I Am Altering the Schedule. Pray I Don't Alter It Any Further

Just a small update. The kids are still very time and energy intensive and on top of that I just got hired for a new show which takes up even more time and energy. So in keeping this blog updated I had a choice to either continue the FireRed Let's Play on schedule OR catch up on the Disney Star Wars EU as I planned back in November. Not both.

And honestly, even though it's more work, I'm finding the Let's Play far more rewarding and interesting right now.

2022 is absolutely the year I will catch up on the Disney EU and you will know all my thoughts. It's just that April will not be the month. Besides, I'm thinking of showing my kids the Lucas 6 next May (as I don't think I can really hide it from my oldest much longer), and I think my dive into the EU would make more sens in the lead-up to that. Hopefully by then I'll be transitioning to going home a few days a week and thus have more time and energy to keep a few more things going at once.

Because there's no way I'm not moving right on to other games in the series once FireRed is over.

Expect the next chapter more or less on time Saturday morning (and in the case of an unforseen emergency, no later than Sunday morning)

Listmas 2021: Star Wars

Short, Sweet, and Nothing New. Let's goooooooooooooo

Listmas 2021: Tabletop Gaming

Tabletop Gaming, while never quite going away, is certainly seeing something of a renaissance. It's been happening since the last half of the previous decade, but quarantines have seen it boost even higher through both family activities and online programs such as Tabletop Simulator.

Some readers may remember that I used to be involved with a community gaming day. This fell apart around the time other things in my life were, and after a falling out with that group in general I am looking for a new community to join. But I will always thank those people for helping me by either introducing me to or rekindling an old passion for many of the games on these lists. While it has been and continues to be difficult, I am eager to make new fond memories playing these games.

Rumor Control: Here Are the Facts

The day last week that I had set aside to do my big Star Wars Anniversary post, we got a rather alarming bit of news that we've had to spend the intervening time dealing with that. We are not sharing exactly what this news is yet except with immediate family, select friends, and bosses/co-workers it would directly impact. When we have decided it's okay for the world at large to know, it will go here.

I had hoped to do the post in May when it would be relevant, but expect it in the next week along with some more backlogged articles.

The Geekdom Madness posts will continue as usual - they've been mostly written ahead of time up to this point, though now I REALLY have to wait for the results.

I pick the most inconvenient times to come back to writing.

GM17 - QF: Precocious/Kingdom of Monsters Victors

Wow, where did these extra votes come from?

The Victors for the first round of the Quarter-Final and the first of our Elite Four are...

Mabel Pines

"I know that hurts because I've accidentally done it to myself! Multiple times!"

and...

Toriel

"Prove to me you are strong enough to survive!"

We've had the largest last-minute influx of votes this year so far. Match 2 was unaffected since Toriel commanded an early lead and stayed there, but Match 1 did a complete 180 allowing the straggling Mabel to come out on top. In the end, both Victors won with 7 votes out of a whopping 12 votes (58%).

Here's the breakdown. Check back tomorrow!

I knew I should have posted my Star Wars anniversary posts sooner

Geekdom Madness 2017 - Quarter-Final: Precocious/Kingdom of Monsters

Now things are getting serious! The next two weeks will see who ends up this year's Elite Four, and then another two weeks after that will see a Champion.

GM17 - TRG: Courage of the Heart/Bestial Victors

Slightly higher turnout this week!


The Victors for the second round of The Real Game are...

Anakin Skywalker

"You underestimate my power!"

and...

Godzilla

"SKREE-onnk!"

Anakin won his match handily with 6 votes out of 9 (66%). Godzilla won his match by only one late-week vote, ending with 5 votes out of 9 (55%). As I recall, the last match where we had 9 total votes was the last time Godzilla competed, so I'd be surprised if we didn't see more from him going forward.

Here's the breakdown. Check back tomorrow!

Also, Anakin wins on the Revenge of the Sixth

Geekdom Madness 2017 - The Real Game: Courage of the Heart/Bestial

Sorry for the late start, but we're plumbing all the hidden depths this week

GM17: Hothouse Power/Personality Shift Victors

Someone didn't vote for Match 2.

The Victors for the third round of the preliminaries are...

Anakin Skywalker

"You underestimate my power!"

and....

The Beast

"I'LL give you a place to stay!"

At least this week was not quite so one-sided. Anakin won the day with 5 votes out of 7 (71%). Match 2 came in with a complete tie, both combatants getting 3 votes out of 6 (50%). A tiebreaker D20 roll had Beast's 18 beat Saruman's 14 - fitting given what was just released yesterday.

Here's the breakdown. Check back tomorrow!

A hateful boy who learned to love and a loving boy who learned to hate...

Geekdom Madness 2017: Hothouse Power/Personality Shift

This week: Divergent Character Evolution!

A Promise

I am actually going to do my best to keep my child's exposure to Star Wars to a bare minimum until I feel they are old enough to watch the Saga. With their arrival set for early October, that's at least a 5-7 year wait, not even accounting for the possibility of siblings.

However, once that day comes, and if I still have some internet presence, I will be chronicling the experience for you all.

I have already decided that I will be doing flashback order for their first viewing. That's VI-V-I-II-III-VI. All rewatches will be in Episode order. As far as additional material goes, if they like the Saga well enough to want more, I will make available what I can to them. This includes Clone Wars, Rebels, VII-IX, and the various EUs. While I will make my child(ren) aware that these materials have some fundamental differences, they will not be discouraged from liking whatever they wish

As a matter of fact, while I will give my personal opinion when asked, I will ALWAYS encourage my child(ren) to like what they like regardless of my feelings about the work in question. As the appreciation of the subjectivity of art is one of my core values, it is something I want t instill at a young age.

There are other values I want to instill at a young age, but that's a topic for another time.

A New Chapter

So....umm......it's been a while.

I have LOADS to tell.

Our Only Hope

The Princess is Dead. Long Live the Princess.

From Hollywood Royalty to Galactic Royalty twice-over. Subversive as a Damsel in Distress (as well as real life). Leader of a Rebellion but at times unable to keep her own body from rebelling against her.

Carrie Fisher got through it all with an impish grin and a dignity that didn't always match her actions.

The Star Wars Saga has seen many of its great collaborators pass on over the years, one all too recently in fact. But this? To a Star Wars fan, this is the equivalent of losing a Beatle.

The Force will be with you, Carrie, always.

Rogue None?

I realize this title may be more clickbaity. This isn't a full on article. Just a brief announcement.

There's a good chance I will be skipping Rogue One during its theatrical run.

I'm not boycotting it. I actually commend them for bringing the Mon Mothma from the RotS deleted scenes back, and hope the rumors about the return of Smitts as Bail are true. And I'll probably catch it and give it a fair shake when it's released to home formats. And remember, I famously would never have even given Clone Wars a second look had my eventual wife not won tickets from a radio contest.

It's just none of the trailers I've seen for it make me the least bit excited. The style it's advertising just doesn't interest me.

If my family decides to go and pay the way, I may go with them. But with limited money, and movies I am excited about such as Fantasic Beasts and Dr. Strange coming out, well...if I had to choose, I'll save my money on Rogue One. So don't expect a timely dissertation from me. If it happens anyway, well, it'll be a nice surprise. Just don't count on it.

And let me know when the official VIII trailer comes out.

After Over a Month of Nothing, Hey! Post-A-Day!

Yes yes, like I always do after not having anything to say for a month, I try and go for a week of one post per day before going off into obscurity again for a while. So I'm here to announce that.

What I won't have this year is a standard Halloween entry, since due to budget and time concerns I'm just pulling my Vader suit out, and it's like - who hasn't seen that?

I'll also be stepping outside my comfort zone a bit this week, so be prepared.

Lastly, this December I'm bringing back my Listmas thing from my early days, to simply update based on new material and changing opinions.

Watch this space.

(Almost But Not Quite) Infinite Possibilities

With Disney Infinity beginning to cancel its online services at the end of the month, I thought it was high time to talk about this game that has enraptured me whilst my computer has been on the fritz. Though I've had it for a while and had experience with similar games before, it's only in the past months since its sudden cancellation that I've begun truly ulocking its secrets and my enjoyment.

This will be a long review with multiple facets.

If Any of My Circuits or Gears will Help, I'll Gladly Donate Them

I had to pop on through my phone to pay respects to the actor who brought the true hero of the Star Wars Saga to life.

Kenny Baker was a true renaissance man, a veteran of film and vaudeville and by all accounts a professional and pleasant man to work with.

George Lucas wrote R2-D2. Ben Burtt and his sound team gave him a voice. Artists, fabrication teams, puppeteers, and animators too numerous to mention by name gave him physical form. But it was Kenny Baker, and Kenny alone, that gave R2-D2 his soul. The most important droid in the galaxy. Mechanic of royalty, partner to Jedi, agent and savior of rebellion.

Kenny, you will be missed. The Force will be with you, always.

Love Letter to the Women of Star Wars

(Originally Written for Jedi News)

Within the last few months, I finally watched The Force Awakens again for the first time since the theatrical run. What I had liked about it at first I loved even more the second time. What had bothered me about it the first time likewise bothered me exponentially in the repeat viewing. All in all, it makes for a very awkward filmgoing experience for me – I love parts of it too much to say I dislike it, but I hate other parts too much to say I like it. And even if Episodes VIII and IX tie the narrative together in a way that really makes Awakens shine in retrospect, the fact that those films have totally different teams behind them (as opposed to The Maker’s overarching, if fickle-with-details narrative) will always undercut whatever “hidden brilliance” we may or may not find in the film upon future analysis.

The above paragraph was originally supposed to be a lead-in to a whole column re-evaluating The Force Awakens upon a repeat viewing away from the hype and the fear, but frankly, that’s really all I have to say on the matter until the entire picture comes to light. Besides, the main point of my column is to keep Episodes I-III and their rightful place in the Saga as a whole in the public’s eye as a positive force (pun unintentional, but welcome), lest the bile levied at them by mainstream geekdom be history’s final word on them.

But it does serve as a nice introduction to a matter that I’ve been wanting to write about for nearly a year, but wasn’t confidant I could do it justice. Because there is one element of The Force Awakens that I have had a slight but noticeable shift on in the intervening months: Rey.

GM16: The Semi-Final Victors

We're ramping up for the end here, so let's not waste any time. You have spoken. These are your champions.

The Victors for the Geekdom Madness Semi-Final are...

Captain Jack Sparrow

"You will always remember this as the day you almost caught...Captain Jack Sparrow!"

 With 6 out of 9 votes (66%), he yo-hoed Yoda. He has what it takes.

and...

Maleficent

"You poor simple fools! Thinking you could defeat me...ME! The mistress of all evil!"

 With 4 out of 8 votes (50%) and a tiebreaker die roll of 14 to her opponent's abysmal 1, she riddled the Riddler. She has what it takes.


Here's the breakdown. Tomorrow, the Geekdom Madness 2016 Final!

I thought that was going to go 100% the opposite way

Geekdom Madness 2016: The Semi-Final

Hello all, and welcome to Geekdom Madness 2016's Semi-Final. Our Elite Four will be whittled down to the final two. So let's not waste any time!