The Adaptation

Lord of the Rings did it rather successfully, Scott Pilgrim also to some extent, and lets not forget Harry Potter. But lets not kid ourselves people, the adaptation of a book, or dare I say video game, to the silver screen has its difficulties and most of the time Hollywood finds a way to cheapen it or just all around fuck it up (Prince of Persia, Doom, etc.).

The Retro (Mega Man Legends)

What year was the most recent game you played made in? 2009? 2004? Try 1998. I recently picked up one of my favorite games for the Playstation this January. Why, when I have Dead Space in my current gaming queue would I play a game that's 13 years old? Because, it's awesome. 

These days it seems that retro is making a comeback, especially with virtual consoles and digital downloads of PSOne games, NES, SNES, Sega Genesis, N64 and more. No matter how good the graphics get, how good the gameplay gets, and how well written the stories are, there's plenty of good times packed in the nostalgia of those dusty cartridges and discs. Of course, there are definitely drawbacks to playing your favorite old games: the load times, the fact that every character looks like Pokémon Porygon, the ridiculous dialogue including poor synching, and the lack of controls. Still, every once and a while we blow on those cartridges like harmonicas and wipe those discs down like waxing a car, just to get that feeling back once more. This is my tale of dealing with one of those games: Mega Man Legends.

The PSP2

The war has begun. The handheld war that is. Okay, so the war started a long time ago against Nintendo and Sony, and the handheld off shoot of the total war started in 2005, but Sony has lost presence in the past few years. Now, they return with the true sequel to the PSP, the PSP2 NGP. The new portable was revealed at a Playstation event in Japan today (well, yesterday for them) and below are the details gathered from [Kotaku] and [IGN].

The Rhythm (5)

It's only Wednesday and there's already been some decent sized news this week. Like what you ask? Try an internet hoax aimed at resurrecting Keanu Reeves in the Matrix, a car that has an estimated fuel economy of 261 MPG, and the horrors of not accepting a friend request. Let's not forget The Fantastic Four aren't as Fantastic when one of their own dies, and how exactly does your heart react to the multiplayer madness of Halo: Reach?

The Rhythm: The news you didn't know you wanted to know that answers questions you probably never had.

The Review (Red)

My Background: I think Bruce Willis is awesome. I take that back, he's legendary. One of the real action heroes that still has it despite all the special effects these days. As for the comic book this movie is based on, I've never read it, and I only learned of its existence a month or so before the movie was released in theaters.

Review: Willis. Freeman. Malkovich. Parker. Mirren. Urban. And guns. Good times.

Verdict: worth it.

Apparently, there's a sequel in the works. Surprised? After seeing what other projects Hollywood is [staging] how could you be?

Dream on.

[END TRANSMISSION]

The Replay (1)

"Take your nerd card out of your wallet. Hand it to me, I'm going to tear it up." That is a line I would definitely love to say to some people, I'm just sorry I didn't come up with it earlier. Welcome to The Replay, where I bring to you a video worth watching for geeks, nerds, and random folks. Why? Why the hell not?

In my internetional travels I happened upon the video below for The Jace Hall Show. Ever heard of it? I hadn't, but after watching this one, I think I may be hooked. Why? Stargate Universe and Star Wars: The Old Republic in one episode. Sounds pretty awesome. Apparently, this guy, Jace Hall, just goes around interviewing people and whatnot. I am jealous. Check it out.

The Versus (Star Wars vs. Star Trek)

So here are the results from the most recent versus poll: Star Wars vs. Star Trek

Star Wars 81%
Star Trek 18%

I was actually a bit surprised at this. For most of the week Star Wars was ahead with a 100% backing but then out of nowhere came some Star Trek supporters to give the Force a run for its money. Of course, by the end it was clear that Star Wars was the true winner. I'm quite curious about this result. Don't get me wrong, I like Star Trek, I just love Star Wars, and apparently most of you do as well. So why is that?

I know what draws me to Star Wars is the mythology. The Force, the jedi order, Darth Vader, and freaking lightsabers. A quest of a young man to fulfill his destiny and bring balance to the galaxy. Though is it really balanced if it's 90% good and 10% evil? That doesn't seemed balanced to me. So maybe when Anakin became Vader he was actually fulfilling his destiny to bring balance to the Force because by then there were two Sith and two Jedi (sort of). I'm going to stop this theoretical stuff for now before I cause your eyes to roll into the back of your head from all of this nonsense. Or is it nonsense? Tangents. Anyway, Star Trek was more of a serial deal. A team of adventurers on a ship, which was basically like a submarine, flying through space with teleporters, phasers, and William Shatner. Plus, multiple series were spun off from the TOS (as it is called by Trekkers, which I always get confused with Tales of Symphonia, but that's just me) such as The Next Generation, DS9, and Voyager. In sheer volume of time, I suppose Star Trek would have to win, but in awesomeness, legendary appeal, worldwide sex appeal, and recognition with geeks and those who claim they are not, Star Wars wins by 12 parsecs.

Here's a chance to explain yourself voters: Why do you like Star Wars more than Star Trek?

May the Force be with you.

[END TRANSMISSION]

The Staging

So, as I run across the media sites and such that I read on a daily basis, I've come to realize something. There are a hell of a lot of movies that are in the development/production stage at the moment, plus another handful that are in the pre-development phase, a.k.a. the rumor mill has been working over time. It seems like Hollywood is on overdrive these days trying to suck a buck out of any writer or producer worth a damn. That's why I'm thankful for directors like Christopher Nolan and J. J. Abrams who take their time and produce awesome pieces of work rather than rush along three movies, one after another. Of course, this does work in the sense of Lord of the Rings and Peter Jackson, but there are cases where doing this can ruin things, such as a certain Pirates series.

Exactly what does Hollywood have going on back stage? Well I've compiled a list of some interesting projects to keep your eye out for that are a year or two away (not in any particular order):

The Monday (01.24.11)

In case you haven't heard, I've declared that all Mondays shall henceforth be known as Tom Sawyer Mondays. Why? Well, firstly it's because I have that kind of power. Secondly, I always thought that the lyrics to Rush's "Tom Sawyer" started with "A Monday warrior", but in actuality it is "A modern day warrior". So that's the reason. What should you expect? Simple. I'll post a Rush song in video form here, with lyrics. Or, I'll post a Mark Twain quote. See what I did there? Because Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer...okay so that was a bad joke, but I'll still be doing that anyway. These will be just short, quick posts to start your work/school/whatever week off just right.

The Week (of 1.23.11)

Onto week four we go. It starts with Tom Sawyer Monday and rolls on through to Jason Statham on Friday. The day Mr. Statham goes the route of Vin Diesel and The Pacifier I will still be there to watch him be a family action star. Anyway, this week marks the second week for the return of your favorite television shows. So sit down and tune in, plus Bruce Willis hits the shelves with Red, where he basically just stars in a documentary about his life as an action star. Narrated by Morgan Freeman. Okay not really, but its a fun ride and deserves to be checked out, plus I hear there's a sequel on the way.