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Robocop

robocop

Remember when action movies weren’t for kids and full of bad language, blood, drugs, and boobs? Well, Robocop helped me remember.

In a near future Detroit full of crime and corruption, new guy on the force Alex Murphy is gunned down by a gang of drug lords led by Clarence Bodiker. Ok, gunned down is an understatement, he gets ripped to shreds by gunfire to the brink of absurdity. Somehow his brain isn’t dead and he is enlisted into a new robotics program that turns him Robocop, a gun totting, one lining badass looking for justice while fighting his programming, and searching for his humanity while taking down the evil corporation that built him..

I love this crazy ass movie. All the over the top gore, one liners, random boobs and drugs in this is just great 80’s action movie greatness. I thought the action scenes were sweet and the effects hold up fairly well; ED-209 has moments where he looks pretty off but for the time I can excuse it. Kurtwood Smith as Bodiker is great, one of those actors that’s just great wherever he is. Definitely watch it, if you love 80’s action movies or you’re sick of modern shit, this will make you feel like a kid again. I’ll buy that for a dollar.

5 stories I’d love to see for a solo DCEU Batman movie

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Anyone else getting tired of the same old Batman films? If I have to watch Thomas and Martha Wayne get shot again I’m going to scream! In BVS and JLA we got Easter eggs for things that have happened to Batman in the DCEU, so here’s a quick list of Batman tales I’d love to see brought to life in the DCEU with no particular order, starting with:

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1. Court of Owls/ Night of the Owls- essentially Batman wrapped up in a tale of suspense and mystery as he discovers the true driving force of Gotham, the Court of Owls and there deadly assassins, the Talons stop at nothing to reclaim Gotham from the dark knight. It’d make a great thriller with bad ass fights and great secrets throughout.

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2. Arkham Asylum- since the DCEU is pretty damn rushed as it is, a cool way to introduce a lot of the villains through the tale of Batman trying to survive a night in the infamous madhouse. Featuring such great villains as Two-Face, Mad Hatter, Scarecrow, Joker and Killer Croc it’d definitely would make for a cool tale.

riddler 3. A Riddler movie- Some of my favorite episodes of Batman the animated series and the show The Batman were the detective stories of Batman tracking down Riddler, I think being a welcomed change of pace from what we’ve gotten in recent years. I mean, imagine Seven with Batman answering riddles instead of observing the sins.

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4. Under the Red Hood- BVS teased the shit out of this with the broken Robin suit tagged in Joker graffiti, so why the hell not follow through with it? Let Batman see the dark reflection of himself through the son he believed tested, see him pushed to the brink of sanity again and have to pull himself back again. Also, it wouldn’t be a bad way to introduce Nightwing and Mr. Freeze into the DCEU.

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5. Hush- another good tale for a R rated audience featuring a great who done it mystery, lots of great bad guys, and even a rematch with Superman, which I think we could all use.

Best of wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Aquaman (new 52, volume 5) sea of storms

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My good friend Autobot was kind enough to loan me some Aquaman comics before Justice League came out, so thanks man.

We begin our stories with Arthur Curry dealing with his rule of the oceans and trying to protect those land. People are weary of him on the surface after Orm, the Ocean Master, nearly brought a massive flood on them. In Atlantis, people aren’t trusting him because he still tries to help the surface dwellers, who damn near kill themselves by accidentally uncovering a titanic Atlantean beast that causes further devastation on land, nearly kills Aquaman, and sours the favor of the Atlanteans even further because it was an ancient protector meant to serve the reigning king, not try to murder it. Arthur couldn’t stop it. A idiot named Daniels, who has been pursuing Arthur finds his trident and accidentally sets free a race of Giant-borns from a makeshift hell created by a past Atlantean king, which forces him to fight a crazed Hercules and team up with Wonder Woman to finish this, all while stressing over his high school reunion. While Mera is hunting some failed assassins who tried taking her life, Aquaman finds himself face to face with the fabled Swamp Thing in our last story.

Essentially the book is three stories in one and that was really cool. Of the three, the last was my favorite just because it was cool to see Swamp Thing kick his ass. Something I have to say for the series itself, the artwork always catches my eye and makes me take in the details and colors. There are a lot of great, epic fights and I was glad to get time with Wonder Woman and Swamp Thing, who neither I’ve experienced much. Overall, it’s a fun book to pick up in sections and definitely gorgeous to look at. Best wishes all, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Jason X

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So through the years we’ve seen Jason in different outfits, as a zombie fighting a psychic chick, walking around the Big Apple, as a ghost, and even fighting Freddy Kruger. So what could possibly be next? I know, how about outer space?

So Jason X begins in the near future at a government installation where Jason is being held because he just won’t die. They plan on cryo freezing him until they know how to execute him. Jason somehow manages to escape and the only survivor is a scientist named Rowan who manages to freeze Jason, but not without getting caught in the process too. Hundreds of years later they are found, brought aboard a science vessel and reanimated. As you expect, Jason is a tad bit cranky…

Despite how idiotic the premise is, I really do enjoy the movie. Though not tense or scary, the special effects are actually pretty good and Jason does have some really sweet kills in here. Of course there were moments that made me laugh too. There is a twist at the end where Jason is transformed into a half metal cyborg, commonly referred to as “Meta Jason” or “Jason X” which was really cool. None of the characters really annoyed me like they tended to do in the previous sequels. Overall, it was a fine movie that tried getting away with the ultimate gimmick of SPACE and won in my opinion. Best wishes everyone and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Justice League (second opinion)

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Ok, folks, let’s recap the DCEU thus far: Man of Steel was ok, BVS was the heap that was way too serious, Suicide Squad was the heap trying way too hard to be trendy, and Wonder Woman was the bed that Goldilocks found just right. Caught up now? Justice League is the heap that tries it’s ass off to be fun.

So Superman is dead. World is losing a lot of hope. Batman is still trying to track down the Meta-humans him and Diana discovered while also trying to find out what the hell are these Mother boxes. Diana is off in London while Batman is beating down Parademons in Gotham. Spread throughout the world, the three boxes are guided by the three tribes of man: Atlantean, Amazonian, and the third was used in helping to create Cyborg. Steppenwulf returns after being defeated centuries ago to get the boxes because, well Superman is dead, no one gonna stop him. So it’s up to Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, and Cyborg to all band together, try to resurrect Sups, and kick Steppenwulf’s ass.

Savior and I agreed, Aquaman was our favorite part of the movie, with Superman surprising second. We get a more light hearted, classic Superman from Henry Cavill this time and honestly I really dug it. Cyborg was definitely the weak link but to Ray Fisher’s credit, it wasn’t his fault. Sometimes his CGI is crap and he didn’t really have too much to do. Steppenwulf is the definition of forgettable bad guy; I’d go as far to say I liked Enchantress better in Suicide Squad and that says something. This movie has a wealth of problems, like how rushed and bloated it feels. Everything feels like it’s in fast-forward mode; I’m curious as hell what that nearly 3 hour director’s cut looks like. I will say, there are great Easter eggs and please if you are a DC fan, watch all the credits. My favorite scene was the final after credit where a character many of us have been crying for in the DCEU finally shows up. No spoilers though. Overall, the movie is alright, fun but not a great movie in any sense of the word but there are sweet moments and HAHA to all those people who laughed at me when I said Aquaman would be the coolest of the group. May the gaming gods bring you glory and come together everyone.

Batman: Arkham Knight

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The epic conclusion to the Arkham trilogy, and yes, though the twist made many a comic fan groan, it still is a epic game.

Joker is dead, but Gotham’s problems aren’t over. Scarecrow has returned with a more damaging and drastic version of his infamous toxin and a new foe has come to his aid. Armed with a badass suit and an army of trained badasses against Batman’s tactics, the Arkham Knight has come. On top of this, Batman is haunted by the death of his greatest enemy and we see Joker’s final plot come to fruition; his blood is mutagenic, causing his likeness and madness to spread through it’s victims like a virus.With everything Batman has built crashing all around him, can he survive when all seems lost?

So, first, I’m not going to spoil what I know pissed off a lot of people- the true identity of the Arkham Knight. That being said, the game’s story is great all around and we get perhaps one of Hamil’s greatest ever performances as Joker. Visually the game is breathtaking and the gameplay is honed beautifully, including the new Batmobile stuff. Besides playing as the Bat, we get to take command of his epic ride and actually get to fight alongside the Bat family and Catwoman in pretty damn fluid combat. It’s a nerds wet dream. Many of the problems I had with City got fixed. The only real issues I have is that you can’t get the real end until you beat the game with it’s overabundance of Riddler shit and some of the Batmobile shit is annoying after awhile. Overall, I highly recommend it even if the reveal wasn’t great. Best Wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

DC Universe Online

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My old roommate Gambit used to be utterly obsessed with this game, and for the most part he ain’t even a DC fan except for Flash and Wonder Woman. First time I saw it action, I was blown away but the level of customization. DC Universe Online is a MMORPG that can be played on PC or PlayStation 3 and 4.

The main story is Brainiac is attacking Earth and the JLA gets informed by Lex Luthor from the future that he very well can kill the planet. Meanwhile, through Exobytes that are releasing powers in ordinary people, the JLA has to try to stop Brainiac…but not all are heroes. We create our own characters from scratch: allegiance to good or evil, which mentor we will follow (Superman, Batman, or Wonder Woman/ Luthor, Joker, and Circe), our costumes, our powers, weapons and means of transportation. For example: my first character is a ice villain that flies, uses hand blasters, and follows Luthor. There’s a shit load of options at start which is really cool. The roster of heroes and villains we meet in game is amazing and epic to behold; it was a dream come true to stand with Jon Stewart and Killowag and fight Sinestro, defend Gotham from a fear gas attack by Scarecrow, or help Grodd beat Flash into the ground. But for all the game has to offer, there is one teeny tiny drawback: FUCKING PAY WALL! You’re able to get your character through the opening levels and up to tier 3 of 8 before it sets in, but I guarantee you, the game gets 50 times more incredible behind the pay wall. Also, many of the insanely strong powers lay behind there too like red lanterns, atomic, and celestial powers for example. Getting into a PVP match against these powers can wreck you quick if you aren’t very well equipped. It’s $15 a month and once and a while I play but I can’t keep up with it. Overall, it’s a really cool game with a gaping flaw. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Flash, season 1

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A few years ago, I was drastically obsessed with the CW DC shows; Arrow was in it’s prime and in season 2 we saw Grant Gustin debuted as Barry Allen ending his arc with the events that lead to him becoming the Flash.

Barry Allen wakes from a coma after being hit by lightening after a disastrous incident with a particle accelerator, leaving him with superhuman speed and a connection to the Speed Force. After the incident, lives are turned upside down however. Dr. Harrison Wells, creator of the device, is left paralyzed but fascinated by Barry’s transformation; his assistant Cisco Ramon is thrilled by the discovery of a Meta-human, while his other assistant, Caitlin Snow, is grieving her fiance, Ronnie Raymond’s seeming demise in the accident. Before the change, Barry was a forensic scientist hoping to crack the case that put his dad wrongfully behind bars, being taken in by Detective Joe West, and his daughter Iris, who Barry secretly loves. And it’s because Joe is in danger from someone much like Barry, another Meta human, does he don the red of the Scarlet Speedster and take on his famous villains like Captain Cold, Grodd, Trickster, and Weather Wizard. But there is someone like Barry, someone malevolent that we discover has been the driving force of Barry’s life and misery, the powerful Reverse-Flash…

Ok, to start I have to confess that I only got to see the first season so far. And I loved it. Gustin is spot on as Barry Allen and the cast does have a great chemistry. Tom Cavanagh especially caught me as especial as Reverse Flash. For a TV show, the special effects are awesome and the fights are cool. The overall story is engaging, and really cool seeing Barry push himself to learn more about his powers and the Speed Force. My only real complaint is a lot of the villains felt like X men clones. In the end, I highly recommend it and I can’t wait to hit season 2 in the near future.

Batman: Arkham Origins

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I wanted to talk about this when Christmas was closer because it is in fact a Christmas game, but I think holidays are holidays. So I saw the trailer and was blown away but the cinematic sharpness and come on, watching Batman and Deathstroke face off only to interrupted by Deadshot was amazing. So what happened?..

It’s Xmas Eve in Gotham. Batman is relatively fresh being a vigilante only pumping out a year or two at this point. Most of the police are corrupt as hell and a spunky Detective named Jim Gordon wants to take Batman down as well as the other trash in Gotham. The cruel gangster Roman Sionis, aka Black Mask, is fed up with Batman and decides to deliver an enticing offer to eight assassins to have Batman dead by Xmas morning and the killer will have a shit load of cash. These assassins are Killer Croc, Deadshot, Deathstroke, Firefly, Copperhead, Shiva, Electrocuitoner, and Bane. I loved it so far until one question popped up, and after that I groaned…”Who’s the Joker?” Yep, this entire game boils down to the first time Batman and Joker met, oh and the first time Bane used super roids.

For the most part, Origin feels like a glitchier version of Arkham City with a Xmas skin on it. Without internet, this thing kept freezing more than my experience with the trilogy combined. Not to say there isn’t fun. Fighting is just as fun and many of the boss battles are fun to play. Deathstroke steals the show as probably the best Arkham boss fight to date, followed closely with Firefly. The story isn’t bad on a whole but it becomes apparent a lot of the Dark Knight trilogy found its way into this thing: Joker’s face has been cut, Bane looks and speaks like Tom Hardy’s version, and Batman growls when he talks. Ugh, Batman pissed me off in this game. He ends up being a selfish, know-it-all asshole most of the game; Conroy doesn’t do the voice either, nor did Hamil return as Joker. Baker does a fair shot at Joker, I give him that. I’d say if you loved City, Origins is worth a single playthrough but not much further than that. I ain’t going to trash it but I won’t count it among the trilogy. Best wishes everyone and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Deadpool 2 “Wet on Wet” trailer

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Arguably the two most anticipated films of next year are going to Avengers: Infinity War and Deadpool 2, both I’m super pumped for. The first Deadpool was honestly one of the honest to god, truest comic book character portrayals I’ve seen. Well, if the other two teasers for the sequel didn’t prove it, this sure as shit will. Any Deadpool fan knows his love of parodies and whacky antics fused into his badassness; today I can say Deadpool taught me how to paint. Laced through his hilarious parodies of one of Bob Ross’s painting lessons, we got to see glimpses of what’s to come and HOLY SHIT IT LOOKS EPIC! Smartly, they don’t fully reveal Cable or the villain which I applaud them for. I really can’t tell you how pumped I am to get a full trailer but I do commend the trailers we got, now if you excuse me, I got chimichangas brewing :p