I’m Back, And I’ve Got More Cool Things!

Howdy all. I’m sorry I’ve been gone for so long. I had an internship over the summer that took up all of my time. But never fear, I’m back and ready to give out things that will hopefully catch your interest. I’ll be giving some movie reviews over the next few weeks, but for right now I want to talk about my internship. I worked at a cool place called Newsy, and I think you all should check them out.

Newsy is a very neat, semi new online news source that launched in 2008. It has sincethen consistently been on the top fifty list of free downloadable mobile apps. The reason? They really help you get a feel for the news they’re presenting. Have you ever watched a news program and wondered “Is there more to this story? What am I missing?” Newsy is the answer to that question. They gather up clips and text from various different agencies, like CNN, FOX or MSNBC, and weave them together to tell a news story from multiple perspectives. Not only that, but they will also often provide comment on how various agencies report on the news. They also link to the original source, so if you want more than just the gist of the story you can find it without having to look all around the Internet to find out what everyone is saying on a particular news story.

Here are two videos I scripted and edited as examples of Newsy stories:

 

As you can see from the videos, Newsy covers a wide range of topics. So give Newsy.com a go. I’m sure you’ll find something that catches your interest.

Game Review: “Portal 2″

A possible thing of interest for you all. I just got done playing an incredibly good game. I’m sure many of you know about “Portal.” Well, the sequal came out recently and I gave it a try. I have to say, this is definitely one of the top games for 2011.

As always, spoilers ahead.

The game begins with the protagonist of the first game, Chell, being put into a stasis. Naturally, because Aperture Science Labs are weird, the stasis chamber looks like a motel room. She then wakes up to find the room in ruins. It has obviously been a long time since Chell was put to sleep. A voice calls from the door, and a robotic sphere names Wheatley says the facility is falling apart and he wants to help her escape. They make their way through the dilapidated facility, passing through GLaDOS’s room in the process. Thankfully, the psychotic computer is still dead from Chell’s efforts in the first game. This, however, doesn’t last long, as in the process of escaping they accidentally wake GLaDOS up! Bitter over her death at Chell’s hands, the insane program tosses Chell back into her hellish testing, and the good times continue from there.

Developed by Valve, Portal 2 is even better than its predecessor. And that’s high praise, because “Portal” was amazing. It’s still a puzzle solving adventure utilizing the portal gun, but this time it’s obvious Valve saw the plot potential from the great dialogue in the first game. There’s character advancement for everyone, but especially GLaDOS, which surprised the hell out of me. Pleasantly so. Not only this, but Valve added a co-op campaign! You can play with your friends as Atlas and P-body, robots GLaDOS created to aid in testing. It’s a bunch of fun, and it can lead to a number of hilarious moments as the robots die and come back good as new going through the various tests GLaDOS puts them through.

I highly recommend this game. Not only is the plot clever and the gameplay challenging, the graphics are gorgeous! And thanks to to co-op feature, there’s great replayability! Seriously, it makes for a fun couple of hours going through it with friends. The only complaint I have is that the game is kinda short, but I can overlook that here. There’s too much good about it to let the length drag it down. So get some drinks and turn on your game platforms. Portal 2 is definitely something to check out.

Book Review: “Saving Max”

“What would you do if your son was accused of murder?” I’m not sure how often y’all hear that question asked, but it’s the central theme in the book “Saving Max.” Written by Antoinette van Heugten, it’s a thrilling tale of suspense and conspiracy, with just a touch of horror thrown in for good measure. So, without further ado, let’s get into this book.

Meet Danielle Parkman, a skilled and dedicated attorney. But despite her success as a lawyer, Danielle’s life is not without hardship. Her son, Max, has become increasingly erratic and violent. Struggling with what to do, she manages to get a diagnosis from one of the top psychiatric facilities in the country, Maitland Psychiatric Asylum. For a little while, it looks like things are going to be all right, until the doctors tell her that Max will devolve into greater fits of violence and will, eventually, lose complete control of himself. Danielle doesn’t want to believe it, but then she finds her son unconscious next to another patient who had been stabbed to death. Now Danielle has to struggle to help her son, but is she losing touch with reality as well?

Antoinette has created a dark and gripping tale of a mother’s struggle with a horrific tragedy. In my opinion, the writing is very well done and the pacing is excellent. This isn’t a genre I normally read, but this really stuck with me. You get a real sense of tension from this book, and I honestly cared about what the characters were going through. There are some things I would have liked to have seen liked to have seen, like more interaction with Max. He’s the crux of the issue, but he gets so little screen time that he almost seems like he’s more of a plot device than a person. I also would have liked to have seen a little more action from the side characters, but that’s just me. I can understand the reasoning, though. In the end, this is Danielle’s story. She’s the star of the show.

This is the book to get if you love mystery, thriller and horror fiction. Don’t go into it with any preconceptions, because I can assure you it will throw you for a loop. So in the end, I have to say “Saving Max” is an excellent read. As Antoinette’s break through novel, I have to say I’m impressed with both the skill put in to it and the success its garnered. Over 200,000 copies have sold in the few months the book has been out, which is amazing for a first time novelist. Give it a try, I’m sure it’ll entertain.

American Comics, As Done By Another Country

I’ve recently finished two graphic novels, Batman: Death Mask and Batman: Child of Dreams. The thing that really made these interesting to me was that they were written and drawn by Japanese artists. It really got me thinking about how one cultural icon, like Batman, would be interpreted in a different country. I don’t know if it’s a thing of interest for you all, but it certainly got my attention.

A series of gruesome murders have been taking place in Gotham City. Men are found with their faces sliced off and taken, their bodies left behind to rot. Batman investigates these murders at night while he does business as Bruce Wayne during the day, making a deal with a Japanese businessman, who has set up a cultural masks exhibit. As the case goes on, Bruce is reminded of his time training in Japan, and of the nature of the masks he wears. In the end, is he Bruce Wayne wearing the mask of the Batman, or is he the Batman wearing the mask of Bruce Wayne? Past and present collide as identities blur, and old grudges are brought to light.

 

 

Times have been strange in Gotham City. Criminals like Two Face, The Riddler and the Joker have been running rampant in a spree of terror and destruction. But they don’t appear to be acting like themselves, seeming to perform crimes just for the sheer thrill of it instead of any real purpose. Even more odd, all these criminals are still locked up! Who, then are these villains, and what are their motivations? When the first criminal turns up as a mummified corpse after his arrest, it becomes obvious that these people are impostors. Who is behind these fakes? And what is their connection to the new, deadly drug Fanatic?

I greatly enjoyed both these series. For one, the art was very cool. It was interesting to see Batman done in a manga style. Even more than that, however, the stories gripped me. Naturally, identity has always been a core aspect of the Batman character, but it was brought forth in interesting ways. In Child of Dreams Batman had to confront copies of villains who were as real as the originals, bringing forth the question of whether a man could be copied down to his very soul. In Death Mask it delves into the nature of masks, both real and metaphorical. If you wear a mask long enough, does it become real? And if so, does what you used to be become merely a mask itself? If you’re looking for American comics done from a non-American perspective, or just a Batman fan, I recommend reading these books.

Why Are We Still Talking About Charlie Sheen?

For the past few weeks I’ve been seeing Charlie Sheen everywhere. I’ve seen him on Fox, I’ve seen him on ABC and I’ve seen him on CNN. Hell, at this point it would be easier to list the news programs he hasn’t been on. And the question I have to ask is, why? Why do they continue to report on this man? I’m not sure if this is a thing of interest for you all, but it certainly is for me.

The media is constantly keeping track of him, detailing each and every little facet of his self destructive rants and actions. But what does this ultimately amount to? All it’s doing is giving him an outlet for his, quite frankly, embarrassing behavior. The constant attention is feeding his problems and making them worse. Is it really that compelling watching Sheen’s descent into madness? So he insulted his bosses on radio? So he demands a ludicrous pay raise for his show? Big deal. Show it once and move on. The media is saturated with him acting the fool and I’m tired of it. The whole thing is just ridiculous.

If Charlie Sheen absolutely must be reported on, and it appears he has to because everyone keeps watching him, then can’t he be used as a hook to talk about something more substantive than his temper tantrums? Why don’t we talk about his several past abusive relationships and tie that into the issue of domestic violence in America? Why don’t we talk about his extensive history of drug abuse and tie that into the continuing problem of harmful drugs being sold on the streets every day and the lives they ruin? If by some miracle someone from a major news organization reads this, please channel Charlie Sheen into a force for good instead of continuing to allow him to wallow in his neuroses in a public manner.

And that’s all I have to say on the matter. This will be the one post I ever make on Charlie Sheen. I don’t know if any of you agree with my opinions, but I’d like to think I’m not alone in this.

Graphic Novel Review: “New Spring”

Howdy y’all. As you probably know, I am a huge fan of The Wheel of Time series. New Spring was a prequel story that originally was published in an anthology back in 1999. It was released on its own in 2004. I had heard that a comic series was being done on it, but I recently got a nice surprise. All the issues have been compiled into a single bound compilation. I read it to compare it to the novel format. I hope it’s a thing of interest for you all.

King Laman of Carhien wanted to create a throne unlike any in the world. To do this, he has cut down the gift the Aiel granted his people centuries ago, a sapling from the Tree of Life. Enraged, the Aiel spill across the Spine of the World, burning their way across the Westlands as they search for Laman. The nations of the world unite against them, finally stopping their charge at the shining walls of Tar Valon. Blood and death mix with the cold of winter, and the fields outside the city are filled with the carnage of war. But all is not well inside those walls, either. In the White Tower, sanctuary of the Aes Sedai, Moiraine Damodred and Siuan Sanche bear witness to a fortelling. Gitaro Moroso sees the rebirth of the Dragon on the slopes of Dragonmount before she falls over dead. Sworn to secrecy, the two of them vow they will search for the boy foretold to save the world from the Dark One while also breaking it asunder. But they are not the only ones searching. What dark figures move in the shadows, seeking to kill the world’s one hope?

I have to say, I enjoyed reading this. It was great to see characters I grew up with in a graphic novel format. The artwork is superb, and for the most part they told the story to the letter. I say for the most part because it does feel rushed. I think it probably should have been extended a little further to properly tell the story, which is why I still rank the novella higher. If they had spent about two or three more full chapters I think it would have improved the pacing. But I still enjoyed it, and I really hope the rest of the books can get adapted into graphic novel format. All eight issues are now in one combined issue, so if you’ve got some free time I say give it a try.

Great Deals on Great Art

Howdy y’all. I’ve got a possible thing of interest here for you. Do you want your own personal piece of art? Well, I have a great friend who is a fantastic artist. She’s currently taking commissions, and I thought that one of y’all might be interested in giving her a look. I’ll let her give the rest, along with examples of her wonderful artwork.

Hey folks, I am now opening commissions. Only art and shirt commissions though props and other things will come later.

Sketches $2 each

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Character lineart $5

 

 

 

 

 

 

Character lineart with background $10

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Digitally or Traditionally Coloured Character $15

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Digitally or Traditionally Coloured Character with background $20

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*Extra characters $2 each
*Payments via Paypal
*Fanart or Original character, if you want them done in a certain style let me know. I can copy styles such as Dave Gibbons(Watchmen) and Jamie Hewlett’s(Gorillaz) and more. If not, I will just use my style.

Open Art Slots:

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*Shirts start at $15. If the shirt is from a anime/cartoon character I’ll need reference pictures.

*If it is just a design(original or not) I will need reference pictures(at least one) and if there is a style or color of shirt you want it on.

*If the shirt style is long sleeves and they are a different color, I do sew.

*I will need your shirt size.

*Shipping cost will depend on where the shirt is being sent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Open Shirt Slots:

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Only taking three for now.

You can contact her at light_sora@yahoo.com.

Movie Review: “The King’s Speech”

Well, I’ve been on a role with the movie reviews, eh? I’m glad I keep hitting good ones, and I have another for y’all. Here’s a thing of interest I hope catches your attention. It’s The King’s Speech, and it is magnificent.

As always, there are spoilers ahead.

We begin with Prince Albert (played by Colin Firth) giving a speech at the Wembley Stadium at the closing of the 1925 British Empire Exhibition. He gets up onto the pulpit, looks down at the crowd… And he barely says a word, stammering out his speech until the scene shifts. I’m telling you right now, the first fifteen minutes of this film are pure torture. You can’t help but feel for him! And it’s obvious Albert is tired of this and the various doctors he goes to to help his condition. After one last humiliating appointment with an “expert” he’s decided to call it quits, but his wife Elizebeth (played by Helena Carter) persuades him to try one more time. They meet with Lionel Logue (played by Geoffrey Rush), an eccentric man who is as unorthodox in personality as he is in his therapy. Albert begins to improve under his treatment, and none too soon, for with his fathers failing health and his older brother David wrapped in a scandal, Albert has to speak in public more and more.

This is a powerful film. When I watched it, I only vaguely knew of the history behind it, but I noticed that the film managed to inform about the complexities of the culture and history in such a way that it weaved excellently with the overall flow. In fact, the flow and pacing was so good that I can’t even complain about what I usually do, length. The film is two hours long, but it doesn’t feel like it. The interactions between characters gripped me to such a degree that by the end, I was surprised that two hours had simply flown by.

You feel for the characters, can understand Albert’s discomfort in being in such a horrible position. How many of us hate public speaking? Well, how many of us have a horrible stammer and have to speak to an entire country? You can understand Albert, and you can understand all the people who want to support him. Firth does a fantastic job playing him, and Rush has always been an actor I’ve admired. He certainly doesn’t disappoint here, and you can really see the growing friendship between Albert and Lional as these two actors immerse themselves into their roles. Another piece of touching interaction is between Albert and his wife, who is always there for him. Carter does this role beautifully, and I found myself immeasurably glad that they had each other. So, if you’re looking for a movie where the acting is wondrous and the plot superb, The King’s Speech is for you.

Top Five Most Interesting Fictional Villains

Wow. It seems my previous list, my personal top five most manly fictional characters, was a rousing success. I’ve had hundreds of views for that one alone, so I thought I should make a follow up, sister post for it. When I thought about it, I realized that all those manly characters were heroes in their own ways. So I thought this might be a thing of interest for y’all. Here, for your viewing pleasure, is my personal top five list of interesting fictional villains.

NUMBER 5: THE JOKER

I think most lists would have this character appear at some point or another. The Joker is an iconic villain. In many ways, he is the epitome of chaos and madness, performing the most heinous of deeds for nothing more than his own sick amusement and to prove that everyone else is just as crazy as himself. But if you’re wondering why he’s so low on the list, its for the same reasons he’s on the list at all. He’s an interesting villain, but his motivations are simply madness. He exists to cause mayhem, he has very few driving goals beyond that. Madness, by itself, really isn’t all that interesting in a character. The Joker manages to play it in a flavorful way, but in the end he’s simply just a madman. I’ll probably get some disagreement on this, but its how I feel. But despite all this he still manages to be one of the most interesting villains, and that’s why he’s on the list.

Number 4: Palpatine

Palpatine, also called Darth Sidious, is a Dark Lord of the Sith who managed to take control of the entire galaxy. Now, he’s definitely a member of the “Evil Overlord” group, which is a tired villain type used far too often. But Palpatine is more than that. He conquered the galaxy not with his immense powers, but through his mind. He also has a presence about him. He’s first mentioned in the first movie, and everyone freaks out. When he finally shows up in the third, all he has to do is just walk and you feel a palpable menace from him. Yes, he’s an evil overlord, but he does it in an honestly interesting way, and that’s why he’s on the list.

Number 3: The Operative

The Operative comes from the movie Serenity, and is honestly one of the most interesting villains I have ever seen. He has killed people, ordered the destruction of whole communities and hunted the protagonists with a ruthless drive. But what are his reasons for doing so? He thinks he’s making the galaxy a better place. He believes what he does will ultimately lead to better lives for everyone. And the real kicker? He knows he’s a monster, he knows that this hypothetical better galaxy will have no place for one like him. He’s doing it anyway. Before I saw him, I had honestly never seen a villain with motivations like this. He’s ruthless, cunning and willing to do whatever it takes, and he’s doing it for the promise of a better world he will never be a part of. And that’s why he’s on the list.

Number 2: Magneto

X-Men comics have been around since before I was born, so they’ve always been there for me. And through the comic’s long, twisting history one villain has always stood out to me. Eric Lensherr, known as the mutant Magneto. Like with the Operative, it’s Magneto’s motivations that make him so interesting. He lived through the Holocaust as a child, and he vowed it would never happen again. Mutant kind will not suffer the same fate. And you know, when you read the comics you see he does have a point. His goals are noble, but often his methods are not. He’s currently one of the good guys right now, but for his history and ideals Magneto is on the list.

And my number one most interesting villain is…

 

ISHAMAEL

Ishamael comes from the book series The Wheel of Time. If you’ve all read some of my previous posts, you know I love this series. I grew up with it, and Ishamael was one of my very first villains. At first, he didn’t seem like much, but then as the books progressed and the history of the world became clearer, so did Ishamael’s motivations. It was what his conversations with Rand in in the latest books that really solidified him for me. Before he betrayed his allies to the Shadow, he learned that everything that has happened has happened before since the beginning of time, and it will happen again. The cycle of battles with the Dark One will never end. Ishamael is tired of the struggles, of all the wars and bloodshed needed to keep the Dark One at bay for millennia upon millennia. He’s tired of the thought that he will be reincarnated again and again to fight these battles, and all he wants is for it to end. He wants to break the cycle so he can finally fall into nothingness, let go of his weariness. I have never seen a villain with such motivations before, and that is why he’s number one on my list.

A Disturbing Phenomenon: Why is Male Abuse Okay?

I have noticed something very peculiar in media for the past few years. It’s been on my mind a while, but now it’s got itself stuck in there and won’t let go. It’s a sign of something that, I feel, is very wrong in today’s entertainment. I don’t know if this will be a thing of interest for you all, and it may likely be something many of you disagree with, but I’ll say it anyway. In popular media, it appears that abuse is okay when it’s a woman abusing a man.

Films, television shows and other such things commonly show men abusing women as horrible people. This is good, because abuse is a terrible thing. The kicker is that the opposite quite often does not appear to be true. It’s played up for laughs. Like in Pirates of the Carribean, Jack Sparrow is slapped repeatedly by various different women.

Or what about Raymond and Debra’s relationship in Everybody Loves Raymond? The man is constantly abused verbally, and sometimes physically, for the most minor of mistakes. In one episode (Bad Moon Rising) he called her out on this. She responded by pushing him into a bookshelf. It also occurs quite often in Desperate Housewives. The pinnacle here, in my opinion, is when Carlos tricks Gabby into revealing that she’s trying to manipulate him out of his money after she discovers he is about to land a high paying job. She then pushes him out the upstairs window. The closing narration paints Carlos as the one at fault, and that he is regrets tricking her.

It’s not just Western entertainment, either. Here is an excellent example. In Japan there is a popular graphic novel and anime called Ranma 1/2. The main character, Ranma Saotome, is admittedly a man without tact or social graces. He is constantly being hounded and abused by several of the female cast for this and for a situation beyond his control his father placed him in.

For more examples, please go here: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AbuseIsOkayWhenItIsFemaleOnMale

If a man was seen doing stuff like this, it would be to show that he’s an asshole at best and a monster at worst. But when a woman does it to a man, it’s done for comedy. You’re supposed to laugh. Why? Why is there this, rather blatant, double standard? It’s often played that the man deserves it somehow. Perhaps sometimes he does, like when Jack was slapped because he stole a ship, but men cannot possibly be deserving of such abuse all the time. And it isn’t just in entertainment. A report run by ABC shows that many people honestly do not find verbal and physical attacks on a man to be abusive.

Perhaps the reason for all this is because, on average, men are stronger than women. Perhaps because of this there is an idea that men cannot be seriously hurt by women. This might lead to the assumption that all abuse is directed from male to female. This is a very dangerous, and false, line of thought. What do you all think?