0 – The number of NBA Finals games played by two-time league MVP Steve Nash.

2 – The number of New Zealand players to ever make the NBA. Sean Marks (230 games) and Kirk Penney (6 games) – Had to throw this one in there being a kiwi!

10.7 – The number of rebounds per game Kris Humphries is averaging so far this season. Failed marriage sure, but he’s taking it all out on the court: Also has an $8 million one year contract to look forward to as well.

15 – The number on the back of the jersey of Metta World Peace. His name has changed but his number hasn’t. I guess he now has the coolest last name in the league (I thought Wade was pretty awesome but now?)

24 - The number of NBA franchises who currently have a better defensive rating than current NBA champions the Dallas Mavericks (yep, they are ranked 25th out of 30 teams. Last year? 8th. Still early days though).

31.3 – The number of Kevin Durant’s points per game average over the first four games. Not surprisingly, the Thunder are 4-0.

178 -The number of days NBA fans around the world were left hanging before play began again.

822 – The number of three pointers Ray Allen has made more than the next best active player. Allen has drained 2624  threes in his career. The next best by an active player? The wise point guard Jason Kidd – With 1802 (Safe to say he’ll be holding this record for some time).

1842 – The number of points needed by Antawn Jamison to become the next member of the 20,000 point club. Last season Vince Carter crossed the threshold (though you feel it should have been a lot sooner with VC) and right now Antawn is next in line. Others include T-Mac, who needs 1869 points. After that, LeBron James is the next active player in striking distance, requiring another 2640 points to get there.

$17,730,694 – The number of dollars Gilbert Arenas will earn this season – For doing absolutely nothing (so far).

Enjoy the games everyone! More to come – Feel free to comment!

James

I will say, I’ve played my fair share of games, some god awful and some mind-blowingly brilliant. When I think of the games I enjoy the most and play the most, often three letters come to mind: R P G.

Now before you click ‘back’ and move on, you have to admit that RPG (Role Playing Games) can produce the finest games ever made. Look back at titles like Final Fantasy 7, Star Ocean: The Second Story, Chrono Trigger, and more. They all captivated and provided over 30 hours of gameplay each. If you haven’t had the chance to play these games please do. You are missing out.

One title I want to focus on for this particular edition is a game that predates most of these (except Chrono Trigger). Released in 1996, ‘Suikoden’ was a very early entry into the RPG market by Konami for the original Playstation (PS1). Konami would later go on to become famous for ‘Metal Gear Solid’ three years later, but wow were they on to something here.

You play as Tir McDohl, son of Teo McDohl – a respected captain of the Scarlet Moon Empire. Heading out of the royal city of Gregminster on an errand, it gives the lead character a chance to interact with people outside of the kingdom. After meeting other people and realising what the empire has become, the protagonist abandons his lineage, his father, and rebels to take on the empire. You start from small beginnings, few friends, and little direction on how to build an army. Over the course of the game you meet new characters, forge alliances and aim to achieve what many considered impossible: Overthrowing the empire.

The plot isn’t anything that’ll make you jump out of your chair, but the execution is where the game shines. Here’s a brief extract of the plot for those who have not played it:

“This early chain of events forces the Hero to cross paths with a rebel organisation where he is sheltered, although he is only convinced of the need to struggle against the Empire when the hideout is attacked and sacked by Imperial forces. Recruiting the help of Mathiu Silverberg, a former Imperial strategist, the Hero’s Liberation Army starts off as a small force working to unite rebel factions throughout Scarlet Moon, and eventually becomes a force large enough and powerful enough to bring down the Empire itself.”

To this day it amazes me that this game came out in 1996. It has aged very well thanks to its graphics (beautifully rendered in sprite form, the type of graphics that SNES RPG’s were famous for) and the fact that you can recruit (and fight with) up to 108 different characters. 108! To put this into perspective, most Role Playing games tend to focus in on anywhere between 3-8 characters. To have this many to experiment with was a joy to say the least, and added hours of gameplay to the game trying to find the best combination attacks.

Between the graphics, the story and the presentation, Suikoden is a game I still love to play. When I first rented the game I literally did nothing else for that weekend it was that good. It basically has everything a RPG fan could ask for:

* Presentation – These graphics never look bad no matter whan you play. Unfortunately games like Final Fantasy 8 haven’t aged too well graphically (although at the time they were top class and pushed the PS1 to the limit).

* Great battles – Being able to fight with 6 characters at a time means plenty of opportunity for action. This also means the boss battles are appropriately harder than you would expect. ‘Unite’ attacks between chosen characters can be devastating and the fun of finding out which characters can unite means plenty of strategy involved too.

* Powerful cut-scenes / character development – You will struggle to find better for 1996. you may struggle to find better now. Suikoden’s cut-scenes were fantastic (although now probably beaten by other games).

* Colorful, vibrant and addictive – It looks amazing. It’s one of the reasons why it caught my eye originally and  keeps it addictive. Often I play it for hours at a time.

It’s rare to get a hold of now, commanding prices of over 100 dollars on trademe and ebay. But if you ever get your hands on a copy, treasure it. It’s 30 hours of play you won’t forget for a long time. If you still doubt me, here’s a clip to get you interested:

James

With the 2011/12 NBA season gearing up for a Christmas Day beginning, fans all over the world are breathing a sigh of relief. We will be getting NBA action this season and that’s one timely present indeed. After five months of CBA negotiations we will get a 66-game-season. Which, if you were as pessimistic about the prospect of a season as I was a few months back, is an excellent result.

For those who don’t know me Dallas has always been my team of choice and before anybody asks, I am NOT a bandwagon fan. I became a Mavericks fan the day Jason Kidd was traded there in February 2008 and for the first couple of years the trade looked like an average one. Kidd was playing as well as you could have asked from a 36-year-old Point-Guard, but the chemistry wasn’t quite there the way it had been for Devin Harris and the squad that was just two wins away from a championship back in 2006.

Here we are in 2011 – Dallas triumphantly won the championship in June over the Miami Heat and are now looking to reload and repeat for what will no doubt be an exciting season. Being a fan of the team in general I just wanted to break down for readers exactly who we lost, who we gained and what each player can do to make sure Dallas is in the hunt again.

2011/12 Dallas Mavericks:

• Rodrigue Beaubois
• Brian Cardinal
• Vince Carter
• Brendan Haywood
• Dominique Jones
• Jason Kidd
• Ian Mahinmi
• Shawn Marion
• Drew Neitzel
• Dirk Nowitzki
• Lamar Odom
• Jerome Randle
• Jason Terry
• Delonte West
• Brandan Wright

The squad on paper looks very different to just 6 months ago when Dallas reigned supreme over the Western Conference and the Heat. Let’s do a quick breakdown of who’s out and who’s in:

——-OUT——-

Caron Butler – Signed a 3 yr / $24m contract with the Los Angeles Clippers. The Mavericks will definitely miss Butler but they were able to take care of business without him in the playoffs and his ISO style of play may have broken the flow at key times for the team had he played. His 3 pt % was very good last season (.431%) and in his 29 games for the Big D put up 15 points / 4 rebounds a game. It’s a fairly big hole to fill but Dallas will look to move on without him.

JJ Barea – Signed a 4yr / $19m contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Barea’s last couple of seasons as an understudy to Jason Kidd have paid dividends. After a solid job in the  championship run, he got an offer from the T’Wolves that any young player would find hard to turn down. Appearing in 21 of the Mavericks playoff games, Barea continued where he left off in the regular season by posting similar numbers off the bench (9 points / 4 assists per game). His speed in contrast to Kidd’s methodical, slower style will be missed by the Mavs. His full name is Juan Jose Barea, also a member of the Puerto Rican international basketball team. While he will find a different environment in Minnesota, he will definitely find time in their rotation (despite them having quite a few point guards already).

Tyson Chandler – Signed a 4yr / $58m contract with the New York Knicks. Arguably the most important piece the Mavs added a year ago is now gone to New York. Chandler was terrific in helping solidify Dallas’ defense, putting them over the top as a defensive unit with his effort. His ability to rebound, block the occasional shot or two and get others motivated about the defensive end of the floor was a bigger impact than any of us can ever realise. However, his contract was nearly up and he wanted to get paid. Unfortunately what Dallas could offer wasn’t enough and with a championship ring he is off to try his luck in the Eastern Conference.

Peja Stojakovic – Retirement arrives for a man who will go down as one of the greatest shooters of his generation and one of the best international players to play in the NBA. Nobody could have predicted the huge impact he showed for Dallas in the back-end of the season. After struggling with back injuries in New Orleans, he showed vintage shooting touch during the playoffs and helped fill the gap left by Caron Butler in the scoring department. Integral in helping to bury the Lakers (and get revenge for 2002), Stojakovic goes out on top at age 34.

DeShawn Stevenson – Stevenson’s status is not yet known. He is a free agent and came up big beyond the arc last season for Dallas and provided tenacious defense at the 2 Guard position. He provided valuable points off the bench and is a solid backup guy any contender could use. It is now up to the Mavericks and Stevenson to find out if there is a future here.

It’s a lot to lose in one-off season. The Mavericks however have made it clear they also want to have cap space for the next free agency period, when Dwight Howard and Deron Williams become free agents. But enough of who’s out…Who’s in?!

——-IN——-

Vince Carter – VC reunites with Jason Kidd to form what was an absolutely monsterous back-court in New Jersey’s better days. Now, in the twilight of both of their careers, it’d be silly to expect the same results the second time around. Kidd is 38 and Carter is 34. But the chemistry between this particular duo had been undeniable. They are the last two people to score a triple-double in the same game (only duo before that was MJ and Pippen). Carter will arrive to a team that is already well established and he won’t have to be the number one scoring option anymore. He will slot into the starting Shooting Guard role and play important minutes for the Mavericks this season. With Kidd not a big scorer these days and Haywood more of a threat defensively than offensively, the starting lineup will need some points from both Dirk and Vince Carter if they are to start games well.

Lamar Odom – A quality player that never made an all-star team but in the right system probably could have. Odom will immediately help the Mavericks with his all-around game. He can score, defend at an acceptable level, shoot 3′s if needed and rebound. 6’10 with almost point-guard like handles, he will start at the Small Forward position  or, if Shawn Marion gets the go-ahead, can become the 6th man. A role he knows very well.

Delonte West – A guy who can cover both the PG and SG positions, West should have no problem fitting in as a backup to Jason Kidd and Vince Carter occasionally. West filled a role for the Celtics last season, playing 26 games (2 as a starter) and averaging 10 points 5 assists per game in 19 minutes a game. People tend to forget he’s only 27 years old and a solid pickup at the guard spot.

Brandan Wright – Comes in after spending time at the Golden State Warriors and New Jersey Nets. With injuries to his hip flexor and left shoulder limiting his potential so far, he’ll be keen to put in a full season with Dallas and to help keep them on the winning path. Coming from somebody who has seen him play, career averages of 5 points 3 rebounds a game do not do justice to how good he can be. Give him a clean bill of health and some minutes and he’ll prove the doubters wrong.

That sums up a busy off-season for Mark Cuban and the Mavs. I haven’t mentioned a few names on the squad list, namely Jerome Randle and Drew Neitzel, as they are bench additions that will need time to develop. Again, on paper it appears that the losses are greater than the assets gained. While this is true, the Mavs obviously had both short-term and long-term aspirations in mind when they did these deals. They want to be a contender for a long time and cap space opportunities next year will be helpful to let them do that. That being said, the team that Dallas has put together here is by no means a pushover and should certainly be in the title picture again if they gel together as effectively as last years squad was able to. We’ve sorted who’s out and who’s in, now lets talk about the rest and what they need to do this season for Dallas to have another championship.

——-RETURNING——-

Dirk Nowitzki – Cemented his legacy last season with another stellar year. Averaging a cool 23 points and 7 rebounds per game, the big German shot some ridiculous percentages for a 7 footer yet again. He set a career high in field goal percentage (.517%) and had efficient numbers from behind the arc and from the charity stripe (.393% and .892% respectively). The early season MVP candidate unfortunately lost steam when he got injured for a short time, but by the time the playoffs arrived Dirk looked ready to lead from the front. Averaged 28 points and 8 rebounds in a historic playoffs for the Mavericks franchise. Points tallies in the NBA finals against the Heat read 27, 24, 34, 21, 29 and 21. His Finals MVP award settled any debates about whether he was a choker or wasn’t good enough to win it all. Dubbed ‘The Uberman’ by Mavs fan, all he needs to do is show up, be Dirk, and the team will always have a 25-point-a-night guy.

Jason Kidd – The wise point guard will relish a shortened season. Contemplating retirement before the lockout ended, Kidd was able to achieve last season what had eluded him twice before – a championship. Having twice made the finals in 2002 and 2003, his Nets side ran into the brick wall that was the 02′ Lakers and were shown a basketball masterclass by Tim Duncan, Gregg Popovich and the 03′ Spurs. But in 2011 things were different. Kidd was a little older, a little wiser, had been in a Mavericks uniform for two and a half seasons. He could call the plays he wanted, but more importantly he had other players around him who could get over the hurdle. In 2002 and 2003 Kidd was playmaker, scorer, making other guys look good, shouldering a lot of the load and pressure. What made the 2011 Mavericks so good is that Kidd didn’t have to be THAT guy anymore. He didn’t need to score, all he had to do was put the ball on a string and get it to the guys who needed it. That’s exactly what he did. when his hall-of-fame career eventually comes to an end and people look back at his numbers while in a Dallas uniform, people won’t exactly be ‘wowed’. His numbers over 270 regular season games with the Mavs show averages of roughly 9 points, 9 assists and 5.5 rebounds a game. Throw in a few steals, much improved three-point shooting and basketball IQ and intangibles that you can never put in any stat book, and you have Kidd in his later years. When the Mavs won the championship, I recall Mark Jackson on commentary saying that Kidd’s DNA was “all over this championship”. Very true. What Kidd needs to do this season is very much the same. Be the glue that holds the team together on the court and be that level-headed leader on the floor that everyone looks to for guidance. If there was ever a point guard you’d trust to run plays at the most crucial of moments, you can’t get much better than ‘The Kidd’.

Brendan Haywood – Haywood and Tyson Chandler presented one hell of a front court combo last season. Haywood, a starter in Washington prior to joining Dallas, became a backup to Tyson Chandler. Needless to say the Center position was always well taken care of. With Chandler’s departure comes opportunity for Haywood. Dallas signed him to a lengthy deal last year and they will want him to start earning it this season. Defensive minded, he can certainly change shots in the paint and block his fair share. If he can step up and play like when he started in a Wizards uniform, he’ll have a good season.

——-THE BENCH!——-

Jason Terry – The JET will be a Maverick for life. He has been through the ups and downs with the franchise and was one of two (he and Dirk Nowitzki) who were survivors of the 2006 finals loss to Miami. He got his revenge. His scoring, but also his ability to fire up his teammates and the crowd will be what Jet did the best in 2011. His role the last few years has always been to be a ‘spark plug’ of sorts, to inject life and energy off the bench. Often that translated into points and he has been one of the best 6th man options in the league in recent memory. It’s important for guys who have been in the league a long time (Terry being one of them) to not let complacency set in. They won the championship last year but they should not use that as an excuse to stop working on their game. I expect Jet to come out and play hard this season. A back-to-back championship will mean a Dallas Dynasty and he’ll want to be there to make it happen.

Shawn Marion – What a great story it was last year for a guy who became a 20 point 10 rebound guy in Phoenix but accepted a lesser role for the ultimate cause – a championship.  Multiple-time all-star and part of the now infamous ‘Seven Seconds or Less’ offense in Phoenix in the mid 2000′s, Marion settled down in Dallas and took a cut in minutes and in productivity. A very underrated part of the championship squad, Marion held things together with bursts of offense and tough-nosed defense on wing stars Dwyane Wade and LeBron James. He was one of many great NBA players on the Mavericks to get his first championship ring and he will fill an important role with Lamar Odom this season at Small Forward.

Brian Cardinal – The Custodian had his moments in the Playoffs last season. Swapped for Peja Stojakovic in the finals to present a better matchup, he did what was needed of him. Shoot open 3′s, play tough defense and foul hard if needed. Cardinal will be a great veteran backup to have on the bench and knows how to play team basketball. If he continues to play in the same way as he did last season that is all the Mavericks will require from him.

Rodrigue Beaubois – ‘Roddy Buckets’ as he is known by Mavs fans had a really good debut season. in 2009-10 he played 56 games, averaged 7 points and shot over 50% from the field and 40% from the 3 point line. A combo guard of sorts, Roddy unfortunately had his last season cut short by injury, appearing in only half the games he did in his first year and had indifferent shooting percentages. But, his talent is there and if healthy and not traded, could provide some entertainment for Dallas fans this season.

Dominique Jones – I wanted to add a piece here about their young scorer Dominique Jones or ‘DoJo’. He’s been a part of the Mavericks development squad and may be ready to play this year. It depends on the final roster of course but in the opening pre-season game against Oklahoma City, DoJo had 17 points in 28 minutes. I know a lot of people will say ‘LoL Pre Season’ but hey if he’s showing good form against Durant, Westbrook, Ibaka and co, that’s alright with me.

Ian Mahinmi – Mahinmi showed in limited minutes last season that he’s a project player that will need time to reach his potential. From what I saw of him in flashes last season he fouled quite often. He’ll need to work on that if he wants to earn more minutes. He did get some run last season from coach Carlisle and had a ‘youtube moment’ in limited minutes – his free throw line jumper to end the third quarter of Game 6 of the NBA finals.

The Dallas Mavericks title defense begins Christmas Day against the Miami Heat.

James

I started this blog in 2008 and now in December 2011 here I am in my lounge, staring at two tickets for my upcoming university graduation to be held on the 15th. It still hasn’t quite sunk in that my time at AUT is up. I finished there over a month ago and I still can’t quite believe that next year I will be somewhere else.

When I showed up back in February 2009 I really did feel like the outsider. I was probably wide-eyed, not entirely sure of what I’d gotten myself into. I went from a high school in Lynfield, West Auckland, five minute walk from home, where I knew hundreds of friends, to Central Auckland with the town hall to my right, the Civic Theatre one block away and the Sky Tower just two away. I was definitely confused at first and this wasn’t helped by the fact that I knew just two people on orientation day.

But as the early weeks sped by I could tell this was where I was meant to be. Things were different yes. But a good kind of different. I remember sitting in the first lecture with one of the few friends I had at the time just thinking ‘how in the hell am I going to make it through 3 years here’. It was a daunting prospect. In those early weeks and months I loved how much better it was from high school. No immaturity. No matter how different you were it was seen as a blessing rather than a curse. People could be themselves instead of putting up a fake wall. Everyone was there to learn and because of that I enjoyed it a whole lot more.

Year 1 was such a thrill. Things seemed so much larger than life. My 9-3pm schedule was traded out for an ‘anything goes’ type schedule where I would be starting at 8am one day and having the next one free. I enjoyed it so much I remember thanking myself for choosing the right degree. I had friends who changed after a year and a half and just prayed I wouldn’t lose motivation. Turned out it never faded. Thank goodness – 15,000 dollar loan is enough!

Year 2 was easily the most fun. I say that because the new feeling, the overwhelming expectations and the big transition from high school to university were over. It was time to settle in and enjoy the year. The workload wasn’t insane and I made most of my friends during this second year. As a group we were all slowly getting to know each other.

Year 3 really tested me. I recall one afternoon during week 3 of the working year I was sitting at a computer desk not entirely sure I could deal with the workload. It was the first time all degree it had happened. I just wasn’t sure I could deal with it all as it mounted week after week. But I never gave up and thankfully finished strong. My last semester was not my best. But I did enough to get through and that’s all that matters now.

Almost three years later I am graduating. It’s surreal. AUT University has taught me so much and not just about Communications either. I’ve made friends I know I’ll have forever, experienced some of the biggest thrills (getting to do 3 months at the New Zealand Herald) and taken advantage of what AUT had to offer.

Looking back, I can’t believe I got through as many assignments as I did – especially in year 3 – when it seemed there was something due every week. As a collective year the number of assessments does seem daunting in retrospect, but AUT DID do a good job of making it manageable for all of us.

EDIT: We had our graduation last Thursday and my experience at AUT came to a close. My name was called, I walked up, things became a blur but the important thing is that I didn’t slip or fall over or do anything to embarrass me for life. I had my degree in my hand after three years.

The graduation was amazing. I was so proud of everyone as they walked up and had their moment. Over 3 years I really got to know quite a few of the group and to hear everyone else cheering them on as they went up it was easily the best part about the ceremony. We started as strangers but graduated together. It was fantastic. Now we make our mark on the commuications world in whatever way we can, hopefully we become the future!

I must say thanks to anybody who ever helped me get through. Group 6 (Team Bravo), Year 3 Journalism 2011 but importantly the good friends I made.

I sure will miss being there. Not so much the assignments, but the friends I made and the times I had there were the best yet. We’ll see each other again and hopefully next time we’re all rich!

James

Kick Ass: I had no idea it was already based off a comic done by DC Comics, but regardless, what a fun movie. A rather inexperienced young cast backed by Nicolas Cage delivers a comedy and action combo here that is hard to beat. I enjoyed the action sequences, although some of them were pretty cheesy by today’s standards. There was one action sequence where Hit Girl is gunning down all the bad guys in a Matrix type fashion, I just imagined Keanu Reeves would watch today and say ‘Woah, Deja Vu’. Liked the costumes, liked the plot,  nice ending which resolves the current conflict yet leaves it open for a sequel. 3.5/5.

When In Rome: Gah, there are some films that I just walk out of after shaking my head and this was one of them. It’s one for the ladies that’s for sure. Plot kind of sucked, but I had hopes for it in the first 20-30 minutes, it actually had some good laughs, was going places. Then the main plot device came in and from then on it just went downhill. Sorry ‘When in Rome’, but I wished I had BEEN in  Rome far away from this movie. ONLY plus side I can think of is seeing Kristen Bell on-screen for 100 minutes(never a bad thing), Jon Heder and Pedro cameo, and Danny Devito who you just can’t help but love. 2/5.

Cop Out: I thought it was a great throwback to the buddy cop movies of years gone by. A brief rundown, Bruce Willis’ character must retrieve a baseball card from the 50′s which can help him pay for his daughter’s wedding, not wanting to be upstaged by the new stepdad who agrees to pay for it all, Willis is adamant he must contribute. The card gets robbed before he can sell it and he and Tracy Morgan team up in a comedy filled 100 minutes. I enjoyed it, the two have great chemistry on screen and I wouldn’t mind seeing them again, whether it’s Cop Out or a further movie down the line I’m not sure. 3.25/5

Ocean’s Eleven: For this one I’m not talking about the 2001 remake, I’m going all the way back to the 1960 Rat Pack classic starring Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr, Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop. What I loved about this was that it was the first time that I’ve really seen all of the famous Rat Pack on screen IN COLOR. I’m used to classic television clips on youtube of them performing in black in white, but to see it in full Technicolor was something special. As a guy born in 1990, long gone are the rat pack. Peter Lawford and Sammy Davis Jr were both sadly gone from this world when I was born, Dean Martin died just five years later and Sinatra when I was 8 years old. By the time Joey Bishop had passed away in 2007 I was still only vaguely aware of the Rat Pack. But then an opportunity came up to watch this film and because time machines do not exist….yet, this is the closest we can get to getting a glimpse of the 1960′s and late 50′s. film has become a relic because of that fact. Onto the film itself, I have yet to see the remake starring George Clooney as Danny Ocean, but in this version I liked Sinatra in the role. He commands respect in real life as he did in the movie by leading a heist of 5 casinos in Vegas. The Rat Pack members are all good friends off screen and it shows, everyone plays out their part and I really enjoyed it. 3.75/5.

The Hurt Locker: Great film based on a bomb squad in the Iraq war. Tension maximized, characters developed exceptionally well, action sequences, although simple, are loaded with adrenaline. What makes The Hurt Locker great? Because by the end of the film, and throughout, you can identify with these characters and what they struggle with every single day in the field, that each bomb could be their last. As a viewer that is genuinely scary and what kept me interested the whole way. The pacing was nice too, great editing and directing, just a very sharp, well put together film that deserves all the praise it has received. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I hope you do too. 4/5.

That’ll do for now. Last time I did my ‘eagerly anticipating’ list. I’ll post that and cross off films I’ve seen, then add new ones that have caught my eye lately:

• The Hurt Locker
• Kick Ass
• Date Night
• The Expendables
• Avatar…(STILL haven’t see in)
• Cop Out
• Chicago (Coming off the ‘Nine’ buzz still)
• Slumdog Millionaire
• Closer
• Good Night and Good Luck
• American Movie
• Beyond the Sea
• New York, I Love You

See ya til next time.

–James–

She’s out of my League: One of the funniest movies I’ve seen since ‘The Hangover’ probably, which is going back almost a year, so for a film to get this many laughs out of me has done its job in my opinion. But most importantly, it gives hope to all of those 5/10 guys out there hoping to score that perfect 10. Acting wise, nothing really stands out, I thought the lead actor was kind of wooden in his performance but that’s probably deliberate, as his character has low self-esteem issues and low confidence etc. Alice Eve as Molly was awesome, so hot in the movie and a nice choice. I looked up her resume after wards and she’s been a little quiet on the HollyWood scene for some time now, but hopefully this wide released movie gets her noticed, because she does well here. 3/5

Boy: Kiwi made film that really was a mixture of comedy, drama and life. I enjoyed it, as did the theatre that I was in. 3/5

Now for some of my ‘eagerly wanting to see’ list of current and upcoming films:

• The Hurt Locker
• Kick Ass
• Date Night
• The Expendables
• Avatar…(STILL haven’t see in)
• Cop Out
• Chicago (Coming off the ‘Nine’ buzz still)
• Slumdog Millionaire
• Closer

And..that’ll do for now.

-James–

How can I not love the series that my childhood was based upon? Of course back in the early years of gaming I enjoyed protagonists as memorable as Sonic, Donald Duck, Ecco the Dolphin among others, but I would soon trade those in for Cloud, Squall and the many other main characters who have led Final Fantasy games.

The release of Final Fantasy 13 really crept up on me and in some ways I think that has helped. I listened to a few final fantasy 13 podcasts out there for news, a hint of gossip and wondered how I would ever survive the wait, which was around 2-3 years I think based on the New Zealand release of FF12. I survived the wait by not thinking about it. Believe me guys it helps. It helped me get through LOST’s 6 month hiatus year after year (no more of that! Thank you very much) and it helped me through this. Reading no spoilers also helped. Who wants to have analyzed the game to death by release date? Why ruin it for yourself? For example, the Japanese PSN released a short gameplay demo I believe. Great! IF you can read japanese. Why torture yourself over battle commands and dialogue you cannot decode? I couldn’t put up with that so I waited, it has made what I have played so far that much better.

Grasping the collectors Edition in my hand (with some NICE bonuses- highly recommended!) I prayed for some typical final fantasy magic as I pushed the disc in, deep in anticipation for what would follow. A marvellous CGI intro, that my SDTV STRUGGLED to cope with.

Holy Fuck.

My TV is struggling with the graphics?! I’ve NEVER had a game do that on me before. SICK. A great sign of things to come graphics wise.

I’m also treated to a lovely piano piece to accompany the main menu. I will say this, I have played for 13 hours so far, and the music is ****ing awesome. I can’t get over how good some of these piano pieces are while running around. The Eidolon music was insanely good and set the tone right away and even the battle music really has that atmosphere going for it and actually makes me wana fight!

Voice acting is phenomenal, the cut scenes just blow my mind. I thought FF10′s cut scene and voice over work was magic, this might just trump it. Sure, the characters aren’t as memorable yet! (Hard to beat Auron) But the scenes are powerful no doubt. I actually had the privilege of messaging the voice actress of Lightning, Ali Hillis, and did not expect a response. I turned on my computer today and was surprised by a nice reply! Thanks Ali! You’ll always have a fan in James Wheeler! Oh and special thanks to the FXN Final Fantasy Podcast, if it weren’t for your shows I would not have been so pumped up for FF13! Great commitment to the show for a year+ before the game launched, you guys should be proud (if you ever read this).

Being raised by games like Final Fantasy 7,8,9,10 and even the older titles on Super Nintendo, playing 13 just reminds me of those good times as a kid all over again. I am sure this is not just happening to me, but many other FF maniacs out there.

I’m gona leave it at that, to all the FF fans out there, enjoy it! I gota get back to playing!

–James–

Here are some movies i’ve seen and what I thought of them:

• The Bounty Hunter- Starring Gerard Butler and Jennifer Aniston, this psuedo comedy-action-drama does too much with what should have been a simple idea. This film will get more out of it publicity wise from the real life rumors of love than the quality of the actual film. Interestingly enough, I LOVED the script. Gerard can do comedy so good at times. I’d give this a 2.5/5 based on the identity crisis this film has, it switches to the serious side when the poster reflected a more light-hearted comedy.
• Law Abiding Citizen-Starring Gerard Butler (again! But then again, he has done a great move here getting two hollywood blockbusters out simultaneously, will do wonders for him). Very cool, full of revenge and great lines. Jamie Foxx plays the lawyer and the good guy in the plot while Butler, starting off as a law abiding citizen goes down a dark path of destruction. The ending let it down a touch but it’s solid. I’d give it 3.5/5
• Valentines Day- Its a movie that’s hard to hate. It’s full of love, an all star cast that not even ‘Mars Attacks!!!’ can match, its got at least one star you LOVE (From Julia Roberts to Taylor Lautner for fuck sake, its got everyone covered). The one thing that people are never happy with when it comes to ensemble cast films is that THEIR favorite actor/actress doesn’t get enough screen time and unless your fave is Ashton Kutcher, then yes, you will be disappointed. Valentines Day won’t win any awards, not by any stretch, but its fun, one that you shouldn’t take too seriously. 3/5
• Edge of Darkness-Mel Gibson has many fans (myself included) and we’ve missed him on the big screen no doubt about it. Apart from a voice appearance there and a brief cameo in ‘Paparazzi’, Mel has spent the last 6 years or so BEHIND the camera rather than in front of it which has been a loss for cinema. That being said, his two directorial efforts, “Passion of the Christ” and “Apocalypto” both have received critical and commercial praise, so he can obviously direct once his career truely winds down. His return to the screen is a revenge action film in which Thomas Craven’s daughter is shot out of the blue one night and he stops at nothing for answers. A political background emerges, throwing more twists into the plot. It’s what we’ve always loved about Mel Gibson going as far back as his Lethal Weapon days. To me, it didn’t matter that the film was super outstanding, it’s a revenge film plain and simple, and the big winner on the day was the big screen, because Mel Gibson back on screen was totally awesome. 3/5
• Crazy Heart- I came into this not really sure what to expect but when I saw this film, and saw Jeff Bridges pick up the Best Actor Oscar the next day, I can 100% agree with the academy. What a performance by Bridges as Bad Blake. Hell, if you’re not even a country fan and just want to appreciate good acting, watch it. That’s all I really want to say about this one, Maggie Gyllenhaal is great in support plus the cameo by Colin Farrell was nice too. 3.5/5
• Up in the Air- George Clooney is awesome. His portrayal of Ryan Bingham in this film hits pretty close to his real life sort of life style of not wanting to commit to anyone etc. It’s a terrific watch, films with airports involved as the focus seem to be pretty decent (am also thinking about ‘The Terminal’ here). Jason Reitman has done well here and i’d actually watch it again believe it or not. 3.75/5

Thats all for now. But there will be a further write up for sure, as I need sleep lol..

The anime ‘Cowboy Bebop’, named one of the top 2 animes of all time by a listing done a few years back, offered a tremendous story but was also backed by a superb soundtrack led by Yoko Kanno. Her and the band ‘The Seatbelts’ pumped out a sound so brass heavy and sweet sounding to the ear that I was immediately hooked. Songs like the high tempo ‘Rush’ or the slow and soulful ‘Waltz for Zizi combined with the story telling techniques the producers used to take me on a journey an anime has not done since. Bebop was the first anime I ever watched from start to finish and it was a terrific choice for my first anime.

My introduction to Jazz and Blues took more advances as the years went on. For example, I came across the two man act of the Blues Brothers in the mid 2000′s and loved what they brought to the table. Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi seemed years ahead of their time when they released the 1980 smash hit to global praise. They had the look and the sound of classic, cool blues players with a blend of other genres also.

The Blues Brothers made me become aware of the Rat Pack, which will always be special in terms of big band standards and how they revolutionized show business in the 60′s, 70′s and 80′s and even beyond. Sinatra, Martin, Davis Jr and others produced a sound that I loved, and still do to this very day. Its quite interesting when you think of how old songs like ‘My Funny Valentine’ and ‘Way You Look Tonight’ are, yet they still sound as pure and meaningful as the day they were written. It’s because of people like Buble, Bennett, Connick Jr and so many others that songs like these continue to get mainstream recognition and is why I am still a fan.

Jazz and Big Band sounds so wonderful when all playing collectively, I’ve told more than one friend that if I ever moved to America, it would be to New Orleans. Not because they just won the super bowl (saints!) but because of its long tenured history with jazz roots, plus the Mississippi being nearby ain’t bad either =)

Its a genre that will hopefully never die, because it will always have a place in music, with todays artists placing new and interesting arrangements on classic standards of the past, jazz and big band fans like myself will be very happy for years to come.

–James–