You haven't WHAT!?

I once told someone that I never had a specific food that's claimed to be made from the kitchen grill's equivalent to the Holy Grail. They chose to discuss this among their own friends, to which one said that they (meaning I) should be shot.

One thing I've learned on and offline, is that you choose wisely who to tell what you've never done that seems to be the thing to do. You haven't seen this movie, you haven't eaten at this place, or had this locally sacred food. Revealing this seems to a way to bring the asshole out of people.

Personally I'd rather them come out and do that towards things actually essential to one's life. Sure it's one thing if at a certain point you've never wrote a resume or changed the oil on your car, but so help you if you've never seen "The Godfather" or drank a Rum and Coke.

Mid-final research paper ramblings.

Forced to choose between the topics of the history, personal feelings, and pros/cons of HD radio or Satellite radio, and it has to be seven or eight pages long.

Five or six, I can understand, but this is a final paper, not just for the class, but for college. None of us in class would expect the end to be easy, but not all of us are graduating. Hell, some people don't even care for the class, which their reasons are theirs.

But much like someone that made off with $5K in equipment in my filming group last semester, my grade's not effected by their recklessness, and for that, I'm grateful.

But with DJ Shadow in the background keeping me going, and another intimidating final being prepped for tomorrow afternoon, I'll end with saying this ;)

A moving-goer observation (when dealing with franchises, anyway)

Chances are, the less you see movies not based on a franchise product, the better your chances of hearing a review that's based on the movie itself, and not a reviewer's interpretation and expectations being ruined by someone else's adaptation.

To those that can watch movies based on a comic/game/cartoon separate from their love for said medium prior to its theater form, cool deal. The rest of you, do what makes you happy, but there's a fine line between justified complaints and pretentious soapboxing, and knowing the difference can make for an opinion worth respecting.

[end scene]

"Stranger Danger" in a different sense.

People have this part of their brain that says "make a smart, ironic comment about a complete stranger's appearance, that'll win their hearts!" The fact that they are a stranger means that you don't know if they may be one step away from filming their own remake of Falling Down. So do your best to approach people the way you'd like to be approached, with respect and peace in mind. Because there's never a good day to earn a speed knot.

The People We Know (Or, "Streamline writing at its 'finest'.")

We all have/had that one friend that wants you to watch a video that you've stated you've seen, but since you haven't seen it with them, it's "new to you." So they proceed to put it in your face, because you completely don't have the option to walk away, push it away, watch it begrudgingly, or hit them.

Speaking of hitting, ever have those people that are talking to you, and tap you every few seconds into their story as if you weren't paying attention to them, which after the third tap, you have all the right not to? Maybe the best recourse is to hit them every time they do that, to the point where they stop and question your increasing urge to be justified in an assault charge on your record. 

Then you have the people on the other end. The ones that actually hear you talk, because they likely asked for your advice about something. Particularly something life-changing, threatening, or it's some old crap you thought they were better than getting into. You go on and on about what they need to do to change the dramatics to being non-existent, and what do they do? Blow all that sage advice away and go back to being miserable and whiny, wondering why the world is crop dusting on their picnic. 

Yes, the phrase is true, "shit happens," every day without warning or sometimes reason, but there comes a point where the mess that you can control, should be controlled by your own meaty digits we call fingers, attached to other parts that make up hands, which come fully loaded with "slap-the-shit-outta'-you" technology, in case you need to wake up the hard way. 

There comes a point for all of us where we have that voice inside that's screaming the answers that others outside of us are saying themselves. It may take a while, but hopefully by the time you've come to the conclusion everyone else did months ago, you won't be celebrating the epiphany by yourself. You might even welcome their slaps, which you greatly deserve, but better those friendly bruises that heal into nothingness, than mental scars that just don’t go away.  

[End Scene]

Oh, you're one of *those* people.

You know that feeling you get when you sneeze, and no one says "bless you" because that's what you might have grow up to expect? I'd like to believe its the same feeling when you wish someone a happy birthday, yet they don't wish you one back when it's your time. Of course, the big difference between the two is that you'd have to know the person well enough to wish them such, while the former example can be done to a stranger or two. Still, I feel as if they, and other acts in this realm, are connected in a sad way.

But I’m wondering, have people, even the ones you might have considered friends, become so jaded or disconnected, that they can't even acknowledge that for a moment, their existence mattered to another?

Yeah, in some cases we get too overwhelmed with life duties that we can't get to say everything or anything we want, but to take a few measly seconds to say "thank you" or something of that feature seems like a method of torture to one's ego. Of course even to the ego-ridden, interactions of any kind with the other can often risk leading to awkward conversations. You know the ones, where they end with one saying they should meet up for lunch/coffee/misc., but never really mean it.  

I guess it's true what some say, that silence can be better than "B.S." But if one's incapable of telling the truth about whether they truly want to associate with you or not (especially outside the internet), then perhaps they were full of crap to begin with. 

That doesn't justify that you have to discontinue any method of kindness to others, be they friends or strangers. Consider your methods as a way to weed out who’s worth your attention.

If you happen to say “bless you” in one’s moment of nasal turmoil, but don’t give that respect back, let them know about themselves.

If that friendly food-and/or-drink-based meet-up is one-sided, your time is too important to be wasted on empty plans, and they should know that.

If it’s a (close) friend that you feel doesn’t care if your birthday’s coming or gone, yet you have, speak up. You can even take the high road and wish them one. Think of it like a reminder them that you were once somebody to them before they became “famous.”    

In closing, it seems like these little things make up the roots of people to grow into their own embodiment of suck. By telling them who they are in your eyes, it might just make them suck just a little less, but if it doesn’t, then at best you’ve started to respect yourself a little more.

No go on and bless yourself.

[End Scene] 

"Minor" Movie Rant time.

This is just a thing I was thinking concerning the popular use of premature judgment towards new movies, specifically the ones with tons of franchise history on their back. 

Judgment can work both ways. Something in this section can look great or terrible all based on what came before it. The new Godzilla, for one, looks great in comparison to the US' ‘98 attempt. So far, that's all that can be said from the cautiously optimistic, but as a movie to come out in this era, will it do well? Some may already have written it off because of more outrageous claims ("the original creators aren't involved," "the monsters looked better as costumes,"), and to those extreme purists, there's usually no convincing them any better.    

Now with this new Ninja Turtles movie teaser out, to many it already looks horrible. No more than two minutes of the movie was shown, and it’s already tied over hot coals. But how much of this hatred can be said and felt with confidence, as in without the negative press and questionable acting ability of Megan Fox attached to the movie? Or that its producer Michael Bay has seemingly toyed with the feelings of loyalists to both this, and the recent Transformers movies long enough? The look of the turtles is even balancing a love/hate fence, ranging from the liking of individual clothing tags, versus “why are they so damn huge and ugly/uglier?”

 I’m not saying that the outcry didn’t need to be done when they were first announced to be “aliens,” but now that there’s official vision of the oncoming film, what does it take to for the purists to put their pre-meditated critiques aside, and at least attempt to judge it outside of themselves, and instead as an adaptation for today’s general audience, and more open-minded fans? Even if they stayed aliens, the top injustice would be to still give it ties to the franchise, which granted had its multiple takes on their origins, but even then, the closest they’ve come to being aliens is that in some versions of their story, the ooze that mutated them was from another world. At least that would’ve been passable to (SOME of) the core fans if that made it to the big screen.    

I’m no saint in this debate, either. I went through this with the live action Resident Evil movies, which while the first one I can still enjoy, the others that followed were watchable to a point, until the fourth, which started to fall in, if nothing else, directorial quality. Change the story all you want (which they dramatically have and arguably should have), but at least have some decent continuity flow, and limit the dramatic slowdown effects during action scenes. 

Also, just because the movies are made more for the general audience, doesn’t mean that it should be watered down to a point where suspending disbelief is replaced with approaching it with the same mind a child might with the Sprout Channel.    

This, like any film/TV/cartoon/game adaptation is not meant to say that your interpretation of your beloved franchise is “wrong” in their eyes, anymore than you feel their take of it is wrong because “no one understands your vision of it.” Everyone has their idea of the “perfect” translation of their ideal series, much like people had their idea of a perfect government, religion, hell even cheese steak. 

But unless you’re part of the machine that built these objects of mass consumption into existence, or in this case, re-existence, then pray any of your complaints towards its revision(s) match that of the angry mobs that could inspire the change you want. Otherwise, your multi-page script rewrite/hate mail may not get past the fan fiction realm of the internet.  

Re: "Devil May Cry Trademark Renewed"

Took long enough for me to do a blog about a game ;)

So, this is actually concerning the recent video posted by Miles923 or Maximillian Dood, who mentioned that there’s hope yet in Capcom still having interest in their Devil May Cry series. You can watch the video here, if you'd like, then read on.

After the response the Ninja Theory reboot got, it’s likely that they’ll go back to the Dante that fans knew and loved even during the reboot’s existence. But before I get into some of the questions he asked in his video, I’d like to share what I thought of the reboot, something I should’ve done a long time ago.

Now, as a game, the reboot was and still is good to play. On an artistically and audible level, it was a welcome addition to the series, which complimented each other every step of the way. There were some gripes I had about the controls, but I got through it enough to make sure that it wasn’t the only thing making me dislike it.

On the narrative level, some of the dialogue, particularly the more vulgar moments Dante had, was like listening to most children curse when there aren’t any adults around. Don’t get me wrong, there were subtle moments of it, and nods to sexual content in the previous games, but in here, it seemed more forced, trying to make Dante (if not others) “cool” and “edgier” in a sense that would make audience members that are into those features somehow satisfied, if not draw a new audience in. Instead, it came off as adolescent and almost amateurish, particularly to anyone that was into the original series, because it didn’t need all that to exist. If anything, the retelling of the story had the makings of what could’ve happened if the series were to be turned into a live-action movie by now, something that the writer to the reboot has some previous experience in.   

That, I felt is a shame because for the most part, the series did need a reboot in some form, especially once they added Nero into the mix.  Not talking trash about Nero, and the gameplay changeup he added to it, but on a story level, the ambiguity behind his link to the Sparda bloodline could’ve been added into the reboot universe, as well opened up the chance for some alternate takes to classic characters to reappear, like Lady, Arkham, Trish, even those from the poorly received Devil May Cry 2, namely Arius and Lucia.  

Now, as far as what would be best for Capcom to do since renewing the trademark? Despite fan/consumer relations, their best move would be to have the original Dante return, but in doing so, take some nods that made the NT reboot playable, and the parts from the 3rd and 4th game memorable and the most popular. This would have to be, of course, done by ignoring those that still haven’t or never will given the reboot a chance because of simpler complaints, such as Dante’s overall new look. 

Now long before the reboot, I remember some wondering what else can the series do that’ll keep it profitable for Capcom, and keep it interesting for both them and the consumers. I’d believe they’re better off not worrying about complete revivals, and just keep the elder franchise going, while adding the new play elements to Dante, or whomever they make the lead.

While taking risks is part of any business, now’s the time to look into the hits and misses, especially with Capcom’s current financial issues. Dante is a character that many would agree deserves more than guest appearances, and let’s face the fact that in the world he’s from, they could have some far-fetched reason characters like Mundus, Vergil/Nelo Angelo, and other villains make some twisted comeback, should there be some demand for it. Though I see more of that towards Vergil, due to his popularity from DMC 3, and further solidified in Ultimate MvC 3.

You could even go as far as have some game somehow combine the two worlds, like a Sonic Generations kind of style, but that’d be asking for too much at once, especially when the reboot controls has a bit more complexity than the other DMC titles, but there can still be a balance brought to make something like that doable, to the dismay of the anti-reboot crowd.           

As for Ninja Theory? Well I could say that it’d be fine to see them have another chance at DMC, but their control over it would have to be severely limited, at least in the sense of there being a new writer that can capture the original charm the series had, even to his first venture to his younger days in DMC 3. While the controls were bothersome at times, a sequel is a chance to polish those issues up so that more people can get into the game, and for the more forgiving critics to give it a second chance. Definitely make it as fair and balanced as the difficulty was in part three, four, and to a point the reboot, and get the artists from both Capcom and Ninja Theory (should any of them still work for the companies by this point) to join forces.

Though personally, if they were to top the Bob Barbas fight, I would be shocked and impressed. 

However, if Ninja Theory were to work with Capcom once more, but not on a DMC title, then give them a new IP, something to prove that they’re capable of being entertaining, without all the risk brought on from having them helm the reboot. Capcom’s had a bad reputation cutting ties with developers well before their time, and in this case it’s the same, except at least it’s not before they could finish a trilogy, or even start one. 

So all that's left now is to see what comes of the TM renewal. Just so long as they don't lose interest in this high-interest product as they've done before, there's hope in Capcom winning back the good graces of some of their fanbase, if not all. 

[End Scene]

"And in this corner...WTF!?" Follow-up.

The price of being gullible weighs on many of us, but for those that aren't afraid to speak out on their faults for believing a parody story, I salute you, and you're not alone in it.

So it did turn out that the whole fight was a hoax from the start, which even with that, I couldn't help but wonder if it's due to the backlash and protests its then-existence had. To say that it doesn't exist can seem like an escape hatch, much like how public figures have to apologize for something that doesn't require an apology, especially when they were originally speaking their mind. That's something I'll speak on another time, but for now, this.

As for me believing in it, I've little to no regrets. It was on me to outright believe that something like this would've happened, despite feeling that society would be this low as to eat this up. Besides, if Zimmerman won, there'd be outrage, dark(er) humor, DMX's street cred (arguably) lowered, and maybe a Grand Wizard somewhere naming a lynching rope after George. But if DMX won, there'd be various shouts and whispers about justice (in its alternate forms) finally being served from many, while certain others may..no, WILL give him the Richard Sherman treatment.    

So as far as a society goes, once again I'm reminded of, of all things, a movie tagline:

"Whoever wins, we lose."

And I say that we lose because, it's already bad enough that there's been another racial divide brought on by Zimmerman's case. Now look who's about to fight him? You have someone who's rhymed about, cinematically portrayed, and in some people's eyes, is the type of person Zimmerman thought an innocent slain child fit the description of. Add that onto the ignorance to general public who feel it's easier to hate an entire race because a number of people suddenly represent millions of others, many of them could give a damn about those that are shuckin' and jivin', wearing their pants half off their ass, and other signs of falling from grace, and what do you have? Satisfying the status quo, brought to you by a grant from the Power Elite.  
So yeah, I'm glad that it's not happening, ecstatic even. I should've been wiser though to see if the fight was truly going on, but if it served any positive purpose, it's that there's people out there that also bought into it, and wanted no part in a society that would've allowed this to happen.

Maybe in time, we'll all come together and do the same for something actually worth worrying about. So long as that doesn't prove to be a hoax, either.


[End Scene]  

And in this corner...WTF!?

(NOTE: Sometimes, I do my best to avoid potentially controversial topics, but I felt okay enough to speak out on this one. If for no other reason, because insomnia's a foul beast.)


Like many, I'm disgusted  by the very existence of George Zimmerman (yes, the love child of the NRA and the questionable Florida justice system), and his recent proposal to face someone in "celebrity" boxing. I could go on about the trial, its results, how it makes me feel in many ways, but I've said enough to that in other areas. On a lesser matter, I could even harp about why I put the word celebrity in quotes (which I kinda' do, later). But I think it goes without saying that for someone to have taken a young man's life to consider themselves a noteworthy figure says a lot about 1) the person's warped sense of reality, and 2) the warping of said reality by those that support him.

It should also go without saying that there was a long list of applicants (15 K+, to be exact) that wished to damage him (or worse) for the reason his name's relevant/mud to many, applicant or not. Even when I first heard about the story, something else came to mind along with my disgust, that being the question "Does it have to be a celebrity to fight him?" The amount of people that would love their chance, regardless of their social status in any scope, could fill a small country, but in the end,  one was chosen...

Rapper/Actor/"Father of the Year", DMX.

So I'm a little at odds about this. It's allegedly for charity on X's case, okay, good. Charity is good at any situation. But when you say things like this...

"I am going to break every rule in boxing to make sure I **** him up. Once I am done, I am going to whip my **** out and piss on him. Zimmerman is a piece of **** and that is what he needs to drink." 

...all you better do is win. I don't care how, so long as you also don't take more than you give to said charity (which, if you're a complete jerk, it might be understood if he does), but there's a lot riding on this. There's the undeniable racial tension written all over Zimmerman's miasma even outside of fight night, and because of that, others have expressed their own brand of justice (however so sloppily).

While DMX hasn't gone as far as his opponent has, both of them (more George, anyway) make me think about the movie Natural Born Killers, which eventually speaks up in a satirical fashion how much notorious people in the news become twisted superstars, with people wanting to be (with) them because their own lives lack the energy and unhealthy exposure. But we are in a world where non-celebrities in lockup are able to "hook up with local singles," so I guess things like this are the next step.

So it really comes down to whether or not I'll watch it. I want to comfortably say "no," but I'd be damned if I'm not interested in at least the results, but it may come down to if it's available for me.

Look, I'm not gonna' sit here and say that I don't want X to do what he says he'll do (however comical it'll be if he does give him a phallic hose down), but it doesn't really matter who's in the ring. Both of them have blood and dirt on their hands, but for the interested, it's coming down to whose crime(s) is/are the most reprehensible (and defenses can be done for both, sadly).  

In the end, I doubt something like this is worth any major or cable network's time, so until I'm proven wrong, let's just guess this'll be online and be done with it. Maybe while it's on, I'll watch Killers in some strange sense of protest.

And because of the lead-up to (SPOILER WARNING!!) this scene.


     
[End Scene]

America's Least Wanted

So most of you are aware of the bouts I've been having recently with my car. It runs, yeah, but that's not what we're here about (and from those that read my question on Facebook, you know where this is going. The rest, be patient, it's coming).

So I'm dropping off my car. Again. As I'm coming in, there's a lady with a friend/daughter/whatever-the-hell who were dropping their car off as well. In my hand was a sign of preparation, in the form of greasy processed breakfast (What? Burger King's right across the street). This lady openly noted that she should've done the same thing, which is what happens at times among people.

Now, from this point, I was expecting to hear either nothing more of it, or at most, a break off from what I had. That, I could've done, which would've been the kind thing to do, and have done numerous time for those that even don't ask, yet you can tell need it. Somehow that act of kindness gives me the trope of "teddy bear" to people that are only used to me being such a docile individual.

But what happened next is why I give said people the finger, and that's being nice.

The lady turns her attention from my bag to me, and asks "Can I borrow your car?"

The following picture, a PG version of one of my favorite net memes, reflects the face I gave her.
http://students.expression.edu/bwiensmetal/files/2013/09/you-think-this-is-a-game-cat-600x360.jpg

I don't want to say "mentally damaged" because I don't know her well enough outside the strong evidence I was presented. However, you have to be something close to it to ask a complete stranger such a thing, and not be either an officer commandeering said car, or a mechanic giving it a test run (to which the question shouldn't be asked).

Despite the look I gave that was enough to say something/MANY things with some strong language, I was able to get out a "No" to make sure the absurdity didn't short out the part of my brain that could still speak English.

So in conclusion, things were quietly handled, nothing too much was exchanged, short of asking me what BK was serving at the time. This, of course, while I was eating my well-earned, yet regrettable #2 meal. Yes, while in their line of sight. Because they've given me a greater sense of how to not give a damn for this behavior ever while in public. Because if they haven't considered what their doing is wrong, my rebuttal, however subtle,wordy, or (non-) vulgar, should feel right.    

(Sorry I don't have a better ending this time around :D )

[End Scene]

 

A little darker than usual, but worth saying.

So you're not where you want to be. You feel that what you're doing now and what you've done up to this point is nothing to where you thought you'd be in life, financially, spiritually, romantically, even socially. You've heard the speeches about being somebody that you can look back and love, versus the person you resented growing past being, but did you do that?

How far are you from the person you left behind in those dark days of uncertainty and anguish that had you lash out as a means to either get someone's attention, or to make sure it didn't eat you up inside? That's assuming you were the type to express those feelings so openly, and had to rely on the confidence of  whom you considered friends, or should it be "friends."? Those being the others that are 50/50 about telling your business to the world you have similar, little, or no access to, in hopes that moment they decide to betray your trust doesn't come back to them.

What a shame, huh?

These are some of the things that hold us back from being who we want to be, who we want the world to know what we are, but letting these types of thoughts and actions anchor your progress does little good to that. You have to reach a point where nothing but your own intellect, a controlled sense of pride in your ability, and knowledge of whom to really trust with your inner being, are the tools you need to start, and even finish heading where you want to rest your flag, claiming your land for all to see. You can't let the petty silence, empty promises, twisted ideals, or other actions of broken and shallow spirits weight you any longer. It's time to show them that there is a world without their discolored sight, and it's time you stop using their eyes to see, and their hands to toss away your life.

Now go, and with the spirit of those that truly love and respect you on your side, don't come back until you've made your dream real.

[End Scene]

One sentence says it faster than I could've.

"Religious or not, many sacred texts are still applicable sources of wisdom. Just apply the lessons to yourself and be a good person." - Brown Skin Flynn, via Twitter

Side note: I'll hopefully have a full blog about religion in the later days. It's a topic I've been good at avoiding in open fourm for a long time, but I think it's past time to say something about it. It may not surprise some, may piss off others, but better it be known than speculated.

[End Scene]

Putting this out in the public.

Just once, I'd like to see someone dressed as a Sumo wrestler in the middle of winter throwing salt on the ice. We got two more months of this weather, so if it hasn't happened already, Internet, make it so.