Hi there and welcome to another monthly Bite commentary. Tonight is PPV night and I guess I should be excited, but the truth is I’m somewhat unsettled and for good reason. I have been somewhat unsettled for the past few days now and quite frankly, it’s making me sick.
No doubt some of you folks reading this or my blog have heard about a shooting at Dawson College in Montreal that left an eighteen-year old girl dead and twenty other students critically injured. The poor bastard was also offed, most claiming it to be a suicide, but really who cares? The piece of shit got what he had coming for him anyway. My thoughts and prayers go out to the families of those affected by the tragic affairs. If you want to read more about the shootings, details can be found on the shootings here.
And before I get on with the regular set affairs, I just wanna get something off my chest. Anyone who has visited this website for the past six to seven years it’s been around has often read that I refer to myself as the most depressed person in the world. In fact, it used to be the theme of the DTM Blog when it first started up back in 2004. While that tends to be more of an online gimmick than anything else, there used to be a time when I had actually meant it. There was a point in my life when I was really down, hated having to put up with anything and everything to the point where the thought of commiting suicide had crossed my mind. Nobody knew about it, because I never made it a big deal. The only exception would have been when I had typed up a long letter that would have been posted up on the internet on the day the act would have gone down.
But something happened along the spiraling path of depression. I had a helping hand and things actually turned out for the better. Faltering down a path I was falsely led into believing was the right one, someone from outside the limiting visions of my close immediate family led me to a different path. It was a strange path that had never been considered because it had never been brought up or it had never been considered. Of course, that path lead me to my current occupation as a desktop publisher/pre-press person. A guy who had a bleak outlook on life and was close ending it all had managed to rise up and get to greener pastures… not quite the wording I was aiming for, but hopefully you get the message.
So when I read about this guy’s anger and how it was the driving force behind the senseless shootings, I often wonder how people get the idea that “if you’re going to kill yourself, might as well take a few others with you.” Is there some sort of perceived satisfaction in killing others to sate your own insanity? What’s the point of it all if you’re dead anyway? It’s such a shame that the guy could have done something to change his conditions but decided to go down the path of insanity… let’s scratch that. It wasn’t insanity, it wasn’t depression, and it wasn’t anger that caused this. It was stupidity. Pure, unbridaled stupidity. Why would you go out and try to kill a whole bunch of people if you’re not even planning on living long enough to enjoy it (or maybe… nah, that would be for those who have a soul)?
Look, I’m not trying to trivialize something that hits pretty close to home. In fact, the college is not much farther than an hour’s walk away from where I presently work. I’m not going to say it’s a brush under the rug; it’s not. I’m not going to try and understand the reasons why it happened, but I’m not going to accept that a guy would buy a specialized rifle off the internet and decided to kill a bunch of students simply because the sky was cloudy or because he didn’t tell a girl from high school that he liked her. There has to be more to it than that. Maybe those answers will find their way out in the open, but either way, it shouldn’t have happened.
So yeah, that was something I needed to get off my chest. Hopefully, as time passes, the fresh wounds will heal up and we’ll be able to continue onwards. Suddenly, the heavy burden has been lifted and I can move this column into lighter, happier things… as well as the more mundane issues that need to be discussed… so let’s get it on.
So just a couple days prior to the posting of this commentary, I had downloaded this RPG based on the Columbine incident from years back. Funny how I’d play a game based on a school shooting when one had just happened close to my neck of the woods… and not long after my opening tirade. It’s real disturbing that you’re re-enacting events of something that really happened and you have no clue as to what to do next. I mean, seriously… you get around the school, trying to avoid all the traps while attempting to commit mass genocide, but your objectives aren’t too clearly defined nor is there any sign as to whether you close to completing them… The subject matter is touchy, but it’s lost its effect when you get stalled in a gameplay incident. Worth a shot if you can find it, but I’m not providing a link. Just look up anything relating to Columbine game and you’ll probably find it.
Speaking of games (in a non-disturbing nature), I’m considering bringing back some of my old homebrewn titles during the old days of the site. Longtime visitors will remember that the Webstation hosted a few games I had created using Clickteam’s Game Factory software. While the games won’t be hosted on the website per se, I do have a Filefront account that has seen little use and I figure I’d use to give people a chance to play the games that everyone feared way back when. More on this as I work out the kinks.
For those unaware, Paramount are upgrading episodes of the original Star Trek series to include newer, cleaner CGI effects and a revamped theme song. People will obviously moan about messing with it, but after having seen a trailer of the thing, it doesn’t look like they’ll be doing anything more than what was done with the Motion Picture a few years back. Anyone who has seen that movie’s DVD release knows that certain special effect shots were tweaked over some of the older effects, such as the “wormhole sequence” and the V’Ger spaceship in all its glory, thus giving it a look that is better than what was already there, but blends in so well with the rest of the movie that it doesn’t scream SPECIAL EDITION like certain Star Wars shots do. So if that’s their intent with this attempt, then it can’t be a bad thing.
Besides, if you feel the new effects are bound to annoy you, there’s always the DVDs and other replays that air the old version. I personally believe this will be a good thing, as it will make the show look cleaner and in some ways, better.
And speaking of moaning fanboys, this past week saw the release of the “Limited Edition” 2-disc versions of the original Star Wars trilogy. For those who don’t know, these aren’t the same as what was released some time last year. These 2-disc sets contain both the 2004 Special Editions AND the original theatrical versions. Worth a look for those who don’t have the DVDs or simply want their classic versions of Star Wars on a disc format.
Of course, you’d expect that certain group of people to be happy that they have their original original trilogy on DVD, but not surprisingly, they’ve somehow found something to bitch about on certain message boards. Apparently, there isn’t much in terms of sound options or a lack of effort in terms of cleaning up the picture and whatnot as far as these old versions go. Apparently, those complaining that George Lucas raped their childhoods are now complaining that George Lucas is releasing these original versions to shut them up, but didn’t put much effort into giving them snazzy features like surround sound or that other stuff. Apparently, my thoughts on the subject is that if I can hear it clearly enough and if I can see it clearly enough, it’s good enough for me. You might not be happy with what’s offered (chances are you never will be), but I would be more than happy with what’s offered. Since I haven’t seen it yet, I can’t comment, but that doesn’t mean I’ll moan about extra presentational features I can’t take advantage of.
Besides, if you have a good idea of your ideal Star Wars DVD, go fucking make it yourselves. It can’t be that hard to paste together a DVD these days.
So walking to my local video store one, I happened to snag the TMNT movie trilogy for a cool twenty bucks… Canadian. Which, to be honest is not a bad considering how much the retailers usually sell them for. While I had already seen the first film due to having taped it off a movie channel, I hadn’t seen the two sequels in years and thought I pop those in first. Suffice to say, there’s a reason why I had taped over these flicks years ago when I was in my crazy stage, although to be fair, I actually did enjoy all of the trilogy for a variety of different reasons.
The first movie was an excellent movie and pretty much the best TMNT movie by default. The story was good, the fighting was great, and the Turtle suits were believable and had very real movement; a trait that would degrade as later films were released. Some people thought the movie was violent and dark, but even back when I saw this as a kid, I didn’t think it was violent at all. It wasn’t so much like the cartoon, but I thought it was still a good movie. And reading up on the old comics years later and finding many common links to the movie, I’ve learned to appreciate the flick as an excellent iteration of the Turtle franchise.
The second movie was the only one of the three I had seen in theatres. The movie is definitely good, although it’s par below the first TMNT movie due to all the campy antics added in to make the movie less dark and less excessively violent. The opening scene where everyone eats pizza could have been dropped or at least explained by saying that all the other fast-food joints were really secret criminal operations and they were shut down. Also, the mutant suits could have been a little better designed. The turtle wasn’t all that bad, but the wolf seemed more suited for a stage show than a movie.
Case in point, a friend and I were watching the movie and upon the first appearance of the two mutants, my friend immediately leaned closer to the screen, studied the two suits, turned to me and said, “I think that turtle was on Power Rangers.”
Oh yeah, Vanilla Ice was in it. Nothing more needs be said.
The common belief is that the third movie was bad and the most despised, but truth be told, I actually got a kick out of this flick. It’s the most light-hearted of the three flicks and the grittiness is all but gone. While technically a bad film, I thought the movie was enjoyable and if you can enjoy a flick, then it’s done its job. Although I must say, for such a light-hearted flick there seems to be a lot of serious fights in here.
Regular readers of my commentary series (and my blog) will note this particular tidbit regarding former wrestler Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson that I wrote:
“In an article posted somewhere in the end of August, it’s been noted that former People’s Champ and wrestling Great One, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, is absolutely positively swear-to-God done with wrestling… has been for three years now. And of course, most wrestling sites have passed this off as news. I mean, come on. The guy’s been out of the business for a few years ever since it was realized he couldn’t save the Diva Search from being nothing more than a big stinking pile of monkey poop. Stop treating it like something recent or earth-shattering such as the news of Hulk Hogan hurting his knee by getting off the fucking couch.
“Some are saying Vince is trying to get one last match out of the Rock, but you know what? The guy is comfortable with his current lifestyle, his current career, and hence sees no reason to return to the ring. As much as wrestling has made him into what he is today, he’s pretty much done with it and unlike most other folks, can pretty much survive without it. Regardless of how many buildings Hogan might have sold out or how much money Austin has made during their heydays, there is no bigger success story in wrestling than Dwayne Johnson, because he was able to use his wrestling success and turn it into a solid acting career with a bright future ahead. As much as I’d like to see him back in the ring hitting the People’s Elbow on some poor jabroni, he doesn’t need to come back.”
Fifteen days later after that post was made, there was another article about the Rock once again saying that he is no longer wrestling. Fucking morons just don’t get it. LEAVE HIM ALONE! HE’S DONE WITH IT! ACCEPT IT AND YOU’LL FEEL A WHOLE LOT BETTER! And besides, Rocky saying he’s not coming back to wrestling is about as much of a news story as Vince McMahon wrestling in MSG is history making… which is to say it’s not. So please, guys, do us all a favor and save your space for some other worthy news stories, such as Smackdown doing a 1.0 rating due to being pre-emptied in half the USA. Now THERE’S a story you can sink your teeth into.
Haven’t seen the latest offering of WWE ECW. The simple truth is that I’ve given up on the show. It’ll never gain its own identity if it keeps bringing in guys from WWE RAW and WWE Smackdown… and in some way, I don’t think they want to either, which makes it all the more sad. Can I honestly say that the show is worth staying up until midnight to watch or at least leave it taping? No, I can’t. The show has its moments, but in the end, it’s nothing more than a one-hour C-show that was created mostly as an afterthought in hopes that the name will attract viewers… it’s just sad, man.
By the way, I agree with Vince McMahon on one thing: WWE.com sucks.
And on that note, I bid ye adieu. I’ll be posting another commentary in early-October. So until then…
dtm666 