Religious Fascists Should NOT Be Allowed To Speak

Gather round, geeks and nerds...and while you're at it, grab your torches and pitchforks because once again religious fascists are sticking their noses into things that they don't understand. What could this possibly be, you might be asking?

I'll tell you!

If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm a rabid TMNT fangirl. I've loved them since I was a little girl, and I still love them now even as a 29 year old mother-to-be. The point is that I'm a fan, and I take great offense when something than I'm a fan of is needlessly attacked. It's doesn't have to be TMNT, it could be something else of which I'm a rabid fan. You don't believe me? You should see how incensed I get when someone attacks Phantom of the Opera, but that particular obsession of mine is not the subject of this post. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are.

As you can see below, three right-wing Christian fascists are sitting up in their ivory tower while attacking and passing judgement upon things that they simply don't understand. According to them, TMNT (not only TMNT, but also chocolate bars and fruit snacks in the shapes of musical instruments...oh, the horror!) is an evil propaganda that is designed to prey upon innocent children and not only corrupt them, but to turn them into lawless little psychopaths!

You think I'm kidding? Take a look at the video below. Trust me...this isn't the sort of thing you can make up!

Alright, now I know this video is more than a little dated (thank you 1980-something), but that doesn't make it any less disturbing...especially when you see how serious and adamant these three men are in their belief that TMNT is an evil franchise (notice how they blamed TMNT for three boys running amok at a nursery school?). Excuse me, but I watched the cartoons and the movies all through my childhood, and I turned out more than okay (and I grew up in an extremely Catholic household, but my parents had enough sense to know, that what I was watching was nothing more than entertainment, and not to mention both of my parents were actively involved in my life and daily activities. You know...actually doing their jobs as parents instead of letting the television raise me) so that particular belief of theirs holds no water. If they want to blame anyone for those kids acting crazy at school, then they should blame the parents because it was the parents who looked the other way while their children were acting up. It was the parents who fell down on the job and let their children act in such an inappropriate way. It wasn't the TMNT, so don't even try to blame them.

But besides that particular issue of theirs, there's something else that really bothers me. Right off the bat, these men bash TMNT because Splinter isn't a Christian. The fact that they call his beliefs Hindu is only further proof to just how blindingly ignorant they are. If they bothered to pay any attention to the story, they would know that before Splinter was a mutant rat, he was a Japanese man from JAPAN. He was NOT from India where Hinduism is the predominant religion! Being the Japanese immigrant that he was, he would have most likely been a practitioner of Buddhism. Yes, I'm aware that there are other religions practiced in Japan, but you don't ever see Splinter making the sign of the cross, lighting a menorah, dropping to his knees and praying five times a day (that's Islam for those of you who didn't know), or avoiding beef products (Hinduism), now do you?

No...you don't.

But then of course, to those three bigots in the video, any religion that is NOT Christianity is wrong, so why bother learning the differences between them?

You know what? Scratch the rest of my rant. I'm going to focus on that little tidbit right there, because all of their other complaints are simply too stupid to argue against. Never mind the fact that they belittle the turtle's constant battle against evil (as censored down as it was for television), let's focus on the fact that these three men (whom I'm assuming are still alive if they haven't already been hunted down by a lynch-mob of angry nerds) are so wrapped up in their own fascist, Christian ideals that they are literally advocating the hatred of other religions and cultures. You know what happened the last time beliefs like that were touted and followed?

Oh, I don't know...just a little something known as the HOLOCAUST!

Now, please don't misunderstand me. This is not meant as an attack against Christianity. Rather, this is an attack against right-wing fascists who find fault in everything that even remotely questions their ideals. These people actively look for things to blame other than themselves when things in their family go awry. These are the people who say "Oh, it's the cartoons on T.V. that made my child beat up his classmate at school...it couldn't possibly be the fact that he's doing what he saw me do to his mother", or "It's the cartoons on television that make my child run around with scissors trying to stab people...it couldn't possibly be the fact that I let her do whatever she wants without consequences".
Seriously, people?

If you can't take five minutes out of your day to sit down and talk with your children and explain the fundamentals of right and wrong to them, then maybe you shouldn't be shocked when they turn around and blow up the school. It's NOT the fault of cartoons. If you want to blame someone, then look in a frakking mirror, because it isn't TMNT or any other cartoon that's the problem. IT'S YOU!!

*sighs* End of rant.

Nerd up!

Turtle Power!!

Cowabunga says it all!

Between the move, having to find a new comic book shop, and then getting all my missing issues ordered in, I FINALLY got caught up on my beloved heroes in a half-shell last night, and all I have to say is WOW! Now, this isn't just my fangirl excitement talking, because believe me, if IDW had done a bad job at rebooting TMNT, you would be reading a rage-filled rant instead of a happy and excited review. First of all, the way everyone is drawn (not just the mutants, but all the human characters as well) is VERY well done. The story pulls you in from the very first page of the first issue, and right off the bat it's made obvious that the reboot walks the same line that the original comics did (the same grittiness is there, and no punches are pulled when it comes to violence. Simply put, these are not the "wussified" turtles of the 1980's cartoons.

The first issue opens up on a battle between the intrepid heroes (Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Splinter) as they face off against a gang of thugs headed by a mutant cat named Old Hob. It isn't until after the battle that you the reader learns that Raphael is missing, and has been for a while. The first comic takes place in the middle of all the action and thereby sets the stage for the rest of the series--letting you the reader know right off the bat that something is amiss in the lives of the intrepid terrapins (more so than usual). In the second issue, you learn that Raph has been homeless and living on his own because he has no memory of who he is or how he came to be there. He and Casey Jones soon meet and form a fast friendship.

However, as I read the issues that followed, I could not help but feel that I had missed something because references were being made to past events that I could not remember from any of the lore (whether it be from the movies, the many cartoon incarnations or the original comics), and the timeline itself seemed off. However, I stuck with it because I was determined to figure out what was going on, and as I kept reading, all the blanks began to get filled in with a very Tarantino methodology.

While this is indeed a reboot of the original Mirage comic, there were definite changes made to the lore as well as to the core characters. For example, both April O'Neil as well as Casey Jones are college students--April exceedingly bright and majoring in one of the science fields (it's never actually stated which one it is), and Casey is a jock with a heart of gold attending on a hockey scholarship which is currently on hold because he's on academic probation. How do these two meet? April offers to tutor Casey in exchange for lessons in self-defense. While this is a change from the two characters we fans have grown to love, it's only a small change and quite frankly I don't see anything wrong with it. After all, how many professions has April's various incarnations had over the years? She's been a reporter, she's been a lab assistant, she's been an archaeologist, so she's obviously an adaptable character. In this instance, both she and Casey were made younger in order to appeal to a newer and younger crowd, and if that helps my favorite comic book get a larger and stronger following, then I'm all for it!

Another small change is the fact that Donatello is more of a foil for Leonardo at this point than Raphael is--the two of them often butting heads over logic vs. blind faith.

The main change made to the lore is the actual origin story of Splinter and the turtles. IDW took the origin stories of both the original films as well as the original 80's cartoon, and gave them a completely different twist...

Reincarnation.

Now, don't go rolling your eyes in annoyance. I know that the whole "reincarnation" thing is a bit old hat, but the writers at IDW made it work.

Trust me.

We find out through Splinter's POV that he was in fact Hamato Yoshi in his past life, and when he was Yoshi, he lived in Feudal Japan. Now, I won't go into too much detail in case you haven't read them yet, but Yoshi was married to Tang Shen (remember her from the 1st film?), and they had 4 sons (see where this is going?) who remained nameless all throughout the recounting of that tale. What happened to them? Yoshi and Oroku Saki had a falling out, and Saki killed them all (again, I'm not going into too much detail here for the sake of spoilers). In any case, Yoshi gets reincarnated into the body of a lab rat in present day New York, and his four sons are reincarnated into the bodies of four baby turtles that are being held in the same lab--the lab in which April interns, by the way and which is run by none other than Baxter Stockman (original comics, sociopathic Baxter Stockman, not the sniveling 1980's cartoon Baxter Stockman).

While Foot Ninjas have made an appearance, the Shredder has yet to make one. Krang--known as General Krang in this incarnation--was mentioned in passing by Stockman, but he has not yet shown himself; however, it was made clear by Stockman that Krang and the Foot (or more to the point, Krang's competitor whom the Foot represent) are at odds with each other. Other nods to the "old" that do make an appearance are the M.O.U.S.E.R.S (Stockman's carnivorous robot inventions), as well as Bebop and Rocksteady (though with those two, you need to read the Raphael Micro-Series).

All in all, this reboot is an AWESOME blending of both old and new, and I would HIGHLY recommend this series for anyone to read.

Have you hugged your nerd today? ;)

A Poor Girl's Guide to MMOs: 2nd Amended Edition

Hello fellow gamers!

In this edition of my MMO guide (for earlier versions, please check out my blog), I am very happy to announce that as of a few days ago, a new game was added to the ranks of the FTP (free-to-play) domain. That's right. Who says you need to pay a subscription fee in order to enjoy your online gaming experience?

Not me!

As of this week, Star Trek Online became free for the masses to play, and while I'm always on the lookout for free MMOs, I will admit that I was hesitant on trying this one out. Having never been a hard-core Trekker (I mean, I'll watch Trek if I find it while flipping through the channels, but don't go out of my way to find it), I wasn't sure if I wanted to spend the time downloading it. However, as I watched my husband play it after he downloaded it, I found myself more than just a little intrigued. You see, my husband tends to gravitate away from RPG style games, because they're simply not his cup of tea (unlike FPS and sports games). However, upon seeing him not only play the game but enjoy it, I realized that I had to at least try it.

After all, if an MMO could attract and hold my husband's attention, there must be something to it.
After playing for only two days, I'm free to say that this game is highly addicting! Not to mention, you don't have to be a Trekker to appreciate it. If I can have fun while playing it, then anyone can.

In this game, you're able to not only choose your avatar's gender and customize his or her appearance,
but you're also able to choose from a wide array of species that span almost the entire Star Trek spectrum (human, Vulcan, Andorian, Ferengi, etc). You can play a Klingon, but only if you choose to not play on the side of the Federation. You're also able to choose the uniform your avatar wears. You can choose from the old-school uniform from the original series (that's right, the mini-skirt makes a proud comeback!) all the way to the uniforms found on Enterprise. You can also choose your avatar's branch (Tactical, Engineering or Science), as well as choose the name of your ship.

That's right, you get your own ship pretty much right off the bat. Though you start off the game as an Ensign, you become acting Captain within a span of about 15 minutes when the actual Captain is killed in battle, and the ship is your reward from the Federation once you beat the first challenge. Don't worry, you don't stay an Ensign forever. Though it takes a while, you do work your way up the chain of command and gain a new rank with every few levels that you gain. As you level up, you not only have to worry about leveling up your avatar's skills, but also the skills and abilities of your Bridge Officers (regardless of your specific branch, you're given a Tactical Officer, an Engineering Officer as well as a Science Officer, and they automatically become your away team when you beam down onto different planets), as well as those of your ship (upgrades, etc).

Right off the bat, I have to say that I love the fighting sequences. Even though you're fighting with some type of firearm (and if you've read any of my past blog posts, you know my deep hatred of anything even remotely FPS), the controls for targeting are so smooth! I can actually hit my targets, unlike the times I've tried playing one of my husband's FPS games in which I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn because I can never keep the crosshairs straight while I'm moving in the game. Then there's the fact that your away team automatically attacks your opponents as well so you don't get swarmed.

My only complaint is the space battles in which case your ship becomes your avatar. My complaint about this is the fact that until you devote enough experience points each level to the engineering characteristics of your ship, it moves slower than molasses in January...especially when turning. Now, this wouldn't be a problem if the enemy ships you were encountering also moved at your same pace, but that is not the case. Enemy ships zip around you like fireflies, while in the mean time you're trying to turn your ship so you can try to fire your torpedos (which incidentally only fire from the front of your ship) because they cause the most damage. Now, keep in mind, this complaint is in reference to your first ship. I don't know if this is the case with the other ships that you get awarded during the course of the game, because I haven't reached that point yet.

But like I said, that is my only complaint. Everything else I have to say about the game is good. The graphics are very well done, the controls are smooth, and (unlike with DC Universe Online) the mouse does what it's supposed to do. With an FTP account, you're only able to have 1 avatar, but that's such a small price to pay that it's hardly even worth mentioning.

So with all of that being said, I have only this left to say. Live long and prosper!

Until next time!

Have you hugged your nerd today? ;)

JourneyQuest

First of all, you all may have noticed that I changed the background of my blog. This is because I'm silently protesting my continuing despair at Power Girl not being part of the New 52. I mean seriously...Blue Beetle got included in the reboot but Power Girl didn't?! Are you honestly telling me that Blue Beetle had a bigger following?! *growls* I refuse to subscribe to that reality, but since the executioner's axe has already fallen, all I can do is continue to mourn the loss of my favorite super hero.

Now, then....onto the topic at hand!

JourneyQuest!!

Take one hopelessly inept wizard and add an insane knight who’s taken one too many blows to the head, one undead cleric, one standoffish elf, one talking sword and mix together with a generous helping of shenanigans that can only come from so ragtag a group pursuing the same quest together, and you have the perfect recipe for a laugh-out-loud romp set in a fantasy world.

Oh, and let us not forget the long-suffering bard who valiantly strives to record the exploits of the questing group for the epic she has been tasked to write in order to earn her bardic degree.

“Following a group of dysfunctional adventurers on a quest to discover and destroy the mythical Sword of Fighting, JOURNEYQUEST is a comedic adventure through the fantasy world of Fartherall, where intellectual orcs, incompetent wizards, and holy zombies form the living (and not-so-living) backdrop to an epic story of unrequited love, burning passions, and severely reluctant heroism. And running away. Lots of running away…”

Produced by Dead Gentlemen Productions and Zombie Orpheus Entertainment, JourneyQuest premiered in 2010 and is a web series that takes place entirely in a fantasy setting; and, true to the form of Dead Gentlemen Productions, gags abound and laughter is never in short supply. One example that springs to mind is the grammatical discussion that takes place (entirely in Orcish, I might add) during the course of a heated stand-off.

Of course, the trash-talking Sword of Fighting (if you think I’m kidding about that, watch the series) is sure to be a quick favorite for all viewers.

“Why does he smell like ‘crying’?!”

Following the exploits of Perf, the wizard, Carrow, the cleric, Nara, the elf and Glorion, the knight as they reluctantly journey together in search of the legendary Sword of Fighting, Season 1 of JourneyQuest spans a total of seven episodes which follow an almost Quentin Tarantino method of filming. The first episode begins after all of the battles and conflicts of the season have taken place in which the viewer is filled in with Wren, the bard as she hurries to catch up with all of the action she missed. From there on in, all of the blanks gradually get filled with each episode.

If you’re familiar with the past works of Dead Gentlemen Productions, you will no doubt recognize several of the actors and actresses from past web series as well as the two Gamer movies, and the list only promises to grow with Season 2.

 Current Cast of Charactors:

• Perf: Christian Doyle
• Carrow: Brian Lewis
• Nara: Anne Kennedy
• Glorion: Kevin Pitman
• Wren: Emilie Rommel Shimkus
• Assassin: Samara Lerman

JourneyQuest is completely creator-distributed and fan-supported. Writer and director of the series, Matt Vancil (who subsequently wrote and directed both of the Gamer films), is very proud of the fact that because of this method of distribution, he doesn’t have to deal with network bureaucracy and there’s no chance of the show getting cancelled because of low ratings. Now, I don’t know about you, but that is true dedication to a project, and it is worthy of some serious applause because the end result is truly a result of the creator’s blood, sweat and tears.

However, because the series relies solely upon donations and contributions from fans, it took a little while for Season 2 to get off the ground, but things are now rolling and progressing. While Season 2 has not yet aired, those who tune in and watch it once it does will be guaranteed many laughs all throughout the course of the season.

You can find Season 1 of JourneyQuest on Youtube.com, Hulu.com, as well as on the show’s website. So on that note…

Enjoy!

For more posts like this, check out Word of the Nerd!

The Gamers: Dorkness Rising

The Gamers: DorknessRising was released at Gen-Con in 2008.

This hardly makes it a new film, so doubtlessly you’re asking yourselves why I’m choosing to review it at this stage in time. Well, the answer to that question is simple enough…

It’s because it’s frakking awesome!

Not to mention, I don’t feel that this film gets the respect and attention that it truly deserves.

That’s right…this movie goes to prove that you don’t need a multi-billion (or even million) dollar budget in order to create an enjoyable, fun-filled romp of a cinematic adventure. All you need is a handful of talented actors with good chemistry between them (and who aren’t afraid to be silly and take their characters over the top), and a dedicated, talented crew.

Produced by Dead Gentlemen Productions, an independent film company based in Tacoma, Washington, The Gamers: Dorkness Rising is actually a sequel to The Gamers (a low-budget, but nonetheless entertaining, film), but it is more than able to stand on its own as its own specific film.

 The film centers around a group of D&D players (Leo, Cass, Joanna, and Gary), as well as their long-suffering Dungeon Master (Kevin), as they strive to complete the campaign (adventure) that Kevin is attempting to get published in order for other D&D players to play world-wide. Each of the named players encompasses the wide array of D&D player stereotypes…

Leo: The Redshirt. He is the player who never has things work out for him (i.e., his in-game character always ends up being cannon fodder in one way or another). His in-game character in the film is a bard named Flynn.

“Seriously! I’ve got like one hit-point here!”

Cass: The Dungeon Master’s foil. He is the player who is extremely dedicated to every single rule and regulation, and he questions and challenges the Dungeon Master’s every move (often throwing some form of fit or tantrum)when he feels that the rules are being ignored. Of course, when the rules come back later to bite him in the arse, he is less than pleased. His in-game character in the film is a monk named Brother Silence.

“And because it was so unexpected, the party died! This is what happens when you mess with the rules!”

Joanna: The newbie. She is the player who is new to the world of D&D, and as such she sides with the Dungeon Master on nearly everything. Because she is new to the world, she is able to think more outside the box in regards to the making of her in-game character—often making her either the subject of mocking or awe with the other players. Her in-game character in the film is a fighter named Daphne.

“With her charisma, she should be able to talk her way out of most fights.”

Gary: The joker. He is the player who is always instigating mischief (both in game as well as out) simply for the sake of stirring things up, and unlike the other players, he keeps falling out of character throughout the course of the game. His in-game character in the film (played for the most part by Jen Page (pictured above on the DVD cover)) is a female sorceress named Luster.

“I'm not evil, I'm chaotic neutral!”

Kevin: The Dungeon Master. Often depicted as long-suffering throughout the course of the film, he tries desperately to keep the other players on track so they can finish the game—even going so far as to create a Paladin NPC to keep the others from going too far off course.

“They don’t try anything new, and then they blame me when they die…ungrateful munchkins!”

The film takes place from two perspectives—from the POV of the players outside of the game, as well as from the POV of their in-game characters. This means, that the action goes back and forth between in-game scenarios as well as those taking place out of game. Though as a result of Gary’s constantly falling out of character, his in-game character is constantly shifting back and forth between the actual female character and Gary dressed in drag (pictured below).

This serves as a recurring gag throughout the course of the film as the other players have to constantly remind Gary that his character is a woman when he begins playing her as he normally would a male character.

Gary/Luster: “A man could lose himself in those eyes…”

Daphne: “A man could, yes…but apparently I must remind you that you’re a woman.”

Luster: “Of course I am!”

While this film is an obvious homage to all things D&D, there are nevertheless references to other role-playing games sprinkled throughout as a sort of treasure hunt for viewers who happen to be avid gamers. For example, at the end of the first real battle in the film, music very similar to the Final Fantasy fanfare plays when the players defeated the horde of goblins they were battling. At other points of the film, the characters are seen playing other games (such as Munchkin) while they wait for the rest of the group to arrive for the campaign. The references continue later in the film as well, but don’t let any of that discourage you.

Even if you don’t play D&D or any other game of that sort, you can still enjoy this film for what it is at its most basic core—pure, unadulterated silliness. I for example, had never played D&D before I had seen the movie, but I was still able to enjoy the film, and could not stop laughing throughout the course of it. The ending result of my watching this movie was not only my being left in a good and genuinely happy mood for the rest of the night, but it also led to my exploration (and soon after love) of D&D.

Now, am I saying that you will have the same outcome that I did?

Not at all.

What I am saying is that if you sit down to watch The Gamers: Dorkness Rising, you will be guaranteed an hour and a half of good laughs, and a plethora of lines to quote and throw into your everyday lives. I myself have found myself uttering “I’m not evil, I’m chaotic neutral” more times than I can count.

The bottom line is that The Gamers: Dorkness Rising is a fun movie for all. Even if you’re not a gamer of any sort, you will still be able to appreciate the humor of the situations, and the shenanigans that ensue. The film can be found on Netflix, and it can also be purchased on Amazon.

So with all that being said, how about we give this incredibly awesome and yet unsung film some love?

You won’t be sorry!

Main Characters:

Kevin/Sir Osric: Nathan Rice

Joanna/Daphne: Carol Roscoe

Cass/Brother Silence: Brian Lewis

Gary: ChristianDoyle

Leo/Flynn: ScottC. Brown

Luster: Jen Page

Check out Word of the Nerd for all things geeky! ;)

Geeky Confessions

Guilty pleasures…

We all have them, so don’t pretend that you don’t.

However, in the world of geeks and nerds, these guilty pleasures become less of a ‘guilt’ and more of a confession. After all, you can hardly call a guilty pleasure ‘guilty’ and feel any supposed ‘guilt’ for enjoying it when you’re sharing it with like-minded people. Right?

Am I right?

Of course I am!

There is no shame amongst geeks. True, we might not always agree with each other on certain aspects of geekery (i.e., which Star Trek series is the best, who’s the superior Doctor in Doctor Who, which edition of D&D is the best, or the loving/hating of George Lucas for all the changes he makes to Star Wars), but we will never full-on shun each other for these views because we ourselves know what it’s like to be shunned by the ‘popular kids’. While we might not agree on everything, there is still a feeling of solidarity and even camaraderie amongst us, and that’s why we feel no shame in sharing with each other just what it is that makes us individually geeky.

I myself am an avid fanfiction writer, and when I’m not reading comic books, obsessing over Phantom of the Opera, or role-playing (either by way of consol, table-top, or text-based), I am constantly quoting movies like Ghostbbusters, Goonies, and The Gamers: Dorkness Rising. I’m not ashamed to admit any of this, and apparently people on the internet aren’t ashamed to admit these sorts of things either.

Twitter is full of such confessions!

Just today, for example, there was the following trend of: #whatsyourgeekconfession, and I would like to take a moment to share some of these confessions with you…

Francescamain: “That the lack of apostrophe in this hashtag troubles me.”

(I for one know she feels, because I had to stop myself from adding the apostrophe when I was looking up the trend.)

Justbiglee: “My DVDs, Blu rays and TV boxsets are all sorted alphabetically by format.”

(I just knew there was someone else out there like me! My organization of our books and DVDs borders on neurotically anal-retentive, and it drives my hubby quite batty…and oh, how he loves to torture me by putting things out of order.)

GeekSyndicate: “used to know and sing all the words to Partners in Kryme - Turtle Power.”

(Okay, while he’s got me beat on knowing all the words, I do in fact still have in my possession the soundtracks for movies 1 and 2.)

Sjtoyne: “I used to like sitting in the glow of my ZX81 pretending I was Matthew Broderick in 'War Games'.”

(Okay, while I’m too young to have had that computer, I LOVE that movie!)

CareyTwoMonkeys: “I'm afraid to watch the final season of The X-Files.”

(As someone who just recently saw the final season of Roseanne for the first time, I feel your pain. ARGH! I wish I could erase that final episode from my memory!)

AntCrick: “I love playing World of Warcraft, dont care what others say!”

(I personally prefer EQ2, but to each their own.)

T_W_A_Plus: “I’m a nerd and dam proud of it.”

(AMEN!)

So there you have it, my friends…people who are not ashamed to admit what makes them go ‘geek’ in the night (myself included). So what should you take from this? Just this simple message…

Embrace your inner geek and don’t be afraid to be a dork!

For more awesome geekiness and all things nerd, check out:

Word of the Nerd

The Hobbit

First of all...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Secondly...

I finally saw the trailer for The Hobbit a few days ago, and even though it was just a snippet of the awesomeness that is to come, I can officially say that I am BEYOND excited!

Now, my excitement doesn't just stem from the fact that I'm a huge fan of the fantasy genre or of the Lord of the Rings trilogy in general, but rather, my excitement stems from the fact that The Hobbit is a book that will always have a special place in my heart until the day I die.

Why, you might ask?

Because, the fondest memory from my childhood consists of my dad (and avid Tolkien fan, himself) reading a chapter from the much beloved tome aloud to me every night before I went to bed. He even did a different voice for each character (Golum was especially creepy). Every night, he brought the world of Middle Earth to life for me, and I could not help but get sucked into it. I must confess, this is something I'm looking forward to doing for my own child once he or she is old enough.

So, as you can imagine, I've been looking forward to a Hobbit movie for quite some time. In fact, I was rather disappointed when Peter Jackson did the Lord of the Rings trilogy without having done a Hobbit movie beforehand, because for me, The Hobbit was what really started my love of the fantasy genre. When the rumors of a Hobbit movie began making their way around, I was beyond excited, but when it was said that Peter Jackson would not be involved, I will admit that I actually shuddered in revulsion because it was Jackson who brought the pages of Tolkien's trilogy to life on the big screen. I could not understand why he would not be doing the same for The Hobbit.

However, when it was announced that Peter Jackson would in fact be taking the helm for the film, there was much rejoicing on my part!

Now then, getting back to the movie trailer...

As I mentioned earlier, it was only a snippet of the awesomeness that is to come, but it's made me all the more excited for the film when it finally comes out! I have no doubt that Jackson will make it every bit the masterpiece that he made the Trilogy, and I'm very much looking forward to seeing much beloved characters come to life on the big screen.