Putting Some "Boomer Sooner" Swagger in Geek Culture.
Today the first chapter of Joss Whedon’s and John Cassaday’s graphic novel Astonishing X-Men hits Hulu in motion comic gory, and it’s pretty awesome. For those of you who don’t know what a motion comic is (This is for you, DS Senior,) it’s a type of animation where they use the actual comic art from the panel, along with voiceovers to bring the comic to life in a new way. You can check out chapter 1 of Astonishing X-Men here.
DS Out.
I really don’t know how to feel about Legend of the Seeker. On one hand it is a horrible bastardization of its source material. I mean, really bad. If you watch that show, don’t think you’re getting the Sword of Truth, because your not. The only thing tying the two together at this point is the characters, because the story is so far off the reservation, it’s not funny.
On the other hand, the sword and sorcery geek in me enjoys the shit outta that show, when put in its own context (i.e. pretending it’s not based on a series of books that I ADORE.) Raimi always has known how to tell a fun, if not a little cheesy, fantasy story. On top of that, he has an arsenal of delicious female actors that he keeps throwing at us. A little bit of ‘know thy audience’ I guess. This season he’s not pulling any punches as we have a a host of new hotties coming to the show.
After the jump we have three new hotties that will appear to make Richard’s life hell.
So word is that Paramount wants to make more money off of Paranormal Activity than one film alone can bring in. The solution? A shitty sequel that will only be watched by preteens and rotted brain-meat movie goers.
Hollywood Reporter:
In Viacom’s earnings call Tuesday morning, CEO Philippe Dauman said the movie has been one of those surprise hits that comes along only rarely.
Given that a follow-up release wouldn’t have the same element of surprise as "Paranormal," it will be key to craft a smart approach to a sequel, he said. "Our team will come up with the right creative and marketing approach," he told analysts.
I don’t need a magic 8-Ball to know how this is going to turn out. All we have to do is look at history. Blair Witch cost $60,000 and made over $ 249 million worldwide. It’s sequel Book of Shadows, cost $15 million and bombed, only making $47 million. I’m actually surprised that it even made that much.
These people are supposed to be smart, right? I can’t even conceive of how this is a good idea. I bet the try something stupid like giving the demon an origin story. What do you guys think?
DS Out.
I gang. Thought I would take a break from my Nanowrimo-ing and give you guys a Prince of Persia update. A new trailer has hit the interwebs and it has me chomping at the bit. As a longtime fan of the games, I always thought this would make a good movie, and I’ve been pleased with production so far. Say what you want about Jerry Bruckheimer, but that man knows how to make an adventure movie. That is, as long as Disney isn’t dangling Benjamins in front of his face to “Kiddie” his movies up.
What is a pleasant surprise is that it looks like we may have at least one more villain on our hands besides Ben Kingsley. I dunno who the mysterious scar-faced guy is, but if Hollywood has taught me anything, it’s that disfigured people are evil.
Prince of Persia is scheduled to hit Theatres May 28th.
Ds Out.
When I think of epic fantasy a couple of things come to my mind. Actually there is a pretty big list built in my head. But when I cross reference epic fantasy with video games, one of the greatest on my list is Lunar: Silver Star Story.
Originally Lunar was put out on the Sega Saturn in 1997 and the plot was a little different but remains mostly intact for the playstation version.
This story is epic in every sense of the word. The game starts with a young small town boy named Alex who dreams of one day becoming a Dragonmaster like his hero Dyne, one of the four heroes. He and his childhood friends Ramus and Luna decide to go see if the rumors of a white dragon living in a nearby cave is true. From that point the story is set into full motion and spans their world with a large cast of characters.
The villain (one of my all time favorite video game characters) Ghaleon was one of the four heroes who has decided that he is not happy with an event that he participated in involving Dragonmaster Dyne and the goddess of Lunar, Althena. He sets out to right the wrongs of the world and in the process becomes more of a threat to the world than help. Ghaleon is a complicated villain, one that means well but is going about everything the wrong way. The story suggests that he realizes what he is doing wrong but has gone too far to turn back. Also, he is not only my favorite character but many people around the world. There is a website dedicated to him that has many wonderful fan fictions based on him which can be found here http://www.sabrecat.net/ghaleon/. I recommend the story titled Summons.
The soundtrack to this game has also survived the years with me, one of the few cds that I actually retain the originally copy.
So if you love games and you love fantasy. Pick up Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete on the Playstation if you can find it.
Have Fun,
Kree
Lunar is one of those games that is so good, just experiencing it once isn’t enough. While the gameplay itself is rudimentary by today’s standards it remains a crown jewel of RPGs simply because it has an amazing story with lovable characters that make a memorable adventuring party.
What I like best about the characters of Lunar is that there is some level of romantic involvement going on between everyone. Kyle wants Jessica. Jessica wants Kyle in spite of herself. Nash wants Mia. Mia might want Nash but she’s got too much on her plate because she’s running the Magical City of Vane. Of course the relationship between Alex and Luna is the driving plot for the entire game, but each couple gets plenty of time to shine as the story unfolds.
In spite of its whimsy and sometimes bawdy humor, Lunar is a game that is rich with adult themes. Ambition, and sacrifice, and the power of the human spirit. Alex wishes to follow in the footsteps of his hero, Dyne and become a dragonmaster. Ghaleon wants the power of Althena so that he may bring order to Lunar. Just as Ghaleon is one of the greatest and most tragic villains of videogames, Alex is probably one of the greatest heroes in that he understands the nature of power- that it is only meant to be used when needed, and then laid aside when the threat has passed. He not only achieves his dream of walking the path of Dyne, but he is able to bring the tale of the Dragonmaster full circle when he sacrifices his power to save the woman he loves. Unlike Alex, Ghaleon is unable to believe in humanity. He believes mankind is lost without their god and he wants to make things the way they used to be no matter the cost.
Lunar is a great gaming experience, and a joy from beginning to end. When you finish you kinda wish they had done an anime series on it, and the cut scenes that were created for the PS1 version only fuel that desire.
DS Out.
As a parting gift, I leave you guys with a powerful scene that sums up the themes of this great game.
Ever since Bruce Wayne "died" in Batman: RIP, we have all asked the question: is Dick Grayson really the guy to take the Mantle of the Bat? That’s a big job, and I think that question is answered in Batman and Robin #6 when Dick and Damian get pwned by the bastard love child of Prince and Hannibal Lecter: THE FLAMINGO!
Wow, Grant Morrison; way to emasculate the new Caped Crusader. In spite of how incredibly Ghey this guy looks, he is pretty sick and twisted. He eats faces. I guess this goes to show you, that you can’t judge a book by its cover.
Or a sociopath by the color of his blazer for that matter.
DS Out.
Here is some news that I’m pretty excited about. Being Human, the BBC show about a vampire, a werewolf, and an ghost who end up being roommates is coming to the US in an Americanized version. Syfy has ordered 13 episodes and the plan is to air them with Sanctuary in the summer or fall of 2010.
The British original aired on BBC 3 with just 6 episodes. It was popular enough that it got bumped to the more popular BBC 1 and the next series will air sometime next year in both Britain and BBC America with an eight episode season.
"It turned out great, as we can now do an American version," Syfy president Dave Howe told The Hollywood Reporter. "We’ve always been keen on vampires and werewolves, and we loved the originality of Being Human, the fact that the fantastical creatures in it are very young, accessible and charming."
I’m probably gonna lose some street cred here, but I’m glad that we’re getting an American version of Being Human instead of the British original. It’s hard for me to get into British television. I don’t like the production style- it’s distracting as hell for me. I don’t doubt that there are probably a lot of good British programs out there, but I can’t get far enough into them to appreciate them. I feel like I gave Merlin a fair shot, and that was a disappointment. I recently brought home the BBC Robin Hood series and I turned it off after ten minutes. But don’t count me out yet, guys. I am a stubborn old goat and don’t quit trying just because something doesn’t go my way. I’m probably gonna revisit the Robin Hood series to give it a fairer shot of winning me over..
DS Out.
You’ve probably already read my first post about Paranormal Activity. You know I loved it, and think it is easily one of the best horror movies I’ve seen in years. I liked the amateurish filming, the pacing, and I loved…LOVED the ending. Some of you might be on board with what I say, some of you obviously won’t be. I won’t waste time trying to convince you. You either bought it for the duration or you sat there with a critical eye over every single detail. But there IS reason behind my support for this film, and I’ll get into that in this post.
The horror genre has over gone a metamorphosis over the years. Ask people what scary movies they like you might hear things like, Scream, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or the Saw films. The ironic thing is, that these are not horror films. They are all part of the subgenre of slasher flicks- the angry, psychotic little brother of the true horror genre. I won’t say these things aren’t scary. That would be stupid. A 7 foot tall wild eyed maniac coming at you with a chainsaw should make anyone pee their pants. But these films deal in madness. While madness is frightening in itself it is something that the rational mind can still cope with. It can be contained. Rules apply to psychos the same as they apply to the rest of us, no matter what the slasher genre might tell you.
Okay, I loved this movie. If you like supernatural thrillers, this one might be for you. I say, “might” because I have found some people who were very disappointed in this film. The only reason this confuses me is because some of these people have very similar tastes in film as I do. The rest of them, I find inane and unimaginative. While I did like this movie and will probably own it, I will take this moment to address the issues of others, as well as one or two of my own. If you have seen this movie, then read on, but if you haven’t you risk spoilers at your own peril.
