Firefly. Why was this show cancelled??? WHY???
Old Joss can't seem to get a break with TV these days. With this superb series not being given the recognition or support it deserved, and then having to cope with Angel getting canned, despite being the joint winner of the Saturn "Best Network TV Series" award alongside CSI, Mr. Whedon could have been forgiven for calling it a day. Thankfully though, he didn't - and now Firefly is destined to live on in the upcoming movie Serenity. The reason the movie got made? Fans of Firefly snapped up DVD boxsets to the tune of 200,000 units. So, think about this. The show is pulled because it had poor ratings (nice one, Fox). Why did it have poor ratings? Let's see.
1.) Fox played the series episodes out of order. Yes, they skipped over the 90 minute pilot which had the minor inconvenience of introducing the characters and there was that small matter of establishing a plot, and went straight to episode two about a train heist with little backstory. No wonder people didn't have a bloody clue what was going on. Fox's excuse for this absurdity? "There wasn't enough action in the pilot." Ahhh, of course. Who wants to have that pesky 'exposition' nonsense when you can dive straight into a series with NO CLUE AS TO WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON. Good one. Maybe that's why every single episode of 24 (that I can recall) has someone in it being shot or dying. It all becomes clear. Plot = bad. Death = good.
2.) Fox didn't advertise the show. This is a program by Joss Whedon. He is responsible for those minor TV shows Buffy and Angel. So of course, Firefly was destined to be insignificant too, I guess. Why these networks don't advertise new "cult" shows is beyond me. Warner Brothers scrapped Angel despite the most ridiculously huge fan appeal seen for a TV show on record. We're talking mobile billboards and sending cakes to the producers. Perhaps they're so busy making CSI spin-offs, they believe that something a bit more original than another cop show won't be of interest. Can't wait until CSI: Scunthorpe hits the screens. Fact: 200,000 DVD sales can't be wrong.
3.) Fox kept moving the timeslot. Hey, we've got a new show! What's the best way to attract viewers? Move the timeslot so they don't know when the F**K it's going to be on. Nice one. That'll establish a regular base of ... umm ... channel hoppers. I really despair sometimes.
Interesting isn't it. You sell 200k of boxsets, and suddenly people are interested in your show again. So interested in fact, that they're willing to give you $45 MILLION to make a film. A sum that could easily have made two more series. The figures don't add up. The reviews certainly do though - I've not seen an SF magazine/site that has given it less than a 5 star rating. Here's an example. And (thank the gods), it has a 15 rating so we can actually see more adult themes. I, for one, will be heading to the big screen to watch this. That's assuming the cinemas don't class it as a "cult" movie and portion it off to a one-week, one-screen showing, leaving independents to laud its efforts. Now, if only I can convince Gilly to come along. Well, I sat through Pride and Prejudice and was forced to look at Keira Knightley for 2 hours so I think she owes me. She may even be surprised and like the film, as I did with hers.
What else has been in the news recently? Well, it looks like Michelle "all chin, no talent" Rodriguez of SWAT and Resident Evil infamy will be a new recurring character on Lost. Why? WHY? (I ask that a lot these days). There are things in my fridge that could act better. I really hope she doesn't put me off the show - the first episode of the new season was stonking, and she hasn't appeared yet. Episode 3 is the one to watch out for apparently. Can't wait.
Also, I'm writing a sitcom with my good friend Wayne. Highly top secret and highly hilarious, it will take about likely 2 years to write the first episode, put together as it is via the medium of emails and ideas hastily written over every lunch break. More detail to follow. In about 6 months, probably.
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
And it was all yellllllllllow
That would be my shoulder, after being shot about fifteen times in the same place with paintballs. I still love paintball though. I just can't see how other similar war games like airsoft (with plastic pellets) or laser games can compete with the actual thrill of paintball. With the former, there's no "marks" left, so it's quite easy to get shot and pretend you weren't hit. With lasers, there's no danger and no adrenaline rush. Anyway, a good time was had by all, and Chris got suitably drunk so the mission was accomplished. He really needs to get to uni though, and harden up his alcohol system ;o)
Friday was fun. I went to Oxford for the Deal or No Deal audition. To start, we watched the French version, which to be honest, was bloody good TV. Very tense, but also enjoyable - a word I never thought I'd use to describe French media. Anyway, after that the first thing they made us all do was charades - I pulled "skydiver" out of a hat, and expertly acted it out by hurling myself on the floor. They got it straight away. Maybe I should go into film. Then there was "Wheel of Doom" where you played a version of Russian roulette on a cardboard wheel (hole in one wheel, 16 symbols underneath, 15 good, 1 bad) - you had to decide whether to move it on one place or stick where you were. I played a woman, and she lost. Yes, it was that exciting! Then we had a psychology questionnaire to find out if you are a team player. Then there was a general knowledge paper (20 questions) with such taxing queries as "What is the capital of Australia?", and "In what book did Captain Nemo pilot the Nautilus?" The only one I got stuck on was "What is number 1 in the charts?" - didn't have a clue. To be honest, I'm quite proud of that. Then there was a 30 second interview where you have to talk about yourself. I hate doing that. Luckily, I got prompted - "what do you enjoy doing?" - so was able to prattle on for the remaining time. No idea if I got on the show - the last thing they ask is "Are you likely to be available for a 3 or 4 week period?" Erm, yes - I like nothing better than sitting in a hotel for a month, waiting to see if I MAY have got on a show. They said they knew it was unlikely for most people - I think they were looking for people to cover pull-outs.
On the train back to Bristol, I arrived at Bristol Parkway and asked three staff when the next train to Temple Meads was. "Oh, this delayed one - should be here at 17:35." So I jumped on it. After 20 minutes, we were still going, so I was getting a bit concerned. I asked a woman next to me what the next stop was. "Newport". Superb. How difficult is it to work out where a train stops? I wouldn't mind but there were THREE PEOPLE on the platform and they had a big discussion about it before telling me to get on the wrong train! So I then got off at Newport and luckily there was a direct train back to Temple Meads. But on the way back, two miles from the station, a group of 10 kids on an embankment hurled a brick at the train, and the window 3 places in front of me got hit. Luckily it was tough so it splintered and took the brunt, and only a few pieces of glass fell onto the inside. For a minute though, it was quite worrying. I thought someone had splattered themselves on the top of the train after jumping off a bridge. The train dropped to a crawl and I managed to get back to Bristol about 2 hours later than intended. Joy.
So now it's a case of waiting for a call from Endemol, which probably won't come (I like to be pessimistic; there's more chance of being pleasantly surprised). In the meantime, I've gotten hold of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City so I'm working my way through the missions. The radio controlled helicopter mission is possibly the most frustrating thing I've ever seen on a PC game though. Some Playstation ports really need to be thought about a bit more carefully.
Ok, time to whack some scum. Later!
Friday was fun. I went to Oxford for the Deal or No Deal audition. To start, we watched the French version, which to be honest, was bloody good TV. Very tense, but also enjoyable - a word I never thought I'd use to describe French media. Anyway, after that the first thing they made us all do was charades - I pulled "skydiver" out of a hat, and expertly acted it out by hurling myself on the floor. They got it straight away. Maybe I should go into film. Then there was "Wheel of Doom" where you played a version of Russian roulette on a cardboard wheel (hole in one wheel, 16 symbols underneath, 15 good, 1 bad) - you had to decide whether to move it on one place or stick where you were. I played a woman, and she lost. Yes, it was that exciting! Then we had a psychology questionnaire to find out if you are a team player. Then there was a general knowledge paper (20 questions) with such taxing queries as "What is the capital of Australia?", and "In what book did Captain Nemo pilot the Nautilus?" The only one I got stuck on was "What is number 1 in the charts?" - didn't have a clue. To be honest, I'm quite proud of that. Then there was a 30 second interview where you have to talk about yourself. I hate doing that. Luckily, I got prompted - "what do you enjoy doing?" - so was able to prattle on for the remaining time. No idea if I got on the show - the last thing they ask is "Are you likely to be available for a 3 or 4 week period?" Erm, yes - I like nothing better than sitting in a hotel for a month, waiting to see if I MAY have got on a show. They said they knew it was unlikely for most people - I think they were looking for people to cover pull-outs.
On the train back to Bristol, I arrived at Bristol Parkway and asked three staff when the next train to Temple Meads was. "Oh, this delayed one - should be here at 17:35." So I jumped on it. After 20 minutes, we were still going, so I was getting a bit concerned. I asked a woman next to me what the next stop was. "Newport". Superb. How difficult is it to work out where a train stops? I wouldn't mind but there were THREE PEOPLE on the platform and they had a big discussion about it before telling me to get on the wrong train! So I then got off at Newport and luckily there was a direct train back to Temple Meads. But on the way back, two miles from the station, a group of 10 kids on an embankment hurled a brick at the train, and the window 3 places in front of me got hit. Luckily it was tough so it splintered and took the brunt, and only a few pieces of glass fell onto the inside. For a minute though, it was quite worrying. I thought someone had splattered themselves on the top of the train after jumping off a bridge. The train dropped to a crawl and I managed to get back to Bristol about 2 hours later than intended. Joy.
So now it's a case of waiting for a call from Endemol, which probably won't come (I like to be pessimistic; there's more chance of being pleasantly surprised). In the meantime, I've gotten hold of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City so I'm working my way through the missions. The radio controlled helicopter mission is possibly the most frustrating thing I've ever seen on a PC game though. Some Playstation ports really need to be thought about a bit more carefully.
Ok, time to whack some scum. Later!
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Frantic...
...is the only way to describe the coming week. On Tuesday, I'm going to Poole with Mark for training on a new CMS that we've bought for the company. I'll be staying in a hotel until Thursday, and then driving back Thursday night. The following morning I've got a trip to Oxford, for a quiz show audition. Yes indeed, Gameshow Rob is looking to top his current winning quiz run of 2 for 2 by auditioning for Endemol's new quiz imported from Australia: Deal or No Deal. It looks like a cross between Millionaire and Take Your Pick - a more detailed breakdown of the Oz version is here.
The top prize for the UK show is, I believe, £100,000. This amount would sit quite nicely in my bank account, or so my financial advisor tells me. Anyway, unlike Brainteaser and Memory Bank where I answered 20 questions on the phone, this is a full blown audition with
up to 50 people. My chances of getting on to the show are therefore slim, and the chance of winning is even slimmer. But still, can't hurt to try.
After that, I'll be travelling back to Bristol to pack up some things before heading down for a weekend in Plymouth. It's Chris's 18th, so we'll be paintballing from morning to evening on the Saturday. Then I'll be travelling back to Bristol on the Sunday. I am going to be utterly knackered.
I started playing Shining Wisdom this weekend on the Saturn. Not a bad little Zelda clone, and it still has the unique feel of the Shining series thanks to Team Sonic. I think it's going to be a little bigger than I originally thought, though. My intention was to play through the 5 RPGs I have on the Saturn and then sell it off and make enough cash on eBay to fund a Playstation 2. But now that Sony have announced that the Playstation 3 will be backwards compatible with both PS2 and PS1 games, I may just have to hold out and get one of those. Hopefully by that time I'll have won £100,000 so a new console will be but a drop in the ocean. One can dream, no?
The top prize for the UK show is, I believe, £100,000. This amount would sit quite nicely in my bank account, or so my financial advisor tells me. Anyway, unlike Brainteaser and Memory Bank where I answered 20 questions on the phone, this is a full blown audition with
up to 50 people. My chances of getting on to the show are therefore slim, and the chance of winning is even slimmer. But still, can't hurt to try.
After that, I'll be travelling back to Bristol to pack up some things before heading down for a weekend in Plymouth. It's Chris's 18th, so we'll be paintballing from morning to evening on the Saturday. Then I'll be travelling back to Bristol on the Sunday. I am going to be utterly knackered.
I started playing Shining Wisdom this weekend on the Saturn. Not a bad little Zelda clone, and it still has the unique feel of the Shining series thanks to Team Sonic. I think it's going to be a little bigger than I originally thought, though. My intention was to play through the 5 RPGs I have on the Saturn and then sell it off and make enough cash on eBay to fund a Playstation 2. But now that Sony have announced that the Playstation 3 will be backwards compatible with both PS2 and PS1 games, I may just have to hold out and get one of those. Hopefully by that time I'll have won £100,000 so a new console will be but a drop in the ocean. One can dream, no?
Sunday, August 28, 2005
The Things You Do For Your Art
I passed my yellow belt Bushido grading today. Three and a half hours of torture. Luckily, the actual grading was only 30 minutes, but that only stopped just on the point where I was about to collapse. After performing the yellow belt kata (Bushido Sho) and the Geri Waza for the 7th time, my legs almost fell off. Well, they felt like they did, anyway. Unfortunately, I arrived home fully intending to sleep...but found myself too tired to do so. I'm probably still too psyched up, which is going to be fun, since I'm up at 7am tomorrow for a trip back to Whitchurch.
Today's post title is also a reference to The Machinist - a film where Christian Bale literally starved himself and lost almost 4 stone of weight to play a factory worker who may or may not be losing his mind. The film builds up to a revelation that was more "ohhhhh, ok" rather than "Wow!", but it's worth seeing just for Bale's performance - even better than American Psycho. It's a grimy, bleak picture painted in assorted greys, browns and blacks, but it has imagery that will burn itself indelibly into your memory.
I would write more, but I am far too tired right now. My bed awaits.
Today's post title is also a reference to The Machinist - a film where Christian Bale literally starved himself and lost almost 4 stone of weight to play a factory worker who may or may not be losing his mind. The film builds up to a revelation that was more "ohhhhh, ok" rather than "Wow!", but it's worth seeing just for Bale's performance - even better than American Psycho. It's a grimy, bleak picture painted in assorted greys, browns and blacks, but it has imagery that will burn itself indelibly into your memory.
I would write more, but I am far too tired right now. My bed awaits.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Unfeasible!
If you haven’t already checked it out, take a look at Beaver and Steve – thanks to Gilly for the link to this superb strip. While we’re on the subject, also check out Penny Arcade and CtrlAltDel, two excellent gaming strips.
A few more records made it into my search for the “Perfect Album”:
ELO – Time
A true classic, not only was it ahead of its time in terms of both sound and production, but it still holds its own brilliantly today. ELO’s best album, it was a move away from their prog-rock roots and into the territory of popular music – incredibly, this album is almost 25 years old but seems as fresh today as it was back then, mainly because of the quality of its tracks. When you have hook-laden offerings such as Twilight, and Hold On Tight mingled with more poignant songs like Ticket To The Moon, Rain Is Falling and the oddly affecting Yours Truly, 2095 (about the future of man’s "relationship" with computers), and with a dash of political statement (Here Is The News), you have an album that is both well-written, exquisitely produced and ultimately satisfying.
Feeder – Echo Park
Like Ash, 2001 was the year for creating something a little bit special – and for Feeder, it was Echo Park that finally kicked them into the spotlight. Creating a sound unlike anything they’d produced before, and coupling it with some atrocious lyrics (example - “Get up, shut up, give me Nurofen Plus”), the album worked. Why? Because it was so damn catchy. Every single track on this record is a stonking achievement of sound over substance. Melodic riffs and punk pop abound, with more table-banging singles than you can throw a small horde of students at. Do the lyrics make sense? No. Does it sound like the band exhausted every page of the Acme™ Rhyming Dictionary? Yes. Do we care? Hell, no. Ask yourself when you’re manically jumping up and down and screaming “CD PLAYER-PLAYER-PLAYER!!!” in the Student’s Union whether you stopped to think about the words coming out of your mouth. I’d bet the answer would be “no”. That, my friend, is why this album is utterly superb.
More to come soon.
What else has happened recently? Well, last weekend Gilly took me to see some of London's...umm..sights, including the National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Natural History Museum and Science Museum. This was followed by a Sunday lunch at the Duck in the Pond, where the staff succeeded in providing me a roast chicken dinner (including potatoes, stuffing, beans and Yorkshire Pudding). I didn't want carrots or parsnips, so I asked for everything except that. Easy enough, eh? No, they forgot to give me the stuffing. Or the Yorkshire Pudding. Or, get this, the chicken. So I sat there dumbfounded, staring at my plate of potatoes and green beans, trying to comprehend what must have gone through the head of the kitchen worker who was piling my plate up. "Wow, so he ordered a roast chicken dinner, but he doesn't want anything but potatoes and green beans? OK, no problem." What I'd actually said was "The only veg I want is potatoes and green beans." It's tough sometimes. Still, the Pinot Grigio took the edge off the situation.
My Bushido yellow belt grading is on Sunday. It's amazing how different this martial art is to the Kung Fu I did at university. It's a lot more involved, and I've learned far more in the 5 months I've been doing this than I did in the whole 2 years I did Kung Fu. In fact I probably learned more in the first month. Hopefully the grading will go OK, fingers crossed. I better go practice some more.
Ciao.
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
On The Jukebox Tonight:
This Kiss - big props to Faith Hill for managing to write a song that rhymed "centrifugal", "perpetual", "pivotal" and "subliminal". Shame she's not done much else since. I also think I deserve some praise for using the phrase "big props" in that first sentence. Props, as you all know, is a US term meaning "proper respect". I'm trying to resist the urge to append the word "innit".
I've been thinking recently about music and more importantly, The Perfect Album. That is to say, an album so incredibly good that it has not one single track that could be labelled either "filler" or "crap". It's a hard task to find such an album, and I've heard many in the short quarter of a life I've lead thus far. But I've come up with a few candidates. This is of course, hugely subjective. Then again, a blog is just that anyway, so I'm not going to apologise.
1.) Pearl Jam - Ten
An album so utterly well produced, that it sends shivers down my spine each and every time I listen to it. Not a single track is wasted, from the stunning opening of Once to Even Flow, Garden, Black .... hell, they're all good. Not only that, but it is without a doubt the greatest debut album of any band in the history of the world, ever. There would be nothing Pearl Jam could do that would ever top this phenomenal record, and though they tried, Ys and Yield just couldn't match it. If I'd have been them, I would have retired then and there.
2.) Jon Bon Jovi - Destination Anywhere
Taking a break from their strutting arena pop-rock, Jon and Richie went their separate ways for a while to record solo studio albums. Jon certainly should have stayed away. This is far and away the most brilliant thing he has ever created. It's not your usual big lickin' riff-happy crowd-pleasin' amalgamation. Indeed, it's a lot darker and moodier than anything Bon Jovi ever produced and may be the reason why it was criminally rejected by the mainstream crowd despite critical acclamation. Tracks like August 7, 4:15 (a song about the murder of his manager's daughter). Midnight in Chelsea and my personal favourite Little City give you a brooding feeling of small-town depression, whilst the pick-me-ups such as Queen of New Orleans and the title track balance things out nicely. Even non-Bon Jovi fans should like this album, and that's a big statement to make.
3.) Ash - Free All Angels
2001 - the year that Ash finally got things right, before saying "sod this" and flitting back into relatively heavy Indie rock territory. But the brief hiatus from their normal guitar slamming allowed Tim Wheeler and Co. to create one of the best pop-punk albums of the last 10 years. Not even Green Day have an album that can match the infectious freshness that Free All Angels washes lovingly over your CD player. Kicking off with possibly one of the best opening tracks on any album (yes, yes, Smells Like Teen Spirit was pretty good too...) Walking Barefoot was clearly a winner of a single. Except, it didn't get released. Wheeler didn't seem to think a song about summer would sit too well in the charts around the Christmas period. Personally, I'd have held off on the album for 6 months before pumping that baby out there. Still, Burn Baby Burn, arguably one of the most infectious guitar pop tracks ever produced, made it into the top 3. And when you're a band like Ash, who will never make it big in the UK singles chart, that's pretty good going. They can take heart from the fact that Bon Jovi have never gotten past number 2 either, and they're not short of a bob or two. Even the (comparably) weaker tracks such as Shark and Candy are eminently catchy. It's an album that lifts you up and fills you with summer joy...something that seems to be missing these days amidst the constant covers and droning R+B.
Anyway, that's three that spring to mind. I have a couple more that I'm considering labelling as Perfect Albums, but I think I need to give them another listen first.
Until next time, pop-pickers!
I've been thinking recently about music and more importantly, The Perfect Album. That is to say, an album so incredibly good that it has not one single track that could be labelled either "filler" or "crap". It's a hard task to find such an album, and I've heard many in the short quarter of a life I've lead thus far. But I've come up with a few candidates. This is of course, hugely subjective. Then again, a blog is just that anyway, so I'm not going to apologise.
1.) Pearl Jam - Ten
An album so utterly well produced, that it sends shivers down my spine each and every time I listen to it. Not a single track is wasted, from the stunning opening of Once to Even Flow, Garden, Black .... hell, they're all good. Not only that, but it is without a doubt the greatest debut album of any band in the history of the world, ever. There would be nothing Pearl Jam could do that would ever top this phenomenal record, and though they tried, Ys and Yield just couldn't match it. If I'd have been them, I would have retired then and there.
2.) Jon Bon Jovi - Destination Anywhere
Taking a break from their strutting arena pop-rock, Jon and Richie went their separate ways for a while to record solo studio albums. Jon certainly should have stayed away. This is far and away the most brilliant thing he has ever created. It's not your usual big lickin' riff-happy crowd-pleasin' amalgamation. Indeed, it's a lot darker and moodier than anything Bon Jovi ever produced and may be the reason why it was criminally rejected by the mainstream crowd despite critical acclamation. Tracks like August 7, 4:15 (a song about the murder of his manager's daughter). Midnight in Chelsea and my personal favourite Little City give you a brooding feeling of small-town depression, whilst the pick-me-ups such as Queen of New Orleans and the title track balance things out nicely. Even non-Bon Jovi fans should like this album, and that's a big statement to make.
3.) Ash - Free All Angels
2001 - the year that Ash finally got things right, before saying "sod this" and flitting back into relatively heavy Indie rock territory. But the brief hiatus from their normal guitar slamming allowed Tim Wheeler and Co. to create one of the best pop-punk albums of the last 10 years. Not even Green Day have an album that can match the infectious freshness that Free All Angels washes lovingly over your CD player. Kicking off with possibly one of the best opening tracks on any album (yes, yes, Smells Like Teen Spirit was pretty good too...) Walking Barefoot was clearly a winner of a single. Except, it didn't get released. Wheeler didn't seem to think a song about summer would sit too well in the charts around the Christmas period. Personally, I'd have held off on the album for 6 months before pumping that baby out there. Still, Burn Baby Burn, arguably one of the most infectious guitar pop tracks ever produced, made it into the top 3. And when you're a band like Ash, who will never make it big in the UK singles chart, that's pretty good going. They can take heart from the fact that Bon Jovi have never gotten past number 2 either, and they're not short of a bob or two. Even the (comparably) weaker tracks such as Shark and Candy are eminently catchy. It's an album that lifts you up and fills you with summer joy...something that seems to be missing these days amidst the constant covers and droning R+B.
Anyway, that's three that spring to mind. I have a couple more that I'm considering labelling as Perfect Albums, but I think I need to give them another listen first.
Until next time, pop-pickers!
Sunday, August 07, 2005
Henry Porter and the Incredibly Obvious Ending
Book 6 of Henry wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be, despite the fact that it was an awfully big book for 500 pages of sod all to happen in, followed by a climax signposted so brazenly that you may as well only read the first three chapters and then skip to the final two. JK still hasn't managed to capture the magic (groan) of the first three books though, which were tightly plotted and with far less exposition than the next three. The final book will undoubtedly decide whether she's made of sterner stuff than I previously gave her credit for; I'm hoping Harry gets the chop. I love unhappy endings.
I went to Swindon yesterday to visit Nick who I've not seen for over 3 years since leaving Intel. It's quite worrying, he's now engaged and has a mortgage, a dog and a vegetable patch. I was expecting him to dress in tweed and run the local golf and country club, but thankfully that slice of suburbia hasn't settled on him. Yet. It was great to catch up - Swindon's still full of the type of nightlife I had no regrets about leaving behind, but it's definitely improved in a lot of places. I've invited him and his girlfr...fianceé... over to experience Bristol hospitality, so when Gilly comes over, we can do the whole "going to dinner as two couples" thing. Wow, I feel old.
On our return last night to his newly built house, we found time to fit in 2 Fast 2 Furious and I impressed myself by managing to stay awake for at least a quarter of it! I think Mr. Diesel knew a bad thing when he saw one. The same can't be said for Samuel L Jackson, in SWAT. The alarm bells should have started ringing when he heard the film tagline, which has to rank as one of the worst in the history of cinema: "Even cops dial 911". Pur-lease. With a twist so obvious that even JK will be taking notes and, in Colin Farrell, a performance so bland it makes Seagal look charismatic, SWAT was one of those generic action films that had the chance to be so much better but ultimately played it safe. And most of the time, incomprehensible. Case in point 1: the chief in charge of the SWAT team wants it to fail, just to score points against Jackson's character. Ummm...ok? Case in point 2: It takes HOW many days for one of the world's most wanted criminals to sit in a police cell, before someone realises who he is? Great policework, guys! Throw into the team some generic white guys (one has a moustache so you can tell them apart), a rapper trying to act (what IS it with that these days?) and a latino woman who does little but snarl and stomp round whilst glaring at her colleagues menacingly (Michelle Rodriguez, reprising the exact same role from Resident Evil), and you have the perfect ingredients for wasting a lot of studio dollars. Ah well Sammy, you can't win them all.
Here's a little game I'm hooked on, in between FF8 stints: Acrophobia. Fiendishly simple, I used to play this during the second year of uni before it simply disappeared into a void. But it's been resurrected by Uproar (set pop-up blocker to "Kill"), and the format is exactly the same. So go and make up some funny definitions of acronyms and earn the respect of your peers.
TTYL.
I went to Swindon yesterday to visit Nick who I've not seen for over 3 years since leaving Intel. It's quite worrying, he's now engaged and has a mortgage, a dog and a vegetable patch. I was expecting him to dress in tweed and run the local golf and country club, but thankfully that slice of suburbia hasn't settled on him. Yet. It was great to catch up - Swindon's still full of the type of nightlife I had no regrets about leaving behind, but it's definitely improved in a lot of places. I've invited him and his girlfr...fianceé... over to experience Bristol hospitality, so when Gilly comes over, we can do the whole "going to dinner as two couples" thing. Wow, I feel old.
On our return last night to his newly built house, we found time to fit in 2 Fast 2 Furious and I impressed myself by managing to stay awake for at least a quarter of it! I think Mr. Diesel knew a bad thing when he saw one. The same can't be said for Samuel L Jackson, in SWAT. The alarm bells should have started ringing when he heard the film tagline, which has to rank as one of the worst in the history of cinema: "Even cops dial 911". Pur-lease. With a twist so obvious that even JK will be taking notes and, in Colin Farrell, a performance so bland it makes Seagal look charismatic, SWAT was one of those generic action films that had the chance to be so much better but ultimately played it safe. And most of the time, incomprehensible. Case in point 1: the chief in charge of the SWAT team wants it to fail, just to score points against Jackson's character. Ummm...ok? Case in point 2: It takes HOW many days for one of the world's most wanted criminals to sit in a police cell, before someone realises who he is? Great policework, guys! Throw into the team some generic white guys (one has a moustache so you can tell them apart), a rapper trying to act (what IS it with that these days?) and a latino woman who does little but snarl and stomp round whilst glaring at her colleagues menacingly (Michelle Rodriguez, reprising the exact same role from Resident Evil), and you have the perfect ingredients for wasting a lot of studio dollars. Ah well Sammy, you can't win them all.
Here's a little game I'm hooked on, in between FF8 stints: Acrophobia. Fiendishly simple, I used to play this during the second year of uni before it simply disappeared into a void. But it's been resurrected by Uproar (set pop-up blocker to "Kill"), and the format is exactly the same. So go and make up some funny definitions of acronyms and earn the respect of your peers.
TTYL.
Friday, July 29, 2005
Finally...
Wow. That was a long break. Finally moved in to the new place and, incredibly, condensed all of my stuff into a room half the size of my old one. The new place is great. Far, far less "studenty", this place actually has carpets in the living room and hall! It's also nice to get away from a house that consistently stunk of smoke due to Kasia's habit of lighting up in the kitching and living room. And it's CLEAN! Not a mouse in sight, awesome. No more Polish meals using up 3 pans and thirty plates; I'm in heaven. I will state here for the record: I will never, EVER live with an Eastern European again. And congratulations Kasia, you've put me off ever wanting to visit your country.
So life continues ever onward. Once I've got my finances in order and the bond is back in my account from the old house, I've decided to start fencing. No, I don't mean with hammer and nails, I mean with a sword and a sieve on my face. For £30, I get 6 lessons followed by a month's membership. Bargain. If I hate it, it's cost me the same as two Bushido lessons. Speaking of which, my first Bushido grading is on August 27th. I am pretty sure I won't be ready for it. It's a mere 4 weeks away! Last Monday I got taught a little Aikido which was awesome. I much prefer it to the karate side of Bushido - a big guy can take a few kicks without pause, but if you get him in a wrist lock and he weighs 20 stone, he is going DOWN (and a lot faster than a smaller person).
Tonight I'm taking Gilly to San Carlo on Corn Street. It's supposed to be a quality Italian restaurant, with all the staff and owners having moved over from there. My experience with shrimp in Skiathos has given me the taste for seafood, so I'll probably end up choosing something fishy...but they are also supposed to do a great steak too. Ah, the choices.
Final Fantasy 8 progresses, disc 2 and counting. I'll soon be looking to play the next one, but instead of getting a PS1, I'll probably just skip a generation and get a PS2. They're backwards compatible so it makes more sense. And I've not seen a console churn out more quality RPGs than the Playstation, not since the Megadrive/SNES days anyway. So if anyone has a PS2 for sale, let me know. They'll be coming down in price soon anyway with the imminent release of the PS3. Wonder if the PS3 is going to be backwards compatible too?
Toodle-oo.
So life continues ever onward. Once I've got my finances in order and the bond is back in my account from the old house, I've decided to start fencing. No, I don't mean with hammer and nails, I mean with a sword and a sieve on my face. For £30, I get 6 lessons followed by a month's membership. Bargain. If I hate it, it's cost me the same as two Bushido lessons. Speaking of which, my first Bushido grading is on August 27th. I am pretty sure I won't be ready for it. It's a mere 4 weeks away! Last Monday I got taught a little Aikido which was awesome. I much prefer it to the karate side of Bushido - a big guy can take a few kicks without pause, but if you get him in a wrist lock and he weighs 20 stone, he is going DOWN (and a lot faster than a smaller person).
Tonight I'm taking Gilly to San Carlo on Corn Street. It's supposed to be a quality Italian restaurant, with all the staff and owners having moved over from there. My experience with shrimp in Skiathos has given me the taste for seafood, so I'll probably end up choosing something fishy...but they are also supposed to do a great steak too. Ah, the choices.
Final Fantasy 8 progresses, disc 2 and counting. I'll soon be looking to play the next one, but instead of getting a PS1, I'll probably just skip a generation and get a PS2. They're backwards compatible so it makes more sense. And I've not seen a console churn out more quality RPGs than the Playstation, not since the Megadrive/SNES days anyway. So if anyone has a PS2 for sale, let me know. They'll be coming down in price soon anyway with the imminent release of the PS3. Wonder if the PS3 is going to be backwards compatible too?
Toodle-oo.
Sunday, July 17, 2005
Housetastic!
It's been a while, as the last week has been so damn hectic. We've finally got a deposit down on a house. Whilst not perfect (one of the rooms is pretty small, so it'll be in the lap of the gods as to who gets it), it's really nicely decorated and with the absence of any Polish hurricanes this time round, it may well stay that way. Moving in date: next Saturday, if all goes well. That will then give us another week to shift remaining stuff over there, and clean up the existing place. God knows what Kasia's room is going to look like...from the outside looking in, you can barely see anything thanks to the perpetual fog of cigarette smoke lingering in the room like a Jehovah's Witness who just won't take a hint.
Decided to boot up Final Fantasy 8 again, and instantly lost myself for 2 and a half hours this afternoon. They could easily make a spin-off based around the card mini-game in it, that alone could eat up hours of your life. Then again, maybe they have. I'm not as up to date on the gaming scene as I once was. Maybe when I finally get enough cash saved for a new PC, things will be different. But along with a PC, I could really use around 6 months holiday a year. That would be nice.
A Clash of Kings progresses well. The start was a little slow, as Martin is trying to re-introduce all the characters again. I'm sure it'll kick in soon though. The new Henry Porter book was released yesterday to gaggles of screaming teenagers, some of whom had been queueing for up to 18 hours. Yes, EIGHTEEN HOURS in a queue, just to get a damn book. Now THAT, my friends, is the power of marketing. By all accounts, the reviews are not pretty. "Chundering", "stale" and "disjointed" are what I've heard so far, which tallies up with the state of the last book. Luckily, I won't need to buy it as Gilly pre-ordered hers about 3 months ago. Still, old J.K. can rest assured in the knowledge that even if the last book bombs, she'll still have over half a billion quid tucked away for a rainy day. Not bad for someone who has had just 6 books published. Apparently Book 7 may be some time because the movie franchise needs to catch up (they are currently 2 books behind, if you take into account that film 4 is out this year). Methinks a change of cast may be needed, unless you want 17 year old Henry to be played by a middle-aged chap with drooping jowls and a water retention problem. OK, so the actors may not be that old by then, but I've developed a taste for hyperbole and I'm going to wield it like a member of the Opposition.
Anyway, I think I may head up to the White Bear with Andy for the quiz a bit later and see if I can inject some monetary adrenaline into my flagging bank account.
Toodle pip.
Decided to boot up Final Fantasy 8 again, and instantly lost myself for 2 and a half hours this afternoon. They could easily make a spin-off based around the card mini-game in it, that alone could eat up hours of your life. Then again, maybe they have. I'm not as up to date on the gaming scene as I once was. Maybe when I finally get enough cash saved for a new PC, things will be different. But along with a PC, I could really use around 6 months holiday a year. That would be nice.
A Clash of Kings progresses well. The start was a little slow, as Martin is trying to re-introduce all the characters again. I'm sure it'll kick in soon though. The new Henry Porter book was released yesterday to gaggles of screaming teenagers, some of whom had been queueing for up to 18 hours. Yes, EIGHTEEN HOURS in a queue, just to get a damn book. Now THAT, my friends, is the power of marketing. By all accounts, the reviews are not pretty. "Chundering", "stale" and "disjointed" are what I've heard so far, which tallies up with the state of the last book. Luckily, I won't need to buy it as Gilly pre-ordered hers about 3 months ago. Still, old J.K. can rest assured in the knowledge that even if the last book bombs, she'll still have over half a billion quid tucked away for a rainy day. Not bad for someone who has had just 6 books published. Apparently Book 7 may be some time because the movie franchise needs to catch up (they are currently 2 books behind, if you take into account that film 4 is out this year). Methinks a change of cast may be needed, unless you want 17 year old Henry to be played by a middle-aged chap with drooping jowls and a water retention problem. OK, so the actors may not be that old by then, but I've developed a taste for hyperbole and I'm going to wield it like a member of the Opposition.
Anyway, I think I may head up to the White Bear with Andy for the quiz a bit later and see if I can inject some monetary adrenaline into my flagging bank account.
Toodle pip.
Monday, July 11, 2005
War of the Worlds vs Batman Begins
I really wanted to love War of the Worlds. I did. The problem is, it was too well-promoted for me to expect anything less than a classic film. Therein, I was disappointed. Maybe if I'd read the book, I'd have been aware of how it ends and so not left gaping at the screen with an "Uh?" expression on my face. When I say "ends", I mean "cuts off". Finito, done, dusted, over. Like a guillotine through the film's tape. A quick explanation, then rolling credits. You think "hmm...ok." Then you think about the film, and you think about Tom Cruise's character.
“Hey, let’s drive our stolen minivan through that enormous throng of desperate pedestrians -- that sure won’t cause us any hardship!”
“Y’know, since those multiple, unstoppable, fast-approaching death machines are mercilessly attacking us, let’s all climb aboard this extremely vulnerable ferryboat -- they’ll never catch us then!”
“Gee, let’s all scuffle about behind this 48-inch tall antique mirror -- then that persistent, evil, well-lighted camera-sensor-tentacle thingy certainly won’t notice us!”
Come on. Spielberg can do decent sci-fi. Close Encounters (a little over-rated) and Minority Report proved that. So instead of turning a thoughtful science fiction novel (albeit with the same lax ending) into a schmaltzy treatise about parenting, why not give the audience something less sickly to get engrossed in? Independence Day worked because it was a) cheesy, b) fun and c) mixed them both with decent thrills. WOTW takes itself way too seriously, and as such, loses a lot of credibility.
Batman Begins, on the other hand, is superb. Every detail, from Christian Bale's brooding hero to Liam Neeson's morality-choked villain, via Gary Oldman's superb playing-against-type Sergeant Gordon, is fantastic. Like Michael Keaton, Bale has the quirkiness to fit the role - something that Kilmer and Clooney's pretty-but-empty presences lacked. Even the plot was a lot more plausible, albeit very similar to the original film's chemical shenanigans. And despite the fact that Christopher "Memento" Nolan rewrote Wayne's parent/Joker link, the film still works. Something that works in favour of the film is the way all the science is explained. Bruce Wayne isn't an invulnerable superhero, he's a guy that kicks ass purely because he put himself in situations where he got beaten up and had to defend himself. He doesn't have awesome technology just lying around, it's been taken from the scientific research department of his company and manufactured to fit his alter-ego and funded by his vast wealth. Most films expect you to assume this no questions asked...that's why this film is different, and therefore a little bit special.
Here's hoping the Bale/Nolan partnership continues for many films to come.
“Hey, let’s drive our stolen minivan through that enormous throng of desperate pedestrians -- that sure won’t cause us any hardship!”
“Y’know, since those multiple, unstoppable, fast-approaching death machines are mercilessly attacking us, let’s all climb aboard this extremely vulnerable ferryboat -- they’ll never catch us then!”
“Gee, let’s all scuffle about behind this 48-inch tall antique mirror -- then that persistent, evil, well-lighted camera-sensor-tentacle thingy certainly won’t notice us!”
Come on. Spielberg can do decent sci-fi. Close Encounters (a little over-rated) and Minority Report proved that. So instead of turning a thoughtful science fiction novel (albeit with the same lax ending) into a schmaltzy treatise about parenting, why not give the audience something less sickly to get engrossed in? Independence Day worked because it was a) cheesy, b) fun and c) mixed them both with decent thrills. WOTW takes itself way too seriously, and as such, loses a lot of credibility.
Batman Begins, on the other hand, is superb. Every detail, from Christian Bale's brooding hero to Liam Neeson's morality-choked villain, via Gary Oldman's superb playing-against-type Sergeant Gordon, is fantastic. Like Michael Keaton, Bale has the quirkiness to fit the role - something that Kilmer and Clooney's pretty-but-empty presences lacked. Even the plot was a lot more plausible, albeit very similar to the original film's chemical shenanigans. And despite the fact that Christopher "Memento" Nolan rewrote Wayne's parent/Joker link, the film still works. Something that works in favour of the film is the way all the science is explained. Bruce Wayne isn't an invulnerable superhero, he's a guy that kicks ass purely because he put himself in situations where he got beaten up and had to defend himself. He doesn't have awesome technology just lying around, it's been taken from the scientific research department of his company and manufactured to fit his alter-ego and funded by his vast wealth. Most films expect you to assume this no questions asked...that's why this film is different, and therefore a little bit special.
Here's hoping the Bale/Nolan partnership continues for many films to come.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Whatever happens, we will NEVER live in a climate of fear
British people are nothing if not resolute. Today's attacks by Al-Qaeda terrorists will not have the intended results. Just like September 11th brought renewed resilience in New York and the US, the determination to carry on with normal lives will be forthright tomorrow, and in the coming weeks amongst the British people. The problem terrorists have with trying to dampen our spirit is that we're so damn downhearted most of the time anyway, an event like this only serves to bring us closer together. It would be good if some other changes come about after this though - such as clamping down our borders and kicking out the hate-spewing fanatics littering Britain's city streets.
The British people will only be made stronger by today's events.
The British people will only be made stronger by today's events.
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
He's gone! He's back! He's gone! He's back!
I no longer care! As far as I'm concerned, if Steven Gerrard can't make up his mind whether he wants to play for a team that just won the Champions League then he shouldn't play, it's that simple. A man who claims to want to stay, yet rejects a wage that exceeds the GNP of many countries on the globe only to have a "change of heart" at the eleventh hour is not someone I would want to be passing a ball to if I were in that team. Apparently, he's not going to change his mind again but I'll be damned if I believe that. Give the captain's armband to someone who knows where his roots lie, like Jamie Carragher, and have done with it.
Congratulations to Lord Coe for winning us the Olympics. I bet the London borough councils were loving that. More tax increases, higher house prices, more public money diverted to fund numerous buildings that will become white elephants after a few weeks, and a shedload of people heading over here from other countries (a minority of which, I'm sure, will slip quietly through the cracks of immigration enforcement into the country's underworld). Woo.
On a more positive note, I've finally got my hands on book two of George R R Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire: A Clash of Kings. It's taken me two weeks but I'm sure it is going to be worth the wait. I'm off to bed to get some reading done.
Congratulations to Lord Coe for winning us the Olympics. I bet the London borough councils were loving that. More tax increases, higher house prices, more public money diverted to fund numerous buildings that will become white elephants after a few weeks, and a shedload of people heading over here from other countries (a minority of which, I'm sure, will slip quietly through the cracks of immigration enforcement into the country's underworld). Woo.
On a more positive note, I've finally got my hands on book two of George R R Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire: A Clash of Kings. It's taken me two weeks but I'm sure it is going to be worth the wait. I'm off to bed to get some reading done.
Sunday, July 03, 2005
Live 8
I've just managed to drag myself out of bed after one of those nights where you go for a quiet drink and end up absolutely blotto. Perhaps mixing wine and different types of cider isn't the best thing to do if you want a settled stomach. Ah well, I did get to try 4 different ciders before staggering home from Cotham Porter Stores with Stu and Andy. We also saw the majority of the UK Live 8 broadcast, but by the time it got to the Philadelphia show, I was too tired so in the end I missed the act I wanted to see - Def Leppard. Luckily AOL are rebroadcasting the whole event, and in a few days you should even be able to pick the artists/songs you want to listen to.
So will the concert make a difference? It certainly raised awareness of the plight in Africa, but whether or not it will be concerning the leaders at the G8 Summit is another matter. These people are politicians after all. It seems these days that the only people who use their power, wealth and influence to do anything worthwhile are rock stars. World rulers will do what they want, and be damned with the consequences. Just like Bush cares nothing for the amount of pollution his country is producing, so our leaders will only look after their best interests. The voters are finally speaking up though, the European referendum farce may well be the start of something bigger. People are starting to make their views known, and aren't content with being pushed around by politicians like Blair and Chirac. So maybe Live 8 will make an impact on some level, time will tell I guess.
So will the concert make a difference? It certainly raised awareness of the plight in Africa, but whether or not it will be concerning the leaders at the G8 Summit is another matter. These people are politicians after all. It seems these days that the only people who use their power, wealth and influence to do anything worthwhile are rock stars. World rulers will do what they want, and be damned with the consequences. Just like Bush cares nothing for the amount of pollution his country is producing, so our leaders will only look after their best interests. The voters are finally speaking up though, the European referendum farce may well be the start of something bigger. People are starting to make their views known, and aren't content with being pushed around by politicians like Blair and Chirac. So maybe Live 8 will make an impact on some level, time will tell I guess.
Friday, July 01, 2005
War of the Words
The 12A certification debate rages on. The Daily Mail has launched a campaign to "unmask" the censors who watched War of the Worlds and deemed it suitable for kids of any age to watch it (as long as they're accompanied by an adult). I've not yet seen the film as it is on this weekend's to-do list, but it apparently contains "sustained menace" and scenes of moderate horror. Several children under 12 who have seen it have been "left traumatised". So the Daily Mail's solution? Find out the names of the bastards wot done it and give 'em a good shoein'. Or at least, the middle-class tabloid equivalent. After all, pillorying two people because their opinion about the suitability of a film differs to that of a self-righteous daily rag is perfectly acceptable behaviour. The Sun does it all the time, right?
What the Mail fails to mention is that it was the one behind the campaign to get the 12A rating instated in the first place. When Spiderman came out, the paper couldn't believe the idiotic censor board had given something so harmless a "12" rating. Of course, the violence in Spiderman is just "fine" because it's all comic-book style fisticuffs with not an inch of real menace. Totally suitable for children under 12 apparently, despite the BBFC's decision that it was the most violent film aimed at a young audience that the BBFC has classified. So off they went, campaigning away and eventually the board relented and re-released it as 12A. This certificate is known around the reviewing community with some distate as "12-fuckin'-A", due to the fact that one or two strong words are allowed to be used at this level of certification before it gets bumped up to a "15". Hell's teeth - with all the swearing edited out, I've seen Beverly Hills Cop 2 on TV at 5:30, and John Woo's Broken Arrow showing at midday. So the hypocrisy surrounding this latest vindictive attack is beyond belief. What will printing the names of these two reviewers do, except for stirring up vigilante protesters? It's the board of film classification that passes the films. If you want to talk to someone, try the two people who have their names plastered all over the certificate you see before each film - Quentin Thomas and David Cooke. I'm sure they'd be happy to hear the views of a belligerent Tory tabloid that helped foist the 12A certificate onto the public.
My opinion won't change after I see the film. The certification system is flaky at best - a halfway house between full enforcement and simple resignation to the fact that kids will find a way to see the films they want to see. "12A" is no more than a glorified "PG" - the only difference being that you need to be with an adult to see the former, yet when it comes out on video you have to actually be 12 to buy it since "12A" is a cinema classification and doesn't exist in the video world, thereby contradicting the whole point of the new certificate. Utter madness.
Anyway, that's this Friday's rant over with. Hope it helped your insomnia.
Toodle-pipski.
What the Mail fails to mention is that it was the one behind the campaign to get the 12A rating instated in the first place. When Spiderman came out, the paper couldn't believe the idiotic censor board had given something so harmless a "12" rating. Of course, the violence in Spiderman is just "fine" because it's all comic-book style fisticuffs with not an inch of real menace. Totally suitable for children under 12 apparently, despite the BBFC's decision that it was the most violent film aimed at a young audience that the BBFC has classified. So off they went, campaigning away and eventually the board relented and re-released it as 12A. This certificate is known around the reviewing community with some distate as "12-fuckin'-A", due to the fact that one or two strong words are allowed to be used at this level of certification before it gets bumped up to a "15". Hell's teeth - with all the swearing edited out, I've seen Beverly Hills Cop 2 on TV at 5:30, and John Woo's Broken Arrow showing at midday. So the hypocrisy surrounding this latest vindictive attack is beyond belief. What will printing the names of these two reviewers do, except for stirring up vigilante protesters? It's the board of film classification that passes the films. If you want to talk to someone, try the two people who have their names plastered all over the certificate you see before each film - Quentin Thomas and David Cooke. I'm sure they'd be happy to hear the views of a belligerent Tory tabloid that helped foist the 12A certificate onto the public.
My opinion won't change after I see the film. The certification system is flaky at best - a halfway house between full enforcement and simple resignation to the fact that kids will find a way to see the films they want to see. "12A" is no more than a glorified "PG" - the only difference being that you need to be with an adult to see the former, yet when it comes out on video you have to actually be 12 to buy it since "12A" is a cinema classification and doesn't exist in the video world, thereby contradicting the whole point of the new certificate. Utter madness.
Anyway, that's this Friday's rant over with. Hope it helped your insomnia.
Toodle-pipski.
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Silent protest
They were filming a scene for an upcoming episode of Casualty in the road outside our office today. All the extras were playing protesters, complete with placards. The plot has something to do with paedophiles according to their slogans. The weirdest thing was watching them protest though; since they apparently add the sound later, the extras were waving their fists and signs but were completely silent. It was surreal to watch. I assume the same thing happens in scenes set in dance clubs for a series such as Alias. All these people dancing away randomly to nothing - I couldn't do it, dancing without music is just weird.
I'm listening to Tori Amos as I write this. One day, I may actually hear a song of hers where I understand what she says all the way through. I'm also playing Minesweeper Flags with Gilly who clearly cheats, but does it in such an adorable way that I let it slide. Either that, or I'm just crap. Women have more of a knack for puzzle-type games. My mother used to thrash me at Columns on the Sega Megadrive. She was also addicted to fruit machine simulators on my Amstrad. All of the excitement, none of the risk apparently. And what a team we made playing Streets of Rage, her as Blaze and me as Axel. She rocked.
I need a new badminton racquet. Mine has a handle that's been carefully taped up with Stu's gaffer tape, and it weighs a ton compared to other racquets. Still, it cost me all of £2.50 and has lasted 6 months. You gotta love Sports Soccer.
Cheerybye.
I'm listening to Tori Amos as I write this. One day, I may actually hear a song of hers where I understand what she says all the way through. I'm also playing Minesweeper Flags with Gilly who clearly cheats, but does it in such an adorable way that I let it slide. Either that, or I'm just crap. Women have more of a knack for puzzle-type games. My mother used to thrash me at Columns on the Sega Megadrive. She was also addicted to fruit machine simulators on my Amstrad. All of the excitement, none of the risk apparently. And what a team we made playing Streets of Rage, her as Blaze and me as Axel. She rocked.
I need a new badminton racquet. Mine has a handle that's been carefully taped up with Stu's gaffer tape, and it weighs a ton compared to other racquets. Still, it cost me all of £2.50 and has lasted 6 months. You gotta love Sports Soccer.
Cheerybye.
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
The first rule...
...is that no matter how many times you watch Fight Club it will always rock your pants. Gloriously anarchic and at the same time anti-violent, it's one of those films where repeated viewings deliver more of the message than the first time round. For all the critics that panned it for being bloodthirsty and shallow (this was the first mainstream "violent" movie release after Columbine), perhaps you should try seeing a film for what it is and not what you want it to be.
Heroes 4 progresses nicely. Accustomed to the changes in battles as I am now, I can start to enjoy the little touches that really mark it as one of the best and most enduring series to hit PC. A quick glance at my shelf tells me that I've still got a hell of a lot more games to get through yet before I can justify getting a new computer though. When that happens, and I do actually get to play Half Life 2 as it was meant to be played, it will probably be so far in the future that I'll need something like SCUMM to get it working, just like you need for old LucasArts point and clickies. Speaking of which, Gilly lent me Curse of Monkey Island when we got back from hols, and I booted it up on Friday and finished it on Sunday. I was sure it would be tougher. Ok, so I lied about having no time to blog, but dammit - I type all day at work! She's currently getting narked with the builder in Paris in Broken Sword (which I lent her in exchange for Monkey Island) but it's nice to finally have a girlfriend who is interested in games. I'm sure she'll be asking to borrow the sequel soon...
Heroes 4 progresses nicely. Accustomed to the changes in battles as I am now, I can start to enjoy the little touches that really mark it as one of the best and most enduring series to hit PC. A quick glance at my shelf tells me that I've still got a hell of a lot more games to get through yet before I can justify getting a new computer though. When that happens, and I do actually get to play Half Life 2 as it was meant to be played, it will probably be so far in the future that I'll need something like SCUMM to get it working, just like you need for old LucasArts point and clickies. Speaking of which, Gilly lent me Curse of Monkey Island when we got back from hols, and I booted it up on Friday and finished it on Sunday. I was sure it would be tougher. Ok, so I lied about having no time to blog, but dammit - I type all day at work! She's currently getting narked with the builder in Paris in Broken Sword (which I lent her in exchange for Monkey Island) but it's nice to finally have a girlfriend who is interested in games. I'm sure she'll be asking to borrow the sequel soon...
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Crash! Boom! Bang!
Despite being a rather catchy Roxette number, that's exactly what it's doing outside right now. I've not heard a storm like it for a few years. Greece has sun, we have rain. Sounds about right for summer.
House hunting progresses slowly. The problem with a democratic house is we're too democratic. Everyone knows exactly what they want, and doesn't really want to budge. I think it'd be easier to get a bill passed in the House of Lords than to compromise on our preferences for the new house. If we leave it much longer though, the decision will be made for us - it'll be whatever is left for us to take. Not ideal.
Forgot to mention yesterday that Jon is leaving WebHost Automation. A sad day indeed. Still, he will most likely be doing some contracting for us, so there will be ample chance to exchange pretentious barbs and self-congratulatory witticisms across the McDonald's table.
Adios.
House hunting progresses slowly. The problem with a democratic house is we're too democratic. Everyone knows exactly what they want, and doesn't really want to budge. I think it'd be easier to get a bill passed in the House of Lords than to compromise on our preferences for the new house. If we leave it much longer though, the decision will be made for us - it'll be whatever is left for us to take. Not ideal.
Forgot to mention yesterday that Jon is leaving WebHost Automation. A sad day indeed. Still, he will most likely be doing some contracting for us, so there will be ample chance to exchange pretentious barbs and self-congratulatory witticisms across the McDonald's table.
Adios.
Monday, June 27, 2005
Long time, no blog
Finally got some time to post my first blog since returning from Greece. Had an awesome time, two weeks of sun, sea, sand and DOLPHINS baby! On one of the trips between Alonissos and Skiathos we had a school of four dolphins chasing just ahead of the boat. Absolutely incredible - if the photos turn out well, I'll get them scanned in here. Skiathos was an amazing island, incredibly laid back and with stupendous restaurants. Some of the best meals we had though were in the taverna at the apartments we stayed at. Kristos (who owns the Hermes Apartments and a restaurant and a sports centre in town too) was great. He had apparently poached the chef from one of the restaurants in the town and we didn't have a bad meal while we were there. The room was great: clean, comfortable, loads of space and everything you could need. There was even a hairdryer, much to Gilly's delight. My suitcase (which, like many fond possessions, had been in the family for over 30 years) decided to fall to pieces as we got off the bus at the hotel, so I had to get another one in town. One of the people on the bus with us told me on the way home that I should claim on the insurance. So I went to the service desk in Gatwick to try my luck. And luck was with me - apparently I needed to have filled out a report about the luggage (but it was the start of my hol and couldn't be bothered). She was in a nice mood though, so said "I'll pretend it got damaged in Gatwick, and you can get sent a new suitcase. What was it like?" Now, I knew it was a plastic-coated expandable cardboardy type thing as was popular in the pinnacle of "style" that was the 1970s, but Gilly had other ideas - "It's a hard plastic case!" she exclaimed. I pointed out that it wasn't hard plastic, but by then the nice lady was pointing on a chart at a Samsonite case ... so I went with the flow. Hell, I deserved a decent case. The one I bought in Skiathos already had a hole in it. And no, I don't feel guilty. Back to the holiday. There was a pool, a pool bar/taverna, and a games room on site, where I thrashed Gilly at table tennis every so often. There were two beaches 5 minutes away from the resort and we were bang in the middle of the bus route which meant it was only 1 Euro to pretty much anywhere. Skiathos is a great island if you want to get away from chavs, ladettes and English people with beer guts the size of Mount Olympus (I'm including women here) that can often be found in Crete/Rhodes/Corfu.
I read voraciously over the holiday, getting through Shadows Fall and A Game of Thrones in two weeks. The first was a nice "alternative" fantasy/mystery/theological amalgamation spoiled by a bit of a sappy ending, but the latter was stupendous. I've never got through an 800 page book so quickly in my life. If you've even got the smallest interest of fantasy, I cannot recommend this highly enough. I've now ordered books 2 and 3 via eBay but I have a feeling they won't last me that long once they arrive. Book 4 is out in September at least. And there's that other thing out in July that people are on about - Henry Porter or something like that. Apparently it's quite a popular series...
If I went to Greece again, it'd be in September. Same weather as June, but the sea will have warmed up. Mind you, with the temperature at the heat it was, I was quite glad of a cool dip every so often. If only the water wasn't so damn salty...ick. Next year I think Croatia is on the cards. Great views off the Dalmatian coast and even cheaper food. When she found out that ice cream was about 35p a scoop, Gilly nearly booked a holiday then and there. I'll definitely be heading back to Skiathos in a few years though. Pack the sun cream though, especially for July and August - I burnt in June so I'd probably be toast if I went any later (I did last 11 days before burning though, which has to be a record).
Anyway, I'm all Bushido'd out so I'm heading to bed. Nighty night.
I read voraciously over the holiday, getting through Shadows Fall and A Game of Thrones in two weeks. The first was a nice "alternative" fantasy/mystery/theological amalgamation spoiled by a bit of a sappy ending, but the latter was stupendous. I've never got through an 800 page book so quickly in my life. If you've even got the smallest interest of fantasy, I cannot recommend this highly enough. I've now ordered books 2 and 3 via eBay but I have a feeling they won't last me that long once they arrive. Book 4 is out in September at least. And there's that other thing out in July that people are on about - Henry Porter or something like that. Apparently it's quite a popular series...
If I went to Greece again, it'd be in September. Same weather as June, but the sea will have warmed up. Mind you, with the temperature at the heat it was, I was quite glad of a cool dip every so often. If only the water wasn't so damn salty...ick. Next year I think Croatia is on the cards. Great views off the Dalmatian coast and even cheaper food. When she found out that ice cream was about 35p a scoop, Gilly nearly booked a holiday then and there. I'll definitely be heading back to Skiathos in a few years though. Pack the sun cream though, especially for July and August - I burnt in June so I'd probably be toast if I went any later (I did last 11 days before burning though, which has to be a record).
Anyway, I'm all Bushido'd out so I'm heading to bed. Nighty night.
Monday, June 06, 2005
As they say in Greece..."Bye".
This'll be my last post for over two weeks as Gilly and I are heading to Greece. Two weeks with beaches, swimming pools, table tennis, books, monasteries and restaurants. No computers though...damn, I'm going to get withdrawals, I can feel it now.
Anyway, see you in a fortnight. Cheerio.
Anyway, see you in a fortnight. Cheerio.
Sunday, June 05, 2005
The Light(saber) Fantastic
Congratulations George, you finally directed a decent Star Wars film! And yes, I am including A New Hope here. Oh come on, pick your jaws up. Everyone knows Episode IV was a bit poo. The only thing worth watching was Harrison Ford. My favourite film (Ewoks aside) was Return of the Jedi. Maybe because it was the first one I ever saw, or maybe because it was simply fun from beginning to end. Revenge of the Sith comes pretty close to beating it.
After a somewhat shaky start, where thousands upon thousands of dollars are flung at us in the form of special effects (so much so, that you just cannot focus), Anakin's descent to the Dark Side starts to kick in. Aside from a dubious "What have I DONE?" to a "Yes, Master" conversion in 30 seconds flat (no joke), the film surpasses all expectations I had of it. Maybe my expectations were unnaturally low because Episodes 1 and 2 were...how can I put it...shit?
This film ties everything together, and actually has something missing from the previous two - emotion. Anyone who fails to be moved by the climactic Skywalker/Kenobi fight has a heart of blackest granite. Ok - yes, Lucas can't write for toffee and yes, the worlds that the characters populate are so incredibly sanitised that it defies logic (does no-one eat? Does no-one have natural bodily functions to take care of? How on EARTH did Amidala get pregnant - I'm assuming by IVF since the chemistry between her and Anakin is zip...), but hell - the guy can direct a battle. Whether it's Yoda vs Palpatine or Palpatine vs Windu, the fights have to be seen to be believed. This is the kind of stuff that kids dream about, and the kind of thing they wish they could do as they wave their sticks around in the playground whilst making "zzzzmmm" noises.
Revenge is also the darkest of all six films. There are limbs scattered amidst some quite nasty lightsaber amputations. No blood though of course, it'd spoil the ambience of the sanitised sets. In my opinion though, dark is good. It's one of the reasons why Angel was so much better than Buffy. I think the series would have benefited a lot more from a more adult overtone, especially these first three films where the 12A certificate would have allowed a little more freedom than a PG. I know I remarked on the abundance of 12A action films recently, but this latest addition is one that actually needs a dark side (sorry) if it is to effectively convey the endgame that fans have been gagging to see for three years. It makes no apologies, and rightly so. And it segues into the following three films that I've got the urge to go and re-watch them. Now that's either clever marketing, or a damn fine prequel to a series. Maybe a bit of both.
I'll forgive George the last two slip-ups. Go and see this, and believe the hype.
After a somewhat shaky start, where thousands upon thousands of dollars are flung at us in the form of special effects (so much so, that you just cannot focus), Anakin's descent to the Dark Side starts to kick in. Aside from a dubious "What have I DONE?" to a "Yes, Master" conversion in 30 seconds flat (no joke), the film surpasses all expectations I had of it. Maybe my expectations were unnaturally low because Episodes 1 and 2 were...how can I put it...shit?
This film ties everything together, and actually has something missing from the previous two - emotion. Anyone who fails to be moved by the climactic Skywalker/Kenobi fight has a heart of blackest granite. Ok - yes, Lucas can't write for toffee and yes, the worlds that the characters populate are so incredibly sanitised that it defies logic (does no-one eat? Does no-one have natural bodily functions to take care of? How on EARTH did Amidala get pregnant - I'm assuming by IVF since the chemistry between her and Anakin is zip...), but hell - the guy can direct a battle. Whether it's Yoda vs Palpatine or Palpatine vs Windu, the fights have to be seen to be believed. This is the kind of stuff that kids dream about, and the kind of thing they wish they could do as they wave their sticks around in the playground whilst making "zzzzmmm" noises.
Revenge is also the darkest of all six films. There are limbs scattered amidst some quite nasty lightsaber amputations. No blood though of course, it'd spoil the ambience of the sanitised sets. In my opinion though, dark is good. It's one of the reasons why Angel was so much better than Buffy. I think the series would have benefited a lot more from a more adult overtone, especially these first three films where the 12A certificate would have allowed a little more freedom than a PG. I know I remarked on the abundance of 12A action films recently, but this latest addition is one that actually needs a dark side (sorry) if it is to effectively convey the endgame that fans have been gagging to see for three years. It makes no apologies, and rightly so. And it segues into the following three films that I've got the urge to go and re-watch them. Now that's either clever marketing, or a damn fine prequel to a series. Maybe a bit of both.
I'll forgive George the last two slip-ups. Go and see this, and believe the hype.
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