Southpaw Samurai

Well, given the commentary in the behind the scenes video, it really sounds like they only shot what you see in the trailer plus just some scenes (and/or extensions) that just didn't make the cut. Since he bought and then returned or pawned/sold off props, furniture, etc, as he went along to help keep the finances going, it's doubtful they held together any one set long enough to film an entire movie. Even the director himself comments about the Green Lantern outfit was just good enough for that one shot. It's merely a self promotional piece, like Dead End, done up to as an elongated trailer in order to excite those watching it (which works in spades). What you see is what you get.

I have to agree. For a semi-professional 'please let me make this...or at least let me make a real movie' audition piece, it was very well done early on, but it went goofy towards the end with WW and GL. Having Clark early on was cool and later having him as Superman worked, but the others just seemed weird. Wouldn't Clark be pretty much the only first line DC hero to even care if Bruce died? A Superman/Robin fight might be fun for its sheer David/Goliath aspect (although we've had a number of Supers/Bats fights that are almost the equivalent), but by tossing in WW and GL, who are among some of the most powerful of the DC heroes, you suddenly have the equivalent of suddenly pitting Jimmy Olsen against General Zod and his two cronies in Superman 2. Having Dick beat one is impressive...anything more would be ludicrous. Besides, even if WB wasn't completely insane about its comic book movies, you'd probably be hard pressed letting someone use so many main heroes as secondary characters. You don't have Marvel issue with licenses spread out across studios, but it still would be a difficult sell. Keeping it all in the Bat-family (with perhaps Clark, but maybe not as a full fledged Superman) would be easier to sell. All in all, I do like it better than BM:DE...until it sort of turned into a Dead End with all sorts of new characters thrown in just for show. I've always dug Dick Grayson as he grew up. Most heroes started doing their thing only as early as their late teens...poor Robin was practically forced into it as a kid....it's gotta lead to some fascinating psychological story telling.

I don't remember if she was mentioned in the film credits themselves, but imdb.com lists her as "Ursula", so definitely not Gwen, although it wouldn't be too far fetched for them to change the real name of the Black Cat. Still, she doesn't really fit Ms.Hardy's physique nor (more importantly, imho) personality. Probably the last descriptive you'd use for the Black Cat is 'shy'. Gwen was Peter's first full-on girlfriend in the comics (J.J.'s secretary, Betty, was his first big love, but that failed on a number of counts before it really went anywhere). Gwen and Peter met at college and eventually began a relationship. Her dad later got killed during a battle between Spider-man and Doc Ock and it put a little strain on their romance (because heaven forbid Parker has something that doesn't have guilt attached to it). Later, Gwen was involved in the incident that M.J. was in at the end of the first movie. Unlike the movie, though, the fall killed Gwen. I would sort of hope that they don't switch roles between Gwen and M.J., especially since M.J.'s absorbed a chunk of Gwen's character already (in a lot of ways, she's also grabbed a little of Felicia's too). I would personally love to see the Black Cat come in just to screw around with what would at this point be a 'perfect romantic ending' for Peter and M.J. As mentioned above, though, M.J. with her Spidey-obsession isn't too far off from Felicia's 'I love the costume' angle, so it may be redundant.

I was sort of confused as to the blonde's purpose as well, except that Raimi's maybe demonstrating how a person can easily pass up on the potential others while obsessing over one particular person. Both Betty and the blonde (particularly the latter) were giving off signs of interest in Peter and he he either ignored them or didn't even pick up on them. Both movies do play strongly on typical geeky 'nice guy' behavior, so I wouldn't be surprised if Raimi was just continuing to utilize it. I didn't think the blonde was fugly. Definitely a little too much on the skiny side for my tastes, but hardly something that couldn't be overcome if she ate some of the cake she makes.

The simplest explanation for a lack of a headless Doc Ock is that Spider-man pulls his punches on regular humans (although you'd never be able to tell from the apparent full on swings he does in those battles). You have to remember that Spider-man is still the big softie Peter is under the mask and probably wouldn't hurt a fly if he could avoid it, particularly when it comes to a 'victim' like the movie Doc Ock who he also admires. Spidey's the type of guy who most likely would web to safety a crook he accidentally knocks off a rooftop.

Too bad they don't make Geo Metros anymore...perfect substitute for Bumblee since VW doesn't want to be cool and allow the use of the new bugs. Granted, I'm biased because my first car was a Metro and while it practically had the engine of a scooter, it was a good, reliable car. Actually, given the shape, it would've made a cool Cliffjumper if you wanted to keep him small like Bumblebee...then again, I wouldn't recommend even pothole jumping in a Geo, much less cliffs. Still, I sort of dig that Mini Cooper robot image (although it's not all that 'Binaltechie' in style)....it definitely has a Bumblebee feel to it (I find it fitting that lil'Bumblebee would have just a shield and no gun, although it also makes me think of the cavalier from the D&D cartoon...)

Die cast isn't everything. I picked up one of the Yamatos back in the $100-140 range as a Christmas gift for a friend who was a Starblazers fanatic as a kid. It was easily the best gift during the whole party and everyone (even the most non-anime, non-military, non-toy women there) had to comment on it and my friend was of course estatic. It's the only 'toy' his wife allows him to keep out in the main living area. The thing is heavily detailed...heck, even the little tiny fighters have detailing. You can pull away parts and see the details and workings of the wave motion gun and the paintjob is very well done (in my opinion, probably better than would have been done if die cast were involved). One friend who visited him even commented on what a great looking WW2 battleship model it was until he got closer and saw the exhaust and extra fins. :-) Given how much moves and can be pulled off, there would have been a lot of chipping going on had it been diecast. Frankly, I never got into Starblazers as a kid but I still sort of regret not buying one for myself at the time it looks so cool.

The Return of Powerglide! And awaaaaay we go! The A-10 is cool to see. Still, I'd rather have Binaltech/Alternator quality jets.

Well, the $95 dollar price tag, while most likely more expensive than what the same bundle would've gone for over here, is probably the deterrent. Even if it went for $59-69, it probably wouldn't sell anywhere near the number of copies as the $25 version being released here in the states. Expensive special editions just don't sell as well over here in the States as they may elsewhere. Only the most obsessive fans will pay $70 for a game they can get minus a book, t-shirt, figurine, whatever for $30-40 (and, frankly, in many cases I can't blame them). As someone who loved the Street Fighter series as a kid, even I would be hard pressed to pick this up at anymore than $19-29. What WOULD have been nice would have been a general release such as what is coming here and also a very limited release more akin to the Japanese version (although, as mentioned above, in such cases usually the regular version sells through and the special edition only starts to sell when its price comes down to close what the basic version sold for).

The name and font probably have something to do with that, although both are true to the original series. I'll agree that the poster is a little amateurish, but most teaser posters are, since you rarely have much in the way of concrete imagery to use, so you just slap together whatever you have. If the 'Scifi/Romance' look works to attract female audiences, I say let them run with it. I've yet to meet a female I've introduced Firefly to that hasn't liked it, so anything to draw them into the web. It's got such a wide array of charms that it works for just about anyone who can get over the whole 'in the future, the border worlds will all be like the 19th century American west' concept. It's a shame the series lasted but one season (more due to poor executive decisions/scheduling/marketing than quality). Firefly had more going for it during its first season than just about any other show I've seen. It's quite possible it could've burned out over time, but it was easily on par (if not superior) to just about any scifi tv show's mid-life seasons.

That's disappointing to hear, given that the simplistic cutscenes from the old NES trilogy were entertaining in their own right, so it wouldn't take much... Disappointing, but not surprising.

Got my Alternator Blue...I mean Silverstreak early on and it's RHD, which is a little weird as you would think that all the cars would have the same drive side for a localized area if you stick to the story of how the Autobots got their earth-forms. Well, my Alternators get along just fine nontheless. Prime, Smokescreen, and Sideswipe just keep pestering 'Streak to hook them up with his cute Japanese sisters is all. Your logic is probably correct that Hasbro just simply copied the Binaltech one until someone came along and said, "Hey, if we're selling these in North America, isn't the driver side on the wrong side?"

I was going to ask if that means a return of Paranoia, so we can finally root out all the commie mutant traitors here and make the Computer as happy as we all are. Remember, happiness is mandatory. But, I decided to look around first and discovered that Mongoose Publishing is coming out Paranoia XP later this summer (done by the original designers), so I'm contemplating finding new victims...I mean introducing the game to the friends who have never played it. I, too, liked the old Star Wars RPG. Say whatever anyone wants to say about the system itself, it did manage to capture the feel of the movies. And I like the limitations on Force-sensitive characters, staying true to the time period. Once you open up the possibility of having Jedi, everyone is bound to want to play one.

As much as I prefer the concept of all the weapons becoming parts of the car and therefore keeping the car looking normal (and not have them going into subspace or whatever the old logic claimed), I actually don't mind the missiles sitting on the sit of the spoiler. At least they don't disappear and I like the idea that they're sort of optional 'heavy firepower' addons that the Autobots would attach if they knew they were going into a big battle and didn't really care about the 'robots in disguise' part as much as 'robots who have a faster alternative mode'. I'll have to agree that Tracks is growing on me in yellow, especially with the amount of black in robot mode, but I almost think that a yellow/black combination would've made a better Stunticon color (Dragstrip maybe, despite the fact that I'd rather see him as a Mirage repaint).

I haven't seen ST2, nor probably have any real desire to see it, but I do have a comment or two on the original. As an adaptation of the original novel (or as even a good sci-fi movie), I have to concur with most of you and say there's little good to say about the movie. The thing is, P.V. never intended for it to be those things. Sure, he was probably glad to have the name recognition of the novel and have plot elements already written, but I don't believe he at any point considered truly adapting the novel as much as using it for his own ends (which are at times against the themes of the book). I love Starship Troopers as an over-the-top sarcastic black comedy about how at least a little fascism is a necessary and pitiful part of any war mongering state (perhaps this notion hits too close to home for some of us Americans today). When I first saw the movie in the theater, I came away not knowing whether I thought it outright reeked or if there was something I was missing (because of the little chuckles it caused in me). It was only a few years later catching it on TV did I realize that it wasn't the movie I thought it was going to be. If you can stomach it with that new insight, you might also find the movie not only tolerable but potentially even enjoyable. The CGI version does do a better job of sticking a little closer to the book (but still had to have the lighter armored versions both to appeal to the movie fans and so that characters could be distinguished). Has anyone seen the anime version? I heard about it a few years back and how it actually something something that would actually make you think 'ape' when you saw the M.I.'s suits. I'm curious how well it sticks to the book otherwise.

If Wheeljack is next, he had better be white. While I can almost live with a yellow Tracks (then again, while normally I hate yellow as a color for anything other than a Beetle, I sort of came a fan of yellow 'Vettes ever since I kept picking that color in the old Gran Turismo games just because it made a friend ill to look at it) a red or some other color Wheeljack just won't do for me. Then again, I'd prefer Wheeljack to be something else. Doesn't necessary have to be race car, but to me part of Wheeljack's defining characteristics is that his robot mode was (even in the streamlined cartoon version)...'chunky'. The Binaltech Vette is very thin (minus the car parts dangling off here and there). It works for a character like Tracks, but Wheeljack to me has always been the type to have Popeye-like forearms and generally be a bit more built-up. I suppose if we can make the dangling car parts look more a part of his body (move them closer, for example), it might work, but from the pictures of Tracks, it doesn't look like you'll have the ability to do so.

Greetings, Programs! That's sure some bloated code there... I had to say it. I think most people here really don't have as much problem with his body shape (heck, I'm far from as in shape as I'd like to be) as much as that the fact that we were treated to about a half dozen 'around the world' photos of nothing but the base bodysuit...it just seemed....excessive. I very much applaud the attempt and, more importantly, the fact that he did take it one step further and is not pretending to be a character from the movie, but an original character from the same universe.

I have one of each and am very happy to have paid the extra money for the Takara one right around New Year. The paint on the Hasbro one doesn't bother me a bit (in fact, I almost dig the weathering a bit...Optimus, unlike some of his troops like Sunstreaker and Tracks, always struck me as the kind that wouldn't care how filthy he was until it affected his functionality). The short stacks, however are just plain wrong. They don't look half bad in cab-only truck mode, but with a trailer or in robot mode they just seem horribly wrong. I should probably jump into the ordering of the recast stacks myself... I'd be willing to pay the same amount again for a Starscream (heck, done right I'd pay it three times over to have Thundercracker and Skywarp repaints too)...I only hope that Takara puts a little more effort into the vehicle mode if they are considering this. Optimus is obviously heavy on looking cool in robot mode...between the side windows and the tiny gas tanks the truck mode could've been better. You can almost live with those issues on a truck, but on an F-15 such carelessness could prove to be unsightly. Speaking of Starscream, why does Optimus have him on one of his communication screens? Just how often did he ever communicate with Starscream via communicator in the show? Once, maybe? Maybe it's for Megatron to yell at Starscream while Prime's holding him in gun mode.

The dialogue between Professor Broom and one of the soldiers also indicated that the site in Scotland was a convergence of ley lines. While certainly Germany has its own share, given the nature abundance of standing stones and other ruins in the British Isles coupled with the fact that the whole concept of ley lines (if you don't accept that they were only 'rediscovered') started in 1920's Great Britain, the British Isles have a reputation of having some strong lines and the locations where these intersect (like spokes on a wheel) would be consider quite empowered locations.

Spidey! I throw you the webshooters, you throw me the idol! Poor Mr. Molina...all those movies under his belt and he will forever be known to a good chunk of the movie crowd as Doc Ock and 'Throw me the idol' guy....

Usual Academy Awards. I will refrain from rambling on and on about my lack of appreciation for the event. As much as I'm glad to see a fantasy film win big (especially when its related to the whole Lord of the Rings series which I do believe is a great trilogy based on a superior set of books), I was severely disappointed that it won every single darn category. Make-up, special effects, sound, etc are all well deserved, but in my most humble opinion, ROTK did NOT deserve best editing. I probably wouldn't have even nominated it for that award. I also believe the best adaptation award was a farce...or a clear indication that no one on the Academy really read the books. To me, the series went downhill with each installment as far as both being true to the work literally and (more importantly) to the work's themes. For those berating Mr. Jackon's attire and appearance, I actually applaud the fact that Jackson refuses to betray his personal nature (granted, he wore pants and shoes, but they probably wouldn't have let him in otherwise). I would much rather see him as himself and cheerful than conform and look miserable all tied up in a suit just so he'd look 'presentable' (aka, like everyone else). The fact that he can look like a well fed homeless person and still take center stage at an event that glorifies the glamourous is just perfect.

As Pirates! is one of my all time favorite games (it's one of the very few I have purchased on multiple platforms, including the C64, Amiga, PC, and even on a console (can't remember if it was the Genesis or SNES, though...I think the former), I was very glad to hear this news when it was first rumored about last year. I am hoping, however, that they don't try to add too much that ruins the game. For example, all this talk of additional RPG elements. I'm all for more stats for your character, more choices, more interraction with individuals (apparently the other captains will have personalities and won't just be "Arrgh! It's the <adjective><rank><name>!"), but what I'm hoping they avoid is getting bogged down in a story (ala Sea Dogs). Part of the charm of Pirates! was that you were pretty much writing your own story. Sure you always had that side quest regarding your missing family members, but otherwise you could write the story of the stalwart trader, the cruel pirate, the all-but officially commisioned city capturing privateer, or even just a simple captain sailing around hitting on all the governor's daughters and barmaids and never settling down with anyone. It was the open endedness of games like this, Sword of the Samurai, and Darklands that made them so appealing, in my humble opinion (although Pirates! benefits from doing just about everything right). Will Wright (of everything Sim-related) was part of a panel at a game conference recently that asked 'Do games need stories?'. Depending on the style of game, I totally agree with him that a designer should never enforce a story on a player. If the player has nearly complete control over the events, then the story truly becomes that of the player and is richer because of it (now, granted, some people just don't have the imagination to tell their own stories, so they suffer from these types of games). I'm hoping Mr. Meier, who has always been in the same line of game design as Mr. Wright in that they've both been makers of 'tool boxes' or 'toys' rather than interractive fiction, is of the same mind and doesn't force a single story on us. Part of the reason Pirates! is still played today be people is that everytime you play it, you get a different story (unless you're stuck on the mindset of saving and reloading every time something goes slightly wrong, then you're basically playing the same game every time...which is your own fault). BTW, does anyone remember the initial release of Pirates! that came in the hard cover book-like box? Ah, the grand old days of creative packaging and hefty, info filled manuals....

Oh well. Posted this ages ago, but I can't find that thread anymore and since this is about Photoshopping up your Valks... At one point I was tempted to continue with this gag in a spin-off series call 'Lord of the Rights' where Hikura enlists Frodo and Sam to help him return with him to his world and go to Mount Gold to burn the One Contract, but between a lack of time and enthusiasm, I never got around to it.

HSX.com is just a fun little online game. There's no real money that exchanges hands. Basically people play movies and stars like stocks and bonds, respectively. You invest in a movie for either short term (because of hype) or long term because of potential final box office. A bunch of us at work were involved with this a few years back (they even used to have a weekly video update of the week's big movers). It was fun for awhile because it threw a little competitve edge in with a general love of movies. Unfortunately, it can be manipulated too easily and for the most part we grew bored because one of our gang (not to mention how many strangers) abused the system.

Only at Macrossworld can I do a size comparison photo, pay homage to the old Super Friends cartoon, and come to the complete realization that I need to stop using my digital camcorder for still shots and get a real digital still camera... No big issues with my Prime, although I now am thankful Yamato went without die cast for their 1/48 as Optimus does have some serious balancing issues (which will probably get worse at the feet/ankles weaken).