Gotham Pilot Episode My Thoughts and Feelings

Atomic batteries to power...turbines to speed....
As far as pilots go this one was pretty good, everyone knows the story of how Thomas and Martha Wayne were murdered, but we don't really know much of Bruce Wayne's life the years directly after the loss of his parents. What is the state of Gotham at this time? Where are the nefarious members of The United Underground??

Part of the fun watching the Gotham pilot for me was identifying all the villains from  Batman lore.
Lets see if I missed any...
Cat woman (Selina Kyle) played by Camren Bicondova
Riddler (Edward Nygma) played by  Cory Michael Smith
Poison Ivy (Ivy Pepper) played by Clare Foley
The Penguin (Oswald Copperpot) played by Robin Lord Taylor

Possibly The Joker at Fish Mooney's club...aspiring comedian
Possibly Bane in the GCPD precinct...pill dude
I didn't notice Dr. Johnathan Crane, Victor Fries or Ra's Al Ghul.
But that's fine, all in due time, Gotham has enough problems to begin with!
Jada Pinkette Smith was incredible as Fish Mooney, she seemed to revel in the role of a mob boss under Carmine Falcone, I was equally impressed by Robin Lord Taylor's Oswald Copperpot, Fish's aspiring underling.
Another strong performance came from Donal Logue as Harvey Bullock, a GCPD detective who gets partnered with James Gordon...he's aged a bit from the first Blade movie but he can still kick ass.
I thought the GCPD precinct set was well designed, and the look of Gotham was a good amalgamation of NYC and a medieval village. The little CG additions really help enhance your immersion in the city the show is named after.
There were a few Easter eggs I spotted, the first was very early on ( I wish I hadn't deleted the episode off the DVR) Selina Kyle slides off the awning and behind here there's an sign in fake Chinese characters that actually spells BATMAN, and then there's the crime scene....when I first saw this scene it didn't register, but after looking at the pic online I noticed it!

Do you see it?????

...flip the pic upside down

Gotham has potential, I hope the show explores the economic state of Gotham, show the hardships of the poor and the frustrations of the rich and the divide between them and explore the correlation between poverty and crime and and wealth and crime, the factors that drive people to commit crime and the truly evil people who feed on these petty criminals. 

I hope the show stay true to it's vision and doesn't degenerate into something campy like the Adam West Batman series.

Also don't use the go pro camera in close up chase scenes ever again!

If you enjoyed Gotham definately check out Batman Year One!

 

MGS V: The Phantom Pain Diamond Dog

I see a trend in games lately...dogs.
Call of Duty Ghosts had Riley the German Shepard,
Franklin from GTAV had Chop the Bull Mastiff,
Now Big Boss has a Husky!
What the hell kinda dog food do they have in Outer Heaven!?
4 days and you have a full grown dog!

TGS2014 Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain Trailer

Here's the TGS 2014 trailer for MGS The Phantom Pain, pretty bold introduction for Quiet! She essentially crashes the Diamond Dog's sausage party.

TGS 2014 Final Fantasy Type 0 HD

Here's another shard of the Fabula Nova Crystalis that has undergone a title change, originally FF Agito XIII is now FF type 0 HD. Type 0 was released back in 2011 for the PSP only in Japan and from what I read the game is amazing, so I'm looking forward to playing TYPE 0 when it finally arrives in the US next March! And there will be a demo for FFXV with every copy of Final Fantasy Type 0.

TGS 2014 Final Fantasy XV trailer

Excuse me while I pick my jaw up off the floor! This trailer has me as excited as I was when I used to read EGM at the back of Software Etc for articles about FFVII! I will be pre ordering this game without hesitation! Seeing Noctis and his boys Ignis, Gladius, Cor and Promto driving around the world checking out the sites and monsters got me thinking FFXV's world may be enormous, but the highlight of the trailer was seeing  Stella Nox Fleuet! 

I know it's simply a clip from a cutscene but we have certainly come a long way from 1997's FFVII! I mean when I have non gamers asking me who that is.... that's incredible to me as I've been a gamer since the days of the Atari 2600, and seeing the day when video game characters are indistinguishable from real life characters is very exciting.  
I've been following Final Fantasy XV since 2007 when it was FF Vs XIII and I hope this game reignites the magic of this franchise like the days when Square soft had hit after hit after hit on the shelves!

Star Wars Episode VII: Rumor Round Up, my feelings and theories thus far...

So last year, before any rumors dropped, before any casting had been announced, before Harrison Ford was accosted by his own ship I wrote up my own Star Wars Episode VII Speculation / Theory . I've been keeping up with the updates and speculation/rumors that have hit the interwebs and the latest rumors of Luke missing for 30 years and Han's son turning to the dark side sound an awful lot like what I wrote last year!
Most of the crap I've read is cringe inducing....Cyborg Palpatine.... Han and Chewie commanding a Star Destroyer....Jedi Hunters

So my friend Javen pointed me to the latest cover of GQ and Adam Driver is sportin' some really familiar threads! I instantly thought of Han Solo!

Even if it wasn't intentional, the resemblance is definitively there.
LMAO there's also an article in that issue for Han...."How to be polite to a woman without pissing her off."
...."Yes your worshipfullness"

Oh and that pic of Mark Hamill rocking the beard was cool, I can totally imagine the scene I mentioned in my Star Wars Episode VII Speculation/Theory happening.  With the most recent rumors that Hann is searching for Luke who's been MIA for 10-30 years I began thinking, how long was Ben Kenobi stuck on Tatooine watching Luke from the shadows? And what happened to Ol' Ben Kenobi?






Also if the rumors are true that the galaxy is in a state of cold war, the children of Han and Leia (if they did get hitched)  may not have all the facts and as young people usually are, rebellious towards their parents and side with Empire....hmmm children of rebels, rebeling against their parents.....

And if Max Von Sydow isn't a Sith I'll be a Gungan's uncle!











Oh and then there's these set pics...I'm going with Yavin 4, alsoI got dibs on that sweet ass black X Wing!!

TGS 2014

First off I love the TGS posters, every year I look forward to seeing what the design is gonna be.
This years TGS is from Sept 18th-21st and today Konami has jumped the gun and hosted a pre TGS conference and they've shown a new trailer for MGS V The Phantom Pain.
There are a few potential announcements I'm hoping for, most notably some news on Final Fantasy XV, KH 3 and FF Type 0!
Maybe we'll get some new info on Sony's VR Project Morpheus.
Hopefully we get some thing more from Bioware regarding the next Mass Effect than "we're working on a new Mass Effect game"..."It's gonna blow your mind!"...."we're thinking of all new stuff."
I hope Capcom has something to share regarding an actual next gen release for USFIV....yeah I would like that since I haven't been able to play since last February!

I wonder if any old PlayStation IP's will be resurrected...one rumor I read mentioned LoD.
What news are you anticipating from this years TGS?

http://expo.nikkeibp.co.jp/tgs/2014/en/

Star Trek: Prelude to Axanar

Star Trek: Axanar by Axanar Productions

http://www.startrekaxanar.com

The Story of Star Trek: Axanar “Axanar” takes place 21 years before the events of “Where no Man Has Gone Before”, the first Kirk episode of the original Star Trek. Axanar is the story of Garth of Izar, the legendary Starfleet captain who is Captain Kirk’s hero. Kirk himself called Garth the model for all future Starfleet Officers. Garth charted more planets than any other Captain and was the hero of the Battle of Axanar, the story of which is required reading at the academy. This is that story. “Axanar” tells the story of Garth and his crew during the Four Years War, the war with the Klingon Empire that almost tore the Federation apart. Garth’s victory at Axanar solidified the Federation and allowed it to become the entity we know in Kirk’s time. It is the year 2245, four years into the war with the Klingons.


NOT TO LATE TO DONATE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/194429923/star-trek-axanar

Ghost in the Shell: ARISE review

This 4 part OVA chronicles the early days of Matoko Kusanagi and the formation of Section 9. This OVA predates the original GitS Anime feature movie chronologically, which is great, we learn a little more about the major...the shell may appear different but the major's ghost is definitely intact! Seeing Kusanagi riding a very similar motorcycle to Kaneda's custom ride was very cool!
Watching how The Major recruits Batou, Togusa, Ishikawa, Saito, Paz  to form section 9 is such a treat, Production IG did an amazing job with this new addition to the GitS saga. The political intrigue, cyber terrorism, amazing mecha that are a staple of this series is all present and the visuals are just as stunning as ever.
Those who are fans of GitS SAC & 2nd Gig might find the Majors appearance off-putting at first but fans need to realize this is the youngest version of Matoko Kusangi we've ever seen and actually resembles her look in the original feature film more. I thought it was a nice touch to have the new voice of the Major be someone who actually voiced a young Major Kusangi in GitS SAC.

A

GitS: ARISE official site

Movie Review: Don Jon

Ever heard of a romcom for men?
Well here ya go! JGL delivers the answer to the chick flick with Don Jon! This is 100% a dude flick!
Don Jon truly had me laughing out loud, Joseph Gordon Levitt's character is hilarious not only because of how he justifies his enjoyment of the adult film indu.....PORN but his overall portrayal of guidos. The wardrobe, the mannerisms, the accents....fuggedaboutit!  Seriously, growing up I knew guys just like Jon Martello, females just like Barbara Sugarman and Esther....I could even match these characters to specific people from my past.... Kevin, Patty, Michelle!
It's a simple honest movie that will have any guy laughing because of the ridiculous honesty that guys can relate to. Don't watch this with your girlfriend or wife...they will HATE it! Guy's, you'll enjoy this movie more watching it solo....trust me!  And I don't think anyone under 25 is gonna appreciate the characters and circumstances simply because they haven't yet experienced it or are at that point in their life right now.
JGL and Scarjo give totally believable performances as your average Jersey/Queens/Yonkers Guido/Guidette and the scene where Barbara persuades Jon to go back to school is....ummm...very memorable.
 
B

Movie Review: You're Next

I don't know what I was expecting when I began watching this the other night but at least now I know what can be accomplished with a 1 million dollar budget. I always appreciate those small "indy" movies and video games that create something fresh, new, original and memorable with a small budget.
So I better write this review asap before I forget about it.
A family reunion brings a well off family together at their vacation house, the dysfunction kicks into high gear at the dinner table when obnoxiousness faces off with know-it-allness and eliteness. At this point I hated all of them except Crispian and his innocent girlfriend  Erin.
Once the killin' began I was enjoying the movie, crossbow bolts to the head! YES! Ax to the cranium....OK! Slit Throats...by piano wire...NICE! The masks were cool but somewhere this movie derailed and for me it was when we discover one of the brothers hired the masked killers simply to claim the inheritance...you hear that? That's my interest in the movie dropping dead on the floor.
So now that that's been revealed I started looking at this movie much more critically and it dawned on me....You're Next is Scream with animal masks!
Once Erin revealed her origins to Zee I was literally groaning and muttering really, how convenient.
Even the reveal at the end reminded me of Stu and Billy's reveal at the end of Scream.
As far as slasher flicks go You're Next starts strong but fizzles into mediocrity. If you want violence with a good reason for the violence watch Sympathy for Lady Vengeance.
C-
  

Death Note: Anime Review

Back in 2008 I watched the Death Note live action movie and was really impressed, I had seen a few episodes of Death Note on Adult Swim back in the day but never got around to watching the entire anime series......until last weekend where I had a "Labor Day Death Note Marathon"....only 7 years after it was released here in the U.S....oh well better late than never!
So the first two live action movies follow first 25 episodes of the anime more or less, but the final 12 episodes was new to me, holy crap I didn't expect what happened in episode 25!
The birth of Kira and the introduction of L was just as great as the live action version if not better, I absolutely loved the cat and mouse between Light and L and the introduction of Misa Amane worked so much better in the anime than in the live action movies in my opinion.
There will always be criminals, crime, terrible things happen....All humans may be inherently good but I believe that Yin and Yang resides in everything in life...it's within us all.
Light Yagame's vision for a world with out evil was noble but for someone of his intelligence to assume he could act as judge, jury and executioner with the Death Note was insanity. I love the part where he returns the death note to Ryuk and loses all memory of being Kira to elude L's suspicion. You see Light really struggling with the possibility that he might be Kira because a part of True Light sympathizes with Kira's vision.....not his methods though.
The plot device may be a bit ridiculous, a notebook owned by a Shinigami.....a spirit of death, which can grant a human the power to kill with a name and a face and has multiple "rules", but if you can accept it for what it is the brilliance comes when Light decides to use the Death Notes powers for "justice" and how his powers affect others and the face off between Light and L....both trying to discover who the other is....in the name of "justice".
I also found it interesting how after the events of episode 25 I began to dislike Light more and more, where as prior to episode 25 I didn't have a problem with Kira's motives.
Death Note was refreshing, it didn't revolve around the usual anime tropes, and offered some very memorable characters Light Yagame and L. And the conclusion was absolutely satisfying seeing the expression on Lights face was great!

The road to Hell Mu is paved with good intentions....
I know this anime got alot of kids in hot water with their parents and schools but if you had a death note how would you use it?

A

Oh the second intro song What's Up People by Maximum Hormone  kicks so much ass!