Ash (movie review) SPOILERS

 Awful movie alert!!! Avoid at all cost! Save yourselves before it's too late!!!

This movie is about a girl who wakes up on a base on a planet, only to find her entire team dead and her memory wiped. 

Later she starts regaining memories but its of her killing the entire crew. 

Sound good right? IT SUCKS!!!

SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The "twist" is SO simple to this one, you guess it about 10 minutes in. Yes. She killed them. She's infected with an alien. BUT we find out that the entire reason the whole crew died is BECASUE SHE LET THE ALIEN LOOSE ON THE SHIP?!?!?

So WHY are we supposed to cheer for her when it turns out this is all her fault? The alien inhabits everyone on the ship going from person to person, once their host dies....BUT the movie can't even get that right when in the end our "hero" has open brain surgery on herself (without too much pain) to dig out the creature and it inhabits a dead crewman....only to becomes the most powerful its ever been. 

WHAT????

She kills it, escapes and in the end has a teary goodbye as she remembers all her friends and all the good times they had on the planet. Good times we never saw or experienced because the movie didn't allow time to build the other crewmen into memorable characters. YOU DO NOT CARE!

Horrible, horrible waste of time.  

Just a Bit Outside (review)

 I love me some baseball documentaries. This is one about the Brewers and their incredible season in 1982. Though I was alive back then, I didn't pay attention to sports that early (1986 was when I started) but I have to admit, the story was great to hear about. Pretty incredible what went down that year. 

I love hearing from the players about each game, the highs and the lows of the entire season. 

A must for any Brewers fan and something I would suggest any baseball fan to check out. 

Good stuff!

Totino's review

 One thing I haven't had in at least 7 years. I used to fold them up like a taco and eat them all the time. 

Now that I'm off the diet, I'm checking off the list of things I want to try again that I haven't in years. This was the first one. 

Ugh. 

Has this pizza always been bad or is it just the new version?

I remember the crust used to be crispy and good. This was still soft after baking and the topping tasted awful. 

Maybe I had fond memories of something that was never good in the first place, but I do know this. I'll never try one of these ever again. 

Arby's Burger (review)

 Something I've been meaning to try for a while and I finally did! 

I love Arby's. I love their roast beef. When I heard they now served burgers I had to try one.

Final thoughts? Meh. It's not a bad burger but certainly nothing I would go out of my way to have again. In fact, I'd rather just have their roast beef which is still their best. 

But glad I finally checked it off my list. 

Sesame Street - The Count & The Mets

I remember vividly watching this as a kid and my dad even laughing. I can't tell you how many times we said "Throw it to me Mookie!"

Have a good weekend folks!

Pride and joy of my youth

 Like tons of kids from the 80s, I was a huge fan of Voltron growing up. I loved the cartoon so much, I signed up to be a part of the official membership club. I remember my card looked just like this and I kept this in my Chuck E Cheese wallet which I carried at all times. 

Yes sir. Anytime you needed proof I was part of Voltron TeamForce, I could whip this little puppy right out and show them my card. My future was so bright, I had to wear shades. 

But no one ever asked and I lost the wallet and card years ago......I'm screwed if anyone asks for it now. 

Bang New Flavor!

 Heard about this one a month ago and finally found it to try out. 

Much better than their last orange flavor but still middle of the road in taste. Better than Sour Ropes, their last flavor they brought out. 

Would I try it again? No. But it's good to see Bang is still trying out new flavors. Who knows? Maybe one day they'll bring back good ole Lemon Drop!

But for now I can safely say, Sour Heads is still their best. 

A working Man (review)

 Have you ever wondered what an american action movie would look like if it were made from a foreign country? I give you "A Working Man"

Unbelievable this movie went to theaters. A bunch of action and "character building" scenes chopped together like someone was trying to figure out the perfect formula for an action movie. 

Honestly, this had the makings of being the perfect spoof of action flicks. I was laughing at the over acting, cliche scenes and generic dialogue you've heard in action movies time and time again. 

I don't know whether to recommend this for a good laugh or avoid all together as a giant waste of time. 

Wild. 

Cinco de mayo

 

Welcome to the one day of the year that I am certainly not going out to eat Mexican.

Call it quits

 After today, I'm calling the diet officially off. 

It hasn't been that much of a success and I regret not going with the old tried and true diet I usually do every year. 

While on this diet, I barely went down a size. Whereas if I were on my own, I'd have been done a month ago and down 2 sizes. 

Very disappointed. 

I realize that this diet I'm on is a slow burn and takes longer to lose but I'm tired of all the work with minor results. 

It wasn't a total bust. Like I said, I'm down a size but I don't feel the effort was worth it for such disappointing results. 

Going into the summer, it's too late to start my other diet, so I'll try to watch what I eat and do my best to weather things out until next year. 

Have a good weekend folks!

72 Hour fast

 I heard about this and tried it. Here's my thoughts:

1) Energy level remained the same. 

I've watched so many videos where people spoke about having super energy during the fasting. I think its more like regular energy. I didn't noticed much of a difference. However, I was surprised I had so much stamina when not eating a thing, so there's that. 

2) Water DOES NOT "fill you up"

Unlike the videos on this, water did nothing to stave off my hunger.

3) I wasn't hungry during the day.

It's true. Strangely after 36 hours you don't feel hungry. But anything after 5pm, I was. Not starving, but feeling like "time to eat" It made it really hard getting to bed every night. 

Overall, I'm not sure I'd try this again. Maybe intermediate fasting but nothing as extreme as this. 

Zap it Zinger

 Shoot someone with invisible ink.

A practical joke and an Uzi all in one. What more could you ask for??

I remember a friend of mine had this when I was a kid and I thought it was so cool!

I see on the package it says "shoots over 20 feet". So your opponent better stay away from you or be ZAPPED!

Ah, the 80s.....

Back to the vintage list!

 I tried moving 5 games to my main board game list this year. 

Sadly, 2 had to be called back to the vintage list. Here's why. 

Great game/ But was moving down into the low 70's when I finally decided to pull it. At this rate, I was unsure if this was even going to make my Top 100 by the end of the year. 

This game was dead last on my list so I moved it back to vintage where it could secure a Top 10 spot. The issue? The new version is broken. There's a strategy that guarantees me the win every time (even when I tell everyone what I was going to do beforehand) So now I'll only be playing the classic version of the game for the rest of the year and giving this a better shot on my vintage list instead. 

Novocain (review)

 

A movie about a guy who can't feel pain. When the woman he loves is kidnapped by a band of bank robbers, he goes in pursuit of taking them down and getting back the love of his life. 

This movie actually has a fun idea and was worth watching. Entertaining enough to watch once, though I don't know if I'd watch it again, I did enjoy it. Some of the scenes were so brutal I actually had to turn my head a few times and look away!

Overall, worth watching is you're wondering. 

6 Years

 Happy birthday to daddy's first sweethearts. 

I can't believe they've gotten so big! I love them so much hope they have the best day ever today!

Fisher Price Toys

 I remember having this as a kid. You wind it up, it played music while rotating pictures turned within. I used to listen to it all the way until it slowed down at night. In fact, that's the only time I really played it since I thought it was lame to play with in the day. 

But this tape recorder I have LONG memories with! I remember thinking how cool is was to record you voice with music. I recorded my own tapes with me singing spoof songs to music. I also remember (in collage) recording everyone at our church talking, so I could mimic a crowd for a skit I recorded on this same device. 

Good times!

MLB TV

 After years of debating each season if I should purchase this all access to MLB games, I finally decided to do it this month. 

Worth it. 

I get to see all the Mets games and if its blacked out I can listen to the radio broadcast. I can even pick up AAA and AA games from the Mets organization. 

I love it. 

So worth it. 

Let's go Mets. 

Ghost Peaches

 Finally found a can of the only remaining flavor I haven't tried yet! (turns out Sour Stripes was a one time only deal and is now retired) 

It's exactly as I imagined. Very "peachy". If you love peach flavor this one's for you. For me? It was ok, but I think I'd choose several other flavors over this one. 

Oh well, at least I got to try it. 

Mickey 17 (review)

 It started off excellent. In fact, I thought it was going to be one of the best movies I've seen so far this year....then came the entire second half of the movie, where it starts to fall off. 

Great idea about a guy who gets cloned but retains his memories, so he remembers everything that happened to him before. He's on a mission to colonize a new planet with a group of others. Mark Rufffelos performance is TERRIBLE in this film. It really takes away from everything else going on in the movie. He plays the leader of the colony and he's so dumb, you wonder why people follow him in the first place. 

If this movie could've been played straight by everyone but Mickey, it would've been gold. Instead....we get muddy bricks.

Boo.

Bath tub slip stickers

 

If you remember these, I know how old you are. 

Wow.

I can still remember how they felt beneath my feet. 

Have a good weekend folks!

The Monkey (review)

 What did I just watch???

This isn't a horror. It's a comedy....an odd comedy at that. I guess they did the best with the core material as they could and this was the final result. 

I can't say I didn't enjoy it. It was worth my time. But recommending it to someone? I'm not sure. It is in a category on its own, that's for sure. My nephews loved it. One said it was scary and funny at the same time. 

If your bored looking for something to watch, you could do a lot worse I suppose. 

Rock N Jock

 Back in the 90s baseball never got cooler than this. As baseball and celebrities mixed it up in an annual baseball game on MTV. I remember watching this as a teen and talking about it to everyone for weeks afterwards. 

Just watched a bit of a game on YouTube recently. So much fun. The rules were inside the scope of baseball but were a little crazy. Like Banana league. Stipulations just about every inning and in the end it didn't matter who won, everyone had a good time. 

They made baseball "cool" We need something like this again to bring attention back into the sport. 

Last Breathe (Review)

 Based on a true story about a deep sea diver, working for an offhsore company, who gets separated from his team during a storm and survives 21 minutes without oxygen until they get him back. 

To this day scientist have no idea how he didn't suffer any brain damage, let alone remain alive for that long. 

The movie is ok. But there isn't much outside of the story itself. It's kinda weird. Like they weren't allowed to embellish on the story at all. The movie just....happens and ends. Very linear story-telling. Again, it's an interesting story for a "did you know" video but as for a movie? Not much to see here. 

I Hanker for a Hunka Cheese

My AI Dream home??

 I generated my "dream home" through AI recently. Let me show you around. 

Here's my dining room. I asked it be large enough to seat many guests and looking at this photo it looks like this table seats 21. What an incredible board game night THAT will turn out to be!

However we could always retire to the cozy living room to relax. Notice my vaulted ceilings I asked for. Quite elegant!

Of course we have the kitchen. I asked for 2 stoves but I guess it was still considering my demand of "many guests" when designing this huge island in the middle of the room which also looks like it seats 21. 

As you see there are plenty of windows in each bedroom because I love my natural light! There's also plenty of places I can sit and contemplate if saying "interior white" was overkill. 

Now staying this good looking doesn't come easy! I need my own personal gym inside my house. No more commutes around other people starring at themselves in the mirrors and flexing (seriously, I see it every time I go now) Just little ole me getting buff on my own. 

For Podcast and YouTube, I must have my own recording book. Though I shouldn't asked for it to be a little bigger for when I bring guests on with me to discuss topics. 

And you know I  gotta have my own movie theater for friends and family to come over and watch a movie together from time to time. Actually, this part turned out much nicer than I described!

But my favorite part of the house is the library. I didn't even think of it going all 3 floors but now that I see it, I can't get over how nice it is. Honestly...this is where I'd spend the majority of my time. I'd even set up a board game table in the middle of the room. The shelves would be half books, half games. Life would be good in this world.

Now if only I can get AI to hack 200 Million into my bank account, then I can make this dream a reality. 

Have a good weekend folks!

Predator: The Original Years (review)

 Very similiar to how I spoke about the Aliens comic series, this was more of the same. The stories were ok, yet repetitive. Someone investigates mysterious deaths, then find out about the Predator. In one arc there was even an invasion which made it obvious these were made in continuity with the movies so in my opinion, it's a pretty much wash from there. 

I'm not trying to be too hard on these comics but I do love when things connect. When they don't follow the cannon, I naturally lose interest in them all together. 

So where it was interesting to read, in the back of my mind all I could think of was "none of this matters" and that pretty much sums up how I felt about the whole series. 

Ghost Faze Up

 

One of the few flavors I've yet to try. 

So when I finally spotted one, I quickly picked it up....and discovered it was just a rebrand of another existing flavor "Citrus"

I should have known too because the color scheme is the exact same. 

At this point, there's only 2 flavors I've yet to try "Peaches" and the coveted flavor at the moment for me "Sour Stripes"

Liquid Death

 I've seen this around every...in clearance isles. 

It's been around for so long but I guess people are getting tired of the novelty of drinking these. But I finally decided to give one a try. 

Meh. Exactly as I thought. Very regular taste that's not different from any other brand. In a blind taste test you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between them. 

But at least I can now cross it off my list of things to try out. 

Highlander Origins: The Kurgan

 Just found out about this 2 issue series last month. Best Highlander comic I've read. Not saying much since I think most of the comics from this franchise suck. But it was short straight and to the point about one of the best villains in the franchise so I'm thankful for that. 

It's a real shame they don't make more novels from the TV show anymore. I heard they've holding out for the "reboot" which I don't believe will ever come. I love this world and wish there was more coming out on it. 

Aliens: The Early Years Volumes 1-4

 Another comic series Bruce was able to lend to me was a complete collection of the old school comics from Dark Horse. 

These were gigantic to read and overall we so-so. WAY too much dialogue in just about all of them. They also try to make you care about characters you really can't the same way a movie can get you into them. There's also the issue of the continuity resets due to more movies coming out over time which contradicts these story lines. That took me out of it the most I think. 

While some people really enjoyed this series, I didn't as much. Guess I'm more of a Predator man myself. 

I also got all the old school Predator comics from him as well but I'll cover that at a later time. 

Have a good weekend folks!

The Last Ronin: Review

 I've heard a lot about this comic and have wanted to read it for some time. I was finally able to borrow a copy and it's....ok.

The story takes place 15 years after Splinter and all but one of the turtles have been killed. The remaining brother (who I won't spoil for anyone who hasn't read this) is revealed at the end of issue #1 and isn't who you'd think it would be. 

Anyway, he teams up with an older April and her daughter to take down the grandson of Shredder and end the long standing feud between their clans once and for all. 

It's in essence, "The Dark Knight" for turtles fans. 

Now I didn't find this comic bad at all, I did find in uninspired. Way overrated considering all the praise I've heard heaped upon it. Turtles fans will probably love it, but my favorite "ending" to the turtles was when Eric Larson got the rights and finished off the regular series. 

But that's just me. If you're curious, go on and check it out. Like I said, it's not bad. 

Batman '66 animated films review

 I decided to watch the 2 animated movies they made from the original '66 series starring Adam West and Burt Ward. 

The first one is fun but not as good as I remember. 

However the second one is much better. William Shatner playing Two-Face was a good choice. 

The only thing that sucks is you can tell their voices have aged. Julie Newmar's voice is hardly recognizable in both movies. 

Though I love they brought back surviving actors to reprise their voices. 

With Adam West gone it's good they ended them here. 

Make way for baby #5

 Yep, we're having another one. 

Incredibly this time it is NOT twins. We don't know the gender yet but I'm pushing late 40s and find it wild I'll be closing in on 70 when this one graduates collage. 

Not a fun feeling. But It's the reason I'm getting in shape! So maybe I'll kick around a little longer to get to know them better. That and it being April 1st are the two biggest announcements for the day. 

By the way, this is one of my favorite times of the year, if you can't already tell that from previous posts. 

Have a good one folks!

Pinnacle Inside

Totally forgot about these late 90s cans that contained baseball cards inside. We used to sell them at the store back in the day and you needed a can opener to get them out. 

Wild. But in the 90s they were trying everything back then. The hobby isn't what it was back in the day but it's crazy to see everything they came up with to make the hobby look fresh. 

I want lie...I've been eyeing a set of 2024 Topps Baseball cards on Amazon for quite some time now. Haven't pulled the trigger on it because I'm considering getting a Mets neon sign. 

I miss collecting baseball cards but the hobby's too expensive these days and with 4 kids, I can't afford it. 

But maybe one day sets like this will enter my collection. 

Time will tell.
 

Return to the Batcave

 I haven't seen this TV film since it premiered on TV in 2003. Back in the day Frank Gorshen was still alive and even a 60 year old Julie Newmar looked unbelievably beautiful. 

The movie gives you a little "behind the scenes" about what it was like to work on the film. While giving some of that campy humor from the original show. 

Overall, not the best but the "Bat Rap" is one of the best songs I've ever heard. 

Easy to find online if you want to give it a try. 

Have a good weekend folks!

Long Shot (review)

 My other favorite player, so of course I had to read his autobiography as well. 

Excellent novel. 

It talks about his unbelievable journey from being drafted in the last round as a family favor to making it into the Hall of Fame as one of the best catchers ever to play the game. 

Lots of fun stories and in the book and great insights from different times in his life. For instance, I never knew he hated the Dodgers so much!

Overall, worth your time if you love baseball (much less the Mets) 

Worth my time to read. 

I'm Keith Hernandez (review)

 Read the autobiography of my favorite baseball player and #1 person deserving of the Hall of Fame that never got in. 

I have mixed feelings on this book since he decides not to talk about his time with the Mets but what his career was before he left to New York. 

His excuse was that he's told all those stories 1000 times and wanted to give fans a different perspective of his life. 

I get it....but I really wanted to hear about the crazy stories with the Mets. He offers a few "fun" stories of him in the minors and Cardinals, but it isn't the same. 

Overall, I'd say fans avoid this one and go with the novel "The Day the Bad Guys Won" Great book. 

Batman '66 (review)

 Just finished watching the entire series with my boy. Excellent stuff. He loves it for the action and fights. Just as I did when I was a kid. 

I love it for its humor. Which surprisingly is incredibly better than I remembered. 

The show embraces it's campyness. It knows what it is and it is constantly winking at the adults. Making fun of impossible scenarios to the down right ridiculousness. The show truly has something to offer for everyone.

HIGHLY recommended. Enjoyable the whole way through. My girls even got invested when Batgirl joined the final season. Which I admit, was a refreshing take on the show. 

Adam West. Best Batman ever. 

The King Tide (review)

 On our Sunday Movie nights with my nephews, we were running low on options for what to see until I heard about this on RedLetterMedia. 

It's about a small town located offshore of the mainland, which discovers a baby who has the power to heal people when near them. Fast forward 10 years later and the town has transformed into its own community fully isolated by anyone on the main land. 

But when disaster strikes, the towns people go through tribulations they've never encountered before. How will they survive? 

Many thanks to Iila. 

This movie is great. Not scary, good story, strong characters and really puts you into a "what would you do" scenario in your head after watching. There's also an ending you won't see coming.  

Loved it. Great movie. Worth your time.