So I snagged “Grand Theft Auto IV” for the Xbox 360 last week and finally got to put some real time in with it last night and I’m really enjoying it. Thus far, I’m not finding anything crazy different from the prior games, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The previous games were hours upon hours of fun and this one will be too.

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So we’re sitting here watching last night’s American Idol and for the second show in a row, I’m bored to tears. I’m just not engaged this year one iota. None of the contestants are standing out to me. There’s not a single contestant I’d waste my time and effort to call in and vote for! The bickering between the three judges is tired. Randy is lame. Paula is incomprehensible, and… well I usually agree with still. Plus, I’m so tired of Fox dragging the show out night after night *and* Fox’s shameless self-promotion and product placement.

So anyway, I’m bored with the show and I think Amanda’s getting there too. I’m this close to cancelling TiVo’s season pass. The show’s run its course. They ignited the careers of Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Chris Daughtry. Now it’s time to close the curtain on the show.

Added Comments (Amanda): Yeah, I am totally done with American Idol. I was so frustrated and utterly bored last night with the performances, lack of talent, the bickering between the judges, the goofy youthfulness of the contestants… the whole thing was annoying and old. They’ve worn out their welcome for sure. Long gone are the days of Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Chris Daughtry.

So last Monday when I was working from home, I also took the time to call around to see if any of the local Game Stops had any of the Rock Band Special Editions in for the Xbox 360 (Special Edition is just the game, the drum kit, guitar and mic). None did initially, but I’m glad I called around, as a couple just said no, while others informed me that they expected some via UPS later that day.

Late that afternoon, I snagged one from the closest Game Stop and since I had sold my PS2 hardware and all the games back, I had a massive store credit. Brought it home and did a little drum and guitar playing solo. Lots of fun!

But the real fun came yesterday when Bret, Tina and JC came and we had a full band. It really rocks with a group of people, and there’s a good variety of tasks in the career mode. We really were rocking out on a lot of tracks and had the most success and fun when Bret was on drums, Tina on bass, JC on vocals and me on guitar.

The only downer came toward the end of our extended session. Reports have been widespread about faulty hardware (EA Acknowledges Rock Band Guitar Defect, Promises Replacements, Rock Band Users Discovering Hardware Issues).

I was hoping since I didn’t get a box from the initial release batches, I’d be fine. But by the end of Sunday’s extended jam session, only upstrums were working on the Fender Rock Band Guitar. My guitar strum bar is slightly limp, hanging down from its usual centered home position. Luckily, EA is doing a two day turnaround on the faulty equipment, so a new guitar should be here Wednesday or Thursday this week – plenty of time before the next D’ Bagz jam session commences this weekend.

Local play was great, but is greatly enhanced by having a few friends in the room with you. I have yet to play online. I tried late Saturday night to, but gave up on trying to hook up with people to play with. I kept getting kicked out of the initial join “lobby.” I’m thinking I didn’t have enough experience. Maybe I’ll make it through on a couple of instruments solo and with the D’ Bagz before any further foray.

Despite the hardware issues, I highly recommend this game, especially if you have a few buddies that will be into it with you. The price tag is steep, but oh so much fun. I feel that I’ve already got my money’s worth, but there’s still a lot of fun, achievements, content and songs yet to unlock and/or tackle.

Import racing and import customizing is huge across the nation. After-market and speed shop auto parts make car-related companies big bucks It was only a matter of time until a movie was made about the racing culture. “The Fast and the Furious” does a decent job of showing off that world. The action is great. The storyline is lame.

The film stars Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. Walker plays a new-to-the-racing-scene racer who’s actually an undercover cop, trying to find out who in the import scene is hijacking trucks of Panasonic consumer electronics. Diesel plays the leader of a gang of racers.

The whole premise is pretty weak. A group of thieves are using souped-up Honda Civics to roll up on tractor trailers hauling consumer electronics. One of the Civics pulls in front of the semi and the passenger in the car jumps onto the truck, using a hook and rope, taking the driver out and hijacking the whole truck.

Walker comes in as an undercover cop who gets caught up in the scene and adrenaline rush associated with the racing and is torn between loyalty to Diesel and his job as a cop.

The biggest hole in the movie though is this loyalty. Walker quickly becomes buddy-buddy with Diesel and most of his group and the bonds just do not seem to make a lot of sense. The same can be said for the relationship that blossoms between Mia (Jordana Brewster) and Walker’s character. The bonds are there, it just seems like they were fused way too quickly. Maybe some of that character development ended up on the cutting room floor to make way for more racing — fair enough.

The cars are great and the racing scenes are amazing, with great attention to detail, and that is obviously why viewers are going to see this film. I am making the assumption that you go to see this movie, taking it for exactly what it is — a showcase for presenting high-horsepower cars.

Being a big fan of Toyota, I was happy to see Walker’s car in half the movie was a Supra Twin Turbo, but for the most part, the movie was about Mitsubishis, which I found a little strange. I’m not vastly into the import scene, but I always thought that the Mitsubishis, while customization was available, I thought it was mainly Honda that was the brand to go with. The movie seemed to have an overabundance of Eclipses though.

Regardless, the movie’s racing is great. The sounds and slick filming of the movie make it a worthy watcher. Just don’t go in expecting too much of a story.

The opening act for Miss Clarkson was the Graham Colton Band at the Cricket Arena in Charlotte, NC, July 24, 2005. Nothing special about GCB honestly and I think that a lot of the audience saw them as a lot different than Kelly Clarkson’s music. Both are rock-oriented though. GCB were fine, but nothing spectacular. They came right on at 7:30 and were off right at 8:00, which is perfect for an opening act.

Then Kelly came right out at 8:30. The set was pretty cool. There was a little part of the stage that jutted out into the middle of the audience. Several horizontal light bars that could change colors (kind of like those new Aqueous TVs) werea ll over the stage. The main lights spanned vertically up the stage on four diagonal towers covered with curtains. Then above that, were two flat panel screens that off and on showed Kelly’s eyes blinking, looking up, down, left and right. That was kind of weird.

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It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Kevin Smith and his films and humor in general. Take a look at any college dorm room’s video collection, and you’ll quickly see that I’m not alone.

Kevin Smith’s newest film, “Jersey Girl” represents the first departure from his Askewniverse flicks (”Clerks,” “Mallrats,” “Chasing Amy,” “Dogma” and “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back”) and their colorful cast of Jersey characters that have become so popular on campuses. But Smith hasn’t gone too far away from what he knows. “Jersey Girl” is still has Smith’s flavor and is a great initial departure from his Askewniverse history.

The story centers around Ollie Trinke who has what he regards as the perfect life in New York City, working as a PR bigwig and married to the beautiful Gertrude Steiney, played by Affleck’s former real-life flame, Jennifer Lopez. Gertrude ends up getting pregnant and they prep for life with their first child. I don’t think I’m ruining it for anyone by telling you that Lopez’s character dies in the first 15 minutes of the film, due to complications during child birth.

Ollie is left having to juggle the loss of his beloved wife, and raise a child as a single parent, while trying to keep up with the demands of his job. He ends up moving back to Jersey with his father, played by George Carlin, and to his dismay, he has to quit his PR job and work locally in Jersey. The circumstances surrounding his change of vocations is amusing, but see the film to get the details there.

While back at home in Jersey, Affleck meets Maya, played by Liv Tyler, a local girl who works the mom and pop’s video store (ala “Clerks”). To no one’s surprise, they hit it off after Affleck gets over his initial locking out anyone but his deceased wife and a pseudo friendship with undertones of more ensues and it’s obvious where it’s going long before the movie ends.

Ollie Trinke struggles throughout the flick with dealing with the loss of his true love, and always being there for his daughter, Gertie. Gertie, played by big screen newcomer, Raquel Castro does a wonderful job in the movie and is not over the top cute or annoying, like a lot of Hollywood’s child actors. She does a good job of dealing with the range of emotions and situations in the movie.

A lot of people don’t like Affleck, but I think the guy is a competent actor and does a great job of portraying the Jersey single parent and widower. A nod also has to be given to George Carlin. His role is pretty serious and he does a great job playing the father aiding his son in being a father in his own right.

Kevin Smith has always been known for loading up his cast with personal friends and “Jersey Girl” continues the tradition. View Askew veterans Ben Affleck and George Carlin obviously have big roles, but others also pop up, such as Matt Damon and Jason Lee. It was funny though to look around the theater audience and realize that Jersey Girl had more of a broad audience, and most didn’t recognize the View Askew cameos; not that this is a bad thing though. Wider appeal means that more people will see it and aren’t as connected to the director. Regardless, it was a nice nod to fans who have seen his other five films.

It’s hard not to compare “Jersey Girl” to the other Kevin Smith flicks and on one hand, it’s its own beast that’s very different. It’s a little cutesy, but it’s still got that Smith flavor and humor to it. Rather than being a straight out comedy/adventure comedy like most of his previous endeavors, “Jersey Girl” is Smith’s second romantic comedy (”Chasing Amy” being the first). Smith says he doesn’t feel that “Jersey Girl” is all that much different than “Chasing Amy” and that they just swapped out the lesbian for a 7-year old. I tend to see the separation a little more substantial, but both are worthy of viewing. If you can get over Smith’s latest being a bit syrupy sweet, it’s a very enjoyable film worth checking out. “Jersey Girl” also has the added advantage in that it could give Kevin Smith a broader audience — great for us hardcore Kevin Smith fans for future movies.

The movies below are some of my favorite flicks. I‘m sure some will wholeheartedly agree with some of my picks, while others
will scoff at them. Either way, these are some of the flicks I‘ve watched more times than I can count. Here they are, in no real specific order:

Back to the Future

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind, nor anyone that knows me well that the Back to the Future Trilogy is at the top of my list of movies. Since I first got a DVD player, I‘ve eagerly awaited their release. Finally, on December 17, 2002 the trilogy will come to DVD chocked full of DVD extras. There are plenty of DVDs out there that I wonder why anyone would ever watch the feature-length film with commentary, nor sift through extras on the disc. But with the Back to the Future Trilogy, I can‘t wait for all that on the three disc set arriving mid-December!

I remember seeing Back to the Future on VHS right after it was released and just loved every aspect of it. I love the science fiction aspect of it — time travel and the flashy special effects of the DeLorean. "If you‘re gonna build a time machine out of a car, why not do it with some style?"

The original enthralled me and hooked me on what could be a lifelong love of sci-fi, time travel stories and the unique design of the short-lived stainless steel DeLorean. . I just love the gull-wing doors and the whole modified look of the Back to the Future time vehicle.

The first one was done right, all the way around. The comedic elements are great, the casting right-on and the sci-fi elements are first class. Man, I could go on forever about Back to the Future!

Back to the Future II

Back to the Future II is considered by many to be the bastard child of the trilogy — too confusing, too much running around, etc. I can see where people would have those complaints, but I don‘t share them. I love all three flicks, but have a great liking for portrayals of the future.

Back to the Future II does have one thing that always bugs me in portrayals of the future… they obviously are filmed in a given time and the technology of the future obviously reflects the filming time. For example, the futuristic cars were 90‘s Tauruses, Mustangs etc. with skirts added to the car. I understand why that has to happen, just a little thing that I always get a chuckle out of. Dark Angel was the same way — all the cars left over from the pre-pulse are all vehicles of the early 21st century — stuff like the Pontiac Aztek and the Audi TT.

But anyway, I love the whole idea of alternate timelines and seeing what could have been. The jumping between 2015, 1985 and 1955 is great, with Marty and Doc bumping into themselves in the past. Marty is seeing events that just happened to him just days before, even though the span in actual years they‘ve jumped is much greater. I honestly didn‘t think the movie was one bit confusing.

The hoverboard and flying DeLorean used throughout the movie are great, and will be things that even the casual watcher will remember for years to come.

This second of three films also introduces the history repeating itself that continues in each movie. You have similar situations in different eras. The skateboard chase through town square becomes a hoverboard chase, Marty‘s initial encounter with Griff in the Cafe 80‘s mirrors his meeting of the ‘55 Biff in Lou‘s Cafe 60 years early, etc. etc. A lot of the parallels between time are blatent, but the links between the films run deep — both in the truly obvious, to pretty obscure stuff.

Back to the Future III

I‘m not big at all on the old West, Westerns, etc., but Doc and Marty‘s adventure in the old west was cool in that you see Hill Valley from pretty much its humble beginnings. Even way back in 1885, the Statler family was in the transportation — selling/renting horses (in 1985, they have the Hill Valley Toyota dealership) and the Jones family was hauling manure, even when Hill Valley was just a single street.

It‘s cool that Doc and Marty are witnesses to the dedication of the clock tower, meaning they‘re present at both its birth and its electrifying demise at precisely 10:04pm some 70 years later.

Back to the Future III is unique in the trilogy as it is the one where Doc and Marty‘s rolls reverse — with Doc being the lovestruck one and Marty being the voice of reason.

The final of the three also has one of the most tragic moments in film history when a 1985 locomotive plows through the retrofitted DeLorean like tinfoil, leaving stainless scattered just outside of the new Hilldale development and the trademark license plate spinning occurs.

I‘m not a very big fan of the ending of the film, with the train engine. It ties everything together at the end, but I always thought it was kind of lame. All in all though, I love these movies. They‘ve stayed pretty timeless and I love them as much now as I did when I originally saw them back as an adolescent.

The Matrix

The Matrix was one of those movies I went into the theater knowing little about it. The whole idea of questioning what reality is truly is a concept I really like and like to consider. While this movie does have a huge number of goofs, it really was groundbreaking from a visual sense. I can‘t wait for the second and third installment. I just hope they live up to the original.

While a lot of the effects in this movie have been way overdone in action/adventure movies now, this visual styling was completely innovative and mind boggling when The Matrix was initially released theatrically.

The movie is a combination of Kung-Fu action, cyberpunk and sci-fi all mixed into an explosive and immersive movie. Even the soundtrack is rocking, with tracks from Rage Against the Machine, Rob Zombie, Manson, etc. and even a couple of techno instrumentals that fit into the whole scene of reality versus perceived reality.

This is another film that has yet to diminish in my eyes. I‘ve seen this movie countless times and the DVD is always one of the discs I use as a baseline when testing out new A/V equipment.

The Rainmaker

I’ve always been a big fan of courtroom films, from comedies like “My Cousin Vinny” to dramas like “A Civil Action.” But by far, my favorite courtroom film is the screen adapatation of John Grisham’s book, “The Rainmaker,” directed by rancis Ford Coppola.

Matt Damon does a great job as law student Rudy Baylor, trying fight for the little guy against the big bad evil insurance company defended by an always convincing bad guy, Jon Voight.

This is one of the first DVDs I snagged when I first bought a DVD player, and I’ve watched it multiple timeswith enjoyment never waning — all around good performances, interesting plot and a lot of enjoyment.

I’ve had my TiVo now for about four months. I was psyched from the day I got it setup, but wanted to wait to write a review until I made sure my love of this technology wasn’t because it was the newest gadget in my arsenal. Well, four months later, it’s still being used daily and makes me wonder how I ever watched television without one.
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The Worms series has been alive and exploding worms since the old 8-bit Nintendo.

The newest in the series from Team 17, Worms Armageddon, adds features and improves slightly on its most recent predecessor, Worms 2.

The game is a team vs. team game. While there is a one-player mode, it comes to its full potential in multi-player mode, either with several people hunched around one screen, mouse and keyboard, or via a Local Area Network (LAN) or an Internet server.

Teams consist of warrior worms that can be customized with names to your liking and even sound files. Our team members found sound schemes for everything from "The Simpsons" to "Pulp Fiction."

So rather than a missed shot resulting in a scolding from a worm with a high-pitched voice, you can hear Homer Simpson yelling "D’oh!"

Teams take turns trying to eliminate all of the worms not on their team. If you were a worm, how would you take out the enemies? Team 17 decided to give the worms 60 different choices, all with their own quirks, tricks and situational uses. The favorites on my team are the Holy Hand Grenade (paying a little homage to Monty Python), the banana bomb, which explodes and then distributes several clusters of volatile bananas. There’s also the Super Sheep, capable of bleating its little heart out before donning a cape and taking to the sky in an explosive kamikaze mission.

Sound weird? It is - but it was instantly addictive and fun to play with a group of people. The game builds on the old game Scorched Earth, in which opposing tanks fired at one another relentlessly with a plethora of weapons.

Most everything can be customized in the game, giving great and varied play. Players can build the landscapes and choose which and how many weapons to start with. There are so many options I’ve yet to totally tweak all the settings.

The game play is very similar to Worms 2. A few weapons have been added, while others areabsent. The biggest additions are improved graphics on each landscape and a couple of more powerful weapons.

Sadly, the multiple random cartoon intros that Worms 2 started up with are gone and they are sorely missed.

But side by side, Worms 2 and Worms Armageddon are pretty much the same game. Neither will disappoint you when you’re looking for a fun multiplayer game with a bit of a sense of humor and a lot of options.

Team 17
Rating: ages 11 and up
Requirements:
Pentium-100,
Windows 95/98,
32 MB RAM,
2x CD-ROM,
50 MB free hard drive space, 1 MB SVGA card,
16-bit sound card

Originally printed in the News & Observer and NandoNext.

Dark Angel was a great little show on Fox, created by T2’s James Cameron and starred the beautiful Jessica Alba as Max, a genetically enhanced soldier in a post-apocalyptic near future. The first season of the television show was great sci-fi / action. The second season stretched a little and my interest waned, as did others, as a third season never popped up.

The Dark Angel game, available on the PS2 and X-Box appeared on the market months after the series went defunct. It was most likely in development before plans to cancel the series took place and Sierra decided to still release it.

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