Book Review: Sword Art Online: Progressive Vol. 5

Review:  #882
Title:  Sword Art Online:  Progressive Vol. 5
Series:  Sword Art Online:  Progressive – 5th volume
Author:  Reki Kawahara
Comments:  The fifth volume focuses on the Dark Elf Kizmel sidequest.  Almost immediately, Kirito and Asuna triggers the quest and we’re presented a long battle that takes many pages until it gets resolved.  It is a little bit muddled in places but the characters that are introduced, as well as their backstories, sets the stage for later on.  It spends a short amount of time explaining how some aspects of Sword Art Online works before returning to typical tropes such as a bathing scene, and the pair arguing like they’re an old couple.  In the end, the battle went for a bit too long making the volume at times feel like it had stunted pacing.
Rating:  6/10

Super Size Me (2004)

Super Size Me is a documentary film in which Morgan Spurlock attempts to mimic a certain diet of Americans.  Inspired by the then lawsuit against fast food companies as the cause for two obese teenagers, Morgan eats exclusively at McDonald's for 30 days, and only takes around 5000 steps a day.  While he does have some ground rules, one of the obvious questionable decisions is not limiting his portions but instead, he will accept upsizes when asked and finishes all the food when he is full to the point of being sick.  Naturally, due to his low exercise and huge intake of food, it has adverse affects on his body.  The documentary speaks to various health practitioners as well as interviewing random people to demonstrate how much influence that fast food companies has.  Super Size Me is interesting and at times, it makes you think much more deeply at the effects that over consumption of this kind of food can have with your body.

Game of Thrones - Season 2 (2012)

The second season of Game of Thrones is comprised of 10 episodes at approximately 50 minutes long each.  It is based on the second novel of the series A Song of Ice and Fire.  The first episode starts right after the first season with the war in full swing and the various leaders strategizing.  It is amusing to see even the characters state with mockery how there are now four so-called Kings.  The various parties are now plotting and looking for alliances, as well as backstabbing whenever there is a chance.  As alliances are formed, so too are treacheries unveiled.  Characters who had betrayed others then forms a pact with another, and you don't know whether to trust them or not.  Everyone has their own agenda.

At the end of the last season, Joffrey had become king and shown how cruel he can be.  Here, we are shown more of his cruelty and pettiness, making him extremely unlikable.  In particular, the way that he torments Sansa is horrible and is acting as a bully who can't stand to the strong, so attacks the weak.  Even though Sansa was an annoying character before, you feel sorry for her.  Joffrey stops at nothing and the things that he orders his subjects to do are horrifying.  You know that anyone who interacts with Joffrey is not going to have a good fate.  He knows no boundaries and feels entitled, even though he has achieved nothing and is only using his title as king to do whatever he wants.  He does not deserve the power.  He really comes into his own through the actions that he does, like a spoiled child.  It's a miracle that no one revolts immediately and kills him as he is such an unworthy king.  He is blind to the subjects he is supposed to be leading and protecting.

Tyrion, on the other hand, remains one of the most charming and likable characters in the show.  He is crafty and clever, and people underestimate him just because of his short stature.  The show makes it feel as if he is the underdog but he also does some horrifying acts of his own.  However, one of the best scenes involving him is when he dares to put Joffrey in his right place, scolding him when no one else will.  The season continues on with multiple viewpoints including Khaleesi (now known as the Mother of Dragons), Jon Snow, the Starks, and King's Landing.  It's a lot to handle and it frequently shuffles around during an episode.  Speaking of Khaleesi, while she has shown power at the end of the last season, she' struggling to keep her people alive and finding enough allies to launch a full scale attack to reclaim the Iron Throne.

Game of Thrones reinforces the cruel nature of its world.  Death comes easily and unexpectedly, there is no glory in fighting.  Death wounds look horrible and painful, as it should.  There are shocking twists, as always, and characters you don't expect to die, will die, and die early too.  It's pretty sad how so many characters do not have honor, like Ned Stark did.  Yet the ones who show a sliver of honor are the ones who suffer and disadvantaged.  It is at this point that the show starts to pull in more fantasy elements.  Although the first season had some black magic and of course, the dragon eggs, it's more more to the forefront this season.  There are certain scenes where it can be hard to watch due to the obvious mistakes being made by the characters.  Naturally, the characters are then being taken advantaged of and left in a worse situation.

The season gets better as the episodes progresses.  It feels faster paced and more epic in scope than the first season.  This could be because all the viewpoints are compelling and you see how they all start to link together.  Similarly to the first season, the penultimate episode is where it is brought to a crescendo while the final episode is more of a wind down with one hell of a cliffhanger to end it.  There is a pretty epic battle towards the end of the season with some strategy coming into place.  It rouses the viewers for some of the characters, as well as seeing the true cowardly nature of others.  It was an excellent episode with multiple surprises.  Overall, the second season of Game of Thrones is bigger and better, being faster paced and having more focused plot threads.  Even if you weren't quite hooked in the last season, the second season is deeply engaging and will win you over.

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Book Review: Untouchable

Review:  #881
Title:  Untouchable
Series:  Alpha Force – 10th and final book
Author:  Chris Ryan
Comments:  The final book in the Alpha Force series doesn’t go out with a bang.  It’s a bit more subdued compared to previous books.  It takes around one-third to one-half of the book before it finally starts getting into the plot, and the plan that Alpha Force has to foil.  It spends too much time in the beginning on Alpha Force’s recreational activities and introduces an annoying and useless character that you’d expect would probably become important later on… only for that expectation to be wrong.  Once it gets the ball rolling, it doesn’t quite raise the stakes and urgency enough to keep you engaged.  It’s still a solid plot but lacks the ingenuity that defines the characters at times.  The actual illegal activities were interesting in how the author fleshed out their operations, and how the villains got away with it for so long.  The ending didn’t quite provide closure to the team but it gives a light of hope that the characters will not be disbanded forever.
Rating:  6.5/10

Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series (PS4)

Guardians of the Galaxy:  The Telltale Series is an episodic game split into five parts.  It features an original story, however, upon starting it up, you can instantly tell that his version of the Guardians is heavily inspired by the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) versions.  Not only is the team up the exact same as the MCU, but their appearances, voices, mannerisms and personalities are similar too.  The icing on the cake is how some of the side characters are also similar, lending the game to feel a bit too familiar as a result.

Being a Telltale game, it is less of a game and more of an interactive movie. The main gameplay elements are dialogue choices, walking around a small area, point and click investigation segments, and quick time events.  At times, it does feel overkill when some sections require pointless button presses in order to pick up a call or grab an item.  These moments can feel superficial as it pauses the gameplay and can ruin the flow of the scene.

The various dialogue choices are more than just for show.  Depending on what you pick, these can affect how characters react towards you and affect later scenes.  However, the story will still go towards the same general direction.  A lot of the harder choices are when the game forces you to side with one character or the other, but you don't want to offend either as you're a team.  A neat touch that continues on from previous games is how after you finish an episode, it shows you the choices you made and compares it against what other players picked.  It's really interesting to see whether you were in the majority or not.

New to this game is how Star-Lord has his jet-boots.  This allows him to go between various heights.  That being said, the janky animations, especially the awkward walking, are still here and break the immersion when compared to the cutscenes.  There are occasional stuttering and temporary freezes during scene transitions, which is disappointing.  The graphics are decent and the art style goes a long way in masking the lack of detail in some environments.  The aesthetics may not suit everyone though.  The quirky silly humor, as well as the 80s references (and the awesome music) works well.

The first episode is titled Tangled Up in Blue.  Like other first episodes, it starts off with a bang.  The opening cinematic is exciting and seemingly sets the tone for the game.  It ups its stake to what seems like the climax and then pacing dramatically decreases and focuses on relationship building instead.  The Guardians, comprised of Star-Lord (Peter Quill), Gamora, Drax, Rocket and Groot, are up against Thanos.  They accept the task to stop Thanos from retrieving a relic.  The episode takes only 1.5 hours to complete.  You would think it would end on a cliffhanger and while it does, it is not the one you expected.  However, the first episode doesn't quite have that hook just yet.

The second episode is Under Pressure and this one has limited action.  Instead, it focuses on the characters and the relationship that each of the Guardians have with Peter.  Rocket is the main focus, but Gamora gets her fair share of screentime.  Drax is either likable or extremely annoying here, depending on whether you like his personality and type of humor.  Unfortunately, despite being only 1.5 hours long, it feels much longer.  The pacing is really slow and to be honest, the backstory of several characters are not engaging enough to keep your interest.  While we have the main objective of the relic ,the Guardians take an approach that is more akin to two steps forward one step back, and it can feel draining.  It's not horrible by any means but there are certain scenes where it felt like padding.  One of the highlights of the episode is the great music used which really suited the tone of the game.

The third episode is More than a Feeling and feels faster paced than the previous episode.  It ends up being more interesting as a result.  Focusing on Gamora's past now, this episode introduces another familiar character that you can't help but compare to the MCU's version.  There are some tough choices to make which really makes you pause and think what you really want to do.  Unfortunately, the episode is hampered by a slow ending where you are forced to slowly walk around doing an investigation (it doesn't help that the controls are so blocky and the camera is fixed).  That part felt like padding.  The episode clocks in at around 1.5 hours long.

The fourth episode is Who Needs You and this is a Drax episode... for some of it.  This episode feels pretty much like a filler, with very little happening after the beginning.  The ending was surprising and leaves a big impact but everything in between felt pointless and padding at best.  The Guardians are stuck somewhere for the episode and need to find  away out.  In the grand scheme of things, this does not feel like it adds anything at all.  Again, the episode is around 1.5 hours long and makes you wonder how the last episode is going to be like.

The fifth and final episode is Don't Stop Believin'.  It beings with the usual padding and filler content, requiring the player to do some tedious task to progress the story.  However, the climax was pretty good and almost worth all the time to get here.  This is because we get to see the Guardians working as a team, and they work together extremely well.  While the plot never got that complicated, being more of a straightforward affair with some good music and funny one-liners thrown in, you do feel like as if you've achieved something.

Overall, Guardians of the Galaxy:  The Telltale Series is not one of Telltale's best stories, but is still quite enjoyable.  There are some serious pacing issues and filler content to pad out the game (which takes around 7-8 hours to finish) which drags it down.

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Toy Review: Transformers Generations War for Cybertron Siege Refraktor (Deluxe)

Review:  #525
Name:  Refraktor
Brand:  Transformers
Allegiance:  Decepticon
Line:  Generations - War for Cybertron:  Siege
Year of Release:  2019
Size Class:  Deluxe (Wave 3)
Mold Status:  new

ALTERNATE MODE:

The first proper Refraktor update we've had and he transforms into an artillery hovercraft.

Unfortunately, this is a very poor attempt at an alternate mode.  There is a bridge with windows, a gun in front with a type of radar dish and a nice curved back for thrusters but it is not enough.

Refraktor is on the smaller size for a Deluxe, feeling thin and light.  Above is a comparison against Studio Series Deluxe Lockdown.

Since the original Reflector was comprised of three members, it's only natural to grab three of Refraktor as well (actually making it hard to find him at times).

A disappointing alternate mode but don't worry, this is really only a "filler" mode, the main course is yet to come.

TRANSFORMATION (TO CAMERA MODE):

If you have three Refraktors then you can form the camera.  Considering it is three of the same exact figures, it's quite ingenious at how the designer made the weapons to be one-third of the lens and the tripod.  The robot itself folds up into a cube and then pegs together.  You then have the option to put the circular chest module wherever you want but but one is required for the tripod to attach, and the other you really should put as a shutter button.

CAMERA MODE:

Camera mode is pretty impressive.  It's immediately recognizable and is quite an achievement considering it is made of three toys that are exactly the same, and is nothing more than three cubes pegged together with a lens and tripod attached.

The back isn't as elegant as you can clearly see the robot feet and chests.  This mode holds together solidly.

Being comprised of three Deluxes (albeit small ones), the camera mode is fairly decent in size.  Above is a comparison against Siege Sideswipe.

A great camera mode and frankly, this is the true alternate mode of the figure (even though you need three figures).

TRANSFORMATION (TO ROBOT MODE):

From hovercraft to robot is quite simple since the front splits to form the legs.  The arms unfold from the bottom and then you flip the head up.  The only interesting thing is how the chest forms from three pieces folding together.

ROBOT MODE:

Refraktor's robot mode is instantly recognizable.  It is based upon Viewfinder's robot design.

As you can see, the figure is quite hollow, notably the lower legs, torso and forearms.

The headsculpt is fantastic and having a silver painted face really makes it stand out.

The robot mode is fairly small although is about on par with the other Deluxes in the line (since figures have shrunk across the board).

Thankfully, Refraktor doesn't have the ugly silver battle damage all over the robot and he is better for it.

Articulation is great although he has long double jointed elbows which can make his arms look too long.

He comes with two weapons, a shield and a gun.

He can hold the gun in either hand and the shield is very versatile since Refraktor has a ton of spots for it to peg.  Officially per the instructions, it pegs onto his upper arm.

However, there is a handle for Refraktor to hold in his hand.

Then lastly, there's a slot on the outside of his forearm where you would more traditionally wield a shield.  Despite being one-third of a camera lens, it looks surprisingly good as shield.

Since the circular chest module is removable, you're able to have the other two components/robots to be slightly different.

Note that Refraktor has ankle tilts which helps a lot in poses.

To give the three robots even more of a distinction, you can have each one hold the shield and gun differently.

A good robot mode that focuses on being a fun robot rather than on gimmicks.

OVERALL:

As a standalone figure, Refraktor has a weak alternate mode with a strong robot mode.  However, gather three and you gain the addition of a combined camera mode which looks fantastic.  It is worthwhile to spend the time and trouble to gather all three (or you can buy the exclusive version with additional parts for a more convincing camera mode).

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Zombieland (2009)

Zombieland is a comedic take on the zombie genre and it has a fantastic start.  Immediately, the film captures your attention as it introduces the character we would come to know as Columbus.  He has a set of rules for surviving this zombie apocalypse and we get to see it in action.  As he explains, America was overcome by a virus strain that ended up turning people into zombies.  Within two months, the whole country was infected and he is one of the only survivors.  Initially, he sets off for Columbus, Ohio (hence his name) to see whether his family survived and during this journey, he meets up with three other characters.  While the opening is funny and the subtle humor continues through most of the film, the middle still feels bogged down.  The characters (understandably) have trust issues, and they have to go through various ordeals to build up camaraderie.  However, the reason to set up the climax was stupid.  The characters, having survived thus far, should have known better than to do what they did.  Overall, Zombieland is still an entertaining film that feels like a breath of fresh air in an ever increasing generic genre.

Book Review: Desert Pursuit

Review:  #880
Title:  Desert Pursuit
Series:  Alpha Force – 3rd book
Author:  Chris Ryan
Comments:  The author makes an engaging tale set in the desert.  This time, Alpha Force are in the Sahara Desert, doing a little bit of harmless assistance to local villages when they are tangled in a more sinister plot.  They end up becoming involved with a notorious child-slavers and sets off in pursuit when one of their friends is kidnapped to be sold.  As a trademark of the series, it merges survival into the story, and this is in a fun way.  As we see how Alpha Force survives in the desert, as well as the dangers that it poses, it never feels melodramatic or exaggerated.  Despair sets in at multiple points in the story as the situation gets worse and worse, especially when one character decides to do something and you know that it’s just going to go wrong.  You can’t wait until the ending when the villains gets their just desserts but even then, you’re worried that the tables can be flipped around at a moment’s notice.
Rating:  6.5/10

Suits - Season 1 (2011)

The first season of Suits is 12 episodes long with the premise of a newly hired law associated... who doesn't actually have a law degree.  Set in a top law firm in Manhattan, it tells the story of how this rookie associate gets by in the ruthless world of lawyers.  The first episode does a great job at setting up the plot and the characters.  Starting with Harvey Specter, we see how he prioritizes winning cases through any means necessary.  About to get a promotion to Senior Partner, he needs to hire an associate to help him.  Unfortunately, Harvey is a person who looks out only for themselves, a bit rogue with an attitude, despite being talented.

On the flipside is Mike Ross, initially depicted as a person who is helping others cheat in exams.  Living on the wrong side of the law, he is coerced into delivering drugs but stumbles across the interview held by Harvey for the associate role.  Thanks to his amazing memory and understanding of anything he reads, he is quite the expert in law.  Mike gets the role and we see that while he has the knowledge, he lacks the experience and the procedure of things.  Given his first case, we see him stumble, get back up and just grind his way through.  Suits also depicts (maybe with a slight exaggeration) the ruthlessness of the top tier firms where employees are expected to work long hours and get results... less they be fired immediately.

The last major character is the Junior Partner Louis, who considers himself Harvey's rival.  He is depicted as sly, sleazy and petty.  He also doesn't seem to do any work, constantly spending his time annoying Mike and pulling him away from Harvey, causing rifts within the workforce and making massive blunders that often makes a situation worse.  Basically, he is a horrible human being that you wonder why he hasn't been fired yet.  The chemistry between Harvey and Mike works well.  Despite Harvey not having a caring attitude, as his fate is tied so much with Mike's, he reluctantly shows him how to do things, in his own way.  Sprinkled along with good measure are bits of humor here and there which really helps in keeping the pace trickle along.

Suits reflect badly on the office environment with lawyers cheating and blackmailing their way to victory.  There is a huge amount of office politics and Mike is torn in multiple directions (although his loyalty is always to Harvey).  On the other hand, as Harvey is nearly always on the correct side, when he does the cheating and blackmailing against the other party to counter their unfair tactics, you get a sense of satisfaction.

Mike is a good person and it does not reflect well upon his superiors who expect him to use any means necessary and be tough in order to secure the win.  While this is understandable as a lawyer, it doesn't reflect well on the level of basic human nature.  Mike's memory is impressive and when it comes to regulations and law, he can regurgitate them perfectly.  However, we are shown that he is still inexperienced especially when he gets blindsided by something he misses.  This is where Harvey comes in, who can try and find these kinks in the armor and also immediately think on the spot on how to handle the situation.

Unfortunately, Mike keeps having his past follow him.  From the fact that he didn't attend Harvard (in a firm where they only hire Harvard graduated, and him having to lie in order to get in) to his drug dealer friend.  Sometimes, it feels like the drug portion of Mike's life gets in the way of the story even though Mike himself has sworn off it, it just comes back to bite him again and again . It can feel like an annoyance where this aspect of Mike's past forms the plot of the episode, when you would much rather them just focus on the law aspect.

Once half the season has passed, the structure of each episode starts to become overly familiar.  In the first half, Harvey will get a case where he is at a disadvantaged and Mike will have his own problem.  Then in the second half, through their combined skills and experience, they overturn the situation and win.  This predictability can take away the tension at times.  The final episode is a good close for the season.  It presents a more personal case for Harvey and Mike to tackle.  It's tense, interesting and you wonder how it will be resolved within 40 minutes.  As a result, the ending can feel like it came right out of the blue in the last few minutes, and it ends on a pretty big cliffhanger.

Overall, the first season of Suits is engaging and fun.  The cast is charismatic and the relationship between Mike and Harvey steadily grows over the course of the episodes.  It can start to become predictable and Mike's past constantly hounding him can be annoying at time but otherwise, Suits is great.

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