Movie Review – Red Tails (2012)
Movie Review – One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
Movie Review – Battleship (2012)
Movie Review – 1911 (2011)
1911 is a ponderous endeavour that purports to tell the grand tale of how revolutionaries managed to rise up and force the abdication of the Qing Dynasty rulers ending thousands of years of feudal rule in China. With such colourful source material it is a wonder that the film ends up as nothing more than an inert mess that is so haphazardly sewn together that it fails in its primary goal of educating audiences in answering the basic question as to why and how the revolution came to pass. It is a damning commentary to make when I say that merely reading the Wikipedia page on the web will provide much more coherent and perceptive historical knowledge than this cinematic Titanic.
Entertainment – “Reignite” Mass Effect Tribute Song
Well what do you know? Yet another post on Mass Effect 3 even though I previously commented that it was time to move on. While we can debate the relative merits of the Mass Effect 3 ending until the end of the universe it’s time for a bit of different news on the franchise that is not so divisive. Here’s a great fan made musical video by Malukah which remixes and combines five great tracks from the Mass Effect games with her own original lyrics to make a rather haunting and emotional song that fits the tone of the last game like a glove. Oh and it also doesn’t hurt that she sings it herself with great gusto.
Anime – Space Battleship Yamato 2199
Although I ended up liking the recent live action Space Battleship Yamato movie many long suffering fans took an opposing view that it did not live up to expectations. Regardless, I don’t expect there to be another live action movie anytime soon yet Yamato fans should still be happy to know that 2012 will see the release of another anime series this time named Space Battleship Yamato 2199. However, don’t expect this to be a mythical season 4 continuation of the original show as the new series is essentially an updated re-telling of season 1 featuring the now famous journey to Iscandar and the main antagonists being the Gamelons.
Update: Galactic Pillow May 2012
After nearly two months of non-stop Mass Effect coverage it is about time this blog went back to its regular programming. While I am sure that there will be a lot more to be said about Bioware’s final installment in Commander Shepard’s story the next period of great interest will be when the extended ending director’s cut will be released sometime in the summer. Judging from the overall persistent negativity from some fans I really have my doubts whether or not many will be swayed by this new ending even though as of this writing I have really no clue what Bioware is going to do except keep their original ending the way it is.
Editorial – The Reaper’s Advocate: A Different Take on the Mass Effect 3 Ending
This is a guest post by Rei who is a translator/editor and software developer who loved watching his city get wrecked at the beginning of ME3. Additionally, like many fans, he played femshep because broshep’s voice was kinda dry plus he didn’t feel like watching his N7 ass for 100 hours.
The Mass Effect 3 ending has become a social phenomenon of its own category. Somewhere between the apparently low-budget ending sequence, the contrived interpretations and the misuse of charitable organizations to bring attention to the fans’ disappointment, there’s a decent ending: an ending that does for the most part make sense and could have been emotionally satisfying if not for a few unfortunate circumstances.
Editorial – Mass Effect 3: Ending Analysis
I realize the brewing firestorm that is going on right now with Mass Effect fans about the ending to Mass Effect 3 but I really do hope no one replies to this post with a lot of vitriol. I do not write this blog entry as a way to force or influence the way those who don’t like it think. Everyone’s experience with the ending is valid. If you hated it then I have no complaints to listen to what you have to say as long as it doesn’t descend into ranting or name calling like I have read on other forums. On the other hand if you liked it I would love to hear how it affected you or what you thought. Let’s keep this civil, please. Finally, this entire post spoils the entire plot of the game so if you intend to play it without any knowledge be warned that I touch on many things here.
Editorial – You Can’t Unwatch it!
Okay, this is going to be a short post but after seeing a video game trailer today I almost threw up on my laptop as I was laughing so hard. People who know me by now realize that I have always been an ardent Star Trek fan over Star Wars. Yes, this is one of those eternal science fiction debates that will probably wage on for the rest of eternity with no easy answer in sight. Actually, I find it ironic that I’m writing this right after my rather long post about the relative merits of Mass Effect which has been often described as being the “Star Wars” of this generation where I came to the conclusion that the two series should not be compared yet after this video it makes me wonder if Mass Effect has already surpassed it.
Editorial – Mass Effect Series
On the eve of the release of the final game in the trilogy I’ve finally gotten around to writing about why I thought Canadian video game company Bioware’s Mass Effect series was perhaps the most influential new franchise of the past decade. Others have already done so who more or less succeed in mentioning many of the points I had in mind yet I decided the time was right for my own thoughts. Some writers have made their case that Mass Effect is the “Star Wars” of this generation which I find an amusing opinion albeit open to much fan derision. It is not as if the series doesn’t have worth but this sort of comparison is bound to ignite a lot of divisive chatter amongst the Internet crowd.
