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Topics - CthulhuKefka

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16
Books / Any Lovecraft Fans?
« on: September 13, 2008, 07:10:41 AM »
Title pretty much says it all.

I've been reading H.P. Lovecraft for about 8 or 9 years and I must say, he is by far my favorite horror author. Granted, the first time few times I read his stuff, I had to have a dictionary beside me, but it only added to the fun I think.  ;D

17
Movies and TV / review: The Forbidden Kingdom
« on: September 13, 2008, 05:53:58 AM »
http://www.timewastersguide.com/review/1676/The-Forbidden-Kingdom

18
Rants and Stuff / RANTAGE
« on: September 09, 2008, 07:49:13 AM »
Ok, so I have this "friend" who I've known since elementary school. We've been on again/off again friends, by that I mean shortly before we graduated we had a spat and stopped talking to each other. After graduation, she went to college and I joined the Navy. I didn't come home for about two years, and happened to run into her at the gas station. It seemed that the past was the past and all was forgotten/forgiven. We began to talk again and rebuild our friendship. When I was stationed in Maryland,  she sent me a Christmas card (only person to do so) and called to wish me a happy birthday (again, only one to do so with the exception of family).

She was seemed genuinely interested in me coming home. She'd talk about all the fun things we were going to be able to do, since we really didn't have any time to do anything after we graduated.

So much to my surprise and confusion, when I got my honorable discharge and came home, she wouldn't answer my calls. She is avoiding me for some reason, and it is really making me mad because I didn't do anything to warrant this kind of avoidance.

At first I thought it was just a lot of cases of bad timing, but after leaving messages with every single member of her family, as well as the answering machine multiple times, I knew she was avoiding me. I learned from my friend that she has a new boyfriend (she has had really really bad relationships in the past, domestic abuse and stuff like that).

I know her new boyfriend, he is, for lack of better words, an a-hole. I guess my rantage boils down to the fact that I hate this feeling that I did something wrong and I don't know what it is. I know I didn't do anything, but I don't understand how other people's psyches work.

 ???

19
Movies and TV / Review: Tropic Thunder
« on: September 06, 2008, 05:53:10 PM »
I saw this movie a few days ago and figured I'd write a review for it.

The movie was incredibly witty and funny, parodying mainstream Hollywood fads and lifestyles. There was a considerable amount of controversy before the film even came out about Robert Downy Jr.'s "black face" character, but all fears were laid to rest when, in the course of the film, it is apparent that RDJ is not mocking black face, but mocking actors in general. In fact, the whole film mocks actors in general, and it is through each individual actor that a certain acting style is mocked.

The film begins with a few fake trailers (akin to the fake trailers before Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez's Grindhouse double feature) which focus on four of the actors from the film. These trailers are hilarious. They convey exactly all you need to know about the characters.

For example, Ben Stiller's character is mainly a summer blockbuster, shoot 'em up, action star (think Jason Statham or Sylvester Stallone). Jack Black's character is a comedy guru, along the lines of Eddie Murphy. Robert Downy Jr. is the character actor, delving so deep into his role that he forgets who he actually is (which is a major plot point later on in the film, but I won't spoil it).

The storyline of the movie is that all these actors are filming a new Vietnam war epic, adapted from the writings of a former Vietnam Vet. When things aren't going well for the studio and actors, and things look bleak, the veteran who wrote the book suggests taking the actors deep into the jungle to be filmed guerrilla style. Well, as one might expect, things go wrong, and the rag tag group of actors are thrust into a battle that is as real as any war might be.

There are moments in the middle of the film where the actors cannot grasp the fact that they are not shooting a movie anymore, which leads to some really funny bits between them.

One actor worthy of mentioning as an interesting character is Tom Cruise. He portrays a greedy, slimy Hollywood businessman in a fat suit. Honestly, until the camera really got a close-in look at him, I didn't recognize him.

Robert Downy Jr. steals the show, however. His over-the-top antics and character acting of the platoons African American Sergeant really make for a few interesting exchanges with one of the actual African American actors.

All in all, the movie was very funny when looked at as a satire and social commentary on actors and films in general.

Tropic Thunder Final Rating: A-

20
Video Games / My Game Review: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Xbox 360)
« on: September 06, 2008, 06:42:24 AM »
I will preface this by saying that I have been an Elder Scrolls fan ever since my grandfather lent me a copy of Elder Scrolls I: Arena a long, long time ago. With each subsequent installment, Bethesda has genuinely and dramatically improved the game play and graphics, leading to a more in-depth world of sword and sorcery. Now on to the review of TES IV: Oblivion. This review will be divided into five segments.

Part I: Game play

The game play of Oblivion is quite simple when used in conjunction with the extremely versatile Xbox controller. Movement is smooth and easy to control. The monsters in the game scale to your level, so you can finish the game at level 1 fighting nothing but level 1 enemies, or for more of a challenge, finish it at a higher level. Character creation is interesting, letting you pick 10 major skills, which are the major skills you must increase in order to level. Raise 10 of your major skills to gain one level. Also, each skill has different tiers of achievement, the higher tier you reach, the more abilities are unlocked for that skill.


Story/Quest Lines

Oblivion's story is simple. The boundaries keeping the forces of the Daedra (Elder Scroll's demon gods) Lord Mehrunes Dagon (who has played a part in almost every single Elder Scrolls game to date) have weakened to the point where he can launch an assault on the world to destroy it. Your character is thrust in the middle of this when the Emperor just so happens to be fleeing the castle from an assault on the royal family, and his path just so happens to lead through your prison cell. After escaping the sewers, the game becomes extremely non-linear, allowing you to follow many different paths. There are numerous factions to join, each allowing you to advance in their ranks to unlock additional perks and benefits.


Graphics

The graphics for Oblivion are quite beautiful. While not up to par with the PC version, the Xbox version pushes the graphics engine to deliver a breathtaking game. Not too much can be said on this topic. Character models can get a little repetitive, but in a world where each NPC (non player character) has its own schedule, it is to be expected.

Music

Music, much like the graphics, is strikingly memorable. The main theme in particular stands out in my mind. If I had to equate it to anything, it resembled the music from the Lord of the Rings movies (at least, in terms of its epic scale).


Re playability

Re playability is very high with this game. There are a lot of different classes to choose, and each archetype (be it fighter, rogue or mage) can bring challenges and difficulties in regard to the players preferred style. Two expansions have been released for the game; the first being semi-short but mildly fulfilling, and the second being a lot longer and more fleshed out.


Rating the game, I would give it (on a 1-5 scale) the following points:

Gameplay: 4
Story: 5
Graphics: 5
Music: 4
Re playability: 5

Final score: 4.6

Oblivion is a massive improvement over the series's previous title Morrowind. It takes sword & sorcery and infuses it with an epic storyline, incredible content, amazing graphics and a re playability that allows the game to be enjoyed countless times.

(This was my first review of anything ever, so be gentle!  ;D)


21
Brandon Sanderson / Mistborn Trilogy Question (SPOILERS)
« on: August 30, 2008, 07:40:54 AM »
Sorry if this had been posted before but I had some random thoughts about the trilogy as a whole. I also apologize for the slightly long read.

I guess I'll start by asking who writes the synopsis on the backs of the books? This question is kind of important because my thoughts center around a part of it.

On the back of "The Final Empire" it says: "What if the prophesied hero had failed to defeat the Dark Lord?" Now at first it would appear to be a red herring concerning the Lord Ruler, but he is obviously defeated at the end of the first book. It could be referring to Ruin, but I'll elaborate on that in a minute.

I'm putting forth this hypothesis. Each title of each book is misleading in a way. I'll try to break it down.

Book 1: The Final Empire

Not being able to figure out how this can be misleading until reading The Well of Ascension, where on page 733 (paperback version) when Elend returns to the city after letting Vin pewter-drag herself back to find the Well, this passes between them:

"I'm sorry. I think I did something bad."
"Oh?" He asked. "What is that"
"I made you emperor"

Now this may have just been a passing thing between the two, but after reading the sample chapter for "Hero of Ages," it continues.

"Wait," Fatren said, causing the stranger to pause. "Who are you?"
The newcomer turned, meeting Fatren's eyes. "My name is Elend Venture. I'm your emperor."

Now I know it's not specifically stated anywhere that an Emperor has an Empire, but if it is true, then the "Final Empire" is not actually the final empire so to speak. Elend has a whole new Empire as Emperor.


Book 2: The Well of Ascension

This one I don't really have anything to go on, other than the knowledge that we as readers learn through Sazed that the Well isn't all it's cracked up to be. Through Ruin's machinations, knowledge about the prophesied hero was altered to allow an expedited freeing of him. (him? it? lol)


With subtle misleading titles, it is my thoughts that the Hero of Ages will have a similar twist. Referring back to the blurb on the back of the book, if Ruin is indeed the "Dark Lord" mentioned, then the prophesied hero will fail to defeat him.

Another thing that caught my attention was in one of Mr. Sanderson's annotation for "The Final Empire," more specifically "Mistborn Prologue Part One" where he writes

Somewhere in the italicized pre-chapter blurb of the prologue here is the clue one needs to figure out the over-arching mystery of the entire series. If you figure it out, good for you! If you don't, you'll have to wait until the last chapter of the final book to get it explained. . . .

Now the pre-chapter blurb is from the journal and references the Hero doubting himself. Could this doubt carry over to the Hero actually never defeating the "Dark Lord?"
I know it would seem like a cop out, and I really feel bad for bringing it up, but in a series that likes to take conventional fantasy cliches and turn them upside down, what better way than having the bad guys win?


Again, sorry for the long post, I was rambling through most of it. Unfortunately, once I get random ideas in my head, it is hard to keep them in.  ;)

22
Brandon Sanderson / Some random fun
« on: August 29, 2008, 07:21:36 AM »
Ok, so I just shifted through 24 pages of prior topics and couldn't find one for a dream cast for an Elantris movie. I did find the April Fool's Mistborn movie one, and the "dream cast" for Mistborn, but not for Elantris, so I figured I'd post it here for fun. :) I'll throw in a few of my own thoughts, although they're probably not even remotely plausible. :P (keep in mind, I'm just going off of the book cover since my memory of the actual book descriptions of the characters is a bit fuzzy.)

Sarene

Charlotte Sullivan

http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1306432256/nm0838000


Hrathen

Rodney Rowland

http://www.imdb.com/media/rm4134575360/nm0746737


Ashe (Voice Actor)

Mia Farrow

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001201/


Just my two cents. I can't really think of anyone for Raoden, mainly because I always have trouble picturing him. /shrug

23
Video Games / Everquest II
« on: August 15, 2008, 04:16:35 AM »
Searched a bunch of pages back and didn't see any mention of it. Anyone play it? If so, what server are you on? I notice there's a large number of WoW players here, so please don't gang up on me! I'm squishy  ;)

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