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Blood Bowl (2016 edition)
Blood Bowl (2016 edition)
2016 | Fantasy, Fighting, Miniatures, Sports
Blood Bowl is the perfect balance of miniature gaming, Tolkienesque fantasy and honest to goodness fluff and humour. (0 more)
The two teams in the base set don't have all the positional figures but this can easily fixed with team expansions. (0 more)
One of the oldest and best just got a relaunch
Blood Bowl is more than just a boxed game; for some it's a way of life, boasting tournaments and fans all around the world, including players of the many spin-off video games. The base set barely touched the surface of the hobby. I thoroughly recommend seeking out the Death Zone expansions, which add league rules to the mix. There are already many team expansions (such as Elves) released with more to come. The hobby is further supported by an abundance of third party additions. If you like the idea of playing a strategic, turn-based version of American Football with Dwarves and mutant rats the look no further.
  
The Rage of Dragons
The Rage of Dragons
Evan Winter | 2019 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.3 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
I picked this one up during the summer for a holiday read, but have only just got around to reading it now.

And, I have to say, I was really impressed with it.

Telling the story of Tau Solarin, this probably falls somewhere between high fantasy (yes, there are dragons but no elves or dwarves or such like) and heroic fantasy (none of the characters are really what you would call conventional heroes!), but nor is it what I would call Dark fantasy (you can understand why they are doing what they are doing, with none of the characters really anti-heroes).

I'm looking forward to finding out more about the background, culture, beliefs and (in general) the world in future instalments: just what was The Cull, for instance, and why did the Omehi have to flee from it?

At that, how did the caste system come about? Will it be overthrown ... ?
  
The Christmas Chronicles (2018)
The Christmas Chronicles (2018)
2018 | Animation, Comedy, Family
Solid Holiday Film
Two siblings have to help Santa save Christmas after they are responsible for destroying his sleigh.

Acting: 8

Beginning: 8
The movie takes a little bit of time to get ramped up, but it’s a somewhat understandable setup. Director Clay Kaytis is trying to get us emotionally involved in the characters and succeeds to a certain extent. I have to admit, I wasn’t fully invested in the movie after watching the first ten minutes. Once it gets going, though, you’re in for a treat.

Characters: 8
I wasn’t in love with the two main characters Kate (Darby Camp) and Teddy (Judah Lewis). They seemed very cookie-cutter, almost too “Hallmarky” for me. The acting could have something to do with it, I don’t know. I will say that I grew to really like them over time.

Kurt Russell’s Santa Clause was outstanding, hands-down one of the most creative depictions of Santa I have ever seen. He made the entire movie fun. He’s cool, but naive at the same time. He has a big heart, but he doesn’t take any crap either. He stole every moment of every scene he was in to the point where I wouldn’t mind seeing him again running the helm in a sequel. Call me crazy, but I think it’s one of his best roles. I could use another two hours of just him and the elves.

Cinematography/Visuals: 10

Conflict: 10

Genre: 8

Memorability: 9
It’s all about the creativity here as that’s what made the film so memorable. Christmas films have been done and redone so it’s always refreshing to get a new spin on things. While the basics are similar, I can guarantee you this is a Christmas film unlike any you have ever seen. The angry elves were probably my favorite touch, but there are a number of other fun things that stood out as well like Santa’s magic hat.

Pace: 9

Plot: 9

Resolution: 8

Overall: 87
While The Christmas Chronicles does few things exceptionally well, the film succeeds with a solid Santa and a big heart. It’s a solid holiday movie to add to the collection for adults and children alike. Well worth the watch.