Update

The review of "The Dark Knight" is written, just waiting until the weekend to post it. I know that most of you have probably already seen it, but I hope to make it worth your while. So even if you have seen it, hopefully my comments should give you something to think about, or even possibly give you a whole new perspective on the film. I will also be including 6 F.A.Q. about "The Dark Knight" that specifically pertain to Christians. One final note, due to the length of the upcoming article, I will be putting off the Spore article. Please, if you have any comments, feel free to post them here on the blog. Commenting is open to the public!

Thank you again for your patients,

Scott

Movie Reviews and Next Weeks Articles

This is the last of 3 articles posted on August 1st, 2008. Check out the others below.

Invader Zim: The Complete Invasion

:D :D :D 1/2 out of 5

This is a great TV show, period. That said it is not for everyone. It contains a lot of black and non-sensical humor; think Tim Burton meets Douglas Adams. Recommended for ages 10+.

Horton Hears a Who

:D :D :D 

The best Dr. Seuss adaption I have seen next to "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." Has some great themes about believing in what you can't see, and trusting others. Recommended for all ages.

Nanny McPhee

:D :D: D :D

A wonderful family friendly movie about the importance of manners, good communication and realizing what you already have. Please ignore all the critics who compare it to "Mary Poppins;" just enjoy it for what it is. Recommended for ages 7+.

Iron Man

:D :D :D :D

Loads of fun, lots of action and a great plot line about redemption and taking responsibility for your actions. Recommended for ages 12+

The Incredible Hulk

:D :D 1/2

Worlds better then the original film back in 2003, but still rather forgettable. Recommended for ages 12+.

Wall*E

:D :D :D :D 1/2

Amazing, stupendous! Better then Ratatouille. Really, I promise! Recommended for all ages.

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Next week I will post my review of the Dark Knight, I promise! I am also working on a novel/novella series entitled "The Chronicles of Zack." It will have action, romance, humor, horror and more! Think 28 Days Later meets Hangman's Curse meets The Hardy Boys meets the Bourne Identity. Yeah, it's gonna be awesome. I will be trying to post it in installments here on the blog. Stay tuned!

Scott

 

Rediscovering Black and White Comics

 This is the 2nd of 3 articles posted on August 1st, 2008.

Mostly through accident, I discovered a different brand of comics. Not old, but new paneled stories set in black and white. There is something very unique about reading something in black and white. Just like looking at a page with only words and spaces and punctuation, there is something refreshingly bold about the black and white comic. Perhaps the authors of graphic novels are seeing this also, and I believe that the comics industry is better for it. There is a small down side though… for colorists that is.

I always loved reading the funnies in the newspaper, and through the wonder that is the webbernet, I have be able to continue enjoying them even though I no longer read the news. There is less to focus on in the black and white comic. You may call it laziness, but I disagree. See, we live in a world where we are constantly being over stimulated. We have the web, television, ads, newspapers, movies and now even comics and novels that are dripping with blazing commercials, non-sequential events, loud colors and even louder noises. We cannot sit still anymore, let alone listen to something or someone who makes an ounce of sense. I am not exaggerating. Why do you think we have so many kids and now adults with attention deficit? But I digress.

Stimulating and introspective comics are not promoted when that sort of thing does not sell, but nonetheless, they exist. And in this world of graphic authors who dare to tell stories that portray feelings and truths instead of sales pitches, nothing makes more sense than to print in black and white. Black and white show good and evil, right and wrong, dark and light, satire and slapstick; instead of looking at everything and focusing on nothing, we can look at one thing and focus on many.

Three graphic novels spring to mind: Emo Boy, which tells of humor and redemption; Daisy Kutter, a tale of action and um… robots; and then Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, which details the macabre. All three tell of good or evil, sometimes both, but without the frills you are better able to focus on the characters and the truths that they portray. No superheroes, no pointless nudity, no eye offending explotions or intrusive advertisements……… just real stories, about real people in a real world, all of which is chronicled in REAL comics.

"Surviving High School" a video game review

This is the 1st of 3 entries on August 1st, 2008. Please check out the other articles as well!

I don't know how many of you out there play mobile or cell phone games, but boy are they addicting! I'm currently with Alltel and they have a cell phone software store called "Axcess" that you can 'access' from your cell phone menu. Anyway, every now and then they have free demos of games that you can play for ten minutes or so. (A way to get around this is to continually play the game instead of exiting it and going back to the menu. Just pause the game, plug your phone in and come back later. If you quit the game will expire, however. Also make sure that your phone is plugged in or the game will eat up all your batteries.)

Oh, right... the review. The game is called "Surviving High School," lame, I know. But the actual game play more than makes up for the title. You start as the new guy in town; you've just transfered to a new school and are having trouble fitting in. (I have only played the demo, so I do not know if you can play as a girl in the full version.)

So, your goals? Win the girl, make the football team and keep your parents, teachers and friends happy. Wouldn't you love to have a chance to re-do high school? It's all virtual, so it should be a breeze to do it right! Right? Course! *rolls eyes*

The best part of the game is that each and every choice you make in the game effects the next one. Screw up on a date? You might not get the chance to go on another one. Do well at practice? You might have a better shot at winning the big game. This is probably one of the best AI systems I have ever seen in a video game; hands down.

So how did my first semester go? Well, I got the school's resident goth to fall head over heels in love with me, kept a B average in History, English and Math, whooped the school's arch rivals, stood up to the school bully and made my dad proud with my football skills! How has YOUR semester been?

Next Week: "Delving into the world of Spore"

A New Direction...

Hello ladies and gentlemen! 

I just wanted to update you all as to what on God's beautiful green Earth is going on with this blog. To be completely forthright, it has been very spastic and I apologize. I've just been posting about whatever I want and there has been no real theme besides "media and Christian youth culture"...... whatever THAT means! 

No more! I intend to keep everything a little more ordered from here on out. I will be doing my darnedest to update this thing every Saturday with either reviews or an essay. Each week will have a curtain theme, e.g. video games, blockbuster films, anime, comics, music, etc.

Also, to keep things simple, I will be employing a 5 point rating system to everything I review. Everything will be out of 5 smiles.... I was trying to think of something unique.

Anyway, I hope you continue reading!

Many thanks for your patience,

Scott

P.S. Next week will be the video game article, containing mostly reviews.

Why I hated "Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog"

Sorry, I know it's been a while. I've been in the middle of a move, getting ready for school and lots of other personal stuff to resolve or deal with. But it's good to be blogging again.

Today's topic is, as you probably guessed from the title, about the recent internet phenomenon: "Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog" created by Joss Whedon (Creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and Serenity). If you want to learn more about the show, you can read about it here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._Horrible

As usual, I need to have my little, or big, disclaimer: WARNING, THIS REVIEW AND/OR ESSAY CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!!!!!

 Now I just recently was introduced to Joss through the film "Serenity" and the comic book "Fray" and loved both. Then I saw all this hype about this new internet show floating around, so I decided to go check it out. At the time, only the first two parts were out. I watched them and loved it! It was funny, it was moving, it was great! In the words of Larryboy: "I laughed, I cried, it moved me Bob!"

I had learned that the final episode premiered at midnight last night, so I resolved to stay up until then to watch it. I was all excited. To prepare, I read a bunch of interviews with the cast and crew and then caught up on the story for the fifth time about by watching the first two episodes again. Then finally, the moment had come! Millions of sci-fi, comedy, superhero, musical and Joss Whedon fans around the globe waited till midnight..... and THEN..............................................................................................

....................

......

I hated it. My take on it can be seen plainly in a short essay which I wrote on a forum I post on regularly.

Me: "Just watched part III. It was horrible!!!! And I do NOT mean that in a good way! I got hooked on parts one and two, and watched them over and over and over again. Well all I can say is: "THANKS A LOT JOSS, YOU..................!!!!!!!!" *shoots self in the head* I can't believe that I stayed up till midnight to see that! Anyone else agree that the ending was awful?? 

Forum member #1: "I completely disagree. Joss did a brave thing with the ending. Killing Penny was Brave!After all Dr.Horrible is evil, not the good guy.This show was meant to show how just because someone is good doesn't mean he isn't a total douche.

I really don't know why your upset, he was evil, even if you sympathized with him.I thought the ending was perfect. Why complain when you got it for free? I'll buy the DvD for sure!!!!"

Forum Member #2: "Also... It's Joss Whedon... Did you expect roses at the end?"

Me: "Did I expect there to be roses? Ummmmm... is that a trick question? 

Here, perhaps I should explain. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the occasional tragedy every now and then, ("Sweeney Todd" is one of my favorites) but I like them to stay where they are; tragedies should stay tragedies and comedies should stay comedies. None of this mixing and matching, please! But if I HAD to pick, I'd choose a tragic comedy (a sad story with a happy ending) over a comic tragedy (a funny story with a sad ending) anyday!

Guillermo del Toro put it very well in an interview recently. When asked why he turned down the chance to direct the film "Se7en," he said: "Because I'm a fat, sentimental fool who doesn't ascribe to that world view." I feel EXACTLY the same way!

See, unlike a lot of people today, I rarely view things as morally ambiguous. They are either right, or they are wrong. In the case of "The Sing Along Blog," no matter what the characters the show are called, Dr. Horrible is good and Captain Hammer is evil.... I don't think that anything could convince me otherwise. And then it is also a comedy (I'm laughing, aren't I?) So by definition, Dr. Horrible should get the girl and Captain Hammer should be....um....well.... killed. That's the kind of just and right ending that I was expecting and then......well, if you saw act III, you know the rest.

Let me put it another way: someone you trust introduces you to a friend of theirs. You and the friend hit it off instantly. Going to the movies, having meals and going bowling together becomes a regular thing. Then one day, the person who introduced you calls you up and tells both of you to come to his place cause he has a surprise for you. Once you both get there, the man takes you into his house, closes the door and then drives a knife into your new friend's heart. Gasping for breath, she falls to the floor. You scream at the man you once trusted, but he doesn't even seem to notice. Then once the girl is finally dead, he looks at you and says: "Now wasn't that fun?"

Joss Whedon has become the Joker of Batman fame. Perhaps Nolan should give him a part in the next film?

I think that the film "Stranger than Fiction" puts it well when Hoffman says: "A comedy is a tragedy that ends too soon." All I can say is that Whedon ended it too late.

So, I know that it is just a movie, TV show, internet show, whatever and that it's not real. But I really get invested in the characters of any story, and Whedon was successful in making me sympathize with Dr. Horrible and Penny. But then he betrayed my trust with the final installment. 

Not amused,
Frank'n'stay"

Frank'n'stay is just another alias I go by, in case you were wondering. But anyway, that's really all I have to say on the subject. I've been sitting on a bunch of reviews. I try to get them to you asap, or, that is, whenever I get around to it.... :P

Till Then,

Scott

You asked for it!

Usually, I feel that the reviews of Pluggedinonline.com are rather overbearing and perhaps a little ultra-conservative. Often times their reviewers will mention "negative elements" of a certain film and I won't even notice the scene when I do eventually watch the movie. Yeah, they're that picky about their reviews. I suppose that this attitude is understandable considering the general feelings of the audience that they are catering to (other ultra conservative, super picky, "Christian" parents).
So most of the time, I am rather frusterated when they give movies, such as The Matrix, Fight Club, V for Vendetta and other such R rated films with very healthy themes, a bad rap. But then there is every now and then a film that absolutely deserves every stereotypical Christian insult a film reviewer can give a movie. What do you think I am talking about............ of COURSE!!!! You guessed it; slasher flicks.
Specifically, I am talking about the new film The Strangers. I just read the review from pluggedinonline and I could not agree more.

WARNING: IF YOU REALLY DESIRE TO SEE THIS SICK AND TWISTED FILM, DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPHS. SPOILERS TO FOLLOW...

The film begins with a guy proposing to a girl, she says no. They go to house out in the middle of nowhere. (I do not know all the plot particulars, so I have no idea why they would spend a romantic weekend together after this guy had just be burned so badly.)
Anyway, the girl starts seeing things. The guy thinks that she is going crazy. Then three people in masks burn his car and ax in the front door and chase the couple around the house, until they finally catch them, tie them up and torture them to death. Heck, yeah...... that's a movie I want to watch. *rolls eyes*
The film also claims to be based on true events. I doubt that they are, but even if it's true... why should that matter? Why do you have to make a film about it and torture a theater audience as well. But then, if you buy a ticket, you signed up for it.

So go ahead, desensitize yourself. It should be fun!!!! (that was biting sarcasm, just so you know.......)

The plugged in online article can be found here.

Scott