Saturday, June 27, 2009

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen review

Optimus, you lost me at "Punk ass Decepticon"....



When we last saw Optimus and the gang, Megatron was destroyed and dropped in the ocean, Starscream was fleeing earth, and Sam was getting busy with Mikaela on top of Bumblebee.....things were looking good.



I'll be honest, I enjoyed the first Transformers movie when I saw it in the theater in 2007, BUT when I bought it on DVD every consequtive viewing was less and less enjoyable. I think once the intial awe of seeing the giant robots transform and interact with real actors seamlessly wears off there's little else of value in the movie....Acting meh.....Story meh....Likeable Characters/Development....meh Soundtrack....meh.



Regrettibly the same holds true for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, this movie is absolutely amazing visually.....THAT IS IT! The team at ILM should be commended the special effects are trully remarkable. I wish there was other aspects of RotF I could praise but there really isn't. As weak as the story was for the first movie this one makes it look like Gone With the Wind! So Sam's going to college, he has commitment issues with Megan Fox (WHAT!?), Decepticon's are hunting down the remains of the all-spark to revive Megatron...(the same all-spark that destroyed him in the first movie), After Megs gets a jump start he heads to....Mars???Cybertron??? and talks to The Emperor...oops The Fallen about reclaiming the Autobot Matrix to activate a weapon that will destroy the Earth.



Revenge of the Fallen could've been so much more enjoyable if the story was actually comprehensible and was the main focus of the movie, not the CG and explosions. In my opinion the following things could've been removed altogether and the movie would've been better, Sam's mom getting high from hash brownies....this scene had me going WTF am I watching Transformers or Family Guy? Sam finding a shard of the all spark and having a bunch of household appliances come to life in his house....it was F*cking retarded in the first movie and this was worse ( Ejector a Decepticon toaser....REALLY?) Skids and Mudflap (The Twins)....every time they spoke I cringed...parents had brought their kids in my showing and the language these two blatantly obvious stereotypes spewed was absolutely not necessary! Sams roomate Leo....and I thought I couldn't hate any character more than Turturro's Agent Simmons from the first movie, Leo was the 9th gate of hell in cinematic history of useless/annoying/irratating characters. John Turturro "robo warrior" Agent Simmons would be the 8th gate, WHY WAS HE IN THE MOVIE???? NOT NECESSARY! Next pointless character is Alice the over aggressive slut who's actually a pretender (Pretender's were introduced at the end of the G1 golden years...the toys were garbage), again this character could've been written in with some more substance, but instead the little girls see the emotionless slut with a paint by numbers face use sex as a means of getting the all spark info from Sam.....GREAT MESSAGE FOR YOUNG IMPRESSIONABLE GIRLS! The two characters that were worth developing got side lined; Mgr Lennox (Josh Duhamel) and CMSGT Rob Epps (Tyrese Gibson) There were too many useless human characters that weren't needed and unfortunately too many cool Transformers like Soundwave, Sideswipe, Jolt, and Sideways that took a back seat to stupidity like Skids and Mudflap, the most ghetto fabulous autobots in the history of Transformers. Scatman Crothers rest in peace. Wheelie the RC truck Decepticon....stop right there! Wheelie a Decepticon O.o. Kids this is Wheelie:

First he's an Autobot, second he speaks in riddles not like a 1930's gangster.









Onto the Fallen, I never believed that the Fallen was anyone other than Megatron, well I was wrong. Was the Character necessary? In my opinion, no. I would've prefered to see Starscream return to Cybertron and recruit fresh Decepticons and claim leadership in Megs absence (just like G1). This would've opened up the split factions of Decpticons senerio, Soundwave following Starscreams orders but secretly planning to revive Megs (the true fallen). Instead we get some lame ass Vader/Emperor carbon copy scene....LAME!


Megatron, I liked in RotF he resembled G1 Megs a bit more than the first movie, and the few scenes he had with Starscream did a great job of capturing the dynamic between them. I would've liked to see a more expanded scene of Megs reboot than just that short bit shown....feel free to delete any of the previously mentioned worthless scenes. Oh and I'm not sure how many people noticed but Megs is actually a triple changer now.



I'll finish up with Jetfire, in G1 he's actually a rip-off of Macross's VF-1 Valkyrie, the figure was very well built and was one of my favorites along with Shockwave. In RotF Jetfire is a SR-71 Blackbird....cool plane, horrible mech design....Jetfire's story in RotF is similar to his G1 story as he did begin as a Decepticon and switch alliances but that's where the similarities end. Jetfire could've been utilized so much better than being a plot device, a good indicator of how bad the character development is in this series is how I really had no emotional reaction when Jetfire is mortally wounded by Scorpononk and offers his spark to revive Optimus Prime.



Fans of Transformers: Armada were probably psyched to see Jet Optimus. I enjoyed watching Jet Optimus kick the shit outta The Fallen and Megatron at once. Like I said the special effects in RotF were outstanding...just wish the story was above mediocre.


Transformers Revenge of the Fallen is not worth the price of admission and it's not good for younger viewers!

C-


Friday, June 26, 2009

The cure for Twilight...Daybreakers!

If you think Vampires glistening in the sun playing baseball while staring wistfully at some pastey chick is the greatest thing since my little pony pls go away now.
For the rest of us who are looking for real vampire movies like Blade check out the trailer for Daybreakers! Very cool concept, that vampires are the majority and humans are on the endangered species list...food shortage crisis!

Thursday, June 25, 2009

9 - OFFICIAL FINAL TRAILER



MNU Level 5 Alert!!



LMAO! This is good viral marketing! Terminator Salvation Viral marketing team take note! This clip is pure win, it is funny, shows us a bit of the movie and MAKES YOU WANT TO SEE IT!

Dam aliens, I'm setting up a neiborhood watch tonight!

A couple things I learned from Chris Rock that I'll share with these aliens:

1. Blasting fuck the humans when you break down on Erf is just ignant

2. If you make the MIB chase you they're gonna bring an as whoopin with em

3. Get a Human friend

4. Never let an angry female alien on your mothership (he got spice he got spice)


The Hangover

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas....

Talk about an overused tagline! Compared to Road Trip, Old School and Wedding Crashers this movie couldn't maintain the humor till the end, it had some good moments but by the end I didn't give a crap if they ever found Doug.

Phil, a deadbeat teacher, Stu the dorky dentist and Alan (soon to be Brother in Law) take Doug to Vegas for his Bachelor party, after checking into a sweet suite at Ceasars Palace the three head to the roof to kick off the festivities, after a heartwarming speech by Alan the trio wake up the next day in a precarious situation, their suite is totally shit canned, there's a tiger in the bathroom, a chicken wandering the livingroom, a baby in the closet, Alan has no pants, Stu's lost a tooth and Doug is missing! And none of them have any memory of the good times!
The hangover runs about 90 mins long so for about the remaining 60 mins we get to where's Doug while Phil, Stu and Alan, borrow a cop car, collect wedding memorabilia, get tazed, shot, and attacked by a chinese trunk monkey....Mr Chan!
One of the highlights for me was the return of the wedding singer from Wedding Crashers, the man exudes romance LMAO!
All in all The Hangover had some funny moments but it also felt too similar to the directors other comedies Road Trip & Wedding Crashers which I recomend over this.
C+

Saturday, June 20, 2009

E3 God of War III extended footage



G4 has compiled over thirteen minutes of GOWIII footage from E3. Will Kratos finally qwench his thirst for revenge in GOWIII? We'll finally find out in 2010! Spartan Rage!




Apple 4G next?


Now that the iphone3G S is officially behind us, let me be the first--or at least one of the first--to announce the countdown to the next new iPhone. If history is any indication, it should show up right around this time next year. Interestingly, even though the 3G S is technically Apple's third-generation iPhone, some tech pundits were expecting the iPhone 3G S to be called the iPhone 4G. But you could also argue that the iPhone 3G S is more like the iPhone 3.5G, which doesn't have the greatest ring. There's also a chance that in between the iPhone 3G S and iPhone 4G (or whatever it's called), we might see a totally new branch of iPhone, something akin to an iPhone Mini or Lite. I'm not sure Apple needs to answer to the smaller form factor of the Palm Pre, but there are some people out there who think the iPhone's just a tad too big. And there are some people who want a physical keyboard, but don't count on Apple slipping in a slide-out keyboard anytime soon. Gizmodo and other blogs posted this concept art for the iPhone 4G before Apple announced the 3G S.(Credit: Rodolphe Desmare)All that said, I do think next year's iPhone will feature a new design that also includes a new screen. Some mock-ups floating around have suggested the aluminum unibody design of the new MacBooks. That's possible, but so are a host of other innovative industrial designs. The point is, the next go-round, it's probably not enough to just stick with upgraded internal components. Some significant cosmetic changes will be required to differentiate the generations and more easily entice upgrades by existing iPod owners. And I'm not talking matte vs. shiny finish. Ultimately, however, it's what's inside that counts and consumers are always wanting faster, more powerful smartphones with more memory that somehow manage to be more energy-efficient and offer better battery life. There's already talk of the next iPhone having a dual-core processor and better graphics chips that can deliver higher video resolutions and better still images when taking pictures (read Brooke Crothers' story on new ARM chips here). The question is whether Apple can continue to increase battery life at the same time. In fact, one big reason a lot of people are interested in upgrading from the 3G to the 3G S is because of the improved battery life. Beyond the hardware, there are still features concerns to address (everybody has their wishlist) and more importantly, carrier and pricing plan issues. Someday, some other carrier, perhaps Verizon, which is preparing to build out a 4G network, will get the iPhone. And someone, maybe Apple, will declare that iPhone the iPhone 4G. Or maybe it'll just be the 3G V. All I know is that come this time next year, we'll most likely be seeing a new iPhone. And it will be here before you know it. Comments? Aside from a carrier choice, what are looking for in a true 4G iPhone?


Originally posted at Fully Equipped

Transformers Fever!


Man builds a 18-foot-tall, 1,200-pound replica of the The original BumbleBee, in his front yard.

RX78 Gundam attacks Japan! Where's Gojira?



Bandai has finished its life-sized Gundam robot in Japan. The 60-foot robot totem is set to make a few trips to various locations around the globe after its initial two-month run in Tokyo. Perhaps the most amazing thing about this realistic-looking construct is knowing that Japan fully intends to one day have one of these things walking around with full robotic controls.










































































































Tuesday, June 16, 2009

E3 Final Fantasy XIII extended trailer


We still have over six months till we see FFXIII here in the States but I have a good feeling it'll will be worth the wait! I think Sqeenix is making sure you're gonna need a six pack of pheonix downs after completeing FFXIII!
Check out the extended trailer of FFXIII from E3 09 and get psyched....friggin chocobo chicks in Sazh Kalzroy's Afro!! Pure win!

Vocaloid to the PSP! Hatsune Miku: Project Diva


Forget MGS Peace Walker folks Hatsune is gonna help the PSP finally overtake the DS! Vocaloid is Ultra Moe! This game might actully get the PSP in girl gamers hands!
Unfortunately I don't see this game making it Stateside, Sega's been pretty hot lately with Valkyria and Vocaloid!

























Friday, June 5, 2009

E3: Gran Turismo 5 Trailer



Polyphony Digital's Gran Turismo 5 should be launching at the end of this year. I think the prologue (beta) will becoming a working version of the whole game, I've read rumors that at least two versions will be available at launch; a "full" version and a regular version. From what I've read the full version will be bursting at the seams with features, team management, track editor, and much more. The PS Store will have GT5 DLC for those not interested in all that stuff but may want certain things that aren't available in the basic version....what lowjack on your game? Well that's not an option but you get the idea.

There should be aprox 600+ cars avail at launch and rumor has it over 100 tracks! With the track editor option I'm sure we'll see tons of user generated content. There's also plans for some interesting PS Home integration in the works. As you can see from my previous reviews I really enjoy this franchise...maybe not as much as those who built custom cabinets, but it's definately a title that's synonymous with PlayStation!


Thursday, June 4, 2009

FFXIV online...Vana Diel 2.0?


Just when I thought I was out... they pull me back in. FFXIV has been in development since 2005 and was until yesterday known to a few select people as "Rapture". The second FF MMORPG may reunite us with Vana Diel... oops I mean Eorzea, but I think we'll end up in a new world that will be very reminisent of FFXI....there better be Moogles kupo!
DAM! I went cold turkey with FFXI a few years back...loved playing it but dam 3+ years I played and I never reached 55 with any job classes! 2010 is gonna suck for my wallet! FFXIII, FF VSXIII, FFXIV MMO >.<

http://www.finalfantasyxiv.com/

http://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/






New Moon footage


HA! Thought this was for the new Twilight move? HELL NO!
Moon has a limited release on the 12th in NY & LA, and from the few snippets I've seen Duncan Jones was heavily influenced by movies like 2001 A Space Odyessy and Alien....not bad films to get inspiration from!
My mission is to drag the wife to see this as payback for making me sit thru Twilight the other night (more on that soon)!
Moon Official website: http://www.sonyclassics.com/moon/


Wednesday, June 3, 2009

E3 CastleVania Lords of Shadow

Better late than never! I've been saying since LOI that the CastleVania series needed to use the GOW engine, and from the looks of the trailer (which kicks all sorts of ass) the folks at Konoami realized it also. I don't care that they're blatantly copying Kratos' style as long as the games keeps faithful to the series, and from the glimpse we get in the trailer it apparently does. Another thing I'm glad to see go is the fey male lead, Gabriel Belmont is no saint and that's a good thing...everyone loves an antihero!
I have been waiting for a sucessor to the awesome throne that IMO SotN stil holds and LoS may be the one to take the throne. With Kojima lending a hand and Capt. Picard lending his vocals I have high hopes for CastleVania Lords of Shadow.

Cobra Commander's 'G.I. Joe' Trailer Remix

Cobra Commander has some...different...ideas on the direction that the summer film GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra should have taken. Primarily, he wants more Cobra Commander! So, he's remixed the trailer to prove his concept to the world.

Preview of Fox' The Cleveland Show



About The Show

Everyone's favorite soft-spoken neighbor CLEVELAND BROWN moves to his hometown in Virginia with his 14-year old son, CLEVELAND JR. Many years ago, Cleveland was a high school student madly in love with a beautiful girl named DONNA. Much to his dismay, his love went unrequited, and Donna wound up marrying another man. Cleveland once told Donna he would always love her, and if this man ever done her wrong, he'd be there when she called. Well, this man done her wrong.

Donna's husband ran off, leaving Donna with a teenaged daughter and young son. Now she's open to Cleveland and offered him another chance at love. Unattached after the Loretta-Quagmire debacle and true to his word, Cleveland joyously unites with Donna, and he and CLEVELAND JR. move to Virginia to join their new family -- a rebellious new stepdaughter, ROBERTA, a 5-year old stepson who loves the ladies, RALLO, and a collection of neighbors that includes a loudmouth redneck, LESTER, a hipster wanna-be, HOLT, and a family of talking bears: TIM and his wife ARIANNA.

E3: Star Wars The Old Republic MMORPG trailer


After spending over 3 years playing Final Fantasy XI MMO, I finally went cold turkey....there's something about MMORPG's that are so unrecognizably addictive, with real working economies, day/night cycles, weeks, job classes, crafts, weather ect. And that's not even taking into account the actual gameplay with thousands of players around the real world that make the world of whatever MMO work.
I enjoyed my time in Vana Diel but once you reach the higher levels (FFXI capped @ 55) the time requirements seriously impede on RL...I made it to 49 with SMN, plus I had WHT, BLM, and a bunch of other classes lvl'd up beyond 30.....3+ years.
So anyway check out the recently released trailer for Star Wars: The Old Republic
The cinenmatic quality is freakin sweeet and Bioware knows how to make a Star Wars RPG but the last StarWars MMO....Galaxies...well it didn't pan out.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

E3: PSP Go




















Sony has released images of the next version of the PSP, code named PSP-Go. They have dropped the UMD drive support and now all media will be accessable via the PSN...movies, games, tv programs, anime, music ect.
Here's the 411 on the Go <---stupid name!
* 3.8-inch display (resolution is undisclosed)
* 43 percent lighter than the PSP-3000
* 16GB of Flash storage* Bluetooth built-in; supports handset tethering and BT headsets
* No UMD drive
* Memory Stick Micro slot
* New Gran Turismo, Little Big Planet and new Metal Gear Solid (!) on the way
* Full PlayStation Network support (movie and TV rentals / purchases)

I wanna say if this is a production model then the designers need FAIL burnt on their foreheads!














Please note with a little MS paint magic I have transformed PSP-Fail to PSP-FTW! Aside from the obvious fixes I've made, make it a dual slider like the Helio Ocean with phone capabilities and a digital camera and Sony would have the end all be all handheld gaming rig!


Keyboard Cat Vs Overdramatic Pairie Dog



VS











John Connor was right, a storm is coming...and it will decide the fate of a race....
In 2008 an interwebz phenomenon was born....The over dramatic Prairie dog, with unparalleled acting chops and the ability to emote better than Charlton Heston after discovering what those damn apes did to Lady Liberty! Over dramatic Prairie dog took the world by storm...
2009 began slow but thru the carnage one mammal rose up to challenge ODPD...that mammal was Keyboard Cat! KBC may not have the acting skills of ODPD but not since Beethoven has a mammal evoked such emotion from the ebony and ivory!
Free Swim has taken these two iterwebz prodigies and thrown them into our very own thunder dome! Two animals enter, one animal leaves!!! Rock the vote peeps (the poll is on the right hand side...so get to voting!)