This first appeared in The Huffington Post.

I’m constantly reading three or four books at a time, and I made the mistake of trying to read The Hunger Games alongside a book by Umberto Eco and another by Graham Greene. To say the writing style wasn’t very good beside those two was an understatement. I made it three or four chapters, interested in the story, but the writing left me wanting more. Eventually it simply fell by the wayside, waiting for me to revisit it.

I’m still planning on revisiting it at some point. I want to.

After seeing the movie, I think I have to, if nothing else so I can read the next two installments of the series.

I just wanted to get that out there so people reading this know where I’m coming from as far as the faithfulness of the adaptation is concerned. It all matched what I read, but I hadn’t read very much.

As for the movie itself, I’m very pleased to report that the movie is very good. The filmmaking that went into making the movie was much better than the writing that went into the novel.

The movie, as the book does, begins with Katniss Everdeen on the day of the Reaping, and follows her story through the constant government manipulation of The Hunger Games. Jennifer Lawrence brings the character to life vividly, giving us her internal monologue without having to say a word. There is no narration of her thoughts, but her performance is so strong there doesn’t need to be.

In fact, there’s not a performance I can point to that felt out of place (with the exception of Donald Sutherland as the president, but we’ll talk about that in a minute). Looking at trailers for the film, I was convinced Woody Harrelson was going to gnaw through the scenery, as distracting as a goat eating the set in the background, but his character, Haymitch Abernathy, was much more complex than his limited screen time would imply. Though their costumes bordered on distracting, Stanley Tucci and Elizabeth Banks (as Caesar Flickerman and Effie Trinket, respectively) brought a much needed big city contrast to the bland lives of the denizens of District 12. Even Lenny Kravitz, who I would have assumed to be distracting, felt right for his part.

For his part, Donald Sutherland was fine as the president, adding an air of menace, but the reason he felt out of place was because he was a villain who had no plan and did nothing but twirl his mustache. When the film ended, I was left with the feeling that I was missing something. Imagine how unsatisfied you’d feel if Star Wars had ended with Luke and Han getting Princess Leia off the Death Star and the movie just ended there before they could go back and blow it up. I understand there are more books coming, and this film telegraphed the plot of the next one so completely that I shouldn’t be surprised, but it still felt odd and out of place.

And, to be honest, the odd structure was my only complaint with an otherwise well-made film. The emotional climax comes right in the middle of the movie and, even though it was blatantly and repeatedly telegraphed from the beginning, it had a significant punch, eliciting more than a tear or two from me. But nothing got bigger or better than that. The movie peaked in the middle, the consequences of that peak causing a riot in District 11 toward the overthrow of the government, and then the film went strictly by the numbers from that point.

Sadly, there’s too much of a reverence to the source material filmmakers have for films of this sort that seems to render them incapable of fixing major mistakes in order to make a better film. (Which is why fans of the books rarely seem to understand why Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkabanis hands down the best film in the Harry Potter franchise.)

Other than that one minor complaint, I thought this film was incredible. It invested me wholly and is forcing a desire to read the books.

Is this the best movie I’ve seen this year so far? No. That honor still belongs to John Carter (which if you don’t already have tickets for The Hunger Games, you should this weekend while you wait for the crowds to die down). But it’s still a very excellent film.

Will I see the next one? Absolutely. And I will come having read the source material this time. I’m a fan, now, and nothing is going to stop that.

I saw it with my 9-year-old son and he loved it as well, winning over the kid vote. I’m not sure I’d bring my 8 -year-old daughter, though. Not because there was anything too graphic or intense, but because I don’t think that mid-film emotional climax would sit well with her particular personality. It’s not exactly fun for the whole family, but for most of the family it’s just right: challenging, thrilling, intense and well-made.

Bryan Young is the editor-in-chief of geek news site Big Shiny Robot and the author of “Man Against the Future.”

This week’s only new Star Wars comic is the second issue of Dawn of the Jedi. GONK is up at the crack of Dawn to check it out…
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So you picked up a PSVita and need some great entertainment for it, look no further than Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack from DrinkBox Studios. You play this side scrolling puzzle platformer as a blob, held captive in a lab until one day you escape and want to wreak havoc upon the world. Your method for wreaking havoc is by devouring everything. Like any good blob story it has a 50’s-esque backdrop, government agencies trying to stop you, scientists, blob friends to rescue, and lots to eat. The more you eat, the bigger you get, and the bigger you are obviously allows you to eat larger things.

"Tilt-a-Blob" Old School Style

The game sports 29 levels total, 24 standard platforming levels and 5 tilt-a-blob levels. The standard levels give you a good amount of challenging puzzle designs to live through making you avoid spikes, flames, lasers, crushing walls and whatever else the military can throw at you. The tilt-a-blob levels provide a nice change from the norm gameplay. Their style of play is a top down view where you must use the gyroscopic sensor in the Vita to roll your blob around and complete the mazes while finding new things to eat. I never once got bored of playing this game. It has a very nice check-pointing system within each level, so if you fail an area then you will most likely restart at the beginning of that specific puzzle. It’s like the game is encouraging you to try again. You are given abilities as you progress through the game, such as a smash attack, the ability to fly, polarization to repel or stick to metal surfaces and others which I’ll leave for you to find out. These abilities help you navigate the areas.

Another thing I loved about this game is the amount of humor packed inside. The billboards and advertising throughout the game are jokes about eating and media within our world. So you find yourself actually paying attention to what everything says and getting a chuckle out of it while munching on people, or their homes. The cut scenes are also funny, showing news reports of the growing blob’s exploits, but even the detail of making the screen look like a dirty tube television all help in selling the overall game as a 50’s blob movie.

Overall I can’t really find any flaws in the game; the controls are good, the touch elements are responsive, visuals are top notch for what they are trying to achieve, the story is simple and accessible. At only $7.99 this game is an absolute must have. No if’s, and’s, or but’s. Everyone should own this title. It is the best value on the Vita hands down.

Score: 9/10

For fans of: Super Mario Bros., Super Meat Boy, Rayman Origins, Tales From Space: About a Blob

Plot: Batman is gone fishin’, in his absence all the half wits of Gotham city go to war with each other for either justice or crime.

The breakdown: Build out characters based on playing preferences from tiny- fast- weak to big- strong- slow. Three different game types offer a deathmatch, point capture, and a bomb arming scenario with a twist.

About six months ago I caught the trailer for Gotham City Imposters. Reading the synopsis of the game and taking into account that two of my all time favorites (fear and condemned) came from the the Monolith’s studio I had faith! The I started playing the Beta 2 weeks before launch, and bought the full version on day 1.

On the surface this game plays just like your average shooter, It’s set apart by the attention to detail. You choose your personality disorder…yes…every character is deemed insane with their own disorder. Depending on your play style you unlock your disorder that best suits your play style, you also unlock and build your own personal calling card.

This game is comical vulgarity at its finest. This game is a huge change from the rinse and reuse style of shooter we are used to. When I die from an unknown bullet spray I feel somewhat less likely to throw my controller and scream when I hear a silly heroic voice boom over my tv “justice has outdone you!!!” from a gloating bat.

Replay value is very high in the world of GCI the unlockable costumes alone keep me coming back for more. First I aimed to simply get my Joker and Bat down to only their underoos to strike fear into my enemies as I swoop down and murder them from my glider rigs. With that objective accomplished the next goal is a full Luchador get up for the Bat. Tie that together with a 1,000 level cap I won’t be leaving the game anytime soon.

Wow.

This episode was one of the finest hours of television I’ve ever seen and it made a promise for the next season that I’m not sure it can keep.

There will be minor spoilers in this review, so, please bear that in mind. I’m very glad I wasn’t spoiled beforehand, so unless you’ve already watched the episode, I’d recommend skipping my review.

As I write this, my heart is still beating faster and my adrenaline is up. This show jolts my emotions every episode and this episode accomplished that much more than any other. I didn’t think it was possible to give us a better episode than the one that came before it, or the one before that. But they built so cleverly and carefully toward this season finale that I’m sure even Frank Darabont is proud, despite being mysteriously let go.

The thing I loved most about this episode was the handling of Rick’s confessions about Shane. He spent as much time in the episode as possible deflecting it, first from Carl, and then from the entire group, but when he has Lori alone he tells her. The scene was stirring and the acting was top notch. Andrew Lincoln gave it everything he had, but the more stunning performance in the scene was Sarah Wayne Collins. I’ve always thought the test of an actor is not what they’re doing when the focus is on them giving lines, but what they do when they’re reacting. And the look on Sarah Collins’ face as Rick makes his confession… top notch. You could truly see the gears working in her head, turning over the consequences in her mind. For an actor, to do that over and over again in the course of many takes is difficult. It’s truly a gift to perform dramas for us.

But the next time Rick confesses, in front of the whole group, Andrew Lincoln succeeded in sucking all the oxygen from the air with one, brief line. “I killed my best friend to save you people.”

It was an incredible moment.

But not more incredible than the two hints of what season three holds. The first, was Andrea’s saviour, Michonne. Michonne is one of my favorites from the comic and with announcements about the Governor coming into the story next season, her involvement had been a massive question mark hanging over my head. Now that she’s in it, I’m dying to see more. Her entrance into the show is, perhaps, one of the greatest and most satisfying moments of television I’ve ever seen.

The second hint of season three was the final shot of the episode: the pan up over the lake and our first glimpse of what looks to be a prison.

The tone and tenor of the next season is going to be as different from season two was from the first season. And I think Hershel will be filling the void Dale left and Andrea, angry for being left behind, might become the loose cannon Shane was.

But who knows?

I certainly don’t. I’m just along for the ride. And between this show and The Clone Wars, the wait over the summer may well kill me with anticipation.

For all the complaining that’s been done about the penultimate episode of The Clone Wars – Season Four, I truly believe the Season Finale will do right by all those complaining.

Since I’m not allowed to review with spoilers, I’ll have to speak in generalities about the episode.

Based on the clips that have been released (you can watch one here and another on EW), I don’t think it’s spoiler territory to say that Darth Maul gets his wits back about him in a desire to enact his revenge. At the end of the last episode he was broken, mentally and physically, but he has a renewed sense of… purpose.

This episode is brutal and dark, much more so than the last. Lives are at stake. Lots of them.

The lighting in this episode is fantastic. You can get a taste of the lightsaber dueling in the EW clip and the fire in the other clip that this episode is dark all the way through. There’s no hint of light or goodness, not in the story, not in the visuals, and certainly not in the lighting. This episode drips red with blood from start to finish and it’s the darkest episode of the show we’ve been privy to.

We’re given the rematch we’ve all hoped for since 1999: Obi-wan Kenobi and Darth Maul. There are many more players on the field in this episode, though, creating a team dynamic I never thought we’d ever get to see on this show. Truly, the enemy of my enemy is my friend is a meaningful opening fortune cookie. It instantly reminded me of Dick Tracy, though. (I love that movie.)

Matching the darkness, there’s a kinetic energy to the facial animation that just exudes anger, hatred, or calmed fear, depending on the character. The animation on Darth Maul is particularly excellent. From the bizarre gait of his robotic legs to the menacing, arrogant sneer he seems to speak through, he is a broken, furious version of the calm and collected Sith lord we loved to watch so much in The Phantom Menace.

The acting and the dialogue in this episode are razor sharp. Sam Witwer nails a much more collected Maul and James Arnold Taylor brings a gallows humour to Obi-wan that brought a smile to my face over and over again. Clancy Brown also shines as Savage (even enduring a gag about the name.)

This episode is a game changer for the show. When you watch it you’ll see what I mean. Especially since you see, more than any other episode (except for Pong Krell perhaps), Davie Filoni playing with the line in the Revenge of the Sith crawl, “There heroes on both sides. Evil is everywhere.”

My favorite moment of the episode, aside from Obi-wan’s barbs and the beautifully choreographed fight sequences, was the parting shot. I can’t tell you what it is, but it is going to change the tone of the show in ways I can’t even begin to fathom. I mentioned an episode earlier this season (in the middle of the Slavers arc) being the Empire Strikes Back of The Clone Wars, but this ending, with the months long wait between episodes, embodies it much more fully. And I did an interview with Sam Witwer that will be appearing here and on Huffington Post about the havoc he’ll be wreaking next season. The Clone Wars, the conflict and the show, are changing for good after the events of this episode.

And it’s going to be a very long summer for all of us.

For those upset about Darth Maul coming back, I would implore you to just accept it and move forward. These are fascinating stories and you could just count them as Elseworlds stories if you don’t like the idea of him coming back.

This two part arc is also a great jumping on point for the series. One could watch “Brothers” for free on StarWars.com (or download the gorgeous HD version on iTunes) and then watch the finale and be set to dive into the show from here on out. It’s not likely to disappoint.

The season finale airs at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT Friday, March 16th on Cartoon Network.

(Though I’d immediately download the HD version on iTunes. This episode is that good looking.)

Is Zayne Carrick walking a fine line or playing with fire in this week’s Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic – War #3? GONK checks it out.
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This week marks the DVD and Blu-Ray release of the 2011 version of The Three Musketeers directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, whose directing credits primarily consist of Resident Evil movies.  Perhaps unsurprisingly, his wife Milla Jovovich stars in that franchise and also has a sizable role as Milady in the latest adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel.  One may question the merit of that decision, however.  Her Milady is clever but too coquettish to either be likable or adequately villainous.

The place, France.  The time, the reign of Louis XIII & Queen Anne, both young and uncertain of their relationship, making them excellent pawns for plots devised by the Duke of Buckingham and Cardinal Richelieu.  Orlando Bloom plays the Duke, and he has the most ridiculous hairstyle I’ve ever seen.  I would refer to it as a pompadour, but that word supposedly didn’t even exist until the time of Louis XV, when the king took on a mistress named Pompadour.

The movie feels like a crazy blend of elements borrowed from various other films, including Raiders of the Lost Ark, Mission Impossible, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.  It feels like a film searching for an identity but never quite finding it.  Even the music sounded too similar to that of another movie (Sherlock Holmes).

I really wanted to love this film.  Dumas’ The Three Musketeers novel is one of my favorite stories, and I can’t count how many times I’ve seen the Disney adaptation starring Chris O’Donnell.  Yes, it was a little cheesy, but it was so much fun!  Tim Curry made a wonderful Cardinal, and Michael Wincott was a perfectly evil Rochefort.  (Rochefort, Isn’t that a smelly kind of cheese?”)  And who can forget the incredible swordfighting, so masterly choreographed by the late Bob Anderson?  No fancy camera gimmicks, but fighting with passion and elegance.

Unfortunately, the new version relies too heavily on special effects and camera trickery and less on a cohesive storyline and endearing characters.  And it follows a Hollywood trend of turning a classic story into something a bit more steampunk, which could work if done well.  I don’t feel like that was the case here.  And I’m not going to even talk about the airships.

It’s fun at times, though, and the costumes are absolutely exquisite.  I would love to have Milady’s gowns and sparkling jewelry.  And I truly appreciate the fact that her relationship with Athos is shown onscreen briefly before her true motives are revealed.  Plus, the palace rooms and gardens are no less than stunning.

I won’t say it’s a horrible film; it has its merits, as mentioned above.  Fans of the swashbuckling genre and steampunk may love it, and it obviously isn’t meant to take itself too seriously.  I know at least one guy who saw it primarily because he has a crush on Milla Jovovich.  Whatever your reasons, it’s certainly action-packed and has some crazy stunt sequences.

Plus, the 3D Blu-ray, Blu-ray and DVD contain special features that include audio commentary with the director, deleted and extended scenes, cast and crew stories and a special 17th century action featurette.  So if you saw the movie in the theater and liked it, the bonus features may interest you.

Still, I’ll recommend the Disney version over this one any day.

Brian K. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Ex Machina and many more) hits us with a new series that makes some big promises but starts off a little slow. Saga #1 (Image Comics) introduces a very intriguing world that can only be describe as a genre melting pot. The terms genre-bending and slipstream both feel inadequate. In typical Vaughan fashion, the characters are full and interesting, strongly voiced, and immediately lovable. Even though this first installment didn’t exactly blow me away on its own, I am eagerly awaiting the next one. Read on to find out why.

I’ll say this much, drop all your preconceived notions of genre before you crack this one—sorry, make that: all your preconceived notions, period. (It’s also worth mentioning ahead of time that Saga sports more than a few NSFW pages.)

The story follows Marko and Alana, deserters from opposite sides of a galactic war, as they try to escape the war to raise their brand new baby in peace. But most of this double sized issue is dedicated to establishing the universe for the story. Depending on how much you like Brian K. Vaughan, this could be either intriguing or frustrating; Saga #1 is heavy on the world building and a bit light on story.

Your initial experience of Saga is a little disorienting. First, you’re introduced to a ram-horned faun and a woman with fairy wings in a contemporary environment with an otherworldly feel. They give birth to a baby—well, she gives birth to a baby—with adorable little horns. You may think you have some idea where this is going, but you don’t, and it’s about to get a lot crazy. Next up you’ve got a robot with a MegaMan style cannon for an arm, angel-winged thugs with laser pistols, and an anthropomorphic monkey mechanic. Yes, you read that right.

Confused yet? What if I told you a stag-antlered guy and a troop of horned, robed henchmen are about to show up in a gout of flame then battle the robot and laser-wielding angel thugs? Also that they’re going to use swords and spells? Guess what, you’re not even 15 pages in yet. Believe it or not, Saga #1 still has plenty of surprises for you.

I don’t want to give away too many more specifics, but if the above doesn’t have you intrigued then you might be on the wrong site right now.

Fiona Staples is the artist, and she does a fantastic job. Saga may not have that computer-crisp look of comics like Y: The Last Man but it has a very human quality that I find endearing. Don’t take that the wrong way, this is quality artwork and Staples has a great sense of cinematography. She doesn’t go crazy with the grid, but her subtle manipulations are very effective particularly because they’re used sparingly. The backgrounds are subtle with a bit of a watercolor feel that fits nicely with the mysterious world Vaughan has created, while hard lines are reserved for scene actors. This dichotomy gives Saga a bit of a unique look, and goes a long way toward punching up the characters in every frame.

Vaughan has created an impressive and expansive universe with this one, and the first issue is only the tip of the iceberg by necessity. In fact, based on the beautifully lettered, past tense narrator it seems like like the eventual protagonist of the series doesn’t even make an appearance yet, except as a newborn. Saga #1 isn’t an Origin story per se, it’s a Birth story.

It may be 45 pages of “WTF” but you won’t regret reading them, plus it’s cool looking. The universe of Saga is complicated, but I trust Vaughan as a storyteller and I fully believe this is all going to pay off big time. I think he’s proven himself worthy of that trust. I’m going to keep following Saga, so if you’re still on the fence keep an eye out for my future reviews and I’ll let you know how things pan out.

[Did you read Saga #1? What did you think? We’d love to hear it below.]

[Connor Cleary is a video game columnist and critic, a freelance web and graphic designer, and an aspiring fiction writer. He is a reviewer at GameShark and an occasional opinion and analysis columnist at Gamasutra. His freelance design business is Four Stair Multimedia and Design. You can follow Connor @The_Blue_Key, or at fb/TheBlueKey, or check out his writing archive on tumblr, The Blue Key.]

Big thanks to 5th Street Games for providing us with a review copy.
 
Taking an opportunity to remove the digital needle from my arm I began hosting a board game night with a few friends, generally playing something heavily steeped in nerd and technicality we’ve played anything from Zombies to Heroes Quest. Castle Dash was a refreshing reprieve from the technicality and heavily guided turn phases, and truthfully just gave us some fun. The great thing about the title is the way it changes as your number of players increases or decreases. Both times that we played we had the maximum number of players eliminating the need for a central castle. The basis is pretty simple, each player takes a turn placing a single unit on an item card (placed in the center) or placing up to six units in a spot to defend your castle. Once everyone has placed an all out frenzy of battling each other begins attacking to the left to the right and straight across. If you play with less than six players then a central castle is set up that that all players will battle when fighting that pesky player in front. All in all 1 game took 30 minutes and we were talking trash and throwing stuff at each other by the end (the true signs of a quality game). The game itself was easy to understand and quick to set up. My favorite part of the set up is that all the tokens are already punched out of the cardboard for you. This tiny attention to detail saved us 15 minutes of pre game time. It also made me a little upset at the other high tier games we’ve been playing. Games that you spend $50-$100 on should do the same for you, 5th Street Games thought ahead and did.

Putting a score on a game is tough, the art work on the box is great, the board set up is easy, and the progression is quick.  This game basically scores an awesome on a scale of 1-10. If you need a fun game to gather around a few friends, or even just entertain the family for a minute this is a unique way to do it. Find your local board game store or hit up their website, you won’t regret it.