If you take a look at the section of this website named Top 10s, you will notice that on the list of my favourite games of all time, Pokemon Red sits in slot number 2. Pokemon was pretty much year zero for me when it came to playing games. Sure, I had played some before that. But Pokemon was the first game that I poured hour after hour into. Since then I have played pretty much every game in the franchise and as long as I have a suitable break between each installment, have never grown bored with them.
X+Y
X+Y sits in an unusual place. On one hand, it’s a sweet look at a young maths prodigy trying to find a place in the world. He goes to the International Mathematical Olympiad, meets a girl and discovers that there is more to the world than numbers. On the other hand, that same prodigy registers on the spectrum and just doesn’t understand how people work. His father died at a young age and his mother struggles to connect with him. His mentor suffers from multiple sclerosis and he discovers that even in the world of the super smart, bullying is still a major issue.
Chappie
Hello friends, in an attempt to do something a bit different, this post is a video review of the Neil Blomkamp film Chappie. It’s simply an attempt to mix things up a bit and hopefully future videos will be a little bit more ambitious, but I thought I should start small. Let me know if you have any thoughts and enjoy.
The Rise of the Panther
A hair metal band singing songs about gloryholes. If you were asked, you probably wouldn’t pinpoint that as the kind of band who could headline Wembley Arena. Yet, somehow this last weekend saw that happen, as Steel Panther continued their remarkable rise to the top of the rock and roll food chain. Yet how have they done it? How have a band, that on first glance are little more than an elaborate joke, achieved so much?
Still Alice
Even though the Oscars have come and gone, those of us in the UK are still catching up on the last of this years nominees. The biggest of which comes in the form of Still Alice, which saw Julianne Moore capturing a gong for the first time, despite four previous nominations. It’s a film that has taken on even more symbolic strength, following the death of Richard Glatzer, one of its directors. Having passed away at the age of 63 from motor neurone disease, his final film will probably be his best remembered.
Terry Pratchett
My book shelf could be very easily split into two halves. Terry Pratchett and related, then all the rest. It also wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out which half is more loved. The rest is all pristine books, read once or twice and returned to their slot. On the other hand, my Pratchett books are falling apart. Some held together by pure force of will. One is even splattered with Warhammer paint, from when I was young and thought those were two tasks I could do simultaneously.
The Shape of Cinema
2015 is shaping up to be the year of the blockbuster. From Star Wars to Avengers right back round to Fast & Furious 7, cinema is set up to be big, brash and a whole lot of fun. Yet some people aren’t on board with this. Some people think that cinema is become homogenized, that super hero movies and Michael Bay now dominate the big screen and because of it we are losing all those special little films that not everyone sees, but those who do never forget.
Beyond The Final Countdown
We’ve all heard it a million times. It has an intro that wheedles its way into your brain and never leaves. ‘The Final Countdown’ is Europe and no matter what that band do, it will always be that way. But should it be like that? These Swedish rockers have just released their 11th album. Surely there has to be something beyond that keyboard?
ROH
Last weekend was ROH’s 13th anniversary show and as I do every few months, I took it as an opportunity to leap back into the crazy world of independent wrestling and check out how they are getting on. Now, obviously this does mean I am only a casual viewer, I tend to be aware of what is going on in ROH, but I’m not a die-hard and therefore my ability to comment on storylines is limited.
Live Review: Bleed from Within w/ Excellent Cadaver, Perpetua and Exile the Traitor
Bleed From Within are pretty much the top of the food chain when it comes to Scottish metal. Therefore, their pre-tour show at Edinburgh’s Opium, a venue far too small for the band, should be packed to the rafters. Sadly, Edinburgh once again fails to deliver and despite it being a Friday night the crowd is noticeably thinned out at the edges. Thankfully, they don’t seem to let it bother them.
Ramblings About Wrestling 