Hivemind Complex

Star Wars Evolutions: The Sith Legacy Collection

2009-08-23T19:20:00.000-07:00

Usually about once or twice a year, I like to delve back into the world of Star Wars to find something new, unique, and reasonably priced to add to my collection, which is primarily made up of the original Kenner Line release, but with the Prequel Trilogy, the abundance of new characters proves just as exciting and interesting. Also, I had just started playing KotOR II: The Sith Lords game, and one of the primary characters was Darth Nihilus, who I thought embodied everything there was about being a Sith, so I found this set in Target and picked it up. Overall, a good purchase. So let’s take this figure by figure.

Darth Maul:
The only movie-recognizable figure in the set, this particular version of Maul is shirtless, and whist I was reading a collection of comic stories (set prior to the Phantom Menace), Maul often appeared in this manner as he was training under Darth Sideous. The detailing on Maul is pretty good for such a small size figure. I can’t get over how much articulation is packed on this figure as well- damn near rivals Marvel Legends on a smaller scale. Bending Torso; elbows, knees, wrists, ankles, waist- pretty much all are bendeable as well as swivel. It reminds me of the GI Joe figures of the 80’s. Maul comes with the double bladed lightsaber, which is one permanent piece- you can’t split the sabers in two. Also, there is a kilt type apparatus that has both plastic and actual cloth pieces to it. The kilt kind of hampers hip joint movement as there doesn’t seem to be a way of removing it. One main detractor is that Maul cannot hold the lightsaber in a single hand- you must have both hands on both hilts in order for him to hold it.Standard peg bottom feet round out this version of Maul.

Darth Bane:
I admit I’m not entirely familiar with the actual character of Darth Bane outside of what Wikipedia has to say, but aside from that, he’s not a bad figure. Bane primarily differs from the other two Sith in the collection by having these "yellow fire" accessories- two wrist gauntlets and one headmask. I actually prefer him without the mask- the simple yet elegant design of the head is enough to let me know I’m dealing with a Sith here. Bane’s chest also bears the yellow fire as a frontal piece, and behind it, you can make out assorted green organs, depending on how the light hits it. Like Maul, Bane also has a kilt piece that is half cloth and half plastic and non-removable as well. Bane’s cape is totally plastic and molded into a "windy array of fabric" design with a couple of frilly collars that actually work in favor of the aesthetic of the figure in general. Pretty much the same articulation of Maul, although his left hand is pre-poised into a "force bolt" configuration, therefore, you can only put the lightsaber in the right hand. Unlike most of the Sith in recent memory, Bane’s lightsaber is colored purple, which is a nice way to set him apart from the competition.

Darth Nihilus:
I decided to save the best for last- Rounding out the collection is Darth Nihilus, I believe this character/figure to be the cream of the crop for this collection- he looks great, has all the articulation of the other two, as well as a total cloth cape (with added battle damage), a plastic hood that is removable, and a cloth/plastic kilt. I removed the plastic hood just to see what was underneath, and Nihilus’ head is damn cool on its own- He has this single black braid of hair down the middle back of his head, and the facial design is just captivating. It’s almost "pre Grievous" in element regarding the eye plates. Nihilus comes with the standard red lightsaber, but the hilt on his differs from the other two- it’s more sleek in design and the switches are very visible. Like Bane, his left hand is already molded into the force bolt configuration, which actually works better for this figure than for Bane. The only minuses are that his outfit is very constricting in terms of chest/waist movement. It’s very hard to get him in any type of seated position. Just like the cape, the kilt has battle damaged holes in both the fabric and plastic parts.

Overall, a very nice collection- and the Legacy Line in general is a good alternative to the Clone Wars animation style figures that are currently out. Of course, the question begs to be asked: How long can Lucas (and Hasbro) beat these dead horses regarding constant retreads of the same characters?

Character Figure Spotlight: Rex "The Doctor" Lewis and Cobra Commander

2009-08-15T09:45:00.001-07:00

I am so stoked by the new Joe figures coming out for the movie that I felt there was a need to do them a proper review, just as I have done for various Action Figures throughout the years. G.I. Joe has always set itself apart from all other action figures inasmuch as it was the first "boy doll" to be made in response to this chick called Barbie. In essence, us toy collectors really need to come clean and admit that we are playing and displaying dolls for boys, regardless of the size. Now, along came the Star Wars mini-action figures in the 70’s, which (while not officially the first small scale figure) popularized the 3 ¾" scale. Then Hasbro revamped the meaning of articulation with Joe figures in the early 80’s. Swivel arm battle grip was the answer to the mere 5 standard points of articulation that Kenner offered with its Star Wars line. The Joes had arrived in a big way again by revolutionizing the way a standard action figure was designed, while upkeeping articulation. And one of its most celebrated examples? That beautiful loser named Cobra Commander.

***SPOILER WARNING***

Without giving away too much of the plotline to the current movie, let’s just say that the characters of Rex and CC are "inseparable". You will understand why I chose both these figures for one review once you see the movie for yourself, which I strongly urge you to do. Specifically in regards to the movie, I feel the need to point out that I was really looking forward to the Transformers sequel that came out the month prior to the Joe movie, but I was far more pleased with RoC. Director Stephen Sommers flipped CC on his backside and redesigned the character attributes doing a total 360. Remember how we always wanted to know what was under the metal faceplate? Well, Sommers took that idea, flipped and dipped it, then turned it around to the question of "Why" the need for the faceplate. Again, you need to see the movie to understand my direction here.

So, without further ado, let’s get down to business and start talking action figures.

Rex:

First off, if you haven’t picked this little gem up yet, PLEASE DO SO. Not only is this one of my favorite Joe figures in a long time, but quite possibly one of my favorite 3 ¾" figures of all time. Definitely made the top 10. Reason being? Likeness, standard Joe articulation, and ACCESSORIES! Lots and Lots! I mean, certain Joes have come with more accessories than others over the years (here’s looking at you, original Zartan), but Rex is one of the few movie line figures that differs in respect to not having a standard shoulder mounted rocket launcher. Instead, he has this contraption that I call "Starscream’s hand" because it looks exactly like the redesigned hand from the Michael Bay era. Not only this, but it has a pincher attribute where you push in the rear neon green lever, and the 4 claws extend outward to grip that troublesome Joe who just won’t take the nanites the fine Doctor Lewis has prepared. Rex also comes with a WORKING briefcase that holds 3 individual nanite cylinders and actually closes back up! (where were you with this development, 25th Anniversary Destro?) For pistols, he comes with a large uzi type rifle, and a standard hand pistol, and lastly, these really cool looking snap on mechanical hands. So what’s the problem with this stuff? Most of it won’t even stay on him! The Starscream hand is way too heavy for his body (even on the stand), the mech hands just won’t stay on due to widening during shipping as one of them arrives on his right hand in the package. I have to do some serious manipulation to get the gloves to stay on. I was really saddened that Rex couldn’t hold 1/3 of his accessories, and they basically just have to stay on the sideline.

For the figure itself, it’s likeness to the movie character is unreal. He even comes with a removable hair piece, which is cool, but it does not stay on his head well and is better left on the sidelines to avoid piece loss. Unfortunately, the mouth breather is stationary, which is a bit of a bummer since the mask on CC is not removable at all. The Black Leather coat is removable, but with a lot of strain. When you boil Rex down to his basic figure with all accessories unattached, he is pure black with one silver breather tube on his facial apparatus. Overall, I love this figure due to his large arsenal and character likeness, but he loses points for not being able to use his arsenal without a little help from me while playing, UM, displaying the figure.

Cobra Commander:

As I said before in my short "ode to CC," I was completely taken aback by this new visage of our beloved Commander. Initially, it was a sort of disgust that could not be ignored, much like driving slowly by a car accident and looking to see what happened. However, after the disgust, betrayal, and sadness left, I was cleared to actually begin a love/hate relationship with CC’s new incarnation. Over time, it has turned to more love than hate. Gone is the military visage that dominated his appearance in all previous versions (including his "old Snake" appearance on the Transformers). He is now a solid combination of biotechnology and damaged human. And quite frankly, I love the new mask because you can actually see WHY he needs a mask now. Unfortunately, for this particular figure, the mask is non-removable (however, for an even better look, pick up the 12" version, which does come with a removable mask). There also seems to be a few variations on CC- front chest holes, no holes, tubes attached, etc. My version is the one with holes in the chest but no tubes. Differing from Rex, his overcoat is black on the outside, but "original 80’s blue) on the inside, and he comes with a few different accessories: an actual cobra snake (a possible slap to 80’s Serpentor?), which ties directly to Rex (see the movie!!!) a data pad, nanite nodule/injector, shoulder mounted rocket launcher, and last but not least, a slightly modified version of his original gun! YES! Without a doubt, one of my favorite weapons of all time. IMO, the only other handgun that matches the original CC blaster was the hand rifle that came with the original 1977 Kenner Stormtrooper (and a slew of other Star Wars figures). Too bad, though, that the gun doesn’t attach to his back like it used to. Perhaps a holster on the overcoat might have best served the answer of storage? Design-wise, you need to check out his back plate under the overcoat- he’s got this cool metallic vertebrae that really makes you wonder just how human he is.

CC does have a few drawbacks as well as Rex- namely, the same "accessories are too big for the figure" disease. CC has a hard time holding the shoulder mounted rocket launcher without toppling over, even when using his dog tag base. Also, two of his accessories (the data pad and nanite injector) have what look like attachment pegs, but I’ll be damned if I can figure out where they attach to on the figure. Another curiosity for both Rex and CC is that they have these holes in their backs which are very reminiscent of the original Joes so you could attach backpacks. Unfortunately, I cannot find anything that would actually fit the holes.

Despite the few flaws, I would highly recommend picking these two guys up- just for the sheer fact that they have many points of articulation without losing character likeness, they both reek of uber bad dictator coolness. Besides, it’s not like Destro has the cajonies to lead Cobra. Heh.
　

　
　
　
　

Action Figure Review: DC Direct Parallax

2009-08-13T22:01:00.000-07:00

Action Figure Spotlight: Green Lantern Series 1 Parallax

Greetings again, fellow Lanterns. Fresh out of the bag, I just came home with Parallax- the fear entity that drove Hal Jordan mad and possessed him to destroy the entire Lantern Corps, which he did. Of course, the story didn’t stop there- Last remaining Guardian Ganthet sought out Kyle Rayner and kickstarted a new Lantern until writer Geoff Johns took the reigns on the GL mythos and made it a cornerstone of the DC Universe. Parallax was formerly believed to be just a villainous mask that Hal adopted, but when Johns came into the picture, the entity of Parallax became much more, so to save you from spoilers, here’s a hearty suggestion to pick up the Green Lantern: Rebirth trade for more info.

Onwards to the figure in question: This specific representation is straight out of the Rebirth arc, which basically took the Zero Hour story and built upon it. In many ways, this figure could be seen as the DC equivalent to Darth Vader in terms of how the figure is laid out proportionally and detail wise sans a mask. Just as Anakin was to Vader, so is Hal to Parallax. So let’s take this from the head down: the sculptors captured the "crazed Jordan" look wellwith the white sides of hair and the slight smirk on the face. True to comic form, he bears no visible eyeballs, just white eye sockets underneath the mask.

On to the Torso area- this is where Parallax mostly resembles the Darth Vader school of design. Yes, there are many inconsistencies in that statement- Vader is purely black with an LED regulator box on the chest, and Parallax has a total of 4 colors on his costume (black, white outlines, dark green and bright green). To my eye, the way that they are similar is in the flow of things: keeping it simple. Instead of some tricked out design, the Parallax uniform is simple yet elegant, the colors aren’t splashed around all over the place . There is a basic black jumpsuit with a simple oval chest design and torso area coverage done in the bright green with white and dark green outlines. There are also some very hefty shoulder plates which do take focus off the figure, but easily flow with the whole design. Parallax’ thigh/shin/boot pieces have the bright green armor as well with the implied black jumpsuit underneath. All this bodes for a well designed costume, just like Vader’s. Lastly, the cape is great- not made of cloth or vinyl (which tend to get ripped during play) or hard plastic (which limit the figures maneuverability) the cape is a very flexible rubber that fits well on the figure. Unlike most cape bearers, this cape attaches directly to the shoulder plates instead of around the neck, leaving the head to be moved into whatever position you want.

In regards to articulation, This is one of the better GL figures out there- ankles, knees, pivoting shoulders, elbows, wrists, and head. I was comparing this to the GL Sinestro and even he lacks the same amount of articulation.

For the downside of things, there isn’t much other than the lack of accessories, no visible ring (which was the first thing I noticed since Parallax grabbed all the rings of the comrades he killed in the original tirade), and there seems to be a weight issue while the figure is standing, mainly due to the heavy cape and losely jointed ankles. I had to position him in such a way that he body was almost contorted just to make him look "non contorted". There also seemed to have been a paint application issue on the face mask-some of the green had chipped off his nose while still in the package. This is the second time I had encountered paint issues with the GL line, the first being Kilowog.

Overall scores:
Articulation: 7.5- much better than the rest of the GL lines, typical for the DC Direct figures in general, but nowhere near the realm of the same scale Marvel Legends.
Detail: 9- excellent design thanks in part to the artist/design staff at DC, and the sculpting staff for DC Direct. Parallax always had a cool design anyway, and they succeeded in bringing that to life.
Accessories: 1- only came with the standard GL base, but the cape (if it is to be considered an accessory) is very good.
Price: I paid 13 dollars for the figure, which is one of the cheaper figures in the line, but well worth it in my opinion.

Career-Minded Dictators, Part I: The comedy called Cobra Commander

2009-08-05T18:34:00.000-07:00

Career-Minded Dictators, Part I: Cobra Commander.

Dr. Doom. Sinestro. Megatron. Darth Vader. And as always, Cobra Commander. You think I might have a semi-fascination with fictional dictators? What does that say about me? Should I tell my therapist?

So, aside from that, the world has an important date coming up shortly: August 7th, 2009- the release of the live action film, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. And who’s going to be a part of that? You guessed it! Our most lovable Cobra Commander, henceforth referred to as CC.
In celebration of CC, I wanted to wax nostalgic on the character and my fond memories of him. I may be around the same age as you the reader (or maybe a bit older), so you will probably be familiar with my accounts, but in any event, let’s take a fun trip down memory lane.
As with most, the first time I ever saw CC was on that silly cartoon in the 80’s produced by Sunbow. And that VOICE- sweet Jesus, that rocked. From memory, I know it was Chris somebody, the same dude who voiced Starscream for the Transformers. A high pitched, perfectly pronounced screeching of fascism and outright cowardice, which made CC all the more lovable. Visually, this guy had a great gimmick- the secrecy of the face. After all, if you want to keep people coming back for more, always put the guy with a secret out there to taunt the audience into wanting to know the secret to a greater capacity, then never showing it. Of course, this would eventually be shown, but all in due time.

You know what made CC really special? Quite simple, actually. He was a Bitch. A very enjoyable, theatrical, maniacal grade A Bitch. Even the Baroness couldn’t touch him in his bitchiness. And it was a holy bitchiness, the stuff pompous upper echelon people are made of. Seriously, what is the difference between CC and Amadeus? Not much, other than one ruled a piano and the other one a worldwide criminal organization, but both were bitches. Brilliant egotistical bitches. And I love em!

Prior to the official unmasking, we did have that short little interlude where Destro walked in on CC whilst dining and was thoroughly disgusted. So really, what does that tell you? That CC is butt ugly? And then came the bane of every Joe Fan’s existence: GI Joe: The movie. Now, most people tried to block this flick out of their memories, but I for one loved it. LOVED IT. Make sure you understand that. I loved Cobrala. I loved the whole CC origin story. And I very possibly might have "once was a man" tattooed on me in some inconspicuous spot of flesh. One of the ironic things about CC with his newly found relationship to Roadblock was that, in one of the very first episodes, it was Roadblock who arrested CC and damn near pimp slapped him into a cell.

Now, call me crass, but I don’t like Serpentor. Idea was cool, execution was cool, but he was like….the bully on the playground that didn’t deserve to lead Cobra. Yeah, he got cred from all the people he was made from, i.e. Genghis Khan, Alexander, Vlad The Impaler, etc, but man CC totally deserved to have at least one crushing blow to the Joes to show up Mr. Test Tube Baby. At least CC earned his glory by being a brilliant scientist with an experiment gone wrong ala Lex Luthor without any genetic tampering. CC was born evil! YEAH! Of course, I won’t go into that whole car salesman thing from the comic. I’m sure it was great, but my allowance was limited and couldn’t afford both comics and toys.

So then we come to a turning point for CC and Joe itself: the post movie DIC series, which I recently watched all the episodes of. Quite a shadow of its former self, the DIC series lacked the seriousness (even for a cartoon) and cohesiveness that was generally found in the Sunbow series. However, if there is one thing we can take from the DIC Series, it was that awesome new battle armor that CC was upgraded with. To this day, that has remained my favorite version of CC, both visually and in toy form. Yes, most people refer back to the helmeted/hooded version, but DAMN that suit was cool. It really rocked my world! A hint of silver, hint of blue, total badass….I pity the Joe who messed with him now. And as a side bonus, we got to see Serpentor get his butt kicked off the throne as well. That’s the way, uh huh uh huh, I LIKE IT. So when the Joe 25th anniversary figure line came out, I was freaking when I found out the Battle Armor version was going to be released. From the time it officially became available to the time I got it in my hands, it was a good month and a half. Tons of gas spent on searching for him. I rivaled Batman in my detectiveness. At that point, it was my only mission in life. GET THE BATTLE ARMOR VERSION. And I did. Got two, in fact. One to open, one to save and display.

Years came and went regarding Joe lore. Quite frankly, I’ve got no idea what happened in those years. Probably the same stories being retold over and over again with the same players in different genres. I never really followed Joe after the Animated Movie, and it wasn’t until the Anniversary line came out that I rekindled any kind of interest in the Joes at all. But when I heard about the live action movie being made, my interest subsequently peaked. Of course, the question begged to be asked (considering the changes the Transformers got handed to them in the live action arena) "what was CC gonna be like?"

When I first saw the revamped CC, my jaw basically hit the floor. Was this some fanboy’s idea of a cruel joke? I happened to catch a leaked photo on the Toyark from its sister site, HissTank. This CC was….I don’t even know how to describe it other than "different". I hated it. I LOATHED it. But somehow, in all my loathing, I grew a fondness for it. I mean, the sliver mask was completely gone. They didn’t even bother with the hooded version either. WTF is this world coming to? But I studied the photo some more (fortunately, I saved the photo before Hasbro asked HissTank to take it down.) and became acquainted with it. I’ve already studied up on his role in the movie, for which I understand is going to be very short but pivotal, so I’m all spoiled for it but still can’t wait to see it on the big screen. Finally, CC made the big time, like Vader, Doom, and Megatron prior.

And thus concludes my love for CC in written form. Please enjoy my little ode to CC pictures.

Star Wars The Fett Legacy Review

2009-08-02T22:06:00.000-07:00

Action Figure Spotlight: Star Wars The Fett Legacy Collection
One of the latest additions to my Star Wars collection was the Fett Legacy Collection, featuring 2 of the coolest characters in science fiction history that had quite possibly the dumbest deaths on screen. When first introduced in 1978 and subsequently touted to be a "major character" in the next Star Wars movie (which would be The Empire Strikes Back), Boba Fett started off with the most prolific introduction that would become steeped in shadows- he was as mysterious as the shadow, not much dialogue or interaction, but he was damn cool. Fans embraced him wholeheartedly, but it wasn’t till almost 20 years after his introduction that we started getting a little backstory on who exactly this silent bounty hunter was and where his origins started…

Mandalore The Indomitable
The only original figure in the collection, Mandalore is part of the expanded universe in Star Wars mythology- he was one of the first leaders of the Mandalorian Soldiers- a group of soldiers who have gone toe to toe with just about everyone in the galaxy, Sith and Jedi included. Upon first examination, Mandalore has an almost Tusken Raider quality to him, especially in the actual suit- there are no apparent armor plates as we see on Jango or Boba, aside from the shoulder armor, which is connected to the mask via breathing tubes. Pretty much the only connecting trait to the present day Mandalorian is the faceplate- the T-shaped visor that has so singularly defined the very visage of the Mandalorian himself. Of course, being thousands of years old, Mandalore is not adorned with blaster rifles or state of the art equipment; he bears 3 accessories- a hand axe, a staff, and a shield. He also bears a completely cloth cape, which does not appear to be removable. The axe and staff feature molded straps for carrying purposes; only problem is that you can only put these on the left arm as the shoulder plate attaches to the figure via a strap under the right arm, which prohibits a bit of movement and the inclusion of any weapons. The kilt isn’t removable, either, which limits positioning. One neat little trick I found with Mandalore is that, if you want to use both the axe and staff at the same time, you can adhere the shield to the back of his shoulder plate, which bears a hole big enough to fit the handle of the shield in. Lasting thoughts: a very cool figure; nice to see the expanded universe getting some love from Hasbro, which they have been consistently doing since ROTS.

Jango Fett
And here comes Papa Fett in as much detail and articulation that you can possibly imagine for a 3 ¾" Figure. Although I don’t remember Jango having such a purple suit underneath the armor plates (for some reason, I thought it was more bluish) the detail on every part of his body is amazing. First off, you get a removable helmet, which you can then replace with the headset apparatus (goes double for Boba). Arms and legs are completely articulate, holsters and belt are non-removable, but that’s not a bad thing- they don’t hamper leg or hip movement as the kilts on some of the other figures do. One cool little oddity I noticed is that both the gauntlets have 2 wires running from the underside onto a ring right above the elbow joints. They do impede a bit on arm movement, but it’s very little. The downside on this guy is that his jetpack just won’t stay on- very loose fitting.

Boba Fett
Now, I may be totally wrong on this, but I’m fairly certain this is the first Boba figure that has ever come out with a removable helmet, and just on that detail alone, I rate him the best of the lot, so let’s take the downside first- like Papa, his jetpack does not stay on- you really have to jam it in there to keep it attached. The upside? Just about everything. Boba’s armor has the distinct "battle damage" to it in the way of the helmet dent, scratched off paint, and an overall "grungyness" flavor to just about everything, including the rear cloth piece that is attached to his shoulder. The wookie pelt braid is very distinct, as is the belt with pouches that also features a holster for a hand pistol. He comes with his trademark sawed-off that has a bit of detail unto itself- it captures that "used" feeling for a guy who has seen lots of action across the galaxy. The sawed off also has a molded strap that can be fitted underneath either shoulder plate if you just want to use the hand pistol. When the helmet is removed, you see a scarred face in white bandages (possibly a nod to his return from the Sarlacc in the Bounty Hunter Wars Trilogy when Dengar nursed him back to health?) Also like Dad is the tube running from the gauntlet to a ring around his elbow, only Boba has this on his right arm. The paint detail is also incredible- they managed to get the symbol on the upper right corner of the chest plate as well as the red Mandalorian symbol on the left shoulder plate. Truly a great figure.

Overall, I’m finding that the Legacy line is really worth the money. I believe I spent somewhere in the area of $20 for this set, and it’s cool for those collectors who like to zero in on one particular character such as Boba Fett and company. As much as I can’t stand re-treads in any toy line, I reserve that judgement in this case simply because of the amount of effort Hasbro put into designing and updating this particular set.

Overall Scores:
Articulation: 10- Both Jango and Boba have a swivel on the lower torso area that rivals GI Joe. And that is just ONE feature in addition to most of the joints, which not only bend, but swivel as well (feet, hands, head, knees, elbows, and thighs).
Detail: 9- Mandalore is very pedestrian in a Tusken sort of way, but he still gets points as well as his descendents. Boba and Jango’s costumes are as real as a toy can get in comparison to what we saw on screen. Also, Mandalore’s cape fits him well- gives him a very regal look that contrasts to the Tusken clothing.
Price: About $20, given the single new figure and updates of established figures, I say it’s worth it just to see the face under Boba’s helmet.
Accessories: Each figure came with at least 3, including helmets, headgear, and classic battle gear.

ACTION FIGURE SPOTLIGHT: DC Direct Kilowog

2009-07-30T15:10:00.000-07:00

"I want each and every one of these Spooky Kids accounted for."- Kilowog, the Sinestro Corps War, in response to the Children of the White Lobe bombing Mogo.
Well, let’s get it on, POOZERS! Up next for the spotlight is Kilowog from Series One of the Green Lantern Series by DC Direct. Standing approximately 8 inches tall, the chief training officer of the GL Corps just screams "action". For a little backstory on the character, Kilowog was slain during the reign of Parallax, but was resurrected by Ganthet and Kyle Rayner during the Rebirth Series. Having been orphaned by a destroyed home world, he found comfort among his compatriots in the Corps, especially the planet size GL, Mogo. At the end of the Sinestro Corps War, Kilowog can be seen celebrating with the family he once had that Mogo recreated for him.
This particular figure has more articulation than normal- wrists, elbows, swivel ball shoulders, and ankles, the last of which most of the other figures don’t have. Again, the sculpting artists hit the nail right on the head with the Van Sciver/Rollins likeness, right down to the tendrils under his nose and skin color. He is (at this time) the biggest DC Direct figure I have in my collection (sans the build-a-figures from DC Universe). He even trumps Mongul, who is no shorty in his own right.
The paint job on the figure I got was generally good, however, it looks like some of the green paint accidentally made it onto his pink neck during production. Easy enough to hide with a quick turn of the head, though. The green on the uniform and boots has a very gloss finish versus a very matte black. For accessories, Kilowog comes with a GL Base and Lantern- the lantern being bigger than the lanterns shipped with other figures. He stands very well on his own without the assistance of the base, having the proportions of his body correct.
Aside from the green paint blotch, my only other gripe is that his left hand is permanently clenched in a fist, something most of the other GL figures suffer from as well.
For comparative purposes, I took a few pics of him next to some of the bigger Marvel Legends. I specifically chose Ben Grimm, as I think Kilowog is his equal in the DC Universe regarding personality and spirit. I also pitted him next to another Green Goliath, the Hulk. As you can see, he stands taller than Ben, but is still dwarfed by Bruce. There is also another pic of him with his Mattel JLU counterpart.

Scoring:
Articulation- 8: Better than the average DC Direct thanks to the ankles.
Playability- 9.5: As tough as a trainer he is, he will survive kids as well.
Price: 7.0- I paid about 20 bucks for him at a collector’s shop. It was a little steep, but overall worth it.
Detail: 6- the only real detailing on the figure is on the head sculpt. Musculature is average, but on target given the figure’s size.
Overall: 8- Very cool figure. I would recommend it, however, get your other GL favorites first.

DC Direct Cyborg Superman

2009-07-21T21:23:00.000-07:00

Get your plastic on and enjoy the ride, fellow GL’s- we got another winner here with Hank Henshaw, one of the most unlucky bastards in the DC Universe. Emerging out of the "Reign of the Supermen" arc from years ago, Henshaw was a Reed Richards voyage to space gone really bad with some rather Villainous results. For his specific role in the GL mythos, Henshaw, along with Mongul, destroyed Hal Jordan’s home town of Coast City, which drove Hal mad and allowed the Parallax entity to leech onto Hal’s soul. After Rebirth, Henshaw was found leading a group of the Manhunters (the original police force for the Guardians) in sector 666, and later became part of the Sinestro Corps.

For this figure, the very first thing that struck me as being cool was the multiple yellow rings on the right cyborg arm- they are translucent yellow, and when held up to a light bulb, really seem to sparkle. On the detail side of things, the cyborg anatomy was captured in great detail, especially on the arm where you can see all kinds of servos and mechanisms that make up the machine part of the man. For the uniform part, the "S" was replaced with the Sinestro Corps insignia, which tends to work well- it meshes in quite nicely with the mechanical details. Articulation is standard, but one feature that Henshaw has is an upper torso bend, something I have not found on any other GL figures to date. This upper torso bend is on a swivel- left, right, up, down, wherever you want him to be. Another detial that impressed me was the teeth area of the jaw- it is completely open and three-dimensional, instead of just being a two dimensional carve on the head piece as a whole. Although not quite as long as the DC Universe version of Hank, the cape is quite similar in respect to being made of rubber and pre-shaped into a "wind sway" state with creases and folds. The cape itself has three main attachment points- one on either side of the neck, and a main point on the back, which I’m not entirely crazy about. They could have let that one go, just as they did on Parallax’ cape, and kept the two main points to the shoulder area.

The minuses are few, but important to note in any event- namely, the right ring hand cannot be swiveled, so the hand is always in the palm-up direction. I really wanted to pose the figure for pictures with a "kiss my ring" extension of the hand. The left hand is pre-molded into a fist, which seems to be a similar feature on most GL figures, and one I’m not entirely crazy about to begin with. Henshaw comes with no accessories aside from the standard GL base in green (a feature I wish would be addressed- aside from Black Hand, every figure comes with the same base, and I don’t mind that; I just wish they would keep them color coordinated with the figures, i.e. a yellow base for Sinestro Corps members, violet base for the Star Sapphires, etc). I also noticed that, due to the pre-scult of the legs, the figure seems to be in a constant left side slump. I tried placing the legs in different poses, but I just couldn’t escape the slump.

The one last thing I question about Hensahw is the color of his costume- I understand that he is the Manhunter GrandMaster, and they tried to coordinate the costume to being in tune with the Manhunters’ general color scheme, but it would have been nice to see a yellow version of this since he wields the yellow rings of fear in the first place. Now that the Red Lanterns have been introduced into the mythos, I can’t begrudge a novice for thinking that Henshaw might be a Red Lantern.

Sadly, all this guy ever wanted was death; to be free of the pain he called life. Unfortunately, he never quite got it, but his pathos makes for a great character and story in general, which was adeptly brought to life via DC Direct.

Overall Scores:
Articulation: 7- aside from the unique torso bend, it is standard, which is to say (with DC Direct) minimal at best.
Detail: 8- the cyborg elements really make the figure, and the translucent yellow rings bring it to life.
Price: $14.99- I’ve paid more and I’ve paid less for other GL figures, so he basically falls comfortably in the middle.
Accessories: 2- basically non-existent with the exception of the base and cape, if you even want to consider the cape an accessory.
Playability: he’s tough, the cape is tough, so he will stand up to the very worst the GL’s can dish out in punishment.
Overall Coolness Factor: I was after this guy for months, so I wasn’t disappointed when I got him. Standing him next to a Manhunter just breeds coolness. Definite thumbs up.

Action Figure Spotlight: DC Direct Dr. Manhattan from the Watchmen

2009-07-20T20:09:00.000-07:00

ACTION FIGURE SPOTLIGHT: DC Direct Dr. Manhattan
Having been swayed by really cool trailers and general word of mouth, I decided to pick up the Watchmen trade that’s being plastered in display windows at just about every book store in America, and I instantly developed a fondness for this Dr. Manhattan character. To coincide with the movie release, DC released a bunch of Watchmen figures and all kinds of swag; the figures themselves are in the same scale as the other main properties they own (the Alex Ross series, pretty much all the other DC Direct figures released) so it made a nice addition to what I already had, even if we are talking about two separate universes under the same company.

To date, there have been two versions of this figure: the one I am reviewing, and the variant. The main difference is the opaqueness of the plastic- on this figure, it is just a solid blue, but on the variant, it is more of a translucent plastic which was aimed at making him more "irradiated" as his on-screen character suggests (might have something to do with being the atomic man and all). I really didn’t want to spend the extra ten bucks on the variant, as I figured this version fills the need adequately.

Included in the package are two sets of legs- one for the floating pose, and one for regular stance. To achieve the floating pose, a clear plastic base adapter is included. When finally fit, though, it tends to be a little shaky, given that its only attached to the base by one peg. Also, the basic fitting of the legs to the adapter is not entirely stable either- there are slots on the adapter that fit into the back of the feet on the floating legs, but they don’t necessarily lock in all the time. One little oddity I have yet to figure out is a certain piece that came bagged with the two pegs for the base- it is triangular in shape, and I have no idea what it is used for. The base itself is a square "city looking" gray metallic piece that raises the figure about an inch or so off the ground.
The posability of the figure is DC Direct Standard- pivoting arm shoulders, bends at the usual places, and Manhattan’s head is on a ball joint of sorts, which allows you to move the head side to side, up and down, and everything in between.

The likeness of the character is great- they nailed every little detail in musculature right down to the individual toe nails on this guy. Granted, there isn’t much to articulate as he’s basically just a "blue guy" but the sculpting was right on the mark, nonetheless. I think that is what makes the character and the toy great- it tends to really drive the movie image.
　
Grade Scale: 1 to 10
Posability: 6: standard for all DC direct figures
Articulation: 9: based on an actor’s real life portrayal of the character, you can see Billy Cruddup’s performance all over.
Playability: 6.5- depending on whether you do the floating pose or the standard pose, he makes a better display piece than play piece.
Price: I paid about $22 retail for this guy; hence the reason I am not pursuing the other figures at this time. Obviously, cashing in on the cashcow known as the Watchmen.
Overall Coolness Factor: 8-I only bought him for the character I liked so much from the movie and comic, so he was cool to me. I would guess any fan of Dr. Manhattan would be happy as well.

Review of Voyager Class Mixmaster

2009-07-16T22:34:00.000-07:00

Name: Mixmaster

Function: Decepticon Chemist/Explosives Expert

Sub-Group: Constructicons

Resident chemist and explosives expert for the elite among the DECEPTICONS, MIXMASTER has spent his entire life learning all there is to know about chemical interaction. He can make thousands of poisons, explosives and deadly gasses from the materials around him. The other DECEPTICONS rely on him to fashion powerful warheads for their missiles, and dangerous venoms in which to coat their blades.

Man, am I getting old. Reason? The first thing I thought when doing the transformation of Mixmaster for the first time is "This ain’t your daddy’s transformer." And it most certainly is not, which is the reason I love it.

Out of all the toys for the new movie, this guy struck me the most appealing, especially since I was a huge fan of the Constructicons back during the G1 heyday. Mixmaster was always portrayed as a bit of a nervous chap; eager for a lead to give him orders. He was also a leg on the original Devastator as well, but things have been changed around a bit in the Michael Bay era, and it was such a welcomed change after the disaster that was Transformers Animated (not a huge fan of that series). Apparently, Bay utilized two versions of Mixmaster in Revenge of the Fallen- one as a stand-alone robot, and a truck version only as a Devastator configuration piece. Mixmaster also appeals to me on the basis of what his alternate mode is: a cement mixer. I love all types of construction vehicles, especially tractors, dump trailers, and big rig trucks like cement mixers, especially those made by Mack.

Specifically for this version, Mixmaster was very much an extra in the movie, as he played no real significant part other than "being there" fighting. His most memorable scene was in the last act of the battle, as he changed into (what Hasbro defines as) a triple changing "battle mode". I take a bit of issue with that phrase, as this third mode does not merit the title, but more on that later.

Alternate Mode One: Cement Mixer
First up is the Cement mixer mode, which really is just great in 99% of the overall scheme. Colored in a dark gray for the cab, the detail is amazing- the hood indents, light fixtures, front grill, and wheel hubs are dead on. The purple tinted clear plastic is also very cool as it plays a nice juxtaposition to the grays throughout the body. The roof of the cab has a nice overhang, which, if you have ever hand polished a Mack Mixer as I have, you tend to appreciate the various parts, even the pseudo light fixtures on the overhang. The diesel tanks are marked with the appropriate warning strips for fuel, as well as the steps to get up in the cab. Half of my 1% gripe has to do with the coloring of the fuel tanks, mirrors, and smokestacks- definitely should have been a silver finish or chrome-plated plastic. The other half of the gripe has to do with the mixer itself- it doesn’t have the rotating feature, but the reasoning for that becomes quite clear when transforming into robot mode. I like the "quietness" of the Decepticon insignia on the hood, and then the "loudness" of the huge version on the mixer, although in the movie, the insignia was vertical, not horizontal as is on the toy. The mixer insignia also bears the distinctiveness of having the only other purple color in the whole color scheme- not overused, which is very pleasing to the eye.

Other cool details include the cement chute, which is completely movable and bendable in regards to transformation, and a ladder, which IMO should have been either silver colored or chrome as well as the aforementioned parts on the cab. The other thing that really stood out for me on this was the wheels- another part of my work history was de-mounting wheels and sanding/painting the rims to the point where they looked like they just came off the assembly line, and what color did I use? A silver chrome/gray color scheme, which is what my friend Mixmaster here boasts as well. Surprisingly, for a transformer where the wheels can easily be disturbed in alignment, the general direction remains straight, so rolling him on the kitchen floor wont result in him veering sideways into the refrigerator.

Altermate Mode Two: "Battle Mode"
Expounding upon my initial take on this "triple changer" title, I think it’s a bit misleading inasmuch as this "battle mode" is nothing more than Mixmaster lying on his stomach with his arms and legs in the air ala Regan in the Exorcist. If you think about what the true triple changers have been throughout the course of the Transformers legacy, the third modes were very well defined visually- Blitzwing was a robot, a PLANE, and a TANK. This battle mode is not "a BATTLE MODE"- It is just a fancy description for Mixmaster laying down on the job. When I purchased Mixmaster, I noticed that he is not the only character to bear this triple changing mode- I saw it being taunted on Soundwave’s packaging as well, but I also felt Soundwave was worthy of the title- he changed into a robot, a SATELLITE, and a SPACE SHIP. Proactive nouns, people. Gotta love them. The only redeeming part of this "battle mode" is the rocket launcher, which will definitely take your eye out if you are not careful, because, yes, I almost did it. To myself.

Robot Mode:

Now here are where things get very interesting. I’m not going to hide the fact that I was confused as hell trying to transform Mixmaster from truck to robot mode. I spent the better half of watching The Manchurian Candidate (the one with Denzel) trying to get this thing into some semblance of what was pictured on the back of the box. The very first thing I noticed was the "ape arms" as I tend to call them- something was has been very prominent in Michael Bay’s redesigning of the Transformers overall. The 2007 Bonecrusher had this feature as well- the arms are incredibly long with very lengthy fingers that umbrella the entire robot scheme, providing a cocoon for the body and legs. I was a bit displeased to find that the right arm shoulder joint had a stress crack in it before I even barely touched it. A bit of shoddiness in the manufacturing realm of things. The arms themselves are also incredibly thin, and finding the right placement for the mixer quarters (two per arm) is a bit of a hassle since they have a tendency to pop off without much force (but can be easily put back on). With the rear wheel sections, they are also a bit weighty.

One thing I noticed, again in the overall Michael Bay scheme of things, is that quite a few of the Decepticons have very similar facial features, which makes it hard to distinguish each character. Mixmaster is no exception- he could easily be confused with Bonecrusher, Soundwave, or any of the other ‘cons that bear no visible lips. That’s not to say I don’t like this redesign- in fact, I like it very much, but there needs to be more distinguishable features to differentiate each character. The missile launcher and fuel tanks make a nice "backpack" of sorts for Mixmaster, adding coolness points to the overall scheme.

On the packaging, there is this feature called "Mech Alive" in regards to the torso. Hate to disappoint, but there is nothing "alive" anywhere on this toy aside from the rocket launcher. The advertisement specifically points to the dark purple chest plates, but there is nothing moving there. They are stationary and remain that way regardless of what mode Mixmaster is in. The abdomen area tends to be bulky as well, with no real separation of the hips from the abdomen. Part of the bulkiness has to do with the placement of the cab hood, which just bends underneath between the legs to wrap around vertically in an awkward placement on the back. If one were to look at the bot’s sideways profile, you would immediately notice this.

Now, the legs are odd to describe because it really depends on what your end result is when getting Mixmaster into robot mode. I have seen 3 variations on the placement of the legs, specifically the hip joints, in regards to the overall scheme- Hasbro.com, the back of the packaging, and an independent transformation online. If going by the box, leg placement results in a hunchback of sorts with very short legs, and makes the arms look even bigger. If going by Hasbro.com, you have a leaner robot- much taller, and IMO, quite attractive aesthetically. Then there was the independent chap who had it somewhere in the middle. Out of the three, I prefer the Hasbro.com definition, and it makes more sense from the movie point of view as well, since (even in a very limited screentime) Mixmaster didn’t appear as a hunchback.

So overall, am I pleased? I would say yes, even given the slight buggers I have pointed out. Going back to my original statement about your "daddy’s transformer," I appreciate the way that the whole toy line has evolved over the years, even with slight evolutionary setbacks such as the Animated series. Core characters have basically remained the same, yet have been re-imagined visually, which is the case for Mixmaster. I like this guy as much as that small brick bot from the 80’s.

Transformation: 10- for me, this was quite difficult. And then the ensuing argument with my girlfriend over transforming him BACK to the robot didn’t help much either. Definitely not your 80’s transformer.

Durability: 6- things pop off easily, especially the mixer quarters, and I was not thrilled with the right shoulder stress crack that was there before I even took him out of the box.

Fun: 8- If you were to have an all out war between the ‘Cons and ‘Bots, a child playing with Mixmaster could have some good times, especially with that rocket launcher.

Price: 3- All the voyager class robots are around $22, and that is what I paid at WalMart..

Overall: 8- I enjoy Mixmaster because I love construction equipment. Another person might like racecars better, so it’s really a case of "eye of the beholder." If you want to get your Decepticon Faction all together, then grab him.

Toy Review: Voyager Class Starscream from Revenge of the Fallen

2009-07-15T13:04:00.000-07:00

Name: Starscream
Function: Decepticon Sub-Commander, constant conniving heir to the Throne

The moment his sensor net registered MEGATRON going offline, STARSCREAM knew the battle was over, and the AllSpark lost. He converted to vehicle mode and boosted for outer space, hoping to buy enough time to rally the DECEPTICON survivors. Returning from CYBERTRON bearing the marks won during his reign over the DECEPTICON army, he is focused on conquest. With a new army behind him, he has the strength to pursue his own goals, and perhaps, when the time is right, bring MEGATRON back.
　
Poor Starscream. If for nothing, the guy tries so hard, but constantly falls short in everything. Well, he finally has something to be proud of- a great new toy from the latest movie, Revenge of The Fallen. As a character, Starscream had very little screen time in the first movie, but ultimately had the last word (read: scene) as he jetted off to space which was explained by IDW comics. Fortunately, he played a much bigger role in the second installment, fully illustrating both verbally and physically that contention for leadership he has with Megatron. As I watched the movie, I honestly didn’t notice much difference in the visual portrayal of my favorite Screamer aside from some new markings, but the toy, which I bought on a whim, completely surprised me inasmuch as that it surpasses its predecessor.

Alternate Mode :
The alternate mode is an F-22 Raptor jet fighter, under license from Lockheed Martin, the main manufacturer. Still sporting the same basic tan tint as before, Screamer’s body design was slightly updated with some pretty radical markings, including the Decepticon Insignia and one of the Fallen’s glyphs. Much like the G1 original, the nose seems to be made of some kind of hard rubber, but reversibly, no opening cockpit. Boo. The landing gear is basically fake; it only assists in standing the plane level to the ground, but not traversing the ground. In regards to the rear landing wheels, I have already had one pop out twice without barely touching it. The rear wheels are also not that sturdy; they crumple back inwards to the arms as soon as the slightest pressure is put on them. As for the main body of the plane, not much initially changed looks-wise or function-wise. Still have the rear rudders and flaps, wing configuration is the same, and it still tends to be a bit bulky in the mid-section, which really comes into play on the robot mode. I think the one real significant change was the placement of underwing missiles and hands- the hands kind of seem very out of place, just randomly fitting at the tailpipes, which tends to screw up the whole flow of the design. Lastly, the missiles are now singular, as compared to the round hand launchers that were previously in place. I tend to like the single missile theory a bit better, because the first version had so many random fire mishaps that it drove me nuts.
　
　
Robot Mode:
Out of the two modes, this one is definitely my favorite due to many new features- mainly, Screamer is not a porker anymore. The very first time I ever saw the Michael Bay version of Starscream, it reminded me of Rlaph from The Simpsons- a big body with useless appendages that needed a weight watchers diet. He was so out of proportion that it could have been a 10 year old dead fad. It seems that Screamer took my suggestion and did the weight watchers- he’s much more lean in the body section now, and his limbs are more defined and separated from the body. The biggest improvement to me is definitely the hands- I utterly could not stand the round missile shooters with awkward singular fingers bending outwards- we finally have some very defined, "hand-y" looking hands. Equally, the legs are much better, too. One of the main features that Hasbro did right by me on Screamer is the "mech alive" feature- I was really disappointed with Mixmaster because it was a total sham, but on Screamer, when you turn his head, you see the inner gears rotating in the wing sections. Looks pretty damn cool to me. Overall, the transformation is easier on this version as well- there were a lot of little nooks and crannies that you had to get just perfect to achieve transformation either way on the first version; this update has been slimlined in operation. Not that it’s easy as pie, but that it provides less frustration.

The body has minimal point loss, mainly the feet aren’t all that stable, and the stabilizing flaps behind the feet fall short in durability. Very loose joints on both features.

Transformation: 7- not tough at all, but things definitely flow better than the original version from the first movie.Durability: 8- Very solid aside from the rear landing gears that pop out.
Fun: 10- I love this guy, and I’m not one that’s really crazy for airplanes, but very happy to have him alongside my other Movie guys.
Price: 8-$18 bucks on sale at WalMart. Typical for the Voyager class.
Overall: 9-Normally, I have specific reasons for picking out the transformers that I buy, but for this guy, I give you thumbs up to go buy it just for the sake of having something cool.

Action Figure Spotlight: DC JUSTICE Sinestro, Series 1

2009-06-21T18:24:00.000-07:00

Surprise, surprise! Yes, I bought another Sinestro figure. I know, it must come as a big shock to you, the reader . A little off the path from the normal DC Direct/Universe figures, I was at a sort of crossroads on whether to get this specific interpretation of GL’s most notorious enemy, but I bought this figure because there were things I actually didn’t like about it. For a few months, I had been eyeing it in the collector store as it collected dust on the shelves, but I made a commitment to getting all the GL-specific figures I could before purchasing this. Having only one other JUSTICE figure in my collection (that being Black Manta), I already knew I would be impressed with it on certain aspects (likeness, realism) but there were some aspects I didn’t much care for, which I will explain further. I’m dividing this review into three main points: Sinestro as a character design, Alex Ross, and the figure itself.
The first time I ever saw the character of Sinestro was on the SuperFriends Saturday morning cartoon when he was part of Lex Luthor’s Legion of Doom. Even as a kid, I wasn’t totally impressed with him. Truth be told, he looked corny, like a goon clown with that silly triangle design on his shirt. The big head and whiny voice didn’t help matters either. Basically, I saw a low level villain who was less interesting than most of the other villains on his team. His only special power was the opposite of Green Lantern- he could make yellow constructs, which were Green Lantern’s only weakness. It honestly just didn’t make for good story telling, and even on a comic level, it was hard to take Sinestro seriously. He never had any real depth other than being a Green Lantern gone bad, and that scenario had played out so many times before that it just came off as a Darth Vader rip off (even though Sinestro had been introduced years earlier).
So along comes this guy named Geoff Johns, who task it was to put Hal Jordan back in the GL role, which he did very successfully. But the question was: where does Sinestro fit in? Is he still going to be a third rate villain who has occasional skirmishes with GL but is always defeated? Johns’ answer was NO. Finally, we get a worthy villain: one with depth, a constantly developing back story (getting in touch with Parallax during Hal’s insane reign, his relationship with Abin Sur, the formation of his own Corps, his relationship with his homeworld and daughter), and most importantly, someone who was now worthy of our attention. Along with Ethan Van Sciver’s artwork, Sinestro became fresh and new, almost risen from the dead space of the DC Universe, for which he was to become an important fabric of that tapestry. The new uniform (and corps) basically just rocked. Even in the very beginnings of the Rebirth story, his portion of the story would set up for greater things to come. Sinestro became a bit more real, a bit more sinister, a bit more in our faces.
The second part of this has to do with Alex Ross, which most comic fans know as a master of realism within a fabricated world of two dimensional reading material. As a Fine Arts major in college concentrating on realism, I was immediately impressed the first time I ever saw something from Alex Ross, which I’m pretty sure was Kingdom Come. I still rank that story as one of my top ten trades in my own collection. The realism was just incredible- the shading, the placement of figure within background, the lifelike quality given to each and every aspect of any given panel- it was just great. To me, his art speaks in fluidity, constantly flowing while at the same time giving you the big bangs along with the more quiet moments. I could probably write a whole thesis on Alex Ross, but I will save you the torture. So, with this figure being from Ross’ Justice title, there were certain things implied: a realistic three dimensional rendering of characters straight from the comic. They would be faithfully sculpted by Tim Bruckner in relation to every and any aspect of the characters.
So now we come to the figure itself- is it faithful to Alex Ross’ vision? Absolutely. Does it incorporate the realism and detail? Yes. However, I still can’t get past the old version being used. No matter how beautiful Ross’ art is, you can’t really change the core design flaws. This is a pre-Johns Sinestro, utilizing the original dorky costume and big head. Even in realism, this figure just screams "cornball" straight from the SuperFriends show. If one were to compare this figure to the Yellow Corps version of Sinestro from the DC Direct line, the immediate differences are notable: the bulbous head has been slimmed down to be more in scale with the whole body, the new costume design gives Sinestro a bit more serious tone as well as a better detailed overall look. The ears aren’t as exaggerated. In a total redesign, Sinestro looks more "real" than Ross’ realistic interpretation of the old design. Lastly, my least favorite aspect of this figure is the "garter" belt. It just looks rediculous.
Per usual, articulation is standard; knee joints, elbows, swivel head, and hips. As always, articulation is sacrificed for detail, which isn’t always a bad thing, especially if you are just displaying the figure. He comes with a standard display base, and a yellow power rod. One thing I noticed is that the head seems to be on a permanent right tilt, not matter which position you swivel the head into.
For comparing and contrasting, I took a few pics of this figure by itself, and also with other interpreations of the character, namely the two DC Direct GL versions, the DC Universe variant with yellow corps uniform, and the Animated JLU version.
Overall Score:
Articulation: 6- the same as always.
Detail: 10- absolutely faithful to Alex Ross’ artwork, lifted straight from the pages, but a 7 also applies to a badly designed character in the first place, of which Ross had nothing to do with.
Accessories: 7: Standard base and yellow power rod included.
Price: I paid $15 for this, but I also waited until I had acquired certain other figures before purchasing this one. Not an immediate need, but something to pass the time with a review.
Bottom Line: I got it because it was Sinestro, but I own better interpretations, especially the Van Sciver figure. If you are a character collector (focusing on anything to do with one character), then go for it. If not, you can wait.

Action Figure Spotlight: Green Lantern Series 3 Sinestro

2009-03-17T07:07:00.000-07:00

Action Figure Spotlight: Green Lantern Series 3 Sinestro
So I came onto the Sinestro Corps War a little late- I waited until both volumes were available in hardcover trade until reading them, and sure enough, it became one of my favorite comic book sagas. I was in my local collector shop and noticed the 3rd wave of the DC Direct Green Lantern Series Figures- and I couldn’t take my eyes of this brand new Yellow Corps version of Hal Jordan’s nemesis.
As having a large chunk of the Toy Biz Marvel Legends figures, the DC Direct stuff in general is pretty comparative. Whereas I always saw the Marvel Legends as sacrificing likeness for articulation, I found the opposite to be true of DC Direct. The GL series in general is a prime example- as they might not be able to do dynamic poses, you can almost feel the artist’s pencilling of the figure while viewing it.
So let’s get right down to it- if any of you read the Sinestro Corps War, you probably noticed Ethan Van Sciver’s singular vision of Sinestro- the tall, thin frame, almost deformed cranium, and the cold calculating knowledge that made Sinestro who he is. Sinestro was never a muscle bound brawler- he is a thinker with one of the most powerful weapons in the universe on his hands- and I think this specific action figure captures that grandeur exquisitely. The uniform looks great- I was never one for Sinestro’s original uniform as I thought it made him look like a clown on crack, but the Corps Uniform gives him a totally different feel- a sense of purpose if you will of his cunning and intelligence combined with his leadership. Johns and Van Sciver took this B Grade villain that looked totally kooky on Superfriends, and gave him the makeover of a lifetime- Johns raised the bar for Sinestro, making him a top notch villain.
The articulation is pretty standard here- Sinestro does have ball-joint arms, bendable elbows, rotating wrists, along with bendable hips and knees. With his power ring permanently placed on his left arm (along with armband of the Corps insignia) he is power redefined. The star emblem on his chest, which was part of the original design prior to the Corps, is meticulously outlined with raised features over a well defined body structure of musculature.
For accessories, Sinestro came with 3: his yellow lantern (a recolor of the standard GL lantern) a standing base, and the sentient virus Corps member Despotellis. My main gripes are due to the base and the virus- the base is just a standard GL base- it would have been really cool to have a Sinestro Corps base in yellow with their insignia. With Despotellis, I was very disappointed- the little thing broke before I even took it out of the package on the joining point where the head stalk meets the leg base. I had to use some Krazy Glue to get it back together.
With DC fans psyching up for the Blackest Night, we already know Sinestro is going to play a major part, and I think the success of this toy is a tribute not only to a newly defined character, but to Georff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver for making it possible.
1 to 10 scale ratings:
Articulation: 7- standard for most DC direct figures.

Detail: 9.5- You can see Van Sciver’s lines, especially in his face. It literally jumps out of the comics.

Coloring: 9- brights are bright, colors are true.Size: Standard; on the same scale more or less with the readily available DC Universe figures or Marvel Legends for some campy crossovers.

Price: 6- Since DC Direct is an exclusive line, you are going to pay a little more, but overall worth it. I believe I paid about $16.00 for this.

Playability: 8(for Sinestro) 1 (for Despotellis) With Sinestro, he will stand up to most kids. Despotellis; not so much.

Overall Coolness Factor: 9.5 – a prize piece for me.

Green Lantern: Wanted: Hal Jordan

2009-02-06T09:59:00.000-08:00

WANTED: HAL JORDAN

So, as I go through my pile of GL trades, I decided to give my 2 cents worth on each one, and ironically, I just happened to pick this one up the other day. For money reasons, I had a real hard time with this trade being released as a Hard Cover when the collection first came out, and I opted to wait until the soft cover trade was available. This one was interesting. Not my favorite, but interesting. Again, written by Geoff Johns, it is part of the prelude to the Sinestro Corps War and hints even further towards the Blackest Night story line.

The first thing that jumped out at me as an inconsistency had to do with the artwork- the artwork is great, but the jump in *style* was odd when it came to the last segment of the story involving the Star Sapphires. We ended with a Reis full page of Carol as the Sapphire, and then went right into Acuna’s art. Both are great, neither mix well when sequentially attempting to tell a story. Artwork is as much a story teller as words are, so it’s like you’ve got these two beautiful points of view, but they are so individualistic that they cannot meld, and it breaks the rhythm of the story.

The POW segment of the story was cool in regards to Johns giving us real world life in the fantasy realm. I mean, do you see this kind of stuff in Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings? No, you don’t. The realism makes it more touching, more human. It also touches upon the feelings of guilt that Hal still retains in relation to the Parallax saga.

A couple of interesting sideline comments- the short inclusion of the Guardians with Hank Henshaw’s cyborg skull was cool, and for those who have already read the Sinestro Corps War, the relevance reveals itself. The 3 page spread on the Qward planet birthing the rings for the Sinestro Corps was a great precursor as well. We get to meet the S.C. equivalent to Kilowog, Arkillo.

The Amon Sur part was excellent if not for the fact that Hal basically tells the poor scarred son that he needs to grow up. The most defining moment was when Hal put him in his place using the free pass idea. Looking further down the road, we see just how much of a coward Amon really turns out to be, even with the power of the S.C. ring.

Now, if there is only ONE reason you need to buy this trade, it is for the Batman-S.C. ring face-off. That was the most electrifying portion of this entire trade, and those 2.5 pages are worth the price of the whole damn thing. It just proves how strong of a character Batman is, and how being touched by the Green Ring in a story past had lasting ramifications on the will to fight the yellow ring. And tell me that costume design with the Sinestro Corps motif wasn’t DAMN COOL. Not too long ago, Toyfare had an article on a do-it-yourself custom of this costume. Also, I think it was cool how Bruce, who has made it known of his untrustworthy feelings with Hal in the past, seemed to have begun to forgive Hal and was actually concerned about him. The most profound message of this situation? We do have the ability to overcome our own fears.

Aquaman/Black Manta gallery update

2009-01-31T13:52:00.001-08:00

Took a little trip to Wallyworld last night, and found a couple new renditions of Aquaman and Black Manta from the current "Batman: Brave and the Bold" Series based upon the TV Show of the same name. Both new figures are at the forefront of each pic; overall, they are cool. I liked how the designers basically took Green Arrow's beard away and gave it to Arthur Curry- kind of like a cross between classic and JLU era Aquaman. Manta is pretty cool as well, although his helmet is so damn thin it makes me wonder if they designed it with an actual human in there as always was the case with Manta. That being said, my favorite versions of both figures still remain as the DC Universe series based on the Marvel Legends line.

Ice Hurts :(

2009-01-30T12:38:00.000-08:00

On my way into work yesterday, this happened.

Less than a mile from my house, I was on my street going uphill with a very sharp right curve at the top. As I turned my steering wheel to the right, the truck kept going straight- right into another vehicle on the other side. I locked eyes with the woman in the car and just braced for impact.

The road was complete ice. No exaggeration- there was no asphault visible at all due to the icestorm from the night prior. Gotta love the irony about this- the woman was 50 ft away from her driveway, on her way back home. She was cool about it, and we got the cops there on the spot. The kicker? this was one of FOUR accidents that happened on that corner within 60 second spans of each other. The first accident was a guy who went face first into a 6 ft snow bank. Then came me. Then another guy got his whole front end ripped off by a truck plow that skidded. And another accident happened down the street a bit at an equally dangerous curve.

So, my insurance guy says "technically, there are 3 parties involved here- you, the other woman, and the ice. But we can't hold the ice responsible, so since it was your vehicle that slid into the oncoming lane, we need to find you at fault." I guess the true party the ice was having was all of us skidding around uncontrolably while it just sat there.

Ice, may you have the worst hangover ever.

Green Lantern #37

2009-01-23T08:06:00.000-08:00

3 words.

Oh.

My.

GODS.

*POSSIBLE SPOILERS*

If issue 37 is any indication of how big, bombastic, and gut wrenching "The Blackest Night" is going to be, we are in for a ride, fellow Lanterns.

Don't let the cover fool you, though- Yes, Laira is part of the story, but her saga is background compared to the 4 way struggle between the GL's, the Red Lanterns, the Blue Lanterns, and the Sinestro Corps. Sinestro plays the ultimate savior and destroyer in this one after being freed by a very reluctant Hal Jordan, whose own inner conflict between his sense of duty and the revelation of the Blue Lanterns is up front, right in his face. And if you think the whole Hallallax thing got scary, wait until you see the ending on this one- Geoff Johns proves once again that he is a master story teller, giving us cliffhangers that leaves our jaws on the floor.

It was pretty cool to see some of the Sinestro Corps members return, and they weren't the regulars like Arkillo or Cryb- they were lesser known, but important in our expansion of understanding of each member, especially Sinestro's ring bearer, Tekik. I immediately went back to the Gallery of characters from the "Tales of the Sinestro Corps" to gain a little more insight into Tekik. It was pretty cool to have his own little spotlight, if but two panels. Something about him just reeks of coolness. Perhaps a custom figure..........who knows. Anywho, the issue was great, there's a little meat in it for everyone's tastes, and the keyword is ACTION.

The Sinestro Corps War

2009-01-22T20:20:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I’m a little late on the bandwagon on this one. But, better late than never. After having Crisis after crisis trying to understand various crisis’s and secret invasions and 52 countdowns, I needed something straightforward. This is it, and if you don’t like this after reading all three collected volumes, you need to return ALL your comics to the nearest store. Yes, it’s THAT good.
First off, if you are not familiar with the GL: Rebirth story line and the magnificent work attached to it courtesy of Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver, then I suggest you start there first, because that is probably the most important comic story of the decade, but I won’t delve into that since we are talking about its successor. If Johns managed to accomplish only one thing in this story, it was to put Sinestro in the upper echelon of villians. Yes, we all have those corny images of Sinestro from the Super Friends show in our heads, but this one trumps it completely. Sinestro is now officially on the same tier with Lex Luthor and Darkseid. And this is just one of the many things Johns accomplished.
So, here’s a few things that stand out to me after reading Volume One, Two, and the Tales of the Sinestro Corps TPB.
VOLUME ONE
If you choose to read this without doing Rebirth first, it’s ok. Not suggested, but ok. Reason being is that there are plenty of flashbacks and nods to the Rebirth story to fill you in on the major points that connect to the Sinestro Corps. However, there are times when the flashbacks get a bit too numerous and tedious, especially the whole Parallax saga. But what is really cool is that Parallax is back in a big way and plays a major part in the whole fear theory.
Volume one basically sets the stage with flashbacks, battles, and a general understanding of what’s going on here without giving away all the surprises, which are neatly closed up in Volume two. We get to see each character shine in their own light on both sides.
Out of the mini battle with Suranik Natu, it’s an interesting little theology lesson that Sinestro gives her, possibly following down the same lines as the Darth Vader/Luke Skywalker line, which is later touched upon in the Red Lantern Corps arc after this one. Of course we don’t know for sure yet, but I would be willing to wager a few bucks on who turns out to be Sinestro’s daughter.

VOLUME TWO

I damn near fell out of my seat when I read Kilowog referring to the Children of the White Lobe as "the spooky kids." Everyone finds humor in the strangest of places sometimes. I thought the whole Ion transition got a bit tedious, with all the back story about the new Sodam Yat. It sort of distracted the reader from what was really going on, which was indeed WAR.
The most meaningful moment came when both Hal and Kyle were absorbed into the Parallax entity, and Hal was teaching him the moral of friendship and teamwork when it comes to guilt, regret, and loss. I liked that passage so much that I copied it and hung it up at work. The most impressive spread was when Ganthet and Sayd were explaining the entire color spectrum of the lanterns. Did anyone notice that these are also the basic colors of the 7 major chakras in spirituality? Especially in the lower left panel- they are laid out in the same color order as the chakra system. I wonder if Johns is leaking some of his spiritual beliefs into the story.
I thought another touching moment was when Cyborg Superman said "thank you" to the lanterns who were about to destroy him. Granted, the guy is responsible for a lot of spilt blood, but it was nice to see his one true wish be granted (for the moment)- the release from the pain and suffering that drove him mad in the first place.
Totally devoid of the power rings as weapons, I thought it was a damn powerful moment when Sinestro, already defeated in a sense (but ripe with accomplishment of his true endeavor) took on both Hal and Kyle. Just bare handed combat- what a novel idea in the world of super heroes.
Lastly, for Mr. Henshaw, he could not find the peace of lifelessness in the universe. I did actually feel bad about that.
TALES OF THE SINESTRO CORPS
This is a nice little collection of stories that provides some meaningful filler on the gaps of understanding on certain characters. Definitely the most vile and disturbing tale was the one of Karu-Sil. Most of the tales are being told by Lyssa Drak, keeper of the Book of Parallax, to Amon Sur, a Corps Member in training. Only thing that bothered me about this was that we never saw the process to completion in terms of Sur’s inner journey into his fear- he named it, but we didn’t see how it played out.
Kyle’s story of his mom’s painting was touching, if not only for the fact that I believe we all have a Parallax and Ion inside of us, and it’s the struggle that sometimes define us as human beings. The tale of Henshaw kind of built on the sympathy that was generated from Volume Two. Superboy Prime was also intereesting as well if not for what happens when the psychosis of a 5 year old in an adult’s body goes totally wrong.
The last few pages contain a who’s who of the GL world as it exists now, with the advent of the inversions and the Sinestro Corps in particular. When you have time, you should definitely read each entry- lots of little tidbits that kind of fit into the whole scheme of things.

DC Universe Figure Collection

2009-01-14T17:20:00.000-08:00

Howdy Ho, this is my little bit of getting back into the DC Universe. I started the whole DC over Marvel conspiracy back in September with Smallville, and its just kind of taken off from there. So, I dug out all the older stuff I had (which was mainly my obsession with Aquaman and especially Black Manta) and started adding to it.

So basically, I won't go through each and every figure, but the main points: Upper left is the Aquaman gallery with some Super Powers figures from the 80's thrown in, plus a JLU Superman from Ireland (I believe this was a European Happy Meal toy). Upper center are 4 of the larger JLU style figures with a few small guys from Dark Knight and DC Universe Crisis lines that are currently out. Upper right is the Black Manta stuff (the alex Ross version, SF version) plus the latest Marvel Legends style DC Universe figures that do the build-a-figure motif with Despero up there somewhere.

Lower left is my little JLA standoff (but more akin to the Green Lantern specific U with extras thrown in. Check out the Corps version of Sinestro- tell me that isn't effin awesome (more to come on the Sinestro Corps later). Lower middle is actually what started my re-entrance into toy collecting- I loved the JL/JLU show, so I started picking up what Target had lately with a few sparse finds from other places as well. I'm especially proud of the Ultra Humanite, Gorilla Grodd, Darkseid, and Doomsday figures (This Doomsday is from the Death of Superman line). Lower right is the "extras" or doubles of figures I had from the JLU line, plus most of the Batman figures from the Animated series that are currently on sale at CVS (only one I'm missing as of now is Batwoman).

2008- a dark night.

2009-01-13T18:52:00.000-08:00

Wow, 2008 is over. Thank the Gods.
What a rough year for just about everyone I know, including myself. Physically, Emotionally, Financially,......it was just damn rough.
The world is at war. Our country was in dire straights. The economy went to hell. Both on the outsides and insides of our heads. If there was ever a time when we needed the spirit world to help us through this, it was 2008. So where were they?
Fear was everywhere. People afraid of buying, people afraid of what tomorrow would bring. Hatred was everywhere. People mauling over a policeman in the name of shopping. Our leader? Best compared to the Anti-christ.

But there was hope, and the undying need that we would live through this and survive. And right then and there was our miracle: survival. We proved to ourselves that we could survive harsh times and conditions. That was the miricle of spirit.

Things are looking slightly better. Yesterday, I had a feeling that I haven't felt in many many moons. The spirit of change, the spirit of things getting better and that things may be ok. There is still fear, there is still hatred, but it is tempered by change and light. We will overcome the darkness. We are beginning to see the faintest vision of light. The light is there, the only question is: can we get past ourselves to see it?

I think we can and will.

There was a reason the highest grossing movie of the year was called "The Dark Knight"- because it was a year of dark nights.

The dawn is coming.

More Poetry

2008-11-11T18:36:00.000-08:00

The sign has come
on the wings of lady bug
To open up the metal chambers of my heart
and let spirit flow in.
It's back.
I had thought for so long that my heart
was completely barren of feeling, barren of love,
filled with blackness and corruption of my own making.
But something changed...
I was traveling my path, and for one brief second,
I let it all go and stopped. Just stopped.
This new phase of life scares me.
It is excitingly new, yet oddly familiar.
Have we known each other before?
Was I Seti and you Nephthys?
Or was I Osiris and you Isis?
Or maybe you were Hathor, goddess of Love and Life?
Showing me how to save myself.
I know you.
I have known you forever, yet such a brief time.
Lady Bug, oh sweet Lady Bug, I am alive with passion,
My thoughts are consumed by this experience.
About what is, and what could possibly be,
and what I'm feeling right now.
This is something beyond me, beyond you, beyond time.
Universal, it has no name except "this is".
This is how things are. I hold myself back
from trying to take ahold of it, letting it flow freely
for ever as long as it is meant to last,
Although I grip to the thought of never wanting to let go,
Because, I am in heaven. This is pleasure, Hathor.
May I be brave like Horus to defend when defense is needed,
to love when love is needed,
to oppose when opposition is needed,
and to nurture and grow when growth and nurturing are needed.
Somehow, I still tremble with uncertainty, with feelings of
not knowing and not defining, yet, in the non-titling,
there is something warm and vibrant, something alive,
something uncharted and unexplored.
In my uncertainty, may I stay true to myself and to you.
Goddess protect us.

Samhain Ritual 2008

2008-11-03T08:53:00.000-08:00

The following is a small ritual that I wrote up just to commemorate the day of Samhain for 2008. The intention was to open the lines of communication with some loved ones who had passed on into Spirit, as Samhain is the Day of the Dead where the veil between worlds is at its thinnest. I'm not including the details of the actual meditation as this is more script than actual happening. The happening is personal and sacred and unique to the individual performing the ritual. Also, this might give you an idea of how to celebrate Samhain for yourself in solitary style.

SAMHAIN 2008 OCTOBER 31ST

List of Items:
Nine Iron Nails for Protection
Grandma's cauldron
Grandma's fossils
Pictures of Uncle and Cat
Candles: Black (earth), White (air), Orange (fire), Green (water)
Candle holders
Sage Bundle for smudging
Ritual Cloak
Wand
Protection/Anointing Potion
Large Quartz, Selenite
Platform Boards, large and small
Incense Holders, (Isis & Anubis)
Offering Plate of Food
Written-out ritual

Purification of self and space (smudging)
Creating sacred space (set up of items)
Quarter calls:
“To the North, I call upon the element of Earth. Hail and Welcome.” (Black Candle)
“To the East, I call upon the element of Fire. Hail and Welcome.” (Orange Candle)
“To the South, I call upon the element of Air. Hail and Welcome.”
(White Candle)
“To the West, I call upon the element of Water. Hail and Welcome.” (Green Candle)
Circle Casting: 3 rings, white, red, purple.
To be chanted with each ring:
“We cast this circle to protect us from all forces that come to do us harm.
We charge this circle to allow only the most perfect energies for this work, and block out all other energies.
"We charge this circle to create a space beyond space, a time beyond time, a temple of perfect love and perfect trust, where the highest will is sovereign. So Mote It Be.”
Evocation:
“On this day of Samhain so sacred
I call upon the two: Goddess and God mated.
I ask you to protect, I ask your aid,
Only in true love and true trust should my request be made.
May highest spirits and highest guides-
Anubis, Bast, Isis, Great Spirit’s Eye-
Be Present and welcomed all,
On this most beautiful day of Fall.
To communicate with dearly departed
Is my request above all.
To honor and love their memories,
And hear my heartfelt call.
The portal is open to speak,
May my ears hear your words.
On this day of magick’s peak,
Guarded by the Lady and Lord.
This I ask in my highest good harming none.
So Mote It Be.”
Anointing of wrists with potion using banishing pentacle.
Recite “Charge of the Goddess”:
“Listen to the words of the Great Mother, Who of old was called Artemis, Astarte, Dione, Melusine, Aphrodite, Ceridwen, Diana, Arianrhod, Brigid, and by many other names:
Whenever you have need of anything, once in the month and better it be when the Moon is full, you shall assemble in some secret place and adore the spirit of Me, Who is Queen of all the Wise.
You shall be free from slavery, and as a sign that you be free you shall be naked in your rites. Sing, feast, dance, make music and love, all in My presence, for Mine is the ecstasy of the spirit and Mine also is joy on Earth. For My law is love unto all beings. Mine is the secret that opens upon the door of youth and Mine is the cup of wine of life that is the cauldron of Cerridwen that is the holy grail of immortality.
I give the knowledge of the spirit eternal and beyond death I give peace and freedom and reunion with those that have gone on before. Nor do I demand aught of sacrifice, for behold, I am the mother of all things and My love is poured out upon the Earth.
Hear also the words of the Star Goddess, the dust of Whose feet are the hosts of heaven, Whose body encircles the universe:
I Who am the beauty of the green Earth and the white Moon among the stars and the mysteries of the waters, I call upon your soul to arise and come unto Me. For I am the soul of nature that gives life to the universe. From Me all things proceed and unto Me they must return.
Let My worship be in the heart that rejoices, for behold- all acts of love and pleasure are My rituals. Let there be beauty and strength, power and compassion, honor and humility, mirth and reverence within you.
And you who seek to know Me, know that your seeking and yearning will avail you not, unless you know the Mystery: for if that which you seek, you find not within yourself, you will never find it without. For behold, I have been with you from the beginning, and I am that which is attained at the end of desire.”
Meditation.
Earthing Power: eating of cheese and crackers
Devocation:
“I thank and release the Goddess, God, Great Spirit, any and all spirits who came in perfect love and perfect trust. Stay if you will, go if you must. Hail and Farewell.”
Release the 3 protective energy circles counter clockwise.
Release the Quarters:
“To the North, I thank and release the Element of Earth. Hail and Farewell.”
“To the West, I thank and release the Element of Water. Hail and Farewell.”
“To the South, I thank and release the Element of Air. Hail and Farewell.”
“To the East, I thank and release the element of Fire. Hail and Farewell.”

*Design of this ritual was based upon teachings from Christopher Penczak and Scott Cunningham.

The Changing Tides of Friendship

2008-10-27T09:30:00.000-07:00

A most sacred thing Friendship is,
not to be taken lightly or abused.
It is a tie that binds two individuals in love and trust,
Not for physical use.
When you needed a shoulder to cry on or an ear to listen,
My heart was open to hear your grief.
When you needed that extra helping hand,
My hands were open and extended.
When you needed that one favor that no one else could do,
Your needs became my needs, and I took it seriously.
When you laughed,
I laughed wholeheartedly in unison.
When you felt like you had made unforgivable mistakes,
I offered forgiveness and a new way of looking at the situation.
When you needed to move on in certain areas of your life,
I was the vehicle you could count on.
When life's terrible tradgedies left you in a pool of tears,
My rescue raft was open to you.
When you needed me to be more serious and less a joker,
I gave you my word (and kept it) that I would joke no more.
When you wanted to get away from the mental anxiety of your loved one,
I offered safe passage and safe harbor.
Most importantly, when you needed trust,
I gave you trust unconditionally.

So, in my understanding of friendship,
it is a basis of mutual trust and equality,
Of balance through both the good times and bad times,
and most importantly, of seeing the love in the person you call "friend".
When I needed someone to confide my innermost feelings in,
you listened and then used it against me.
When you were punnished for being around me and knowing me,
I kept quiet and suffered inside, feeling so unworthy.
When you had to lie about being in my presence,
Each of those lies went through my heart like rusty nails.
When you ultimately betrayed our friendship and my trust,
You offered no reason as to why you behaved as you did.
Every time you used me to offset someone else,
I allowed the use in hopes that you might see your actions for what they truly were.
When I sat at home hurt, betrayed, and confused,
You did nothing.
Whenever you needed me, I was there,
and feeling like I had to ask for a social call made me feel even worse.
All I ever wanted was for you to communicate and be proud of me as a friend;
you did neither.
I was only a friend when you needed something, and you offered lies and treachery
in return.
All I ever wanted was a reason for the betrayal of trust- what did I do
to deserve such a hurtful thing?
All I ever wanted was for you to see that I am a human being,
and that my love and friendship was as solid as the ground I walk on.
All I ever wanted for you was for you to see your beautiful inner value that was
constantly wasted on the unappreciated.

Now, things close. As with all things, my suffering will pass.
The lies will pass. The hurt will pass. The pain will pass.
I will move on, you will move on, life will carry on quietly,
without incident or mention. It will be quietly swept under the rug
to uphold the "status quo" of non-communication and banishment of emotions.
I will allow this to pass by, but I needed someone to hear my feelings,
my words, my emotions, and my point of view.
Thank you, universe.

May all who read this learn something, may it offer you a shoulder of understanding
if you find yourself in the same situation, may it offer
words of compassion and unconditional love, may it help you realize
that you are not alone in your feelings.

A Gift of Love and Magick from my Grandparents

2008-10-26T19:18:00.000-07:00

About a week ago, I went over to visit my mother, and as we were sitting in her computer room, I noticed this black cauldron that I did not remember seeing before. I went over to check it out, and there was some curious objects in the cauldron- so very old-fashioned rusty nails, some curious fossilized rocks, and the cauldron itself. I asked my mom about it- and she told me the black "pot" was actually a gift from my father's mother to her when my parents had been married. She freely wanted to give it to me, and I graciously accepted. Talk about things coming full circle.

The two fossils are as follows: an amonite (which Rose & Linda at the Fox tell me is rather odd for its shape and color, thus preserving its uniqueness) and the other black elongated piece is known as an orthoceras. Linda said that the ammonite represents the circle of life; the beginning and ending of all things only to be reborn again. She wasn't too familiar with the orthoceras, which I rather favor of the two pieces. It's dark and mysterious. These two fossils came from my mother's mom, and I'm guessing she acquired them on a couple of her vacation trips around the world. Mom's mom was a world traveler; she has been to South America, to Egypt, Europe, Austrailia, pretty much anywhere a plane can land. Very educated woman.

The nails are a curiosity I still need to check with mom on- I think she had found them in various parts of the yard in which she still lives. I seem to remember everytime whe went to plant something, she found one of these old nails. My very first impression of the nails was protection- nine-iron nails are often found in Wiccan Protection spells as a main ingredient. Something to keep a mental note of.

The October Full Moon and the Latest Wand

2008-10-23T18:27:00.000-07:00

When we had our full moon on October 14th, 2008, It was absolutely beautiful. I realize this photo basically looks like nothing- a dot in black- but if you were outside the night of the 14th and saw what I saw, you would understand the majesty of the Goddess in this picture.

This is also the latest wand I worked on- I didn't actually create it, more or less fixed it up. The original wand had a huge quartz crystal on it that was never properly attached, and Rose asked me to work my mojo with it, so I put a Lemurian Fire Crystal on the top, there are magickal herbs underneath the crystal in the cradle of the crystal, I added some sparkles (per Rose's request) and put a better handle on it, using white leather hide. The feathers are from a goose that were originally attached to the upper part of the wand. After a couple coats of schlack, it was finished.

Altar For Maymes

2008-10-23T18:13:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to type too much here, but just a note to the universe, I guess. My cat and best friend Maymes went missing exactly a week ago tonight. I'm not taking it well, and if you ever have lost a pet, it's like losing a child. Maymes, wherever you are, I hope you are well, loved, and protected by Bastet.

This is the altar I set up for him a few nights ago.

Smallville Trek, 2008

2008-10-23T08:16:00.000-07:00

Ok, after spending the last two months watching seasons 1 through 7 pretty much every single night on DVD, I have finally come to a conclusion:

With all his superpowers, do YA THINK it would have been possible to fix the damn tractor in the barn that never moved (except when it was tossed around in a various scuffle)?

Ok, seriously- good show. Season one was cool if just for the fact that it established everything, although the episodes tended to mirror one another in the "meteor freak found, meteor freak wreaks havoc, Clark stops meteor freak" episode layout. It wasn't until seasons 2 and 3 that some real plot and intrigue started developing.

I don't like Lana Lang. She does more switch hitting than a bisexual.

Lois Lane and Chloe Sullivan ARE FREAKIN AWESUM.

Brainiac is the best villain in the show.

Lex is...........well, Lex. His most defining moment? When he pushed dear old Dad out the window. Finally, we stopped hearing his sob stories about how Dad didn't love him.

Lionel was more interesting than Lex.

Annette O'Toole is a seriously beautiful, intelligent, and intriguing lady. I want her for a Mom.

Pete Ross never made sense. Do you get the feeling he was just thrown in there as an affirmitive action type of thing?

2 Best episodes EVAR: "Reckoning" (If you didn't feel the urge to cry, then you are completely devoid of emotion) and "Arctic" (If not the the ultimate Lex/Clark showdown, this one leaves so many doors open that will only be answered in Season 8).

Reccomendation: BUY IT. ALL OF IT.

Love, Magick, Protect

2008-10-18T18:46:00.000-07:00

Another little ditty I finished tonight. I wrote out the words "Love, Magick, Protect" in Runescript with the added images of the Eye of Ra, the Ankh, and the Pentacle. The wood is birch; a new wood to work with for me. Very stringy, but ultimately easy to burn. Going for sale to the Enchanted Fox tomorrow. (http://www.enchantedfox.net/)

A couple of creations

2008-10-12T19:43:00.001-07:00

I made these a little while ago and decided to take pics of them before they sold because I had forgotten when they were still at the house.

The "Serpent of Light" wand was inspired by the book of the same name, which I am currently reading right now. Rose @ The Enchanted Fox (www.enchantedfox.net) had also asked me to make a wand specific with a snake design, and this coincided with the Protection Meditation I did a few nights later, where I was joined by horned rattlesnake as a guide.

The other wand was standard protection faire; sometimes, when all else leaves me un-inspired, I go for the known basics. I actually met a customer who had purchased an older wand I made that was 100% Egyptian in design. Egyptian Mythology has always interested me, so I tend to go with what I know.

Spirit of Toad

2008-10-11T15:52:00.000-07:00

After doing a bit of yard work for the first time in weeks, I was walking around the house and happened to notice Toad in one of our basement window gutters. I tried highlighting the area so you can make him out.

In a nutshell, the Spirit of Toad implies inner strength and resources.

Tractor Love, Part Thrice

2008-10-11T15:40:00.000-07:00

So, I've been driving past these old timers for about 3 months now, and I decided to stop today and take a few pics.
First up is this Case Tractor- I'm not totally up to date with the Case brand until it was combined with International Farmall, but you can immediately tell that this is indeed an old timer because of the tricyle design- most big timers made an industry overhaul with tractor design, eliminating the tricycle concept because it posed a huge safety risk regarding tipping over, and the balance when field cropping just wasn't all that good. However, you are still inclined to see may of the three wheelers at tractor shows, as they were mass produced.

These guys were really cool- basically, brush trimmers that were weighted down with a driver and used as rear attachments. The guy that did these over did an amazing job. I didn't stick around too long because I'm sure most people don't like strangers in their yards with cameras stalking old tractors. (laughs)

Lastly, this dude was across the street. If you have been to any type of tractor show, you know that Deeres represent the pinnacle of the industry and even the antique market is flooded with them. This guy is a model 50, and the yellow bar in the middle was for (what I believe) bearing weight evenly or for some kind of attachment.

A Man Named "Ed"

2008-10-10T12:12:00.000-07:00

So, I've been really ill the last week and a half. Started on Tursday, 10/2/2008 with a sore throat and ended up with a full blown cold. You know, the kind you feel in every square inch of your head. I had to leave work on Thursday, Stay home on Friday and Monday, and just yesterday I left work again because this cold is really kicking my ass. Tis the season. I went to the doctor again yesterday who put me on amoxicylan (sp?) and that totally kicked my ass into submission as well, so I'm spending another Friday home in bed.

After seeing the doctor yesterday and running to CVS to fill the Rx, I decided to stop by the Enchanted Fox, a store of spirituality, learning, and healing. I've been going there pretty much every weekend for the last 3 years. Anywho, I was hanging with my "adopted mom" Rose and my "adopted sister" Robin. Robin is a licensed practitioner of Reiki, a Tarot Reader, Massage Therapist, and all-around healer in many different ways. She offered to give me a 15 minute healing on the house, and at first, I was like "Girl, I am SO DAMN SICK you really don't want to be around me. I'm a walking germ factory." She replies "this is the perfect time."

So she started with the energy healing. I would like to add that Robin is among one of the only three people in this world that I trust touching my body in any manner of spirituality. It was an earned trust, one of mutual learning and sensitivity. As she was working on my chakras, she was getting some visions and messages about a guy named Ed. She asked me if my dad had passed on, which he hasn't (I feel he still has many years of driving me crazy left in this life), and she was sensing that Ed was speaking in the guise of a strong Father figure language. She described Ed- he was tall (about 6 foot), thin but muscular, he had a strong connection to farming and tilling (but this was an enjoyment, not a primary occupation even though it turned out like one), and he was a "I don't take things too seriously" type of guy. He was also a bit of an older man whose face was lined with wrinkles of hard work.

Robin also sensed a "death" revolving around the age of 4 for me. She told me that anything I had stored in my lower chakras needed to be released when I was ready, regardless of the form it might take whether it was a good cry or a loud fart. (lol). She also sensed the nature of my relationship with my real Dad, which is one of the typical father-son relationship: He's so concerned with who and what he wants me to be that he fails to see me for who I truly am, and this is not necessarily a fault, but just a manner of his being, and that I can't really change him, I just sort of need to roll with the punches.

Generally speaking, when I am getting a reading or healing, I tend to shut up, whereas most people are so intent on identifying with the words coming out of the reader's mouth that, in actuality, they are failing to LISTEN. I listened to my sister without much feedback until the healing was over. I confirmed the "death" that occured around my age of 4- it was the death of the relationship between my parents when they got a divorce. I also told Robin (being a single divorced mom now) that I was actually a tad jealous of her relationship to her ex- they seem to understand that what counts most is their child, Nelson, and they can still socialize, behave as a family unit, and concentrate on the well-being of their child. I really don't feel like going into my own personal sob-story of my childhood, but let's suffice to say it was pretty much the polar opposite.

So, on to this "Ed" character- for obvious reasons, I have been on a binge and purge mission to figure out who this dude is. For the life of me, I cannot find anyone named "Ed" on either side of my family- the only possibilities may be a great uncle named Freddy on my dad's side, but the very first mental impression I got when Robin spoke this words was of my mother's dad, Francis Landry, because he was in fact a very learned man who did farming on the side. He left behind a life of medicine for a family life on the farm. Extremely intelligent, he once had read every single book in the Franklin Library. He passed away when I was prbably 5 or so, and I don't remember much about him other than his sawmill on the farmland on Grove Street in Franklin. The only thing I can think of in regards to "not taking life too seriously" was that I always got the impression he did take things seriously. From what I have been told, he was opinionated, almost borderline crude at times, but he did love his family. I know his 4 children held him in high regard.

So that's all I really have to say right now. I will continue working on this "Ed" guy with my sister.

Oh, for anyone in the area who is interested in a REAL spiritual experience, visit www.enchantedfox.net.

Meditation, Day One

2008-10-08T09:35:00.000-07:00

Length: roughly 11 minutes
Music Playing: "Protection Spirit Journey" (spoken) by Christopher Penczak
Props: Dragonsblood Incense, 2 pink candles

BEGIN:
...I was walking towards a large citadel that was completely natural on the outside (non-man-made), and there was a large mote encircling the structure filled with Crocodiles. On the outer perimeter of the mote were large torches of sage, and there was a wooden rope bridge (very sturdy) that I crossed. Once on the inside of the structure, it was completely man made. I walked down a large hall, basically like a kings room. The walls had a polished abalone color to them, and there were large portraits of key spiritual figures in life, such as the Dali Lama.

I proceeded down the hall coming to a room/enclosure where Anubis was waiting. He was to introduce me to a new protection spirit. The recorded instruction suggested I speak with it, but there were no words. The spirit I met was Horned Rattlesnake. I lied down completely flat and the snake slithered onto my stomach. It purposely bit me in the stomach; not the normal lightning speed strike, but very slow and methodical. It was killing my outer shell, and I emerged the same yet slightly different, now sitting next to my dead shell in a crosslegged position.

Horned Rattlesnake curled up in a striking position in the area between my knees and rattled, ready to strike at anything coming near me. The number of snakes also grew: there was now one behind me, to my left, to my right, and directly on my head. Every so often, the snakes in the circular postion surrounding my body would go clockwise to switch to the next linear position.

People I receive as threats tried attacking me, and the snake bit them and they simply disappeared. Suddenly, a few mice appeared, which the snakes feasted on. Right after the feast, thousands of mice appeared in an army coming towards me, and the snakes were doing their best to poison each one, but were starting to falter, so the number of snakes multiplied to match the number of mice.

The journey ended in the midst of battle.

Jokes Beyond the Grave AKA "I got the last laugh"

2008-09-29T09:45:00.000-07:00

This is the story of The King, a Chevy Truck that has had more issues than Britney Spears. Need to take you back a moment in time to give you the lowdown on the players:

The King originally belonged to Wally, who was married to Flower. Flower was very close with her over-protective brother, RJ, which occasionally erupted in arguments between RJ and Wally. JJ is RJ’s son, who is not only the nephew of Flower, but also the godchild as well. JJ and Flower are very close.

Wally recently passed away…and the unfortunate thing was that RJ felt so strongly that Flower wasn’t making the right choices with Wally that there was a two year silence leading up to Wally’s death. When Wally did finally pass on to the afterlife, RJ put his personal grudges aside to be there for his sister and closest sibling. Obviously, Flower had a lot of work to do in the wake of Wally’s death, and the first thing she did was sell the King to RJ.

Now, The King is a ‘92 Chevy Silverado. Back in the day, this truck was the grand poohbah of Trucks- Power-Everything, 6 cylinder engine, complete bed liner, etc…and even in comparison to RJ’s current F150 which was made 6 years later, the King still beats out in overall performance and coolness. The unfortunate thing about the King is that, during the “silence” period, Wally was so sick that he couldn’t drive, so the King sat in the driveway for many months un-run. It also didn’t help that it was very VERY close to the ocean, which meant constant exposure to Salt Air.

So RJ and his brother FirstSon went to go get the truck and drive it all the way back home to RJ’s house. The King would not initially start up. When it did, they immediately went to the closest gas station to fill up. It still wouldn’t start right away, but managed to kick over once to get it on the highway. RJ would later say that he had never been so nervous in his life during the 90 minute ride home on the highway. When he finally pulled into the driveway, he thanked God he made it home in one piece.

To get the King in proper running condition, RJ brought it to a part time mechanic who did work out of his garage. At first, this part time mechanic thought he solved the problem by giving the King a proper tune up. So, when everyone *thought* things were ok, JJ took the truck to work one day, and made it 10 minutes away from the house before the truck shut down. He pulled the truck into a local gas station parking lot and called RJ. They managed to get the King back home, and through tying a large rope from the rear of the F150 to the front of the King, they hauled it back up to PT mechanic. This time, he replaced the distributor rod. The King came back home, and for a while, things were going good. JJ occasionally took the truck to work, and gave it a good run. One day, JJ and RJ went out for a ride and at a Dunkin Donuts drivethrough, the King stalled. They were able to roll it to a gas station to fill it up, but even then the King wouldn’t start. The gas gauge was obviously not working either, since it constantly read “full”. The fuel pump was replaced by PT mechanic.

RJ called his nephew The C to pick him up so he could get the F150 at home and do the tie thing again. He left JJ in the truck to stay there and wait. While waiting, JJ decided to meditate a bit in the quiet cab and visualize the gas going through the line to the engine. When RJ arrived with the F150, JJ gave the King one last chance to start, which it did, much to everyone’s surprise.

By this time, there were certain themes running here: When JJ drove the truck, there was relatively no issue aside from the initial Distributor Rod incident. When RJ drove the truck, bad things were happening. Truck stalling, running out of gas, not starting at all…you get the picture. After the DD incident, RJ continued to use it, and lo and behold, the King conked out in the yard one last time. Since the PT mechanic was un-licensed and did automotive work on his spare time (and his OWN time schedule), the King sat in RJ’s yard for a few weeks before PT Mechanic got off his duff to figure out what was going on. He couldn’t get the King started either.

So, once again, RJ and JJ hauled the King up to PT Mechanic’s house. The King sat around for a full month before PT Mechanic got to work on it. Another distributor rod was put in the King, citing that the other one was defective. With all the back-and-forth b.s. and the constant waiting on PT Mechanic (who rarely returned phone calls), the King finally arrived home once again.

And that is where we are today. This began in January of 2008. It is now the end of September 2008. And the King still needs another fuel pump that correctly reads the content of the gas tank.

Joking one day, JJ remarked to his dad, “I think this is Wally’s payback for all the arguments the two of you had. Somewhere, he’s laughing at you.”

RJ replied, “I think you are right.”

Batman and Son

2008-09-26T07:31:00.000-07:00

Let's begin this with the ending:

(BEST LINE EVER)

"The apocolypse is over. Until I say so."

The last words of Damian Wayne, son of Bruce Wayne and Talia AlGhul. Born assasin, willing to cross the moral line his father wouldn't, but shares the same inner determination and strength to rid Gotham of its trash.

You can use Wiki to get all the details on the story, so I'll keep this short: Morrison has a great handle on what makes Bruce Wayne tick, and adding this element from the Son of the Demon story line, he truly knows how to bring the idea of "cherub from HELL" to life.

The whole Joker interlude story left me kind of.........."Um, ok?!?" It was so laced in metaphor and hyperbole that the essence of the story was sort of lost onto me, especially in the opening chapter.

It was interesting to see the "Cain and Abel" relationship between Tim and Damian, as well as Talia's overall plans that basically put Bruce and Damian in the pawn position. Overall, good story. Read it, but save the Joker interlude for last since it basically disrupts the whole Batman and Son storyline.

Success! Death Magnetic by Metallica

2008-09-16T14:21:00.000-07:00

Well, M-Fans.... we FINALLY got the disc we have been waiting umptinine years for from the original Bay Area Bangers!

I was skeptical. I never thought in my wildest dreams that Metallica could bring themselves back to the quality of pre-Black Album status, but they proved me wrong, and I'm so glad they did. Death Magnetic is a return to style, substance, and familiarity (without the pitfalls of getting lost in themselves) that should please old fan and new fan alike. After the panned St. Anger and that whole Load/ReLoad jaunt, they jettisoned Bob Rock and his Bon Jovi Production tactics (thanks, guys!) and went with top grade choice cut Rick Rubin.

For those of you familiar with the American Recordings label groups, Rubin is a cult onto himself. Most Metallifans would probably be familiar with Rubin's work with Slayer, a counterpart and contemporary of the boys since the beginnings of thrash metal back in the 80's. Rubin's diversity, direct approach to sound, and balls-to-the-walls "this is what it is without cover-ups" style has returned Metallica to their honesty as musicians. Something that really stood out to me was how similar the composition is between this disc and pre-Black Album era discs- it rings quite fondly of Flemming Rasmussen, Danish Producer of RTL, MOP, & AJFA. Metallica had stated in the past that they felt Rasmussen was more of an engineer than producer, leaving them to making decisions regarding layout, song construction and format (a freedom that would be taken away by Bob Rock). After the first listen to Magnetic, it's clear Metallica have their freedom of choice back. Even though Rubin's production on sound may be streamlined, the aforementioned layout, composition, and song construction is anything but. Not since Rush or Tool has anyone so successfully incorporated odd time signatures into song format so successfully without alienating the listener.

Another beautiful thing about Death Magnetic is that, even with the style of old, it still pushes into new frontier, keeping current and up to date. Seriously, do you really just want to purchase a rehash of Justice or Puppets? Probably not, and therein lies the success factor of Magnetic- this is Metallica TODAY- grown, matured, pushing forward while honoring their roots without living in them. A key to this success is Robert Trujillo- a bassist with a presence not seen (or heard) since Cliff Burton. This guy is the key to the difference in sound. Sure, he "technically" appeared on St. Anger, but his input was minimal since he was just shadowing Bob Rock's artificial bass work. Trujillo is a breath of fresh air into something that damn near died from extreme staleness- if anyone remembers his work with Suicidal Tendencies, then I need not say more. His articulation of finger picking, the counter notes against James' power chords and phrasing creates one hell of a heavy bottom section. Added with Rubin's AC/DC mentality of production, his bass comes through clean and clear, as does Lars' drums. Trujillo's unorthodox approach to bass playing also adds groove, something Metallica fooled around with St. Anger but have finally brought to the forefront in a more realized fashion.

Return of the Solo! Kirk gets some much overdue respect. If anyone saw the dvd reality show called Some Kind of Monster, you could plainly see that Kirk was very much a sideline guy pushed into the corner to make room for James and Lars' battling egos. Finally, Kirk lets his own ego out of the box for a while, and man, it is SO good to hear that whining wah pedal over fleeting fretboard runs and screaming harmonic divebombs. As a former student of Joe Satriani, this kid has got MAD skills and it is a freaking relief to hear him completely unleashed and un-BobRocked in choice of notes and phrasing.

Of course, the other half of the dynamic (guitar) duo is just as successful in providing a solid rhythm section that not only works with Robert's bass and Lars' kick/snare tactics, but compliments the two as well. James is a very good rhythm player- always has been. He is up on the times of song writing, and one of my few gripes is that his current sound has an almost "country twang" when he is string picking (a bad habit picked up during the Load/ReLoad era). Perhaps I am just clinging to the days of Gibson Explorers or their ESP rip-offs. My other miniscule point of contention also lies with James' vocals- I was so hoping he had gotten rid of the voice-cracking, but it still shows up here and there.

With Lars, you have evolution of style: Even though discs like St. Anger and previous discs left Metallifans in limbo, it took all those records to validate where he is today with his technique. You can hear traces of Battery-type ferocity, groove-oriented stuff that was lightly experimented with (but not fully utilized until now), and the culmination of all those previous discs resulted in a nice blend that is fresh and up to date.

The very best thing about Death Magnetic? RETURN OF THE INSTRUMENTAL... "Suicide and Redemption" carries on the fine tradition of "The Call of Ktulu," "Orion," and "To Live is to Die." This new epic song would put make pappa metal bassist Steve Harris proud. Speaking of Maiden, there are a few dual harmonies peppered throughout the songs and even a nod to "Am I Evil?"'s high-E string scale introduction. The other major highlight is the ending song, "My Apocolypse" which could have been the logical successor to "Dyer's Eve" and "Damage, Inc.". Death Magnetic ends on a most glorious note.

So, I've given my two cents worth. I won't bother going track by track, but I'm sure there is something that will speak to you just as "Suicide and Redemption" and "My Apocolypse" has spoken to me.

is a birthday a reminder of your death day?

2008-09-15T17:44:00.000-07:00

I celebrated my 33rd birthday this weekend. I was taken out to eat yesterday by my dad and 3 members of my family, all much older than myself. At one point during dinner, this thought came to me: someday, these people will not be here anymore. They won't be in my life, they won't be interacting with me. My dad is nearing 70, as is his girlfriend. My uncle is close to 90. My aunt/godmother is in her early 80's. These people are my loved ones. Sadness came over me. I feared what my life would be like without these people, and quite frankly don't even know what the future will be. I love these people.

Life goes by so fast. Enjoy it to the max.

My single most important contribution to the world...

2008-09-14T13:45:00.000-07:00

Internet Meme:

[edit] References to pop culture
Often internet memes will include references to current items of pop culture, such as popular movies, celebrities or news. An example of this is the "Spartan" meme, quoting (or 'referencing') popular lines from the movie 300, especially in places where they don't make sense. The most common lines quoted are "This is madness!" and "This is Sparta!", sometimes, but not always, accompanied by images, most commonly depicting one figure kicking another into a large black pit. In 2008, there was even a Facebook group set up to encourage students to insert "This is Sparta" into their Advanced Placement tests.[5]
Another example of a pop culture reference meme is the random insertion of the name "Leeroy Jenkins", following the staged events that occurred in World of Warcraft during a routine raid gone horribly wrong after the actions of Jenkins. (as Per Wikipedia.org)

Intarwebs:

(sometimes intarweb(s)) is an ironic term used to indicate inexperience by intentionally and incorrectly merging the terms 'Internet' and 'World Wide Web'. The joke is that many inexperienced users access content on the World Wide Web (or "Web") via the "Internet" without knowing what either is.[1]
The term interweb originated as the hacker culture response to the ever-increasing influx of inexperienced users to the Internet's forums and chat rooms. Whereas the Internet had previously been the exclusive domain of the tech-savvy, it was now attracting millions of newcomers (newbies) who were now participating in it (often with poor netiquette). Referring to the Internet as the interweb mocks the inexperience and ignorance of these newcomers, whose lack of understanding of the workings of the 'net' would often amuse or annoy the more experienced.

LOLspeak:

A lolcat is an image combining a photograph, most frequently a cat, with a humorous and idiosyncratic caption in (often) broken English—a dialect which is known as "lolspeak", or "Kitteh!". The name "lolcat" is a compound word of "LOL" and "cat".[1] Another name is cat macro, being a type of image macro.[2] Lolcats are created for photo sharing imageboards and other internet forums. Lolcats are similar to other anthropomorphic animal-based image macros such as the O RLY? owl.[3]
The term lolcat gained national media attention in the United States when it was covered by Time,[4] which wrote that non-commercialized phenomena of the sort are increasingly rare, stating that lolcats have "a distinctly old-school, early 1990s, Usenet feel to [them]." The superimposed text is usually assumed to be uttered by the cat in the photograph. There are parallels between the language used in lolcats and baby talk, which some owners of cats often use when talking to them.

ICANHASCHEEZBURGER.COM

I Can Has Cheezburger? (ICHC for short) is the name of a blog featuring lolcats and other animals created by Eric Nakagawa (Cheezburger), a blogger from Hawaii and his partner, Kari Unebasami (Tofuburger). The website is one of the most popular lolcat sites on the internet,[2] receiving as many as 1,500,000 hits per day.[3] [4] ICHC was instrumental in bringing animal based image macros and lolspeak into mainstream usage.[5]

THUS, I GIVE YOU MY SINGLE GREATEST CONTRIBUTION....

MAYMES (code name: Sebastian. Origin: Basement Cat Corps.)

Why So Serious (about the Dark Knight Returns)?

2008-09-12T14:54:00.000-07:00

Lately, I’ve kind of come to the conclusion that I am a very “against the grain” type of guy……it is my personality, my beliefs, just my whole way of living. If something is deemed great by the general populace, I dislike it. Conversely, if there is a worldly-disliked thing out there, I absolutely love it.

Much about the same way I feel regarding Frank Miller’s “The Dark Night Returns”….

Since the Dark Knight movie this summer, I have been reading and re-reading the entire collection of trade paperbacks I have on Batman, and I specifically began with DKR. Now, I’m not a professional artist nor a comic book writer, and I realize my opinion isn’t worth much in the grand scheme of things, but I still have the right to voice it, which I am, and my opinion is this: DKR is not the monumental, all encompassing, premiere BM story that people make it out to be.

From what I’ve found via the net and general shop talk at the comics stores, people cite their reasons for loving the DKR as such: it was the first time Bats had been portrayed in a truly dark manner, as was his entire world. It was gritty. It was mildly obscene. And as a result, Frank Miller became a yardstick by which most comic writers today are measured.

Frank Miller is not a god. He’s a decent writer, better than most with the intricate crafting of story, dialogue, and art. But I also contend that DKR was bound to be written regardless of who’s name was in the author slot.

DKR was written in 1986. In that year, things were changing. Life was changing. AIDS became a national scare. The idea of war with Russia ghosted most of Reagan’s presidency. The sixties ideals of peace and love were all but completely obliterated by the amount of cocaine rich folks and street thugs alike had. Turmoil and Chaos was being exposed on a grand scale. The sunshine selfish 70’s were dead. The innocence we thought we had never existed. The harsh cold reality of life moved out of the shadows into the light. And so did Batman.

Bats was, according to creator Bob Kane, a dark anomaly to begin with. He was not the all American poster boy like Clark Kent. Didn’t have a wacky sense of humor like the flash. Wasn’t a green knight in shining armor like Hal Jordan. Bruce Wayne was tainted. Dark. Mysterious. Arrived at conclusions utilizing questionable methods. In 1986, these qualities were beginning to emerge in life, being brought to the forefront. Superman would die a few years later. Hal Jordan would be driven insane by the destruction of his home town, causing further destruction. Therefore, I conclude that a darker Batman than previously seen was bound to emerge in the same fashion that the world was evolving: into the shadow.

And just what of Frank Miller’s interpretation? Plainly speaking, we have a fat bat. As a matter of fact, everyone seemed to put on weight. The constant foreplay between TV newscast frames and actual action sequence was too disruptive to the flow of the story. I enjoy Miller’s “Year One” story and subsequent art, as well as his efforts on DKR, but I hardly think this is the Batman story bar none.

Anyone remember that little ditty called “Knightfall?” How about the Loeb/Sale collaborations of “Haunted Knight,” “Dark Victory,” and “The Long Halloween (which is my personal favorite of all time”.

Imagine what DKR would have been like with Loeb/Sale. Now *THAT’S* truly groundbreaking in thought.

Snakes Shedding Skin

2008-09-03T09:18:00.000-07:00

So, I woke up Sunday morning, and I had this strong feeling that I was due to meet somebody that day. I had actually known for a week or so that someone was going to come into my life rather rapidly, and the visit would be a sort of blessing. I was not entirely sure what context this supposed meeting would be happening in (i.e. romantic or spiritual or whatever) but, I basically said "Let's see what happens and take it from there."

There is a certain store I visit every weekend (and have been for the last 3 or so years) where I have come to know the owners well, even on a friendship basis. I received a message Sunday morning that I should show up between 1:30 and 2:30 as there might be some "potential magick" in the air. I showed up around 2:10, and apparently, I had missed a meeting with a particular individual that the store owner wanted to set up. BOO.

After speaking with the store owner upstairs, I was approached by this most mysterious woman; she had an air of illuminous spirit around her, and she asked me about the significance of the shirt I was wearing, which had a rather large rattlesnake on it. At first, I wasn't sure I even understood the questions because I was still mentally reeling off someone just approaching me directly (in a good way, mind you), and after making a total fool of myself with my flubbing answers about Snake, the woman actually followed me out to my vehicle to ask me some more questions. She stated that she had this sudden rush of "snakes shedding skin" and asked me if I was doing so when I had my private conversation with the store owner. Sounding like a total dummy, I replied "If it is happening, I'm totally unaware of it." She thanked me for my time and returned to the store. Likewise, I left to head back home, but the whole experience was just way too coincidental to ignore or pass off as some meaningless experience. So I swallowed my gut, called the store, and asked to speak to the mysterious woman who just spoke with me.

We had a short conversation on the phone. I'm guessing she was as taken aback by my direct phone call as I was at my own actions, and I managed to get her email. I wrote her Monday night, and she replied yesterday, to which I asked if I may blog about the experience. The following conversation took place:

(From myself to the mysterious woman)

"I don't normally call up people on my cell phone that happen to be shopping at the Store... a bit of an odd situation for me as well. But, with your curiosity, and all the happenings of certain reptiles, the circumstances just were too coincidental to be "accident"...

So you had your dream about a snake, I was wearing Rattlesnake on my shirt, and I found the shedding of snakeskin today while working in the yard. I'm beginning to see a pattern here... To be quite honest, I didn't know what to immediately make of your questions when you first approached me. To my knowledge, I had not been shedding any layers lately, but perhaps on the spiritual plane, I have. The most current theme running in my life lately has been "throw the known rulebook out, and begin anew" which is the constant night and day, light and dark, shed and grow, death and rebirth, everything just reeking of balance.

If you don't mind, I would like to blog about your dream (of course, all names will be omitted). Could you tell me again about it?"

This was her response to me:

Greetings ,
Nice to hear from you. Your addressing me was absolutely charming~thank you!

I must share with you; snake revealed himself during a profound healing session I had given on Sunday evening. Within the guidance I received thru dream and chasing you like a curious mongoose with your shirt being the BIGGEST snake message(!), I do believe it was in preparation for the awareness I needed within this deep healing session. I believe snake wanted to prepare me for such intensity as the healer and to be aligned with snakes medicine. A very intense and deep healing occurred for the client, for which I am humbled and grateful.

So, I must thank you for honoring your choice of t-shirt to wear for it was certainly meant to deliver its message thru you to me. I love when that happens. I am blessed when it is understood by another.
Though, may I add, it seems as snake is working within you as well. Having been gifted the skin is quite an honor and I don't believe in coincidences. "Begin anew" sounds like a profound message for you. Hmm.....

It is so apparent that we were meant to be present there on Sunday. There are no coincidences..........

The dream: a dear loved one of mine picked up snake and bit its head off.......
That was it. In the realm of my life with this loved one, it makes all the sense. Along with giving me fair warning of snakes presence yet to be. You can use this in your blog if you find it fitting.

Well, I to hope to see you as well again at the Store. If at any time you feel led to reach out and communicate again vie e-mail I would certainly honor that. We are all on the same journey, just on different paths. It is enlightening and blessed when these paths cross. Thank you for honoring this process with me.

Blessings of Light and Love to you"

Now, I generally have this habit of reading too much into things, so I'm not even gonna think about this one. Not because it's not important to me (quite the contrary, I find this very profound) but because I was to respect the experience and see how it plays out. If there is a meaning, hopefully it will be revealed to me in perfect love and perfect trust, but I will let this revelation find me.

Shadows and Light

2008-08-27T07:49:00.000-07:00

For some reason, I had this incredible urge to pull out a couple Joni Mitchell cd's Sunday night to listen to in the car this week. My favorite disc from her is The Hissing of Summer Lawns from 1975, and the very last song seems to strike such a cord with me lately...this is it:

Every picture has its shadows
And it has some source of light
Blindness, blindness and sight
The perils of benefactors
The blessings of parasites
Blindness, blindness and sight
Threatened by all things
Devil of cruelty
Drawn to all things
Devil of delight
Mythical devil of the ever-present laws
Governing blindness, blindness and sight
Suntans in reservation dining rooms
Pale miners in their lantern rays
Night, night and day
Hostage smile on presidents
Freedom scribbled in the subway
Its like night, night and day
Threatened by all things
God of cruelty
Drawn to all things
God of delight
Mythical God of the everlasting laws
Governing day, day and night
Critics of all expression
Judges in black and white
Saying its wrong, saying its right
Compelled by prescribed standards
Or some ideals we fight
For wrong, wrong and right
Threatened by all things
Man of cruelty-mark of cain
Drawn to all things
Man of delight-born again, born again
Man of the laws, the ever-broken laws
Governing wrong, wrong and right
Governing wrong, wrong and right
Wrong and right

When PC's don't work.....

2008-08-27T07:14:00.000-07:00

Absolutely loving PC's right now...two nights ago, I came home from work to find that my current eMachines tower wouldn't turn on. I mean, as in, you press the on/off switch, and nothing happens. So, after a 5 minute freak out, I hauled ass to Best Buy to have the Geek Squad take a peek at it, and they thought it was the Power Supply. So I bought a new one for $80. I got home, installed it, and......still nothing.
I brought the tower into work with me yesterday because there is another Best Buy 5 minutes from work. I was planning on heading there *after* work, but I decided to call them anyway to see if they even did this type of repair. The dude I spoke with said "no", but he did give me a tip: he instructed me to take a piece of wire, and run it across the two prongs on the motherboard that the on/off switch is attached to. Basically, this is what the switch does anyway. So I did. And, nothing. So, I'm guessing that whatever the problem is, it has to do with the motherboard. The diodes and prongs on the board must be fused. And frankly, I'm not currently in a position to just hop over and purchase a new PC.
So, what do we do here? We work with what we got.
After speaking with some friends and the IT department at work, they presented me with a few options. The one that I tried out (quite blindly with hopeful feelings on my part) was to take the entire damn hard drive out of the broken tower and switch it out with the hard drive in my older tower (which is also an eMachines). On a wing and a prayer, it worked. So I now have a current pc that works, and all my personal info is intact. I'm able to access all my personal stuff and important stuff, like yakking with SecretCode on Windows Live Messenger or looking at the latest pron. :)
Eventually, yes, I will need to get another tower. The one I'm using right now is very old, and I have officially dubbed it "That guy's Frankenstein PC" I've contacted an old mate who is pretty much the only person in the world I trust with PC advice since it is this person's main job. I'm wondering about a few options that I can or cannot do with Frankenstein.

Oh, and btw, for any of you who actually own an eMachine, don't bother with their tech support. First off, you have to pay for it. No 800 number. Secondly, after you've spent 10 minutes waiting and another 5 talking to a live body, you land right where you began: nowhere.

Tractor Love, Part 2: Mom's trip to Glover, VT

2008-08-25T07:15:00.000-07:00

Hey Hey Hey

Moms recently went to Glover, VT to visit her cousins and what not. She came back with these pictures for her FAVORITE son. Which, like, is me and stuff. Cuz I love tractors. You do, too, you just don't realize it yet. You WILL love mah tractors. Basement Cat says so. Ok, enough- here are the pics:

Things I Hate

2008-08-23T18:02:00.000-07:00

- Single Player Legendary (Any Halo Game)
- Capcom is just now making Street Fighter IV
- Joshua Radin
- Flimsy Plastic
- HD-Induced Headaches
- Walnuts
- Anti-Toast Legislation
- Bears (The Number 1 Threat To America)
- Morse Code
- All Namco Fighting Games Final Bosses. So cheap...
- Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer DVD
- College Algebra
- Care Bears
- Older Brothers
- Bratz- They are pretty much teaching little girls to be self-absorbed whores.
- The Sun
- Storms
- Jack Thompson
- Money Problems
- Losing at Monopoly, and then flipping the board over.
- Repetitive Comments
- Anti-Toast Legistration
- Adult Swim's New Broadcasting Schedules
- Repetitive Comments
- My new diet.
- The unknown date of Scrubs' return
- Repetitive Comments
- Hilary Duff, Ashley Simpson, and Lindsey Lohan's Combined Form.
- Hilary Duff, Ashley Simpson, and Lindsey Lohan Seperatly
- The fact that I am not featured on a commemrative coin... yet
- Textspeak... Srsly WTH s goin' n hre :?
- My empty e-mail box. SEND ME E-MAIL, PEOPLES!
- Repetitive Comments
- The inflated price of AXE, A couple of months it was $2... now? freakin' $4.25... AT THE DOLLAR STORE!
- Hilary Duff
- Paris Hilton Media Frenzies
- Transformers: The Movie fight scenes. Who's punching who?
- College Textbook prices and weights
- How many twist ties are on Transformers toys. Seriously. 12 just for Blackout. I had to use a friggin' pair of plyers! It took 15 minutes!
- iPhones (still)
- The weight of the original XBOX
- Sequelitis.
- Cheap headphones that break after 2 days of use.
- Windows Vista compatability issues. I bought a digital camera one week for an undisclosed price, it was made about 2 years ago, and was compatible with XP and said service packs, and wouldn't you know it? Incompatible. Walmart took it back luckily.
- Fisher-Price Recalls (Curse you China)
- Stepping on a thumbtack.
- mudpuddles
- Toilets that just won't flush.
- James Blunt
- Repetitive Comments
- Internet Censorship www.savetheinternet.com
- High School Musical
- Uwe Boll
- Wii Sports arm cramps.
- Laptop Touchpads
- Wal-Mart Price Gouges
- Anti-Toast Legislation
- Mountain Dew Game Fuel- Who put cherry cough syrup in my SunKist?
- The Fact there is no Music Video for Avenged Sevenfold's Strength of the World
- 99 Luft Balloons (English Version)
- That I've been playing Elder Scrolls III for 18 Hours and I've haven't touched the main quest.
- Remakes of Classic Songs (Usually)
- That I can't find my copy of Harry Potter 1 or 5 anywhere.
- The learning curve of Forza Motorsport
- Cheaters of Mario Kary DS wifi (Yes, still)
- The lack of Transformers Universe merch at my WalMart (Must... Transform.. and Rollout!
- That we don't need no education.
- We don't need no thought control
- That there is little or no Hogwarts in Harry Potter 7
- The price of Adobe Photoshop
- Playstation 3 having a snowball's chance in hell
- People jumping on bandwagons
- World of Warcraft. There. I said it.
- Anti-Toast Legislation- The stupidity of most Invader ZIM fans, mainly those who just discovered it.
- The death of Flash IV- Bart Allen. He was Flash for like what? 7 Issues?

A Treatise on the Moral and Ethical Views of the Shark

2008-08-22T15:15:00.000-07:00

A TREATISE ON THE ETHICAL AND MORAL VIEW OF SHARKS

Hello All,
For some strange reason, I have really been thinking a lot about polarities in human view on certain subjects; good and evil, light and dark, black and white, etc. and Shark (not “the” shark, but Shark as my primary animal totem) has been talking to me quite a lot this week, so I wanted to take this time to express a few philosophical views I have on the shark as an animal, as a view point, as a good/evil biological organism, and its intrinsic value.

I once heard that a study took place where participants were all seated in a room with wires attached to them to examine and record the excitement level that certain words elicit in the human psyche. Various words were said- bear, car, house, fire, and tons of others. The word that created the most profound excitement for a human was “shark”.
Can we wonder why this is? It is a primal fear that most people see in the shark. The shark glides unheard and unseen in the depths of the ocean, which is still a territory that we have yet to fully explore or exploit. You never know when one might be around. The fear of the unknown is often the precursor to the demonization that we place on certain objects, people, ideas, and things. What we cannot grasp or understand we fear and that fear drives us to cite the aforementioned list as “bad” or “evil”. I’m not even going to go into the realm of what Hollywood has done to the shark, but rest assured, I am certain that it has perpetuated and exploited this fear of the shark to such a level that the animal in itself is facing extinction. And we can thank human ignorance for that.

Bears attack people all the time. So do many other wild animals. Yet, we glamorize the bear as “cute” and “cuddly”. Have you ever wondered why that is? We give our loved ones stuffed teddy bears as symbols of love and affection on Valentine’s Day. We don’t give them plush sharks (unless, of course, you are me, who does have many plush sharks). I’m willing to bet that, over our current linear history, more people have been attacked and killed by bears than by sharks. Yet, we don’t exploit these events as much as we do with sharks by contrast. I mean, sure, you might see something on the local news or in the local paper, but it’s usually done and forgotten as a premier event. But put that attacked person in the water and have them attacked by a shark, you get instant world wide coverage on the event, complete with ignorant commentary that further demonizes the creature.

Have you ever thought of why it is so easier to demonize the shark rather than the bear? Maybe it has something to do with our perception of where we are on the food chain or our ability to put ourselves on a higher and grander level of existence than an animal which does not have the ability to reason or is a fully self-realized species. Maybe it also has to do with where these animals live in different habitats. Humans think they “own” land- they have commercialized it, they continually destroy and pollute it, they claim it as possession, yet humans have no possession over land except in a legal system that has been morally corrupted. Therefore, if we own land, we own all objects and things on the land, and the bear is owned by us, and can be instantly dealt with, providing immediate solution and satisfaction. However, we do not own the ocean. With the exception of pollution and destruction, the ocean can not be so easily captured or thought of as “possession”, therefore, neither can the animals. Since we cannot own the animals, or place our thought/physical control over them, we fear them because we do not understand why. And what we don’t understand we want to destroy to drive out the fear of not being able to maintain control. Such has been the shark’s fate.

Have you ever wondered what a world without Shark would be like? It would be sick and full of disease on a most epic level. Sharks are maintainers of the delicate balance in the ocean life. They perpetuate species control, they eliminate the sick and diseased animals in the ocean, and on a spiritual level, they are protector of the sacred waters. This is something we need to think about as our own species if we are to continue our own survival on Gaia.

We as a species think we have “rights” to do whatever we wish, but that is not so. We have no rights to claim ocean as possession or anything in it. We have no right to intrude upon the ocean and claim ignorance when the uncertainty of the sharks and ocean life in general precipitate events that are not to our liking. Most importantly, we have no rights to demand extermination or supremacy over another species, no matter how vile it may appear to our eyes. Imagine, if you will, how our views of “beauty” and “ugliness” would change if the human being was in fact born of the shark- no hair, sharp teeth, tough skin, and all the qualities that we deem undesirable- and then imagine coming upon a being that looks like what we are now- you might think it ugly or gross. That is human perception.

As a spiritually motivated person, I accept the shark as a kindred spirit; I see the beauty in it, I see the intrinsic value that it holds, and I do not wish to own it but rather work with it. I accept Shark as an equal both on the spiritual and the physical planes of existence. I respect Shark and all the mighty powers it holds. I accept that I cannot fully understand Shark, or its behavior, or rational explanation of its actions. I do not wish to destroy it due to my own ignorance. But I will defend it with Horus as my warrior guide helping me. To my brothers and sisters on this website, I simply ask that you take some time to think about my words.

Spider-Man: The Other- Evolve or Die. An exploration into the spiritual human from a comic

2008-08-21T09:29:00.000-07:00

Spider-Man: The Other- Evolve or Die

An exploration into the spiritual human from a comic.

Personal Book of Shadows Entry from 7/18/2007

"I continue to recollect images and scenarios of my dreams. Last night was full of oddities, beginning with the appearance of fictional characters called the Transformers. The good guys known as the heroic Autobots were driving up and down Creek Street in Wrentham (a place I used to live at) as I was walking towards a house on Lake Archer. There was a sort of commercialism running down the street. All the houses had quaint storefronts on the street level, while people lived in the upper levels. At one particular house, I entered and learned it was owned by a deceased cousin, Peter. As in life, he was miserable and complaining in the dream- He seemed to have a major issue with me having my cat, Sebastian, in his house. He let the cat go free and the cat ran down the side of the street, transforming into a mouse and he ran into a crate of Spider-Man comics. As I went sifting through the crate, I paused to look at the cover of one particular comic, which I believe was titled "The Other."

Later, I was elsewhere sitting in a little wooden fort with a small girl and we were waiting to watch a screening of the Transformers movie that recently came out in theatres. On the reality plane, I took today off from work and spent the day relaxing and cleaning the house both materialistically and spiritually."

Personal Book of Shadows Entry from 8/5/2007

"A couple of things I want to say in this entry- first, I had a dream last night that I was working directly for the real life Vice President of my company (referring to him as "Jay"). In some odd way, I think I was a woman, but I'm not 100% sure. We were closing up shop for the night, and I think he was waiting for his son who was dropping off a car or something. Jay ended up giving me a ride, but no particular destination- we were driving around this huge city that was just a concrete jungle. I remember telling Jay how much I hated the city and preferred the country. Suddenly, he pulled off this mile high bridge. Funny thing was- I wasn't scared at all. I knew that hitting the water would be easy, which it was. Jay and I swam to the shore in a gingerly manner; we were on a serene lake surrounded by big oaks and pines. Upon reaching the shore, there was this young boy who was having fits of rage and anger. Jay told me this was his youngest son, whom I think was devastated by divorce of his parents. Jay explained he was on good terms with his ex-wife who had mental problems of her own. He was very saddened at everything that was happening but there was nothing he could do. Somehow, we both ended up at my grandmother Landry's house, where I think Jay lived.

Second thing of significance was that I decided to revisit certain ideas in the waking world that I had in the dream world on July 18th. The comic book that appeared in the dream: Spider-Man: The Other. This was the comic that Sebastian (my cat) had ultimately led me to. I bought the comic and basically read it all in a 24 hour period. Funny thing is that the character of Peter Parker/Spider-Man never really appealed to me as a comic book fan, but I put my ego's vanity aside and read the whole thing. The story revolves around Peter Parker's ultimate physical death and his rebirth in a spider's cocoon. It was about metamorphosis and second chances. It was also about life and death and rebirth- this has been coupled with the recent appearances of Snake (I saw him another time on Friday night; he crossed my feet as I was walking from the driveway to the front door) and the continuing appearance of Moth just reinforces the concept of change. Death and Rebirth. Specifically regarding Moth, he has been visiting me quite a lot lately; the most beautiful and largest moth I have ever seen has been hanging around the house lately, visiting me mostly at night.

My gut reaction to all this change is mostly fear, but logically I realize this is needed and my thoughts welcome the change. After all, is this not what I have always wanted? To be a better person, to be a fully realized person? Or is there something more? I think about the ego and how I need to let it go. I think about the idea of control and how "once you feel control, you have already lost it." I think I also fear the idea of knowing too much, because once I feel I have mastered whatever it is I am seeking, will that be the ultimate end? Will there be nothing more?

I also think of the ideas and concepts that have always seemed to eluded me like relationships, being in love, having that special someone in my life like Meaghan has. I don't want to run away from my issues. I want to heal them. I ask my guardian angels to help assist me in being in balance and realizing all that does not serve, for the highest good, harming none."

Spider-Man: The Other- Evolve or Die, Part 2.

Various notes from key shamanic practitioners and metaphysical teachers on the uniqueness of the spider.

Spider

If SPIDER shows up, it means:
This is an opportunity to access your deepest wisdom and assimilate it so that it becomes a part of your daily living.
Beware of any potential traps or ruses that you're tempted to get involved in.
Rather than staying stuck in this apparent impasse, open your mind to the infinite number of possibilities that are before you, and make a choice.
Don't limit yourself to the mundane world, but instead be willing to explore other dimensions and realities.
It's time to write creatively without limits of tradition or habit, allowing yourself to be inspired by Nature.

Farmer, Steven D., Ph.D. Animal Spirit Guides. California, Hay House Inc., 2006. Page 359.

Spider

KEYNOTE: Creativity and the Weaving of Fate(Various ideas from main Spider Information)…

Spiders have a two section body instead of three, often giving them a figure eight kind of appearance. This in conjunction with its eight legs links it to all the mysticism associated with the geometric form of the figure eight. On its side, this is the symbol of infinity. It is the wheel of life, flowing from one circle to the next. The difficulty is learning to walk those circles or even hold your position within the middle between the two.

Spider teaches you to maintain a balance- between past and future, physical and spiritual, male and female. Spider teaches you that everything you now do is weaving what you will encounter in the future.The spider awakens creative sensibilities. It weaves a web of intricate and subtle fabric, as if to remind us that the past always subtly influences the present and future. The spider found within the web reminds us that we are the center of our own world. We are the keepers and the writers of our own destiny, weaving it like a web by our thoughts, feelings, and actions.…(it) has come to be associated by mystics and in mythology with three predominant expressions of magic. The first is the magic and energy of creation…it is also associated with assertiveness of that creative force, of keeping the feminine energies of creation alive and strong. The third predominant magic of the spider is associated with its spiral energy, the links with the past and future.…The spider has long been associated with death and rebirth…this pattern is a reminder to maintain balance and polarity in all aspects of life. Spider teaches that through polarity and balance creativity is stimulated.

Spiders are a combination of gentleness and strength, and they have learned to combine both for successful survival. This is an important lesson for those with this totem. As delicate as they are, spiders are also very agile. They can maintain balance and walk the tiny silken threads with ease. To walk the threads of life and maintain balance has been one of the mysteries throughout the ages. Myth and lore often speak of individuals who have learned to walk the threads between life and death- waking and sleeping- between the physical and the spiritual. This is part of what spider medicine can teach, for spiders are the experts at walking threads.

Andrews, Ted. Animal Speak: The Spiritual & Magical Powers of Creatures Great and Small. Minnesota: Llewellyn Publications, 1993. pp. 344-347.

Orb-weaving Spider

KEYNOTE: creative designs and successful engineering feats

…orb weavers teach us how to carefully and creatively weave and engineer what we need in order to capture what we wish. This can be a job, a dream, or even the solution to a problem. They teach us how to bridge past difficulties. Orb-weavers remind us to use the web to capture what we need, but it also reminds us not to hang on to that which we do not need.Are we building the bridges and foundations necessary to capture or attain what we seek?Are we hanging on to that which we no longer need or which no longer benefits us?

Andrews, Ted. Animal-Wise: The Spirit Language and Signs of Nature. Tennessee: Dragonhawk Publishing, 1999. pg. 281.

The Other: Evolve or Die, Part 3

In a recent interview with Comic Scribe J. Michael Straczynski, he commented on the individual stories that were born out of his 6 year run on Amazing Spider-Man. In particular reference to The Other arc, he notated that he wanted to explore the symbolism of the spider not just as a visual representation on a character, but on a more spiritual plane of exactly what Spider represents.

In the collected arc, many different ideas were explored which were rooted in shamanic understanding of the Spider Totem- birth, death, rebirth, and creativity. Bound by a personal urge to explore these connections, I decided to write a bit of a thesis on what I saw in the story.

Chi: Energy of the Universe

In the opening stages of the arc, Peter Parker is implored by fellow hero Steve Rodgers (Captain America) to relax and think instead of going on constant instinct. Steve mentions the use of "Chi" which is the Chinese word for Universal Energy that permeates all things. A strong component of Chi, Steve said, was visualization. "Take a deep breath. Focus your energy…your chi… Reach into yourself. Envision yourself accomplishing that which you thought you couldn't." Not only is the idea of visualization a component of the Chi exercises Steve was teaching Peter, but it is also a strong component of Meditation, specifically the act of creativity in using the method of visualization to achieve that which one thinks he/she cannot achieve. Meditation, which is in the stage of becoming mainstream medical practice in North America, is something Shamans and the earliest forms of civilization practiced with regularity. Basically, meditation is the focus of energy and awareness into one thing. Asian cultures knew this as well, combining movement of the body with breath and visualization. All inclusive, this is also a primary mode of healing, which Peter will find out later in the story.

Man on the Edge: When you have nothing left to lose

When Peter found Tracer in the Avengers kitchen with his Aunt May, he went spastic to protect perhaps the most important person in his life, aside from his wife. In this specific episode, he began to take it too far. The anger, the rage, the guilt of having knowledge that he was dying gave him the freedom to do whatever he felt was just- and in this case, that meant beating Tracer dead. This is often the affliction of man, when we have the knowledge that we only have a short time to live and nothing left to lose. Rationality and self-control often disappears, and is replaced with raw emotion. Peter simply didn't care about laws or justice or the appropriate actions to take. As Tracer noted, the animal emerged in Peter- the venomous spider, who does not abide by the laws of man, but simply by the nature of the beast.

Exhausting all Possibilities: Searching for a cure

When Peter's family and friends find out of his condition, they immediately come to his aid. First, the scientific is explored- the most noted scientific minds on the planet converge to help Peter find an answer as to why he is dying. All that is found is cellular degeneration. No disease, just action within the body. There is no explanation. When no concrete answer is found, Peter attempts to search for meaning into his condition by going to religion and spirituality.First up is T'Challa, fellow Avenger known as the Black Panther. In many ways, T'Challa acts as the human Shaman in this story- the spirit healer to Peter's death. The very act of Peter exploring a more spiritual approach to a medical condition is also another sign of the times in our world- more and more, we are moving towards and recognizing the importance of spirituality in our day to day life. In regards to physical disease, the Shaman explores the spirit as well as the physical. "In mainstream Western medicine, health is generally regarded as one's functional condition. Therefore, healing is the remedy for a poor or nonfunctional condition…In Shamanic societies, a healing is far more than merely restoring physical and mental functioning. A healing involves both shaman and the individual in need. It often includes members of the family or community in a dynamic process of physical, mental, and spiritual cleansing, release, and reintegration. It is understood that health cannot be obtained unless the full being of the person in need is in balance." T'Challa brings Peter to the Temple of Anansi, home of the spider god. He also has Peter eat special herbs, a food that can only be ingested by one worthy of being a King. Peter ingests them successfully, but even the Shamanic practice does not visibly seem to give any more explanation to Peter's condition than the scientific remedies did. Even though no concrete answer was provided, Peter still enacted on of the basic spiritual principles of the Spider Totem: Don't limit yourself to the mundane world, but instead be willing to explore other dimensions and realities. Peter explored that other reality in Wakanda.

Evolution: The Man and the Spider

As a result of battle with energy-vampire Morlun, Peter lay comatose/near death in a hospital room until Morlun returned to finish the energy feeding. However, when Peter's web (read: life environment, complete with Mary Jane) was threatened, the animal emerged. Stripped of all human tendencies, the spider was cornered, and moved to the offensive. The animal took over and devoured its prey in the very same way a spider catches its prey in the web it weaves. What truly spoke in this event was not the capture and feeding of Morlun, but the *lack* of predation towards Mary Jane. As Ted Andrews stated, "Spiders are a combination of gentleness and strength, and they have learned to combine both for successful survival." Perhaps this explains the strength to devour Morlun, and the gentleness to protect and not harm Mary Jane. Once this final battle was over, Peter died and the true Shamanic Journey began.

Facing Down the Shadow: Birth, Death, and Rebirth

The Spider finally began to emerge in total animalistic form at the very end of Peter's life (or so it would seem). Peter's death signified the birth and conjunction of the true animal totem, and started him on his Shadow Journey, which in its seemingly separateness was truly the beginning of his wholeness of being. When Spider showed up, it was Peter's (forced) opportunity to access his deepest wisdom and assimilate it so that it became part of his daily living. As Peter went through his metamorphosis into a fully realized whole individual, Spider Totem acted as his Shaman. Spider forced Peter to face his fears and the darker aspects of himself. Spider was friends of the dark. "The Shadow consists of all the parts of you that you'd rather not face. The Shadow is not evil. The shadow is all the anger fear, jealousy, shame, and guilt that we have not processed." (Penczak, pgs 66-67). As Spider Shaman told Peter of how he took those parts he could not face or accept and moved them to the outside for safety, he basically defines how "We see other people's blind spots, their unconscious zones quite easily, but our own blind spots are invisible to us."

As hard as the journey seemed, the Spider Shaman was truly integrating Peter with his shadow in order to bring about the gift of wholeness. As much as Peter (and society) would deny the darker aspects of themselves, it is the acceptance of them that makes the being unique and whole. Peter needed to embrace the Spider and let it devour him in order to emerge whole, and he justly did. In her book Loving-Kindness, Sharon Salzberg wrote of a man "who was so displeased by the sight of his own shadow that…the method he hit upon was to run away…but his shadow kept up with them (footsteps) without the slightest difficulty, so he ran faster and faster until he finally dropped dead. He failed to realize that if he merely stepped into the shade, his shadow would vanish…" And so, Peter embraced his shadow as it seemingly destroyed him in an effort to emerge anew.

As a result of the embrace, Peter developed new pathways into understanding his shadow- and new abilities to fight crime. The physical aspects were a heightened sense of vision and surrounding, and the stingers emerging from his arms. So, the question remains: What was born? The man who dreamed he was a spider, or the spider who dreamed he was a man?

Yes.

Selected Bibliography

Myss, Caroline. Scared Contracts: Awakening your Divine Potential. New York, Three Rivers Press, 2002. Pp 124-125.

Penczak, Christopher. The Temple of Shamanic Witchcraft. Minnesota, Llewellyn Publications, 2005. pp 66-68.

Salzberg, Sharon. Loving-Kindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness. Massachusetts, Shambhala Publications, 1995. p 90.

Straczynski, J. Michael, etc al. Spider-Man: The Other- Evolve or Die. New York, Marvel Entertainment, 2007.

Had Enough of Console Wars? Pt. 1- Sony

2008-08-21T09:11:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the club. After reading an article about a price drop of a console, I made the terrible mistake of going to the forbidden area of Video Game news sites. The comment section. With such insightful comments such as "200 FOR A 360 WITHOUT A HARD DRIVE IS PRETTY GOOD..GAMESTOP SELLS HARD DRIVES USED FOR $60..ILL BE PICKING 1 UP WHEN THEY GO ON SALE......U CANT BEAT $260" and "lol that RROD 3s***ybox could be $50 and i wouldnt buy that s***....hehehe and what so funny to me i M$ THOUGHT THEY WON SOMETHING AT E3 CUS OF FF13 lol AND NOW IT SEAMS THEIR GETTING IT AFTER THE PS3 VERSION LOL ...hmm a year later im sure..what a joke....its funny how ppl jump ship when they saw $499 & $599 for a ps3....oh well i got my ps3 60gig and one thing for sure it wont RROD ON ME!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" and "THEY BETTER DROP PRICE ARE ELSE "
"But secret!" You say, "Those comments aren't insightful at all!" Really? Welcome to the world of idiotic gaming fanboys. I'm going to take this one console at a time, and look into the minds of each of the respective system trolls.
The Playstation 3 Fanboy
(Scientific Name: Potentialus Maximus)

First I'll start on a positive note. The Ps3's got the next-gen media format, BluRay. It's already beaten out HDDVD, but whether it'll beat out DVD upscalers for surpremcy remains to be seen. It's got a more diverse selection of upcoming exclusives as well with LittleBigPlanet, DC Universe Online (A console MMO that might just work), God of War III, and Resistance 2. And of course there is the big looming title on the horizon, Killzone 2, A title that probably will never live up to it's premier trailer from a few years back.

Then there is the downside. When there IS a big-name title that is released, it's usually ends up to be an overrated piece of crap. Look at Haze. Look at Lair. Look at Metal Gear Solid 4 (Sorry, but it was more or less an interactive movie then anything else). The only good titles I can think of are Ratchet and Clank Future, Resistance 1 and Uncharted.

But what really gets me is the fanboys trying to defend their purchases. Let's take a look. Warning- These next few lines are more or less killing what's left of the English language.

"What games does the 360 have that aren't: A) a FPS or B) a 3rd party multiplatform. i need a diverse lineup of games not just FPS." - djacks247 (Yeahh... You must be thinking of the Xbox 1, but even that wasn't just FPSs. It was MOSTLY FPSs.)

"They should have them priced dropped down further... like FREE, x-bots are such lemming, following one another into the flames of rrod and colorful dots running down their screens... PS3 Ftw!!!!"- PlaystationJunky (As opposed to Sony Lemmings, which follow each other to enormous price tags and false promises?)

"Blahahaha X-bots all i can say enjoy yalls last two years while you can b 4 billy rolls out the new brick box.Sony will take microsoft over by year end,just deal with it people like me seen it was it really is..... a toy."- Riseer (Really? I see the PS3 as a toy as well. A $400 toy. =\)

The thing is, the PS3 does have a lot of potential. But it seems every time they do something right (price cut, etc) something comes and slaps them in the face. (FFXIII 360 for instance). Personally, I think the PS3 can win the console war. It has just as much of a chance as the 360 does, and the 360 has the same chance as the current sales winner (and the focus of Part 2.) Nintendo. Good Luck Sony. You are going to need it.

Marshfield Fair

2008-08-20T19:27:00.001-07:00

Judy and I went to the Marshfield Fair Saturday. We had a good time; there was this family of artists from PA that did pottery, chainsaw wood sculptures, and all kinds of stuff. I got to make a bowl on a pottery wheel, which was fun. Also took a few pics of the local tractors I saw. Merry X Mas.

Micheal Phelps

2008-08-20T19:02:00.001-07:00

You know, I've never been a fan of the olympics. Any sporting event that allows 12-year-old chinese girls to roll around on the floor is just idiotic to me. But there is one thing that I think we can learn from this.

Micheal Phelps has to be part dolphin. Or... Aquaman...

I'm on to you Phelps.

LEGACY OF DOOM

2008-08-20T18:45:00.000-07:00

IRON MAN: LEGACY OF DOOM

A Review by That Guy

Story by David Michelinie and Bob Layton
Art by Ron Lim, Bob Layton, and Moose Baumann

So, the saying “Third time’s a charm” definitely is appropriate here. Riding in on the wave of the Iron Man film of 2008, Marvel naturally beefs up everything Iron Man, and in doing so, revisits a story that started in the 80’s between Tony Stark and Victor Von Doom that takes place in the era of King Arthur. The matching of these two geniuses was both inevitable and perfect; the story, um, not so much. In their first outing, they start up with a great plot and story line only to totally flatten out at the end. On the second try, the pair actually accomplish very little together, instead visiting possible future realities of themselves. So how does the 3rd outing fair? For the most part, excellent. (For the actual first two installments, check out the hardcover “Iron Man: Doomquest” currently available).

The Basic Story:
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Taking place in the current Marvel timeline with the Skrull question looming over every hero’s (and villain’s) head, Tony discovers a microchip in old armor suit that rekindles his memory to an outing with Victor Von Doom, aka Dr. Doom, that involves the magical Excalibur Sword, and, of course, the ending of the world as we know it. Turns out that Victor borrowed a spell from an ancient entity in another dimension, and said entity wants a little payback, ala total destruction of the earth. Victor knows he must save the earth (and in doing so, grab a little immortal power for himself) by getting both the Excalibur Sword and Scabbard, which will destroy the entity with a little magic thrown in for good measure. In order to get the shard that will lead Victor to the sword, he strikes a deal with Mephisto: deliver a hero and you get the shard. Guess who that hero is? Yes, Mr. Tony Stark. So Doom achieves his plan through trickery, leaves Tony with Mephisto, and gets a magical helping hand from Ms. Morgan Le Fay. After vacationing in Hell for a bit, Tony figures out a way to escape, bringing him right back to Victor’s laboratory in Latveria. Only problem is: he was a bit late- Victor already grabbed Excalibur, transforming his green visage into black. However, Tony wisely retreats, only to be visited by a wise-cracking Merlin, who clues Tony in on the secret of the Scabbard. Both Tony and Victor rush to Scotland to retrieve the Scabbard; this time Tony wins out. As the angry entity approaches, Victor explains his victory is short lived- without the belief in magic (as Victor has) Tony can do no more to the entity than basically annoy it. In their dire time of need, Merlin appears again, explaining that the only way to defeat the entity is to join the scabbard and sword. Tony finally finds some way of believing in himself and his own abilities, and with help from Victor, destroys the entity. Merlin makes them forget, but didn’t count on one thing- Tony retrieving the memory chip from his armor.

THE PLUSES:

For comic posterity, the artwork is pretty damn good. It’s not as extravagant as, say, Marvel Ultimates, as it ultimately falls back on a more simplistic paneling that seems to carry the story along quite well, so it’s not too out of place with the first two King Arthur stories, and will adequately fit in nicely with the predecessors. Doom has not looked this regal in a very long time; definite thumbs up on the color change (which strangely fitted him well for this story) and on the detailing of Iron Man. The story itself is more compact, centralizing in on Doom and Stark, both as singular entities and the combined teamwork effort. There are also nods to certain storylines, both past and present, that tie in well: Merlin’s last words of the possibility of heroes becoming villains (as is the big question in the Marvel Universe right now with the Secret Invasion going on where everyone and their mother is potentially a Skrull), and a mention of the Heroes Reborn era when Victor was Emperor of the entire Earth (albeit the clone earth dubbed Earth-2 created by Franklin Richards to evacuate the major players in wake of the Onslaught saga). There are also universal themes touched upon in this story: the struggle between father and son (as depicted between Tony and his dad), the responsibility of one’s actions (as depicted by Victor claiming his own to save the world from the entity), teamwork found in the most unlikely pairing of villain and hero, and history repeating itself in the 3rd return to the world of Camelot. I mean, who better to fit into this realm of fantasy than Iron Man and Dr. Doom, quite rightly knights in their own time? It would be hard to picture Wolverine and Spider Man in this setting.
In regards to the characters themselves, the story writers managed to keep the very “thing” that makes both characters unique in the Marvel Universe; Doom’s loyalty, mixture of magic and science, the villain factor, and of course the ego. For Iron Man, touching upon his equally impressive I.Q., the struggle between father and son, and finding himself in the very story, panel to panel. And if there is only one reason alone to buy this, then it is to hear Victory refer to Tony as “Lackey.” Cracks me up.
There are also a lot of little pluses to the story- visiting the realm of Mephisto, who was recently a major player in the controversial Spider Man: Brand New Day story. The appearance of Morgan Le Fay was also another nice thread tying the 3 stories together as she was a player in the first story (and coincidentally (?) she appeared in the Might Avengers story arc that immediately preceded the Secret Invasion arc, along with Tony and Victor). A nod to the time platform that Victor had created, which ultimately introduced him into the Marvel Universe way back in Fantastic Four #5 (and also played a part in the same Mighty Avengers story arc that had La Fey in it) was cool indeed. All in All, this is the most satisfying of the Camelot Trilogy, and works in nicely with the timing of the Iron Man film. Who knows; maybe Victor will gain a few new fans as well.

The Minuses:
Not many, but there are some. My biggest bitch? WTF was that eyeball creature entity? In a story as grand as this (and yes, it is indeed grand on epic scales), one would think Marvel could come up with a much better universal threat than a big monster made entirely of eyeballs. Come on, guys- we could have at least gone for something more Lovecraftian rather than 50’s drive in schlock. The covers were a bit drab in idea, as each one is basically the same: side views of Tony and Victor clashing. But the artwork is great in detail and execution of colors and posing, so it is somewhat forgivable. I wasn’t too keen on the blobs in hell, either- maybe something a little more scarier than twisted Slimers from GhostBusters? It was kind of hard to take that seriously.

The Conclusion:
Definitely a good purchase, whether you are a fan of Iron Man or Dr. Doom. Lots of little goodies to be had in this 4-part gem, and the ultimate question as to whether or not this is tying into Secret Invasion remains to be seen.

We're Here.

2008-08-20T18:19:00.001-07:00

Deal with us.