Privatization Of The Arms Race

Funny how this picture looks just like the picture I had of the first "Ironman" movie. Well, supposedly this one is from "Ironman 2". I got nothing against Ironman but War Machine's suit was easily the best one. I mean look at that minigun! Look at those shoulder missiles! The unpainted look is a nice touch. Actually, I think they call that color "gun metal". There's no doubt that if a genius billionaire came up with something like this that people would want it, but in the movie he was independent. He was all for privatizing weapons manufacturing. You hear the word "privatizing" all over now days. What does that mean? It means Tony Stark didn't want the military taking his design. In order for that to happen though they would have to be alright with him being a vigilante superhero. I agree with him being able to keep his design but what does privatization lead to? If corporations were able to utilize such practices then they could secretly create weapons using new technology, or things, like in "Resident Evil". It's a double edged sword. I was on Tony Stark's side but a big corporation could have just as easily tried to privatize some top secret weaponized mech suit of their own. The future is changing and we must be prepared, for if we are to allow privatization then we will bring forth a future with new good and bad possibilities. You never hear about superheroes or villains in real life but that doesn't mean you won't. We need a real Tony Stark.
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Guest Commentator CHROMESHINE says: "This is really, really bad for the robot business! Not to mention cyborgs! Not good!"

From The Deep

Versus Movie #107. If you saw "Deep Rising" then you know what this monster is. Deep Rising is one of my favorites even to this day. It's just so absurd that you can't help but love it. I mean it starts off like one movie but the second half is like a totally different movie altogether. The plot is there's a cruise liner on the open sea where sea pirates dwell. These pirates are modern day ones, not a throwback. They use speedboats and harpoons. Machine guns that look highly specialized and hard to find. Custom weapons. These pirates take over the cruise liner only to find out they aren't the only ones with something in mind. A monster of some sort invades the ship and starts picking them off one by one. The action in this movie was very good to me. I like the twist in the story and the monster itself is humungous. It's the biggest monster I've ever seen in a movie in a long time. I have a penchant for sea monsters. What's really wild is if you look at this artist rendering here it almost resembles an octopus in some way. Like a mutant monster octopus that takes down whole ships. Who would would create something like that? If it weren't created then it's from the very dark deep reaches of the ocean depths. Hence the name Deep Rising I suppose. Well, I'm going with created by man because at the end they find a primordial island full of mutant monsters like in "Lost" or something. This movie was never in the theater but I love it just the same. Those harmless creatures could be much more.
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Guest Commentator BLUE FIEND says: "That really was the wrong cruise to be on. Seafood freaks me out now!"

Experiments In Space

There are things up in space we may or may not know about. People have heard of space stations but nobody ever hears about them these days. They do in fact have a  space station up there. Maybe more. What goes on up there? Well, a lot of scientific work I'm sure but if someone wants something hidden there are always ways. Remember what happened in the end of "The Andromeda Strain" remake? They kept the virus in a tube on a space station. You never know what could be going on up there. If something horrifying did happen do you really think they're gonna tell us? No. They could even be experimenting on animals up there and accidentally bring back mutant dinosaurs like in that game "Dino Crisis 3" for the Xbox. Good game by the way. And you know how easy it would be to blow up a spaceship without anyone knowing about it. Or implode even. I don't think we have that kind of technology yet but if someone created a pulsar within a spaceship then the hull could be breached and cause the spaceship to implode into a tiny speck of nothingness in the center of a glowing pulsar. There are so many things you could do up there. Even "Hellraiser: Bloodline" took place in space. "Leprechaun 4: In space" and "Jason X" both went to the dark frontier as well. You really think something couldn't possibly be going on up there? We'd never know.
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Guest Commentator TOUGH GUY says: "Dinosaurs, really? No way. Demons? No way. Leprechauns? Run for your life!"

Celebrity Drug Wars

Did you know that activated charcoal can be used to absorb toxic substances in the gastrointestinal tract after a drug overdose? Yup, that's what this stuff is. Sounds like it wouldn't taste too good. Who wants to drink charcoal?! A lot of celebrities have died from drug overdoses and they never had the chance to use something like this. And you know what I keep hearing in the news that really weirds me out? They have said on several occasions that the cause of death for different actors and actresses was pneumonia. This is no coincidence here. Let's see how many I can name: Brittany Murphy, Corey Haim, and I think Anna Nicole Smith too. In all three cases they said it was pneumonia. We all know they were drug overdoses. What's really odd is I'm wondering if they actually did have pneumonia, but as a result of drug abuse. If so then did the drugs weaken them to that state? Or could it have been the particular drugs sold to them? What if someone is making bad batches of drugs? There's a scary thought. What if someone was killing off celebrities using drugs? I don't trust any drug enough to think there would be no bad effects. You know what they put in meth? Or a lot of drugs for that matter? It's repulsive what they put into those drugs. I mean it's obvious that they're meant to kill people but people take 'em anyways. And that's before the bad batch theory. A bad batch would kill someone for sure. Could it be?
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Guest Commentator SPUN BETTY says: "I've had that a few times. It tastes like crap so I make a charcoal shake using peanut butter!"

Eagle Eyes Watch You

Versus Movie #106. Just in for X-mas. Thought I'd review "Eagle Eye" since the trailer on Youtube has so many mixed reviews. I don't understand people sometimes. They just want things to be over the top more and more, or there isn't enough violence or something. It had loads of action and I thought it rocked. Nobody died but did anyone have to die? Not in this story. People may be desensitized to an extent. I just know what it is and what it's not so I don't get to thinking negatively. I really don't have anything bad to say about it because people will always say things like that about adventure movies. Like "National Treasure"; it's not supposed to have a bunch of people dying as they search for treasure. That would be a whole different movie entirely. As a matter of fact that might almost make it a horror action movie if it did that. And that's why it didn't. This movie is adventure action, not the kind of action where people drop like flies. I like how this movie reminds me of "War Games" and the sequel to that movie as well. The computer thinking for itself was a similarity to make of course but it wasn't playing a war game. People will say "why put them on a goose chase?", well because it's an artificially intelligent computer that doesn't realize what it is and wants these people to find it for its own personal reason, as if a real person. It's not thinking like a rational computer because someone gave it personality via AI. Given good enough AI any computer could end up doing something like this. It's not hard to fathom but people don't like to think too hard. Instead they blame the movie and say it has plot holes when it didn't. You could also say it was an error, a malfunction. Any highly advanced AI surveillance system could have a malfunction possibly and this is the wildest of possibilities. Or even worse... Skynet people! Remember what happened with Skynet? Yeah, so why is this movie so hard to fathom? People just don't understand that you don't have to give it all away to get into the story. It's a good adventure. I mean, the poor guy has terrorist weapon supplies show up at his apartment, then a woman's voice calls him directing him to move fast, and like anyone in this situation you would be wondering what on Earth is going on. The scary part is imagining a system like this watching over us. It is a possible reality and that would lead to "big brother" fears. Never mind the action, think about the implications of what this movie is saying. The military was using a high level AI robot to police us. This is the type of stuff that cyberpunk movies are made of. The key to a good intellectual idea is dumbing it down for action. Then the problem is people just think of it as action and forget there's more to it. I really liked this movie. It wasn't the next "They Live" or anything but it is a frightening idea. It succeeded in high octane thrills.You can't listen to the majority. Think for yourself like a cyberpunk. Not all action is brawny.
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Guest Commentator HARVESTER OF SORROW says: "Ever wonder how T.V. stations know what you're watching? It's Eagle Eye!"

That One Girl From Urban Horror

Horror Girl #38. Known by many as the "Noxzema Girl", or as I call her the "Urban Legend Babe". She's the new horror girl icon. Looking back on "Urban Legend" there are some big stars from shows now in there like Joshua Jackson (Fringe), Michael Rosenbaum (Smallville), Robert Englund (A Nightmare On Elm Street), Tara Reid (Van Wilder), Alicia Witt (88 Minutes), and more. Good movie. Rebecca Gayheart was her name. Everyone wanted the Noxzema girl. Just like there was a "Doritos Girl". Remember her? Both in the same league. She actually started out with a small role in "Sliders", good sci-fi show. And she even had a part in "Scream 2" before the aforementioned movie. Going from Scream 2 to Urban Legend is a nice transition. And then came "Jawbreaker". She liked the psycho hottie roles. She was in a show called "Dead Like Me" that I watched. Gonna have to watch it again for her. Oh and here it comes, she was in "Santa's Slay" thus making her legendary for participating in Christmas horror just like Shannon Elizabeth in "Jack Frost". She was also in "Medium" with Patricia Arquette. Now that's what I call a good résumé for a psycho hottie! Oh Noxzema girl, how I loved thee. My affections won't be requited but hey, she's hot. I'm not saying I've seen any, but there are some really nice wallpapers of her for yer comp.
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Guest Commentator BLUE FIEND says: "I love her I tell you but I think I'm safer behind these bars when she's holding a kitchen knife!"

Rise Of Caesar

Versus Movie #105. Now for "Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes"! The time has come to review the almighty prequel to the great series of movies that most think only has 1 or 2 movies. There are more people. I've seen 'em all. This project is so good to see finally happen since I've seen the first movie several times on t.v. and wondered if it could ever happen. And it did! Keep in mind this movie isn't a direct story prequel since there aren't any nuclear war themes in it or fallout creating monkey mutants. No, but in this movie we have a cool reimagined idea of what the prequel could be. Caesar, the main chimpanzee character, is an experiment, or rather, a side experiment done by a scientist that stole some of the concoction that was evolving the chimps at the lab. The results were beyond extraordinary and nobody expected the outcome. The chimp wanting to wear clothes, wanting to walk upright, acting human, wanting to play with humans, and thinking for himself. There are moving parts where it makes you think about how much of an outcast Caesar must have felt like. Being smart didn't evolve him into a human even if we are related. It evolved his brain. The social conflicts and societal stigmas all show a movie with sad and good moments. I liked the thought put into this movie. The way humans looked down on monkeys was enough to understand. But what if monkeys didn't turn into us over time and just evolved in smarts. Then we would have had a harder time becoming who we are. The ending quickly shows the problem spreading by airplane. Oh, and the humans died off when interacting with the very same agent that made the monkeys evolve. That would be a scary, accidental outcome. I hope they make a sequel. Since they're us in a way you can find a message. This was a great comeback role for James Franco. He did a good job as a scientist. Mankind is similar to apes in many ways even if we try to deny it.
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Guest Commentator BONE COLLECTOR says: "If they are you then who am I? Oh no, it can't be! Anything but that!"

As Real As Ultra Real

Got some technology fortune telling here. They keep coming out with new T.V.'s and the older ones sell for cheaper. That can be cool if you're one of the ones looking for a deal. As time goes by the 'older' technology is better and better so you don't have to get the best to have it good. Flat panel T.V.'s are all the rage and they change very quickly. You'll never have the newest one unless you just buy it when it comes out. So the best way to look at technology to me is to imagine what it'll be like in the future to figure out what you'd be o.k. with now. In the very far future T.V.'s may be just a single flat panel as thin as cardboard. Or if you think even further, maybe even a panel of light, like in this picture here. Light can cast a picture that you can't see through if done right. So it's like a projector but laser powered. Who would have thought projectors would lead to our future? It's true what they say, sometimes the future is in the past. By the time T.V.'s like this exist you know they'll be ultra 3-D so real you could think it's a real person in front of you. In an even further future you might even be able to feel texture of holograms in front of you. You could imagine what this could lead to couldn't you? Strange but true. This makes me think of episodes of "The Outer Limits" where artificially intelligent holograms had a mind of their own. That could be good or bad. It makes you wonder.
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Guest Commentator CHROMESHINE says: "It's good to be a cyborg. The T.V. is in my head!"

The Ronin Way Of Life

Going back in time for this one. Back in 1998, which I can hardly even remember, this movie "Ronin" came out. I f**king loved this movie! O.k. maybe I need to calm down, lol. No, but really, this movie was so different. It was one of those left field action movies that just came out of nowhere and took you by surprise. The premise is that the definition of ronin are samurai without a master. And in this movie we had hired guns from very different agencies and walks of life all in one group. They were gathered for one specific reason though, to find and protect some precious cargo. A mysterious case, which the contents of never gets divulged. That's part of what makes the movie so great in my opinion. That case begs you to wonder what's in it but you never find out. Classic! The ex-KGB operatives that have the case want it just as badly but the ronin are a tough band of rogue warriors. Robert De Niro was good in this, as far as action is concerned. Jean Reno was a good choice too. I noticed some other guys in there as well. Sometimes you don't want to give away everything in a story to make it work. The one thing I disagree with is how vehemently an assassin will fight without knowing the cause. If I'm going to fight for my life and slay others it better be for a cause I am aware of. You get the feeling the case was very sensitive material that could bring down a government. This is truly one of the great action classics. They don't use swords but they are ronin. Get yer leather jackets and beanies. I prefer skullcaps but beanies work. This film doesn't seem outdated at all.
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Guest Commentator BRAINSUCKER says: "It's even better in the dark with surround sound turned up all the way, bass on the explosions!"

The Best Movie Games

Ever feel like reviewing a game that hasn't come out yet? Well you can't. But that won't stop me from ranting and raving. "Resident Evil" has been revolutionizing the zombie genre for a while now and with "Dead Island" they're gonna have some competition. I don't doubt that they're gonna step up to the plate too, with a Resident Evil 6 of some kind for the PS3. Wait... o.k. now I remember where I was going with all this; movie games aren't always the best but not in this case. You always hear from picky gamers that they think movie games suck. I like 'em because I'm not afraid to play a game others don't like. "Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles" for the Wii would be the latest outing. "Resident Evil 0" for the Gamecube kicks ass too. Another good example would be "The Chronicles Of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay" and "The Chronicles Of Riddick: Assault On Dark Athena". The first game was hella hard and sure I beat it but kids forget that a video game is supposed to be like an arcade game. Just because you beat it doesn't mean it looses its replay value. But then again, if you're like me you'll try to beat as many games as possible. But I believe in replay value. I'm currently playing "Resident Evil: Outbreak" for the PS2 on the PS3 (ya need the 60GB system) along with the sequel. That is a tough game right there let me tell you! The save only lasts once. It's real survival horror. So what are your favorite movie games? I love Resident Evil because it keeps getting better and better. And they have games on all platforms. What do you suppose Umbrella really wants? I think they're trying to make living zombies, basically live people that do what you want them to, but they're dead technically on a cellular level. Now in Butcher Bay we have the awesomeness of being able to break out of prison, only to end up in a second one, only to break out of that one and end up in a third one! How cool is that! The prison is on another planet altogether, which might be foreshadowing of things to come. This game redefined action and did it so well that it is honestly the reason why I bought the Xbox back then. You can't go wrong with mutants and alien fugitive rebels!
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Guest Commentator FLESHCRAWL says: "Zombie will play any movie game you put in front of me. Just feed me raw flesh!"

Idle Hands Of The Devil

One of my fave movies is this one: "Idle Hands" from like 1999 or something, the year we were all supposed to have our computers crash on us. That would have been weird huh? Anyone notice that 1999 upside down has 666 in it? I doubt it means anything, right? *gulp* This movie is one of the best older zombie comedies, and that's hard to do right. It might come off cheesy now but back then it was really cool and I still like it. Jessica Alba was fine in this movie, ripe! Such a sexy, little mynx. And she's still just as cute. Some girls just age awesomely. Devon Sawa was a classic actor back then and him coupled with Jessica is perfect. Now just add Seth Green and you can't go wrong. "The Offspring" were even part of this one singing at the prom. There is a Satanic theme going on here but it's not as serious as a lot of 'Satanic' horror movies. Back then you could get away with a movie like this and laugh at how cool it was. Now everyone goes on about how they think acting could be blah blah blah and the plot could be blah blah blah. All I know is this whole movie was like a Seth Green masterwork and he had several movies too. "Robot Chicken" forever! Jessica Alba has done good horror since then. The cover to the DVD rocks.
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Guest Commentator FATHER DIABOLICAL says: "The hand of Satan runs free and wants to run up the skirts of your daughters!"

A Circus Of Vampires

Most people like a good circus. I know I do. Every time they come into town I'm there. Sometimes it's a small circus but the bigger ones cost more. They usually stage in bigger venues. This circus here "The Circus Of Horrors" really got my attention. It's centered in London and it reminds me a lot of "Cirque Du Soleil". They're supposed to be a vampire themed circus from what I understand. They do have a lot in common with their counterpart but quickly the difference is apparent. First you have the undead cast. Then you have a mix of what can only be described as Cirque Du Soleil meets The Jim Rose Circus. Jim Rose is more of a freakshow and this one is quite the freakshow in its own way. They have a lot of human oddities performing various grisly acts of contortion or piercing, etc. It's a sign of the times as modern culture has blended with the circus to bring things only heard of in special circles, like a man hanging from his back with large piercing hooks. And then there's magic. This show has such a great trilogy of ideas at work here. You got the vampire theme, the theatrics, the acrobatics, the freaks, and the magic. It's truly a great idea. Now this might not work in the U.S. since they have some bloody acts and some nudity. The U.S. is tame that way because this is a perfectly great idea. Circus evolution here.
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Guest Commentator THE GRAVEROBBER says: "Those fake corpses lying around for decoration are real vampire victims!"

Bring On The Supercon

I can't keep a track of all the 'cons' out now. This pic here is from Supercon, where they dress up like superheroes. Lemme see, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn. I can see the appeal. I mean it's kinda hard to imagine what those costumes look like on actual people. In cartoons it all looks good but in reality it depends. You won't see me dressing up like Superman with my underwear on the outside, lol! The female characters tend to look better. The men just can't pull off tights. Anyways, a lot of people like to dress up like superheroes so this would be awesome to see what superhero people choose to be. Of course, these heroes come from comics so you know there would be a lot of comics there. Maybe even games. Anything superhero related I imagine. They probably have some contests for the best costume for certain characters that are more popular with the people. It might be nerdy to some but why not have some fun and dress up? I never really thought of comics as nerdy though, so you might want to think for yourself on this one. The great thing is nobody judges you for dressing up at these things because everyone is doing it. Personally, I'd go for the comics and cute superhero girls. I'd be Death's Head!
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Guest Commentator THE DARK PRINCE says: "I'd go as Morbius, the accidental vampire, just to mock you pathetic humans!"

Drain The Aliens Of Blood

There are a lot of reasons why we wouldn't want to live side by side with aliens but I think the biggest reason will always be that we like to kill everything we come in contact with. The human race may very well be a virus of some sort. We devour any and all life in our path. We despise those smarter than us or more advanced. We despise being lower on the food chain. We are sore losers. In this picture here we got some alien blood. It's a prop for Halloween by XENOGLOW. I would buy it even if it's not Halloween. Now why would we want to kill an alien? Well, for one, we'd like to dissect it and see if its blood is compatible with our own. If so then we'd be doing blood transfusions for better health. And what if our lives depended on alien transfusions? Would it help us evolve somehow? Do we need a helping hand evolving? I dunno. Maybe it's better off this way because if we all had great health we'd live longer and then we'd start populating other planets. Overpopulation on one planet is enough. That's the problem with any uses for medicinal reasons. If anything was beneficial to us it wouldn't be something they'd want us to know. Anything that helps us live longer or fix our bodies or cures cancer would be considered top secret. So what would they do with an alien? A top secret assimilation?
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Guest Commentator BONE COLLECTOR says: "Kill us you say! Well then we're gonna have to kick your ass! Human scum!"

High Power Ghost Guns

Had this weird thought. I bet nobody else has ever had this thought, lol! You ever wonder if those proton pack lasers from "Ghostbusters" could be real? I was thinking about this for a while and it does seem like it's possible, but... nobody would want you to know that. It's kind of a geek secret. I'm that much of a geek but enough of one to delve into this and come up with my own theory. I won't geek it out like a real geek would. Ya see, I think they were onto something in that movie. Those proton packs are serious business. You realize those packs are like reactors. They're nuclear possibly even. The amount of power needed to power those packs is extreme and when they say those packs could take out a whole city block they mean it! Maybe even more if you cross the streams! Those lasers are like nothing out there but there's a reason for that. This type of science would be frowned upon by the scientific public. Some rogue, genius nerds could come up with a way to make these proton lasers that could capture and harness ghost energy, if the energy was a certain type. Then they could create lasers that specifically go for that type of energy. Nobody can legally do something like this though. Their packs are way illegal; they're like bombs. Those guns are highly dangerous, unknown laser weapons. That containment system is highly explosive and probably nuclear powered. You could destroy a city with that ghost prison. It would really take a genius to make those lasers honestly. You can't find those at the mall. The most likely scenario for anyone making weapons of this kind really is if someone created the problem. So my guess is the same people that discover that ghosts are real could in effect set them loose on this dimension and they would be the ones to create these very custom job weapons.
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Guest Commentator FLESHCRAWL says: "Could they make my head explode like a head in a microwave? I'd like to see that!"

Psycho Grave Rock

Versus Music #58. This band "Psycho Charger" is my type o' music. How would one describe Psycho Charger? It's like punk rockabilly from the grave. New listeners will wonder what to expect. Their trashy grave rock lyrics deal a lot with movie monsters and things of that ilk. You won't find the next big MTV band here, although I could imagine seeing them on MTV since things have changed a lot. Now days "Headbanger's Ball" plays all sorts of stuff that doesn't seem too mainstream. So you never know. I could imagine "Beavis & Butthead" listening to them in a video too. They play a great hook and turn it into a song. It's a gift really in my opinion. Not everyone understands this trash rock art. Another great band that does this is "The Brainbombs". Their songs take one great hook and keep it going into oblivion. If you like songs like "Jack The Ripper Lover" then you should find it easy enough to like Psycho Charger. Their brand of grave rock is more punkabilly than anything. I like their costumes on stage. They know how to put on a show. Their songs might sound similar but that's how you know what to expect if you like them already. There aren't many bands doing that style. Call it punk grave rock. Their music is good for any occasion. When you're up to no good. On a joyride in your fast car. Digging graves. You name it.
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Guest Commentator BLUE FIEND says: "This is the soundtrack to my escape from this cell! It's time to raise some hell!"

Original Hollywood Horror Frights

Got another cool haunted house here. This one is in Snow Camp, North Carolina. Can't say I've ever been to Snow Camp but there's a first for everything. Time to plan a road trip to go see "The Original Hollywood Horror Show". It boasts being the only haunted house produced by Hollywood film makers. Well that's good enough for me! And if you go on Youtube you can see Bill Moseley of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2" fame talk about the attraction. This is the first one I've seen endorsed by a horror actor icon so that's a very good sign indeed. I think I'd like this one a lot. Not to mention that the guy in this picture with make-up on looks a lot like the psycho from "The Toolbox Murders", which also happens to be directed by Tobe Hooper. Coincidence? I think not! This is a double good sign! I'd like to run into that psycho and see if I flinch. I think most anyone would. That make-up is awesome. I bet this is the best looking make-up on any horror actor in haunted house. One can only wonder what else lies in wait. It's supposed to be big too. They offer food as well. What are you gonna do for Christmas? I'm ready to celebrate Halloween any day of the year, even on Christmas. Gotta love year round haunts. It's just too long of a wait to go for one day a year. Go anytime I say!
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Guest Commentator THE GRAVEROBBER says: "Oh hell no! What the hell happened to him? The face only a mother could love!"

Written In The Death Note

It's not often you see a manga collection in a box set. "Death Note" was a long running series and it got really popular. The movie is cool too but you gotta get the manga if you're a real fan. I'd like to get this set because I'm all about graphic novel art. Love that sort of medium because it's thick like a book but it's all pictures like a comic. Cool idea if I say so. "Priest" also had a series of graphic novels but I never looked for a box set. Never heard of one. I've seen the Death Note movies for sale all over in big stores but the manga are only for those that are fans of the art. I get comics partly for story and partly for art. This story is about a guy named Light that finds a notebook dropped by a rogue death god. Any name written in it will make a person die. This guy goes after criminals. The police are looking for him. Later someone steals it and tries to profit from it. I like the story, even if I don't believe in death gods, because you never know how things work. A death god could be in charge of who dies I suppose. That is possible in a world where humans thinking we know how the spiritual world works is sort of blasphemy. Humans don't think of it that way but it's the same idea as how churches aren't supposed to have graven images of Christ but you always see them. So who are we to think we know if there are gods or just a god? In a way I'm right, but the church would never accept that. There's no way of knowing the truth of those matters really. Religion should be about faith. So if you can detach yourself from the way the world works then you might actually enjoy this inventive idea. It is a novel idea to think one could write down a name and that person dies. Many people would love to be able to do that. This is one of the great manga collections with a lengthy series. What better way to get into it than this!
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Guest Commentator FATHER DIABOLICAL says: "If only I had that notebook. I'd make them all pay! Did I say that out loud?!"

The Not So Mythical Chimera

What does this resemble to you? It resembles what they call a Chimera I think. Yes, that's what I'm thinking of. The Chimera is a fabled creature with 3 heads and one body. The heads of the beast have been different creatures depending on the version of the story. In one I remember a lion, a goat, and a snake. They all breathed fire also. It had the body of a goat with the front legs of a lion, hind legs of a goat, and the tail of a snake. It can have wings also, but not always. Sometimes there's a dragon head instead of a snake. It sounds like a genetic experiment gone horribly wrong doesn't it? That's why we shouldn't mess with that stuff. So yeah, I was thinking about how real that could be in reality. In this picture here we see a one headed Chimera which is new to me but a cool depiction. This version is rather freaky. The body is humanoid with wings of giant bird, claws, fur, an ugly head that resembles a goat with razor sharp teeth, and a snake for a tail. I would hate to meet that thing. If you saw "Splice" then you know where I'm going with this. To make something that didn't exist before is the worst thing one can do because if it gets free then you're permanently changing the ecosystem and wildlife. The modern definition of a Chimera is the merging of 3 animal species into one. That just sounds like a bad idea to begin with! I don't know if there's any religious significance but there is mythical. Putting any 3 animals together sounds like a super predator that you'd see on the SyFy channel. This idea scares me because it's possible.
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Guest Commentator THE DRAGON SLAYER says: "Changed my name! I will be the one to slay the Chimera!"

Beware Deaths Casket

This book "Deaths Casket" is a ghoulishly awesome art book. Eric Pigors did the artwork. I love the look of this art and sadly this is only a limited edition so it won't last forever. Limited editions are nice and all but it means only a select few of us will enjoy it. Limited edition doesn't have to be so limited but what can you do? I love independent art books like this so much. It makes me want to make my own. But if I ever made my own limited edition copy then I know others would feel the same way as I. Oh well I guess. So it won't be around forever but that doesn't mean it's not cool. The originality of the art is worth it. Sometimes people do a limited run to see how it sells and if it works then they'd make many more. That I can understand but then you'd have to be o.k. with having a second run copy, lol! Art like this gives me hope that people still like coming up with their own style. It reminds me of art by Edward Gorey slightly. If you demand a second run then there probably would be one. It's like LP's with their limited runs for diehard fans. If they sell enough LP's then they'd make a CD. So hopefully this artist will keep up the good work since I love it. The style is like a cartoon, like "Beetlejuice" or something. I love gothic comic art like "The Addams Family". It also comes with a CD and pins. I'd like to see more books by Eric Pigors. This guy has done some cool artwork for "Psycho Charger", "The 69 Eyes", and others.
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Guest Commentator THE DARK PRINCE says: "Take it from me, I'm undead and I'd buy it! Maybe it has fresh blood stains!"

Life After Earth

Since this movie has been mentioned like 4 times on this site already I thought I'd review it finally. "Titan A.E." from the year 2000. Wow is it just me or does that year still sound so futuristic? I'm still trying to take in 2012! I had a real liking for this movie since it didn't follow the norm as did most animation movies back then. It was never in the theater, as far as I know, but it was a real contender if you ask me. The quality was good. It's a cool movie. The song by "Lit" works well too. The story follows Cale as he boards a ship leaving Earth with a huge mass of people before the planet gets obliterated by the Drej, an alien species made of energy. That's Unique. It doesn't stop there though. The spaceship full of people wanders space as other races look down on them. Humans have been reduced to scavengers while other races of beings have planets. It's a bleak thought isn't it? I can't imagine people living on a huge ship like that. It would feel really weird knowing that you're left homeless with a bunch of people on a moving mega-city basically. Maybe movies like this have scared us into looking for habitable planets because I know they're looking for some. It's a thought though, like "Pandorum" where the planet gets blown up and disappears one day just like that. Scary idea really. I find it very scary but it sure makes for good cinema. Now the idea is that they could find a ship called The Titan and use the contents inside to recreate organic life on another planet, including animals. That's a cool idea but it would require the aforementioned disaster to even happen. The Drej of course try to keep this from happening. I'm not sure what the Drej are or where they came from but if they're made of energy they could be from anywhere really. Even man could have made them, but I doubt it. They say the "Transformers" were created through pure energy in space inside of radiation inhabiting forms, as if it were living. I could believe this since news has reported inanimate objects taking forms, like DNA, such as sand for instance. That would require energy of some sort. Anyhow, this movie was really good to me and it had some cool parts in it. It should make you think and it's a trip to imagine such a life. What's a really trippy is the year is 3028 in this movie. Wow! Unimaginable but good.
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Guest Commentator TOUGH GUY says: "No wait, that's not how it happened! I strictly remember blowing up Earth myself!"

In The Deep Spaces

There was a documentary called "Dark Days" made in the year 2000 that showed what lengths people would go to in order to survive. This film made me think about all the underground spaces that we've abandoned. Spaces like what you'd see in "Mimic" with an underground train station, or some kind of hidden underground space like in Japanese sewer systems. The government denies their existence but the man that found them documented it. Weird huh? That makes you wonder what's down there. He says it might be evidence of an underground city. Wow. There have been examples of people living underground in movies like "Demolition Man" where the punks live in the sewers. In that movie there were literally throngs of people living down there. We don't have that many now but imagine someday that number would keep increasing and increasing until they create their own underground city. If the amount of homeless people searching for those abandoned spaces grows then we could literally have a city under a city and we would never know it. It's just common sense that if there are too many people then there won't be room for them all, so they have to go somewhere. Where will they all go? Down.
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Guest Commentator BLUE FIEND says: "We only come out at night! We only come out at night! We only want a bite!"

Reasons Not To Make A Zombie

Reasons not to make a zombie may include: insane media coverage, the onset of insanity, and all your friends will try to eat you. Need I say more? It's a bad idea to make zombies and that's why nobody has yet. As seen in "Resident Evil: Extinction" when the virus gets into plant life and kills the entire planet! All that was left was a dust bowl of a world. Even if it didn't get into the plant life it would still warp our sense of reality. Nobody would watch zombie movies anymore if they were real. That's just a line you don't cross. To me, it's like a form of chemical warfare. Biological weapon. But a really nightmarish version of one. To drop a bomb on a city that would turn people into zombies would be sickening. A war crime against humanity really. We haven't heard of things like biological weapons in a long, long time thankfully because all things evolve. I don't want to think of the evolution of sick weapons of war to begin with. Zombies are cool but only on the big screen. In reality, we would have to ask ourselves what is the cause of this? If the cause was something like a war weapon then that would really set the stage for a massive war against someone. If not a weapon then it would be like some movie come to life. Either way it would be unreal. Zombie armor people! Ya needs the zombie armor. Get some wolverine-like blades on there and you're set!
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Guest Commentator THE GRAVEROBBER says: "You kill 'em, I drill 'em. They die, I bury 'em. You kill 'em again!"

Searching For Secrets

You ever wonder if those ads in the back of magazines about fortune telling could be true? Or the ads about miracle cures? Back in the 50's, 60's, and 70's magazines and comics had ads in the back of them of all types from lock picking tools to learning to be a ninja, from fortune telling to x-ray specs, from army soldiers to sea horses, and more. I remember they had ads for things like mini magnets and all sorts of oddities. Wouldn't it be some kind of x-file if one of those things really did work? I've had my fortune told before and oddly it was very accurate. That makes you wonder. Those ads remind me of certain T.V. shows where they had odd things happen in reality. Those comic ads never made products for very long so you had to buy things in the moment or it was gone. What if you could order from an old comic even now and still get something you always wanted that's worth a fortune now? Wishful thinking but that would be trippy. Could there be any top secret treasure waiting to be found in those pages or some secret meaning, like in that show "Rubicon" with the think tank kids dissect cross-words for meaning. That's almost a philosophical, proverbial joke. Do old phone numbers work I wonder?
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Guest Commentator CHROMESHINE says: "Scanning documents at break-neck speeds. There must be some meaning here, right!"

Phase 7 Of The End Of The World

This movie "Phase 7", or "Fase 7" as it's known in Spanish, was a different sort of movie. It is in Spanish but that never stopped me; I don't mind subtitles. It's basically a virus outbreak movie in the spirit of "Quarantine" maybe, but there's a Spanish version of that movie called "REC". Quarantine is the American remake of REC so Phase 7 would be more influenced by REC than anything. It's not one of those movies following the camera like REC though. I can say I heard good things about it so I looked it up and it was slow to start, but that didn't deter me. It did make you wonder if it was going to be less action than it was since the main character's wife was pregnant. That really didn't change the flow of the movie. The building does indeed get quarantined and it happens rather quickly. The couple watching the news realize that there's a huge pandemic at hand. I would dread being in a quarantined building myself. From movies I've seen this usually ends up in you ending up dead because they usually kill everyone. In this movie it took a different path. Instead the people wonder how long the quarantine will last and start losing resources. Shaving supplies, food, water, and clothes all end up in short supply. This is the real horror here. It starts driving people against each other. What really caught my attention was how they mentioned phase 7 was where they start with 'population control'. What does that mean? This is really frightening because it makes you wonder if it was a form of population control in the first place since they were talking about overpopulation. Would people really experiment on masses of people like that? Like some large petri dish. One thing I can say about this virus is it was more believable than others. It started with disorientation, followed by sickness, then speaking gibberish and losing a sense of reality. Once that happens a person can become hostile or simply die off. The hostility is the part you had to be afraid of. This is where it gets interesting. A man on a floor in the middle of the building is feared sick with the virus and this divides the bottom and top of the building into makeshift gangs. They meet up and discuss what to do with him and decide on moving him. That is where they find out the hard way that this guy has lost his mind. He's an old man with a shotgun and he's ready to kill anything in sight by gun blast. Needless to say it's gory! Quarantine never got that violent. From there it gets good. I won't ruin the rest for you. It's a good addition to the outbreak genre. It makes you think a bit. I've never seen a 'Bloody Disgusting Selects' movie before. That does add some appeal as well.
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Guest Commentator FLESHCRAWL says: "What!!!! No zombies?!"