What Is Techno Again?

Review: BPRD: The Warning

You can tell by the snazzy new publisher-oriented banners that you’ll be seeing in future comic book reviews on the Girls Entertainment Network (just click the cover above to see what I mean) that I’ve been way too dedicated to graphics work lately. You’d think after I took on the design of this blog that I would allow myself a nice vacation from Paint Shop Pro 9, but psych! You were wrong. Plus, I’ve been working my ass off creating a shitload of graphics for a special July feature that will make all of this seem like child’s play. [Insert maniacal, world-domination laugher here]

Anyway, in the meantime you can catch up with the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense by checking out my review of B.P.R.D.: The Warning. This comic just abuses amphibians in so many wrong ways … it’s great.

Dark Horse, along with a gazillion other creators and publishers (or at least it feels like a gazillion), have sent over plenty of review copies to keep me busy, so stay tuned. I’ll probably tackle Top Cow’s premiere of Berserker—yes, created by that guy on Heroes who formerly played Jess on Gilmore Girls (he’s all grown up now)—sometime tomorrow. Actually, I have so many mixed feelings for that show that I’m regretting even bringing it up now.

The expressions in the picture below nicely sum up how I feel … ironically.

Ventimiglia: The last name that sounds like something you should dissect immediately.

Tags: BPRD Vol. 10: The Warning, Dark Horse, Dave Stewart, Guy Davis, John Arcudi, Mike Mignola is a comic book god, Milo Ventimiglia
Posted in Comics/Manga, Girls Entertainment Network, Reviews, Writing | No Comments »

Pull-O-Rama: June ’09

A lot of not-so-great Batman comics have been hitting the fan like guano lately, but BATMAN #687 and BATMAN IN BARCELONA made the cut—and the art just put the icing on the cake. Judd Winick handled the BATTLE FOR THE COWL epilogue with ease, like a ninja, and Ed Benes and Spanish artist Diego Olmos should draw that urban ninja and Gotham’s crazy misfits more often.

Actually, all the comics in my June Pull-O-Rama over at Impulse Creations are either good or great. I’m not entirely sure what Fusion is supposed to be accomplishing, but you can decide for yourself by heading over there and reading my four short reviews.

Tags: Batman #687, Batman in Barcelona: Dragon's Knight #1, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Tales of the Vampires, Fusion #2
Posted in Comics/Manga, Impulse Creations, Reviews, Writing | 3 Comments »

Book Review: The Naked Sun

I basically did a one-eighty from fantasy-obsessed to sci-fi-obsessed when I discovered science fiction was more than bumpy-headed aliens and awkward nerds (I’m not dissing either, though!). Even my X-Files poster is finally seeing the light of day again after being locked away in the Warehouse 13 mockery I call my closet. (Now if only I had a poster of Mulder …)

I read The Caves of Steel for one of my classes, and even though Isaac Asimov spreads the action pretty thin, I did enjoy the good ol’ detective mystery with robots. Plus, the fact that Elijah Baley’s partner is the humanoid robot R. Daneel Olivaw just makes it even juicer. Goddamn you, positronic brain!

As far as content goes, the Caves of Steel sequel, The Naked Sun, didn’t really step the game up more than a notch. Baley is still a detective (albeit a higher-ranking one), Daneel is still a robot (only this time his Auroran disguise is especially critical), and the book starts (again) with a murder. When someone or something murders Rikainne Delmarre in his own home, the Solarian government requests an Earthman to investigate—and of course, that Earthman turns out to be Plainclothesman Baley.

Like The Caves of Steel, The Naked Sun presents a good mystery and offers solid, interesting ideas and themes, but honestly I thought the first book in the Robot series had a little more bulk to it. Either way, I still like Asimov—even if it felt like he just churned out The Caves of Steel again, but on a different planet and with a different twist. There’s certainly no mistaking Asimov’s style, but I guess I expected more of a complex plot with more characters. The Naked Sun was a good read, so most likely I’ll pick up the third novel.

Tags: I'll just call you boy, Isaac Asimov, Robot Series, The Naked Sun
Posted in Books, Reviews | No Comments »

Review: Tales from Wonderland

If you’re a fan of the deranged style of American McGee’s Alice video game, then Tales from Wonderland by Zenescope might be right down your rabbit hole. It’s not quite as purposely screwed up as Alice, but it’s certainly spreading the gore and dark twists like playing cards of doom.

You can read my review of the trade over at the Girls Entertainment Network. And don’t worry, Zenescope gave me plenty more to read where that came from.

Man, now I’m in the mood to play some Alice.

Tags: Joe Brusha, Ralph Tedesco, Raven Gregory, Tales from Wonderland, Zenescope
Posted in Comics/Manga, Girls Entertainment Network, Reviews, Writing | 2 Comments »

Franc Czuba Talks Comics

Awhile back I interviewed Dusk creator/writer David Doub, and this time around I chatted with one of the artists, Franc Czuba. In addition to preparing for the second volume of the vampire comic, Franc put his pencils to paper for the upcoming Shamrock: Origins from Maverick Comics.

Dusk premiered with a wealth of flaws, but since I’m always happy to support the efforts of indy creators and publishers, I agreed to a second go-around. If you’re interested, you can read the Q&A over at the Girls Entertainment Network.

From the teaser, it looks like the second run of Dusk might have more to offer in terms of artwork; hopefully Doub can smooth out a good bit of his mistakes.

Tags: Dusk, Franc Czuba, Shamrock: Origins
Posted in Comics/Manga, Exclusives, Girls Entertainment Network, Writing | No Comments »

PS3 Review: Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe

Torture can take on a whole new meaning in a world of magic and superpowers, and that’s exactly what happens when you play this game. Worlds collide, and no, it’s not nearly as cool as the Powerman 5000 song.

What You’ll Like

We Could Be Heroes …

Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe doesn’t completely suck. Every comic nerd dreams about what it would be like to have the Flash’s lightning-fast speed, or Superman’s x-ray vision (hellooo, Lois Lane). Now, instead of just reading about your favorite superheroes, you can actually control them—all for the ridiculous, ridiculous price of $45.79 (or 51.99 for Xbox players)! Throw a batarang, Lasso-of-Truth the enemy Amazonian-style, or smash your opponent with a giant green hammer. The power lies in your hands.

Unfortunately, no. Those aren't kryptonite bricks.

A few characters in the DC hero line-up didn’t offer many thrills (ahem … Luthor), but others were absolutely a riot to play. The Joker ranks as one of the best, and literally every moment he spends on screen makes the whole situation delightful (which really, really helps). Richard Epcar’s voice acting impresses almost as much as Mark Hamill’s does. And to my surprise, I reveled so much in watching Captain Marvel yell “Shazam!” as I wiped the floor clean with heroes and villains that I’ve grown to like the character a little more.

What You Won’t Like

Holy crappy everything, Batman!

… And the fun ends there, basically. There are so many problems floating about between the two merging realities, not even Green Lantern’s power ring could keep this game from falling apart like Gotham City on a normal day.

We all know that no one plays fighting games for the story (at least, no one who would call Arkham Asylum home), and Mortal Kombat vs DCU certainly demonstrates why. Even the Riddler would cringe at how much cheesiness and bad dialogue riddles the foundations of this highly predictable and cliche game. I’m pretty sure normal people can write better half-assed plotlines than this space trash that should be rotting in the Phantom Zone. By the gods! Every crack about “finishing him” and “rage” on top of the World’s Greatest Detective’s world’s greatest uncharacteristic stupidity, the disastrous Catwoman voice-acting, and the random insertion of a narrator near the end of the game made me sicker than Clark Kent in a kryptonite landfill.

Anddddd that's pretty much how I defeated Dark Kah---"KAHNNNN!"

“Get over here!” Block. “Come here!”

The fighting mechanics could chain together way better and smoother than they do, even if it is fun to dish out fatalities and “heroic brutalities.” Remember how you used to get stuck on bosses in fighting games like Tekken? Yeah, that doesn’t really happen here. The game only drains you of a few hours—about 1-3 depending on your skill level—per each side’s story, which are basically mirrored and end with a final battle against Dark Kahn. That excludes the Arcade and Kombo Challenge modes, of course.

Recommendation:

There are other fighting games out there much worthier of your time, but if you’re a DC fan or just curious about how truly horrible Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe is, then rent it—but that’s it. The bad in this game gives the good a formidable beating, topped off with a wicked fatality. But if MK vs DCU accomplishes one thing, it’s hinting at how fun wielding superpowers could be with more effort, innovation, and quality—because most of the DC team members were a blast to command, even with their limitations. Here’s to you, DC Universe Online!

RAGE ON! Wait, wrong universe. I shouldn't encourage them.

Tags: Midway Amusement Games, Midway Games, Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe, PlayStation 3, sub-zero: let's kick some ice, Warner Bros. Games, Xbox 360
Posted in Reviews, Video Games | 2 Comments »

Sounds of Nostalgia: Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

Do we need an excuse to play old games? Hell no! But sometimes music from OSTs can inspire us to try new ones or revisit past loves like dirty, secret affairs.

If I could make my own special soundtrack featuring any video game song, I’d call it “Sounds of Nostalgia” and slap lots of midis from 8-bit games on the playlist, and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link on the NES (now also on the GBA) would definitely make the cut. The theme from Parapa Palace ranks as one of my favorites to this day.

What are some of your favorite Sounds of Nostalgia?

Tags: Music, NES, Sounds of Nostalgia, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Posted in Video Games | 2 Comments »

Bomb up!

For $10 you can purchase Bomberman Ultra (published and developed by Hudson Soft) on the PlayStation Network. I downloaded the demo to start and sat down with a few other players for a local game, and judging by the three hours we spent chugging away at the same Zombie stage over and over again while laughing our asses off like crazy people … ten bucks goes a long way.

The demo only allows you to switch between the Normal and Zombie modes and customize your bombers a little, but the experience of facing off against another player quickly amps up the fun meter. (Yeah, I just wrote “fun meter” without shame.) The full game, on the other hand, allows up to four local or eight online players to go head-to-head in fourteen arenas and mix and match between around fifty different costumes.

I decked out my bomber as a Roman pirate—an eye patch- and Centurian helmet-wearing, one-legged maniac! All he needed was a green parrot on his shoulder, although all those flames might have made its feathers fly …

Tags: Bomberman Ultra, Demos, Hudson Soft, PSN
Posted in Video Games | No Comments »