Ten Years

Not really a whole lot I can say that others aren't saying a lot better. Especially people who were much closer to the impact than I was. My being a Canadian I can't claim the same experience as the Americans, but it has given me an interesting vantage point.

In the time since, I have seen from the United States equal parts hope and fear, courage and cowardice, reason and insanity. We talk of how we banded together and showed our true colours, while at the same time many others were taking advantage of that sudden patriotic camaraderie to suit their own selfish, destructive ambitions. We are more suspicious now than ever, less trusting, less certain.

In many ways, we're still crawling out of the wreckage. But we're still here. The sun still rises. And no amount of fear and hostility can break that.

My neighbours down south have been hit hard, harder than I'd like to imagine. And I think they've been wounding themselves for the last decade with their fear-mongering and pseudo-civil war "Us vs. Them" mentality.

But whatever doesn't kill you...

END OF LINE

~A.H.

Classic Friday: "HUGO STIGLITZ"

I was hoping I could make these Classic Friday posts be at least vaguely on topic with something that's happened recently, but that's what I get for putting off saving those articles until it was too late. So you get an old review of a Quentin Tarantino movie:

OC Remix: "Back In Blue"

OC Remix released their newest album: A collection of mixes from Mega Man 9. Pretty solid overall, and the only track they fucked up completely was Hornet Man's. I find that happens a lot with them and tracks with male vocalists. It's how they killed the Credits Music from Mega Man X, and the final boss tracks to FFIV and Donkey Kong Country 2. There's a few decent female singers there, but not one talented male vocal performer.

That complaint aside, I'd recommend giving it a listen. Some very talented people on this one. If nothing else, it will tide things over until they release their gigantic Mega Man X series tribute album.

END OF LINE

~A.H.

Extra Credits: "PATV"

Home, sweet home.

END OF LINE

~A.H.

Crytek Me A River

It's pretty sad that stories like this are becoming so commonplace they're almost not even noteworthy anymore. Crytek joins the ranks of EA, Rockstar and Activision when it comes to companies with dickhead bosses and allegations of hellish working conditions.

If there is any truth to these accusations, this is not something we should tolerate. But if this is how companies treat the people who bring us our entertainment, what do we do? Do we boycott the game entirely? While it would send a message to these companies in the only language they understand(money), it has the unfortunate side-effect of wasting the blood, sweat and tears developers go through to make these games. Even if those games are flavourless, mass-produced shlock. And I don't think pirating is the right way, either.

And it could just be bogus, a stream of lies by a guy rightly fired, now entangled in a vicious "he-said, she-said" situation on public display. Hey, just playing devil's advocate.

Either way, something is very rotten in video games if this situation is becoming the norm.

END OF LINE

~A.H.

Classic Friday: "Tamers"

I'm happy to report that I've found a couple of older articles I HAD saved to my hard-drive before the old site died. Which means Classic Friday can still exist for about a month or so.

I also mentioned a few week's back that I'm planning on writing a list of my favourite cartoons. Well, here's one of 'em:

Selina Kyle

Dear Lindy Hemming, costume designer for the upcoming "The Dark Knight Rises"...

You can do better.

 

Okay, Bane looks alright. I'll give you that.

END OF LINE

~A.H.