Tyrant

I am glad to hear the show will continue. I own the current 3 seasons on DVD. I like how there is a plot as the series advances and backstory, yet the episodes themselves (with a few exceptions like the last few of season 3) are seemingly random. The bits with the Guild and the OSI are great. The very idea that the typical dueling shadowy organisations not only exist, but also have agreed upon rules of conduct and even assign arch villains is ridiculous and great at the same time. Overall I look at it similar to how I view Shaun of the Dead. Both are parodies and at the same time are also fairly decent entries into the categories they are making fun of. As a side note, I know that Orpheus (sp?) is supposed to be Dr Strange and the blackula hunter (I can't believe I can't remember his name) is supposed to be Blade, but is the Alchemist supposed to be someone in particular? The bits with these guys as the Order of the Triad are great along with Dr Venture's constant doubting of Orpheus's powers despite ample evidence they exist.

I've watched cartoons since I was a kid in the 80s. I've watched anime since I found a few examples here and there on TV in the 90s. I mostly watch anime and what seems to be labeled as "adult" cartoons these days. Cartoons that I watch (or that I used to watch and would do so again) Family Guy-I agree that it has no central plot. It is hit and miss with me and the older episodes were better, but when it is funny it is really funny. Simpsons-Similar to Family Guy, but less willing to push the limits of taste. Also, the older episdoes were better. The movie was great though. Aqua Teens-Not to be taken seriously at all. I usually just have it on as background noise but it has it's moments and most of those are due to the mooninites. I lump Squidbillies and Metalocalypse in with this as well since I mostly just have them on in the background as well and they are mindless entertainment. Venture Bros-I love this show. The plot is basically Johnny Quest, GIJoe, and James Bond with a dose of a assorted comic books. Definately on the adult end of the spectrum. I hope there will be more seasons. Sealab-Also a great show. Batman:TAS-In my opinion, this is still the best adaptation of Batman to date. This had action, scifi, and horror depending on the episode. Also, Mark Hammil is the voice of the Joker as far as I am concerned. Batman Beyond-It has a slow build, but I liked the show overall. The episode featuring Mr. Freeze was my favorite. The movie, Return of the Joker (uncut version) was also quite good. Gargoyles-One of the only Disney cartoons I really liked that I could still watch today. Several member of the Star Trek the Next Generation cast were voice actors on this show along with Keith David. The plot was okay at the start but as it progressed and it's mythology was expanded it just kept getting better. The episodes with Oberon tied up nearly all loose ends in the show. David Xanatos was a great villain who seemingly couldn't lose. He even has a trope on TVTropes named after him: Xanatos Gambit Anime that I have watched or currently watch: Death Note-I only recently watched this show. I thought it was pretty good, despite L's detective work occasionally amounting to magic. This show makes the simple act of writing in a note book look dramatic. Cowboy Bebop-This show is good through and through. Most of it is light hearted action, but the real meat of the show is the few serious episodes dealing with Spike's past (and one dealing with Jet's past). The finale was great. Gundam, assorted-I mainly stick with the UC stories, but I did watch Gundam Wing as well. The UC storyline is pretty good. The original series tries to highlight to horrors of war and show that most of the people fighting are just young people fighting and dying for their country while the higher ups play their political games. The follow ons painted the Zeon's as mostly evil, then they painted the other side as evil. All of the shows feature a high body count and it includes main characters. The real "twisting the knife" moment is the end of War in the Pocket. The whole story spans several series and at least one movie that covers several years. The villain/antihero/etc Char Aznable is one of the first examples in Japanese works of the villain/antihero having blonde hair and wearing a red outfit. The trend eventually lead to Ken Masters (Street Fighter) and Zero (Mega Man X) among others. Aside from all that, the show also has lots and lots of giant robot fighting action. There are others I am probably forgetting, but those are the main ones I follow or try to buy on DVD.

I saw Orphan last weekend. It definately earned it's R rating in the first few minutes of the movie. The characters were flawed enough that some of the obvious outs (which every horror movie has, so it comes with the territory) could be overlooked. The only problem is the marketing. It makes you wonder what the big suprise is, which of course sets you up for the fact that there is a big suprise and the girl isn't just an evil little girl. Even though what turned out to be the big reveal was among my guesses, the movie was still okay for what it was. I try to give most R rated horror movies a chance because I am tired of watered down PG 13 horror movies (though I admit some of them aren't bad) and this one kept me entertained throughout. A few days before that I saw the new Harry Potter movie. I don't have any real problems with the movie, but it is essentially filler to move the plot along towards the finale. Usually the middle of a trilogy gets this job, but somehow they waited until just before the end in this series. You could probably watch the first and last half hour to get everything you need from this movie. It was slow, but I didn't hate it.

I got the directors cut DVD last week. I think the cut scenes were cut for running time because none of them really felt out of place.

That makes sense. Curt Conners (the guy that becomes the Lizard) is already in the movies as one of Peter's professors. For those who didn't notice him, he was the guy with only one arm played by Dylan Baker. Black Cat is another excuse to create tension between Peter and Mary Jane and probably an excuse to have an attractive woman in a black, skin tight outfit (not that there's anything wrong with that). Generally speaking, I think at the moment Marvel is on top of their game (with their movies at least) and DC seems to be a ship without a course (or a crew or a compass for that matter). The sole exception is Batman. Warner Bros owns DC (literally) and Batman seems to be the only horse they have in the race. Marvel is throwing out everything and most of it is sticking (maybe not Elektra). I hope DC can get back in the game because I do like their comics as well, but Superman Returns was a major let down (for me) so I hope that is not the way they are planning to go. Marvel is doing the smart thing with the movies that they are directly controlling (Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Captain America) and showing that they do all live in the same universe and interact. An article I read a short while ago talked about Singer wanting to come back to XMen and it also talked about plans that originally existed to have the Fantastic Four in the XMen movies (FOX makes both of those series at the moment) and FOX shot the idea down saying they didn't want them mixing. Personally, I think that was a mistake. All of that is why I am hoping the Justice League movie actually happens and I hope Avengers is good.

Well, Harry becoming the Green Goblin (something that happened decades ago in the comics, in the 90s animated series, and finally in Spiderman 3 isn't a spoiler anymore so no spoiler tags) is straight out of the books so teh second Green Goblin isn't bottom of the barrel. As for other villains, you have several: Hobgoblin-Maybe better to hold off as people are probably burnt out on the Goblin, but there are ways to make him work Carnage-We had Venom, his psychotic offspring isn't beyond the realm of possibility Hydro Man-People might think he is too similar to Sandman (morphing massive body) Electro-He's different at least Chameleon-He would probably work best as part of an assasination plot with another villain Scorpion-He was made specifically to fight Spider-Man Spider Slayers-Killer robots designed to find and kill Spider-Man, one of their creators eventually remade himself into a cybernetic version to fight Spider-Man himself Shocker-He's in keeping with the inventor/scientist gone wrong angle (I think he actually created his gear anyway) Rhino-Super strong (as in, can fight the Hulk and not die super strong) henchman for hire Vulture-Old man who creates a flying outfit and eventually he is able to suck the life force out of people to become young Mysterio-Movie special effects man turned criminal armed with crazy special effects technology to alter people's perception of reality The Lizard-Curt Conners is already in the movie, so go ahead and have him become the Lizard The Man Wolf-Like the Lizard, the man who become him (John Jameson) is already in the movies so they may as well use him I'm sure there are many, many more that could work. He has a near endless supply of "science gone wrong" villains and a number of them are memorable. I would say his rogues gallery is one of the best out there. If they need ideas they can just watch the 90s cartoon. The only key villain they can't use due to rights entanglement (unless there has been a change) is the Kingpin. Like Batman, they should have no problem with finding more villains.

Also don't forget

I stopped there the other day on the way to Breckenridge and they had it. It's kind of in the middle of the store. The selection wasn't really that great so you aren't missing much. On a different note, since I live in southern Indiana I've never really had to onsider the possibility of going to a store unless I was going on a trip but with the store opening in Cincinnati that possibility is now there. I got a stamp card at the Denver store the other day, and I had a question about it. I have read before of double stamp days. I am wondering if A) there is a way to know when these specials will be running and B) if it is exactly what I think it is (2 stamps when you would normally only get 1)? Any help would be appreciated.

Movies: -T5 and T6, but not McG's proposed plot. -Predator 3 (complete longshot) -Alien 5 (make it better than 3 and 4 and I will be happy) -AvP 3 (if the two above this won't work, just make this and have it not be terrible) -Underworld 3 (I guess 3 would be the correct number if I am referring to one after Evolution) -Resident Evil 4-they're working on it apparently (they aren't the greatest movies and as adaptations they fall short, but they are somewhat entertaining) -Iron Man sequels (I have to know how they will work the Mandarin into these) -Hulk sequels (the new one was good and left a few potential plot threads they could pursue) -XMen 4 (if only because I would like to see them make Apocalypse work in a movie) -Star Trek sequels-the new movie was great and they left it open to not be a slave to prior continuity -Grindhouse-Not so much a sequel, but I would love to see movies made from the absurd trailers in the mddle of the movie. "Don't!" "Thanksgiving" and "She Wolf Women of the SS" (with Nicholas Cage as Fu Manchu) -Dungeons and Dragons (really, with all the possible storyline, is it that hard to make a decent movie under this title?) -The Simirillion-I haven't read it myself, but it's the back story to Lord of the Rings and apparently has a number of stories in it -Conan 3-Arnold is age appropriate to play an aged King Conan who sets out for one last adventure -Dragonlance-A real movie, not something that looks like it came from the 80s even though it was made last year (or the year before). Make it about the War of the Twins if the War of the Lance isn't movie quality Games: -KotoR 3 -SW Battlefront 3 -A decent Red Faction sequel (might be available real soon) -More expansions for Neverwinter Nights 2, or a Neverwinter Nights 3 in place of that (PC) -More Command and Conquer 3 expansions (PC) -Mega Man X 9 -Mega Man X Command Mission 2 -Mechassault 3 -Mechwarrior 5 (PC) -A remake of TIE Fighter with pretty well everything updated (PC), maybe platforms as well Books: -More SW books about the Sith between KotoR and Episode I -More Clone Wars books -Anything Zahn would write that would be SW related -A KotoR book (or books) about Malak and Revan leading up to just before the game starts -More pre-4th edition Forgotten Realms books, post 4th edition books haven't been bad but large chunks of the world got destroyed in the transition and lots of gods died. All that back story being chucked seems pointless to me and takes away some of the magic of the setting.

Jimmy was his actual name (well, I actually think it was James to be accurate). He adopted the name Wolverine after the story the woman told him. Logan was the name of his actual father, which at some point he apparently started using. Like how everyone was calling Sabertooth by the name Victor (because his name is Victor Creed).

I'll probably get a few of these. It's nice that there is some variety in the weapons and that it includes a decent number of shields along with a couple of the new tattered capes. If they are the same price as the others ($15) I think it's a decent deal (obviously the 4 for $10 of the Star Wars battlepacks is better, but this is still good). I've bought numerous single packs, but I only need so many wagon wheels so this is a nice change of pace. My army of trolls is probably in the triple digits now (it was close the last time I counted them all and there have been some additions since then) so this will help add a little more diversity.

We're already well into paradox territory. Skynet, as it stands now, exists because it sent one of it's own units back in time. Connor exists because he sent Reese back in time. I figure we may as well complete the paradox and make everything that has happened be the result of an idea that came about because someone time travelled. Honestly my take on their time travel is that it absolutely can't work the way it does in something like Back to the Future. I believe the best way for it to be considered is to assume that once something gets sent back in time, it becomes a part of the moment it was sent to and is no longer tied to the future. If it's past (which would be the future from the perspective of everyone else in that time) is altered due to it mucking up the time line, it won't disappear because it is already tied to the past. That way, we can assume that Reese wasn't always John's father (no matter what Cameron says, because T2 throws us into a paradox in that case) and Skynet wasn't always created from the remains of a T800. However, since they went back, now that is the way time has advanced. That is why Skynet later sends a T1000, because it's base origin is more advanced so it has a more advanced unit to send back. T2 changed time again and postponed Judgement Day by 7 years. This means that the technology that gave rise to Skynet was 7 years more advanced (and computer technology advanced a noticeable amount from 1997 to 2004) so now when it sent something back it sent back the TX because it had an even more advanced killing machine and due to changes the war didn't end in 2029 like Reese thought it was about to when he was sent back. Now is Salvation Skynet is even more addvanced from the various changes that have been happening. Each change has only made Skynet more advanced when it launched it's initial attack so it's base technology is even farther alonng. That's why they created the T800 so early (2018) when Reese says they had recently invented them in his time (2029). Under this theory (which I am sure has it's own holes) Kyle has no need to go back because another Kyle Reese already did. This also means that there is no guarantee that the Resistance will beat Skynet.

Well, I finally saw the movie a short while ago. It wasn't great, but it was better than T3 so I was satisfied. T1 and T2 are a tough act to follow so it would have taken a lot for me to call this great. It is worth watching again. I believe better writing and a better director can create a very good T5 after what we see in this film. The action was very good. I would go so far as to say it is probably the most action packed of the series. I have only a few real complaints: If they're smart about it, they have the opening for an explanation to how Skynet conceived of using time travel

This time the rumors are being fueled by sales figures. In April Sony sold more PS2's than PS3's.

What's your overall point here? They shouldn't make any games on systems that can be cracked (I am guessing since you left it out, the PS3 is an inpenetrable fortress of security?) That's a smart business decision to exclude your numerous customers who actually do pay because a relative few don't. Movies are quite easily pirated both from the theater and on DVD, so I guess they should stop making them too? As for the games, I am interested in KotoR 3 and Battlefront 3. I do understand why they would release so many as well. KotoR and Battlefront were very high selling games so releasing them when they are done (within a certain time frame) is desirable so if they are finishedand ready in the same year they aren't going to hold one or the other back. And they are different games that likely appeal to different types of fans (not every SW fan likes all things SW). The Clone Wars game needs to capitalise on the show's current appeal so releasing it soon makes sense. The DS and PSP games appeal the crowd that has those systems and wants portable games so the overlap there is minimal.

I plan on remaining open minded about T4. On the one hand, I have been waiting 20 years to see an entire future war movie. On the other hand, I know it can't ever live up to what I have envisioned. I don't have this problem with GIJoe (despite having liked it for slightly longer) because I never thought they would make a live action movie and never saw the need to so I never got my hopes up. That and GIJoe the Movie (starring the Cobra La rejects) showed how bad things could go with the Joe franchise. With T4, I have every reason to believe it will not live up to T1 or T2. I hope it does and I am not going into it already deciding it won't. If at least is as good or better than T3, I'll be happy. As far as I am concerned this is the filler until we get either T5 or T6 set in 2029 and we finally get to see just how everything went down with the time machine and hopefully see Skynet*. If I get decent action and the plot doesn't fly in the face of everything in the other 3, it will meet my expectations. If not, I know who's to blame. *It occured to me the other day that very much like Sauron in LotR, Skynet's effects are constantly felt as it pursues it's single minded goal but we never really see the singular machine intelligence that drives the Skynet war machine.

It's not something I believe. I was hping the face would convey my opinion of that idea. I was saying that was the dominant complaint on IMDB. My concern is McG, not the rating. McG is nowhere near Cameron in directing ability. I would almost say he's worse than Paul Anderson (Mortal Kombat, Resident Evil) who at least made an accurate, if bloodless, adaptation of Mortal Kombat. McG, on the other hand, gave us Catwoman.

Suprisingly here in the US they have produced figures for all but 3 years from 82 (or maybe it was 83, but I am fairly certain it was 82) to now. They stopped in the mid 90s shortly after Hasbro aquired Kenner. The popular rumor (that apparently actually has some basis in fact) is that the folks that came over from Kenner killed it out of spite because it was direct competition with Star Wars which they were about to restart (so they wanted no competition). In '97 they restarted as TRU exclusives and in either '99 or '00 they started wide distribution again. Around that time they restarted the comic book under Devil's Due (which as at that time part of Image) as a continuation of the Marvel series. It ended last year and they are now restarting the series. For anyone who liked the basics of the cartoon, but wants more realistic action, the Marvel (and later DD) series is what you are looking for. They use bullets, not lasers. People bleed and die. Not everyone bails out of planes that are about to blow up or crash. One issue alone sees the entire Battle Force 2000 wiped out. A couple of issues later one lone Saw Viper guns down 7 or 8 named characters (like Doc). The body count was fairly high by the end of Marvel's run and it was through the roof by the end of the Devil's Due run. Probably most important of all, Cobra Commander is shown to be a terrifying individual and not a moron. Not to mention his background story is awesome (and no, he's not a snake ma from Cobra-La). He used to be a used car salesman. It all spirals out from that after his brother was killed in a car accident that also claimed Snake Eyes' family who were on their way to pick him up at the airport on his way back from Vietnam after being disfigured. The whole war is spawned out of that freak occurance. Unfortunately none of that will be in the movie.

Well, my opinion hasn't changed much since I posted last. I am hopeful, yet I am prepared for a disaster. I have done most of my discussing on the IMDB message boards. If you want to see a real hate fest for something that isn't even out yet, that's the place. Nothing like thread after thread complaining about it being PG 13 (which of course automatically means it will be horrible ) and of course anyone who says anything positive about it there is either a studio plant or McG himself. It's an interesting experience for those who have never experienced it.

I read the X-Men (and their spinoffs) off and on. I tend to focus on stories that feature certain villains (Apocalypse and Mr.Sinister primarily so I thought the Age of Apocalypse storyline was awesome) and my interest comes and goes when they aren't involved. The characters are interesting, but the stories with those villains are typically quite epic and hard to out do so when things go back to the typical monthly stories they just don't have the same appeal to me. That kind of sums up my current take on most Marvel books actually. I have a few favored Avengers villains I try to follow (primarily Ultron) and if the Phalanx show up in anything I try to read it. The recent (last few years) space titles have been good. I can't think of the title they fell under, but they revitalised Nova, the Super Skrull, and Ronan the Accuser. The Dirty Dozen style title was pretty good. I'll have to look up the title they all fell under. There was another Marvel title that spanned 3 different series and had a number of spinoffs that I thought was very good. The total story would have over 40 issues in total. It was called Earth X. It featured a Marvel a couple of decades from now where everyone had been given powers. It was basically a final story for the Marvel Earth kind of story once it was all said and done. I really liked it. For DC, I followed the recent super events starting with Infinite Crisis. For monthly titles I try to keep up with the Green Lantern titles because they have been fairly interesting since Hal Jordan came back and the war with the Sinestro Corps. I also follow the Star Wars Legacy comics and I have been trying to read through some other SW comics like the original KotoR line. As far as Graphic Novels/compilations I have read the following and thought they were good: V for Vendetta, Watchmen, DC:Identity Crisis, Green Lantern:Emerald Twilight & A New Dawn, Green Lantern:Rebirth, Superman:Red Son, DC: Kingdom Come, and X-Men: Rise of Apocalypse. The two Alan Moore titles were great as were the Kingdom Come and Superman titles.

I will try to wait for a sale because there are other high end sets coming out later this year that I would also like to get so getting them all at once (Temple of Doom and if the sale includes Star Wars again the Endor set) for a reduced price. However, if a favorable sale doesn't materialise I have no problem paying full price for this one. I'll probably get a few of the Drawbridge set. It looks like it has tons of slopes and arches which I can't get enough of. I am hopig to get them at a sale but again if I can't I will pay full price.

It's nice to see a company trying to cut waste when it can in this way. I know in general most compaines should try to cut waste if for no other reason than it affects their bottom line. Hopefully they will find some way to advertise these moves to their typical customers. From some of their literature I know they already recycle a great deal of their waste material in their factories. That too is good. Maybe a blurb in their catalogues or something on the instructions booklets to let all their customers know about their efforts will get people thinking they are an environmentally sensitive company (which would probably give them an increase in sales).

I saw it Thursday night. I really liked it. I thought most of the portrayals were pretty good. Karl Urban's Bones was the best (though his character in the original series was one of the more lively so he actually had something to work with) and I thought new Spock was good. I do agree with the complaints about Nero. There just didn't seem to be much to him. I guess I thought there would be since they bothered to get a decent actor to play him. Or maybe I expected the guy who managed to succeed where so many have failed (alter the Star Trek timeline, likely for the worse) to be a somebody and not a nobody. Nemesis seems to be the only movie that may ever do any justice to the Romulans. That aside, I liked the movie. I especially loved the random red shirt death. SWMAN your movie list and mine would be virtually identical. I would put Generations in the good column, but the rest would be the same. As for the shows, I thought DS9 was the best with TNG being second best. I was indifferent towards Voyager. I watched it for a while, then there were some local scheduling changes and I just didn't try to keep up with it. I liked most of the characters and the plot was somewhat novel (even if it was just a means to get them back to the "exploring the unknown" angle) but it had downsides (like how bad they neutered the Borg). Enterprise I never bothered to watch. The original I watch when I see it on. I used to watch it a lot. It was novel for it's time and being the origin of everything else, I can't outright call it bad.

I like the new Ewoks. I have a number of the old ones and while they are more detailed, these aren't monochromatic. The fact I can't paint tiny details that great (and I am not sure what kind of paint to use) means my old Ewoks won't be painted. But I do understand some people prefer details. I am just glad we have painted Ewoks now. The Rebels look pretty good too. The helmets look nice as well. I agree with the previous poster who said they could easily make decent WWII (or possibly Vietnam era) American soldiers. It's probably as close as we are likely to see. Overall I can't wait to get this set. So far, it's the only high end ($100 and up) Star Wars set I am really interested in this year. Don't get me wrong, the others are nice, but this one I really want.

The Ohio stores are good news for me. I live in southern Indiana so the closest to me at the moment is Chicago (I believe) and I wasn't going to seriously consider a 6 hour drive to go to one of these stores. The Cincinnati store on the other hand is about a 3 hour drive for me. That makes it a lot more reasonable. I also have relatives in Dayton that I go see every few months, so a side trip isn't out of the question. Echoing the earlier question, does anyone know when this store is supposed to open? Of course a store in either Lousiville or Indianapolis would be even better, for me anyway.