This is the first film I am watching in my Pam Grier film fest and it’s a good one. There plenty of over-the-top violence and action. The film is nicely paced for what is essentially a standard B-movie. There are points in the film where you are thinking, “They aren’t going to go there are they? …oh yes, they are!”
A nice little time killing game for the DS. Nothing too deep, but a great kids game.
After seeing The Machine Girl I was itching for more Japanese splatter, but it turns out most of these movies suck. They say movies are becoming like video games, and that is definitely the case with Meatball Machine. Only this film is like an hour-and-a-half long cut scene from a 1992 era CD-ROM game. Boring, poorly acted and wastes about a third of the movie with close-ups of a stupid, fetus monster puppet.
My gig poster for a Nonagon show based on some drawings I created for a job application (long story).
Another exciting Hornblower sea tale. This one was a much better read than the last, although, outside of the title character, there still aren’t that many vivid characters. But, you can tell that Forester is beginning to lay the groundwork for larger story lines. The story here goes from one naval action to the next, each more exciting than the last.
This is going to be a poster for an upcoming Nonagon show. It’s based on an earlier image I made about a decade ago that I never did anything with. Hopefully I will be able to finish in a day or two so that we can get these Xeroxed off in a timely manner.
This was another bargain purchase for me. Ten dollars on Amazon during one of their Gold Box sales. I’d have to say it was well worth the price.
I remember when this game came out it got all sorts of game of the year awards on G4 and such. After having played it through I can say it isn’t THAT good, but it is pretty good game, and one of the best Wii games I’ve played. However, if this were a PC game I would only consider it to be mildly above average compared to other PC shooters like Half Life 2. The movement controls are atrocious and the ugly, muddy palette is so 1998. You do get used to the clumsy movement after a half hour or so. I was willing to deal with the tank controls because, on the other hand (literally), using the wiimote as a shooting device works very well. Taking aim at monsters and zombies and blowing them away is very satisfying.
The game’s story moves along at good pace and the voice acting pretty good. I especially like the Spanish curses that get uttered by all the evil villagers. As the game progresses there’s a bit of variety thrown in to the gameplay that keeps it from getting too repetitive. Although, as the final chapter approached, I felt a bit of sameness fatigue setting in and was relieved after beating the final boss. There is a bunch of extra gameplay modes that get unlocked when you finish the game, so it looks like I’m not quite done with this one yet. This is an essential game for the Wii if you want something with a little more meat on it than the kiddie titles that dominate the platform. Despite my nagging, I’d highly recommend it.
I found this game used for around twelve bucks a few months ago. I’m glad I picked it up because it is a really entertaining game. This is an adventure game. That means it’s not the fastest, most exciting game around, but I liked the laid-back pacing. Unlike the LucasArts game from the 90s, this game’s puzzles actually make sense. There was hardly ever a moment when didn’t have an idea of what I needed to be doing. The worst part of any adventure game is that feeling of being stuck with no idea what to do next. That said, as far as point and click adventures go, this one is quite simple. That may be a disappointment to some puzzle-brains out there, but I am too old to be pondering game puzzles for more than a few minutes. There is just enough challenge here to give you a sense of satisfaction as you progress through the story. On top of it all is a nerdy sense of humor and some vivid characters with which to interact. The only big flaw of this version is the janky animation and occasional audio stutters. I hope they’ve resolved this issues in Season 2 when that is released for Wii. A great game to play with the kids (if you don’t mind the occasional “damn!” in the dialogue).
Okay. So I am one of those evil bastards that thinks health care reform is a bad thing. Apparently, the hidden motive for my position is that I want to ruin the lives of poor people—or, at least that’s what my progressive friends have told me. Fine. If that makes it easier for you to accept that there are people with opinions other than your own, more power to you.
I get a bit depressed when I hear folks go off like this. People have become so pot committed to their partisan positions that they assume that anyone with an incongruous opinion must be evil, stupid or both. Never mind that on an issue like health care we are not just talking about getting sick poor people to the doctor. We are toying with the idea of restructuring an entire industry, and, in the middle of a recession, adding massive (as in dwarfing “tiny” projects like World War II!) new government programs and expenditures. To me it’s obvious that these are bad choices, but I don’t for a second believe that the proponents of health care reform are deliberately out to destroy rich doctors, or worse destroy the U.S. economy, stifle innovation and make health care terrible for everyone (not just poor people). I honestly think that they believe they are doing the right thing, despite the fact that they are going to kill us all and sell our children into white slavery.
A well-paced survival story about a bunch of teenagers abandoned on a desolate planet. There is some delving into civics which I found interesting, but it is more of a straight adventure story in the end.
