As I write this, I am absolutely stunned and deeply saddened to have learned that Michael Turner, a comic book artist whom I've always respected and enjoyed the work of, passed away yesterday (June 27th) after a long battle with cancer.
He was only 37 years old.
I just... I don't know what to say, I don't know how to react to this. I mean I always enjoyed his work, his style was something that always intrigued me to pick up whatever issue it was that he had worked on. Recently, I had picked up Superman/Batman: Supergirl and let me tell you, I've never been a big reader of any of those titles.
But I saw the name "Michael Turner" on the cover and that was all it took. I was sold from that moment on, just by simply seeing his name on that book.
While it is always sad to learn of a person's passing, it is at least a sliver of peace to know that his suffering and pain is no more. There is no doubt that he will be deeply missed by his countless fans, though I know personally that he will not be forgotten.
God rest his soul, thank you sir for everything you've done and may you be at peace.
So today had the makings of what would be a first time experience for both myself as well as my girlfriend. Last week I just happened to see a poster in the window at GNC about an autograph signing that was to take place there. Much to my surprise (since this kind of thing doesn't happen all that often), it was an autograph signing by former 3 time WWE Champion, John Cena.
Now my girlfriend, as I'm sure many guys' girlfriends we watch wrestling are, is a big fan of Cena. He is also one of the few wrestlers who she wanted to meet. So I don't need to say that the choice to attend was debated or anything of that sort.
WE.
WERE.
GOING.
So flash forward to today and we arrive at Ala Moana at a little past 9:45 am. To describe the line as "long" just doesn't do it justice. Now for the folks who've been to Ala Moana, picture the GNC store and now imagine a line of human mass just stretched out from there, down to that healthy restaurant at the end (by the escalators below Macy's). And the length of that line did not go down, even at the time we reached the front of the line (at around 12).
Now things got interesting at this point, as people from GNC were making announcements that in order to snap a picture with Cena, people were required to make a purchase. We needed to spend money to take a picture. We waited in line for over 2 hours and we needed to spend money to take a goddamn picture.
I outright refused to do this, mostly because I have no interest in vitamins or powders or that sort of thing. The same rang true for my girlfriend, who couldn't give a rat's ass about whatever GNC was trying to sell off. She just wanted to get it over with by this point.
I even noticed people just casually walking inside, then emerging some minutes later with autographs in hand. Which raised a very intelligent question in my head: What the fuck is this line for again? "I feel stupid" moment number 1.
So after finally reaching the front and finally getting inside, we're stopped dead in our tracks. Other people were getting in ahead of us...
Wait, what? We did our waiting, what more did we have to do?
Oh wait, since we didn't buy shit, we got pushed back and people who spent $150 or more got to go ahead. I hope these fucking people really had a use for all that stuff or else they've gotta be the dumbest sons of bitches I've ever seen (admittedly, I was beginning to feel like a total idiot ("I feel stupid" moment number 2!) for spending this much time for all this, but I was determined to at least get the autograph). Along these lines, people in wheelchairs, crutches and people with medical equipment also followed in this side line.
I casually cracked a joke to my girlfriend that it might have made our wait shorter if she had, I don't know, maybe threw herself down a few flights of stairs before hand?
I got a chuckle in self-humor, she, on the other hand, was fair from being easily amused at this point and promptly struck me with a look of pure evil. Needless to say, that ended my attempt at being funny in that crowded, hot store once and for all.
And all the while, no body bothered to explain this part (about people spending stupid amounts of money to get ahead of the crowd, the elderly or anyone in a cast) to the growing line. I know this probably makes me sounds like a douche, but after standing in line for this long, yeah... I was getting pretty irritated myself over this thing.
So now, NOW it is finally OUR turn to get up there and...
About a little over a minute later, we shake his hand, we get the autograph and it's over.
Just like that.
"I feel stupid" moment number 3 kicks in right about here.
It happened just that damn fast folks and I think it is a fairly safe assumption to say that that will be the last signing we'll attend for a very long time. Don't get me wrong, it was kind of cool to see the guy in person and all. But for all the waiting and stuff in between, like having to buy shit to take a picture, it just wasn't that worth it to me. I understand that they (GNC) is a business and all, but meh.
Oh well, now I know what to expect from this sort of thing. Lesson learned and learned well, now I'm just that much more wiser and now my calves are sore as hell. All of that for a simple signature on a picture.
Did I ever mention that I might be going out of my mind?
I suppose it is a little early to be making predictions about a pay per view show that is still in the works. Pictured above is all of the current champions in WWE right now. The picture above (which is actually a wallpaper) was taken from Kupy Wrestling Wallpapers and I admit that I've gotten more then a few wallpapers from there. There are some nicely done works over there, easily some of the best wrestling wallpapers out there!
But eh, anyway... PPV prediction post? Maybe, maybe not. But what the hell right? In any event, I think this writing will be geared more towards just airing out a few opinions I've developed over the past several months. I don't write much about wrestling these days, certainly not nearly as much as I once had. But enough of the beating around the bush!
Here goes the breakdown, starting with the champions of Raw, Smackdown and ECW.
WWE Champion Triple H - After not being in the world title scene, Triple H looks like he is about to restart his total domination of Raw. Or maybe Smackdown. Or dare I say ECW? He did a pretty good job of destroying "The Age of Orton," but it makes me wonder if "The Game" will remain on Raw? Regardless, he has John Cena to worry about at Night of Champions. Regardless still, I believe Triple H will leave with the title.
Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho - I could rant about his latest IC title "reign," but that is just a waste of time. A fighting champion, Jericho absolutely IS NOT. While he isn't in a match for Night of Champions thus far, I'd have to believe he'll be facing Shawn Michaels. And hopefully for the title!
World Tag Team Champions Hardcore Holly & Cody Rhodes - It looks like it took these two a long time, but they are finally going back to where they started. When this team first came to be, they had tension and they didn't appear as though they would last. And at last, the cracks are beginning to surface. But I wonder... who will be their opponents at Night of Champions?
WWE Women's Champion Mickie James - I like Mickie James and then I don't. Surely it was a huge win when she defeated Beth Phoenix, but just watching her match just doesn't convince me that she is a good choice for champ. Maybe I am bias, but I'd rather see Victoria or Michelle McCool as champ...
World Heavyweight Champion Edge - There is just no way to diss Edge anymore. I'd like to hate him, but how can you really? I mean he has won back the world title time and again and now he can even be credited for putting the Undertaker out of active competition. Personally, I'd like to see he and Triple H switch shows...
WWE United States Champion Matt Hardy - Was this just a mercy title win for Hardy? I mean his brother Jeff has racked up Intercontinental championships left and right and has even fought for the WWE Championship several times now. Still, it is about damn time that he won something other then a tag title. But to face Chavo at Night of Champions? Huh!? I gotta admit that I am a little surprised that his battle against MVP ended so quickly. Maybe that is a sign...?
WWE Tag Team Champions John Morrison & The Miz - Despite their strange beginning, this is easily one of my favorite WWE tag teams. And what appeals to me about them even more is the fact that, even while being the bad guys, they are fighting champions! I wish Jericho would watch these guys and take a hint!
ECW Champion Kane - I think his rise to the top is a little too late, as his popularity just isn't what it used to be. But a feud with Big Show just might help him get back on the right track. Then again, it sure looks like ECW isn't the "Land of Extreme," but rather the "Land of Rejects." Is this how WWE pleases the guys they won't push towards either the WWE or World Heavyweight championships? I honestly hope that that isn't the case.
The Draft is just around the corner (this coming Monday night), which will be even more interesting because the Night of Champions PPV is on the 29th. I wonder what will change and how it'll affect the show? Oh so many questions and so very little answers...
Old news, yes...
But still, I've been reading snippets of info on this most recent remake of Final Fantasy IV and I cannot wait to play it. This is even after playing through the SNES, PS1 and GBA versions. Isn't that something?
I probably wouldn't have cared so much about this if it weren't for the fact that everything changed for me after seeing Final Fantasy III in action. Then after finding out that that was how Square-Enix was to make FFIV, oh man. I'm a fan all over again!
Now, pictured above is probably the boss that I personally have the most (frustrating) memories of. The Magus Sisters.
In later years, they proved to be no problem in dealing with for me. But back when I first picked up this game, their Delta Attack absolutely murdered my party. I remember battles dragging onward for over an HOUR at times. Yes, I know that proves how incredibly shitful my ability to play RPGs were, but I will never forget the hell I experienced with this sibling triad.
As for the most memorable part of this story, I think it is a toss up. There are so many! Such as the first time you acquire your airship. That feeling as the airship takes off for the first time is just absolutely f***ing awesome! Or when Kain appears and begins to fight Cecil during the Red Wings' attack on Yang's hometown. Speaking of Cecil, his journey and subsequent battle against himself (Paladin vs. Dark Knight), where the light prevails and the Paladin emerges. Or when Palom and Porum sacrifice themselves in order to save the team in Castle Baron. OK and maybe even the part when the truth behind the relationship between Cecil and Golbez is revealed.
Even with a list that I can probably keep adding to, I think I can actually pick out my favorite part of the story. And the more I think about it, the more convinced I am that it is a clean cut winner in my book. My favorite scene/battle was when Rydia returns to aid the party after disappearing during the Leviathan attack. She clearly had aged and she became increasingly more powerful then when she was a kid. Besides that, once you get the power of Bahamut, she can easily hold her own.
So many memories and so little time left! I think the American release for it is next month, which is coming around the corner and fast! Now I know I could try and get a hold of the Japanese version to be able to play it now. But after buying the Suikoden I & II game for PSP (and ultimately feeling like a lost puppy), I have come to the conclusion that I will just wait for the game I can actually read and understand.
Spoony Bard!
Wow, It's Friday the 13th today! You know what that means don't ya? Bad luck! All day! Today! Noooo!
And to think, I crossed a black cat or two earlier last night. Does that mean I'm doubled up for a long, long day? I surely hope that doesn't end up being the case, because man... Fridays should be a day of rest. Although, if things somehow ended up being my way, everyday would somehow become a day of rest.
Which I guess would result with a pretty lazy society, which I'd doubt would be good for anyone in the long term. Oh well!
Speaking of Friday the 13th, I read somewhere online (lost the link) that there is talk about a Michael Bay directed Friday the 13th movie in the talks right now. Or was it in the works? Either way, I hope it ends up being better then Jason X. Oh. My. God. That had to have been one of the worst movies I've ever suffered through in my life!
On the flip side, today also marks the release of The Incredible Hulk movie, which I hope is good. Or at least better then the other Hulk movie that was released a few years back. Regardless though, rest assured that I'll be seeing it in the very near future.
Anyway, this was meant to be a quick think out session and that is where I will leave this. I think I need sleep, because Fridays always suck at my work place (more so then even Mondays!). Hopefully it'll be another day without incident.
But considering it is Friday the 13th, meh... that is probably highly unlikely. Boooo!
It was many years ago that I had reached the conclusion that American comics just weren't my "thing" anymore. I remember that period of time quite well, my interests in the stories of the X-Men had reached it's twilight and I was winding down and quick. It was during the time when the "Operation: Zero Tolerance" storyline was just finishing up. My thoughts then were how uninteresting the stories of the X-Men, along with the other mutants, had become.
And so without a second thought, I set aside what was once my love for comics and brushed away it's memory like a bad dream.
In the years following, I had picked up into Manga and had thought that I had found where the good stuff was at. And granted, there were some fairly good stories being told in those books. But after picking up into several series, I grew disinterested in due part to the fact that it took many, many months before the next book would be released. Factor into that the idea that a great many of the stories were beginning to sound painfully too similar to one another and... and there went my interests again.
It felt like it had the many years before when I have given up on American comics. The story just wasn't there and the waiting period between books was murder. As a matter of fact, I am presently pissed off because the one and only series left that I've been reading religiously for the past few years (Rebirth) has seemingly died. No new release dates, nothing.
Not even the faintest of whispers.
BREAKING NEWS (Mostly for my own purpose here, being that I tend to obsess over stories I like): So I just was reading about what volume 23 for Rebirth is going to be like. So the story is FINALLY reaching the point where all the major players are finally going to meet on the battlefield. GODDAMNIT!! I hate waiting for this stuff!! I hope Tokyopop will -somehow- get their shit together and speed up their translating!! Faster!! Get volume 22 out and then get a step in it and get the rest of the series out ASAP!!!
Sorry.
Anyway, yes... after losing a great deal of interest in Manga, I began to pick up reading American comics. But unlike before, I didn't really commit to any single series in particular. But then, I did get my re-introduction in the form of the Astonishing X-Men, which became an instant favorite for me. In recent months, I've read the stories for Planet Hulk, Batman: The Killing Joke, Superman-Batman: Supergirl, X-Men: The New Age of Apocalypse, Wonder Woman: Love and Murder and X-Men: Messiah Complex just this morning.
And let me tell you, there isn't a stinker amongst that list. With each new comic I pick up, my love for their stories is coming back. Needless to say, I am simply amazed with how much better the story telling has become over the past years. Admittedly, it was a first time for me in reading stories for Hulk and Wonder Woman and I will say that I wasn't even disappointed there. I did want to continue reading the story following Planet Hulk (aptly named World War Hulk), but then I saw the number of books that spans and I think that will have to wait a little while longer.
I am also a little sad to learn that Astonishing X-Men had ended. I enjoyed the series a good deal and the smaller X-Team made things a lot more focused and easier to follow. Much easier then having guys all across the globe, that's for sure.
Pictured above is Runaways, which might have also ended (part of the creative team was also heading the Astonishing X-Men book). Sad, I actually wanted to pick that up next. And I know that these happenings were back in February of this year, which means I'm getting a little closer to catching up and yet I am still so far away.
If not Runaways, I'd like to pick back up into X-Men, which I read had disbanded in the story "Divided We Stand." What intrigues me is the fact that the team ended up reforming and relocating from New York to San Francisco under the sole leadership of Cyclops!
Easiest way to say it, I am a fan renewed. Is it obvious? 'Nuff said.
Well it certainly has been ages since I've gotten on here and felt like doing some serious writing! I think I just needed to take a short break and just let the thoughts me my head recollect themselves. Would that be considered like a mental reorganization? Well whatever it was, it was exactly what the doctor ordered.
But this writing will easily be a test of wills, in thanks to a little game called Wii Play. After playing several rounds (each) of boxing, tennis, bowling and baseball, my right arm is killing me! I'm having a less then thrilling time trying to move it around. But what the hell, writing is the game and I intend on playing it up tonight!
To kick things off, games! Gotta mention games here, because man there are a few things floating around out there that have caught my eye. Just take a look down below at the list of labels for this post and you will see the number of titles I am talking about.
For starters, Darksiders: Wrath of War looks like it potentially can be a fun game. I mean playing as one of the Four Horsemen? What's not to like? OK, OK... so it is set in yet another post apocalyptic world, but as the Horsemen named War, you battle through legions of demons in a quest to regain your lost powers.
I can say the same thing for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed too. While you aren't playing one of the Horsemen, you do assume the role of Darth Vader's apprentice which screams awesome already. But what gets me just a little giddy is the fact that you start the damn game off as the Vader himself. Dark side? Where do I sign up?
Tales of Vesperia looks interesting, both in it's appearance and from how the game was described. Then again, words and actual reality can end up being two completely different things. But I still hold hope, hope that this will be a better RPG then those that came to the next generation consoles before it. But considering how few RPGs there are for the XBox 360 and how "fun" those have been, hope isn't easily held I'm afraid.
What I am hoping for is that the game doesn't fall flat and hollow like so many have done over the years. Yes, expecting an RPG to be rich in story, having addictive game play and all that other good stuff, in this day and age, is just crazy. But a player can hope, can he not?
Rise of the Argonauts caught my eye a while back, but I've only begun to actually read into it recently. It looks to me like a hack-n-slash (a damn fine looking hacker in my opinion) type game, but I am hoping there is more story then meets the eye.
Changing gears, Guitar Hero 4 looks and sounds promising. More customization and the ability to put together your own music? Sounds interesting enough to me. But then, it isn't like I've gotten any better at those types of games and anything exceeding three buttons will having me scrambling like a headless chicken. Still, I can honestly say that I am excited nonetheless.
Last, but definitely not least, there is that new Prince of Persia game in the works (pictured above). While I admit that I've never had much feeling towards the series (although the story with the Sands of Time does intrigue me), this new game somehow got me curious. Maybe Assassin's Creed helped cultivate my interests in this type of game. Hmmm...
One last thing to say before I scurry off into the sunset, I just finished watching Trinity Blood (finally!). I thought I liked it, then I thought I didn't and what was the final verdict? Well, after riding the rollercoaster of uncertainty, I can firmly say I enjoyed it. I enjoyed it a whole lot more then a few other series that I saw through in the past few years *cough*Ranma1/2*cough*Inu-Yasha*cough*TenchiMuyo*cough*Youallsucked*cough*.
Wow, I guess I'd better be a little more mindful of my health with such a nasty cough like that. Of course I blame it all on that damn Vog from Kona. Damn it! Damn it all I say! Even with vog or smog or whatever we've got in the air these days, Kona still is home for me. At least I can cross the road over there without having to play human Frogger! Slow down peeps!
As I write this, I am absolutely stunned and deeply saddened to have learned that Michael Turner, a comic book artist whom I've always respected and enjoyed the work of, passed away yesterday (June 27th) after a long battle with cancer. 
