Wednesday, July 31, 2013

The Flash Strikes Back..

The Flashpoint Paradox is one of the best Animated movies to come from DC.    The Flash takes center stage in the main story, while the JLA are more supporting characters, which is nice since he's one of my faves in the JLA roster and one of most under utilized.    Seriously, he should of had a movie before this.   But I digress.   This movie is a time travel movie that has some neat twists and turns.    This is also a movie which best translates what DC does best .. basically beat the living crap out of its heroes like its no one's business and allow the reader to come out of the experience fulfilled because at the end of the day, everything is good, there is hope.   There are also consequences that last ... in a good touchy feely way too.   Stupid sawdust in the room!!

At the end of this movie you will see Batman and Superman be and act as you have never EVER seen them before .. and its good.    That's all I'll say about them.

This movie is BRUTAL so you guys with kids (you know who you are)    There are several scenes that are pretty intense.   You have a hanging, decapitation and the slaying of younglings .. er.. children, and a pretty vivid bullet to the head (I see you .. on the other side!!).   Some naughty words are said as well.   Like I said, brutal, but really on par with DC big event things.

I watched this with my 5.1 headset on, and the sound is really incredible.    Great effects.   The music is stellar throughout ... almost want a soundtrack for this one.

2 other things:   -- Aquaman kicks butt .. really hard ... so don't mock the man!   Also, after the credits, there is a little extra really tiny set up for something more.   Not sure what (probably the new 52 JLA movie), but don't forget to check it out.




Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Ancient Bards - Valiant Ride + Lyrics



A band that does the equivalent of a Fantasy novel on their albums ala Symphonic Power Metal with a screaming female lead vocalist.   Hard to beat that.  

Monday, May 27, 2013

A little Sacred Warrior Treat ..

New album should be coming out soon.   Sacred Warrior continues to rock for the King.    If this song is any indication, this new album should be awesome.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

2012 Barren Cross concert .. oh yea.

Ran into this on Youtube.   Barren Cross in Switzerland ... pretty good quality picture and sound.  Enjoy.


Friday, April 19, 2013

Lemon Poppy Seed muffins

My dad used to bake Lemon Poppy Seed loaves all the time, for the farmers market in Owen Sound. Now Tim Hortons has these in muffin form. I can't help but remember him... Great memories.

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Happy Birthday Superman!!

 
Superman vs. Muhammad Ali - 1978  -- @ 8 years old, this was my first foray into comics.  I was sick and my mom picked this up for me to cheer me up.   I doubt she would of done this if she knew how this started my comic geeky life.   But, as this was given out of love, this was read out of love.  This issue was not bagged, but read and perused more times than I can count.    Today marks the 75th Anniversary of Action comics #1 (1938) and the arrival of the Man O' Steel.   Thanks to ign.com for reminding of me of this date.  Though Sups is just a fictional character, for 75 years he's been promoting the idea of justice, truth and the North American way (eh!).   In times where justice and truth seem relative by societies ever-changing standards, its good to see that something's haven't changed.   
 
This is not JUST a comic, it was a 'Giant Sized' comic just over 13" in height and 10" in width, 72 pages of pure beauty.   The story is simple, and no doubt a marketing scheme by DC comics at the time, but basically it was an intergalactic boxing match that takes place over a red sun.    The leader of the alien race the 'Scrubb' threatens Earth unless Earth's greatest boxer fights their best fighter 'Hunya'.   Think Rocky 4.   Superman steps in, to take this as his role, Ali trains him and so the match happens.   Though this sounds ridiculous, its pulled out of comic obscurity by 2 important elements.. Writer Denny O'Neil and what really captured my attention .. Artist Neal Adams.    As an eight-year old I didn't understand all that was happening, it was a lot of reading ... especially as a kid new to comics.   But the artwork to this day still fills me with awe on the power his pencils provoked on the Superman character.    I remember picking up a regular Superman comic at the time and .. it wasn't him....because it was missing the Adam's touch.    From then I went to Marvel comics and picked up Fantastic 4, Iron Man, Captain America until the Superman/Byrne years.   But, this was the comic that started it all for me.   Happy Anniversary Supes!
 


 
 
 
 


Wednesday, April 17, 2013

10 minutes of new Star Trek Video Game

IGN.com gives us 10 minutes of in-game footage of the new Star Trek video game coming out soon .. lens flare free of charge.

 

New Superman Movie trailer ...




Really looking forward to the movie now ... even more then yesterday .. honestly ;D

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Viral Man of Steel Video ..

Really looking forward to the new Superman movie.   Check out this viral video JUST released ....

Monday, April 8, 2013

Christianity and Board games ... a great Podcast.

Check out The Dice Steeple a Podcast by Tom Vassel discussing Christianity and Board Gaming .. tackling some great subjects.   Highly recommended.

Saturday, April 6, 2013

Jurassic 3D .. Good or Bad?


Ok, I had the movie bug, which strangely happens every Friday night.. can't figure that one.   Anyway, there was a lack of choices for anything new coming out, so I went to Jurassic 3D.   Why Jurassic when I can pick this up relatively cheap for a few bucks at Walmart?   Because its in 3D and its got dinosaurs... if there is any movie that deserves 3D Love it would be this one.   It's not going to be a Top Gun 3D 'moneygrab'.  

Well, my verdict is this .. go and see it in 3D if you have not seen the movie in some time (such as myself .. haven't see this in years) and/or you have teens that have not yet seen the movie.   It is the best way to see a dino movie.    Is the 3D THAT good?   Well its better than most, and better than watching it in 2D.   Now don't forget that this version doesn't clean up the story, but I still had a good time.   Again, not seeing this movie in 15 years aided my enjoyment.   Also, the Dino's do stand the test of time, which is a credit to Spielburg and the animators.  

Go see it, enjoy.   First time in a while I heard audiences clapping after a movie.   Good stuff.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Romulans coming to Star Trek Online




Check out the upcoming expansion coming to Star Trek Online .. Romulans!!    Ok, this isn't really a surprise because lets face it, fans have been clamoring for Romulans in STO since the game first launched.    Thankfully they waited until now to do this, because I think that they will actually do this race justice.    STO had a rough start from the beginning, I know since I have a lifetime sub to it, and have heard all the outrage about the game when Cryptic first released it.    But since the change to free to play indeed over time, this game continues to grow in quality and in following.    It is a very good solid MMO.   The release of the Romulan Expansion is a testament to a growing playerbase, and Perfect World/Cryptic's commitment to the game.   

 

Fantasy from Mercs coming soon.

So the Mercs guys are also dabbling in a fantasy motif called Myth .. soon to be on Kickstarter.    Good for them.   Check out the article from Beastsofwar.com

Also the MERCS forums.   Facebook.

More MERCS is also on their plans, including a dice game, rpg etc... that the developers hope their Kickstarter (MYTH) will bring in enough cash to develop.    Awesome.   I hope they make tons of cash.

I just received two more MERC factions in the mail, Sedafu, and Kemvar.   I think these will be the last ones I get for awhile.    My goal was to have enough variety to bring these suckers out to play, as well as have enough that other players can try out MERCS themselves.   I also think that my desire to paint mini's has finally been satiated.       

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Beta Keys for Neverwinter Online

Neverwinter Online Beta Keys!!!!



Want a Beta key for this weekend's Neverwinter Online by Perfect World??  Click here  .   At last count there were 8000+ of them.   Now to think of a cool name for my trickster Rogue ...

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Neverwinter Beta

I played the Neverwinter Beta over the weekend, well .. for a bit since I went to TABSCON on Saturday in Toronto.    Anywhoo, I had tons of fun exploring some D&D goodness as a Dwarf female Rogue (Cirsee).   I'm just going to point to a  link from Youtube, which has around the first 40min. or so of footage from a Tank's perspective.   Spoiler alert.. but enjoy.

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Lancer .. Humorous and Disturbing *sigh*

I picked up Lancer's album in January and loved  the music from it.   Then I saw their newest video .. and .. ya it disturbed me and yet ... if you stay to the very end, you sort of get the whole tongue and cheekiness of it.
I had the same feeling that I had when I was in Bible College, and there was a talent night.    One of my good friends thought he'd show a home-video movie (this is back in the early '90's).     Basically it was sort of like Die Hard 2 ish ... there were snowmobiles .. shootings with fake blood.   Really just something that a bunch of friends would do to blow off an afternoon.    Bringing it to show at a talent night ... with kids in the audience ... NOT a good idea.   I had a queasy moment in my stomach at my friends embarrasement.    We laughed at it over time, but at THAT time, I felt bad for him, and he turned it off and apologized to the audience.    For some reason this video reminded me of that same moment, which is like .. I know you guys are having a blast making this, but you missed the boat on bringing a decent video that will help bring to your music to the masses.    .. But, I could be wrong.   Who knows.  Live and learn

This site has trouble with youtube vids, so here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdkQIyk3dD4&feature=player_embedded
 




Saturday, March 2, 2013

Ah Mercs week ...


Mercs Week on Beasts of War

MERCS week is over ... boo ... but if you haven't check out the sight and the past coverage they did on my newest obsession.   This week had its casualties, most notibly my pocketbook, because seriously, those Sedafu's look great.    Don't know what I'm talking about?  Check out the MERC's week video's.   

Played my first MERC's games yesterday .. fun stuff.   The very first game was cool as we were figuring things out, got pawned, but it was a good type of pawned.   Second game I fared better.   One of the best features of the game is how each figure gets initiative to do an action at the begining of their turn based on how high the die roll is.    This is probably the greatest thing in a mini game.     This causes you to re-think strategies, and keeps you on your toes.   The best thing is that there really is no 'down -time' .. you feel the quickness of the action.    Both games lasted two hours each using just a 2D playmat printed on a black-and-white sheet of paper.   Those hours went quick... real quick.   This is a good sign.   Looking forward to playing more at TABScon on Saturday.

 

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Mercs On Beast of War


Mercs Week on Beasts of War

By clicking above, you can check out Mercs week happening on the web.   Since I've just recently got into MERCS, this week has been awesome for me at Beasts of War.    Check'em out.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Cool finds on Netflix ..

Sometimes I can't stand Netflix because the variety is lacking.   It's like getting Star Trek: The next generation, but not finding the original series on there, or DS9, Voyager, or Enterprise.   How about NOT just the old black and white Dr. Who's, or one 'season' of a Tom Baker ('70's - 80's) scarf wearing episode, but the whole lot an caboodle.   But maybe not getting what I want is a good thing.   Now don't get me wrong, I'm looking forward to seeing the entire run of Buck Rogers, or Space 1999 on Netflix as much as the next geek, but sometimes not getting what you want can lead to a whole lot of surprises.

Here are a few gems of geekiness that I might otherwise of missed if I would just get what I want:

Flying Swords: Dragon Gate - Jet Li movie.   Kinda says it all.    But mix in some real nice cinematics, lots of sword fights (comes with the title), throw in some Indiana Jones, Piratey stuff (aka ..boats) and a duel in the middle of a sand-storm and you basically have a the recipe for a decent movie.    Pretty good stuff, though Is it me, or is it getting somewhat old the whole 'I can leap and fly in the air and do incredible non-realistic things with a sword' thing.   Meh, still a great time.

Painted Skin: The Resurrection  - Another Chinese cinema flick, dealing with Demons, and love and all that jazz.    A couple things that make this one interesting -- Cinematically this is amazing.   The special effects are on par with new kung-fu movies, but the directing is just crazy wild.   The story is better than Flying Swords, but it does deal with Demons .. so be warned.   Oh and when you watch this, which you should ... Is it just me, or does this have a strong taste (especially the bad guys and their makup etc) of Conan??    In a way I could see this Director doing a Conan-esk flick, just by the setting and costume designs.   Plus the fighting scenes are really, really, really well done.

Clash of Empires (no ...not the board game of the same name.. though now I really should play that too) -- This is alot better than I thought it would be.   Basically you have a Chinese princess and a Roman Prince hooked to be married, but this is all for naught because of those pesky pirates.   But thankfully there is a Sinbad (the sailor, not the comedian) type character that comes into play.   Really fun fun movie.   This is what adventure movies are about.  Booyah

Dawn of the Dragon Slayer -- Medievil story about a guy getting revenge and killing a dragon.   Not new, I know.   But the cinematics/landscapes are really well done, and the Dragon, though it could of used a few million in the CGI dept. was probably one of my favorite designs of a Dragon that I have seen in a while.   The lead Actor .. yea he sucks.   Not right for the part at all.   The rest of the cast are pretty good.   This movie is on my list just because the story itself, and its execution sort of surprised me in its quality.    

Mugamoodi - A bollywood movie (only has 2 dance/song routines so don't shudder) that is a superhero movie.   A martial artist called ..get this ... Bruce Lee .. ya ... he names himself after the actual Bruce Lee, wants to impress a girl so he becomes this superhero (while keeping a step away from the cops and the mob).   Anyway, this one totally surprised me.   The fight scenes are actually decent and the tone of the movie is fun, but it also has some decent dialogue in it as well.   One thing that I've found while reading subtitles on this one .... you have to read faster than the Chinese movies.   Just warning you.

All these fun flicks.   Good job Netflix .... Now go get me some ALF episodes.!! 


Wargaming made anew ..

Beyond the gates of Antaries is an upcoming wargame for the creative mind that brought us Warhammer.   I've never played Warhammer, as I was missing two very important things .. A store to pick up Warhammer and money to plunk down on the beast that Warhammer is.   Lets face it, it is a daunting game.   Not only cost wise, but painting as well.    Some things have changed though ..

First up, I'm starting to enjoy doing painting of minatures ..not that I'm good at it by any means, but in a way I find it very theraputic, and a great way to relax.   Also, the reward of in a way bringing a lifeless figure to life (speaking figuratively .. see what I did there ;D  ) is very cool.   Not only this but each brush stroke, for me and my illusterous creative mind.. brings a story to each figure.   Now like I said I'm no great artist, but I enjoyed my first real foray into painting with my Shards of Aschardalon boardgame from Wizards of the Coast.

Secondly .. is the game mentioned above.    Beyond the Gates of Anataries may just be the thing to get me into wargaming.   First, its going to be a universe that is changed and moved (within certain parameters) by the community.   What you play, when you play counts towards its overarching story.   I like to think of it as Eve Online... but with minatures.    Also, this isn't just a game being created by some young upstarts .. but by Rick Priestly .. one of the key designers of the Warhammer Universe .. but this game isn't Warhammer.   The setting is based more on direct science, instead of supernatural.   Which is great for me, because one of the great deterrents of Warhammer is the dark themes and ..well.. lets face it, I don't need darkness in my life, I've got winter and that's enough for me.

I've been checking out some vids for this kickstarter, and it looks interesting.   Will I go down the poverbrial rabbit hole and support big 'Beyond the gates of Antaries' .. not sure, but if I give a buck toward it, I'll get the lowdown on the rules and may get a foothold into something that might be the link between tabletop gaming and the mmo.   Which is kind of cool.

 

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Best Music of 2012 ... according to me :D

Ok, here are the top 2012 music releases in my opinion.

Best Hard In-your-face 'til your skin tears off album:




As I Lay Dying - Awakened.   It's more than screaming, there are some great guitars, deep lyrics andt all the songs have moments of great background vocals.   It's a heavy album that you just don't get sick hearing over and over again.

Best Worship album:


Remedy Drive : Resuscitate Me  - Always playing in the car.   It's what a worship album is .. makes you think, makes your heart be guided heavenward.


Best Rock Album:

House of Heroes -- Basically, because this has simply been playing pretty well non-stop on my iPod.   It doesn't get old.   I switch between this and Remedy Drive ... a great pairing.

Best Metal Album:


Tourniquet: Antiseptic Bloodbath -- Musically amazing, lyrically provocative.  But Yes, I still eat meat!

Album of the Year



Theocracy: As the World Bleeds.
Yes it came out late 2011 ... but I didn't have a list then so *nyaahhh* ;)   And it occupied my car stereo for at least 4 months ... CONSTANTLY!!  This is the best lyrically, musically driven album I've heard in years...that and singert Matt Smith just screams like no other.   Always makes me crank the stereo.


Honorable Mentions:
Flyleaf: New Horizons; Disciple: O God Save Us all; War of Ages: Return to Life

Looking forward to in 2013:  New albums by Red and Golden Resurection.    Going to be a crazy good time.