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American Horror Story: Freakshow

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Ok, before we begin, I’m going to admit I have a bias with certain topics in fiction. I have a fascination with deformations, mutations, and for a lack of a better word, freaks. I also have an affinity for the 50’s, the fashion, the clean squeaky facade of the time. The fourth American Horror Story is my favorite of the series.

The story revolves, as the title suggests, a traveling freak show in Florida during the 50’s lead by a wannabe singer Elsa Mars.We got a bearded lady, a lady with 3 boobs, a tiny woman, two “pinheads”, a telepathic two headed woman, and a boy with ” lobster claws” as well as others. Times are tough as TV is beginning to take over and live acts are fading away. Outside the show, they do face adversity from the towns people, especially when people start turning up dead, especially kids. The town turns on the freaks, as there numbers are infiltrated by a pair of con artists who plan on selling there corpses to a different kind of side show. If all this wasn’t enough, a rich pretty boy with some psychotic tendencies falls madly in love with the two headed woman and gets a little too in love with the freakshow…

Besides my already personal bias towards the subject matter, I love all the plots at play in this season. Stylistically, from the music, clothes, and even the covers of modern day music felt really time appropriate which was awesome. I can’t really say who stood out to me, because I thought everyone did a great job. The biggest surprise I got was Neil Patrick Harris as a disturbed ventriloquist, that was awesome. The clown design freaked me the hell out. Freakshow, to me, is a good blend of horror and drama with some good music thrown in and I highly recommend it. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Dark Souls trilogy set announcement

Dark Souls, the game most love to hate or hate to love, is getting a complete trilogy set coming to PS4 and X Box One this October. So good news, the price isn’t ridiculously extravagant and we are getting all 3 complete games, DLC included, so you do get a hell of a lot for your buck. Something that bothers me a little bit is the timing; with the Dark Souls Remaster coming out a few months ago, to me I can’t feel the hint at this being a last minute cash grab, but I’m also skeptic. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Man of Medan announcement trailer

So good news horror game fans, we have something new to look forward to. Supermassive Studios, the crew behind Until Dawn , is launching a new horror series. The first game is called Man of Medan and looks like the next step of making a spiritual successor to Until Dawn, mainly because I don’t think you could pull off a sequel. Either way I’m excited to see what they come up with. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers vol 4

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Picking up where Mighty Morphin Power Rangers vol.3 left off, the remaining Rangers find themselves being lured lured into Drakken’s clutches. Finster has created a small army of perfected Gouldars to meet them for an ambush once they cross worlds. The rebellion Zach and Trini lead is about to be crushed by Drakken’s army as Trini tells Billy how he died giving them the only chance they have left- the Triceratops power coin. Zordon finds himself dead in that time, caught in the loop racing in to help his rangers there. After a brilliant move on Trini’s part, Drakken’s power is disrupted as well as his army’s but can Tommy stop his evil self once and for all?

It was a badass end to this part of the story, but I do wish I got to see the final clash between the Green Ranger and Drakken, instead of them powered down. It is cool in the flashbacks to see rangers of other eras mix but ultimately fall to Drakken. the way they beat Drakken is kinda kooky but hey, it’s Power Rangers. If you’re a fan, I’d suggest the comics definitely for a good story and the nostalgic value alone. Thanks to my friend Autobot for loaning me the books; below are links to other Power Ranger comic reviews. May the power protect you and the gaming gods bring you glory.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Pink

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: vol 1 Mighty Morphin Power Rangers vol 2 Mighty Morphin Power Rangers vol.3

Power Rangers Shattered Grid Trailer

Some games I hate to love…

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Hi, everyone. you must be wondering why you’re looking at a picture of toast right now? Well, friend, I hate that I love toast. It leaves crumbs everywhere, gets burned easy, and people automatically think you’re high when you randomly crave 5 pieces of toast and jelly at 2 in the morning. But, I don’t care, toast is awesome. I wanted to talk about some games I hate to love- fair warning, some of these games I’ve given ass reviews for but still played for one reason or another anyway. In no particular order let’s begin with the most recent on the list…

1. Dead by Daylight –

This game is no masterpiece. It frankly kinda sucks alone and even with a buddy but my friends Speedy and Artemis proved that with a fair group, there’s some fun to be had at 1 in the morning.

2. Dark souls 2…oh my –

The game pisses me off but I still jump in and play it. It got me through a shitty time in life and I’m grateful, but I swear this game makes me rage in ways no other Souls game has.

alienscm 3. Aliens: Colonial Marines –

This game is and will always be stinky ass cheese, but the first time I played it, I loved it. There were friends and booze and nostalgia. Subtract all this and you get a steaming pile of dookie.

borderlands ps 4. Borderlands: The Pre-sequel –

This maybe my favorite game on this list. It’s the worst of the series I admit and there is a lot of stuff in it that makes my teeth grind but the story kept me going, and I defend the story to this day.

I hope you enjoyed my list and my the gaming gods bring you glory.

28 Days Later

28 days later I’ve been touched by a lot of amazing movies over my 27 years on Earth (as well as some lame movies). As time goes on, our feelings change, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worst. 28 Days is one of those very, very few that hasn’t lost the profound impact on me all these years later.

It all begins with good intentions gone awry. A group of animal activists break into a lab and free a group of test chimps, unaware of the horrible virus they carried. 28 days later, a guy named Jim wakes up from a coma. He is completely alone. He leaves the hospital, he walks the streets screaming for someone, anyone; no one answers. After hours, he comes upon people, but they don’t respond. They chase Jim. All hell breaks loose. Selena saves him from getting mauled to death, having to kill one of her own group mates to survive. She tells Jim about the viral outbreak that swept through Britain and how just a single drop of infected blood can transmit the fast acting Rage virus. Jim goes home and finds his parents killed themselves after reading there note. The two find themselves on the run, joining a father and teenage daughter, Frank and Hannah and together they have to journey across the country, avoiding these rabid infected towards there glimmer of hope…

28 Days Later rendered me speechless when I first saw it on TV back when I was in middle school. I never had an interest in zombies until the Resident Evil (movie 2002) but I never found them really scary, until this movie. The Rage zombies are damn scary as hell. They’re fast, they’re rabid, and what I liked is how they were physically toned down but still looked freaky. These zombies aren’t missing pieces or overly bloody, but there red vacant eyes, pale skin were a nice touch. The actors are fantastic; there aren’t many horror movies where I’m genuinely saddened a character dies or where they are in danger but here they felt real. The cinematography and score are beautiful. Seeing Jim isolated, hearing his voice echo was mind blowing. The twist the story takes at the end is pretty cool and bad ass. I consider this movie a horror classic and I highly recommend seeing it, may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Terminal

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I’m glad there are movies coming out in 2018 that make my jaw drop and make me ask WTF did I just watch. I saw the Terminal trailer a little while back and was hooked by it’s neon visuals. When it popped up on Hulu, I jumped at the chance to watch this strange gem.

Bill is a English teacher who’s dying from a terminal illness who pretty much has nothing else left to live for. After waiting for a train that isn’t coming, he finds himself alone in a desolate diner with an attractive but mad waitress. This waitress has a messed up double life as an upcoming contract killer who must face off against competition so she could work for a mysterious Mr Franklin. This is just the beginning of this ever twisting neon noir, because no one is who they seem and nothing is what you thought at the end of the rabit hole…

I can tell you right from the get-go, this movie ain’t for everyone. This is almost the definition of a cult movie: it strange, looks and sounds amazing, and has recognizable actors in roles you sure as hell don’t see them doing, but doing well. Margot Robbie absolutely steals the show here in honestly my favorite performance from her yet followed closely by Simon Pegg in a more somber performance. Robbie and Pegg worked amazingly together. Again, the visuals are beautiful. The only flaw I see is that it does drag a bit and the fact you don’t know what the hell is going makes the movie feel longer than it is. I personally really liked it but I know it won’t be for everyone, but it’s worth checking out if not for the performances and visuals alone. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

American Horror Story: Coven

ahs 3 So Coven is the third American Horror Story and this time we get a more magical twist on things. Namely witchcraft vs voodoo.

Zoe, a young teen, has a mysterious accident that leaves her boyfriend dead and a hell of a lot of questions to be asked. She is sent to Miss Robichaux’s Academy in New Orleans, a boarding school for girls with issues like this. She finds out she’s a witch descended all the way back to Salem, as well as her classmates with there own dangerous gifts and troubled pasts.A change in power is coming at the school as Madison, the mean girl of this school, is taken under the wing of dying supreme witch Fiona and an old grudge between Fiona and a ageless voodoo priestess gets wicked in this creepy power struggle…

I’m going to be blunt, I love this season but it ain’t much of a horror story. There’s frightening imagery but I got more of a R rated Hogwarts vibe. Still, I always was fascinated by witchcraft and voodoo and the season takes an interesting approach them. The characters are all solid and Kathy Bates and Angela Basset are welcome additions. The pacing and the smooth flow make it the most engaging, so if you are a newcomer, I’d recommend. checking this season out first. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

American Horror Story: Asylum

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So, you know how you get nervous going to the doctors as a kid? Hell, damn right scared even; your heart beats tenfold and you scream in terror when you have to get a shot? Well, old school medical treatment was 1000 times scarier than a shot. So I was really looking forward to jumping into the Asylum for the second American Horror Story .

Our location is BriarCliff, an asylum for the insane during the 1960’s. A reporter, Lana, is investing the estate and finds herself locked within it’ walls by the conflicted and corrupt Sister Jude and her underling Sister Mary Eunice. After Lana’s false incarceration and a new prisoner arrives who claims to have been abducted by aliens, strange things begin happening. Mary Eunice begins changing, patients disappear when a Dr with a dark secret comes in, and Lana falls for a young, handsome therapist at the asylum who has has his own terrible secret that will follow Lana decades after the asylum, the psychotically brutal Bloody Face…

Of the series Asylum is my least favorite, but it’s still a solid season. I liked the new time period and how I look it as a representation of the cruel, gritty age of medicine ending and our more modern age of more ethical treatment taking over. The performances were better this season but I have to give a huge round of applause to Zachary Quinto for a surprising as hell performance that made damn sure I’ll never watch Star trek (reboot) the same ever again. I loved the plot about Nazi experimentation and the Bloody Face Arc; what hurt the season for me was the alien abduction story. Don’t get me wrong, I found it intersting as hell but it dragged on too long and I felt it held too much weight on the overall narrative while other stories dried up too soon. Also, the ending of that arc made the end too sugary for me. In the end, AHS: Asylum was ambitious and while I find it my least favorite of the series, I think it’s still worth seeing. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

American Horror Story

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A few days ago I talked about the American Horror Story: Apocalypse teaser and I think it’d be a good idea to cover what I know of the series.

Season 1 is simple in concept, almost cliche, as we see a family with issues move into a new house in California. Viven, the mom and wife, had a miscarriage and in the aftermath, her husband Ben had a affair. There teenage daughter Violet acts out. They want peace for there family to heal in there new house, despite the strange neighbor’s and the house’s dark, morbid history. The neighbor’s troubled son Tate and Violet become close as a series of events start happening, leading to Viven getting raped by a freak in a gimp suit. It seems the Murder House may have new victims to add to it’s long list…

I didn’t know what to expect going in, just the popularity. Season 1, while not perfect, is really cool. The characters are flushed out and I actually was invested in them and there plights. Evan Peters as Tate stole the show for me. This is a show that blends aspe of real life fact and fictional horror, making some interesting stories. Where I felt a flaw was the last few episodes of the season, the pacing of the ultimate plot felt off, feeling somehow rushed and lagging at the same time. The end is clever but a little too chipper for me. In the end, season 1- Murderhouse is totally solid and I recommend it to New comers. May the gaming gods bring you glory.