Shriveled Heart, but a Proud Brain – Part Four
Within half hour, I was at the holocaust survivor’s home. He greeted me with excitements at the front door and gave me a big hug. He brought me a big glass of water to drink as he saw my red and tired face. We sat down and talked about my incredible adventure.
“Rrrrrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnng” my cellphone rang and it was Jean-Victor’s and Marie’s mother. Finally, I heard something from someone. She apologized for all the chaotic and of course was very concerned about me and what happened the night before. She spoke to Anais’ mother and Anais just got out of the hospital, and they got everything worked out and planned for the rest of my trip. BUT! I changed my airfare from Friday to Tuesday as I was very exhausted and didn’t want to bother my friends since it was really discourteous to drop this bomb at the last minute, and I also got a good deal airfare change. They had planned that I was going to Anais’ the next day and stay there until Wednesday and head to the Maublancs that day as they were still out of town until then. The minute I told the mother that I changed my ticket, she was so PISSED! I explained to her that I felt badly for bothering them at the last minute, and of course, she said that it was not my fault at all, and they were sorry that they weren’t there for me. She tried to make me change my airfare ticket back to Friday, but I already paid the change fees! UGH! Well, I was going to be back next summer anyhow, and of course, that’s what I told them too. Soooo…..here was the sweet deal. Jean-Victor and his father would come back early JUST for ME! So,Chanel Handbags, they planned that they would come back on Monday and so, I would head to them on Monday and stay there that night, and the father would take me to the airport on Tuesday. Whew! Now, I was completely relieved that everything worked out.
Then, Serge made a wonderful dinner – veggie omelet and homemade bread. It was certainly a very deserving dinner. This man is 86 years old and can still cook!
It was the next day late afternoon, Friday afternoon, and I was sitting in the hotel lobby in tears. I was so exhausted from my farm leader’s arguments and also very upset that volunteer program was unsuccessful, and I was unsure about my plans in Bayonne as everything got messed up. I was supposed to be at my girlfriend’s, Anais’, home that night and until middle of the week, but because she was in the hospital, it was impossible to know when she would be out. My guy friend, Jean-Victor, gave me his wrong cell phone number and so, he was unreachable and even his sister, Marie, who was still at home, was not responding nor returning my call as I left a message.
The minute the hour hand turned to five o’clock on my watch, the time that the holocaust survivor, Serge, told me that I could come over, I asked the hotel to call the taxi to head to the holocaust survivor’s home.
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Between Florence and Venice = Bolonga
On the way to Venice, we stopped in Bologna, a city that tried to overpower other cities, but failed to do so. I walked through a continuous hall of arched colonnades. It seemed forever and went on for miles. Eventually, I reached to the center town of Bologna. In this center, there is a massive fa?ade – less church. The exterior of this church is just plain brown and made of stones. Of course, there is supposed to be a fa?ade. This church was meant to outdo the Florence Cathedral. If the fa?ade was built,Replica Chanel, this church would have been one of the grander churches. Unfortunately, Bologna went broke when the church was being built.
Bologna was founded in 534 B.C. by the Etruscans and was rebuilt by the Romans. Bologna also has the very first university, University of Bologna.
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All packed!
*SIGH*
Sneakers – Good for walking and hiking
Chaos Sandles – Good for hot days when I have to walk a lot
Flip-Flops – Good for beach and to use as slippers
Dressy shoes – Good for party events and shows
Cute brown ballet looking shoes – Good for any dressy casual events and they’,Replica Handbags;re too cute not to bring them!
The hardest part of packing was picking out shoes.? Women know what I am talking about.? There are too many different type of shoes for different types of events.? I started out with perhaps ten shoes in my suitcase.? Of course, my suitcase was overflowing and overweight.? So, I eliminated five pairs of shoes.? I’m bringing:
While I will be in France for two seasons, summer and fall, I am bringing mostly summer clothes, and my family will ship a box of fall clothes to the campus where I will be studying this fall.? The box of fall clothes along with my art supplies is all packed up and ready to go too!? There was just no way that I could drag heavy sweaters and a winter coat for two months as I will be moving ALL over the country for the first two months of my trip.
The highlight of my week was packing.? I feel like I am a refugee as I am going to be living in another country for such a long period of time, and I can only bring a limited amount of stuff.? Imagine going through the entire closet and trying to decide which clothes are the favorites?? I had to stand and stare at my wardrobe for minutes and think about which clothes that I loved dearly.? The ones that were my favorites, I packed them in my pink suitcase.? Yes, my suitcase is PINK!? What an unusual color for a suitcase?!? I purposely picked an unusual colored suitcase so that I could identify my suitcase easily when I pick it up at the airport, and also, so that the host families with whom will be staying during part of the trip can search for me easily.? I’m telling them all, “Look for the girl with a PINK suitcase!”
*SIGH*
I’m just now finally breathing and feeling relieved that I have everything that I need to head off, including my VISA .? I sure do have a few touch ups to do such as updating my baby (iPod), but other than that, I am READY to head out of the door!
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Womens’ UGGs
On closer investigation, some then noticed that ugg boots, ugg baby boots for both men and women, are actually stylish on your feet – warm in winter and super cool in summer, so the byword goes.
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Ugg Boots for any season
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There are very few women who have not heard of the famous sheepskin boots that are very comfortable and lovely at the same time. Being very versatile, ugg boots grew in popularity very quickly, and the higher the demand was, the ultra short ugg boots more sophisticated and varied the offer became. Nowadays,gucci purses, these famous sheepskin boots come in very wide range of styles, sizes and colors, so as to cater to all tastes and demands. Although most ugg boots are designed especially for women and come in colors such as pink, lavender or other pastels, there is als ugg classic short black o quite a wide range of ugg boots for men as well.
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When it comes to fashion in general and footwear in particular, ‘the latest trend’ is a ve ugg baby boots ry relative notion. ‘Here today, gone tomorrow’ is more likely to d ugg boots bailey button efine what happens in the world of fashion. What is fashionable today may very well be obsolete in just a couple of months, especially if the item in question becomes extremely popular and everybody starts wearing it.
Your ultra short ugg boots kids will also love these sheepskin boots. Not only are they trendy, but they are also warm, soft and comfortable, in other words, the perfect choice for the winter season. And speaking of season, it may come as a surprise to many people that these sheepskin boots are ideal not only for cold weather but also for warm weather.
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The Eye of The Storm -OR- The People Who Truly Run
“Art School Confidential.”
To that, he seems a bit taken back, almost insult, with his response of, “Well… that doesn’t automatically discounts it.”
MK & I were on the fence about going to the next day, but since we had spent money on a two-day pass, we almost felt obligated (plus we had to meet Robin and give him copies of our stuff before he goes off to Texas for a show there). Sunday was windier and colder, which made the sight of seeing the line of people, which had been moved outside, all the more horrifying. Though the mood was far lighter and less oppressive than the day before, which was certainly nice. Chatted with a few other folks, including Dave Keirsch and Sara Varon. But otherwise, it was the last day of a comic show, and therefore, not too exciting. Though I did stumble across the Jedi Academy panel, and discovered that much of what Jedis wear can be found at Marshall’s.
I may as well get to the good stuff: this past weekend was the first ever New York Comic-Con.
Day one started when I arrived at the Jacob Javits Center around 11-ish. Going in, I was already frustrated because I had failed the number mantra of indie comic-dom, which was to get one’s book done for the show, no matter what. The previous day, I was at MK’s to put together the second Unlucky mini, but due to a combination of being sick, technical difficulties (mainly MK’s crappy scanner), and my sometimes overly picky demeanor, I didn’t get it done. Granted, its not like I had a table or anything, I just wanted copies on-hand to trade or give out, but still… But hey, my stuff may not be much, and even though I’m never ultimately satisfied with how it ends up, if anything ever seems off and I can still do something about it, I ain’t printing it, end of story.
Again, the kid says nothing and just staring at me. Until I finally get a bit impatient and state, “Listen, its not anime.”
At first he says nothing, but then asks, “What’s that?”
The floor itself was insanely packed, of course. You had the big guys, Marvel and DC, and right up front, which caused a massive bottle-neck, and that was rather annoying (even though that’s what they always do at the San Diego Comic Con, that place also six different entrances). Plus there were plenty of other publishers (both big and small), plus toys, anime, and manga companies, as well as tables with assorted back issues and bootlegs. The goal was to emulate San Diego, and it pretty much was, albeit scaled down. But the mood was definitely different, which could be best described as tense. Aside from all the Teamsters getting in peoples faces and seemingly misinforming people on purpose, as well as the Comic Con folks who simply didn’t know what the hell was going on (and a few even acted as if they enjoyed the spectacle of it all), and men in uniform from the police and fire department, and how everyone was constantly arguing with each other (mostly via walkie talkies), you had attendees that were afraid to simply leave the room, even to attend a panel that was taking place right around the corner in fears of not being able to let back in (and after checking out some reports, it seems that those fears were completely valid), which really made the $35 entrance fee feel like a total gyp. So basically, everyone was trapped.
In which I respond with, “Well, I’m afraid unless you have a pass, you can’t get in. To attend, you need a special screening pass, which are all gone.”
Lastly, I also found out last night from my roommate that our house is being dropped by All State. The reason? It seems that Brooklyn is now a hurricane zone. And at a time when its been so gusty that the house is starting to shake a bit. Basically, All State lost a ton over Hurricane Katrina, so they’re dropping hurricane coverage completely. Sweet.
Otherwise the show was fairly decent, though certainly nothing mind-blowing. At this point, I much prefer the atmosphere and intimacy that’s found at small press events such as SPX or MOCCA, can still enjoy rummaging through old books, if only to find that one old Iron Man collection back which I’m eternally looking for (I can’t believe Marvel has reprinted almost everything in their back catalogue, except for the the Armor Wars saga). Hell, I just enjoy being around comics, and even the folks that they attract, despite how stinky they can be. It was also interesting to see MK’s reaction to it all, since again, it was her first standard comic show (she’s only been to small press events previously). She obviously wasn’t prepared for the funk that had taken over certain sections of the floor (again, primarily at the Marvel and DC booth). The best part of any comic show for myself is running into folks, and there were some familiars present. Dave and John were there, of course, in the artist alley, as were Jamie Tanner and Tim Kelly, each with a new book (and both are quite superb). Ran into Steve, and I was able to finally compliment him on his awesome Brocktoon hooded sweatshirt, along with Matt Singer with his girlfriend Mel; he was there shooting stuff for IFC earlier in the morning, but one of the crew brought his girlfriend who wanted to get the hell out, so they had all split. Mel also complained about the smell (if you haven’t figured it our by now, comic geeks sure do smell funny!). Plus Gerard Way was present. I’ve never really mentioned this online, since I’ve always been afraid how it might look, like I was name dropping or something, but yeah, I went to college and am still sorta friends with the lead singer of My Chemical Romance. He was a cartooning major as well (and was a damn good one to boot), and we’re constantly running into each other, hence why I guess there’s no need to be super secretive.
I’m there, in a roped off area, and this kid comes up to me, with a blank, dumb state. He’s wearing, among other things, a Naruto headband, and a shirt that says “I Love Anime”, though the heart was actually kanji, so I really don’t know what it really said. Anyway, he’s just standing there, and asks, “What this line for?”
The next feature on the other-hand was simply amazing: Troll 2. LIke the best good films, the best worst films are at their apex when you just don’t know what’s going to happen next, let along what the hell is going on at the moment. Take Troll 2’s plot for example, which centers around a kid who’s constantly playing with the ghost of his dead grandfather. The family decides to take a trip to the country to switch places with another family in a small, innocuous looking farming community, but in which everyone acts sorta strange. Plus everyone’s trying to get them to eat stuff slathered in green goo. This goo is actually a substance which if a human ingests will turn them into half-human, half-vegetable thing, which is what goblins eat (not trolls it seems… in fact, never once are trolls ever brought up, just goblins), so the kid, with the help of his dead grandfather, has to prevent his family from eating the green crap the whole time (such as urinated on everyone’s meal at the dinner table early on). Also along for the fun are four geeky, and vaugely gay, teenage guys that follow the family to swoon the kid’s sister and who are the first encounter some woman who’s the head goblin. At one point, you’ve got one of the nerds who has become a potted plant thanks to said woman, the kid’s sister doing aerobics (in a scene that steals the whole film), and the most awkward skateboarding every caught on film. Troll 2 simply has the stupidest story, the worst acting, the dumbest looking goblins, and the awesomest 80’s soundtrack imaginable.
Perhaps I shouldn’t even bother, since anyone who is in comics has probably already had their fill of show talk, bitching, and spinning from the mountain of blog reports and all the other forms of coverage that the show has produced. But since 90% of the folks reading this particular blog is into video games, I may as well give my two cents. And like everyone else, I also thought the show was both a tremendous success and a cluster-fuck of epic proportions.
Anyway, by the time I got there, there literally thousands of people (now I’m finding out that it was about 4,000-6,000) waiting in line inside the convention center, which made looking for MK, who had been there for almost an hour beforehand, impossible. Though I did find her, in another line outside (which was insanely cold btw). What this second line for the con, which seemed to lead to nowhere was doing (though one would only know this if they had scoured the entire parameter like I had), and whom plus why had it been set up is beyond me, but it immediately became a moot point once I met with up MK since that was the exact same moment when the guy in the bull horn started to everyone: “The building has met its capacity. By order of the fire marshall, everyone must leave. Only pre-registered people can enter. If you have not already purchased a ticket, you must leave the building.”
MK & I went back inside, in hopes of figuring out some contingency plan, but primarily to get the hell out of the cold. It was a real mess indoors, with tons of confused and pissed folks, with others barking (literally) at them to get the hell out. I had assumed that these were con people, but later learned that they were Teamsters, and a great source of all the problems (or at least, according to some). I immediately spotted Ric Meyers standing by the huge Lego statue of Batman. He was waiting for a business associate who had his pass to show up, so we stood around and chatted for a bit, plus soaked in the mess that was unraveling. In short time, after talking with other friends, a story began to emerge, that it was the Teamsters that were calling all the shots, and who made the decision to stop letting people in. It would seem that they have no love for comics, and this goes back some 12 or 13 years ago when a similar event was shut down by the fire marshal, again due to the Teamsters (both are quite close to each other). They basically run Javits, and I guess they expect to be heavily involved or a cut of the pay in each show that runs there. I’ve been there before for various other shows, like Licensing Fair, MacWorld, and DigitalLife, which are run by some heavy duty, big money entities, and you can tell that such folks can afford the bill. And considering that comic shows are nowhere near that scale, I’m guessing they didn’t give the Teamsters their cut or whatever, and were using tactics to retaliate against the Comic Con, or so I figure (hey, I’m just repeating what I’ve been told, so don’t quote me on any of this). But hence why everyone was saying “This is why you don’t hold a show in New York City!” all around.
Ric offered the possibility that his associate might have some spare passes, and he did, but only one. It was a temporary working exhibitor pass, which I gave to MK since she had been up all night working on putting together comics, plus it was her very first “mainstream” comics show. She went to the desk and did the “I fucked up!” routine, and managed to buy a pass, but best of all, they gave back the temp pass, so I went and did my patented, pissed off “Someone at the office fucked up!!!” routine and that’s how I got in as well. This was around the time the police were blocking off the stairwells, so Teamster bullshit or not, there really were way too many people for the show. So anyway, MK & I had both luck and timing, plus the ability to bullshit on our side, which as it would turn out would be the only means to get it. And I have to admit that I did feel pretty bad as I passed a pair of girls who were crying because they had waiting over two hours for their first comic show ever, only to be told that they couldn’t go in. But things weren’t exactly smoothing sailing from that point; there was yet another line, one that led directly to the show floor, and I almost got myself in trouble when I tried to circumvent it by asking if there was a special exhibitor’s entrance, and the person I was talking to turned out to be one of those ultra proactive individuals who then had to check if I was legit, and whom I had to literally run away from. But eventually I got in… again, I was lucky. I’ve since heard that even special, advertised guests, such as Kevin Smith, as well as the show’s sponser were denied entrance.
And to that, the kid turns around and starts walking away. But then he turns around, and with a sheepish grin, says “Promise me that you’ll throw trash at the screen if it sucks.”
Oh, and you had folks in costumes. The best had to be Unemployed Skeletor, who was just some dude with a huge gut and dressed like He Man’s arch-nemesis. He did a killer job with the voice (it was almost better than John Green’s rendition… almost). Also up there was the Stormtrooper with the creepy Burger King mask on; I caught him getting down on one knee and offering a hamburger to some girl dressed like Slave Leia. Funny. And the creepiest has to go to this one girl who was wearing a corset REALLY fucking tight (folks who saw her will know who I’m talking about). The way it contorted her body… imagine the letter r, literally as a humany body viewed from the side is the only way I can come close to describe it.
In non-comic stuff, and going back a few days, Friday night finally saw another horror night at Joe’s. The main feature was Uncle Sam, which shows what happens when some jarhead who’s way too into fighting and killing (and who’s just an asshole off the battle field, such as his history of beating up his sister and mom) is himself killed by friendly fire during the Desert Storm conflict. His body is recovered sometime after the war is over and is shipped back to his family, who is less than thrilled to be reminded of him, with the exception of his nephew who, not knowing of all the girl punching, viewed his uncle (named Sam btw) as a hero. Hence why he has no problem when the army literally leaves the coffin in the middle of the living room. Then the 4th of July happens, crazy uncle comes back to life, steals a cheesy Uncle Sam out-flit and goes on a killing rampage during a small town’s big 4th of July festivities. The biggest failing of the film is perhaps the idea that it sorta tries to be a serious film, which means the gruesome deaths are really not that gruesome and therefore not that much fun to watch. Then there’s the idiotic logic that the film prescribes to, such as how Uncle Sam is killed in the end by an old cannon, and how Issac Hayes. playing an old war vet who hobbles along on a fake leg, can get to his truck, drive to the middle of the town square, hitch the heavy-ass chain of the cannon to the back oh his truck, drive back to the house where he’s been about to kill the kid, get out of the truck, load the canon, then fire the deadly blows, all in such short time.
Also worth noting was the girl who was right in-front of us was a girl whom I recognized, but couldn’t figure out where, until it hit me. It was a SuicideGirl. When I mentioned this to MK, I was curious how she would react to this fun fact, but wasn’t. And when I asked why, she marked that it was hardly surprising, given my tastes, and reminded me that she’s so well aware in my taste in porn that she once got me some. And I’ll save my “Why I hate SuicideGirls, because its used to be chock full of all my kind of girls, like naked nerdy chicks, but now its mostly thuggish, tattooed and pierced chicks that I find a total turn-off, and which is especially lame since the photos are all boring, ever since it stopped becoming ‘porn’ and turned into ‘art’, and that’s because now more women subscribe to the site than women” rant for a later time (unless I just did it already). Then again, its hard not to notice any girl that’s just going on and on about how “awesome” Hentai is.
And that was the show. People are viewing it, in particular Saturday’s debacle, as an amazing testament of how much demand there is for comics in New York City, which it is, and that sense of validation is a good thing. And it could be argued that the Comic Con organizers simply underestimated said demand, plus any show its first time out is going to be a mess, but when you have folks who paid in advance being told to go home shortly after MK &,Replica Chanel; I scammed our way in (again crazy rumors time: some were apparently being given refund on site, but I have since heard that people were instructed to get a refund online, and even then there was no guarantee), then that is simply bad business and severely diminishes the future of a future show.
But the big highlight of the con for us was the catching the preview screening of Art School Confidential, the new film by Terry Zwigoff and Daniel Clowes. I may go into details a bit later (maybe I’ll do a full-fledged review for the new section!) but all I’ll say it is I’ve never seen a movie that has so accurately characterized the bullshit that is art school. I was a big fan of Ghost World, and I have to say, I liked this one even better, due to entirely personal reasons (when the character is dealing with all the crazy art school chicks… fucking classic). The movie also led to what I believe to be my definitive moment of the entire con, which took place shortly beforehand, while waiting in line.
“It’s the new Terry Zwigoff movie.”
After about four hours of just walking around, MK and I decided to take a chance and leave the confines of the show room for the panels. ADV was apparently trying to make a big splash with their release of Oh Mikey!, a.k.a. The Fuccons, and MK was interested in checking it out (perhaps due to the fact that I’ve been telling all my friends about it for the past four years). And I was curious to see how others would react to it… I still can’t believe that its being released in America. I know its popular to love all that’s “WACKY JAPPY!!!” but The Fuccons is on a whole another level. Basically, the show is about a family, the Fuccons, that hail from America and have relocated in Japan, and all the adventures they encounter. The crazy cast of crazies that they encounter includes Teacher Bob, a super shy school teacher who is too bashful to say anything, so his mom has to be by his side translate, Time Boy, a kid that is obsessed with time, and the Blueberry King, who is pretty self-explanatory. And everyone is portrayed by mannequins from the 50’s who are simply filmed just sitting there (occasionally one will spin around or go down a slide). You just have to see it. The person at ADV who’s spear-heading the project gave the presentation, and explained how super popular The Fuccons are in Japan (more so that I realized) and all the intricacies involved in it coming over here (such as re-edited everything to allow the different length of time for Japanese and America dialogue). Thankfully its in good hands, and even the American voices sound great. A few episodes were shown, and while it took a short while for its genius to sink in, MK is now an official fan. She even managed to score a free preview DVD which we watched later that night at my place, while doing laundry.
Then I to that, “Ummm…. I’m pretty sure it won’t.”
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Coming Soon
Meanwhile, from other parts of the world, tons of crazy stuff have just been revealed for the Xbox 360 and DS. Well, pretty much only for the DS. There’s so many crazy games coming down the pipe, I can’t even keep track! Meanwhile, MS just had their X05 event which was designed to get everyone all excited for the system’s launch later this year. And, aside from Ridge Racer 6, nothing was all that impressive, at least in my opinion.
… which reminds me; I still haven’t been to the store and its been open for how many months now? I need to get out more.
Yeah, needless to say, I’m not a big 360 fan for the time being. Perhaps Mizuguchi’s new game might change my mind. But till then…
I just don’t know about these Microsoft guys. In almost each and every interview, the guys behind the system come off as both arrogant (which is okay when you’,Gucci Handbags;re on top, and they most clearly are not) and complete clueless. For example, check out this interview where they show they just don’t get the point behind Revolution’s controller (its at the end). What a way to make your system look even more second rate than it already is.
Perhaps this is old news to some of my comic book friends, but I just found out about it; an upcoming show at the New York Giant Robot store…
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(More) Surprises Indeed
- And one last thing, and I sign of things to come, is a quote from a recent article on Yahoo news from the UK, about the PS3:
- I finally got a new TV; a while back I realized that the reason why I wasn’t playing too many games wasn’t due to there not being enough time (I’m super busy, but dammit, I can make the time to play games), but my TV being blurry, which is okay for general television and movie viewing, but a real headache if you’re trying to read hi-res text. So I treated myself to a 27 inch flat screen Toshiba. Its super huge and rather nice.
The whole thing was a colossal and abysmal bore fest. Even though I knew it was going to be a transitional show, and therefore didn’t expect either Sony or Nintendo to have anything playable, it was still rather clear that no one was truly prepared for the event. Microsoft perhaps being the best example of this; they went in looking like total winners to some, on a loud and noticeable (and rather obnoxious) hype train, and went out looking like damaged goods to a certain degree. For example, as each post-E3 day passes, more and more evidence appears showing that MS really had no plans to support backwards compatibility whatsoever, and were probably totally shocked to see it become such a hot topic (hence why their initiative is so noticeably messy and awkward). J Allard’s comparison of the current and next generation of gaming hardware to VCRs and DVD players, in which he claims that no one watches VHS anymore when they have DVDs, is total bullshit and further evidence that MS is going into next-gen war far too overconfidently. Its one thing for a company to spew whatever PR propaganda about such and such system and how its gonna rock the world, but to actually believe it, with no real games to back it up, is a sign of real trouble. Again, it could be argued that the Xbox360 isn’t about the games but delivering content in a dynamic fashion, something which folks have been trying back since the days of the 3D0 and have failed, mostly due to it being ahead of its time, maybe it finally is time, but I’d rather go with someone who knows a thing or two about content, and Microsoft is not on that list.
- Its really weird how the DS ended up having such a really good showing, since most people consider it dead in the water. I too had lost all faith in Nintendo’s “third pillar” thanks to the PSP, but its months later and there’s still only three games worth owning (once again, Lumines, Ridge Racers, and Wipeout Fusion) and it looks to stay that way for the next few months if the E3 is any indication. Meanwhile, there’s more than just Nintendogs to look forward to, and my desire to get the machine has been rekindled, thanks in large part with Mario & Luigi 2 and the new Sonic game. Speaking off…
- After a particularly long and stressful week for both of us, MK & I spent the weekend holed in my place in Brooklyn to avoid the idiot populace at large. Plus we did plenty of BBQ-ing (even when it ran Saturday night!) and MK finally up to speed on Trailer Park Boys. Plus she finally got to play Pikmin 2 which I got specifically for her.
“As an example of the advances being made, Pearson noted that Sony’s new PlayStation 3 computer games console is 35 times as powerful as the model it replaced, and in terms of processing is “one percent as powerful as a human brain”.
- One real surprise was word that Kojima was returning to the position of director for Metal Gear Solid 4. Yeah, I know he said the same thing before part 3, but then he had something to prove (to “make up” for MGS2). But with easily one of the best games this generation under his belt, I figured he was serious about moving on. Maybe we’ll still see a Zone of the Enders 3.
- Besides the whole Xbox 360 BC debacle, its funny to see that people are also still bitching about the Spider Man font being used for the PS3 (can’t say I blame them). Now I really wish that fake logo was the real thing. Also, that crappy new controller? It had a sign right next to it on the display floor stating that its a work in progress. Hey, if Sony is smart, they’,hermes belts;ll listen and get that thing changed back to the Dual Shock that everyone knows, which was damn near perfect, so why the change?
- So you want to know how small the Game Boy Micro really is? Well here’s a handy chart. Sorry, but that’s too small for me.
- In addition to the new TV, I did plenty of other shopping, mostly DVDs. Seasons 3 and 4 of Futurama are on their way, as well as season 4 of the Simpsons, and the 2nd SCTV collection thanks to eBay. I picked up season 5 of the Simpsons at Target for the cheap, plus some bunny ears so I can finally watch local TV (and it doesn’t make my new TV look nearly as ghetto as I though it would). I was gonna put a stop on the DVD buying, but when I was at J&L earlier today since I had some time on my hands (I went to City Hall to get out of jury duty, and chatting it up with the clerk about games really did a lot for me to help speed the process), and noticed that the whole collection of Mr Show, including seasons 1+2, 3, and 4 were mislabeled for just the price of season 4, and the sales clerk didn’t notice. Sweet! So with the money I saved, I may as well buy more DVDs!
– Xbox 360 premieres, underwhelms people; the Perfect Dark Zero debacle becomes a poster child for them.
– PS3 premieres, people go ga-ga over the graphics, the console and controller design makes everyone cringe, wacky Photoshops commence.
– Nintendo’s press conference bores everyone to tears, with too much DS for some, not enough Revolution for most, plus a new Zelda trailer.
– Everyone fights over PS3 trailers about them being pre-rendered or not, the concession being that its all in game graphics but just heavily scripted
– A super tiny GBA is revealed.
– Some rather neat DS games are shown.
– Hardly any PSP games are present
– In fact, there’s no real breakout games, at least any surprises
– Microsoft has a hard time keeping the facts regarding backwards compatibility straight as crazy rumor and speculation runs rampant. Damage controls is so bad for MS that J Allard gets upstaged from the spastic guy from on of G4’s video game review shows.
- Someone on a message board claiming Nintendo will reveal a shocker on Thursday (a.k.a. “Thursdayton”), and for some reason, tons of people believe this to be for real and gets them all excited. Not surprisingly, nothing happens. A fanmade vid featuring a fictitious console, the NintendoON, is somehow used as ammo. Then folks start thinking that the person, who call himself Aries at first, which later becomes Dark-something, might actually be Reggie trying to stir shit up.
- Plus, with a decent TV at last, I finally played some of the Xbox games that I’ve had for almost years now. For the past few nights its been nothing but OutRun 2.
- Actually, E3 was a really weird show, with Sega creating such strong buzz due to their tech demos. Unfortunately, there are no good sources to see the video, but I have seen a “good as its gonna get” version of the presentation, and it looked totally hot. Basically, it starts with footage from a mech game which is coming out for 360 that looked pretty nice. Then you see two Virtua Fighters, and they’re easily the nicest looking and moving fighter game characters I personally have ever seen. Next was what looked to be a next-gen version of the classic Afterburner which looked totally insane. You just have to see it. And the whole thing ended with Sonic running and jumping and the such, which again looked super sharp, though it has to be said that he’s looked equally awesome in recent 3D Sonic titles, but playing them hasn’t been nearly as fun. Hence why the new DS game seems to promising; its 2D for starters.
So the question must be asked: why was E3 such a bomb this year? Not cuz “OMG, the industry is doomed!!!” or some other nonsense. The first answer is because there was no real surprises, and you can blame that on everyone spilling the beans before the show technically began (once again, nice job MS). But the main one is its not about hardware, its all about the games, stupid, and again, there was nothing really new on that end. No big shockers, no massive title that blew everyone away, hell, not even a completely out of the blue niche title that demands attention. Katamari 2 was present, and it managed to make everyone who play it fall in love, which is awesome, but thats hardly a shocker. And once again, I’m glad Odama is still coming. Though sadly, it seems Shadow of the Colossus had some major technical issues. At least Okami is shaping up very nicely. As for most people’s game of the show? Granted, I also think the Zelda looks killer, I still sorta miss the Wind Waker look and caliber of movement. Plus, the official word is Mario 128 is a Revolution title; hardly a surprise, but still disappointing. Will it be mario 256 then? is the Revolution a 256 bit machine? I don’t know.
But enough MS ranting and raving; as for the rest of the show, here’s a basic rundown, from top to bottom:
Meanwhile, in the real world:
- Otherwise, the show was indeed a real downer, and I’m sorta glad I didn’t go. Hell, even the swag wasn’t that hot from what I’ve seen. I mean, I could give a rat’s ass about those 360 faceplates (even though others feel differently). Though if Carmen my editor at Nick Mag got me anything, I ain’t exactly turning any of it down either! Hopefully either she, or Job or George managed to nab for me one of those super keen Katamari mouspads.
A few other E3 related tid-bits:
And with that is the opening salvo for ridiculous assumptions of next-gen hardware. Anyone remember the B.S. about the PS2 being able to render all the special effects for Episode 1 or being classified as a super computer and therefore it being “too dangerous” to get in the hands of the Chinese or Saddam Hussein? Well, I guess it officially begins…
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So E3 is finally over with. I know I said that I would discuss the show in greater detail once it was finished, but really, what’s the point? What can I say that hasn’t been said?
- Still feeling sorta shitty. Had to cancel my scheduled meeting with Nelson tonight to talk about our game. We’ll get the chance to chat after our Gamoids (IGDA NY) meeting tomorrow night. Speaking off, I finally got my IGDA membership card in the mail yesterday (was wondering what the hold up). Plus my TATE shirt finally arrived. Fuckin’ A! Too bad, I don’t actually have it; I have to have all my packages delivered to Jason’s place of work since since stuff seems to go “missing” in the SVA mailroom…
- Something which got plenty of folks interested, including one of the guys in PixelJump, was the possibility of Nintendo reaching out to indie developers. Well, it seems that it really did sound too good to be true.
… And that was the point where I just gave up on following the show and opted to wait it out till after the weekend. This year’s event was riddled with so much out of control speculation and flat out lies that after spending over an hour tracking the whole Aries story, I realized how much time was being wasting, turned off my Mac and started to watch the rest of my season 2 Futurama box set. Then after about five minutes, I realized that turning off my computer killed some torrents, so I had to do a restart.
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Custom Work
I mean,Replica Chanel, sure, anybody can throw together some photo-snaps with loops from gar(b)age band… but having something composed and recorded by an artist you like, would be quite something else.
Before photography was invented, if you wanted an image of a family member or friend or your house, you would visit a few artists until you found one that you felt would be sympathetic to the work you had in mind, and you would hire her/him to paint or sculpt it.
Interesting.
It would be interesting to do custom work for hire… like most painters used to do – albeit a long time ago.
A modern version would be to write and record music (and/or create photographic images) depicting a person’s favorite landscape, house, friend (or poem, season or?). Depending on the price, the resulting music/photographs could be a work for hire and the sole possession of the person or entity commissioning the work.
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Thursday in Houston
Stephen Duros on Houston
Two sold-out shows at Bend Studios. Very nice audience. Great sound –,Gucci Handbags; according to our engineer Alan. Many people were not comfortable sitting on the floor. I encouraged them to stand up and stretch while I talked about the new CDs or before the encore.
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