Fant4stic

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Ah shit. I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt. I wanted to be that guy that saw the redeeming quality in this flaming, apocalyptic train wreck wrapped in a dumpster fire. Sorry, I ain’t that guy today.

This iteration of Marvel’s first family goes more of the Ultimate Marvel approach, going with the Ultimate origin…kinda. Reed Richards is a young misunderstood genius who believes he can crack open another dimension to another world. Recruited to the Baxter Building, which is a government/military think tank by Dr. Storm, he’s paired with his adopted daughter, reckless son, and pain in the ass prodigy Victor Von Doom. Ugh. So they create the device but the military says thanks and takes it. In a drunken bit of brilliance Reed calls his BFF Ben and the for boys go dimension hopping while Sue plays lookout. Shit goes wrong. Victor falls into a green, volcanic crack; Johnny gets set on fire in his pod; Ben gets crushed by molten rocks; Sue gets flashed by excess energy; and Reed’s body gets really wrapped. Seriously, this shit is graphic. Well, our “heroes” change only now they really have no control and have to wear there super suits 24/7, except Thing who’s fucking nude and thank god ain’t got a boner in rock form. Reed runs and abandons them and for 20 minutes of run time the other three and the government are trying to track him down. Oh and Doom comes back…looking like a a rubber sex dummy coated in glow stick goo and wearing a trash bag poncho with more generic random ass powers than last time.

This movie is ass cheese. I can’t even say that as a Fantastic 4 fan. I liked the idea of making it a bit more grittier and and more dark sci-fi but this either went way too far overboard or just looks shitty. As a movie, the actors seem bored and disinterested, the pacing is garbage, the final act is rushed and pointless and there’s 4 times less action than the 2005 film. I’ve heard horror stories about the making of this movie and I’m glad the actors involved didn’t have there reputations scarred by this travesty of hero films and should be the moldy crap waffle dropped in cinema’s toilet. Friends don’t let friends Fant4stic.

Pier Solar And The Great Architects

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Pier Solar has a complicated back story. Not the in game itself, like the actual development and release of the game itself. It also may be the last Sega Genesis game released.  You can find more info here.

The game itself is a fun old school RPG, but at times offers very little to go on in terms of where to go. People used to this style of game will be fine, but many will just be pissed off and should look up a walkthrough. The battle system is a classic turn based system, and doesn’t offer anything new to an experienced gamer but it is still fun and engaging.

The story while pretty standard is interesting and has enough twist and turns to remain interesting and keep you playing. The game has its faults but for its price any old school fan should check it out, best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Fantastic 4 (2005)

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If you’ve followed my work for a while, you know I love the Fantastic 4 and the idea of them in the MCU makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. If you want to know why, this movie may not really answer why.

Our story centers around five people who participated in a experiment with disastrous results. Reed Richards, a quiet, dorky nerd. Sue Storm, Reed’s hot ex girlfriend. Sue’s asshole brother Johnny. Reed’s best friend Ben Grimm. Then we have the incredibly rich current fiance of Sue, nemesis of Reed and totally obvious villain Victor Von Doom. During an experiment in space, they run afoul with a cosmic storm that essentially changes them. Reed can stretch; Sue can turn invisible and make forcefields; Johnny can fly, shoot fire and be hot; and Ben mutated into a giant, living rock. Seemingly, Victor seems untouched at first. The four quickly become celebrities after they are put into a scenario where they got to save people; Reed just wants to cure them. Tensions rise as celebrity keeps in, Ben gets labeled a outcast by his deformity, and the attention goes to Johnny’s head; behind the scenes Victor starts to change as well, but realizes he can be the ultimate power if the others were out of the way. Can the Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and The Thing unite to stop Dr. Doom?

As far as superhero movies go, as well as incarnations of these heroes have gone, this is just meh. Not great but not a crap shoot. The film captures the dysfunctional family aspect of the group fairly well. Best part of this movie hands down is Michael Chiklis as The Thing, he perfectly portrayed the pathos of the character but wasn’t overly brooding, but sold his sarcastic, light hearted side too- also he aced “It’s Clobberin Time!”. Lowest point of this is Dr. Doom. Doom went from one of Marvel’s most fascinating villains with a huge array of technology and magical abilities  to a bitchy rich pretty boy with generic superpowers. A huge flaw is that for a superhero flick, there seriously ain’t much to hit. There’s one fight at the end that lasts 5 minutes, a fly chase that lasts like 3, the bridge scene which is about 5, and you don’t see everyone in costume until the final fight. Besides that, comedy, stunts, and melodrama. The movie is forgettable but fine on netflix or shit bin. As always, best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Let’s Be Cops

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We all have that one friend that just takes shit way to far. Mine growing up was named Mike, we called him Monkey. We used to do all kinds of stuff, some legal some not so much. But he would always take shit from being fun to dangerous or stupid.  Sadly he died a few years ago, and yes it was his habit of taking shit way to far that killed him.

This movie is basically that. One guy taking shit way to far.  One day when they mistakenly think they are attending a costume party they are mistaken for, well cops. This of course is fun. This of course leads to one buying an old cop car and making it look like a new cop car. And a police radio. And patrols. And answering calls.

This of course eventually goes horribly wrong. I mean how could being a fake cop go wrong? Yes there is also a woman involved, because what kind of story doesn’t have a love interest? The movie is both interesting and funny, by all means check this one out. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Preview: Getting Tactical with Fell Seal: Arbiter’s Mark — 16-Bit Dad

Preview: Getting Tactical with Fell Seal: Arbiter’s Mark As you may have guessed if you read my 7 Retro Gaming Kickstarter Projects post, I’ve been really excited for Fell Seal: Arbiter’s Mark. From the very first time I saw the animated GIFs of gameplay on the Kickstarter page, I was hooked. You see, I’m a…

via Preview: Getting Tactical with Fell Seal: Arbiter’s Mark — 16-Bit Dad

Step Brothers (2008)

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When I first saw the previews for this my first thought was what the hell is this? Will Ferrell has finally gone and lost his damn mind. This movie is going to be the dumbest thing I have seen this year…I was so so wrong.

Two 40 year old men living at home acting like children, but still adults. One with his mother the other with his father. They meet at a medical conference fall in love, get married and move in together. That is about the time shit gets weird. How weird? Well check this out.

Yea the movie is a bit weird. The movie is also hilarious. It also has a really good story to it. Two people meet, fall in love, their kids hate each other, become best friends, and try to sort their lives out. Sure there are some twist and turns and plenty of laughs in between, but in a weird way I think its popularity is because we can all relate to parts of it. We have all felt like we lost a part of our childhood and wanted it back or we have all refused to let go of a part of our childhood.  The movie is certainly worth checking out, best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

MST3K Renewed by Netflix

If you watched the Mystery Science Theater 3000 Turkey Day Marathon yesterday and stayed till the very end of it, you probably saw Joel Hodgson announce on air that MST3K was renewed for a twelfth season! This news definitely was a great way to end Thanksgiving in my house. Hopefully, the next season will premiere in […]

via MST3K renewed by Netflix — Paperback Cinema

My Cousin Vinny (1992)

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Another movie that most people consider a classic, and I am inclined to agree.  The story of two young men on a road trip in the wrong place at the wrong time down in Alabama. Not the normal Alabama by the way, backwoods corrupt everyone knows each other Alabama.

Enter  Joe Pesci, a New York lawyer looking to win his first case. The problem is he isn’t a very good lawyer. What will follow is a story of lies, mistakes, jail time and one hell of s wild ride where Marissa Tomei will do most of the work anyway all in name of finally getting married.

Admittedly this movie with anyone other than Joe Pesci and Marissa Tomei would not work. They just have an odd chemistry that made it work. The story while solid and a script that was fun was simply an average movie that was made memorable by two people that went above and beyond to make it amazing. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

 

Mockingjay

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Happy Thanksgiving again, one and all from me and Savior. We come to the conclusion of the Hunger Games trilogy. Arguably Mockingjay ties with the first for my favorite of the series and it is one of my favorite conclusions in all of fiction. I tip my hat to you Suzanne Collins.

So Katniss is in a fucked up place after being decisively rescued at the end of Catching Fire. District 12 was burned to the ground; Peeta and a few of the surviving tributes were taken captive by the Capitol; she discovers District 13, which we are told was destroyed by the Capital during the last rebellion since book 1 still exists under the ruins and is trying to unite the other districts in full out war. Katniss is on the brink of sanity after 2 rounds of murder and mayhem, her and fellow survivor Finnick are trying to cope. Snow still finds to psychologically torment her. President Coin, head of 13, starts pushing Katniss to become the Mockingjay as others have started calling her, to be the poster child of rebellion. Katniss agrees if only to make things a lil less shitty for her and her family and to make rescuing Peeta and the others higher priority. Katniss is suited up in a fancy combat suit with a new high tech bow and is sent out to make connections with real people after failing hard at making TV promos. These trips, while damaging her further inside, are helpful. In a daring move, the other tributes are rescued, but all is not well. Peeta violently attacks Katniss and damn near kills her.  He’d been tortured and brainwashed. Everything comes together in a last ditch effort to finally capture Snow, but it turns out to be one last game…

Writing this review was hard for me because I want to get into spoilers but I want anyone who never saw the movies or read the books to pick them up and experience them as I did. I will say the ending is ballsy, especially for a YA book and I respect that much darker, realistic ending than some bullshit Hollywood happy ending. As for the movies, both were really done well but I prefer 1 over 2. Somehow the ending feels watered down to me on film than the book. Overall, it was a great end to a pretty great trilogy. I have a special friend who seemed interested in the series, so I’ll list them order below. Happy Thanksgiving and may the odds be ever in your favor

Hunger Games- Catching Fire- Mockingjay

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Battlefront 2 Loot Boxes Gambling?

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There is no quick answer to this question, but maybe. But that is a question many people have been asking lately it seems. Belgium Justice Minister seems to believe it is, tho Translations seem to be a bit off and there has been an update to the story that can be found here.

Hawaii Rep. Chris Lee also wants to fight what he calls “predatory behavior” more on that can be found here.

Now i’m not sure gambling is the right word, but I can understand the argument. You are spending money and may or may not receive something of equal value. On the flip side of things you will get something for your money so is it really a true gamble? This is definitely an interesting thing to watch. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.