Born the seventh son of a seventh son. Last of his kind. Marked at birth to be evil’s bane. Fulfiller of prophecy. Touched by the Gods. Filled to the brim with midi-chlorians. He (or she) alone can halt the darkness and bring peace to the land. It is THE CHOSEN ONE. Folks there are tropes and then there are Tropes and The Chosen One is right up there with the greats. It’s also the subject of today’s Troping the Riff. So what do I mean by The Chosen One? Well this is any character in a story that has been…
Month: August 2015
Worth It? – Kingsman: the Secret Service
Avid comic book fan that I am Mark Millar’s body of work is well known to me. His run at Marvel included work on The Ultimates, Ultimate Fantastic Four, and the Civil War comic event. All of which are some of my absolute favorites. I also very much enjoyed his creator owned titles Kick-Ass and Wanted. So I have to admit that I’m a bit ashamed that I didn’t realize Kingsman: The Secret Service was based on one of his books until it was already out of theaters. Now just because a movie is based on a Millar comic doesn’t…
Mind Blown- The Copenhagen Interpretation
Have you ever been invited to multiple cool events on the same night? Wished you could go to all of them but knew you had to pick one and live with the choice? Well if you were an electron you might just be able to attend them all at once or maybe none of them at all. Who knows! Unless you were observed. Then we would know. WE WOULD KNOW. Sound like I’m talking gibberish? You’re right I am because in this edition of Mind Blown I tackle THE COPENHAGEN INTERPRETATION. (Cue trippy orchestral sci-fi theme) What is the Copenhagen…
The Franchise- The Fantastic Four
It is not in my nature to pile on. When something or someone has failed so cataclysmically that people start breaking out puns I try to stay above the fray and let the pour souls involved limp off with whatever is left of their dignity. So I will just say this about the new Fantastic Four movie: it was not good, not good at all. But it did inspire me to write this guide for all future handlers of the Fantastic Four legacy so hopefully one good thing can emerge from the ruined husk of Josh Trank’s career. So this…
In Stores Now- Armada
Sometimes in life you just get so excited that you set yourself up for disappointment. Your imagination sets the bar so high that you make it impossible for reality to measure up to your expectations. This has happened to me a few times in my life; my first trip to Paris, the fourth Indiana Jones Movie, Star Wars Episode 1, bacon flavored vodka, the list goes on. And it happened to me again when I sat down to read Ernest Cline’s second novel Armada. Hopefully by now you’ve read Mr. Cline’s Ready Player One which can best be described as…
Science! For Parties!: The Cowardly Pepper
Sometimes you do a cool science trick and everyone nods and smiles and tells you that’s pretty interesting and other times you do a cool science trick and your friends look at you like you’re a bad-ass magic-slinging wizard of the white council. This is one of those times. In this edition of Science! For Parties! I teach you the secrets of (drum roll please) The Cowardly Pepper! For this trick you’ll need some simple household items: pepper (or any kind of visible seasoning); dish soap; a bowl or plate (if you use a plate try to use a large…