Campaign Endings: Faith Vs. Belief

The sudden surge of adrenaline immediately made him sit bolt upright, and it was only after several deep, long breaths that he was able to calm himself. He kept focused on the fact he was no longer in danger, although this was made harder with the constant feelings of peril that had been incessantly gnawing on his consciousness for the past several weeks.

The distant sounds of battle didn't make it easier, either.

He struggled to his feet to change out his sweat-soaked clothes, and tried to rub some feeling back into his clammy skin. Although it was slowly beginning to regain function, his disabled arm made the task more difficult than he was accustomed to. He looked around searchingly for a nurse, but none were within sight: presumably they were all dealing with much more serious cases from the battlefront.

He signed quietly to himself, and collapsed back onto the bed only half-dressed, feeling drained. One of the unexpected downsides of being granted a private room, he supposed. Given the contributions he and his comrades had made, the Queen had ordered the absolute best medical care to deal with his wounds. Wounds that had been serious enough that when he had finally consciously looked at them, he had almost passed out from shock. 

He was grateful, of course, for the attention. He was just still uncertain of whether he deserved them.

The Search Continues On: Blake (Kind of) Makes Another List

So as many of you know, summer for me has consisted of sitting around and not doing a whole lot except watching shows, playing games, and reading. Earlier today I was reminded of this post that I made a bit over a year ago now (as a fun note, my prediction of Pluto being the second manga series I'd own came true). Probably because I had to initially make a list to write that post, since then I have actually been keeping an up-to-date list of everything Japanese I have read or watched. After finishing Soul Eater today, I kind of realized how large this list has grown in the past 13 or so months. What was originally 24 items has now

more than doubled its length to around 54 items, assuming I haven't forgotten anything. So ya, considering I did have things like classes and the occasional social life, way more hours of media consumed than I had consciously realized (considering this doesn't include books and non-Japanese shows...). 

My initial plan was to try and re-do a top ten list, but even just re-glancing at my original list, I realized how ridiculously hard it would be to balance the "classic" top-ten list with new contenders. So rather than attempt this challenge, I have decided to go for the easy-out and just go with a top 10 out of the new items on the list (which starts with Abenobashi on the picture, if you're curious). Here goes nothing.

Book Recommendation! The Long Earth

So essentially I suspect I will be recommending this book to several of you over the course of the next couple days, so rather than type essentially the same thing out multiple times, I figured I'd save time and write it all here.

A couple days ago I started a book I got as a gift (but had I known about it, I probably would have bought it anyway). The book is:

A Clash of Media: Perspectives on Intrinsic Value

Dear readers, the blog will once again continue on the philosophical track; I got some good answers to my last post, so I'm hoping to hear some more on this note.

As my forewarning: as many of you probably know, I'm a pretty big reader. I always have been since I was young. I was that kid staying up late reading with a flashlight under covers, the one who took a book with him where ever he went, the one who belongs to the probably minority of our generation whose parents actually had to tell him to stop reading so much. I'm one of those people who rarely think a movie/tv adaptation is better than the source book, one of those who doesn't have "lol i h8 books" written on my "About me" section of Facebook. Thus I feel I have a pretty balanced perspective on the following discussion.

As all of you are sure I'm aware, The Hunger Games has been making a big splash as being the current hit book for children/young adults. This follows on the trail of the Twilight and Harry Potter series, the latter of which is often referred to as the series that "got a whole generation of children reading again."

I find this an interesting claim, because it highlights an underlying theme in modern American society. That is, specifically, that children aren't reading anymore, and this is a Bad Thing. Authors like Collins and Rowling are doing important work in getting children engaged in reading again.

This is a line of thought I sort of bought absentmindedly. Of course people should be reading, I thought, it's something I enjoy. It's always painted as a slightly more intellectual and satisfying past-time than, say, watching TV.

Subtle Distinctions: The Blog gets a bit philosophical

"Early in life I had to choose between honest arrogance and hypocritical humility. I chose the former and have seen no reason to change. "


-Frank Lloyd Wright

Haha, Google makes it easy to find quotes for any occasion :-P

I recently (for science?) took a personality test and it spat out the result that, among other things, measure quite a bit on the arrogant side. This proceeded to set off a serious of thoughts on my head, that for whatever reason I feel compelled to write about. Normally this isn't the kind of thing I'd discuss publicly, but since this blog isn't searchable and as far as statistics indicate only a select few of you even read this, I'm going ahead and writing it.

Can't Mess with Tradition: Mini-review Rampage #7

Despite others attempts to one-up the noble and far-reaching tradition of the "mini-review rampage," the legion of faithful readers of this blog can rest assured that we shall maintain the path laid out for us, and not divert in a crude attempt to undercut the competition.

:-P

All jokes aside, back to the reviewin'

The Naked Sun

This novel was chosen literally at random: I have a list of ebooks that I want to read that's longer than I'd like, and I rolled a d100 with the list number-bulleted and got this. I went in with almost no expectations other than it being Asimov, and was surprised a sci-fi detective story. Unfortunately it turned out to the 2nd in the series of 4 Robot Detective novels, and although it didn't seem to make a huge difference I probably would have started with the first (Caves of Steel) had I known.

Part of the larger Foundation continuity but occurring closer in time to the I, Robot collection of short stories, we find an Earth detective venturing off the Earth (now completely sets of self-contained biospheres, the regular surface apparently unlivable) and to the colonies, of which little is known to the average Earth-dweller. He there confronts, alongside a murder investigation, the social norms and practices of the Colonists, who are in some ways quite *ahem* alien to life on Earth (which in turn is quite removed from our own).

The book is quite in Asimove's style, which is one that I like. I also like detective stories, and The Naked Sun delivered on both counts, making it fairly enjoyable. I think other Asimov works are better overall, but Naked Sun was good enough that I'd read the others in the series if I was bored and looking for something new to read.

Lost at Sea

From the graphic novelist who wrote Scott Pilgrim, a series I quite love, comes his precursor standalone novel, "Lost at Sea." It tells the story of a 18 year old Canadian girl who may or may not have lost her soul, and is on a roadtrip in California with some acquaintances.

Like Scott Pilgrim, O'Malley seems to have an ability to tap into the emotion and general sense of self of out/my generation to a degree I don't often find in other works. Overall the work just feels very genuine, and while it's kind of meandering and to some degree seemingly pointless, it is in a way that's very reflective of day-to-day life and manages to trigger a lot of feeling of similarities within me. I feel like if I had read this when I was actually 18 it would have been an instant favorite. With that said, it's apparent that this predates Scott Pilgrim, which I feel is a much stronger and better work, but you can definitely see the strands and ideas that eventually led to Scott. It's an excellent little book with a lot of potential, and an excellent addition if you have already read Scott Pilgrim and want something a little more.

The Graveyard Book

I love Neil Gaiman's work, and like Terry Pratchett he has an amazing ability to write "children's" novels that nonetheless appeal to the general audience. The Graveyard Book is no exception. It tells the tale of young "Nobody," who grows up in a graveyard after his parents are murdered, and is taken care of by the resident ghosts and other assorted mythological creatures.

Overall I don't have much to say other than it's another great Gaiman book, showcasing his excellent writing ability and once again showcasing his ability to morph classic mythology to fit perfectly in a modern context (á la American Gods). I have nothing bad to say, and again for "children's literature" it far exceeds anything I would expect. It's probably not the best introduction to Gaiman, but if you've read other works by him definitely check it out. There's also a free reading by the author of the entire book floating around somewhere on the internet if you prefer audiobooks.

Waiting for Godot

This was just one of those literary "classics" that I so often hear reference but never actually read in school or otherwise, and since Matt had a copy lying around I figured I'd get around to it. Overall I don't have much to say. It was interesting and I think I enjoyed it more than I didn't, but it's nowhere near being one of my favorite plays and I can't quite say I understand why it's so highly regarded (not that I think it's bad). Probably better overall I read it on my own rather than for a class, which I suspect would have changed my opinion of it.

Wakfu (Season 1)

Not actually sure why I'm reviewing this since I think everyone who reads this blog has already seen it, but yes, Wakfu. Overall I think it's very enjoyable; I rarely felt like the show drags, it's very pretty, the characters are interesting, and I can forgive the Frenchness of it all. The biggest problem I have with it is that I don't feel like it has any one particular outstanding feature; it does a  lot of things very well, but nothing great, and aspects of it are very trope-filled for classic fantasy adventure, which can  be both a good and a bad thing. I have some problems with the season 1 -> 2 transition, as well, but I suppose that doesn't belong in the season 1 review. Overall I do enjoy it, and had I come into it in a vacuum I'd probably be pleased with it, but for whatever reason I entered the show with expected standards that didn't even come close to being met. Although I wish this wasn't quite the case, unfortunately that does end up coloring my perception quite a bit. Solidly watchable and far better than many shows I've watched, but not mind-blowing.

Fate/Stay Night

Despite going in to this show having most of the major spoilers spoiled for me, either from overhearing discussion or from watching Fate/Zero simultaneously, Fate/Stay Night proved much more enjoyable than I expected, although not without its fair share of complaints.

In the positive: great characters, excellent action, and most of all an amazing interpretation of classic mythology. The potential contained within this series is enormous.

On the downsides.... its potential does not always equate to actual greatness. The pacing is off, the animation could be better (especially compared to Zero), and plot decision are often questionable. My biggest complaint is with the transition from eroge to anime, in that the romance plot comes off weirdly in many places (for instance, random date during the climaxing episodes). If the writers had not felt compelled to follow elements of the source material so closely and show a bit of artistic license to make a more compelling show, and had a different studio done the animation, this could easily have been one of my favorite animes of all time. Romance is good, and action is good, but the blend that Fate/Stay Night produces ends up doing a disservice to both of them, and many characters that deserved a bit more screentime and/or backstory instead disappears in the meandering first half of the plot that centers of Shirou being stupid and incredibly, incredibly sexist (another big complaint I have with the series).

Overall Fate/Stay Night is a very big mixed bag. On the one hand, the underlying material is fantastic, but unfortunately its not given the proper treatment it deserves. I agree with a friend that it's definitely the number one thing, anime or otherwise, that I wish was given a full reboot by another company.

Kung Fu Panda 2

I quite enjoyed Kung Fu Panda 1, and had high hopes that its sequel would not fall prey to the usual "sequelitis." Fortunately that proved not to be the case. To cut it short, Kung Fu Panda 2 kept everything that made the first movie highly entertaining, didn't add anything stupid, and generally just improved or maintained on the quality of the original. If you liked the original, you'll like the sequel, and I have no complaints: Jack Black and other stars do an excellent job with voice acting (and once again I wish characters like Lucy Liu and Jackie Chan got more lines, but alas), the animation is top-notch, the fights fluid and pretty, and the story well-paced and interesting. Definitely recommended if you're in the mood for an action-comedy.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

I quite liked the original Downey Sherlock Holmes movie, and was especially surprised at how well it preserved the spirit of the Doyle stories while adding changes that nevertheless felt true to the original's spirit. Its sequel follows very much in the same vein: I don't feel it's either better or worse than the original, although it felt a little more faster-paced, although I feel a large part of this is due to the characters already being introduced and grounded, etc. Although it's often now being compared to the BBC "Sherlock," I honestly feel that the Hollywood version is the superior product, mostly in terms of following in the tradition of the source material but also in overall quality (since it is  Hollywood). If your enjoyed the first, watch away, but if you weren't satisfied A Game of Shadows offers nothing significantly new.

Mission Impossible (4): Ghost Protocol

At its heart, Ghost Protocol is just another  Mission Impossible movie, nothing less, nothing more. It's perfect in what it sets out to be: a holiday action popcorn movie, but it offers nothing deeper or innovative to the franchise, and while I enjoyed it at the time, a month later I barely remember what happened, other than a nuke being involved or something. The action scenes are well done, the acting decent, and its well-paced. It's an enjoyable two hours, but other than that I don't have much to say about Cruise's latest outing.

-HTMC

Things Get More Metallic: Mini Review Rampage, Music Edition #4

I think the amount of albums I'm reviewing is exceeding the amount I'm reviewing, if only barely. These will eventually come to a close; I can almost taste the end. But for now, the rampage on your ears continues via the route of your eyes. Revel in the fourth installment of my album reviews.

Artist: Rage Against the Machine

Album: Evil Empire

Genre: Rock (Alternative & Punk)

5-Starred Songs: 3 (out of 11)

As I think I said before in my reviews of Rage Against the Machine, although I don't necessarily identify with the ideas and the mentality behind the music, they can be quite enjoyable in the appropriate mood. With that said, in my personal opinion "Evil Empire" is the weakest album of the 3 released. Although it features some excellent pieces like Revolver and Vietnow the rest of the album is mostly composed of "good but not great" songs. If you like their music style in general I suspect it's on par with their others, but for me a lot of the songs just didn't quite cut it. It's definitely not bad, in any way, but I do think it's the weakest.

A Clash of Cards: A Review/Intro of the Game of Thrones LCG

So I recently was lucky enough to receive a generous gift of the Games of Thrones Living Card game from a friend for Christmas, with the footnote that he wanted to try it out and hear what my impressions were. This post will serve two purposes. The first is that I expect I will be playing the game with a lot of you in the next couple weeks, so I wish to give an overview of how the game functions. The second is to give that review, and my impressions of the game overall.

First then, some background. The game is designed to be played with 4 people, although it has some variants that include 3 or 2 player set-ups. My first full game was, however, played with four people. It consisted of myself, a complete novice to competitive card games, and two MtG veterans, and all of us had never played the GoT LCG before. We played using the four stock decks, no additions or variations, using the standard ruleset. Overall I think it took about 2 hours to play to completion, although a large part of the time was looking up rules, figuring out powers, etc, and I suspect a regular game with people who know what they're doing would take much closer to 1 hour, if not less.