Tuesday, September 25, 2007

The Clock Strikes 12:01AM on Halo 3

Yawn. I would like to be joining the masses calling in sick or taking the day of today. But alas, the advent of Halo 3 is here. Some retailers were open late last night, to sell the game at the stroke of midnight for gamers who don't seem to want to waste any hours of Halo 3 availability. This is the line I had to endure at the Kennewick Wal-Mart.


They were mostly men.....in their late 20's or early 30's. I was 40th in line after arriving at 11:45pm. The Wal-Mart employees were looking at us with a tad bit of fear. Adhering to the midnight release time, they couldn't have any product ready...so it took a few minutes for them to get organized, much to the chagrin of the huddled mass. I finally got mine at 12:15am, along with some Halo dog tags....a Wal-Mart perk and future eBay mainstay.

As I drove away, there is an EB Games on my way home, and there was a line 50 deep at 12:20am out the door. I'm guessing these are the folks who pre-bought the game and have to be concerned that they still don't have the game yet. Never pre-buy, when Wal-Mart will have it anyway.

So I get home, and let the games begin. On Xbox360Live, I have a list of friends from the online community, and 2 were still up. One from Detroit and one from Seattle. The three of us played the online content for a bit. I played the campaign, which is the main game 'til about three....and I'm back at work.

My first impressions are the game are great, but you wouldn't believe the massive amount of options available in the game. It will be deep into 2008 before I see the entirety of the game.



Monday, September 24, 2007

Marcel Marceau Silenced.....one great movie moment

If you're reading this blog, you may have a vague idea of who Marcel Marceau was. He was the world's greatest mime. That may not mean much to many, but he is well regarded as a genius internationally.

So why do I bring up Mr Marceau. He has a top notch movie moment. It happened in Mel Brooks' Silent Movie. A film that has endured like his Blazing Saddles or Young Frankenstein, but it is a hilarious movie....with no spoken dialouge.....except one. You can see the appearance on the right, but Marcel Marceau has the one line in the film......."NO!"

I just always found it a unbeliebably clever idea, and it was cool that Marcel decided to do it.

Have a good week,

Jason

Thursday, September 20, 2007

If You've Never Heard of Master Chief....you will


Next Tuesday, the 25th will be most likely the biggest day in entertainment history. Halo 3 is coming out for the Xbox 360....and is expected to generate around $200 million dollars in a 24 hour period. Wal-mart is setting up Halo 3 only check out stands to handle the volume.

For folks who aren't in the know. The original Halo came out around the time the original Xbox came around, and it was like nothing ever seen before. A true triumph in the medium, and became the 'killer app', or the reason people bought the Xbox.

Halo 2 came out a few years later, and ushered in the era of online gaming. This was the first title to bring people online with their xboxs in droves. To this day, it's one of the top online games of all time.

So the hype is huge for Halo 3. It's on a bigger system, and if it delivers, it will be a water shed moment in the history of video games. It should also lead the Xbox 360 to huge sales of its system.

I will be buying it Monday night at 12midnight, and will chronicle my thoughts on the most anticipated game in the history of the medium.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Brett Somers....RIP



Match Game, is most likely my favorite TV show of all time. If you have never seen it....watch the magic daily on GSN. After the untimely death of Charles Nelson Reilly in May, we have lost another panelist from the show, Brett Somers.

She occupied the upper, center seat for almost every Match Game show. The only reason she started on the show, is the producers wanted Jack Klugman for the first week, and he said he'd do it if his wife, Brett Somers could appear. She was perfect for the show....and never left. She was seated next to Reilly, and they had a suburb comic relationship. True Magic.

She lived to be 83, and succumbed to cancer. I do think she knows how much joy she helped create.....and is still delivering today.



Monday, September 17, 2007

Heijal.....Heigl is a Star....and FSN stinks

What an Emmy broadcast last night. Some highs, some lows.....some censorship.

I wish this censorship was around when Jane Fonda accepted the Best Actor Oscar for her father in the early eighties. Sally Field and her anitwar rant was cut well short. Let her speak....because people like her...they really really like her.

Katherine Heigl though was the big winner of the night. Her name was mis-pronounced, and she corrected the announcer with a high amount of class and humor. And, when she won her best actress Emmy....she audilbly dropped an S-Bomb. During her speech....she had a little fun with the lack of hope her mother had in her chances....and looped around and thanked her at the end. What a great year for her.......and she may have become a huge star last night.

What was bad, was the horrible Frankie Valle tribute for the Sopranos. What a horrible tribute to possibly the greatest show ever on TV. They should have reunited Journey instead.

I was pleased 30 rock won Best Comedy....its a great show, and it should help the struggling series.

-FSN STINKS

Could FSN please invest in some better cameras. I'm not even talking HD....I'm talking about cameras that don't look like they have vasoline on them. The WSU/Idaho game last Saturday night was an embarassment on how bad it looked. FSN, get your act together....ESPN is outclassing you in every aspect possible.

Monday, September 10, 2007

MTV VMA's- I'm officially old

I have always felt I was hip with what was going on.....but if the MTV VMA's were any indication....I have no idea. There was not one point during the broadcast that I actually enjoyed. I was bored, and was Mr. Confused.

Britney looked scared as she lip-synced.....and all the "music" acts seemed forced and uninspired. But then again....I'm 36, and the VMA's are not directed for me.

The one neat announcement....is the new title of Indiana Jones. See the new Logo below.



Well.....I'm going to have to face it......I'm no longer part of the MTV generation.....and truthfully....I don't mind.

Friday, September 7, 2007

Set your Tivo's for Stunned

It's been announced that Britney Spears will be the opening act for MTV's Video Music Awards....or the VMA's as the kids call 'em.

Consider me there. She has been the trainwreck of trainwrecks....and this could be the last nail in her entertainment coffin. 10 years ago...Paula Abdul had an ill-conceived appearence in a see thru outfit, that summarily ended her career.

Yes....I am watching Sunday night at 9pm to see a hopeful disaster. MTV has got to be hoping for disaster as well. They'll get much more ink if she implodes, than if she harkens her comeback.

So set your Tivo's.....and get ready to watch at least something interesting.

J