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3 hours ago, Marzan said:

I think a lot of people are putting too much emphasis on "Delta was not meant for Western fans" angle. Delta's lack of popularity around this parts as far as I can read it, was due to the bad characterization and bad storytelling after episode 13. Not the idols, magical girl angles or the like. I think Kawamori can do pretty much wherever he wants as long as there is a good story and characters behind it. But with Satelights record on that regard lately, I will not hold my breath.

Agreed, I didn't mind the pop culture influences, there was just stagnant character and plot development. Western audiences can deal with weird. I'd argue "weird" is what attracted western audiences to anime in the first place, but strong plot and characters are essential to any story. 

On 7/24/2018 at 7:31 PM, technoblue said:

Between Fate/Extra and Fate/Apocrypha, I think it is fair to say that Fate/Extra is the stronger of the two. I was able to look past the quirks of Apocrypha though and the obvious bouts of retelling, I'd probably rank it average among other anime. 

I found myself losing interest in both of them about half way through. Unlimited blade works was a tough act to follow, and neither of them were anywhere close. They were both visually stunning, but I found myself not caring about the characters or their fates at all. At this point, I'm just waiting for more Heaven's Feel.

I've been binge watching a lot of anime recently, but the one that I enjoyed the most was Darling in the Franxx. Honestly, its overly on-the-nose name is what kept me from watching it. I didn't realize it was from the same creative tram as Gurren Lagann until I finished watching it, but highly recommend it (especially if you like Gurren Lagann and/or kill la kill).

Also watched a bunch of the "in another world" genre of animes. Honestly, they're all starting to slur together at this point with the originality being the biggest casualty.  The only ones in that genre I wouldn't mind additional seasons from are Gate, Konosuba, and re:zero. The rest are honestly just boring, and the one I loved the most was the least popular (Grimgar of fantasy and ash) and will never be renewed.  I'm in season 2 of Overlord and am not finding myself captivated by the plot or characters, but now I'm in too deep to stop. 

I haven't been on this site in years, but had something funny happen which i think is an accurate critique of macross delta.  I watched macross delta back when it was serialized, but legitimately had forgotten I had ever watched it. I made it about 5 minutes into the first episode when it all came back to me, and then skipped through some episodes to the finale (maybe 4 episodes for total recall).

My critique is synonymous to the empirical evidence; the show was forgettable. The characters feel like clones of more original characters from previous macross products (especially frontier). I would be convinced they only made the series to sell toys except they didn't actually have enough mecha fighting action to be guilty of that claim.  I really like the mecha designs, but unfortunately (or fortunately) I don't feel a strong enough sentiment to the characters and the series to open my wallet.  I might give in and buy one for the sake of Fandom, but i don't feel like they earned it. 

I know this sounds scathing, but i want to be clear that I didn't hate delta, I enjoyed it. It just felt too familiar, like the sequel to a very great and original movie (i.e.: matrix 2, hangover 2, this felt kind of like 7/frontier 2) which I think is why it was so forgettable.  When I say forgettable, I mean I literally couldn't remember a single character's name until I watched the first episode again, which is a problem I've never had for any previous macross series. The show started out willing to take some big risks, but half way through they seemed to abandon the original intent, and phoned the rest in. Then it started to feel like an exposition piece for random facts from the macross universe (maybe to help flesh out some lore as a nod to the fans) which I don't mind, I just prefer it to be through story/character development, and not spoon fed exposition. 

I'm hoping the future installment in the franchise takes some risks and is able to maintain the balance between character development, story development, and product advertising. Maybe it's the nostalgia talking, but macross is still one of my favorite anime franchises, and is probably the only one I'm still loyal to in adulthood. 

Definitely A4, but why lease? Unless the intention is to take it back after 2 or 3 years for something better. With German cars that's probably a good idea, after about 60,000 miles they start to get all kinds of weird issues (mostly interior and emissions electrical).

I won't deny that the new Lotus range is nice and better priced, pity it's risking financially apparently.

Fiscally it's wise for Lotus to just function as a consulting firm where they perform the R&D and engineering but manufacturing is handled by the customer. They can take something and turn it into a work of art, but scratch building entire cars for them has always been an issue.

A big part of me wants to see the Tesla Model S (and Tesla in general) succeed, if for nothing else then for them to pay their nearly 500 million fed govt loan back. I'll admit that if i was interested in an electric vehicle i would consider the Tesla, but it really aims at such a small niche market of people who 1) want an electric vehicle and 2) can finance $100k for something that they don't live in. The problem right now is that since this initiative (super electric sedan) isn't sparked by global competition only between niche players (only competitor off the top of my head being Fisker who is circling the bowl), Tesla can't effectively reduce the cost of raw materials or manufacturing. Even Chevy and Nissan with the Volt and Leaf respectively are having trouble selling their vehicles, mostly because they're pieces of crap, but also because the market hasn't reached a point where it's cost effective to manufacture electric as a consumer solution, so you end up selling an electric Cobalt/Versa with four times the price tag.

Agreed, the time travel conventions are abandoned in favor of story telling and character development.

Season premiere was quite good, agree with Mog's spoiler but i think it also just shows how much of a badass Obi Wan is.

I saw it last night as well (date night with the wife), was definitely a good movie. I agree that budget permitting it could have been a bit more stellar, the plot points were very predictable but it didn't distract from the enjoyment of the film. Without spoiling anything, it was a fun movie that throws out some of the preconceived ideals of time travel (i'm sure nerds will rage, but let's be honest and agree that time travel isn't a perfect science... fiction).

OK, router time. Mainly interested in compatability/reliability over raw speed/range. That said, this is everything that may be hooked up to it in the foreseeable future:

ipad

iphone

X360

PS3

Any suggestions? I have seen a few reports than Netgear's uber-popular N900 routers don't like iphones. I am strongly considering true dual-band due to the latest iphones being 5ghz capable.

Also--do external antennas matter? Some routers don't seem to have them, but if they make even a 5% difference, I'm all for having them.

Depends on your budget, i'd suggest going to smallnetbuilder.com and reading the reviews there on throughput on 2.4, 5 and simultaneous throughput. Overall the router of choice is the ASUS RT-N56U, with certain matches going to the RT-N66U. Antennas do make a difference but it also depends on the environment. I personally own an RT-AC66U, but if i were you i wouldn't invest in Wireless AC yet, not strictly due to the minimal NIC support at this time but more due to the fact that AC is only in rev1 and using 3 spatial streams (4 in business level gear). In rev2 it is poised to leverage 8 spatial streams and provide more consistent and real world throughput. ASUS routers are also Tomato/DD-WRT capable so if you hate the stock firmware (to be honest they have the best out of the box firmware of every consumer router i've used), then you can flash it to one of your choosing. I own all of the devices you've mentioned and have seen no compatibility issues with my router (and my router has only been on the market for a couple months), and throughput numbers on both 2.4 and 5 Ghz has been quite impressive. Only caveat of any of the aforementioned routers is price; AC66U hovers around $180, N66U around $150 and N56 U around $90 when on sale, they typically retail about $10-30 more than that. None of these routers will leave you disappointed, stock firmware gives you most of the features you would use on third party software, USB HDD/Printer support, Jumbo frame support (for NAS or SAN), dynamic DNS, etc. etc.

you can dab a microfiber towel in some distilled water and very gently remove smudges/dirt with it on your LCD. If your screen is really nasty (mine usually are from the kids) you can mix some white vinegar with the distilled water to get a little more action out of it.

I picked up my Solid Snake the same day i posted previously, he's freakin' awesome, i'm definitely going to be looking at future offerings for this and other lines. I had some of their older Final Fantasy figures and they were good, but nothing great, i really like their MGS figures, i just hope they include some more accessories in the future.

I don't think he meant that in a bad way. My Lotus impressed me every day. This was far more important than impressing anyone else. I loved driving that car.

perfect example, i'm still thinking of buying a Lotus, the wife even gave me the green light, but i think i'm going to wait a few more years when the kids are older and i can manage to own less practical cars. People aren't going to drool over the Elise, it's relatively inexpensive, and the styling is divided but it makes you feel like a race car driver, no different than the AM making you feel like James Bond.

I'd repeat my Officejet 8600 recommendation, then. It sounds like they mostly work with documents. I think most HP printers these days come with OCR software and scan-to-pdf features, and they'd have to print A LOT to go through more than one at a time. Heck, I've printed half of "Expedition to Castle Ravenloft" for a D&D game I'm running, and I've only had to replace the black ink. And it wasn't a high-capacity cartridge, it was the one that came with the printer.

The only downside is that the printer is fairly huge as far as inkjets go, but that's partly mitigated by the fact that it's also wireless, so you can stick it pretty much wherever.

I actually own the Premium version of this printer, there are three models, 8600 e, plus and premium, the 8600 plus and premium are the way to go though. I got my 8600 premium during a staples promotion i found on slickdeals for $100, notable differences the premium has over the plus are an extra set of color ink cartridges, an additional paper tray, and ReadIris Pro12 software. As an MFC it works very well, scan to pdf and scan to e-mail functions are wonderful the color printing is pretty good in general and the ink cost is very cheap. The only thing i don't care for is in order to use the full features of the printer you have to install proprietary software on your computer, this has become a fairly common trend among most print makers but i still don't care for it. As MS said the printer is wifi (and wired ethernet capable as well) so i have mine stuffed in a corner somewhere out of the way hanging off of my wireless network.

All in all it's a great printer, build quality is on par with consumer grade equipment, i would feel comfortable paying up to $150 for the plus model, but probably not more than that, i got the premium at the above price due to some extreme couponing (coupon, price match, stackable rebates).

I think like any company HP's reliability is highly dependent on the model you have, we had some HP Laser Printers that would break on a weekly basis at my old job and the Brothers that replaced them never gave us a single problem. HP's laptops are just complete garbage though, i think Printers are the only thing i would buy from HP and so far i can report zero problems with my 8600 Premium.

$70 a pop! ouch! My local game/anime shop has them for $50, they have a website but i'm sure shipping would kill the deal for you guys on the West Coast. I still have to go pick up my MGS1 Snake, but judging by the posted photos, i won't be disappointed.

It's amazing how the folks at Thundercats.com really want to save this show, but it's gotten worse throughout the season. One slightly weird character per episode is too much IMO... but they should have solidified the core storyline and showed the bad asses before doing the quirky bits over and over.

I don't want to go back and read over but I don't know if I mentioned this, but I hated how Lion-O's attention quickly shifted to Pumyrra... It seems like he's just hard up for any tail that spends time with him and it really cheapens the triangle they tried to force on us just earlier this season. I'm not opposed to him hooking up with her, but it just seems so in-genuine.

If you tear it down to the basics, this show should have been really good but they just tacked on so much baggage that didn't fit together week after week, I really can't be behind the "Save the Thundercats" movement. It's kinda like Community... while I love to show, I rather they just cancelled it than wait for the disastrous season they're planning for.

I think once I saw how solid The Legend Of Korra was, it really made this show seem bad. Plus the toy line was ugly... not even interest in the toys could keep me as a fan.

I could not agree more, the show started out with a lot of potential but the last few episodes have taken a significant dive. It seems as if they're rotating writers because plot lines are contradicting each other and the character development has flat lined. I really wanted to hold on hope that the show would improve, but even the animation is taking a dive along with the writing. I probably wouldn't notice it as much but i DVR this and TLOK and watch them one after another, and it's hard to stay focused on Thundercats after watching TLOK.

The toy line was suppose to make dramatic improvements but both the 3.75 and the larger 6in figures are just crap, so there's really nothing left to save this show, and at this point i think that's probably a good thing.

I Love Aston's style and "Cool Factor" but it does make it hard to justify the cost difference between models when everyone who sees your car can't tell if you bought the $120k Vantage or the $270k DBS; even most enthusiasts can barely tell the difference between models. An Aston is one of those cars you buy to impress yourself; in fact most of the Aston Martins i see driven in my area (there's an AM dealership about 10 miles away from me) are driven by women, and the most common models i see are the DB9 and Vantage convertibles.

I know a lot of you live in snooty areas where you see super cars often, how often do you see them driving around in bad weather? Monday it was pouring rain and i saw a 458 Italia flying down a two lane road, then not more than a few hours after that i saw a brand new 911 Turbo almost lose the rear end taking a left turn through a puddle. Fortunately, he was able to correct the oversteer (i'm sure in great part due to the AWD) but i doubt he'll be taking corners that aggressive in the rain again. I'm used to seeing super cars on perfect summer days, but seeing them flying down the roads in pouring rain was a bit odd, especially with the factory slicks those cars are equipped with.

I saw that today he was responsible in whole or part for so many legendary cars: AC Cobra, Daytona Coupe, GT40, Viper, Series 1, countless Mustangs; such sad news a real automotive legend. I heard he was also the record holder for the longest living heart transplant patient.

I love it when they have the matching luggage, I remember all my old Italian models had em I thought it was a great concept like back in the 20's and 30's

I know some companies still do the custom luggage but its an option as opposed to a standard feature. I remember when the AM Vantage debuted they showed it loaded with hand made custom luggage matching the interior.

What's more ridiculous is DMC still wants 25 - 30k to purchase a Delorean, there are countless options to invest 30k in that will provide you not only a unique car but a car that won't fall apart and can actually get above 60mph. You have to really be nostalgic for Back to the Future to spend that kind of money on a Delorean.

I loved Wolverine and the X-Men, I was mad that they didn't go with the second season especially since the ending set them up for it perfectly. IMO the best Spiderman series so far was the one that debuted on MTV, had the right mix of adult content, animation, and story, unfortunately, it ended on a really sour note. It's available on netflix Instant if you haven't seen it (along with most of the other marvel animated series).

I agree on the live-action stuff for DC, Batman aside all of the other live action franchises have been flops. Animated side has always been very strong for DC, i'm having a hard time thinking of a DC Animated series or feature that i didn't like.

My understanding of the licensing issue is that Disney purchased Marvel Studios, however, all of Marvel Studios existing contracts are in effect until they expire and Disney then assumes ownership of those properties (FF, Spiderman, X-Men, etc.). Which is probably why Colombia is rebooting Spiderman even though it hasn't been that long since the last series of films. I think Sony still has FF but that is a flop of a franchise to work with anyway; as soon as the existing Marvel contracts with the other studios expires then Disney should have exclusive rights to everything; that is unless they want to pay out the nose to get them sooner as stated above.

Hulk lashes out at whoever he feels is persecuting Banner. In the helicarrier he was angry at SHIELD for dragging him into the fight so that's who he lashed out against. But when he was free, the security guard says that he saw Hulk aim himself at an abandoned building. When the aliens attack, Banner points himself and Hulk at the Aliens. He's angry at them so he attacks them and not the rest of the Avengers.

The only part that didn't make a whole lot of sense (within the limits of a fantasy Comic Book world and has relevance to the story) was why Hulk couldn't control himself inside the air fortress but seemed to have full control during the final battle. Even at the end of The Hulk (2008) they established that Banner was disciplining himself to be in control of The Hulk when transformed.