Iron Man 3 Movie Review

After falling in love with last summers Avengers, I have been worried that Marvel had reached its peak. Guardians of the Galaxy is due next year and I have faith in that but the solo superhero films recently have not been exactly impressive. Until iron man 3. This movie is more of a sequel to the avengers film as it is to iron man 2. Tony copes with the events of the avengers while still dealing with the antagonist the Mandarin. The movie differs from other marvel films by focusing more on internal struggles than action packed external dilemmas. But that does not make it a bad film. I thoroughly enjoyed the film and Robert Downey Jr. nails it out of the park yet again with his excellent performance as the billionaire Playboy. Jokes are sprinkled throughout the film to lighten up the mood and to remind you this is still a Marvel movie. All in all, I recommend seeing this movie in theaters. 7.5/10

P.s. extra scene at the end of credits!

Forgive Me Fellow Readers....

I apologize for my previous post claiming Bioshock is overrated... After a long discussion with my friend and playing through it noticing every small tidbit they included in the game, I can confidently say Infinite is my favorite videogame of all time. Yes the combat can be frustrating to no extent and it makes me want to pull my hair out but all in all, that game is 11/10. Forgive me for my ignorance in not seeing the truth prior.

Bioshock Infinite: Is It Really All It's Said to Be?

SPOILERS

It seems that the game everybody is talking about nowadays is the one and only Bioshock Infinite. Having just complete the game myself, I would like to announce my concerns. Although the game had a fascinating and unexpected ending, I can't help but say the game is getting a bit of an overrated praise. Yes it is interesting how this and the first game are connected in possibly the coolest way possible but as for Infinite having the coolest and deepest ending to a video game ever? That is a bit of a stretch. And claiming that it is better than the first BioShock is very unfair considering the fact the ending wouldn't be NEARLY as cool if the first game was never made. Therefore, infinite needs the support of the first game to have the phenomenal ending it did. As for the gameplay, it's classic BioShock gameplay with nothing new. Not that there is anything wrong with that!!! But some of the tasks in infinite were extremely difficult which did end up taking some of the fun out of the game. Call me a casual as much as you like but I did take my beating which in turn did ruin some of the fun. Did anybody else have a headache after facing Lady Comstock... TWICE? I mean cmon guys. Give us a break. And the handymans were quite the bitch. All in all BioShock is a noteworthy game and does deserve at least a 9 out of 10 but i cannot shake the feeling that there is some unnecessary hype behind it.

Batman and Robin Issue 18 - Undone

In the wake of Damian Wayne's death in Batman Inc. 8, the following months in the DCU will be mourning issues starting off with the Requiem tie-ins and Batman & Robin issue 18 has started it off with a bang. This powerful issue is all silent with not one word being spewed and damn is it powerful. After finishing, I can honestly say that i was on the verge of tears due to it's impact. Each panel just shows the pain Bruce is feeling slowly but surely until the last page with the climax of the tale.

Among the titles out this week (Batman, Detective Comics, B&R,  and Batgirl) Batman & Robin 18 takes the cake for Requiem tie-ins. Even if you are not a reader of this series, picking up this issue is a must. Bruce's pain is so vivid and compelling and you do not want to be left out. 10/10 all the way on this book. Good job Gleason and the rest of the creative time.

R.I.P. Damian. You will be missed

Grant, congrats on breaking our hearts

Death of the Family Conclusion Review

Spoiler. This is it. Snyder's final installment of the Death of the Family story arc and it's quite the doozie. Full of epic moments though not what you may be expecting. This book tends to lean more towards psychological moments than action packed fight scenes between the Joker and Batman. But that is to be expected after all due to the two's relationship.

Was it a bit anti-climatic?
Depends... if you bought into the hype of Alfred dying or at least someone meeting their fate, then you may be a bit let down. But let's look at this logically. Joker, considering he does not know who Alfred is to Batman, has no reason to kill the old man. To him, he thinks Batman views him as just another citizen. It doesn't make sense that Joker would kill Alfred in spite of hurting Batman. Not to mention, even IF Joker knew Alfred's significance to Batman, I still don't think he would kill off Alfred. Because wouldn't that just take the fun out of Joker's never ending game? Now yes, you could pull the "But he killed Jason" card but Jason and Alfred are two different people to Bruce. He loves them both but nonetheless, they play different parts in his life.

Although I'm in love with Snyder's writing and Capullo's art, I have to admit that although I did love the psychological conclusion to the story involving the revelations of why Joker had his face removed and the explanation to 'removing' the whole Bat Family's face, I wish there was a bit more of an action conclusion that added to the psychological part. And Joker falling down the waterfall... Meh. Same song and dance I feel. We've seen it before where the villain just "get's away".

Showing snippets of each of the Bat members at the end of the issue pondering what had just went down was also a nice touch. It made me sit and think about the 5 months that have passed that enclosed this story and the trauma that came with it. I think Damian and Jason's were the most powerful scenes.

All in all, I am very satisfied with the conclusion and I hope this team of Snyder and Capullo stick with us for issues to come. I give this a solid 9.5/10 and am definitely excited for what's to come in the Batman saga

Death of the Family Review (Up to Batman Issue 16)

What can I say? This is one of the most promising, drama filled. action packed story lines I've ever read. Scott Snyder's writing is like poetry and I cannot get enough of it. The first page of issue 15 (Batman) had me with my heart going a hundred miles an hour. I probably read it twenty times. And the cliffhanger at the end had me at the edge of my seat. But I think the true jewel on the crown is Batman issue 13. The beginning of all the madness with the Joker. This was definitely one of my favorite comics of all time. The references to earlier stories, the writing, the art, THE COVER. It was all perfect. If you haven't checked out DC's Death of the Family story arc yet, you are missing out.

Why I Disliked the Dark Knight Rises Film

Explicit Language And Spoilers
So today I was discussing the final installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy with my friends and their arguments as to why it is the greatest superhero film ever got me revved up to post this rant. Here we go...

Bane In general 
Christopher Nolan claimed that he wanted The Dark Knight Trilogy to be 'realistic' and not all flashy with giant action packed scenes which i commend. But I'm sorry, tell me the realism in a man who we can guesstimate is about 50 years old (Due to the flashback with Talia as a child and how young she looked then and how old he looked) breaking THE BATMAN'S back. This is not your average Joe. We are talking about The Dark Knight and some random fuck who just has this "strength" can pick him up and break his back? Because Nolan wanted a 'realistic' approach to the series, he lacked the privilege of including Bane's MAIN WEAPON which is his venom which makes him strong in the first place. So that doesn't make any sense whatsoever. Second, Bane's mask.... my friends claimed that there was some gas that just keeps him alive. I'm sorry. What? What fucking gas? There was no mention of that in the whole film.Way to be real Nolan. And finally, Bane's weak excuse of a death. Now I've heard the reasoning of his death being what it was because "right when you find out he is just a pawn in Talia's plan, he just becomes a normal person and it doesn't matter." But no Nolan. You cannot do that. This is the villain we have been following the whole film and you just kill him like that? I don't know. Maybe it's just my opinion but I thought it was pathetic. Now this rant is not a rip on Tom Hardy who I believe did an excellent job portraying Bane with voice, personality, and all but let's face it. He did not have the right stature to play Bane. Nolan should have picked someone like Ryback from the WWE who actually has the proper build.

The Ending
I've already heard your excuse for this. It was on auto pilot. If so, riddle me this. What is with the split second scene of Batman in some machinery which you ASSUME is the bat vehicle? My friends defended that he was somewhere else and that was just some machine of his. Bullshit! You witness him take off after kissing Catwoman! Where else would be be? At the fucking batcave? No. And my friend claims that The Bat vehicle is based off of a military vehicle? Um. No. I don't think Batman has the power of traveling 6 miles in 50 seconds. That's wayyyyy too far fetched. Nolan should have just killed him off. If I hear "It wasn't the ending we wanted. It was the ending we needed" one more time, I'm gonna lose it.

Miscellaneous

• I love the man. But even Joseph Gordon-Levitt doesn't have the power to just immediately detect Batman when he enters the room. That was also a far fetched move.
• Bane and his men can just stash away 5 or so motorbikes in the Wall street building and make a cool escape?
• During the motorbike scene where Bruce Wayne first appears as Batman. When the cops chase Batman, that was one of the most ridiculous car chases I've ever seen. There had to have been at least 100 cop cars all chasing one bike. So they just totally forgot their original assignment of chasing Bane and his men? This whole movie was far fetched.
• My friend was speaking out of both ends of his mouth claiming that TDKR was better than Marvel's The Avengers as a superhero movie. How? A superhero movie should have outrageous fight scenes with over the top powers and action. If my friend wants to claim that TDKR is realistic, he cannot also claim that it's better than The Avengers when it comes to action and superhero mannerisms. I've been reading comic books all my life and the fact that these friends of mine claimed to know more about the batman franchise than me (even though they've never picked up a comic in their life) is a slap in the face considering how seriously I take my comic book lore. 

You may have your opinions and I have nothing wrong with that. These are my opinions and my facts to back them up. 

Best Song On Halo 4

Although I did complete Halo 4's campaign a while ago, I cannot get this one song out of my head. When it played during the campaign, it was one of the greatest moments in my video game career. The power. The energy. The emotion it evoked. I almost broke down in an odd way. Like something  very sad was to happen and I didn't want it to happen but at the same time, I knew it was irreversible. That song is Arrival by Neil Davidge. When I heard that Martin O'Donnell wasn't making the music for this game, I was weary but Davidge has done an excellent job and hope he continues this excellence in the following games to come. For anyone who has not played the last mission in Halo 4, 'Midnight', I strongly suggest you do. Especially if you are a hardcore fan of the Halo franchise like I have been since it's birth. Song of the month? Arrival

Halo 4 Review - 343 Delivered

Speechless. Utterly speechless. Halo 4 is everything I wanted it to be and more. From the amazing continuation of the storyline to the online multiplayer, 343 delivered and blew my mind.

Graphics and Sound - The prologue cutscene at the beginning of the campaign was so realistic, my friends and I at first thought it was live action. The unloading of the guns and sound effects make you want to have nerdgasm after nerdgasm. Chief is back and looks as beautiful as ever.

Gameplay - The controls flow so beautifully together and all minor flaws from previous games that have irked gamers seem to have gone with the wind. This new Reclaimer Saga is VERY promising

Story - Without giving anything away, the story I can already tell will be good. I only managed to get through   mission 3 last night but Holy Hell. 343 did an excellent job of not leaking or teasing you with anything so there are plenty of surprises and everything in the story is new and fresh.

Flood Mood (Online) - SO COOL! From the abilities to the claw like weapon you have to the actually feeling that you are apart of the flood family! This is one of my favorite new additions to the Halo family

My friends and I got to the midnight launch at our GameStop at 5 PM and good lord it was worth it guys. If you haven't picked your copy up yet, please do ME a favor and get one. If you aren't a fan of Halo after this game, I will have words for you. Well that's all for me. Back to the game. Just had to write my review

Holy Lord... FORWARD UNTO DAWN

With Halo 4 days in reach, being the largest Halo Fan on the face of this galaxy, I had to view the Live-Action mini series. Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn. Part 5 will be released tomorrow and I am ecstatic and filled with energy. When Chief showed his appearance in the fourth episode, I had to hold in my girlish squeals as I cringed to my pant leg in excitement. The way they presented him with assassinating the Elite was beyond words in my opinion. Not one scene involving him was campy in any way and I am proud to be the Halo fan I am. Master Chief is God and that is all there is to say. 

Saga - Image's Few Month Old Comic Reviewed

Full of action, humor, talented art, and an entertaining story, Saga has it all. Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples takes you to a distant galaxy where a war has broken out between two races and stuck in the middle of it all are Marko and Alana who just had a newborn child. They also happen to be on the run from the government. And to top it all off, a few bounty hunters are on their tail.
Saga is definitely one of the more creative comics out there on the shelves right now and I STRONGLY recommend it to any newcomer into comics or any veteran. By far one of my favorite series overall. It's only four issues in so it's not too late to jump on board but they are going fast. My first issue is already a fifth printing.
Not to mention, the price is a low 2.99 so you get a good story, good art AND you save a buck for those more expensive comics like AvX!

The Amazing Spider-Man Movie Review - WTF

So I saw the new Spider-Man at the midnight release and after thinking about it more and more, my respect for that movie just keeps lowering and lowering. They took everything about Spider-Man and threw it out the window. The only thing they stuck true to was this Spider-Man actually used web blasters unlike the original Spider-Man movie. But just about everything else in this film made me question why people even bother bringing these golden heroes to life on the big screen. Andrew Garfield plays Peter Parker in the film and right from the start, he obliterates Peter's high school life. With the skateboard to his clothes to his attitude and persona. It all didn't add up. Just as i predicted.

So not only was Peter's personality tossed down the drain, but Spider-Man's biggest trait was also given a good beating. His mask and what it stood for. Spider-Man's mask isn't just for looks and to give crooks a scare but it signifies  keeping Parker's identity a secret. It signifies the protecting of his loved ones so his enemies don't hurt them. And with this movie, he seemed to just throw that idea out the window. It seemed that Garfield was throwin' his mask off just for shits and giggles with no rhyme or reason.
Now I will admit the fight scenes with The Lizard were entertaining and the movie did do a good job of capturing Spider-Man's humor in the heat of battle so that was a plus to this movie. But I feel Doctor Octopus's battle with Spider-Man from the original trilogy gave these fights a run for their money.
Another part of this movie I didn't like is related to the trailer. If you view the trailer to this movie, it makes it seem like a story about Peter tracking down his parents and what truly happened to them. But that only takes up maybe the first thirty minutes of the movie and instead of delving deeper into their disappearance, he simply veers off course and fights Curt Connors. But they did seem to redeem themselves a bit with the final scene played after the credits with Connors in his jail cell and a mysterious shadow paying him a visit but I don't think it was enough...
All in all, this movie drastically drifted away form Spider-Man's essence and that did not exactly make a comic book lover like myself very happy. And it saddens me more to think that this is the start to a whole new trilogy. This unfortunately isn't a one-shot. Oh well. After the success of the superhero movie the Avengers, I'll let this one slide.

L.A. Noire - Rockstar's Twist On Running the Streets

I know this may be an older game, but having picked it up from GameStop a few weeks ago and progressing through it, I feel it would be appropriate to use this game as my first video game review. So here it is. L.A. Noire Reviewed.

The game (Spanning a length of 3 discs long) puts you in the shoes of Cole Phelps. A former police officer who believes in cold hard justice and doesn't stand by short cuts in the system. You're living in the 1930's of Los Angeles (Duh) and each mission acts like a TV episode in a way (Similar to the game Alan Wake). Each story is indirectly tied together into one larger story including newspaper articles found throughout the game giving a side story about a crazy, manipulating therapist.
Each level starts to seem to get a little repetitive every once in a while and at points throughout, I've felt bored and it feels tedious but the game always does have a few twists here and there in the game play to keep you on your feet.
The game does a really good job of putting you in the setting of the 1930's with dress wear, music, scenery, and the dialogue people use. I was very impressed. Not to mention the graphics in L.A. Noire make this game one of Rockstar's more impressive feats. All in all, L.A. Noire is a fun game and if you ever wanted to live one of those crime shows you see on TV but are too lazy to sign up for police academy, this is your game.

Firefly Episode 1 Reviewed

Firefly is the 2002 sci-fi show with a western/steampunk twist to it. I thought reviewing the first episode for people searching for a fantasy show would be helpful so here you go. The show takes place approximately 500 years in the future and follows Captain Mal Reynolds and his ragtag of a space pirate crew who deal in black market smuggling all across the galaxy. The first episode properly introduces all the characters and what their role is on the ship. Character development is lacking a bit in the beginning but by the end of the episode, you have a feel for where all their hearts are.

The episode is a bit campy (Especially in the beginning) but if you look over that, the story is entertaining and original. I also enjoy how the show obviously takes place in the future but they don't shove it down your throats with crazy looking aliens all over the place and plasma gunfire flying everywhere. They're very calm in showing you that the show doesn't take place in this time frame. Which is different from other futuristic shows. And does anyone else see a resemblance in the ship's mechanic Kaylee with Battlestar Galactica's Cally? I mean even their names are similar along with their personalities. A bit odd...
Anyways, with an impressive soundtrack and an entertaining story, Firefly is definitely worth your time viewing, and if your looking for a classic show to call home, this one is welcoming with open arms.

Newly Released Marvel Teasers - Has The Ultron War Finally Arrived??

A few days ago, Marvel released a few teasers of a new event to happen this October right after the conclusion of Avengers vs. X-Men. Posters include the below.

Looking at blog discussions on websites such as IGN, many people believe that these posters are the first announcement of the Ulton War that Marvel has been teasing about for a while now (Ex. Marvel's Free Comic Book Day Issue) and as much as I'm excited to see the Avengers face off against one of their biggest rivals in a climatic limited series that will be as big as titles such as Fear Itself and House of M, I'm not so excited to see it being released RIGHT after the events of AvX. Like one post said on IGN, I think Marvel should let the aftermath settle with AvX before jumping right on in to the next main event. Ya know? Not just throw another big fireball of epic battles RIGHT after AvX.
Another concern that people are showing about this announcement is that they don't like how every year Marvel has a new big event (Secret War -> Avengers Disassembled -> House of M -> Secret Invasion and so on) but personally, I like looking forward to a new big epic story every year. Yeah I wouldn't mind if Marvel took a break every once in a while so I could catch up but if the stories are gonna be as good as House of M and Avengers Disassembled, I say keep 'em coming! Unless they're like this years event with JRJR's artwork which just does NOT match the storyline of AvX. Regardless of it's timing and what the event is, I'm anxious to see Marvel's news on these teasers later down the road.

Batman #10 Reviewed

BATMAN ISSUE 10 SPOILERS
With the DC New 52 Crossover event coming to a close, I'm anxious to see how they wrap it up. Earlier this month the Batman issue 10 came out and holy mother of god. What a cliffhanger... Bruce Wayne has a brother and he's leader of the Court of the Owls??? And he was running for mayor?? Talk about a twist! I had my jaw to the floor when i finished that issue and I can't wait for more.... WHY DO CLIFFHANGERS HAVE TO MAKE ME SCREAM IN AGONY??? Gah. Well regardless, Night of the Owls seemed to end up to be quite a clever story and I'm very impressed. Glad I kept up.

Epic Cover

Batman: Arkham Unhinged Comic Review Update

Okay. So this is an update to my previous Arkham Unhinged review. I've read issues two and three since then and all I've got to say is what the fraking frak. What happened??? This comic had so much potential thanks to the success of the ground breaking, addictive video game and they started off strong with an entertaining first issue with Catwoman and Two-Face back story and then there's these next two issues that were far from interesting. I'm definitely taking this out of my folder at my comic shop. The art is still cool but would be so much cooler if there was actually some god damn action every once in a while! I mean the second issue is Batman talking to Commissioner Gordon for the whole story and the third is just about the Penguin talking about how he used to be friends with the Joker or something. It was lame. I spoke to soon about this comic unfortunately. But I do have to admit. The covers to each issue so far have been pretty fantastic.

Superior Reviewed

I just finished the limited seven issue series Superior by Mark Millar  (Artwork by Leinil Yu from Secret Invasion) and despite where the first issue seemed to be heading, I will say it was worth the read and I am impressed..yet again. Millar has once again taken a cliche idea and made something original with it. The story is about a young 12 year old boy named Simon Pooni who has the disease multiple sclerosis. He's picked on by kids at school and his true friends are limited. But that all changes one night when a strange space monkey in an astronaut suit appears in Simon's room and changes the boy into the iconic hero Superior. Similar to the abilities of Superman, Superior has all the textbook symptoms of an old school hero. I don't want to give much away but all I'm saying are things aren't always the way they seem...

Superior is a fun, light, action-filled series that is clearly done by the brilliant mind of Mark Millar. With familiar artwork from Leinil Yu, I couldn't help but feel a skrull was gonna pop on in for a panel or two. Excessive f-bombs does make this a comic for a more mature audience. Surprisingly, the ending wrapped up with no noticeable cliffhangers like Millar's other pieces (Nemesis, Kick-Ass) which I think would be best. This isn't exactly a franchise that could go on for a sequel.

Apparently Millar announced that movie director Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass director) bought the rights to Superior and is going to create a film adaption. Definitely will be worth seeing.

The Hobbit Trailer

Guys I can't wait. This year, I get to return to the world of Middle Earth (My ideal home is Bag End). The Hobbit is on the horizon. Although the trailer has been out for a few months now, I finally have viewed Peter Jackson's teaser to the prequel of The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit and oh mi god. This movie is going to be epic upon epicness. It's release date is for this December on the 14th, but judging on how awesome movies like this are usually pushed back a few months from it's original release date, I'm not getting my hopes up. I can't wait to see Jackson's vision of The Hobbit. I trust it'll be in good hands after seeing what he did with the trilogy. And Ian McKellen is Gandalf! He played the role perfectly in the earlier films!
Scenes I am looking forward to seeing are ALL Smog scenes, the giants turning to stone, and the riddles with the one and only Gollum... Brace yourselves guy. This is gonna be a real treat.

New Halo 4 Live Action Trailer W/ Gameplay Released at E3!

Yesterday, at the 2012 E3 conference, Microsoft released an all new Halo 4 live action trailer with about five minutes of game play footage and after viewing it, oh mi god am I excited. There are two videos. One that is shorter and does not have as much campaign footage and does not show the live action trailer but does have multi-player footage and one video that is seven minutes with the live action and only campaign footage The trailer shows UNSC marines lined up listening to a speech while the video flashes forward to their ship being infected by an unknown virus that takes over. It finally then jumps to Master Chief. The man of the hour and as he watches the UNSC ship (That resembles the Pillar of Autumn) seem to come through a portal of some sort (Possible a time portal) and fly over him with obvious complications. Chief watches it fly off in the distance as he's surrounded by nature. Obviously, he has progressed and landed on this turf since we last saw him in the Halo 4 teaser that was released last year. Will the game reveal what happened between that time gap? I hope to god they do.

If you read my earlier post about Halo 4, then I must make a correction. I was under the influence that the Covenant were gone but after watching the footage, there is a scene with two grunts, an elite and a jackal. So yes. The humans most hated enemy is back. As the elite charges you, it seems to be shot with an orange ray that disintegrates it in it's own footsteps. That is where the new alien species is introduced. They look to have a mix of organic and technology base to them and as Chief shoots some, they self destruct where others have the ability to teleport. He even does hand to hand combat at one point which is extremely bad-ass and when picking up one of the foreign guns, it seems to recreate and modify itself at the sense of his touch.
At the end of the video, a strange red symbol appears with the words "An Ancient Evil Awakens". My assumption? Forerunners. Cortana even mentions them at one point when discussing the aliens. So yes, mysteries of the Halo universe will be revealed in this new trilogy.