The Tech-geek in me is pleas-ed.

My cable channel has finally acquired TechTV, which is, in my opinion, the best channel for gaming programs and news. The centerpiece is the gaming program Extended Play, which features up-to-date news, reviews and previews of various games, with excellent commentary and quality footage. Aside from EP, there are also other programs that feature gaming that really satisfy my hardcore gaming self. I once had TechTV with my former cable service, but it was taken off (making me force my family to switch cable servers). My new cable service turned out to NOT have TechTV... until yesterday. WOOHOO! I've been forced to have to rely totally on the European-flavored NOW channel for gaming stuff, primarily from their shows Gamer@Now and Game Sauce. Unfortunately, the former (which was their best show) seems to have been taken off the air, while Game Sauce is prone to replaying old, old episodes. Worse, there are HORRIBLE shows like a stupid videogame-based gameshow (we want to see GAMES, not people talking about game trivia) and a show that features Quake III. Plus overall, they seem to have an extreme fascination with soccer...
Aside from the gaming shows, TechTV also features interesting PC knowledge, lots of future tech stuff, and more. Bliss. It just goes to show that all things come to those who wait...

Taking Roleplaying too far...

Does anyone here remember the film Mazes and Monsters? I don't expect a lot of you to, since when I saw it first I was probably not yet even in high school. Anyway, it was all about this gang of friends who love playing a Dungeons and Dragons-type RPG called, well, Mazes and Monsters. Well, since this is a drama/scare movie, something goes terribly wrong; one of the friends goes bonkers after a particularly intense moment of play, and this results in him actually taking his game character's persona... permanently. Oh, and the actor who played the role of that guy is some actor named Tom Hanks. I guess that prepped him up for Forrest Gump.
Anyway, this post isn't a cautionary thing on how RPGs can make you crazy... Well, not in that way. It's more about what should be in an RPG, and what we leave out. For example, when you go on a fantasy adventure with your party of fighters, thieves, clerics and sorcerers, you don't really have to see them going to the toilet, right? Or doing the laundry? Or cooking food? Well, then again, cooking food can be a pretty funny minigame...
Well, trying to fit in some very menial things into gameplay is something that the game Shenmue tries to do. FYI, Shenmue is a 'cinematic' game where players take the role of Ryo Hazuki, a young martial arts student out to avenge his father's murder. Initially, the game seemed a milestone. A fully-immersive and interactive world where you take on the persona of the character and actually LIVE in his shoes. It sounded great. On PAPER. Well, in execution, it turned out to be, at least for me, BORING. No, we don't get to see Ryo going for a pee, but we do see him doing manual labor like lifting crates, driving a forklift and waiting for paint to dry. You, know, hero stuff.
It's a different thing to be exploring a dungeon and opening chests and searching for secret passages. But Shenmue is all about going into a present day room and fooling around with other peoples' everyday stuff. Man, I do that every day at the office! Though I don't usually lift up a cup and look at it from every angle saying, "Hmmm." Unless it's one of those cups where a woman's dress melts off when you put hot water in it... Ahem. Anyway, it's this slow pace that turned off a LOT of people to Shenmue, part of the reason why it never really took off, which is actually a shame since a lot of work went into it.
But the dialogue is simply horrible. A usual conversation goes like so...
Ryo: "Are you Ben?"
Ben: "Yes, I am Ben."
Ryo: "Have you seen a black car?"
Ben: "A black car? No. But maybe Mr. Hojo has."
Ryo: "Where do I find Mr. Hojo?"
Ben: "He lives next door."
Ryo: "Are you Mr. Hojo?"
Hojo: "Yes, I am Mr. Hojo..."
AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!
The trouble with Shenmue is that there is too much tediousness in between the thrilling action and the good stuff. Plus a lot of the action is actually pretty boring. Walking across a plank? Woohoo. Sigh. Anyway, despite all that I've said, the game is still an accomplishment, and I know quite a few people who really got into the thing. But it's not for me. I play to get away from normal life, not live someone else's normal life. That's why I don't like The Sims either.
But then again, at least The Sims has sexy babes in it. Mr. Hazuki is pretty much neutered. Haha. Whatever.

Comic to Movie Translations

Has anyone here seen the Daredevil trailer? I absolutely HATE the costume design for Elektra. Okay, a red swimsuit and red thigh high stockings probably aren't the most practical things to wear for a ninja, but this is a superhero movie, for crying out loud! Black leather worked in The Matrix, but that doesn't mean EVERY single comic book movie has to follow suit. The Elektra look is just WRONG. Worse, they seem to be trying to match the comic books with it! If the Elektra comic changes her costume to the black leather she wears in the movie, I will stop buying it, regardless of Greg Horn's cover art. BAH.
One translation I have to enjoy though is Rebecca Romjin-Stamos' Mystique in X-Men. The process that turned the model/actress into a scaled, yellow-eyed, red-haired, naked shapeshifting martial arts fighter took about 10 hours in the first film's making. Since the paint and makeup went over every inch of the actress' body, she basically has to bare every part (all her makeup people are probably women or gay), she had to endure a lot. Plus, the fumes reportedly made her faint or puke blue vomit... Eww. Anyway, in a recent interview, she revealed some stuff. Thankfully, Mystique will STILL be naked and blue, but putting on the makeup has now been shortened to about three hours. And she's gotten used to the fumes. Maybe she's addicted already.
Haven't seen The Incredible Hulk in his movie form yet, not that I'm excited. So many comic book movies and videogame films are coming. Compromises are probably a given, but sometimes I think creators and filmmakers just have to be brave and do the seemingly impossible. Yes, maybe we DO expect yellow spandes, Cyclops.

I am Isildur, high king of Gondor.

Or, I can be his heir- Aragorn, the valiant ranger and hero. Or Legolas, the elf and hearthrob. Or Ghimli the funny but gruff dwarf. That's all possible in the PS2 game, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. I got the game along with Suikoden III, which means I have pretty much neglected it, but I tried it and it looks pretty cool.
Basically, LOTR:TT is a straight-up action-fighting game. You choose your hero from the available badasses of the Fellowship and hack away in various situations against Mordor scum. The interesting part is that despite being named 'The Two Towers', the game actually involves battles and events shown in the first LOTR movie as well as scenes from the second film.
This may be a bit of a spoiler, but here... the game opens with the same monologue by Galadriel (Cate Blanchett), along with the same images from the movie. When we reach the battle between the elves and humans and Mordor though, the cinema images morph into actual gameplay! Remember that cool scene with the orcs charging the line of elven soldiers with the cool double-headed spears? You get to PLAY that scene as Isildur, right up to the point where Sauron shows up and starts taking down names with his mace.
The graphics and frenetic gameplay is cool at this point, though the atmosphere of being inside the actual LOTR movie is kinda ruined by an in-game voiceover giving you directions like, "Use your Fierce Attack!" or "Use your Quick Attack!" ... I don't think that's how the Dunedain and the Elves give orders... Heh... But that's just nitpicking. It IS a videogame after all, and it DOES really show off really great PS2 graphics that capture the look of the films. Plus, the actual actors recorded new dialogue for the game, so it sounds as authentic as it looks.
I stopped playing though since there are lots of spoilers and film clips from the second film, and I want to see that stuff in the theater, not from some DVD game (this from the guy who watched a bootleg DVD of Fellowship weeks before the theater release...).
Anyway, it looks cool. Not exactly Suikoden, but it's not meant to be. Just a mindless hack and slash that cashes in with the release of the new movie. But kicking Sauron's butt IS cool. Heh.

This one's a kipper!

Okay, now for something pleasant. The past week or so I've been frequenting having dinner from Kipp's, a food outlet at Megamall's food court that specializes in chicken. Aside from the usual chicken pieces, they also have chicken nuggets, chicken patties and spaghetti- none of which I have ever tried. Nope, whenever I eat at Kipp's I just make it a point to order my usual- two pieces white meat chicken breasts with two helpings of Spanish rice, some gravy and a small bowl of cold macaroni salad. The good thing about Kipp's chicken (especially the white meat, IMO) is that there's a ton of meat in it. Some chicken in other restaurants are layered in dough and extenders. Kipp's has that too, but there's more than enough meat and the skin is always crispy to the extreme. The gravy's very savoury, and after each spoon I have some macaroni salad (the sweetness is a good contrast and counterpoint to the meat, rice and gravy). Haaa. Actually, while it does taste good, I have to say that Kipp's is probably a 'default' food I have; which means this is what I get if I can't think of anywhere else to go to or am just so hungry I don't want to think. Which is good for them, I think. Plus it's the chicken place I can go to where they allow me to choose the pieces I want- namely, two breasts. Hmm. And there I thought I was a leg man. Hehehe.... Yes....

Better Late than Sorry...

Professionalism be damned. I made it a point to wake up early today for a nine o' clock meeting at the office. I really didn't want to go to that meeting, but the Account people pestered me and forced me into a promise to go, so I went. Woke up at quarter to seven, got up at seven, was out of the house by seven quarter. This despite staying up till about, oh, three AM playing Suikoden III. I was on a crowded bus despite heavy traffic and was at the Cubao MRT station by eight. Reaching the office should be a snap.
Guess again. The DAMN MRT was busted. Worse, it only got busted when I finally squeezed into the throng of evil people (all other people are evil in commuting. It's a law). Picture having to stand literally belly-to-back with other people, as in, sardine-close, in the MRT... which was NOT moving at all. For something of fifteen minutes, I stood there in a mass of flesh while the damn train just sat there, not moving. The operator kept saying 'Sorry, train delay...' in irritating intervals.
When the train finally moved, it was at a snail's pace. We were actually matching the speed of the bumper-to-bumper traffic beneath us! We hadn't even gone halfway to the next station when the train stopped. 'Sorry, there's another train still at the next station.' apologized the operator uselessly.
The train was there, in the middle of the track, still stuffed to capacity, for something of twenty minutes. By this time I had tuned into my dreaming stage... my defense mechanism for such an ordeal. However, it still stunk. GAAAAH.
I finally called the office, informing them I would be late.
When I reached my desk, it was about nine-thirty. When I asked about the meeting, I was told that it was okay... they could manage without me. So I went through all that for nothing. SIGH.
This would never have happened if I remained a slacker. Just goes to show sometimes the harder you try, the harder things get. Heh.

The Devil's Voice...

Just a short post... Was on my way to Megamall to meet someone on short notice. I rode an FX taxi to Cubao. Nope, I didn't get held up again, fortunately. As we were near Araneta Coliseum, with the taxi almost empty of other passengers, a guy hopped on. He seemed to know the driver, and they began chatting. He sat in the rear seat, so I was between him and the driver as they spoke. Now, what they were talking about was irrelevant... it was his VOICE. He has this really odd, grating voice, like it was a humanoid frog speaking. It had a metallic quality, and was strangely amplified, as if he was talking through a small mike. IT WAS PAINFUL TO HEAR IT. I was toying with actually asking him to shut up. I half-covered my ear to try and blot out the grating sound of his words. DAAAAAMMMMN his voice was UGLY. DAAAAAAAMMMMMNNNN.
Gah. Got that out. I hope I never meet him again. Why can't they all sound like that one odd cigarette vendow along Edsa, who speaks with a modulated deejay's voice? Sigh.
Later then.

I'm a young barbarian, a female knight and a one-eyed mercenary.

I just got a copy of Suikoden III for the Playstation 2 over the weekend, and I have to say I am hooked (which is part of the reason why I haven't been able to blog). I loved the first two games in the series (which came out on the PSOne), each of which ate up hours and hours of my life as I battled to save a world from evil.
Suikoden is so named after the ancient Chinese legend/epic which tells about 108 Stars of Destiny- heroes who come together to fight a corrupt empire or a great evil. Each game is a fantasy RPG which has you taking the role of a reluctant hero who must rally together these 108 heroes together. In realtime terms this means lots of travelling all about a large continent, talking to everyone in sight, going on myriad subquests, battling hordes of enemies and eventually building a homebase where all the heroes can hang out. While the original game set the world, the game system and the style of play, the sequel, Suikoden 2, upped the ante with deeper characters and storylines (with lots of political plots and subplots- I think Suikoden is one of the RPGs that really does conspiracies and politicking well), handling the clash of empires and armies in a fun (yes, war is fun here) way.
The third game in the series continues what worked in the previous games but has many new elements. For starters, it's the first to be on the PS2, so the graphics are revved up. The world is in full 3-D, and thankfully, the representations of the characters (which have an anime style to them) aren't too deformed and cute; plus they actually are able to show off a lot of emotion despite being anime cartoony figures. Anyway, once you put in the DVD into the PS2, you'll be treated to an incredibly beautiful and evocative anime intro movie that shows off the various characters; I have to say the quality of the intro's animation looks almost movie or OAV quality; lovely art and character designs (though I have to say the duck people still irk me...).
Anyway, aesthetics aside, the best part of Suikoden for me is the story. Here, you don't just take the role of one hero; you actually have the chance (or is it a necessity?) to play through the game through three different heroes and factions, and see the unfolding adventure through three different viewpoints. This is called the 'Trinity System'. You play through a hero's chapter, then after it you shift to another, and then another. Once you finish all chapters, you move on to the next. Once you complete all three initial chapters for each of the heroes, the paths join and you move as one to the story's final two chapters.
The characters you play include Chris, a female knight and leader of the human forces of Zexen. She's arguably the most powerful and easiest to play of the characters (since she starts off with the best armor and tons of cash and her own army). Next is Hugo, a barbarian from the grassland tribe of Karaya and the son of the Chieftain. He seems to be the lead hero, and has to go through the worst of the trials (since he loses his village in the process). Finally, there's Geddoe, a mercenary who comes from a third side in the conflict. He's pretty fun to play since he has a crew of colorful mercs with him with various abilities and personalities. Mysteriously though, there's a fourth character whom you eventually must find in the course of the game...
In terms of gameplay, the fighting is fast and quite fun, but it IS an RPG, so basically it's still a menu-driven turn-based system... or as a friend of mine would say, a slap-match. Still, the load times are only a few seconds, the animations are quite good and the story so far is enthralling and engrossing to the extreme. All I can say is that I started playing just after lunch, and when I finally decided to call it a day, it was midnight. Oh-KAY!
Anyway, this is a bonafide winner. Fans of the previous games MUST play it. And best of all, you can use your previous save from Suikoden 2 to unlock bonuses in the new game.
Okay, I'll just play another hour before I go to bed. Just one more hour... Heheh... HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Ghosts of All Souls' Day's Past

All Souls' Day, or Todos Los Santos, is a big deal here in the Philippines. In the US and other countries, it's all about Halloween. Here, it's more akin to the Day of the Dead in Mexico, though perhaps less festive. On November 1 and 2, Filipinos troop to the cemeteries to visit their family members and loved ones who have passed on, to remember them. Of course, that's the principle behind the tradition. On the other hand, it's also an opportunity for having a bit of a holiday, going to the provinces for some RnR, or just pigging out with lots of junk food.
I remember when I was a kid, Todos Los Santos was a journey for my family. At the time, our cemetery was far away (to me then, it was like it was in another time zone), so going there was a major effort. I remember the night before we leave my mom and the household help would prepare large containers full of food. We'd stock on junk food and prepare all our provisions with the meticulous fervor of a polar expedition. I'd be woken up early in the morning. The family station wagon would have the food as well as lots of folding tables and chairs. On top there were several large, long wooden poles and the heavy canvas tent which would serve as our home for the next day or so. Then, we'd scrunch up inside and be off.
Once at Loyola Cemetery in Marikina, we'd spend a bit of time getting through the traffic. Luckily, our spot wasn't too far from the exit. We'd set up our tent and tables and then... we'd hang out. Food was eaten, chats were chatted, and we'd play board games like Snakes and Ladders or Tour of Luzon. Often we'd also play cards (my favorite was Pekwa... don't ask... I've forgotten how to play it after all this time). If I got bored I'd walk around and collect wax to make a big ball to mold and stare at.
When the day started to wane, we'd pack up and make our way home, which was another long ordeal in itself since the traffic is just as worse as during our arrival. But, invariably, we'd break through and be on our way.
These days though, it's no longer a big thing. Our present home is located conveniently near our cemetery, so we basically just walk there. Since Shakey's and other fast food joints have small kiosks there, food isn't a problem. We don't stay long enough to need a tent, so we just leave flowers and candles, say some prayers and spend some time there... and that's that.
Ah. Memories. I have to say that strangely enough, All Souls' Day has lots of happy memories for me. A strange thing I think since it's all about remembering the dead. We Filipinos can find fun in the weirdest of things.
Happy All Souls' and All Saints' Day, everyone.

Care for some CHIPS?


Another local manga comic for Manila comic readers' tastes.

I finally got to read Chips (Chocolate Chips/Cinnamon Chips), another local manga-style comic. I have to say that the first time I saw it, I was very much impressed by the production values; thick paper stock, nice manga art that really brings to mind authentic Japanese manga (complete with the use of screentones) and a whopping 64 pages. That's quite a good deal for the eighty pesos you will shell out for a copy. However, I have to say that I really resisted reading it for a LONG time ever since I first saw the sample copy given to Mike (Comic Quest). Why? Because I felt that it wasn't for me. I really saw it as a girls' manga. I like my manga and anime loaded with adventure, fighting, humor and some sexiness dashed in for good measure... Chips looked all cotton candy and fluff. Well, now I finally read it and... I was right. Sigh. Anyway, that doesn't mean it would be necessarily bad, so I read through the two stories to give it a proper review.
There are two stories (one for each flavor of Chips, I guess... still am mystified by the title...). Cascades is a high school comedy about (apparently) an international student named Jennifer and how she mixes in with her Filipino (but manga-looking) classmates. We get introduced rapid-fire to several cliche characters, including a ditz, an bishojo guy (beautiful man), some bullies, some wallpaper guys, a tough cool guy, a Wolverine-clone teacher and more.
Honestly, I couldn't make heads or tails of what was going on. The paneling is atrociously confusing, and the dialogue from one frame doesn't match others. I've seen wacky comedy in both anime and manga, and I think this is what the Chips crew was attempting with Cascades, but the execution is confusing, not funny and just leaves me saying, "What the-!" after reading it. Or maybe I should say, decipher it?
The second story, Seraphim Wing, benefits by being more focused (read: Two main characters). It's all about a girl named Melissa who works as an attendant in a video store. For some reason, she gets mixed up with a stranger who eventually helps her when she's attacked by some thugs. It turns out that the stranger's name is Lezarius, and he's really an angel. What's the story here? We're going to have to wait for issue 2...
Chips has nice art, as I mentioned before, but it's relatively simple and basic; nowhere near the more impressive art of Culture Crash but within the same range of recent release Ground Zero. It helps that the art really brings to mind manga, but more ambitious art and panels (and more comprehensible paneling) would do wonders.
But then again, perhaps Chips is going more for the sweet story and loveable characters approach rather than trying to blow away readers with incredible action sequences and kick-ass characters. This will be made a lot easier though by getting their storytelling up and working; One cannot live on just having Super Deformed characters and sweatdrops forever.
I may be kinda harsh, but it's all in the hope of steering these obviously enthusiastic and hardworking artists, writers and producers in the right direction to making an enjoyable (at the very least a comprehensible) comic.
This is just their first issue, so I hope they improve on their weak points with their next releases.

Soul Searching

It's the time for pumpkins, costumes, midnight parties and... ghost stories! I have to say that I love spooky, creepy yarns. I remember for years and years I always made it a point to watch the All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day special of the local news/magazine show, Magandang Gabi, Bayan (Good Night Nation for you english-only readers). They always feature supernatural-themed stories for that particular show. I remember that they always have a cheesy 're-enactment' video, which is kinda funny because it has extras in white clothes acting as white ladies or ghosts and spirits scaring some poor guy or gal. Still, if you think about it, the stories are kind of creepy. Many of the stories come from and are set in the provinces, where the supernatural still holds sway over the beliefs of people. There was one tale where a couple, while walking home, suddenly saw a ghost of a woman standing some distance away. They were of course scared shitless, but tried their best to just keep walking. When they ventured a look to see if the spectre had vanished, their terror increased as they saw that the apparition was following them! When they eventually got home and shut the door, the woman started having fits, and it took a blessing from a priest to solve the apparent possession that occured. Be careful of whom or what you lead home...
Aside from the various ghost stories and encounters, there are also the tales of fairies and dwarves, whom believes say live in magnificent kingdoms in another dimension. In some barrios, some people disappear and are said to have been taken away to live with some dwarf king. Most however, just end up going crazy as if possessed, and have to be exorcised by a local witch doctor.
For a while, there was a rash of children getting 'possessed' in schools, fainting and then having weird spells. I personally think however that it's all a sham for a story. One particularly funny segment had a guy possessed by a tikbalang, or horse-spirit... he spoke of course like a horse, neighing and grunting as his role. Again, the medicine men had to exorcise him.
Yeah, I suspect the show's all just baloney, but I still love watching. Hey, I want to believe. It's crazy, but I think people love to get scared. Within reason, of course.
Perhaps for me especially it's because I'm not 'sensitive'. I know people who are supposed to have a 'third eye', or specially-tuned perceptions which allow them to 'see' the supernatural. Me? I'm as dead to the undead and supernatural as a stone. I remember seeing nothing at all in the middle of an apparent 'haunting' or supernatural incident back in college.
We were shooting a short film late at night in the middle of a field in the middle of the University of the Philippines campus, where salvage/murder victims were supposed to have been dumped during the Marcos days. Our equipment inexplicably conked out consistently, a car window shattered without explanation, and our 'sensitive' classmates felt presences following us around... me... I was staring all around, trying to see a sheet, a pair of glowing eyes...anything! Nada. Oh, well. I suppose that's a good thing.
Anyway, I don't really have to see ghosts to get creeped out. Got an active imagination, so that's pretty much all I need. I'm the person who couldn't remain alone for days after reading a book about Possession and Evil Spirits . If I could actually see weird things, I'd be out of my gourd. Well, more than usual.
Well, actually, the point of this entire post and what I'm really trying to say is that I would have wanted to tell a scary story I experienced for a Halloween post on the blog, but I can't since I've never experienced anything supernatural. Never even worked at any ad agency that was in a haunted building. Sigh. Oh well.

Hey wait a second... I've been to some pretty scary restaurants...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

The Serial Buyer has struck again...

Just after lunch I walked around Glorietta mall, and the buying bug hit. When I got back to the office, I suddenly found a plastic bag full of stuff in my hand. Darn! How did that get there...?
Anyway, I sifted through the layers of plastic bags and found several magazines: TIME, Newsweek, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Playstation Magazine and... Oh, my... the 2003 FHM Calendar featuring Maui Taylor, Aubrey Miles and Diane Zubiri. Have to control these urges. It may be wonderful now, but who knows what else I could end up bringing home... Damn, that's a nice calendar...

Carnivore Canteen and Food at the Movies, part one

Along Annapolis Street behind Greenhills Shopping Center there's one of our favorite haunts. It's a totally hidden little eatery by the name of Steak Joint. It's located at the ground floor of a building in the rear of an alley-like passage, right behind a Tapa King restaurant (which is a favorite of mine as well). Anyway, last night me and my friends Mike, Jason and Ralph went to have a quick dinner. Mike ordered his beef omelet and beef rib plates, Jason had a combo plate with a variety of liempo (pork) and barbecue and Ralph had two plates of tapa. Of course, I ordered my usual double tenderloin steak. The thing came PERFECT, well-done, smothered in gravy which had a bit of the juice mixing on top. Damn.
As we were all eating, my mind went to that scene in The Matrix where Cypher (Joe Pantoliano) is enjoying a steak in a restaurant with Agent Smith. LOVE that scene. Not because of the dramatic significance, mind you... just because it had someone eating, and it's great to watch as you are enjoying a snack or a meal.
So I kept thinking about some really appetitzing and inspiring eating/dining scenes in movies. I made a little list of them, too.
1) Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone- a recent one; the first grand meal in the hall welcoming the new batch of students at Hogwart's is simply fantastic. I wish I could conjure up a feast like that whenever I want...
2) Hook- the scene where they imagine a feast and thanks to Peter (Robin Williams), they actually DO create a feast out of thin air. Although I have to say the scenes where they were just imagining were more appetizing...
3) Defending Your Life- this Albert Brooks/Meryl Streep comedy about the afterlife postulates that in the transition place between life and the afterlife, there are various restaurants which serve the PERFECT food. And you can eat as much as you want without ever getting fat. DAMN, the food looked great... the omelette Albert Brooks eats near the start, the pasta Meryl Streep has, a godly shrimp platter... this movie shows food that is, literally, to die for.
4) Twister- my favorite scene is where the Tornado Chasers stop by at Helen Hunt's aunt, where they get served STEAKS with awesome-looking gravy and mashed potatoes. Yum...
5) The Fugitive- okay, this really doesn't show good food, but it does show good eating. It's the part where Harrison Ford is hiding out in a hospital and has to steal some old patient's food. There's that scene where he sops up some corn in some bread and just gorges it down. Hospital food sucks, but that scene made me hungry.
Heh. That's that for now. Anyway, eating at Steak Joint was great, but they don't have desserts in that bare essential eatery. Makes you wish there was a place next to it called Cake Joint, to get the meat taste off. Oh well. Later then.

A tough act to follow...

Over the weekend I learned that actor Richard Harris died from a lingering illness. The acclaimed performer died of Hodgkin's disease, which strikes at the body's lymph nodes. He died peacefully in the hospital at the age of 72.
His death leaves vacant the crucial part of the wise wizard and mentor Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter movies (the studio has reportedly not yet recast the role). It got me thinking back to how Raul Julia died years ago, leaving the Addams Family movies without a father (though I have to say Tim Curry was a fine replacement, albeit with a different flair or flavor for the Gomez Addams role). These actors had strong imprints on the characters they brought life to... it would be a great burden on whoever replaces them to equal or even surpass the foundation they established. Or perhaps, even just to give justice to it.
I was thinking how Ian McKellan just IS Gandalf, and how Christopher Lee IS Saruman. I can't picture another actor in their robes... so I am glad they shot the LOTR films at the same time.
Richard Harrris is gone. Who can take up Dumbledore's hat now? The first names and faces that come to my mind include Richard Attenborough, though he's more Santa than sorcerer. Or maybe John Neville, the guy who played Baron Munchausen and the Well-Manicured Man in the X-Files series and movie. Well, we should see or hear news in the near future. Anyway, when I watch Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets later next month, I'll be sure to enjoy the last performance of a great actor.

A Beastly Good Movie

I was able to watch the French film Le Pacte Des Loupes, or Brotherhood of the Wolf, over the weekend. After sitting through this 3-hour or so film, I came away impressed and surprised. Enjoyable and sinfully good. Which means, lots of beautiful European women and bloody good action.
The movie is a period film set in France before the French Revolution. An elusive and deadly creature is terrorizing the province of Gevaudon, killing women and children without mercy. Two men arrive in the area to find the beast; Chevalier Fronsac (Samuel Le Bihan) is the King's naturalist and taxedermist, and he's been sent to stuff and bring the beast back to Paris when it is caught and killed. His companion is Mani (Mark Dacascos), an Indian and Fronsac's blood brother.
Now say what you will about Mark Dacascos' former movies (Double Dragon was HORRIBLE. Crying Freeman was better but disappointing to a degree) but he is awesome in this film. He doesn't speak too much and just has to look brooding or silent throughout most of the movie, but when he moves he is hypnotic. Brotherhood has tons of fighting scenes which have slow-mo sequences which are reminiscent of The Matrix; totally cool and brutally enjoyable to see. While the two heroes may seem to be another 'Green Hornet and Kato' thing (with Mani doing all the fighting), Fronsac gets to impress viewers towards the latter part of the film (this IS a French film after all) in an unexpected twist. While Brotherhood shares a lot with movies like Ghost and the Darkness or Jaws, it also reminds me of that old Spielberg film Young Sherlock Holmes AKA Pyramid of Fear, with its conspiracies and strange cults, mysticism and a tragic turn towards the second half.
Again, did I mention that I love the fighting? This film has fancy kicks, lots of leaping and vaulting, evil gypsy fighting girls, lots of fancy sharp weapons... Yowza! The fighting game fan in me got pleased immensely when I saw the scene where a segmented sword (the SAME weapon used by Ivy AKA Isabella Valentine in the fighting game Soul Calibur) is used in an actual battle... amazing. The action in this movie rules, with almost Hong Kong-like energy.
Anyway, I was glad I was able to watch this movie via a DVD, with no cuts or censorship. As I said before, there's quite a lot of nudity and skin (all of which will probably be censored in the theatrical release). The violence is fast and while there's blood, it's never gory or excessive, in my opinion. Which is great since seeing visons like Monica Bellucci and more onscreen along with the kick-ass fighting makes the fact that the movie is over 3 hours long quite forgettable.
Hunt this beast of a movie down. Ferociously good. Watch it at home, on a big TV, with lots of junk food to wolf down.

Introducing: GAME GIRL!


The fun begins when you turn her ON.

She's cute. She's sexy. She's a hundred girls in one. She's Alpha, the heroine of GAME GIRL, a new manga comic I'll be working on with Jason Banico of Dynatica. A cross between the 80's character Automan and the Go Nagai heroine Cutey Honey, Alpha (the name stands for Android Lifeform with Programmable Hyper Adaptability) is a sentient computer program in human form who can transform into and use the powers of any female videogame archetype. She'll be going on fun, action-packed and comedic gaming-themed adventures in order to stop evil programs from conquering the world (Of course!). I can see this character to be a ton of fun in seeing through, so I hope this thing works out. Whatever happens, Alpha's coming.

GameGirl© is copyright 2002, Dynatica Comics. All Rights Reserved

Paranoia

I just came home from a nice after-work dinner/despedida for my friends Dean and Nikki Alfar, who are bound for the US. The day was long and I was just looking forward to winding things down when I saw something that irked me. A ROACH. Yep. A cockroach. A damn ipis, right there on the edge of the shoe cabinets outside my room. And he was facing the direction of MY door. Of course, I had to kill it. I could not sleep soundly knowing that a live ipis could be there, silently slipping into my room, then crawling into bed with me... It had to DIE. I grabbed my slipper. Wait. No. Can't use my slipper. If I hit it too hard, I would get ipis guts all over the bottom. Then I couldn't walk in my room with the slipper. I'll spread ipis guts all over my floor. What if I walk barefoot on the floor and get ipis guts on my soles? What if while I'm sleeping my pillow falls off the bed onto the floor with the ipis guts? That's the pillow I hug and press my face into when I sleep. It'd be like I hugged and pressed my face into an IPIS!!! It had to DIE.
I grabbed my shoe. I kept my work shoes outside the room anyway, so it didn't matter if I got smashed insect insides all over the sole. I walk everywhere outside and step on much grosser things, I imagine. It would be okay. The shoe was also heavy, so a direct hit would be a sure kill.
Had to hit at a right angle; the ridges of the shoe shelf could act as a depression which may affect the force of my blow. Had to adjust. Had to crouch. Wait. Can't hit it too hard... folks are sleeping. I thought of closing the door to my parents' bedroom, but that would risk the ipis slipping away. No. I had to chance it. Do or die. I've done this many times before.
I went for it. A controlled blow, sharp and fast. A sure kill if it had hit.
But I missed.
The ipis was knocked from the shelf to the floor, but fell on its right side. It skittered behind the shelf to safety.
I WILL KILL HIM!!! (Me imitating Sting's Fayde in David Lynch's Dune). But it was all for naught. It was gone. Escaped. I had to sleep now in fear.
Actually, even if I had killed the bugger, it would probably make no difference. I worked on an insect spray brand in my former agency, so I learned that for every roach you see, there are probably dozens more unseen. It would have made no difference. But I would feel a lot safer if I had gotten the damn creeper. Gah.
It won't come back. It's probably miles away from me by now.
Miles away.
Right? RIGHT??!?

I am a blonde cheerleader with a love for pointed objects.

No, I am not losing my mind again; last night, I played Buffy the Vampire Slayer on the Xbox, and I have to say it's a pretty fair game. I usually want my fighting games as straight-on one-on-one affairs like Dead or Alive, Tekken or Virtua Fighter, but I decided to try this adventure-action game anyway. I am a fan after all of the TV series, so what the hey. I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised.
Buffy the Xbox game puts you, the player, in the tight jeans and skimpy tops of Buffy Summers; the current Slayer and defender against undead menaces. The story of the game is supposedly culled from an unaired or unrealized TV episode or arc, so the dialogue and writing of the game's script is pretty true to the spirit of the game. As you first start off the game, the familiar Buffy opening theme song plays with footage of the in-game heroine kicking undead butt.
As you go through the various locales in Sunnydayle, including familiar places such as Sunnydale High School and The Bronze nightclub, you battle vampires and other shadowy baddies to accomplish goals, solve simple 'go-fer' quests and collect items on your way to the chapter's boss or major fight.
Of course, the major cast members appear in the game, looking reasonably close to their reel-life counterparts. Most of the actual actors do the voiceovers for their characters, with the exception of Sarah Michelle Gellar herself (though the voice double does a pretty good job).
The control is pretty tight, and it's a cinch to move around and do stuff. The puzzles are simple,and the meat of the game, the fighting, is pretty good and fluid. As for the graphics, the game looks great, and the on-screen Buffy is a strikingly good representation of the comely heroine. Which is great, since you'll be staring at her for hours and hours as you play the game.
My only gripe is that the game's story only reaches to a certain point in the series; baddies include Spike and Drusilla, Angelus, The Master and some original monsters. I would have wanted to trade punches with the yummy evil goddess Glory (Season Five's Big Bad) if I had the choice. Well, maybe in Buffy 2? Anyway, if you have an Xbox and are a Buffy fan, this is a pretty good buy; otherwise, watching re-runs on Star TV will have the same effect.
Eh? Wait a minute... I don't HAVE Star TV on my cable anymore!!!! NOOOOOOO!!!!

Fishy happenings on the way to work...

I was riding an FX taxi on the way to the office today. I was seated at the front, squeezed in with another passenger and the driver. This is what I learned... the seating space is really not adequate for three people. While we were both seated, apparently my sitting posture cut off circulation to my left leg, so that after several minutes I began to lose feeling in that limb.
This has happened before, though a lot worse. It was traffic then, and so I couldn't move at all for at least a half hour. I tried everything; pinching, trying to move my toes (which I could not feel anyway), moving the leg up and down... everything. When I finally got off at Cubao, I almost fell over in the street (which had cars moving at top speed). The leg was DEAD. Like a peg leg, or as if it was coated in cement. I dragged and shuffled my way like a zombie to the concrete divider and stayed there for a minute, looking quite odd as I began kicking my leg against the curb to return the feeling.
Ah. The pain of pins and needles. The feeling returned.
Luckily this time around, I didn't have to wait too long, so I didn't have difficulty in walking after getting down. As I walked the rest of the way to the MRT station, I espied a kiosk selling some cool looking green drink ( I assume it was some pandan/sago/gulaman concoction). It looked refreshing because there was moisture all over the container. I was almost tempted to buy a glass when I recognized the shape of the container... they were selling the drink from an old aquarium tank. Gah.
Had my usual squid balls and gulaman at my regular stand at the MRT station. It was a bit of a wait because the guards are checking bags thoroughly due to the bomb threats. Well, some things change, some things remain the same. I'm just glad I'm here to keep writing blogs.

In the Bag

The Sanctum has a new fixture. A Bean Bag. Well, actually, more of a Bean Throne. Unlike the usual plain round foam-filled cushion, the one I was able to purchase at the Mega Sale (the whole time braving terrorist bomb blasts, mind you) comes with extra apertures which expand into arm and headrests... it's probably the closest thing to a Lazyboy easy chair I'll ever have (since one of those bastards costs upwards of 30K), and I'm loving it.
So I'm there, enjoying the pleasure of sinking into the thing and feeling it wrap around my form like a clammy giant glove. I have to admit I've done quite a few Jean-Luc Picard impressions ever since I got the thing, and it's wonderful. Great for playing games and watching DVD movies on. Except that prolonged use might be bad for the back... Hmmm. Never saw Captain Picard complain about backaches.
"Make it so, Number One. GAHH! My FRICKING Back...!"