Brilliant all around, George Lucas manages to deliver once more. Save a couple cheesy romance lines (hey, romance is a hard thing to write, anyway) Episode 3 manages to compell and complete the jigsaw of Star Wars.

In all honesty, I find Lucas' storytelling to be absolutely brilliant. Showing Episode IV first was an excellent move, as not only did it stop any religious from banning Episode I, it also made many questions spring. And all of which were answered in Episode III, namely: why Naboo went out of the picture, why Leia went to the Organas, why Darth Vader wears a suit when Sidiuos, Maul and Dooku don't... and of course, what happened to the Jedi.

"Order 66" is a scene both painful and beautiful that I will always remember.

It's just a shame that the epic... is over.

(I'm lazy... banner comes later)

Whew! End of the year. Lots of people leaving. :( But there's still the ones who are staying, so yeah.

I went to Value Village today with one of my buddies. She bought a corset. xD I found cassetes for POTO, an Andrew Llyod Webber collection, and REQUIEM!!! So cool.

Anyway, summer's here. *sigh*

Hooray! First weekend without anything due. (I think... *shudder*)

I spent the day watching The Hole, Donnie Darko Director's Cut and Sixth Sense for the nth time. Why the nth time? I keep running into it. Heh

The Hole was pretty good, only it's R-rated so any of you kiddies out there can't watch it... but for those among us in the legal age bracket go watch it if you're into psycho thrillers.

Donnie Darko is one of the most amazing movies I've ever seen. It made me feel different afterward. Heh. There are no words to describe its brilliance... only... DEMONIC SIX-FOOT BUNNIES ROCK!!!

And the Sixth Sense... go figure.

And NBC is evil and promotes nerd discrimination. Bleh

Have a nice weekend! :D

I love animated films. I've always loved animated films. And I love Disney-Pixar (even though, graphic-wise, Square-Enix is ahead of them by lightyears... pun intended). Their work, which most of us grew up on always amuse me, and the Incredibles was no exception. The amount of work put into it is quite apparent, though I was quite bothered by a few things...

Originality

Now, in this business redoing popular themes isn't excatly a new thing. Antz and A Bug's Life, Finding Nemo and Shark Tale... obviously if something goes big, other companies will snag into the business to attract the fanbase. With the recent successes of the XMen and Spiderman movies, obviously Disney wants to snag into one of the largest fan bases of all. What bothers me is that none of the characters are exactly original, fully built on stereotypes (except maybe the hilarious Japanese-German designer), and there were scenes that I have seen before, be it on screen or on print. I won't say more... but considering the Fantastic Four movie is coming out later than this movie, I only hope it doesn't kill FF. (I mean really... you can actually see the entire team in that family... plus hints of The Justice League... not to mention what powers and skills the best friend has)

The Bonus Features

I usually like the bonus features. It's kinda fun to get to see behind the scenes, though for some really great movies (like Shrek 2) all the hype and fun and "interactivity" take out the actual fun and interest. As for the Incredibles, they had the usual mini-films (two, actually) which were both excellent and fun to watch. However, the deleted scenes, usually my favorite bonus feature... had these really really long commentaries in front. I appreciated the explanation... but 20 minutes is just too long!!! And I used to like being able to figure out why they were actually deleted (besides the obvious time reasons) on my own and not having them handed out to me on a silver platter that lasted longer than the actual scene. *sigh*

And some of the scenes actually got me raising my eyebrow. I agree with the director, "What is this doing in a Pixar movie?" Anyway... that's the bad stuff.

So, as a conclusion... The Incredibles is a great movie... just remember to stay away from the Bonus Disc especially if you are impatient, critical or most especially, a die-hard comicbook fan.

We have a couple of them in Vancouver, and they're pretty cheap, so making use of them seems quite logical. Only if most of us actually decide to go to these facilities, it would get quite crowded. So, to start off a new series, here's

n00b Survival Guide 01: Surviving a Public Pool

1. Before you actually go to the pool, make sure you know the dimensions of the pool

2. And the schedule

3. Because if you know both, you won't come in during an Aqua Fit session

4. When you can't do lapping because the pool is too small for both you and the dancing old folks

5. If you do get into such a predicament, get a Flexipass

6. Because you can use the gym while waiting

7. Only read all the rules before doing anything

8. And remember to bring your own music

9. Just in case you don't like what's blaring off the gym speakers

10. If the equipment looks semi-modern then it will mess you up but you'll still get some work done

11. If all else fails use the older models as they're user friendly

12. The new stuff give great workouts

13. But watch out for the lines

14. And try not to act too surprised by what the machines can do

15. In the locker room, try to avoid the lockers in the corners

16. And avoid bringing large bags

17. Avoid being alone in this strange new place if you cannot see well without your glasses

18. Or if you have a tendency to talk to yourself

19. In the pool, watch out for Aqua Fit people with long foam floaters

20. And stationary people

21. And people who just happen to swim with their eyes closed

22. Do note that staying in a pool for an hour will not remove expandable foam from your fingers

23. And remember to save enough energy for the way back

As the schoolyear comes to a close, I shall obviously not go into what I personally think is the most hilarious room in all of Ideal (besides maybe, the caf) so I made this poem as a sort of dedication for it!

Some of the images *might* be creepy...

The Darkroom Vampire

From the dark it awakes and rises from bed

To a world that is bleak and bathed in blood's red

Its eyes glow like stars as it watches its prey

It follows deep hunger, which it must obey

Like a heron it snaps down and clutches its feed

His claws go deep as he watches it bleed

Then he carries the carcass to his bubbling stew

Where desire is extinguished as he starts to chew

But lust turns to fear as the sky fills with light

It scampers away in an impetuous flight

And disappears once more into shadow

For those in VA, what he did might sound kinda familiar. ;)

I'm not really into movie reviews, so I do movie comments instead. I do tackle everything in the movie so if you haven't watched Kill Bill then you get a

SPOLIER ALERT!!!

Besides that, remember that these are my own opinions and I would like you to respect them. Feel free to give your own thoughts on the movie in the comments section and fix any facts I messed up.

Random Comments: Kill Bill Vol. 1

So far, I have seen two Tarantino Films... Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill Vol 1. Pulp Fiction's cinematography was brilliant and the music was excellent. Only I didn't like it that much. With my upbringing, I'm not really a big fan of cursing, especially when it happens to be on almost every line said by every character. And I'm not really a big fan of gangsters and guns either.

That being said, I can say that Kill Bill is actually one of the most brilliant action films ever conceived. I don't need to go into details because it's all good.

The main character, The Bride, is probably the most interesting of all enigma characters I have ever seen. We don't know her name, if anyone says her actual name it hilariously gets bleeped out. Quentin says, "Whenever during the picture somebody says the Bride's real name, it will be BLEEPED OUT ON THE SOUNDTRACK, ... that is, till I want you to know."

One scene I liked with the Bride is when she...

Spolier Alert!!!

... kills Vivica Fox in front of her own child. She tells the kid, "When you grow up, if you still feel raw about it, I'll be waiting."

Blood and gore aside, if you think about it The Bride is a true warrior. She knows her code of honor, and unlike the guy who murdered O-Ren Ishii's parents who simply came, killed and burned, she knows the kid has every "right" to exact revenge on her.

End Spoiler Alert

I also like how the movie uses more swords than guns. I'm not really a fan of guns because not only are they messier, they only have one purpose. And any moron who manages to find a loaded one can manage to get an easy kill. Sword fighting is an art, and even though I never plan to use a sword (except maybe in an RPG) I commend Tarantino for bringing such brilliant swordfighting onto the big screen.

As for the blood and gore, being an anime fanatic I'm used to seeing blood spurting everywhere on TV... only it looks a lot messier and creepier and I pity whoever has to clean the mess up.

Spoiler Alert!!!

I feel kinda sad about the way Gogo died. Chiaki Kuriyama plays her perfectly, and since I remember her from Battle Royale 1, her performance makes me want to see that movie again. At any rate, I think her death was merely caused by the fact that furniture is made using wood and nails, and she would have made a great sidekick for anyone. Too bad she just messed with the Bride. It was hard watching them fight since I was kinda rooting for both, but a death fight's a death fight... so, *sigh*

End Spoiler Alert

As an end note, I can say this is the only movie I've ever watched where I've experienced the feeling of wanting the movie the continue and wanting the movie to stop at the same time. It's quite the bizzare feeling. Anyway, unless you dislike excessive blood and gore, I'd suggest watching Kill Bill. As for me, I'm waiting for my hold at VPL on the sequel.

We spent 8 hours straight on the Marpole mural today (and we're still not done) so, yeah... I'm still kinda tired.

Today I shall be linking you to Neil Gaiman's blog. He's the author of "The Sandman" comic series, as well as many other pieces of literature. (His character, 'Death', can be seen in my banner for noir)

Besides being full of random things that may not interest you, take a look around, and you may find something to your liking.

Here's the link.

*gasp*

The mural down at Marpole has me exhausted tonight, so I'm just posting one of my favorite poems,

Jabberwocky by Lewis Carol. ^^

`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun

The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took his vorpal sword in hand:

Long time the manxome foe he sought --

So rested he by the Tumtum tree,

And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,

The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,

Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,

And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! And through and through

The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!

He left it dead, and with its head

He went galumphing back.

"And, has thou slain the Jabberwock?

Come to my arms, my beamish boy!

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'

He chortled in his joy.

`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

Hooray for Jabberwocky! You feel kinda sad for the poor thing, but the poem is so well written and so absurd with its nouns that it ends up sounding cute even with all the morbid and horrible mental images.

Hoped you liked it. :D

Argh. University already has me in a foul mood. They wouldn't give credit for the 10 years I took Tagalog back in the Philippines as Philippine schools run in English and we take Tagalog "courses". Courses don't count even though you talk fluently. Bleh

Civilization my foot. *grumble-grumble-sigh*

Quoting Bill Gates: "Life is unfair. Get used to it."

So, yeah... I have to take Introductory Spanish for summer school, meaning no Calculus (which is fine, since Calculus 12 is taught in univ/college anyway) but it also means all chances of me taking Voice/Music Lessons have gone down the drain. *sigh*

So as I dump Evanescence into my Phantom of the Opera playlist and hit the shuffle button, here's

The Loner

Stay away

I am different for a reason

I have learned to read the masks

In my search for the true friend

Get used to loneliness

Understand the thoughts in your head

Find joy in your sadness

And you'll begin to see in the darkness

I hope that little rant of an introduction explains the dark and gloominess ^^

I didn't have anything else to write about at the moment, as most of my writing inspirations are at home in the Philippines, so I decided to write about something I still have around... videogames!!!

Here's a poem about what I consider to be one of the greatest stories in RPG history... Chrono Trigger. (currently playing the sequel, Chrono Cross after waiting three long years. The plot is very intriguing!)

*ahem* With no futher ado... an Ode to Chrono Trigger.

Wonderful epic for the bookish crowd

Who also love to play tactics

On the net we love to praise you aloud

Its clear we're a bunch of fanatics

For your wonderful story is, we find

Something way better than what we read in a novel

Your plot simply loves to mess with the mind

To your authors we'd love to bow down and grovel

The number of endings you have still surprises

But considering you deal with various dimensions

I think this large number completely suffices

And I think that was the writer's intentions

Your notes on time travel was great for the story

The detail put in still astound

And what I find to be your crowning glory

As the mind games it made in my head still abound

So great game I bow down to you

May your pixelled saga live on forever

May Square may a new sequel too

Though that, my friends would be a real great endeavor*

This is not really in the proper ode form (I think... but I like the word ode, so yeah... xD)

*As for the last line, the amount of work put into the second game, Chrono Cross was so great that writing the plot for another sequel would require the most brilliant minds on Earth. ^^