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Shin Godzilla (2016)
Shin Godzilla (2016)
2016 | Sci-Fi
9
7.7 (6 Ratings)
Movie Rating
The King of the Monsters is Back
Contains spoilers, click to show
I must say that when I heard that TOHO was coming out with a new Godzilla movie I was super ecstatic. I have enjoyed the Godzilla franchise since I was a kid. The movie starts with a modern Tokyo with the pretense that it is shortly after the Fukushima Nuclear meltdown and after several earthquakes. An explosion in the harbor alerts the officials to scramble to find out what has happened. At first there is a lot of chaos and uncertainties as to what is happening out in the harbor. Then a grotesque creature is seen swimming up the on of the rivers inland. The look of this monster is that of a Snake Shark and an Eel with hind legs. This underdeveloped monster is referred to as Godzilla's "1st Form". As it snakes its way through metropolitan area's, forced evacuations are sent underway to assure as many lives that can be saved could. As the fledgling Godzilla struggles with trying to maneuver on land, you see red almost blood looking liquid pouring from its gills. It shortly there after makes its way back to the bay and resubmerged. The Japanese Government is in a panic trying to figure out what this thing is, and how to best deal with it. Teams of researchers from around the country begin an unprecedented collaboration of the minds to classify and to come up with a solution on how to defend Tokyo and the rest of Japan from this creature. Next time we see the creature coming out of the water it begins to resemble the Godzilla we all know and love. But with sudo deformed forearms, and red coloring to its skin, and a misshapen mouth. This form is referred to as his 3rd form. This 3rd form Godzilla begins making its way through the cities headed for Tokyo. The government authorizes the use of any and all weapons in order to stop the best in its tracks. After some failures trying what they could. The Japanese reach out to America for help. The US deploys B2 Stealth Bombers with subnuclear missile's which cause significant damage, causing Godzilla to undergo another transformation, this time expelling fiery breath that is then focused into a plasma beam that destroys a large section of the city. Then the bombers go to make a second attack and in a wholly new never before seen attack in any of the Godzilla franchise, Godzilla shoots its plasma beams out of his back, in multiple directions destroying the attacking fleet. To which Godzilla enters a hibernation type sleep in the middle of all the destruction and chaos. Both Japanese and American governments as well as several other countries around the world begin sharing data and ideas with one another and a plan is formulated to 'freeze' Godzilla thus killing the creature. The entire country of Japan commissions local chemical plants to create a coagulant and freezing agent to stop Godzilla. A 4 Tier Attack plan is put into place. They begin by sending trains filled with explosives to awaken the monster. Then one after another the Japanese Military begins assaulting Godzilla. At which point Godzilla begins to use his Plasma beam from both his mouth and in another totally new move, from his tail. Godzilla is finally knocked down and the coagulant is then pumped into him, in two stages. At the last stage, Godzilla destroys the Cranes that were pumping the fluid into him, and as he stands to begin more destruction, you see him instantly freeze. At the end of the movie, you see a destroyed Tokyo trying to recover and find some form of normality. And before credit roll, you see up close of Godzilla's tail. It looks like miniature aliens or babies were being birthed from Godzilla's tail. And then it fades to black. Even though the whole movie was Englished Subtitled, I found it very enjoyable and action packed. TOHO has done it again.
  
Circe
Circe
Madeline Miller | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
8.9 (17 Ratings)
Book Rating
WHEN I WAS BORN, the name for what I was did not exist.


I was waiting for two whole months to get this book from the library. And I finally had a chance to read Circe from Madeline Miller. A book that everyone was talking about. The only thing you were gonna see on Instagram. Well, here I am – sitting with the cool kids now, I’ve read this book.

The reason I wanted to read this book wasn’t because I wanted to be part of the cool kids. Actually, it was because Greek Mythology has a special place in my heart. See, I was born in Macedonia, a country full of history, and so very close to Greece, where histories and cultures and traditions match and mix.

When I was in school, our teachers focused hard on history. Especially Roman and Greek Mythology. So yes, I grew up with Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey and yes, I know all the gods out there, what they do, who they married, who their children are.

I have read about Circe, but I have never given her any meaning, as she is not mentioned a lot in Homer’s works, as you might already know. And then suddenly, there is a book about her life. I had to read it!

AND I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART!

This might be my favorite book of 2018!


I enjoyed Madeline’s writing style. It was so explanatory and calm, and soothing, like swimming in nice calm waters. You would just gulp her words as you read, and before you know it, you have read 200 pages.

Circe, oh Circe! Her character was so well described – such a strong powerful woman. We start with her childhood, to her growing up, and we follow the process of how she learned things the hard way, how she is naive, and then suddenly isn’t, how she discovers the power she holds within, despite everyone else mocking her and saying otherwise. We see how she decides to say no, how she is not afraid to be a rebel, and how she suffers, and loves, and protects, and cares, and survives, and lives!

You will read a story about the love a mother has toward her child, the love a woman has toward her man, the love a son has towards her mother, the love for freedom, the love for glory…

If you love Greek Mythology, you will get the chance to say hi to some of your favourite gods, nymphs, titans, monsters – Zeus, Athena, Poseidon, Prometheus, Odysseus and many more which I will fail to reveal.

I hardly believe that this is a great book for introducing Greek Mythology to new young readers. I also hardly believe that this book will change the thoughts of many people, the way they see things, the way they live, the way they think.

It was one of my favorite things about him: how he always fought for his chance.

There are a lot of side characters that give their own meaning to the story as well, and there is also Odysseus, and at times it feels as this is his story, but in the end you realized that this story belongs to Circe only.

Do not listen to your enemy, Odysseus had once told me. Look at them. It will tell you everything.

I looked. Armed and armored, she was (Athena), from head to foot, helmet, spear, aegis, greaves. A terrifying vision: the goddess of war, ready for battle. But why had she assembled such a panoply against me, who knew nothing of combat? Unless there was something else she feared, something that made her feel somehow stripped and weak.

Instinct carried me forward, the thousand hours I had spent in my father’s halls, and with Odysseus polymetis, man of so many wiles.

To all of you out there – please take your time to read this book! It will leave you breathless, inspired, motivated and it will change your life forever. It changed my life – that’s for certain!
1 like
  
40x40

lally (11 KP) Feb 4, 2019

Beautiful looking book

40x40

Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) Feb 9, 2019

I completely agree!

The Meg (2018)
The Meg (2018)
2018 | Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
The long journey to bring “The Meg” to the big screen is finally over as Author Steve Alten’s classic book series has arrived.

The film stars Jason Statham as Jonas Taylor, an expert in underwater rescues who has to makes a very difficult choice when a rescue goes bad after suffering a very unexpected encounter mid-rescue.

Five years later Jonas is out of the rescue game as he has been labeled as unreliable and prone to PTSD so he drinks his time away in Thailand working on local boats.

200 miles off the coasts of China is an advanced research lab which is the pet project of a Billionaire named Morris (Rainn Wilson), who arrives in time to witness an attempt by the crew to go deeper than ever thought possible by going through a layer that was previously believed to be the ocean floor. The experiment works and the crew is amazed by their new discoveries until something violently attacks their ship leaving them stranded on the bottom of the ocean.

With a limited amount of air and time ticking away, Jonas is recruited despite his numerous refusals as not only is one of the stranded people his ex; but the last transmission sent by the sub mentions how Jonas had been right all along when he had years early claimed they were not alone during the rescue attempt gone bad.

Jonas is teamed with a spirited member of the team named Suyin (Bingbing Li), who has taken a sub down ahead of Jonas as she was not willing to wait for outside help to arrive. She locates her comrades and is attacked by a massive shark long thought extinct.

The harrowing rescue goes off but again Jonas is faced with a no-win situation and is blamed by a former colleague for the issues.

While Morris is eager to exploit the new find for the huge financial opportunity it presents, their plans change when the creature emerges from its contained area and threatens a level of carnage on the seas the likes of which society and the ecosystem are very unprepared for.

What follows is a frantic and often intense series of engagements as Jonas and the crew must battle the massive and deadly creature and find a way to survive.

The film has some very solid effects and the intensity at times had people in the press screening partially covering their eyes during some of the more harrowing moments.

The cast is solid and work well with one another as the film does what it can to keep some of the characters from being little more than generic victims for the Meg.

The movie does differ from the book in terms of being set off China versus California but this was largely due to the joint-production with Chinese owned Gravity Pictures. The film is also much less gory than the book as Director Jon Turteltaub was mandated to deliver a PG-13 film by the studio to improve the odds of returning on the $150.00 million invested in the film.

The dialogue is also a bit stilted and formulaic in parts but action films are not known for their complex plots or advanced dialogue and I attributed this largely to the challenges of a blended cast; many of whom do not speak English as their primary language.

Despite a delay from its planned 2017 release date, “The Meg” is a solid and fun action-thriller that gives audiences one of the best excuses not to go swimming since “Jaws”. While there have been numerous Shark films over the years, “The Meg” deftly weaves good sets and production values with a top-notch cast and lavish visuals to bring the film to life.

With several other books in the series already available, I hope we see the next film surface in a few years as I cannot wait to see what comes next.

http://sknr.net/2018/08/08/the-meg/
  
Draftosaurus
Draftosaurus
2019 | Animals
YESSSSS Let’s build a dinopark! I have been waiting for this for years! Yes, I know that Dinosaur Island exists. It’s a good game. In fact, I think it’s a great game. But I have been waiting for a quick game of building a dinopark that I can also share with my young kids. Have I found it with Draftosaurus, or is this just another in a long line of drafting games?

Draftosaurus is so appropriately named due to being a drafting game with a dinosaur theme. Instead of typically drafting cards, however, players are drafting adorable little dinomeeples to populate their theme park attractions. Each attraction, or pen in the game, offers different points for having different dinos in each, or the same, or just one, or exactly three, et al. The player with the most points from these pens at the end of the game is the winner!


To setup, every player receives a park board. Populate the draw bag with dinomeeples based on the number of players using the table in the rulebook. Give the wooden placement die to the youngest player and play can begin!
A game of Draftosaurus spans exactly two rounds. Each round is exactly the same: each player grabs six dinomeeples from the bag, active player rolls the die, players draft dinos, players pass the remaining dinos. Repeat these steps starting at die rolling, but the die is passed along with the dinos from the active player. This is repeated until all dinos have been drafted and placed in pens. Easy right?


The true nature of the game and the most fun part is in the placement die and placement of the dinos in the pens. When the die is rolled, this signifies specific placement rules for all players except the active player. So perhaps the die shows that dinos must be placed in the Grasslands, which are the pens on the bottom portion of the boards. Or maybe the die shows that new dinos may only be added to pens that currently have no dinos in them. Again, these rules do not apply to they that rolled the die, but rather every other player. Herein lies the scrumptious struggle: where does one place the dinos they currently possess in their hand from their neighbor? What pens will score the most points at endgame? Can a T.Rex really be appropriate in this pen? The choices can be maddening, or one can play the game with complete laissez-faire and still have a great time. After two rounds the game ends and players look upon their parks with pride as they count up their final scores.
Components. I really only know Ankama from the Krosmaster games, which though I am not really a fan of, the components are great. I believe Ankama has provided excellent components for Draftosaurus. The dinomeeples are all excellently colored and designed. The boards are good quality, though I question the “Grasslands” being brown and kinda devoid of grass. All in all, the components are great and I love handling them and playing with them.

Yes, we always include our scores at the beginning of each review. So you all already know what I’m about to say here. I love this game! I love having so many options available to me, only to have the die roll tell me I can’t do exactly what I want, so I have to alter my strategy on a dime. I love being able to see my dinos filling up the park (or swimming in the River if there are no places for them) and watching them frolic… well, okay not frolic in tight spaced pens. No wonder they all went crazy and escaped in those movies. In any case, if you or your family/friends/playdates enjoy drafting games, but want something a little different, while respecting your playtime (something that many drafting games extend) take a look at Draftosaurus. Even children can get in on the action, as there is no need to be able to read, necessarily. I haven’t yet tried it with my 3-year-old, but I think I will this weekend now. That all said, Purple Phoenix Games gives this one an enthusiastically Triassic 19 / 24. Just keep Newman and Nick Fury away from your game table.
  
Circe
Circe
Madeline Miller | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
8.9 (17 Ratings)
Book Rating
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<b><i>WHEN I WAS BORN, the name for what I was did not exist.<i/></b>
 
<img src="https://gipostcards.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/maxresdefault.jpg?w=636"/>;

I was waiting for two whole months to get this book from the library. And I finally had a chance to read Circe from Madeline Miller. A book that everyone was talking about. The only thing you were gonna see on Instagram. Well, here I am – sitting with the cool kids now, I’ve read this book.

The reason I wanted to read this book wasn’t because I wanted to be part of the cool kids. Actually, it was because Greek Mythology has a special place in my heart. See, I was born in Macedonia, a country full of history, and so very close to Greece, where histories and cultures and traditions match and mix.

When I was in school, our teachers focused hard on history. Especially Roman and Greek Mythology. So yes, I grew up with Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey and yes, I know all the gods out there, what they do, who they married, who their children are.

I have read about Circe, but I have never given her any meaning, as she is not mentioned a lot in Homer’s works, as you might already know. And then suddenly, there is a book about her life. I had to read it!!!

<b><i>AND I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART!</i></b>
 
This might be my favorite book of 2018!
 
<img src="https://gipostcards.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/img_20180625_200755_238.jpg?w=636"/>;

I enjoyed Madeline’s writing style. It was so explanatory and calm, and soothing, like swimming in nice calm waters. You would just gulp her words as you read, and before you know it, you have read 200 pages.

Circe, oh Circe! Her character was so well described – such a strong powerful woman. We start with her childhood, to her growing up, and we follow the process of how she learned things the hard way, how she is naive, and then suddenly isn’t, how she discovers the power she holds within, despite everyone else mocking her and saying otherwise. We see how she decides to say no, how she is not afraid to be a rebel, and how she suffers, and loves, and protects, and cares, and survives, and lives!

You will read a story about the love a mother has toward her child, the love a woman has toward her man, the love a son has towards her mother, the love for freedom, the love for glory…

If you love Greek Mythology, you will get the chance to say hi to some of your favourite gods, nymphs, titans, monsters – Zeus, Athena, Poseidon, Prometheus, Odysseus and many more which I will fail to reveal.

I hardly believe that this is a great book for introducing Greek Mythology to new young readers. I also hardly believe that this book will change the thoughts of many people, the way they see things, the way they live, the way they think.

It was one of my favorite things about him: how he always fought for his chance.
 
There are a lot of side characters that give their own meaning to the story as well, and there is also Odysseus, and at times it feels as this is his story, but in the end you realized that this story belongs to Circe only.

<b><i>Do not listen to your enemy, Odysseus had once told me. Look at them. It will tell you everything.

I looked. Armed and armored, she was (Athena), from head to foot, helmet, spear, aegis, greaves. A terrifying vision: the goddess of war, ready for battle. But why had she assembled such a panoply against me, who knew nothing of combat? Unless there was something else she feared, something that made her feel somehow stripped and weak.

Instinct carried me forward, the thousand hours I had spent in my father’s halls, and with Odysseus polymetis, man of so many wiles.</i></b>
 
To all of you out there – please take your time to read this book! It will leave you breathless, inspired, motivated and it will change your life forever. It changed my life – that’s for certain!
  
Maneater
Maneater
2019 | Action/Adventure, Role-Playing
Talking Maneater With Bill Munk – Game Director at Tripwire Interactive
Recently I spoke with Bill Munk – Game Director at Tripwire Interactive about their pending game Maneater. I saw the game at E3 and it looks like a promising game indeed.
 
What is the background and setting for the game?
 
Maneater is a single-player, open world, action RPG set in a fictionalized version of the US Gulf Coast. Players take on the role of a baby bull shark torn from its mother’s belly. Your only tools are your wits, your jaws, and an uncanny ability to evolve as you feed. Anything and everything is on the menu… provided you kill it before it kills you.
How did the idea to play as a Shark come about?
 
The concept for Maneater originally came from Alex Quick, the creator of Depth and director for the original Killing Floor. Tripwire Interactive loved the over-the-top and new approach to the action RPG and open world genres so much, they decided to bring the project in-house, increasing the development staff and budget to bring the team’s concept to life.
How many levels and areas are planned for the game at release?
 
Players should expect a vast variety of environments to explore, including, swamps, beach resorts, sunken ship wrecks, all the way out to the deep blue sea.
What are some of the customizations that will be available and how will players be able to upgrade their character?
 
As players continue to eat and explore, they’ll acquire key nutrients, which can be used to help them evolve. This is where the “RPG” progression systems in Maneater really come into play. Players can choose from a variety of evolutions, that may help with increased biting power, more maneuverability, armor, and more.
What are some of the moves players will be able to do and will new moves unlock later in the game?
 
We really want to make sure the act of swimming and feeding feels satisfying and meaty. During our E3 demo, you saw players knifing along the surface of the water, breaching onto land, barrel rolling and charging shark bounty hunters, and diving deep into the water to gain momentum for large leaps.
What can you tell us about the enemies that players will face in the game?
 
Each region in the game has an Apex Predator. As you battle smaller predators and consume food in each region, the apex will do whatever it takes to protect their food source. Maneater also features a bounty system. As you wreak havoc along the coast, your infamy level will rise. This causes local bounty hunters to search for you while trying to end your feeding frenzy. Depending on your infamy level, the bounty hunters will become more difficult ranging from hunters on small skiffs, all the way up to bringing out the coast guard.
The gameplay we saw at E3 looked like fun but I was curious about how the story will advance and how do you avoid the issue of repetition in the gameplay?
 
Maneater is a “dueling tales of revenge” story featuring Scaly Pete, who we revealed in our newest E3 trailer. Without revealing too much, Scaly Pete is responsible for tearing you from your mother’s belly, and you manage to escape into the open waters of the gulf. That’s where our story begins. Maneater is presented through the lens of a reality TV show called “Shark Hunters vs. Maneaters” that follows the adventures of Scaly Pete as he’s hunting you throughout our world. This also allows us to follow our player shark and give a voice to the actions of the player through the show’s narrator, who is voiced by Chris Parnell.
 
Will the game offer multiplayer or DLC?
 
Right now, we want to focus on making Maneater a fantastic single-player Action RPG experience.
What are some of your favorite moves in the game?
 
Breaching is one of the most satisfying shark moves we’ve been working on. Breaching out of shallow waters to feed on unsuspecting beach goers on land or even on a large shark bounty hunter boat captures the over-the-top fun and ridiculousness we’re aiming for with Maneater. We’re also working really hard on what we call the “whip-shot”, where you can tail whip anything that’s in your mouth, turning objects into weaponized projectiles.
 
 
 
What can you tell us about the music and sound effects in the game?
 
We’ve been working really hard on our dynamic music system, that is constantly adapting to what the player is doing throughout the game. It’s also been an interesting challenge creating sound effects for above the water with boats, explosions and civilians and then creating a whole new set of sound effects for the underwater world, including for the underwater wildlife, underwater sounds of the boats and swimmers and so much more.
Are you planning on being at PAX West with the game?
 
We can’t wait to tell you more about our plans for Maneater at future shows. In the meantime, we’d recommend your readers follow @maneatergame on Twitter for the latest.