Review: Jurassic Park 3D!

For the past 20 years we’ve only been able to enjoy Spielberg's dino-rampage classic Jurassic Park in boring old lame 2D - like a newspaper or a postcard! Now, thankfully in 2013, technology has caught up to the point where we can view it in glorious, futuristic 3D - like a beer, a pizza, or a naked supermodel! Is this fancy big screen post-conversion worth it, especially seeing as how 3D VMAX tickets cost us $28 each - nearly twice as much as the cost of owning the actual Blu-ray?

T-Rex! Ermahgerd!

Hell yes! And I’m going to tell you why Jurassic Park 3D is so awesome... after the jump!'

Amazon Sale on the Wheel of Time series

If you were interested in reading the Wheel of Time (even after looking through my readthrough), you may be interested in seeing that the entire series (sans A Memory of Light) is half off for Kindle currently. Even the paperback editions, if you're into that sort of thing, are showing deep discounts. If you're in for some cheap reading and a collection of good books (made better if you just pretend Crossroads of Twilight never happened), might be a good place to look.

Pre-order Hot Toys Iron Man Mark XLII DIECAST 1/6th Scale Figure!

Hot on the tail of the 1/6th scale Iron Patriot, Hot Toys presents the next in their new diecast series: a metal, shiny version of Iron Man Mark XLII, just one of the 3,500 suits that Stark appears to have in his audaciously large collection. However, this time Tony's not looking so hot...

But fear not! This figure actually has interchangeable parts, so if you're not so keen on displaying an Iron Man that has just had the crap kicked out of it by the terrorist antics of Fu Manchu-sporting villain, then you can also display him clean and factory new.

If that's enough to sell you, pre-order him straight away from our friends at Sideshow here:
Hot Toys Die Cast Marvel Series Iron Man Mark XLII Limited Edition Sixth Scale Figure - MMS Diecast Series (Hot Toys) Or to see more pictures, join me... after the jump!

Thank Gif It's Friday!

The following company is not an official sponsor of the site... but damned if this doesn't make me want to purchase their product!

Happy Friday!

Friday Night Movie Reviews

It's the first Friday of the month yet again, so it's time for us to fill your eyeholes with snack-sized movie reviews! Join us under the cut to see what we were watching this month.

Primeval New World Review: 5 Reasons This Show Should Be Renewed

There are a few things you should know to begin with; I have never seen the original UK Primeval series. I want to give it a shot, but many people have warned me off it saying that the effects are terrible and the plots hang by a shoe string at best. But when Canada picked up a spin off show in Primeval New World, I thought it might be worth a crack, especially given the directors and producers making appearances are Stargate alumni and Niall Matter from Eureka was leading the show. Already, there were some favourable ingredients.

Another thing to know, I love dinosaurs, but I rarely see them done well on television. I cannot believe what a joke Terra Nova was and that was a recent failing in the foray of dinosaur animation and storytelling. Primeval New World certainly was on the money with the dinosaurs.

I believe the show is being run on the American channel SyFy in June if you haven’t had a chance to see it yet, but the DVD has already been released in the UK.

To give you the background; Evan Cross (Niall Matter) is a genius with his own company, Cross Photonics, but instead of working on his next innovation in the industry, he hangs out with Predator Control in the city. As it turns out, it’s because he has discovered that dinosaurs are coming through temporal disturbances known as Anomalies, and these dinosaurs are killing people... one of the victims was his wife.

Under the cut I’ll discuss the shows plot, some speculation on where it could be going and also give 5 reasons why this show should be renewed as sadly, after just 13 episodes it has been canned. I’m not suggesting that this is the next Firefly, but I think the record speaks for itself on solid shows not given enough of a go after their first season, and Primeval New World certainly fits that bill. It starts a little clunky, finding its style and feel, but it quickly delivers a solid storyline with interesting characters and arcs and I am told is much darker than the UK version, yet still accessible.

More discussion under the cut.

Broke Video Gamer: Red 5 Studios' Firefall at PAX-East 2013

Hang on to your hats! Red 5 Studios just did a table-flip and Firefall is forever changed. Fruitless Pursuits was invited to the press event at PAX-East 2013 which outlines the details of this revamp. Red 5 Studios re-worked their groundbreaking free-to-play MMOFPS several times in the three years Firefall has been in beta status. This patch, released for the first day of the convention, is a huge undertaking. After sitting through the panel consisting of Red 5 CEO/COO Mark Kern and Lead Designer Scott Youngblood, I spent the next week experiencing as many of the changes as I could.

New Modesty Blaise Compilation

Titan Books has been doing reprints of the Modesty Blaise comic strips for close to a decade now, and the latest volume reaches American shores on Tuesday, The Girl in the Iron Mask.

What's interesting about Modesty Blaise, as an American who went into it with no knowledge of the existence of the comic, is that it doesn't feel old in any sense other than the similar stylings to the other serialized comic strips I remember from when I was younger, most notably Brenda Starr, Reporter. As far as espionage comics go, this gives me a lot of reason to try and start from the top.

The new volume is fairly barebones on a whole - a quick intro followed by just a flood of the dailies. The dailies are pretty high quality, they look as if they were restored from the original artwork - hardly a guarantee of anything from this era. The writing is also sharp and clear, not always a given for comics of this type.

With 16 volumes in the past, there's a lot in there worth catching up on, so I have some work to do, don't I? You can track these down at Titan.

Hit Girl Comics Review: Utter Mayhem

Firstly, Mark Millar seems to be some sort of twisted genius. If the dark undertones of Kick Ass, entwined with the sharp gutter humour and eyeball exploding violence are anything to go by, this should be evident. But it could have been a one hit wonder, a stab in the dark that produced something both unique and fantastic. Then there was Kick Ass 2, and it was every bit as good as the first comic series. We were pulled again into the lives of Kick Ass and Hit Girl as they take matters into their own hands, and slice a few hands off at the same time. The recently released Hit Girl comics bridge the gap between Kick Ass and Kick Ass 2 and are every bit as rewarding as the series they have spun off. In one word; Hit Girl is AWESOME.

But if you are inclined towards more words, follow me under the jump.

Thursday Threesome: Three New Shows I've Been Watching

It hasn't really felt like there’s been many must-see new shows this year as yet. We've been so spoilt with shows like Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead over the last couple of years that the new kids on the block have to work twice as hard to get noticed. My interest waned in Arrow after a few episodes (though I plan to go back eventually), The Carrie Diaries holds no appeal for me whatsoever, and while I am curious about Ripper Street, it’s not something I've yet investigated. I checked out a few other newbies over the Easter break, so join me below the cut to find out what I watched, and what I thought.

New Music in 2013 You May Have Overlooked

I loved 2012 in music, and 2013 so far has been pretty off the wall as well. Popular publications, though, seem to be catching up with a lot of stuff - I love A$AP Rocky's new album, but it's gotten a lot of press. The new Tegan & Sara is interesting, and Trent Reznor's first full album with How To Destroy Angels is excellent. So if you're looking for something a little different or a little overlooked that's new to this year, check some of these out:

PAX East 2013: Cards Against Humanity Is Bigger Than Monopoly.

I'm not sure when it happened, but sometime over the past few months Cards Against Humanity became the biggest game in the world. Maybe not the world, but definitely MY world. At PAX East you couldn't walk down a hallway without passing a group playing the game. You couldn't come close to getting into their sold out panel (which concluded with free milk and cookies for everyone). And you could barely get your hands on all three of the exclusive promo packs that were being given away. League of Legends ruled the video game side of the show, but Cards Against Humanity was the king of the tabletop side.

The 3rd Expansion was announced and released at PAX and I managed to get a copy. And after trading away a bunch of goodies, I was able to get all 3 PAX promo packs.

Click through the jump for a spoiler of all of the nerdtastic PAX cards, which are bringing top dollar on eBay right now. It's going to be hard to be a completist with this game.

Stryder's Favourite Comics - 3/27/2013

Hey is it Tuesday already? Well okay then, let's look at some comic books!

Batman Incorporated #9 - "Damian Wayne, my son, struck our lives like a bolt of lightning."

This month's issue of Batman, Inc reads like the eye of some terrible storm, a few relatively calm moments following the horrible events of last month's issue and what appear to be certain bad times ahead.  The opening pages juxtapose the events that happen directly after the Heretic's fatal blow to Damian "Robin" Wayne last issue with the Boy Wonder's funeral in the graveyard behind Wayne Manor.  Needless to say, it's an emotional book.  The immediate, gut-wrenching reactions of Bruce, Dick, Alfred and even Talia Al Ghul (not at the funeral, of course) are finally revealed. 

The future indeed looks grim for Batman and his allies, as Leviathan still holds Wayne Tower hostage and Gotham City is helpless in Talia's grip!  So much so that the Mayor is capitulating to Leviathan's demands!  The top one being that Batman, Inc and all things related to the Dark Knight are heretofore BANNED!  Bruce Wayne is a wanted man and "Batman is no longer welcome in Gotham City!" 

Superman, Aquaman, Talon and more after the JUMP!

F**k Yeah Game of Thrones Recaps! Episode One: Valar Dohaeris!

Just about everybody I know has had a total Thrones-boner for the start of Game of Thrones series three and, now that it has finally aired, we can all relax, reflect, and let the blood pump back into our heads. I wouldn’t say that the series has started with bang, but perhaps with a gentle bump against our leg with the veiled promise of a bang later on. It’s okay to start off slow. We need the setup. You can’t make an omelette without staring for an hour at a carton of eggs.

Writer/beard-farmer George R. R. Martin’s work is filled with all sorts of fancy names and places so, just in case you’re confused, I’m going to break down everything that happened for the common layman. I haven’t read the books, but I have plenty of opinions on things and enjoy the sound of my own voice.

Why don’t you share Episode One: Valar Dohaeris with me... after the jump!

The Book Was Better Podcast Episode 39: Supergirl: the Movie (with guest host Courtney Coulson!)

The Book Was Better is the podcast where we eviscerate the (usually) crappy novelization of your most loved and loathed films!

Today I'm joined by special guest host, costume creator, and comics expert Courtney Coulson as we dive into the forbidden heady pleasures of skilled author Norma Fox Mazer's novelization, Supergirl: The Movie! The film is misguided, perplexing and downright embarrassing, but can The Fox successfully shine up this super shitefest? Find out all this and a whole lot more in Episode 39!

You can download it right now from the official site, or why not subscribe to us on iTunes where we be all up in yo' ears every single week!

And as an extra special bonus, Courtney put her sewing skills to good use and recorded this episode in her own rendition of the late seventies puffy shirt and shorts Supergirl! We did a special photo shoot to commemorate this momentous precedent setting occasion! You can see more of these images on The Book Was Better facebook page here.

Doctor Who 7.06: The Bells of Saint John

The new episodes of Doctor Who are coming. The first aired Sunday – “The Bells of Saint John” and while it’s not quite the coma that Paul Verhoevan described, it’s definitely not Moffat’s finest hour, though let’s be honest, those have been few and far between lately.

The Bells of Saint John had me flapping about the house because it’s new Doctor Who, not because it was particularly good. Had me laughing out loud because Matt Smith is the only consistently good thing about Moffat’s run thus far. And it definitely made me want to run, because the music is still top notch.

Join me for more musing under the jump.

Review: Gears of War: Judgment!

There’s a very good reason why this game isn’t called Gears of War 4. I think of the Gears series as high octane, constantly ratcheting, episodic, interactive action movies where the gritty boombox-breasted protagonists are siphoned from one horrible situation to another. Traversing broken cities and strange lands, they’ve been inside a giant bug, battled light-sensitive bats, and even dodged a downpour of broken glass. Gears of War: Judgment, on the other hand, doesn’t have any of these things. Instead we get an almost real-time tour through... a museum, a college and a courthouse? Hmmmmmm. So what DOES it have?

Find out why it still kind of works... after the jump!

PAX East 2013: Emperor's New Clothes Demo and Recap

Last weekend at PAX East, I met up with Jonathan Liu and played his game Emperor's New Clothes at the Game Salute booth. The game is still on Kickstarter right now (ENDS MONDAY!), and I even had the chance to contribute to a Pixel Lincoln version of the game that will be available to the backers. We're joining the ranks of artists such as Munchkin's John Kovalic in the ensemble of talent behind this game. If you haven't seen the game, or heard the many discussions that it has initiated, go check out the Kickstarter page. It's a brilliant take on the classic tale and a wonderful experience for the creative gamer.

My brother George said it was the best game he ever played. I asked if he meant at PAX (where we had just played the awesome and highly anticipated Kingbrick re-make, Cube Quest) and he said "No.... ever." My brother-in-law Marty couldn't stop talking about it as well. I felt the same way. Anything that challenges my imagination and encourages creativity is going to score big points for me.

More thoughts after the break.

El Professore Movie Review: Night of the Lepus (aka Rabbits)

1972
Director: William F. Claxton
Starring: Stuart Whitman, Janet Leigh, Rory Calhoun, DeForest Kelly
* * 1/2

It must have sounded like a terrifying idea; giant flesh eating bunny rabbits on the rampage. Yeah...

Full review after the jump.