8-Bit Christmas 
Directed By: Michael Dowse
Starring: Neil Patrick Harris, Steve Zahn, Winslow Fegley
My Rating:[rating=5]
It is rare to get to review a Christmas movie at Christmas time. I usually stick with watching all the Christmas movies I like instead of watching new ones. My brother-in-law sent me a text telling me I needed to watch this movie; so far I’ve watched it twice.
This movie is our generations version of “A Christmas Story”. I might even go so far as to say its a soft remake. The bulk of the film borrows several themes from A Christmas Story but applies them in its own unique way. It even goes so far as to include it’s own “F–––” moment. By the way, I have actually held that infamous Bill Ripken card in my hands; in fact my father still owns it.
Biggs’ Review
You can probably assume that I enjoyed this film since I have already mentioned I have watched it twice. It is rare to find a new Christmas movie to add to my cadre of Christmas movies I watch each year. This movie definitely makes the list. I remember getting my Nintendo, and playing it probably more often than I should have. It is the toy that defined our generation.
If you are a member of the Nintendo generation, I highly recommend this movie. If you don’t like “A Christmas Story”, you should still watch this movie because the beginning and ending is a lot different. Also, NPH is your narrator, the Jean Shephard, of this film. You can’t go wrong when Doogie Howser is telling the story.
“The screen is a magic medium. It has such power that it can retain interest as it conveys emotions and moods that no other art form can hope to tackle.” – Stanley Kubrick
It’s been a while since I’ve done a “State of the Raid” post. Blizzard is kind of a sore, perhaps even taboo, topic right now. Every time there is more sickening news makes me sad.
I play this game to hang out with the friends. The kind of friends where hanging out in person isn’t convenient because of distance and borders. Raiding has become difficult over the past few months. Some friends have left the game and recruiting new people is difficult.
Progession
Despite these circumstances, we are enduring. Personally I think our goals are shifting to accommodate the reality and current environment of the community. Ahead of the Curve has always been our main objective before the conclusion of a tier. This rut in active players and the obvious adjustment in the difficulty of heroic encounters may be changing that objective.
As much as I hate to let go of achieving Ahead of the Curve, I think it’s best for my sanity. I really don’t want to burn out because this is my social activity. Several of my friends have already reached this point so I don’t want to be the next victim.
We are currently 6/10 in Heroic and our latest attempt on Guardian has me feeling confident we will be 7/10 soon. Depending on the complexity of the next 3 bosses, and the release date of 9.2, we may still have a chance at AOTC.
I’ve Been Slacking
There is so much to do after you hit max level that I’ve had a difficult time leveling my alts. I’m still sitting at just under half of my alts at max (46.6%). I’ll admit the events going on at Activision Blizzard is awful and gives me a lot of mixed feelings which affects my motivation. I won’t quit though, for reasons I’ve expressed before. This time of year is also very busy for me. I’ve got lots of planning, decorating, and Christmas to enjoy.
While Blizzard has not given us a release date for 9.2, my hope is try to get to as close to 100% on all my alts before it hits live servers. That’s probably a stretch goal by now.
Ultimately I hope Blizzard gets their act together and finds a way to bring players back. I really miss all my friends that have left the game.
If zombies attack the world, everyone will run and hide. Except for us gamers, of course. We've been waiting for this all our lives!
I am a slacker. This trailer was released yesterday and, for reasons beyond explanation, I am just now posting it here. In case you missed it, here is the Book of Boba Fett trailer:
This will not be one of those posts where I break down every frame because that’s ridiculous. I’d rather let the trailer speak for itself and we will see what all of it means on December 29th.
With that said I am very much looking forward to Temura Morrison kicking some more ass along side the lovely Ming-Na Wen. I’ve always been a fan of her work. I am excited for this new addition to the amazing Star Wars Universe!
/MTFBWY
There is nothing else more to say about Magic Kingdom or Epcot, other than masks it was very similar to my last visit. The one difference between then and now is the absence of Fast Pass. Let’s be honest though, you don’t want me to talk about those other parks. As an avid Star Wars fan, you want me to talk about Galaxy’s Edge.
It’s taken me over a month to write this post and its primarily because I don’t know what to say about Galaxy’s Edge. There is so much about it that I loved I just don’t know where to start.
The Rides
There are two rides, Rise of the Resistance and Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run. Rise of the Resistance is unlike any ride I’ve ever been on, when it’s operating. Apparently this ride breaks down a lot so I imagine there are often several disgruntled guests. It’s like they took Star Tours and made it more immersive. It’s probably one of the most popular rides at Hollywood Studios so getting on the ride is a challenge.
Smuggler’s Run also went beyond my expectations. It’s going to be better for anyone that knows The Clone Wars, otherwise the appearance of Hondo Ohnaka isn’t as exciting. This ride is like Star Tours but more engaging. There are 6 “places” for “riders” and you are IN THE FREAKING COCKPIT of the Millennium Falcon. There are spots for 2 pilots, 2 gunners and 2 engineers. My suggestion, be the pilot on the right; that person gets to make the jump to lightspeed!
It’s Really Immersive!
Disney Imagineers are amazing and they pulled out all the stops when designing Galaxy’s Edge. To put this place into context of the Star Wars universe, it’s a spaceport called Black Spire Outpost on the planet Batuu. Before the Empire and the invention of hyperspace travel, this spaceport was a popular place for travelers heading to Wild Space. Now it’s desolate and often forgotten. It’s kind of a Radiator Springs of the Galaxy’s Outer Rim Territories.
To give the illusion that you are in a spaceport, Disney has speakers discretely positioned all around. These speakers are constantly playing ambient noises of a bustling spaceport. Everything from the manhole covers to the light fixtures and door switches are all styled to look like you’re on a planet from Star Wars. The cast members are trained to use esoteric vocabulary such as “credits” instead of “dollars”. Cast members that are in costume are also supposed to engage with guests to create a more immersive experience. Unfortunately, due to the covid restrictions, they could only stand and wave from afar.
This place felt so immersive that I could have sat at an outdoor cantina all day. I would feel perfectly happy just sitting there and watching the people, listening to the sound effects and drinking blue milk (which is delicious!). Of all the parks we visited, I took the most pictures at Galaxy’s Edge. I am working on a gallery where I will eventually post all the pictures.
Of course I built a lightsaber (with my daughter). It’s so fun and an amazing experience. It’s also a bit expensive which is why we did not create a droid during this visit.
I could go on but this post grows most verbose. If you haven’t been to a Galaxy’s Edge park yet, I highly recommend it. Especially if you are an avid Star Wars fan.
/MTFBWY
Mulan
Directed By: Niki Caro
Starring: Liu Yifei, Donnie Yen, Jet Li
My Rating: [rating=4]
I know this movie came out over a year ago and it was not popular among Disney fans. They are complaining that it’s a terrible animated-to-live-action adaptation. I should know better than to listen to “fans”. These days the only thing “fans” do is complain (I’m looking at you alleged “Star Wars fans”). It wasn’t until my wife watched this movie on Disney+ that I finally saw it.
Unpopular opinion, I disagree with all the Disney princess fans. This is the Mulan movie we should have gotten back in 1998. Don’t get me wrong, I love Ming-Na Wen’s Mulan (who makes a cameo at the end), but it’s just another Disney princess love story.
It’s About Culture (and Kicking Ass)
A key indicator as to whether I really like a film is if I’m looking up the trivia on IMDB to learn more. I did this for this movie. It wasn’t a surprise to read that it was a conscious choice to stay “true to Chinese culture and traditions”. This is why Mushu is missing, which fans also hated. He is essentially replaced with the phoenix, a significant symbol in Chinese culture. Also, the phoenix happens to be one of my favorite mythical creatures. Martial arts is also a staple of Chinese culture and this is a Disney princess martial arts film.
Ask anyone that knows me well and they will tell you that I’m a sucker for a martial arts film. It’s exciting to see Jet Li back in a “martial arts” film although I think he’s retired from martial arts. This is probably why we don’t see him perform much in the film. However Donnie Yen and Liu Yifei make up for that. In fact Liu Yifei is a trained sword fighter. It turns out she is in a movie called The Forbidden Kingdom where she “held her own” against Jet Li and Jackie Chan.
Listen. If you want to see a live-action version of the 1998 film, then keep waiting. This movie is not it. However if you want to see Mulan kick ass as a sword fighter and martial artist, then you need to check out this movie.