting because, as a consumer, I want to pay less for e-books.  I like it when things don't cost a lot of money.  To be honest, I find it vexing when the digital copies are the same price as the regular books.  Authors, on the other hand, don't care and want the price to be high because they get a cut and higher prices means a bigger check.  It's not wrong, they busted their humps to write that book (not to mention become a regularly published author in the first place) and they do deserve to be paid, but your view on what the cost of e-books should be is going to be pretty much based on which side of the fence you're on.

For all of their benefits, e-readers do have their faults (a big one for me is the fact that the Kindle's battery drains and dies even when the thing's turned off) and there is some consumer resistance.  I don't see e-readers going anywhere, but the same goes for books.

Blood's a Rover audiobook

The Most Obnoxious TV Commercial Ever

How Armageddon Predicted the BP Oil Crisis

Six Must Reads for the Summer

Rush Limbaugh vs. Lindsay Lohan