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Iron Fist: the Living Weapon: Rage

iron fist v1

I have to say I never had a real interest in Iron Fist for most of my comic fan-dom. He’s one of those characters that wasn’t prevalent in the old cartoons, never had a movie, and while I haven’t gotten to the Netflix show, I haven’t heard many decent reviews so I hesitant to pick up one of his stories…

Danny Rand was a privileged child who disappeared with his family in the mountains in search for the mythical city of Kun-Lun. He was the only one to reemerge, imbued with the power to channel his chi into a host of abilities and great martial arts skills. After years of fighting as the Iron Fist, everything from Danny’s past crashes down on him. Undead ninjas, Kun-Lun is in ruin, a fiend disguised as both his deceased father and mentor comes for him and his power is drained, leaving him powerless and broken down in this colorful Kung-Fu epic…

I have to admit, this story wasn’t really my thing but I can respect it. The artwork is sweet and there are some cool fights. The story is a bit confusing if you aren’t familiar with Iron Fist’s story but if you enjoy old school type martial arts stories, you’ll get a more out of Iron Fist than I have. A special thanks to my friend Autobot for letting me borrow it and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

5 great foreign horror films

ju on

Between 17 and 18 I was fortunate enough to have a local video store downtown that specialized in horror movies and oh I had one hell of a list to search through. I discovered some of my all time favorites here and I discovered the wonders of horror from other cultures and my mind expanded. In no particular order, lets begin with…

1. The Beyond-

Part 2 of Lucio Fulchi’s unofficial “Gates of Hell” trilogy, Fulchi’s shocking imagery and the great score is a awesome mix. Because of this, I understand why people are scared of spiders, that’s for damn sure. If you want something really weird, check this picture out.

2. Audition-

Crazy girlfriend movies are a dime a dozen these days but none of them compare to this crazy ass movie. Audition made me a bit scared to enter the dating scene because there’s never a feeling of fakeness and a shockingly realistic antagonist. I highly recommend this to new horror fans.

pans labyrinth 3. Pan’s Labyrinth-

Guillermo Del Toro is an astounding director and while this isn’t totally a horror movie, it did give me nightmares for one particular part, because of a certain creature a decade later I still can’t forget. While not exactly a horror film, it’s one of the top 10 greatest films I’ve ever seen.

the orphange 4. The Orphanage-

Much like Labyrinth, this Spanish ghost story is very deep and rides the line between conventional ghost story and sad character drama that may not be for everyone, but’s worth checking out if you like ghost stories.

5. Cannibal Holocaust-

You know those stories you heard about the Exorcist where people fainted and had legitimate visceral reactions to it in 73? I had visceral reaction to this movie, quite possibly one of the most controversial films ever made. As a special, once we hit 1,000 subscribers here, I’ll talk in a lot more detail about Cannibal Holocaust but I’ll say now, for as powerful and thought provoking as it is, don’t bother if you suffer from weak constitutions. You’ve been warned.

I hope you all enjoyed this list and please follow and once we hit 1,000 followers, I’ll do a Cannibal Holocaust review. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Dishonored 2, preview

dishonored 2

I’m a big fan of the first Dishonored but I will admit, there was some fairly big problems with it. The areas felt more like set pieces than living cities, abilities felt rather limited, there weren’t many nonlethal take down methods for a game that wants you to to go full no kill. I’m happy to say all these problems have been fixed so far. Environments are not only beautiful and more colorful than before, but they are more populated and feel like a real city. Combat got much more varied with more nonlethal options, with a lot more runes and bone charms about to power up. I can say the game is a bit harder than the first but I’m fine with that and I’m excited to keep playing. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

E3 games I want, and don’t ( Torsten version)

E 3

E3 is on it’s way for 2018, and that means a whole lot of new game reveals as well the newest leaps forward in our favorite gaming tech. Savior did a list of 2 Games I Hope Are At E3, And 1 I stopped Caring About. and asked me for my thoughts so here we go first with a few games I want…

re 2 remake 1. Resident Evil 2 remake- this game brings a lot of memories almost pissing myself with my friends as a kid. I loved the first game’s remake and I hope they give 2 a similar treatment.

2. Code Vein- I love the horror themes and ass kicking gameplay of BloodBorne so when I saw a trailer that had such a combination but was rendered like an anime, I immediately fell in love with the concept of vampires, anime, and that swift Bloodborne gameplay.

3. Moons of Madness- I saw the trailer for this a little while ago and I thought the idea of Lovecraft in space was pretty cool. As the marketing for Alien put it, in space no one can hear you scream, right?

And now, something I’m sure we’ll get that I couldn’t give a crap about…

bf 5 Battlefield 5- I loved Battlefield 4 and Battlefield 1 was fun and interesting, going back to WW1 which many shooters don’t ever really do. I have to admit, this doesn’t really come down so much on the Battlefield series as much as my distaste for EA and how burned out I am on FPS games. Star Wars: Battlefront 2 was the final nail in the coffin for me and if BF5 runs anything like that, I’m done with the series.

May the gaming gods bring you glory.

May the 4th be with you!

empire strikes back return of the jedi

May the fourth be with you all as we celebrate Star Wars day. For every nerd, all it takes is that opening title of “a long time ago, in a galaxy far far away.” and the thunderous John Williams score and all so legendary title to send our blood rushing and light up a smile on our faces. During our trip to Last Jedi, the crowd cheered and roared applause before the damn movie could even begin- that’s a rare thing, I can sure as hell say that. Star Wars inspired me so much as a kid; without Star Wars I don’t think I’d be the same kind of writer I am today. Dynamic characters you can’t get enough of, epic battles you can’t stop watching, and a special message: no matter how small and insignificant you seem, you can change the world. Before I leave you with links to our Star Wars collection so far, I beg every nerd to stop and remember the lessons the series has taught us, and go out to make the galaxy a better place. May the gaming gods bring you glory and may the force be with you.

Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back Return of the Jedi The Force Awakens Star Wars The Last Jedi Review (Savior) The Last Jedi (second opinion) Star wars: Rogue One

Star wars: The Clone Wars (game) Star Wars: Bounty Hunter Star Wars: Battlefront 2 Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter

Star Wars: the Clone Wars (05)

My 5 favorite movies in the MCU

I’ve been asked 1,000 times, what do I like better: Marvel or DC? I can’t pick. I love both of them for similar and different reasons. But when it comes to movies, the MCU regions supreme. Here’s 5 of my personal favorites. In no particular order let’s begin with…

1. Doctor Strange- ever since I read Dr Strange & Dr Doom: Triumph and Torment I’ve grown to love the beautiful and weird exploits of the the sorcerer supreme and I was ecstatic to hear Benedict Cumberbatch was playing him; as a Strange fan, I was really pleased and it’s mind blowing as hell in IMAX 3D.

gotg v2 2. Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2- This was a really tough pick between the first and second but the second has a deeper story and a much better villain in Ego…also Baby Groot is freakin adorable, he seriously maybe the cutest damn thing I’ve ever seen.

3. Avengers – you can’t beat the once and probably future king of superhero flicks. While Iron Man is also a phenomenal movie, as well as the underated Incredible Hulk but watching Hulk slam Loki around like a rag-doll- truly epic.

spiderman homecoming 4. Spider-man: Homecoming – Spider-man maybe the coolest, most versatile superhero out there but at the end, he’s a regular kid and Homecoming gave us that: he’s Spider-man at Homecoming. Nothing fancy, no overblown world building, and Holland’s portrayal is spot on. Plus, growing up with Batman it was great to have Michael Keaton back in a super role, and as Vulture nonetheless, one of my favorite Spidey bad guys was a huge treat.

avengers 3 5. Avengers: Infinity War – I laughed, I almost cried, and I couldn’t help thinking about the movie on a whole hours, even days after seeing it. As a nerd I freaked out in joy and I give credit, it may be my favorite of the Avengers trilogy…

I hope you all enjoyed this list, may the gaming gods bring you glory, and as a great man always said : EXCELSIOR!

Fight Club

fight club book

There’s one quote that comes to mind, made synonymous with this story: “Rule one, don’t talk about Fight Club. Rule number two, don’t talk about Fight Club.” And weirdly enough because of the movie, we do…

Fight Club is a strange story of a hapless white collar smuck who hates his boring, meaningless, empty life. The only solace he gets is wandering into support groups where he meets up screwed up Marla, a woman he is fascinated by but too meek to really engage. Until one night he meets Tyler Durden, his exact opposite. Cool, badass, mischievous, and outspoken. They come to a conclusion, start a Fight Club to make them feel alive and get out there frustrations; this soon becomes a new kind of revolution on it’s own, albeit a malevolent one. Durden is a full scale Anarchist and wants to tear the world down and our weak narrator is in the middle, trying to stop the only real friend he ever had.

Fight Club is a strange beast, it’s such a BRO story with some strong philosophic innards, enough to satisfy both demographics. I read the book as well as saw the movie. The book is written very strangely I admit, Palahnuik’s writing style takes a bit of getting used to but becomes addictive once you get immersed and the end feels more appropriate. The movie is stylish and damn near perfect but I do like the book ending better and the expansion to the characters themselves in the book. Either way, Fight Club is a messed up story that is irresistible as hell and I highly recommend it. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

fight club movie

Ant-Man and the Wasp, trailer 2

Just when my nerd adrenaline was starting to level off after Avengers: Infinity War we got a fresh new trailer for Ant-man and the Wasp ( a link to my thoughts on the last trailer here; AntMan and the Wasp trailer ). First, disclaimer, I’m not a huge Ant-Man fan when it comes to comics. That being said I love the move. Wasp’s costume is really badass and I’m thrilled to have her in the MCU. I’m also glad we get more Giant Man stuff which is always cool. As for the villain, I think Ghost’s outfit looks like a Destiny costume but I think she’ll be awesome enough to ignore that. I’m really excited for this movie and I can’t wait to see it. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Ultimate Fantastic 4: Fantastic / Doom

It’s weird to say anymore, considering how bad the movies and more recent cartoons failed and the comics ceased a few years ago, I’m a big Fantastic 4 fan. Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and the Thing are a dysfunctional family that go on crazy ass adventures and have cool powers.

Ultimate Fantastic 4 begins all the way at the beginning with a kid named Reed Richards, a brilliant kid in a home that doesn’t understand him, except for his only friend Ben Grimm. Because of his genius, he gets recruited into a special program at the famous Baxter building, under the tutelage of Dr. Storm along with his own children Johnny and Sue. Reed is partnered with an exceptionally gifted young man named Victor Van Damme, there task: create a portal to another dimension. They pull together, explorers into a new world but what happens is beyond there comprehension. Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben are exposed to a strange energy from the other dimension; Victor seemingly disappears in the wave. The four begin to display drastic changes. Reed stretches, Sue keeps turning invisible, Johnny keeps bursting into flame, and Ben becomes a monster made of rock. They all react differently, unaware of a disgruntled Dr arranging his own plans for his old boss’s daughter; Moleman wants to mate with Sue to create the perfect being, creating horrible mole creatures in the meantime. The four must ban together, fighting the hordes of genetic experiments and take down Moleman in front of all of New York…but the Four’s troubles are just beginning. Victor is alive, left deformed and angry by the blast, living amongst a convent as he works on ways to get revenge on Richards. Enter: Dr Doom.

The first 2 volumes of Ultimate Fantastic 4 are pretty entertaining and the origin is done pretty well. While I’m not thrilled what Ultimate Doom begins as, his debut story is cool enough to enjoy. If you like Sci-Fi or wanted to try Fantastic 4, the first two volumes of Ultimate are pretty cheap and solid. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

The Ultimates

the ultimates

Since we still aren’t totally done with the Marvel haul for the year as far as cinema goes, let’s talk about the Ultimates, the book that kick-started Marvel’s Ultimate universe as well as influenced some key factors of the MCU, while also giving us movies like Amazing Spider-man and Fant4stic as well as an entertaining but watered down animated adapation called Ultimate Avengers.

Ultimates begins in WW2 as the war seems to be coming to a head. Captain Steve Rodgers faces off against a seemingly unkillable Nazi that has been feeding them really advanced alien tech. Seemingly, Cap defeats him but appears to have died saving us from a deadly missile. He survived but finds himself frozen, kept alive by the serum in his blood. Pretty much, the end of Captain America: the First Avenger Awake, walking amongst us, he is hit with the conclusion that Nazi dude still ain’t dead and ain’t even human to begin with. Nick Fury, head of S.H.I.E.L.D searches out the mysterious Iron Man, delusional protester “Thor”, disgruntled scientist Hank Pym and his way more awesome mutant wife Janet, as well as recruiting agents Black Widow and Hawkeye, fickle aid from the mutant duo Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, and lovers gone cold Betty Ross and a sedated and tortured Bruce Banner. They hardly make a team though. Between the disastrous ego of Pym, Banner’s inner demon coming to almost be a bigger threat than the aliens, and Fury’s secrets, can these rejects come together and beat an old evil?

While I’m not a huge Ultimate fan as I stated in my My thoughts: DC New 52 vs Marvel Ultimate post, I do like a lot of the changes made to some characters. I like that Thor hangs out with hippies, I like the dark, creepy tone of Banner/ Hulk, and while I hate Pym’s character from a standpoint, I love watching him get his ass kicked. Giant Man is a piece of shit in this story but it leads to one of my favorite Cap 1 liners “Get big,” before he beats him into the ground at full size. Cap is a full on action movie hero, not quite the super goodie as before. Aesthetically, you’ll see a lot of where the MCU got inspiration in modernizing the looks of a lot of there characters. It’s an entertaining story and the characters are good but a flaw I felt was that the final boss fight was almost anti-climatic compared to other events in the story. If you are new to Marvel, this is a good place to jump in but remember, this isn’t classic Marvel. May the gaming gods bring you glory.