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Topics - Mr_Pleasington

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151
Movies and TV / Gangs of New York
« on: January 03, 2003, 02:33:31 AM »
I've looked forward to this film for a long while and I must say I am sorely disappointed.  The first half of the movie is great.  The main character (Leo!) plays his part well and conveys the appropriate emotions for the problems he gets associated with.  Daniel Day Lewis is an absolutely brilliant "villain" and is the highlight of the movie.  The supporting cast also does a wonderful job, in my opinion.

The movie totally drops the ball after the first half.  The movie totally shifts focus and the inner conflict that made the lead character so engaging is completely absent. Also, this film is possible one of the most anticlimactic of all time.  I was terribly let down by the end.

All in all, it suffered from trying to tell too many stories at once.  In the first half, they are all meshed well and seemed entwined, but they drift too far apart after that until they all suddenly (and disappointingly) collide again.  


152
Everything Else / Everyday Life in Yore
« on: December 14, 2002, 03:34:23 AM »
Does anyone know of any good sites with info on how everyday life was conducted in yesteryear?  I'm looking for anywhere from BCE times to middle ages in either Europe or Asia.  

I need some sort of reference on how common problems were overcome.

Thanks.

153
Everything Else / Mr. P's Signature Contest
« on: December 04, 2002, 02:22:40 PM »
Okay folks, I'm afraid my Space Ghost Quote has had it's time in the sun and is now ready to retire.  Problem is, I can never decide on a good quote to use.  

So post signature suggestions here and I'll pick the one I like best. It can be funny, thoughtful, or stuff about me.  If you win you get ten million dollars and my thanks. Errrr...scratch the ten million dollars.

Pointless, yes, but it isn't called the Time Waster's Guide for nothing.

154
Everything Else / Interesting Sites
« on: December 04, 2002, 02:17:19 PM »
I thought I'd share two of the most interesting sites I've been to in some time:

Strong Bad's Email:  http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail.html
  I visited some old friends at my old college a few weekends back and was introduced to Strong Bad, a flash cartoon by Homstarunner.  SB answeres viewer mail and I think I've ruined about 3 pairs of pants from laughing so hard that I wet myself.  ;)   I really enjoy this kind of humor:  I recommend viewing:  Theme Party, New Hands, Comic, Guitar, Little Questions, and Duck Pond.  
Enjoy.

Odd Pics:  http://www.anomalies-unlimited.com/Odd_Pics.html
Funny, strange, unique, and down-right creepy photographs.  I only wish he had more....


155
Role-Playing Games / Living Kalamar
« on: December 04, 2002, 02:07:42 PM »
Nice review, Saint.

Just thought I'd note for those interested in Living Kalamar that I play Hackmaster with the gentleman who runs their yahoo group and has just been promoted by Kenzer to Plot Director for Living Kingdoms of Kalamar.  He's got some really great ideas and LKoK should be a wild ride with him in charge of the plots.  If you all had any questions about LKoK, I could probably get some good answers from him

156
Role-Playing Games / Kalamar and FR
« on: November 19, 2002, 10:56:59 PM »
I've enjoyed the review, St. Ehlers...as the owner of both I think you did a good job of hitting the high and low points.  

There's just two things I would add that really diffrentiate between the two settings:

1)Magic Level:  FR is an extremely high magic setting: it's everywhere.  To me this is always been a major drawback because magic items tend to lose their uniqueness when they're so commonplace.  It's also hard to find a town that doesn't have some sort of high level wizard.  Kalamar is pretty magic-neutral.  You'll only find a little bit of magic background in the books so it can be a low magic setting, however nothing precludes you from turning it into a high magic setting.  Trying to play low magic in the Realms is nigh impossible as the high magic level is so ingrained in the history, myth, and background of the setting.  For example, you can't have the Red Wizards as villains AND have magic items be rare.

2) Scope:  FR is epic.  There are high level NPCs running around everywhere.  Adventureres are commonplace and the children of gods roam the lands.  In a world of heroes, its hard to see why the PCs are needed sometimes.  A good DM can fix this, but if you have players who are FR fanatics they're going to insist that its run canonically (as some players I've had do), which makes it really hard to tone down all the high power.   Kalamar is again pretty netural.  The highest level NPC you'll see running around is most likely well under 10th level.  Most of the NPCs in the book are 8th level or lower.  

I find Kalamar to be an easier setting to play in because the book is mainly history and details for a setting which is inherently low magic, low scope.  However, it is very easy to increase either of these factors without ruining the flavor too much.  

FR is a wonderfully detailed setting, but it's play style is built in and hard to change because it  the foundation of the setting.  I think that's why FR players get the bad rap of being powergamers.  Strange, the 'ole Grey Box (FR 1st ed.) wasn't like this at all...it just kind of evolved into a really high powered game.

Just some thoughts.  I've played and ran both settings and both can be fun.  Just depends on your tastes.

157
Video Games / Metroid: Prime Impressions
« on: November 19, 2002, 10:38:18 PM »
I've only owned the game for a few hours, but WOW!  Retro Studios, a rookie developer, really hit the ball out of the park here.  This is one really fun game.  I'm having a few controller issues, but nothing I can't get used to.  

Best of all, this is a true Metroid game.  Lot's of exploration, a little fighting, and a ton of depth (if you scan everything).  I can't wait to pick up some of the later power ups like the thermal visor and x-ray visor.

Give me a few days to really kick the tires and I'll give you all a formal review.

158
Movies and TV / I Am Trying to Break Your Heart
« on: November 18, 2002, 02:03:34 PM »
Excellent review.  Wilco has been one of my favorite bands for years and the documentary was absolutely wonderful.  

Glad to know I wasn't the only one who saw the film.

159
Video Games / Timesplitters 2 Mini-Review
« on: November 11, 2002, 02:56:57 AM »
Edited 11/12/02:  Deleted the mini-review, go read the full on the TWG homepage.

160
Everything Else / Mobile Tactical High Energy Laser
« on: November 06, 2002, 06:00:54 PM »
Have you all seen this:  http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20021105/ts_nm/arms_usa_laser_dc_6

This is something I think the military has had the capabilities of doing for more than a few years now, but is just now leaking as war looks imminent.   I'm not a a big conspiracy theorist, but for as much has been said about it since the Star Wars Program failed, you just knew they had to be working on it.

Anyway, looks like the troops will be a little safer and war is beginning to look more and more like an RTS game.

161
Books / So...what's everyone reading?
« on: October 28, 2002, 12:16:53 AM »
Pretty quiet in here of late.  Thought I'd spark some interest to see what you all have been reading of late.

Here's my list:

1) If Chins Could Talk: Bruce Campbell.   My personal hero writes one of the most entertaining books I've read in years.  Not thought provoking, but certainly a lot of fun and a great look at low-budget movie production.  I churned through this baby in one sitting.

2)Lovecraft.  Autumn just feels like the right time to read from his classics, especially with Halloween right around the corner.

3)I Am Legend: Richard Matheson.  I finally got to cross this off of me "To be read" list.  A great story that provokes a good amount of thought.

That's about it right now.  I'm thinking of picking up Ender's Game sometime soon as it's another one on my "To be read" list.

162
Movies and TV / The Ring (no spoilers)
« on: October 28, 2002, 12:07:51 AM »
Anyone else see this yet?

Creep city, man.  I love horror films and this is one of the better ones I've seen of late.  Very chilling movie that inspires a sense of dread instead of just a few scares. That said...

The only problems I had with it were:
1) VERY disjointed storyline.  Halfway through the movie the story takes this long turn that it doesn't need to go on as it resolves nothing and you find out very little.
2)Far too many cheap/fake scares.  C'mon people, just stop with these already.
3) The kid.  Suddenly, everyone wants to be Haley Joel Osmet (sp).  This kid has one moment where he truly shines and is just in the way the rest of the film.

This was my kind of movie, surreal horror.  Kind of like Muholland Dr. in mood, but nowhere near as intelligent.  Interestingly, Naomi Watts shined in both movies.

I really want to see the original Japanese version now.  Most say its superior in all ways and I'd like to see if that is true.  It's supposed to come out on Region 1/ Region 0 DVDs sometime next year, so keep your eyes open!

163
Role-Playing Games / Hackmaster
« on: August 28, 2002, 09:23:37 PM »
Nice review.

Hackmaster has been one of my favorite games since it's release and I'm a big supporter of it.  While it's not made for those new to role playing or those who favor fast-and-loose systems, it is bread and butter for any fan of old-school gaming.  I mean they took the best parts of first and second edition AD&D, streamlined them, and added all these new crunchy bits to come up with a great system...if it is a little complex.  I can't imagine running this game without the DM Shield (24 panels in the area of a standard 4 panel screen!!! A feat of engineering!).

I ran a game right after the GM Guide was released which ended up being a gruesome TPK (total party kill), but was fun, nonetheless.  Actually, I play in a new campaign starting tommorow and I can't wait!

This game has something that 3E was missing: Heart and Soul.

As for the lingo and grammar in the book, remember that the game was designed to be the same game that the group plays in Knights of the Dinner Table, so there was some things Kenzer was locked into.  Then again, I frequent the Kenzer boards and they all tend to type like that ("Kewl" "Gawd" Etc).  

I'd like to see a review of the GM Guide sometime.  One of the most complete and informative gaming books I've read.  


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