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Monthly Archives: March 2018
Ready Player One: Disappointing Spielberg Schmaltz
The long-awaited film adaption of Ernest Cline’s bestseller is here and it’s terrible. I know all about the limitations of movies versus books, so spare methose comments. Ready was always going to be a huge challenge since Cline’s references were a copyright/trademark nightmare. … Continue reading
Posted in In Theaters, Movies
Tagged Cyberpunk, Dystopia, Eighties, Near Future, Science Fiction, Virtual Reality
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Ultimate Combat
Somewhat the counter to Ultimate Magic as Combat focuses on all aspects of fighting with more archetypes, classes and whatever. Chapter 1 is over a quarter of the book but it’s divided into two sections. New Classes and additional Archetypes for … Continue reading
Pac Rim: Uprising: Rental or Streaming
Maybe it was for the best to not make anymore movies with jaegers and kaiju duking it out in the various cities on the Pacific Ocean. Uprising proved the old adage with sequels…more is less, especially when the producers are blatantly bending over backwards to kiss … Continue reading
The Toys That Made Us, part one
I discovered and got on the bandwagon late with this show, I wholeheartedly admit it. However, it was so great, I’ve watched all four episodes TWICE since I love toys, even at my advanced age. Not just playing with them but … Continue reading
Posted in Action Figures, Toys, TV
Tagged Cold War, Eighties, Fantasy, Seventies, Star Wars
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Three cheers for a Maggi and her work!
My niece Rachel (technically my cousin’s daughter, but niece is easier on the brain than all that “removed” crap) received a grant from the Fulbright Organization! This will enable her to carry out her proposal in India. Here’s the proposal … Continue reading
AT-ST on the move!
This kick-ass mini came with the core game Imperial Assault. Like most Fantasy Flight games, it uses D&D dice but with goofy symbols on them instead of numbers. For me, I just picked up the game and expansion packs to have Star … Continue reading
The Posies! Jon Auer & Ken Stringfellow
A couple months ago, I got to meet and see The Posies at the Cactus Cafe. You may remember them from the Nineties but they never stopped performing after they left DGC Records. Ken and Jon have produced solo albums … Continue reading
Finally back at the gym…ouch
As I’ve been getting back into the groove of Austin life, using the gym has been the immediate short-term goal but on weekdays I’m easing into it. Firstly, Daylight Savings Time has messed up my sleep hygiene so getting to work … Continue reading
Bestiary 3
Usually by the third monster book, the accusation of “cash grab” is often heard. Me, I don’t mind so much. I fondly remember 2e’s binder approach with their Monster Manual. You could buy different packs of monsters which were often organized … Continue reading
No more car payment!
With a little restructuring the assets and finances of the Maggi Republic, we have paid off my car Vixen (an orange Prius C) ahead of time. It doesn’t feel too early. I think the vehicle was financed over six years … Continue reading
RIP: Dr. Stephen Hawking
One of the greatest living Physicists passed away today and what made Hawking more remarkable is that he pushed on through despite ALS slowly destroying his body. I think he’s one of the longest surviving people to have the disease. … Continue reading
Posted in Astronomy, Physics, Science & Technology
Tagged Celebrity Obituary, Eighties
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Pathfinder Second Edition
In conjunction with Paizo updating the look and navigation of their Web site came the announcement of Pathfinder Second Edition. There will be a preview/playtest copy available around August (I put my request in with Rogues Gallery) before the final version next … Continue reading
Another reason why a Bismarck plan would be better
A common rebuttal or claim from the Conservative/Republican/Libertarian echo chamber against America having a European-style healthcare system is always the bullshit about government bureaucrats making the decisions. It’s not really the case in Germany, home to the preferred system I … Continue reading
No exploding packages here
What happened in mostly East and North Austin made the front page of The Guardian…there we are, the New York Times. Even though I was expecting something today, I wasn’t too worried. Amazon Prime sends an attached photo of the goods at my door, … Continue reading
Rest in Peace John (Johnny B) Bryson
I need to stop going to the back pages of my Marquette alumni magazine whenever I crack it open for the first time. I sometimes discover the passing of a classmate and my generation (Generation X) isn’t that damned old … Continue reading