The Walking Dead: The Game Episode 1 Review

I’m going to be honest; I fell out of love with The Walking Dead TV show on AMC midway through the second season. I loved season one for its interesting take on a zombie apocalypse and that it focused on the characters. Then I started watching season 2 this fall and it just didn’t grow at all. It was tedious, slow and, worst of all, it bored me for a while until I stopped tuning in on Sunday nights. From what I hear it has got much better and the end of season 2 makes up for the slow beginning and middle of the season, but that never swayed me to go back to the series.

When it comes to the comic, I have read the first two trade volumes (issues 1-12) which I liked. But the rising price of comics has kept me from delving into the series (that has changed though as I found The Walking Dead compendium #1 which collects issues 1-48 for a very reasonable price and it is now on the way). So going into the game I had a decent idea of what I was getting into, zombie apocalypse and what it does to humanity, and that was a good enough set up for me.

The Avengers.....WOOOOOOO

Hello everyone!
I know I haven't posted in forever, I have been sooooo freakin' busy.

Awesome!!!!

Now on to nerdiness!

I am so very pumped for Marvel's The Avengers.
Marvel has done a great job at creating a film universe with some of their classic heroes. That The Avengers even exists is incredible and something comic book fans have been waiting for ever since the first issue of  The Avengers came out in 1963.

 I have no fears that this movie will be a let down. Other than the rave reviews (check out the rottentomatoe score for this movie), it also has one of the best writer/directors of this generation, Joss Wheadon. Wheadon has done some of the my favorite productions including, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and Firefly. His writing is phenomenal and he always write interesting and deep characters. I can't wait to see how he writes Captain America and Iron Man interacting.

I have high hopes for The Avengers.

Let the summer movie season begin!

He's Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack....

Hello old chums!

After a phoenix-esque revival from the world of the invalid, I return bearing the fruits of my knowledge, the rich value of my current history, and the delight of my company ;D.

To start, I will chronicle my recovery.

It begins on a sunny day when I fall on my head and shoulder onto concrete. Ow. Pull myself up, don't realize that my shoulder hurts as bad as it should because I realized that blood is kinda getting in my eye.

Slightly less intense then this, but then again, that's just the kinda man I am.

So after going to the Student Health Center at a certain college that I go to, I am given closing bandages, a sling and........advil. Nothing against advil, it's just that its for a 3 on the pain scale rather then like a 7 or 8. So follows an awful weekend of doing almost nothing but keeping my shoulder level and slovenly lazing about.

Hyperbole and a Half Pain scale





Hyperbole and a Half Pain scale

^-----------Side note, A wonderful blog that I recommend everyone read. If you are so inclined, then either start from the beginning or start with one of the "classic" posts on the side. It is a seriously good read.

I Return....With a Request

Sorry everyone that I have been gone for last few weeks. I have been very busy with school work and I still don't have a ton of free time but I still wanted to post for any loyal followers.

I just want to quick comment about something that I have been waiting on for several years now,
THE NEXT GAME IN THE HALF-LIFE SERIES!!!

Gordon Freeman

Half-Life 2 is my favorite game of all-time (I will be reviewing it...at some point) and the last game in the series to be released, Half-Life 2: Episode Two, ended on a huge cliffhanger...one that has not been resolved since the games release in 2007.

I know the guys at Valve, the developers of the Half-Life series, have been busy making the Left 4 Dead series and Portal 2, but they have not even made a statement about the next Half-Life game. I just want to know that it is in development and that I will be able to play it before I am 30.

Valve, if you are reading this (I know it is highly unlikely), please just make a statement saying something along the lines of
"Yeah, it is in production."
That is all I want to hear. That is it.

Oh and if you have never played a Half-Life game, I highly recommend you do. It is an incredible series with believable characters and an amazing Sci-Fi story line. Play it.....NOW. Seriously, You can get Half-Life 2 on steam (valves digital video game store) for only $10.

Sick and Tired

Sorry I haven't posted much guys I have a pile of work and I'm recovering from being sick. I'll try to do on more post this week and next week I will be writing a review of the first two episodes of Game of Thrones.
Thank you to all that read and I shall return with nerdy goodness soon.

Live Long and Prosper

Why Spider-Man/Peter Parker is my comic hero of choice

So, before I do a review of the All New Ultimate Spider-Man, I want to explain my love for all things Spider-Man and how it started.

Where my love started.

When I was about 8, Marvel launched it's "Ultimate Comics" line, reboot of many of the Marvel's classic characters to update them for a younger generation. I was a young boy in a local comic book store with my dad when I saw the cover of "Ultimate Spider-Man". I read the first issue right there in the store and Spider-Man became MY superhero.

Spider-Man is the first fictional, character that I could really relate to. The fact that before, and even after, he gained his power, he was still bullied, attacked and forced to face some very real social and family problems that other superheros of his age never had to deal with. As a nerdy kid and then teen, I remember what it was like to be an outcast.

Beyond just being a character I could identify with, he also was a character who made terrible mistakes, which makes him interesting and real. When Peter gained his powers he did not become perfect. He was flawed, he messed up. Sometimes so badly that it would lead directly to the harm of a person he cared for.



When Peter failed to stop a robber to get back at someone who ripped him off, he allowed his own Uncle to be killed. Uncle Ben raised Peter from a very young age and was essentially his father. That Peter's failure to act caused Ben's death is something new to comics, and origin filled with not just discovery but mistakes.

Gwen Stacy's Final Moments

In one of the most tragic twists in comic history, Peter Parker, as Spider-Man inadvertently killed the woman he loved. When Gwen Stacy, Peters first love from high school and the woman he would of married, was taken hostage on top of a bridge by the Green Goblin, Peter tried to save her before the Goblin could throw her off. Peter couldn't stop Goblin from throwing her off the bridge and in a last ditch effort to save her, shot a web at her feet. The webbing grabbed her leg and Peter tugged hard, causing an abrupt stop to Gwen's fall. The jerking stop snapped Gwen's neck and she was dead. Peter had killed the woman he loved and it devastated him. It still scares him to this day in the comics and he still thinks about Gwen and loves her (expressed beautifully in the graphic novel  Spider-Man: Blue).


That a superhero has made such terrible mistakes is intriguing and makes him real. Even after all of that death and tragedy that Peter has been through, he can still joke and quip while in the suit fighting crime or just swinging around. The sense of humor that Peter has makes him so human. He doesn't mope around all the time like some other certain hero (See: Bruce Wayne). He doesn't focus on his dread but instead his love of life.

Peter Parker is one of the most human fictional characters I have ever read and that there is a new person in the suit intrigues me. I would love to see if the new Spider-Man, Miles Morales, can justify wearing the suit.

Excelsior!

A hello and some news

Just saying hello to everyone out there.
Also, in the next few days/weeks I will be doing my first comic book review, Ultimate (all new) Spider-Man issue # 7.

Yay Comic Books!!!!!
That is all.

A Reminder to the 7 Kingdoms

Hey everyone on the interwebs, I hope everyone is having a good weekend and I just wanted to put up a quick post...

WATCH GAME OF THRONES SEASON TWO!!!!!

Winter is Coming...with a big side of awesome

If you have seen the first season then this is a given. If you have not, WHY NOT? It is a great show and I highly recommend it. This is one of the best shows out there and if the second season is as good as the first, we are all in for a treat.

Season 2 starts tomorrow night on HBO at 9pm Eastern time.

Late Night Musings

I feel like mimes are the philosophy majors of clown college.

None of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air actually happened, as that "one little fight" ended with Will Smith's character in a coma, which is why he whistled and a taxi arrived, and why that same taxi accepted "yo homes, smell ya lata" as adequate payment. Also why his rich relatives never helped him and his mother, struggling poverty stricken in a dangerous part of West Philidelphia.

Two Words: Bacon Pancakes.

Do all people with synesthesia perceive sounds and colors the same way? I.E. does the color purple taste like mangos to everyone with synesthesia? Because if so, maybe all senses work together and every thing has 5 different variables that combine to make the real thing. Anyway, food for thought.

And now the Jackwagon is going back to trying to sleep after taking the next set of pain meds. Toot TOOOOOOOOOOOT

Not Quite TLDR

hey everyone,

Short and sweet of the story is, I fell and messed up my arm(in a sling) and bashed up my face. Wont post for a few days so yeah. Read Trenzalor and support him. Jackwagon out.

Awake is freaking great!

Alright, time to talk about TV. The new NBC show Awake, starring Jason Isaacs (the dude who played Lucius Malfoy), is absolutely fantastic.  The show is only a few weeks in, but it’s already my favorite show on US television at the moment. Its blend of sci-fi and police procedural is seamless and is a joy to watch. 

Jason Isaacs as Detective Michael Britten

The show's premise is that Michael Britten, a cop in Los Angele, is in a car accident with his wife and son. After the accident, Britten experiences two different realities. One where his son died in the accident and his wife survived, the other being a reality where his wife died and his son survived.

These realities are differentiated by colored wrist bands that Britten wears. One is red, for the reality with his wife, and the other is green, for the reality with his son. When Britten falls asleep at night he wakes up in the other reality (example: If he falls asleep in the reality where his wife survived, he wakes up in the reality in which his son survived). In both realities Britten sees psychiatrists who tell him that the other reality is just a construct of his imagination. Both psychiatrists tell Britten that he must get let go of the other reality (something that does not seem possible anyway) to get better, something Britten cannot do because he still has his wife and his son in his life. The story goes on from there with strange connections between both realities making it impossible for the viewer to figure out which reality is real or fake (if in fact one of them are fake).

I have watched the first three episodes of the show (There are five out but I’m a college student, I am very busy!) and I can tell you right now I will be sticking with this show. The pilot episode is one of the best pilots I have ever seen, it tells you everything you need to know about the show while also telling its own interesting story arc with closure at the end. I don’t want to tell you guys more about the plot because I want you all to check it out and see how great it is for your self

 It is beautifully directed and all of the acting is phenomenal. Jason Isaacs is superb, playing a man who has both his wife and his son but can never have them together, as far as he (and we) knows. Isaacs deserves an award for his portrayal and I expect at Emmy time he will at least get a nod for this role. On a side note, seeing Wilmer Valderrama (Fez from That 70’s Show) in a drama is a change and he is very good playing Britten partner in the “red” reality.

Awake is interesting, thought provoking, and smart. It is a show you should be watching. I can’t wait to catch up and see where the show goes with this great concept.

If you are interested, even vaguely, check it out Right Here.

Welcoming a new name and a new challenger!

 I have decided to change the name of the blog from "At The Fall of The 11th" to "Nerd Stampede". Since it is such an early change I don't think it will be too jarring for anyone.

Now that we have gotten that out of the way, I would like to officially welcome Jackwagon as an author on this blog. Jackwagon is one of my closest friends and is a super funny dude. For all that follow I'm sure he will make you smile on a regular basis.

Welcome to Nerd Stampede, I hope you all enjoy these very slight changes to the blog. Now it really begins!!!!

A Challenger Appears!

Hello everyone!

I have been invited (after minor coercion) by Large Trenzy to be a guest poster on his blog! And in case anyone's asking, yes, I have seen him in his underwear. On several occasions.

Anyway, I will probably be writing about a similar set of topics so don't worry, you won't have to read through posts about the similarities of the greater northern albatross and the not-so-great northern albatross. Apparently I also go off on tangents. I may have to ask you all to deal with it. Deal with it.

That's all for now, and I hope that you enjoy your periodic rides aboard the Jack-wagon. Toot Toot!

First Series...The Gamer Inside Episode 1: Chrono Trigger's First Hour

Alright, it is day two of the blog and I have decided to make my first "series". I love video games. Their ability to tell an interactive story that can engage a person on several different levels is amazing. Video games have always been important to me and I want this blog to reflect my passions, and gaming is the oldest love i can remember. I will eventually do "Top Tens" and other such things but today I wanted to start off with a game I just recently received.

Yesterday, in the mail, I received the game Chrono Trigger for my Nintendo DS. I know, I'm only about 17 years late on playing this game, but better late than never. Over the years I had heard a lot about this game. It is  on many publication's "Greatest Games of All Time" lists and I finally decided to try it out.

Space-Time Ripped. That's not good.

I plopped it in my DS and started the game. The story starts off with the main character Crono (that is his default name, but you can name him what ever you like.) being woken up by his mother that day of his country's Milenial fair. He gets there and meets a girl named Marle with a very pretty pendant, fights a robot cat, and uses an awesome teleportation machine. Then the girl Marle tries out the teleporter, which doesn't react well with the pendant and then BOOM rip in the space time continuum. That was within the first 15 minutes of the game. The game gets off to a lightning pace and doesn't stop.


The game play is a great turn based system known as "Active Battle" which is very intuitive and fun to play. I have fought snakes, witches, imps and slime.....ball........things. Though it is still early in the game, all of the enemy encounters offer a fun challenge. I can't wait to play more with this combat system.

The first hour of Chrono Trigger has been an absolute blast and I can't wait to really get into it. The story has a bunch of fun time travel stuff that I just want to learn more about. I plan on doing a full review of this game when I beat it and I will make it much more in depth.

I hope you enjoyed this first installment of The Gamer Inside

Side note: Everyone should show love to my friend Scribbler Butterfly. She is saying a big GO AWAY to cancer and you can help her.

And now the REAL fun starts

The Music Man of Who

So I am a massive fan of Doctor Who (if my blog name and pictures haven't given that away already) and I just wanted to talk about one thing that I never hear people talk about, THE MUSIC. Murray Gold has pretty much been the only constant on the revived series, at least behind the scenes.

His music has made some of the best moments of the show that much better. For example, in Matt Smith's first (full) episode, "The Eleventh Hour"(get it?), Amy enters the TARDIS for the first time and her awe is palpable( this piece can be found here). The piece is like a dream, with pianos and strings softly playing, building a sense of awe for the viewer. We have all seen the TARDIS and, though it is the first time we see it with its new control room, we are all there with her like it is our very first time ever seeing the inside. As the music builds, a choir of women begin to chant and evoke both wonder and a bit of caution, warning of the dangers that can come with traveling with The Doctor. Then, at the end of the piece the music picks up, a strong drum beat and a catchy as hell oboe begin to play. The excitement overtakes you and you are ready to go anywhere with this madman with a box.

 Murray Gold's music is so powerful and awesome, and he deserves a buttload of credit for making me both smile and cry, sometimes at the same time(one of those moment can be found right here). Just wanted to show my appreciation for an incredible composer on an incredible show.

In the beginning....

So my friend, Scribbler Butterfly(http://iwanttowalkinbeauty.blogspot.com/), has inspired me to start a blog. I have tried a twitter but I didn't like all the hash tagging, and the lack of being able to saying something substantial. Sitting in class now and I should be focusing on Hume but I instead I have started a blog. This blog is sort of an experiment. I may rant. I may geek out. I may talk about psychology. Who knows, I'm just trying  make something interesting here, for me and you. Soooooooooooooooooo.....Geronimo everybody!!!!

"Come along, Pond."