SDCC still blows excepts for this one thing...

I can't believe anybody cares about the Comic Con. Well into the 21st century, bloated celebrity panels and gimmicky promotional items now officially suck. It's like the place has everything but comics. No thanks.

At least this time there was one actual surprise, and that was the revealing of the new monster design for Legendary Pictures forthcoming remake of Godzilla. Well, we don't know if it's a remake or what, but it's a new Godzilla, and it looks more like what we expected the last time a U.S. studio attempted such a thing.



The big square is the gimmicky crap that I don't like; you can put it in front of a web cam when you're on some page and it makes the thing look like it's breathing fire or something, but not really. It didn't look too effective in the demo, and probably just detracts from the concept art itself. Gimmicks.

As far as Goji him/herself goes, sure, why not. It's a little GMK, a little Millenium, and most likely the intial forays into the actual look of the finished product, but it's all very encouraging. Legendary promised fans something more like an actual Godzilla movie, and this is the first evidence to suggest they understand just exactly what that is.

Last year was the TR2N demo real, I guess this is it for this year, since I've been aware of everything else for months. SDCC isn't getting any better. Bring me back the Jubilee Con!

Frolf Ligonier

Timberlink Golf Course in Ligonier, PA gets into SW PA's Disc Golf game with it's unique 18 hole (basket?) experience.



I recently frolfed the course and took some pictures. It's a fun course depending on your level of experience, and in this case the "word" experience goes beyond mere game play. I've been frolfing for a decade, and I've played some challenging courses which Timberlink is not, but I had enough fun to consider hitting the place up again before the end of the season.



The course winds it's way around the timeless Timberlink par 3 golf course, playing in the rough. Distances range from 70 to 210 feet, so you know it's not a long course, however the targets are often positioned in challenging locations, and the course is so well maintained that you would need to be seriously "out of it" to be able to lose a disc. Very little undergrowth.





One of the things you should know before going to Timberlink is that it is a privately owned business and therefore charges a green fee of eight dollars. Seems like a lot of money when that same amount can haul four people up to Moraine State Park, until you consider they allow opened containers and have cup holders on the Golf Carts.



Cart rental is probably the main reason to play this course. It's not something a person is used to while frolfing, and adds a level of challenge to the concentration aspect of the game. It can be seriously distracting to drive around in a golf car when you're not used to it because those things are fun. Its an extra $14 for the rental, but it makes the outing feel like more of an occasion.

The only real complaint one could have about the course concerns the targets themselves. I guess I'm not a big fan of the Designer Pro, finding the action to be too far removed from the Mach 3 found in just about every other course I have played thus far. Plus these things could use some new chains. Smacking these rusty dogs with a speedy disc doesn't produce the same satisfying crash that we're used to, in fact it's probably closer to a thud. Any heat leading into the basket will end up only scratching the finish on the disc.



Despite this minor complaint Timberlink frolf ends up being a nice outing, especially when you incorporate other nearby attractions, such as Linn Run State Park, or Ligonier Beach.

Great VHS Box Art pt.3 "Another State of Mind"

So, right about when I decided to feature VHS covers here on this blog some other guy comes out with a book doing the same thing, and it gets mixed reviews, and I get discouraged 'cuz I thought I had an original idea... then came the Intellivision project and summer. Anyhow, I knew I'd get back into it again when I found a good one, and Dude's book got dissed for not including so many great covers like this one, so as you can see, I just had post pics from the VHS box cover for the great punk rock doucmentary film "Another State of Mind"



That's an impossibly young Mike Ness sitting on the bumper of the same beat up school bus featured in the film, and a logo that screams Ralph Steadman. The whole thing could be designed by the guy, who knows? This is going back to 1983, when it would be possible for Steadman to still be working more commercially. Whoever it was, this image represents the classic hardcore punk graphic style, with stark black and white contrasts offset by (in this case, two) swatches of muted, primal color. The effect is an intensity level that is through the roof, even though the subject is in repose. It's so simple and effective, and it works every time. I can't be a dick and not post the back cover for you.



If you're an aging punk rock fan like myself, the film is like a time machine back to the early eighties. It's also a compelling story featuring some great performances and interviews, a ton of optimism, and a sadly unique philosophy on life. This hasn't resurfaced on DVD to my knowledge, so buy whatever format you can find it on.

Beer2-D2... The Future is NOW

This year's annual Kirby Derby in Raleigh, NC brought Star Wars fans a surprise as Beer2-D2 "rolled out the barrel" and treated fans and friends alike to delicious, and complimentary, Carolina Summer Wheat Ale.



The theme of the event this time out was "Kirby to the Future," so why make mobile kegerator in the likeness of a character from "A long time ago...?" As co-creator Tom Dowd puts it "R2-D2 is from a long time ago, Beer2-D2 is the future."



Dowd explains how the idea went from loving goof to full fledged Star Wars nerd scheme to get free beer. As the project neared completion he emailed The Carolina Brewing Co. with the subject line "Outreach" and asked if they would donate a barrel. They did, plus four more and some shirts. Success!


Doug Peterson, Beer2-D2, and Tom Dowd. These Star Wars fans "...are my kind of scum. Fearless and inventive."

There is no telling where and when Beer2-D2 will be called into action next!

Snapping Turtle

Cheyldra serpentina, the Common Snapping Turtle, as found in the Mid-Atlantic region. I was able to politely cajole this critter until it became irritated enough to get out from the middle of the road. He/ she was heading for the high ground either due to heavy rains or egg laying.

Most people never see one of these, and when they do, they take a photo like this...


That's fine, but you really don't get the sense urgency that was present while standing in the middle of the road. Now ol' MZ is some kind of woodsman or something, and this is not his first encounter with a snapper, so naturally he's going to photograph this turtle the Marvel way...




See how dynamic and engaging the second turtle is compared to the first? Aren't you rooting for this turtle to get the fuck out of the way already? The thing was approximately 15inches longs and rather nimble once it got going. A yuppie yelled at me to pick it up and carry it off the road, however there is no safe way to handle one of these without cruelty, so I declined. It crawled into the brush and disappeared.

"Lost" season finale confirms worst fears

Seriously? If you don't think the shows creators are full of shit, then why does the show end only after Jack unclogs the toilet?

At least Jimmy Kimmel was able to bring us this:

R.I.P Ronnie James Dio 1942-2010

Ronnie James Dio, an originator of the genre of music known as "Heavy Metal", and one the greatest rock vocalists of all time has died at the ripe old age of sixty eight. I finally got to see RJD a few years back, and this new(to me)info regarding his age really comes as a shock. The guy was still belting it out as recently as a year ago touring with the Sabbath spin-off Heaven and Hell, still "reaching the high notes." Now Ronnie is gone.

As a prepubescent in the early eighties, the imagery of the band Dio could not possibly have been more alluring, but listening to the bombastic guitars and Ronnie's incredible vocal delivery for the first time was an experience that cannot be duplicated. Usually straight forward enough songs about teenage alienation got dressed up as tales of wizards and dragons, mysterious strangers, or run-ins with spooks, weirdness, and evil doers in general. In fact, no one sang the word "Evil" better than Ronnie and he knew it, and so he sang it over and over, and over. Ronnie kept the high camp value going into his elaborate stage presentation, and is famous for using the "Devil Horn Salute" most prominently (actually his Grandmother's old trick for reversing hexes- Thanks Ronnie!)As a young man coming of age in the early part of the Reagan years, no one individual could be more rightly accused of creating the socially maladroit currently writing this blog than Ronnie James Dio.

Naturally, I grew out of Dio by my late teens, as the coolness Dio pervaded could only truly be understood by pimply faced virgins. Dio would would fall out of favor like all the rest of the hair bands, and eventually become something as a joke for adhering to strict Metal tradition. I was amazed to learn that Dio, like all the great metal bands, had been recording through the 90's and even into this decade, but I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise. By the time he appeared in Tenacious D's Pick of Destiny, there was no doubt that Ronnie was in on the joke, and when I finally got to see him play live and hear how good he still was it become clear that he probably had the most to laugh about. It was like he couldn't age and for a minute his golden pipes allowed me to feel that youthful optimism that I didn't know I had back then or even today. His abilities were such that I had to renounce my cynicism and embrace the goofy elf one more time, and I was looking forward to seeing another performance soon.

It wasn't meant to be, so I'll take what memories I have, crank up some "Holy Diver" and make a Devil Horn Salute in honor of the man on the silver mountain.

This is what it's like to grow old, just watching your heroes die.