Okay, everyone...I am sooooooooooo excited!
Why?
So glad you asked!
After being so depressed and let down when it was revealed to me that the TMNT (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for those of you who aren't familiar with the abbreviation) comics books were being discontinued. This came to pass because the TMNT franchise in its entirety was bought by Nickelodean Upon learning that sad bit of news during one of my visits to my local comic book store (The Comic Bug...check it out if you're in the Southern California area; it's an AWESOME shop!), I hugged what I thought were the last TMNT comics tightly to my chest as I made my way back to my car and literally pouted for the entire drive back home. However, I have recently learned that Nickelodean is teaming up with IDW (the same people who brought us the awesome Doctor Who comics as well as others) and they are due to release a relaunch of the TMNT comic books!
YES!!!
HUZZAH!!!
When I read the article (found here http://www.idwpublishing.com/news/article/1677/ ), I actually did a victory dance. Now, I don't mean a half-ass victory dance with barely any movement, there was some definite cheering, hand waving, clapping and grooving.
I was ecstatic!
I still am!
However, my happiness with the return of the beloved characters from my childhood is not the only subject of this escaped musing. I would also like to take this moment to talk about DC Comic's decision to do a complete reboot of 52 of its comics and starting over from the beginning. That's right, folks...DC is starting 52 of their books back at #1, some of the included titles are Batgirl, Batman, Supergirl, Superman, Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern. Not only are they started from the very beginning, but they're also bestowing new costumes.
That's right folks...they're changing Wonder Woman's costume yet again!
Ahem...I'm digressing again, but I really do have a quiet, bubbling rage for our favorite Amazon's wardrobe change. In any case...
While this reboot is a good way for comic book newbies to dive into the comics of their choice without feeling lost, it is still nevertheless not so favorable a move for the readers who have been involved with their favorite characters for a longer period of time. For me, it's a double-edged sword.
Having gotten into the wonder and awesomeness that is the world of comics books later in life than most, I can appreciate what DC is doing. I myself went through bouts of confusion and feeling as though I missed something when I started reading Wonder Woman. Granted, this dissipated with each older issue I purchased along with the newer ones, but there was still that lingering feeling of having missed something on occasion. However, all of that being said, I feel as though the comic books that I've devoted a great deal of time to such as Birds of Prey, as well as the new Batgirl are suddenly going to be taken away from me somehow when this reboot occurs.
Don't get me wrong, I love Barbara Gordon as Batgirl. She was the original, and she kicked some serious ass. However, she also kicked serious ass (if not more) as Oracle after Joker's attack on her in The Killing Joke. Not only did she mentor the Batgirls that came after her, but she also ran her crime-fighting team (The Birds of Prey) and all while being an almost all-knowing and all-seeing entity by way of cyberspace. However, with this reboot, she is destined to take up the cowl again. What then happens to Stephanie Brown (the current Batgirl)? Is she to simply be forgotten? If that ends up being the case, I would find myself feeling very conflicted indeed because on the one hand I believe that Barbara Gordon should in fact wear the cowl, but on the other hand, Stephanie Brown has earned her place as Batgirl several times over and deserves to wear the time-honored cowl. For crying out loud, Bruce Wayne even gifted her with her very own Batmobile in one of the more recent issues!
With this in mind, I also find myself wondering what is to become of Birds of Prey. Who are they without Oracle? She is their eyes, ears and strategist. How can such a 'Girl Friday' be replaced? How will the team function now? Who will lead them?
I'm sure that DC has a plan and aren't simply doing this on a whim, but at the same time I can't help but wonder and worry that this particular plan was not thought out all the way through...
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
'Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager'...FTW!
When one thinks of the name Vader, one's mind is automatically filled with images of a black armor-clad, force-weilding badass who runs amok to the to the musical chords that have become as memorable as the Jaws theme.
You all know what I'm talking about.
Of course you do!
Even if you're not a fan of Star Wars, you still know who Darth Vader is. Vader is a badass who would kick Anakin Skywalker's ass (and yes, I know how that sounds since they're one and the same person, but you get my drift!) Seriously, Anakin...enough with the whiny angst!
Ahem...but I digress.
This escaped musing is not about my hatred of Anakin Skywalker (but I'm sure I'll blog about it at some point, simply because it has to be said). Rather, this rambling musing is about the awesome web series that is Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager. You can of course find it on Youtube http://www.youtube.com/user/blamesocietyfilms , but you can also find it on Hulu as well as on the actual website http://www.blamesociety.net/chadvader . Okay, now that all of that is out of the way, I can now focus on the awesomeness that is Chad Vader.
This web-series (done by Star Wars fans for Star Wars fans) follows the day to day activities and adventures of Chad Vader (Darth Vader's little brother) as he deals with crazy customers (and trust me, there ARE quite a few) as well as navigates all the perils and pitfalls involved with being the day shift manager of a Wisconsin grocery store in the Empire Market chain. Props to all of you who get the irony behind that. Pat yourselves on the back and give yourselves a cookie!
Go on...
I'm serious.
Get yourself a frakking cookie!
Ahem..sorry, I digressed again.
Getting back to the topic at hand.
Chad Vader is Darth Vader's little brother, and like his Sith Lord sibling, he wears the black body armor and is gifted with Dark Side powers such as Force Choke along with regular Force powers such as Force Push and Mind Trick. He even uses Force Lightning, something which Darth never uses because of the metal of his suit (if you knew that little tidbit of information, congratulations! Get yourself another cookie! ;D ). However, all of his power aside (and being the only one in the series with any power at all), Chad is by no means the badass that his brother is. He gets turned down by girls, passed up for promotions, yelled at by the general manager of the market (a man that he could pwn so easily), demoted to night shift manager, and even fired. Being fired (though it's only a temporary problem) leads to the ensuing of several hijinks in which Chad gets fired from every other job he gets hired for (one of which was a telemarketing in which he was fired after only making 1 phone call).
References to the movies are constantly used as well as little snippets of Darth's actual dialogue from the films.
I highly recommend that you check the series out. If you're a fan of the original trilogy, you will enjoy the web series from a fan's P.O.V and not only appreciate all the references to the films, but you will also appreciate the amount of time, effort and love that went into the project's creation. If you're not a fan of the original trilogy or anything else pertaining to the Star Wars franchise, you'll still enjoy it simply because at one point or another, we've all been in retail situations in which we would want nothing more than to choke a belligerent customer...
I know I have.
Ahem! More digressing! Sorry about that!
In any case, check the series out! You won't be sorry! ;D
You all know what I'm talking about.
Of course you do!
Even if you're not a fan of Star Wars, you still know who Darth Vader is. Vader is a badass who would kick Anakin Skywalker's ass (and yes, I know how that sounds since they're one and the same person, but you get my drift!) Seriously, Anakin...enough with the whiny angst!
Ahem...but I digress.
This escaped musing is not about my hatred of Anakin Skywalker (but I'm sure I'll blog about it at some point, simply because it has to be said). Rather, this rambling musing is about the awesome web series that is Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager. You can of course find it on Youtube http://www.youtube.com/user/blamesocietyfilms , but you can also find it on Hulu as well as on the actual website http://www.blamesociety.net/chadvader . Okay, now that all of that is out of the way, I can now focus on the awesomeness that is Chad Vader.
This web-series (done by Star Wars fans for Star Wars fans) follows the day to day activities and adventures of Chad Vader (Darth Vader's little brother) as he deals with crazy customers (and trust me, there ARE quite a few) as well as navigates all the perils and pitfalls involved with being the day shift manager of a Wisconsin grocery store in the Empire Market chain. Props to all of you who get the irony behind that. Pat yourselves on the back and give yourselves a cookie!
Go on...
I'm serious.
Get yourself a frakking cookie!
Ahem..sorry, I digressed again.
Getting back to the topic at hand.
Chad Vader is Darth Vader's little brother, and like his Sith Lord sibling, he wears the black body armor and is gifted with Dark Side powers such as Force Choke along with regular Force powers such as Force Push and Mind Trick. He even uses Force Lightning, something which Darth never uses because of the metal of his suit (if you knew that little tidbit of information, congratulations! Get yourself another cookie! ;D ). However, all of his power aside (and being the only one in the series with any power at all), Chad is by no means the badass that his brother is. He gets turned down by girls, passed up for promotions, yelled at by the general manager of the market (a man that he could pwn so easily), demoted to night shift manager, and even fired. Being fired (though it's only a temporary problem) leads to the ensuing of several hijinks in which Chad gets fired from every other job he gets hired for (one of which was a telemarketing in which he was fired after only making 1 phone call).
References to the movies are constantly used as well as little snippets of Darth's actual dialogue from the films.
I highly recommend that you check the series out. If you're a fan of the original trilogy, you will enjoy the web series from a fan's P.O.V and not only appreciate all the references to the films, but you will also appreciate the amount of time, effort and love that went into the project's creation. If you're not a fan of the original trilogy or anything else pertaining to the Star Wars franchise, you'll still enjoy it simply because at one point or another, we've all been in retail situations in which we would want nothing more than to choke a belligerent customer...
I know I have.
Ahem! More digressing! Sorry about that!
In any case, check the series out! You won't be sorry! ;D
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Cell phones...is bigger better?
Remember when cell phones first came out?
Oh, don't be silly, of course you do!
How could anyone forget those gigantic, grey bricks that were approximately the same size as a cordless phone? A little later, the company came out with a black model, but the shape and large size remained the same. It flipped open and had an antenna that needed to be pulled up in order to make a call. Forget about designating a ringtone to every person in your contact list. You had one ringtone and that was it.
Texting? Forget about it!
Internet access? Are you out of your mind?!
The first cell phones were just that. They were phones.
And they were big.
Which brings me to the main point of this rambling musing of mine...
Having been forced to schlep around these big, bricks of what was then cutting edge technology, the next logical step was to make this bricks smaller. You saw it happen. It didn't happen overnight, of course, but gradually, the phones became just a little smaller. Over time, over the years, the phones became smaller and more streamlined, and before you knew it, you had the choice between flip-phones and none flip-phones. But the point is, that the phones kept getting smaller as the years went on.
It was the hip thing for cell phones was for them to be as small as possible, and if you were seen carrying around a big brick when everyone else had phones that fit in the palms of their hands, then you were viewed as a luddite.
The smaller the phone, the better!
However, now it seems that the times are a changing...
While phones are still sleek and streamlined, has anyone else noticed that they seem to be getting bigger again? Gone are the cute and tiny flip-phones that were once so coveted, and in their place are for all intents and purposes, flat-screen T.Vs that fit in the palm of your hand. This happened because unlike the cell phones of old, the cell phones of today are no longer simply phones. They're basically miniature computers from which you can run your entire life while you're on the go. Texting, emailing, banking, taking pictures, recording or even streaming videos, and let's not even get started on all the other different apps that are out there...things that we never would have imagined doing on those old bricks is now all possible. That being said, who wants to do all of that on a tiny little screen?
The answer is, nobody.
In fact, the BIGGER the screen, the better!
My Samsung Intercept is approximately 4 1/2 inches in length and 2 inches in width (3 inches of all that is the size of my screen. Now, my BFF's phone is approximately 6 inches in length and 3 inches in width. It almost quite literally is a miniature television or computer. The darned thing is practically bigger than her hand, and for the most part, it's nothing but screen.
Is the bedrock of this rambling of mine a rant? Not at all.
Are you kidding me? I LOVE my Samsung Intercept! It's an Android phone without the Android price, and it has saved my butt on more than one occasion. For instance, just the other day I had a job interview, and I always like to have an extra copy of my resume with me so I can use it as a quick point of reference when I'm filling in a job application. However, this time around, I was unable to do so because the printer was acting up. So, I simply emailed my resume to myself, and because of a handy-dandy little app on my phone, I was able to download, open and view my resume without any difficulty.
So, no...this particular rambling is not a rant about how phones are gradually getting bigger. Rather, it's just a random musing of how we seem to be slowly gravitating away from the mindset of 'smaller is better' when it comes to phones and back towards the mindset of 'bigger is better'.
Who wants to take bets on what the next fad will be? ;)
Oh, don't be silly, of course you do!
How could anyone forget those gigantic, grey bricks that were approximately the same size as a cordless phone? A little later, the company came out with a black model, but the shape and large size remained the same. It flipped open and had an antenna that needed to be pulled up in order to make a call. Forget about designating a ringtone to every person in your contact list. You had one ringtone and that was it.
Texting? Forget about it!
Internet access? Are you out of your mind?!
The first cell phones were just that. They were phones.
And they were big.
Which brings me to the main point of this rambling musing of mine...
Having been forced to schlep around these big, bricks of what was then cutting edge technology, the next logical step was to make this bricks smaller. You saw it happen. It didn't happen overnight, of course, but gradually, the phones became just a little smaller. Over time, over the years, the phones became smaller and more streamlined, and before you knew it, you had the choice between flip-phones and none flip-phones. But the point is, that the phones kept getting smaller as the years went on.
It was the hip thing for cell phones was for them to be as small as possible, and if you were seen carrying around a big brick when everyone else had phones that fit in the palms of their hands, then you were viewed as a luddite.
The smaller the phone, the better!
However, now it seems that the times are a changing...
While phones are still sleek and streamlined, has anyone else noticed that they seem to be getting bigger again? Gone are the cute and tiny flip-phones that were once so coveted, and in their place are for all intents and purposes, flat-screen T.Vs that fit in the palm of your hand. This happened because unlike the cell phones of old, the cell phones of today are no longer simply phones. They're basically miniature computers from which you can run your entire life while you're on the go. Texting, emailing, banking, taking pictures, recording or even streaming videos, and let's not even get started on all the other different apps that are out there...things that we never would have imagined doing on those old bricks is now all possible. That being said, who wants to do all of that on a tiny little screen?
The answer is, nobody.
In fact, the BIGGER the screen, the better!
My Samsung Intercept is approximately 4 1/2 inches in length and 2 inches in width (3 inches of all that is the size of my screen. Now, my BFF's phone is approximately 6 inches in length and 3 inches in width. It almost quite literally is a miniature television or computer. The darned thing is practically bigger than her hand, and for the most part, it's nothing but screen.
Is the bedrock of this rambling of mine a rant? Not at all.
Are you kidding me? I LOVE my Samsung Intercept! It's an Android phone without the Android price, and it has saved my butt on more than one occasion. For instance, just the other day I had a job interview, and I always like to have an extra copy of my resume with me so I can use it as a quick point of reference when I'm filling in a job application. However, this time around, I was unable to do so because the printer was acting up. So, I simply emailed my resume to myself, and because of a handy-dandy little app on my phone, I was able to download, open and view my resume without any difficulty.
So, no...this particular rambling is not a rant about how phones are gradually getting bigger. Rather, it's just a random musing of how we seem to be slowly gravitating away from the mindset of 'smaller is better' when it comes to phones and back towards the mindset of 'bigger is better'.
Who wants to take bets on what the next fad will be? ;)
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