Eventtrooper: “We Heart Japan” Disaster Relief Charity Event (October 1st, 2011)

30 September 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Originaltrooper

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On October 1st, 2011 at the Theatres of Arts arena in Los Angeles, “We Heart Japan” will hold a charity event to help with earthquake and tsunami relief in Japan.

We Heart Japan hosts an evening of special guests performing live to benefit Japan earthquake and tsunami relief efforts.
Award-winning singer & songwriter/actress Mari Iijima will be performing live on stage.
TV stars Dan Southworth and T.J. Rotolo will do an audience participation live demo of a sentai fight scene and choreography!
The English cast will reunite to do a live stage reading of an episode of the classic anime “Cowboy Bebop.”
Raffle drawing for special prizes.
Free drinks and snacks provided by Taylor’s Tonics, Hi-Chew and more!
More information coming soon!
All proceeds for the event will be donated to Japan NGO Earthquake Relief and Recovery Fund (http://www.jcie.org/earthquake).
Date: October 1, 2011 (Saturday)
Time: 6:00pm – 8:00pm
Location: Theater of Arts Arena Stage, 1625 N. Las Palmas, Hollywood, CA 90028
Price: $40 for general seating, $60 for premium seating + gift bag

We Heart Japan hosts an evening of special guests performing live to benefit Japan earthquake and tsunami relief efforts.

  • Award-winning singer & songwriter/actress Mari Iijima will be performing live on stage.
  • TV stars Dan Southworth and T.J. Rotolo will do an audience participation live demo of a sentai fight scene and choreography!
  • The English cast will reunite to do a live stage reading of an episode of the classic anime “Cowboy Bebop.”
  • Raffle drawing for special prizes.
  • Free drinks and snacks provided by Taylor’s Tonics, Hi-Chew and more!

All proceeds for the event will be donated to Japan NGO Earthquake Relief and Recovery Fund.

Date: October 1, 2011 (Saturday)
Time: 6:00pm – 8:00pm
Location: Theater of Arts Arena Stage, 1625 N. Las Palmas, Hollywood, CA 90028
Price: $40 for general seating, $60 for premium seating + gift bag

For more information, please check out: weheartjapan.com

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Ranttrooper: I Paid $12 for ‘Action Comics’ #1 Variant Issue Because It’s “Going for More on eBay”

7 September 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Originaltrooper

thenew52

Let me put this out there right now. I’m not an expert in comics. I love the culture and the characters, but like a lot of people, I strayed from the hobby early on and haven’t bought a comic in years. Well, with the comic community buzzing about “The New 52″ reboot by DC Comics, I couldn’t help but get interested and really wanted to dive back into the hobby that I loved. Of course, I read a lot on new sites such as Comic Vine, Newsarama, Comic Book Resources, and Comic Alliance so I’m not completely clueless with whats going on in my favorite titles and also in the comic industry. So considering today was the big release date for “The New 52″, I decided to hit up my old spot for comics which was the “Comic Madness” booth at Frank and Son’s Collectibles Show in City of Industry, California (which is held twice a week. Think of it as a swap meet for comics and collectibles more than a convention). I hit the booth and started listing off all the books I wanted off my pull-list. When I got to the ‘Action Comics’ #1 Jim Lee variant, I was told that it was going to be $12 for the issue. I was a bit shocked when I heard the price and when another customer standing near asked the retailer why the price was so high, he claimed that it was “going for more on eBay”. That comment rubbed me the wrong way. As a local source for comics in my area (and there isn’t that many stores in the area anymore), I felt it was the duty of the that retailer to provide comics to it’s customers at a reasonable price and when I say reasonable, I mean cover price or lower. Instead, in an effort to make a pretty penny on a popular issue, the retailer decided to raise the price on the issue ON THE DAY IT WAS RELEASED! Sure, it’s a first printing and limited, but is it really fair to charge that much for an issue that is suppose to be $3.99? Trust me. I can understand that comic retailers are trying to make as much money as they can during a time when their businesses are being threatened by same day digital releases and a slumping market, but for a trusted local comic source to take advantage of their customers, I just think it’s wrong. Unfortunately, as a long time fan of Jim Lee and the want to own an first printing issue, I bit the bullet and paid the $12. Was it the right move? Probably not. All I did was help this comic retailer get away with something completely wrong. Did I feel good about paying the higher price? FUCK NO. Sadly, the kicker to this story is that the customer standing next to me decided to pick one up as well as soon as I told the retailer that I will take it. Did my decision to pay this price for this variant cover convince this stranger to get one as well. I hope not, but I probably did. Maybe he thought it was a good buy because I decided to buy it. I can’t help, but feel like I made this man into a sucker because I was one as well. I wish that was the end of it, but it isn’t…

Unfortunately, next title on my pull list was Batgirl #1 and I didn’t get a chance to buy this issue at cover price as well and ended up paying $6 for it. SIX FREAKING DOLLARS! It was probably because all the news about Batgirl #1’s first printing being completely sold out everywhere and the retailer decided to take advantage of it. I guess you can call it simple “supply and demand”, but I find it pretty disappointing considering that the retailer had a decent stack of Batgirl #1 in their booth (maybe 10+ copies). What made it worse what I heard another gentlemen standing near me mutter “screw that” and decided to pass on the issue. That is fucking tragic considering that due to this retailer’s price gouging, that comic reader will be passing on an amazing book by Gail Simone (Trust me, I read Batgirl #1 and it was a great read). It’s fucking sad that instead of bringing in new readers to the title, greedy retailers are deterring readers from giving these amazing titles a try. I feel bad for that comic reader and the creative team behind the book. It really was a crime…

Many of you can (and have) point out that I should make the jump to digital comics or find a new comic store to go to. I do agree and then some. I will do all these things, but I can’t help but think about the next guy (or even kids and their parents) that will be cheated by these greedy retailers. It’s just not right. Will they ever change? I suppose, in a perfect world… Unfortunately, the world isn’t perfect. My advice to you is that you support the comic stores that offer a fair deal to the comic readers. There was plenty of great comic retailers out there. I was just unfortunate to deal with one that wasn’t so “fair”. Also, if you feel like you are being cheated, you probably are. Just find yourself a better alternative to your comic collecting needs and enjoy the hobby that you love. I will.

Note: I’m not interested in creating a campaign to publicly ”call out” the retailer in this post. I just wanted to inform you about my recent experience and help you be aware that things like this happens. I’m chalking this up as a bad experience and moving on. I’m not interested in commenting more on this incident on my blog or Twitter. I rather comment and talk about things that are entertaining and fun. Thanks for understanding.

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Attention Fellow ‘Magic the Gathering’ Players! Stay Away From Alyssa Bereznak’s Panties

31 August 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Current Events, OMGWTFBBQ!, Originaltrooper

alyssabereznack

This story (My Brief OkCupid Affair With a World Champion Magic: The Gathering Player) sounds mean and was meant to be mean. It’s about a drunk and shallow girl judging a boy on a highly respected (or at least it was until the editor dropped the ball…) tech-blog because he’s a nerd (like so many of us!) that she met on OkCupid. Instead of chalking it up as a bad date, the girl decides to publicly humiliate the boy who is considered a legend among men in the geek world. The tech blog and the girl who turned out to be nothing more than a intern is now hated and shunned by the very same community that the blog considered it’s reader. Now once the dust clears the boy (who is now more famous than ever) will continue to be the legend he rightfully deserves to be and will be enjoying tons of praise from his adoring supporters while the wicked girl will disappear into obscurity as nothing more than a joke (and possibly a meme). But that’s the point: Judging people on shallow stuff is filthy and disgusting. The only thing that was accomplished by judging and ridiculing someone publicly is that you just showed the same people you are trying to address how heinous you are really inside. It is true that one person’s Magic may be another person’s fingernail biting, but Magic seems like a much better choice than being a heartless bitch.

Sharing is caring! Links to great response articles:

Nerdpuddle: “My Brief OkCupid Affair With a World Champion Magic: The Gathering Player” UGH UGH UGH” by kiala

Gizmodo Australia: “Alyssa Bereznak Just Reminded Us That Women Can Be Predators Online Too” by Elly Hart

Geek Mom: “Mamas, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Date Alyssa Bereznak” by Ruth Suehle

Dork Tower: “Tuesday, August 30th, 2011” by John Kovalic

Has Boobs, Reads Comics: “Don’t Be a Jerk” by Jill Pantozzi

There much much much much more online. Just Google it (no pun intended).

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Reviewtrooper: “The Impossible Astronaut” Takes ‘Doctor Who’ to a Whole New Level

25 April 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Originaltrooper, Watch It!

impossibleastronaut

No spoilers.

I hope everyone tuned into the season six premiere of ‘Doctor Who’ because it was a doozy. I remember looking back to when the season five premiere episode, “The Eleventh Hour” aired and was shocked by the upgrades the show has made in the production since the last episode featuring David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor. It seemed like a whole new game as the introduction of the Eleventh Doctor brought in a new feel to the show. I couldn’t have imagined that it can happen again, but it did. “The Impossible Astronaut” took the series to a whole new level and executive producer and lead writer, Steven Moffat almost reinvents the series once again. Maybe it’s was the location. The Utah desert seemed so surreal in the Doctor Who universe that the Doctor, Amy, Rory, and River mind as well been in a different universe. Was the difference in the feel of the series so much different because it was set in the United States? Maybe. Doctor Who has been infamous for beautiful backdrops and exotic locations and the series takes full advantage of the natural wonders of Utah. With the visual wonders, the cinematography seemed to have been amped up with luxurious sweeping pan shots and more. Utah made the first twenty minutes of the episode magical.

Enough about Utah. The series starts off with a bang and the first twenty minutes of the series must have been some of the most exciting storytelling ever in Doctor Who. The opening brings up mixed  feelings of highs and lows and you are thrown into a topsy-turvy emotional roller coaster and by the time you get to your first commercial break, you are exhausted. The reunion of the Doctor, Amy, Rory, and River brings joy to your hearts like you have just met your long lost friend, but it is interrupted suddenly and sets a new tempo to the episode. The series jumps from the beauty of Utah, to the Oval office during the Nixon administration, to a dark warehouse where Doctor Who almost seems to be paying tribute to ‘The X-Files’. The hunt of “little green men” (AKA “The Silence”) and a mysterious “little girl” who warns of invaders from space sets nerves (for the characters and the audience) high as the pace of the story is quick and leaves the viewer with no time to breath. With the pace of the episode so high, the hour long episode passes by in an instant and leaves you in an shocking cliffhanger that makes you want to pull your hair out.

Steven Moffat has mentioned (or warned) that two things will happen in the series’ first story. “The Impossible Astronaut” (part one) and “Day of the Moon” (part two) will feel like a series finale and that one beloved character will die. I can tell you that Moffat has accomplished both. It will be interesting to see how ‘”Day of the Moon” will conclude what has already happened in “The Impossible Astronaut”. Hopefully, many of our questions will be answered and will end on a high note. “The Impossible Astronaut” has set the bar high for the sixth season. I hope the rest of the season is just as good.

“Day of the Moon”, part two of the Doctor Who season six premiere will air on Saturday, April 30th, 2011.

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BREAKING ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ NEWS: Random Guy Takes a Picture with Tom Hardy

21 April 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Originaltrooper, Watch It!

ashtdkr

Shit. If this piece of news (if you can call it that…) is good enough professional entertainment news, its good enough for iGeektrooper. Today, a guy named Ash Harper (@asharp82) tweeted and posted a photo of himself with Tom Hardy in which he claims, “Me and Tom Hardy (Bane) on set on the new Batman film!” So far, every news site is posting this photo as some kind of incredible breaking news for ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ and all I can say is… whut?! Here’s couple things you should know:

1. Ash Harper is NOT part of the production crew. He has tweeted earlier that he was there to “repair the windscreen on Tom Hardy’s Audi R8″. Since the tweet, he has gone and removed it. (Go figure…)

2. Ash Harper has tweeted: “The people asking about the new Batman and my earlier pic of Tom Hardy, I can’t really say much For legal reasons but…”. I really doubt he is under any type of legal commitment to NOT talk about The Dark Knight Rises when all the picture was is of him with Hardy in front of a white storage unit and most likely Hardy’s R8.

3. Ash Harper did tweet after that he did “walk the streets of Gotham City”. I seriously doubt that considering he is only an auto repair guy and would most likely NOT have access to a closed production set. It is obvious that this is a huge movie for Warner Bros. and Christopher Nolan so I doubt any “Joe Schmoe” would be able to get entry. Also, Nolan’s movies has been filmed in real life locations that are used as the backdrop for Gotham City (such as Pittsburg) so, yeah. Maybe you did. Along with millions of others that lives in that city. Since the tweet, he has gone and removed that as well (Maybe “legally” obligated? Yeah, sure…)

4. The net is buzzing about Tom Hardy’s muscular physique in the picture. Well, apparently, you haven’t seen the trailer for ‘Warrior’ or watched ‘Inception’. Tom Hardy has been bulked up for couple years now and I haven’t seen him lean since ‘Rock N’ Rolla’. Sure, he probably is packing on the muscle for The Dark Knight Rises. Isn’t that obvious? He’s playing Bane for gawd sakes. You would think he is working out considering filming on TDKR starts in a few months. A photo isn’t needed for you to presume that.

5. No one has confirmed this photo other than Ash Harper.

It must be a slow news day as this is considered newsworthy. I just can’t wrap my head around this nonsense. BTW I tweeted earlier that I’m on the set of ‘The Avengers 2′. I tweeted it, so it must be true. Go cover that.

Note: This is in no way an article to bash on Ash Harper. I appreciate anyone that is a fan of Tom Hardy and Batman like I am. I am just pointing out the facts and saying how it is. The internet makes me go crazy.

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You’re Doing It Wrong: A Response to Ginia Bellafante’s Response to Criticism of Her Review of ‘Game of Thrones’

19 April 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Originaltrooper

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If you weren’t aware, last week, The New York Time’s featured a review by Ginia Bellafante for ‘Game of Thrones’ that branded her as public enemy number one within the geek community overnight. As a television reviewer for a prestigious news outlet like the NY Times, Bellafante failed to address her thoughts and information about series, went on and bashed on the female geek community. Instead of mentioning information regarding the series such as the book and author that the series was adapted from or thoughts about the character and actor dynamics in the series, Bellafante comments on the fact that no women would ever read or watch Game of Thrones.

“The true perversion, though, is the sense you get that all of this illicitness has been tossed in as a little something for the ladies, out of a justifiable fear, perhaps, that no woman alive would watch otherwise. While I do not doubt that there are women in the world who read books like Mr. Martin’s, I can honestly say that I have never met a single woman who has stood up in indignation at her book club and refused to read the latest from Lorrie Moore unless everyone agreed to “The Hobbit” first. “Game of Thrones” is boy fiction patronizingly turned out to reach the population’s other half.”

“If you are not averse to the Dungeons & Dragons aesthetic, the series might be worth the effort. If you are nearly anyone else, you will hunger for HBO to get back to the business of languages for which we already have a dictionary.”

Bellafante’s outlandish comments that Game of Thrones is a “boy-fiction” and that illicit sex was included in the series only to get females to watch the series drove the internet mad. Shocked and insulted, geeks (both women and men) united and declared their anger and disapproval through Twitter, response articles, and email direct to Bellafante and the NY Times. While I wanted to put together a response article as well, some great response articles already hit the web and I decided that I couldn’t say anything more than what was already said. Below are some of those great response articles:

“Really, why would men ever want to watch Game Of Thrones?” by Annalee Newitz via iO9 (@Annaleen)

“Response to the NY Times Game of Thrones Review” by Amy Ratcliffe via Geek with Curves (@amy_geek)

“OP/ED: Hey NY Times – Geek Girls Really Do Exist!” by Alan Kistler via Newsarama (@SizzlerKistler)

“Game Of Thrones’ Is Not ‘Boy Fiction” by Jennings Roth Cornet via Think Hero (@JRothC)

Now, after a week, Ginia Bellafante addresses the public in a response of her own titled, “Pull Up a Throne and Let’s Talk” once again on NY Times. While I expected the response to be a gracious letter to her readers to admit defeat and forgiveness, I was blindsided by her rudeness once again. Instead of addressing the public with a convincing argument to back her original review, Bellafante takes the opportunity to celebrate her new found notoriety and shoves it in our faces. Her rebuttal is full of quotes from angry readers such as Bonnie Burton (@bonniegrrl), Trudi Margach (@LadyValhalla), and Erik Smith (@ebrown2112) in which it seems that Bellafante seeming is getting some joy from the extra attention. If that’s wasn’t bad enough, Bellafante continues to comment that Game of Thrones isn’t something she is interested in and gives us the impression that the book, series, and it’s fans are beneath her and it isn’t sophisticated enough for her liking. Bellafante’s rude rebuttal has become nothing more than jet fuel to a fire that won’t stop raging.

Sure, everyone has the right to speak for themselves and say whats on their minds, but the idea that someone can rudely kick both genders in the teeth is just irresponsible. As a reviewer for a trusted news source, Bellafante has the incredible power to voicing her opinion about a series. The power of praising or ridiculing a series’ directing, writing, acting, production, etc. is in their hands and they can do whatever they want with it. However, to use that power to make belittle it’s fans is more that unnecessary. The silly assumption that women aren’t interested in Game of Thrones and was made specifically for men makes me laugh. As a lifelong “geek”, I have found that the fantasy fan community has been heavily driven by the female community. Some of the biggest fans of J.R.R. Tolkien (Lord of the Rings) and George R.R. Martin (A Song of Fire and Ice) I know online and in real life are women. I’m married to one of those women that Bellafante thinks is non-existent. My wife is a huge fan of fantasy and video games and the hours and hours of time she is currently putting into ‘Dragon Age 2′ boggles my mind. She and I spend our nights watching movies such as the ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy and television shows such as ‘Camelot’. Now, we are deeply invested into ‘Game of Thrones’ for it’s incredible visuals and fantasy-based story. Also, I can tell you that we aren’t watching Game of Thrones for the crazed sex.

I am not much of a person of labels. Geek guys. Geek girls. Geek chickens. Gender doesn’t really matter to me when it comes to being a “geek”. I find it all a bit silly and feel like it excludes the geek community from each other. That is one of the reasons why I go under the title of “geektrooper” as it is faceless and isn’t gender bias. Anyone and everyone can be a “geektrooper”. I feel that same way about Game of Thrones. Anyone and every can enjoy it regardless of sex or race (oh, thank goodness you didn’t bring race into it). It’s ludicrous to think that a series was meant for a single gender only because it’s “fantasy”, let alone presuming the other gender would only tune in for the sex. I won’t go and criticise Ms. Bellafante’s body of work, but it seems clear to me that reviewing television shows is just not your calling. Even though it seems like you are well educated and have a impressive way with words, you are showing no talent as a responsible reviewer and should leave that for the folks that would inform the public instead of insulting them.

You (Bellafante) hinted and pointed that “we” complained about your review even before most of us got a chance to see the first episode. I have to ask. Did you even watch it?

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Rumors Strike Back: Disney is Ready to Dive Back Into “The Grid” with ‘TR3N’

6 April 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Originaltrooper, Watch It!

tr3n

Let’s face it. Even though ‘TRON: Legacy’ racked in $400 million worldwide (not counting DVD/Blu-Ray sales), Disney isn’t jumping up and down and skipping all the way to the bank. With an estimated production of $170 million and a rumored $150+ million in marketing, TRON: Legacy while made made a lot in the box office, didn’t turn a large profit. Even though that is the case, TRON: Legacy and first time director, Joseph Kosinski broke some records. Kosinski is now the highest grossing first time director of a live-action film (beating out J.J. Abram’s $397.5 million take on ‘Mission Impossible III’. Even though its not a huge feat, Disney believes that Kosinski and TRON: Legacy has created the building blocks into making a new movie franchise for Disney similar to ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’.

For a franchise that was idle since 1982, TRON: Legacy out performed other movie franchises first pictures such as Christopher Nolan’s ‘Batman Begins’ ($337 million), J.J. Abram’s ‘Star Trek’ ($386 million), and 20th Century Fox’s ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ ($373 million). TRON: Legacy also gave birth to a new interest in the franchise for all demographics and was able to capitalize on the popularity with apparel, toys, character goods, etc. Even the soundtrack saw some success. The soundtrack created by the infamous duo, Daft Punk was received with praise by critics and sold over 615,000 copies worldwide with more “remix” albums to come in the future. TRON: Legacy also brought forth “ElecTRONica” attraction in Disney California Adventures theme park and even a TRON: Legacy roller coaster in the new Disney theme park being built in Shanghai, China.

Now with the brand set and recognized worldwide, Deadline is reporting that Disney is working on the treatment/script for ‘TRON 3′ (or ‘TR3N’ as the cool kids call it these days). It is reported that Kosinski is currently working on a possible sequel alongside Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz who wrote TRON: Legacy. It is already well known that Legacy left open-ended plot points that can serve as a lead in to a sequel. However, with Legacy under performing in the box office, Disney may re-strategize what they are willing to fork over for production and marketing. It wouldn’t be surprising if Disney decides to take less of a financial risk on the film even though they are sitting on a mountain of cash from what they made on Pixar’s ‘Toy Story 3′ ($1.06 billion) and Tim Burton’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ ($1.03 billion). Even with a script and the go ahead from the studio, it is also the question of whether Kosinski will be available to helm the sequel. Kosinski is already up to direct a remake of ‘Black Hole’ for Disney (with Travis Beacham attached to write) and also ‘Oblivion’ (rumored to have the interest of Tom Cruise) which Kosinski is shopping around to different studios.

Considering a lot of people said that Legacy was set to bomb in the box office and that Disney will be losing money hand-over-foot on the reboot, I do think that Disney, Kosinski, and the TRON franchise did come out on top. Even though it received mediocre reviews, I have a huge fan of the film and thought that Kosinski’s vision was unique and a breathe of fresh air compared to everything else that has been coming out of Hollywood lately. I enjoyed the movie immensely and though the movie feature some of the 3D I have ever seen. Maybe my opinion is bias, but I do think there are opportunities for Disney to grow the TRON franchise even more and I do think it does deserves at least one more film. At least give the fans some closure and a clear ending to the story about the “house that Flynn built”.

[cbm]

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