CYaN Podcast Episode 8: Egg On Your Face
Sorry for the late episode this week. Without further ado…
In a very uncomfortable episode, Ricky explores a gadget unknown to either of us. We talk about the past few weeks of movie releases (warning: spoilers), Walking Dead news for various medias, game trailers, and other random topics. Hope you do not get any egg on your face.
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Day One of the Kingkiller Chronicles: The Message
So as you may have seen previously I am reading the Kingkiller Chronicles Trilogy. I finished Day One yesterday and was so impressed with the whole story. Instead of recounting the story I thought I would tell you what I got from it. So yeah…. here we go.
Thar’ be spoilers ahead…
Cheap Date: June 20th
Welcome back to another Cheap Date! If this is your first time to this weekly article, I recommend some nerdy media for you to spend your money on. Great thing about my recommendations is that everything added together will be under $30. A lot for your week worth’s of entertainment.
Games – $15
Quantum Conundrum is a new PC game coming this week from Airtight Games, most notable Kim Swift who previously worked on the original Portal. You definitely get the aloofness of Portal in this game, but instead of portals you now have to deal with different dimensions. Each dimensions have different physics and you have to puzzle out how to unlock the room. Again, this all sounds very familiar if you have played a certain Valve game. Honestly, it looks like they are hammering that fact but I would easily drop $15 for another game just as good as Portal.
Comics – $12
If you are not reading the Saga series by the fantastic team of Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples, then you are missing out one of the most interesting series to come out and it is early enough to catch up on everything. In Saga #4, we visit the planet Sextillion. This is where I would hypothetically drop the mic and walk off stage, at least for this part.
Another one from Image Comics is Walking Dead #99. The wildly popular zombie series is coming to a milestone with issue #100 already titles Lucille, but before that we need to find out what else happens after a gruesome death from the last issue. My honest assessment is that they might finally “clear out” this cast and start anew with #100, but we still need to wait and see.
Coming from Marvel Comics, Greg Rucka is continuing to reinvigorate Frank Castle in Punisher #12. This issue comes after the fallout of, the Daredevil/Spider-Man/Punisher crossover, The Omega Effect. Now Frank is hunting a former ally. How far will he really go?
While John Constantine may be trouncing around in the regular DC Universe, the more mature version continues his Vertigo series in Hellblazer #292. This one-shot advertises some great tropes as Constantine and his wife watch a werewolf movie only to have memories of sexual urges stirred. Not many books can combine horror and the paranormal like the Hellblazer books can.
TV – FREE!
A brand new season of Futurama begins with an hour-long premiere tonight. One of the most clever and fun shows on air, continues entertaining fans with their second chance at life. Seriously, watch Futurama and support good television.
Fleetwood Mac Tribute Album
Just Tell Me That You Want Me: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac
Summer is a great time for new music, but what about your favorite classic hits? Best Coast, MGMT, Lykke Li, The New Pornographers and more have covered some of the best Fleetwood Mac songs as a tribute to an iconic band. Fleetwood Mac has been around since 1967 and continued to perform since give or take a couple years. This band has had its share of troubles and more than a few changes in its roster, but all that drama just made the music better. This album is not the first tribute that Fleetwood Mac has seen and most certainly it will not be the last. Even the new generation is getting into their music, perhaps in big part due to Glee‘s own tribute this past season. The most well known songs are from their Rumors album (1977) which stayed at the top of the charts for 31 weeks. The kills will have the honor of covering Dreams.
Here is a copy of the tracklist so you can get hyped up for the album’s August 14th release:
- “Albatross” – Lee Ranaldo Band Featuring J Mascis
- “Landslide” – Antony
- “Before The Beginning” – Trixie Whitley
- “Oh Well” – Billy Gibbons & Co.
- “Rhiannon” – Best Coast
- “Think About Me” – The New Pornographers
- “Angel” – Marianne Faithfull
- “Silver Springs” – Lykke Li
- “Gold Dust Woman” – Karen Elson
- “Storms” – Matt Sweeney And Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy
- “Straight Back” – Washed Out
- “That’s All For Everyone” – Tame Impala
- “Sisters Of The Moon” – Craig Wedren with St. Vincent
- “Dreams” – The Kills
- “Gypsy” – Gardens & Villa
- “Tusk” – The Crystal Ark
- “Future Games” – MGMT
DVR Weekly: 6-18-12
Life can get pretty busy, so the invention of the Digital Video Recorder, aka DVR, has been a godsend for those of us who love television programming. Well, I’m one of those people. In this weekly article, I’m going to talk about some of the shows I am keeping up with on my DVR. Pretty straight forward, right? Keep in mind this means spoilers. Well let’s get started.
What is your girlfriend reading?
Let’s talk about the fifty shades of Grey….
Once in a while I enjoy picking up a book from the current best sellers list and since I am almost finished with the Kingkiller Chronicle book 1 I have been watching the New York Times best sellers list in preparation for my next read. However, the past few weeks this list has been dominated by the Fifty Shades Trilogy of E.L. James.
For those of you living under a rock this is a popular series that began as a Twilight Fan Fiction where you switch Vampires for Dominants and Submissives.
The plot traces the relationship between recent college graduate Anastasia Steele and manipulative billionaire Christian Grey. Steele is required by Grey to sign a contract allowing him complete control over her life as well as a non-disclosure agreement, something that he’s required from all of his previous submissives. Upon learning that she is a virgin, Grey agrees to have sex with her in order to prepare her for later encounters, fully intending that the contract would be signed. As she gets to know him, she learns that his sexual tastes involve bondage, domination, and sadism, and that childhood abuse left him a deeply damaged individual. In order to be his partner, she agrees to experiment with BDSM, but she struggles to reconcile who she is (a virgin who has never previously had a boyfriend) with whom Christian wants her to be, his submissive and a to-do-with-as-he-pleases partner in his “Red Room of Pain”
Yes, I read this trilogy, mainly out of a sense of morbid curiosity. Read More…
Green Day’s Official Trailer For ¡Uno!
It seems that everything now-a-days has a trailer, or a teaser for a trailer…
Movies, video games, music videos, books, and albums.
Most of us grew up with Green Day as one of our go to punk bands and it is always good news when they come out with a new album let alone a trilogy of albums.
“We are at the most prolific and creative time in our lives… This is the best music we’ve ever written, and the songs just keep coming. Instead of making one album, we are making a three album trilogy. Every song has the power and energy that represents Green Day on all emotional levels. We just can’t help ourselves … We are going epic as f—!”
Green Day is no stranger to staying on top of trends and so here is their trailer for their new albums: ¡Uno!, ¡Dos!, & ¡Tre!
The first of these albums,¡Uno!, is set to drop on September 25, 2012. Keep your ear out.
Cheap Date: June 13th
After a two break since I was on vacation and then a day late since I was having some jet lag issues, we finally get back to Cheap Date. And what a week to come back! We have a full boat today, I really had to pick and choose to cut it down to $30 but hopefully you will enjoy everything I recommend.
Movies – $10
Indie Game: The Movie was just released to the wild for everyone who may have missed the tour of screenings. Once a Kickstarter project, Indie Game: The Movie covers all those jewels of games being developed by people who may not have the backing of a major publisher, especially the phenomenal games Super Meat Boy and Fez. This is a great film for anyone who enjoys video games, but it is also a fantastic documentary on its own. You can get the movie on their website or if you are so inclined you can grab it on iTunes or even Steam.
Books – $9
Darth Vader and Son has actually been out since April, but it has been sold out in most places until this week. Darth Vader and Son is the hilarious look at how Vader would handle actually being the father of Luke. I’m not always a fan of single page punchline comics, but this one is done well and has the benefit of having Darth Vader in it. Let it be known, that I am actually cheating a bit here as the book retails for $15 but you can grab it from Amazon for $9.
Comics – $10
This week was tough when it came to comics. There were quite a few books that I wanted to pick up this week but had to opt into choosing only three because of everything else out this week.
Vertigo puts out this week a book with one of the best writers and one of my favorite artists in American Vampire Lord of Nightmares #1. This miniseries continues Scott Snyder’s wonderful work with his American Vampire books but now accompanied with the art of Dustin Nguyen. We have not seen Nguyen’s dark side since he was working on Detective Comics.
The next two books come from DC Comics and are also two Batman books. In Batman #10, we get a revelation as Batman fights the Court of Owls in the issue right before the conclusion of the story line. Then in Batman and Robin #10, Tomasi and Gleason continue their wonderful run on this new dynamic duo. In this issue we get a reunion of sorts as a mysterious person has called a meeting of all the Robins, past and present.
That will be all for this week, folks. I hope to see you next week on our nerdy Cheap Date.
The Name of the Wind: The Kingkiller Chronicle Book One
What I’m reading….
Last year I took on the A Song of Ice and Fire series by Geroge R.R. Martin. This series has spanned over two decades and has yet to conclude, although the author mercifully tells us that the series will be completed in two more installments. That being said GRRM is not one to rush his writing and I am left five books in with no release date in sight for the sixth book!
I shared this plight with a fellow ASoIaF reader and he recommended that I try reading Patrick Rothfuss’ fantasy trilogy The Kingkiller Chronicle. Here is a quick plot summary:
The Kingkiller Chronicle is a fantasy trilogy by Patrick Rothfuss, telling the autobiography of Kvothe (pronounced like “Quoth” but with a v), an adventurer, arcanist, and famous musician. The plot is divided into two different action threads: the present, where Kvothe tells the story of his life to Devan Lochees (known as Chronicler) in the main room of his inn, and Kvothe’s past, the story in question, which comprises the majority of the books. The present-day interludes are in the third person from the perspective of multiple characters, while the story of Kvothe’s life is told entirely in the first person from his own perspective. The series also contains many metafictional stories-within-stories from varying perspectives, most of which are recounted by Kvothe, having been heard from other characters in his past.
I have just started this book, but I am already about 30% of the way through. I would give you a specific page number, but I am both reading the paperback and listening to the audiobook so my placing is a little off. The world that Rothfuss has created is very much a parallel to ours, but it contains magic and takes place in a more adventurous setting. I am completely drawn in by this story and I highly recommend listening to the audio version if you are able to. The narrator gives each mini story such life, also this story has a few songs which are better in audio.
I am excited to get through the rest and will be posting updates as I make my way through.
Are you reading this book or have you read this before? Let me know what to look forward to.
It’s the Album of the Week!
Album of the Week:
B.o.B. – Strange Clouds
This album is a sophomore success for B.o.B. for the most part it has been receiving positive reviews and I agree. I really enjoy his dynamic style and he sets himself apart by being flexible and making songs that fit specific moods. Some reviews I have read say that Strange Clouds has a lack of album cohesion, but as I just said, B.o.B. has this style that can express varying moments and I totally dig it.
He is able to hold his own against hip-hop hard-hitters like: T.I., Nicki Minaj, Chris Brown and Lil’ Wayne. Collaborations are nothing new in “Hip-Pop” music, but it is rare for a new artist to stand out when they have a veteran on their track. This star power is a bit elevated from his debut album which featured Hayley Williams from Paramore and international radio favorite Bruno Mars.
B.o.B. has moments where I get a bit of a Kanye West vibe especially on his track Ray Bands. He has confidence that borders on Kanye-sized ego, but the difference is that Bobby Ray is keeping this in check.
So all in all, this man has a way with his lyrics and keeps you bobbing your head to each track. I recommend this for anyone who enjoys this hybrid genre. I will be keeping this album in my car because it is perfect driving music (which means no more back-to-back Gotye! Can you say played-out?)
B.o.B.: “I’m really excited about this one. You’re always excited about every project. But I really feel like I’m in my groove with this one. I’m more aware of myself as an instrument, as a sound. It’s more intentful.”
My favorite tracks: Ray Bands, So Good, and Out of my Mind.
Goodreads
