My Beer has proclaimed the Apocalypse.

Flying Monkey Brewery out of Barrie always has entertaining little quips on the underside of their bottle caps, but this is the best one I have come across in a long time. It made my day.

Iron Man 3 - Review

I got the opportunity to see Iron Man three tonight before it's midnight release and I have to say, I was really impressed. It was not what I was expecting. It was actually so much more, that its going to be hard to discuss without spoilers. The story is impressive, with a lot of blindsides that you won't see coming. The special effects are over the top in the best possible way, in 3D everything is crystal clear, and moves at a lightning pace. The cast are tremendous. Once again Robert Downey Jr. shines in the role of Tony Stark. The depth of character that they get into is surprising, and greatly appreciated. No longer is Stark just the "man in the can". He a actually spends most of the movie out of the infamous suit. The quips and wise cracks fly fast and furious, and many will leave you speechless. Best piece of dialogue of the film - spoken to a 12 year old child: "It happens. Dad's leave. No need to be a pussy about it.". It is so inappropriate, and so perfectly suited to Starks character that it got a round of applause in my viewing. So, go see this film, contribute to the Marvel money making machine, and be sure to stick around post credits for a very fun little scene featuring Stark and his Avengers team mate Dr. Bruce Banner.

Chuck Palahniuk has a wicked sense of humour

I came across this cartoon online today on Facebook, and it made me laugh. If you have read his work, and are not just a douche waffle Hipster poser, then you know that Chuck's work is some of the most visceral and gripping contemporary american literature out there, and it demands to be discussed and shared by a group of like minded individuals. This usually means that his surname is constantly being mis-pronounced. Because we are such huge fans of his work, my circle of friends has always just referred to him as Chuck. Perhaps it is a little informal, but hey, we devour his work, so I'm sure he'd be fine with it. For the record, his re-tweet of this image included the phonetic pronunciation "Paula-nick". Go figure. Look for his latest novel "Doomed" later this year, or if you haven't read them yet, rush out and buy copies of Fight Club, Rant, Invisible Monsters, and all of his other amazing novels. You'll be glad you did.

Today Was A Good Day To Die Hard

Bruce doesn't look like he has aged a day, and still has what it takes to be a cowboy

I started this post a while back, and totally forgot about it, so I figured I should eventually publish it, even if the subject matter isn't exactly topical anymore.  I actually saw the movie on Opening Night which was Valentine's Day with a friend, and for action movie fans it would have made an awesome date.  The audiece was a really cool mixed crowd of younger and older couples (mid 20's through late 60's) all of who looked pretty stoked to be there.

Got out tonight to see the new Bruce Willis movie, A Good Day to Die Hard.  Let me start out by saying that I am a fan of the Die Hard series, and Bruce Willis in general.  But while I am a fan, it is because I recognize these movies for exactly what they are.  Fun.  Light, filled with enough explosions to give Michael Bay KA-BOOM envy, and a vehicle for an aging action hero to make a quick buck. The first film is a classic action movie, and every thing after that, up until Live Free or Die Hard, was lack luster, but fun.  Live Free or die Hard was honestly impressive in the amount of KA-BOOM it brought to the screen, so it gets full props as an over the top outlandish sequel.  This lateset installent tries to go one further, attempting to take a bite out the espionage action market of films like Skyfall, and The Bourne Legacy by pairing Willis's character with his estranged son, who happens to now be a secret agent working deep cover for the American governement in Russia.  Willis's no nonsense New York cop is once again out of his league, but he brings the BOOM and the Russian terrorists don't stand a chance.  With gun's a blazin' father & son cut a swath through the baddies a mile wide, and at the end of the day there are only two cowboys left standing.
Special mention to one of the most intense car/ armoured vehicle chase scenes I have seen in recent memory.  While it is not at a particularily high pace, the amount of devestation caused is worthy of applause.
In my mind, the real question is wether or not Bruce can still pull of the action hero role, which unlike so many of his peers he does with flying colours.  (I am looking at you Arnold, and you Sly, and definitely you Jean-Claude.)

Do yourself a favour and rent or download this movie when it comes out on DVD, you won't be disapointed.

The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct

Yesterday, I picked up a used copy of newest offering from Activision.  The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct.  I had read alot of reviews and fan feedback that cautioned me that the pacing was slow, and the game suffered from a number of other drawbacks, but to be honest, I think it is pretty friggin awesome.  As a huge fan of The Walking Dead in all of it's formats, I feel like the tone of this game is spot on.  You play as Darryl Dixon, a fan favourite from the hit AMC show, voiced by Norman Reedus himself.  Activision classifies it as a 1st person "survival" game, meaning it is not the goal to execute and obliterate every walker in a given level.  Really, if you don't want to, you could like sneak past almost every walker in the game, never firing a shot.  Ofcourse, I took a slightly more aggressive approach, testing out each and every melee weapon and firearm I could get my hands on.  To be honest, I am only about 3 main levels into the campaign, so I still have a long way to go, but so far I am a huge fan of the lead pipe and the double barrel shot gun.  In true Walking Dead fashion, gunshots draw walker hordes, so the majority of the combat is up close and personal.  I have yet to discover Darryl's signature range weapon - the compound crossbow, but once I get that I will cooking with gas!
Levels are an interesting blend of wide open areas and small dark enclosed places, all filled with decomposing walkers.  While most of the graphics are a little cartoonish for my taste, the zombies look fantastic.  And the kills are wicked.  Headshots, amputations, executions...all awesome.
I can't wait to dig my teeth into the plot of this game and discover yet another facet of The Walking Dead canon.

The Crystal Shard

I was reading a back issue of X-Men comic books the other day, and came across this ad, which brought a huge smile to my face. R.A. Salvatore's The Crystal Shard was released in 1988 and may be my favourite fantasy novel of all time. The Crystal Shard was one of my first introductions to The Forgotten Realms Campaign setting and 2nd edition AD&D. Technically I know that Darkwalker on Moonshae was the 1st Realms novel published, and I actually read Ed Greenwood's Spellfire first so it will always have a special place in my heart, but in my mind The Crystal Shard was the novel that actually captured my imagination. The original tale of Drizzt Do'Urden and the Companions of The Hall. 25 years later Salvatore is still writing Drizzt tales, without going to my bookshelf to count, I believe that there are now 21 novels that feature Drizzt (okay, it was killing me, I had to go check, there are actually 23, 27 if you count the Artemis/Wulfgar Novels) as the primary character. It is funny to me that reading this original ad, Drizzt isn't even mentioned. He was always intended to be a side kick to Wulfgar. I bet Bob Salvatore is laughing all the way to the bank about that decision. I actually just finished reading the latest installment, "The Last Threshold" and the characters are still fantastic and nobody writes fantasy combat like Salvatore. The Crystal Shard was the book that got me hooked on The Forgotten Realms, and is therefore responsible for my collection, which includes every FR novel ever published - this now invoices the digital only ebooks, which drive me a little crazy. I haven't done a count lately, but I would guess there are well over 200 FR novels in my library right now...most of which have been read at least twice. This particular novel however, I bet I have read at least 8 times. And I still love to cheer for the good guys!

I can't. I work in Theatre.

Okay so I have been terrible about posting new info lately, but I have been stupid busy at work the last month opening the Canadian Premiere of Mary Poppins, at the brand new Dunfield Theatre Cambridge for Drayton Entertainment.  As one of the ASM's my focus has been in tracking sets amd props, and coordinating the backstage team.  This is the first time that the show has been produced Off Broadway/ National Tour....and it is a friggin beast. Luckily, we have a magnificient production Team, backstage crew, and the cast are brilliant, so while the hours have been long, it has not been a terrible experience.  Now that the show officially open I may just get my life back.
Fingers crossed.