Looking back
I first stood in front of the Raging Thrak Inn when I was twelve. The game was still called Gemstone III, and no one in the house was allowed to use the phone when I played, lest I get “booted.” I was a different character then. I quit playing when I was fourteen, then joined … Continue reading
One and done
Comic books aren’t great with beginnings and endings, to be honest. As a serialized medium, very few stories have their complete start and finish in a single volume and often rely on a whole host of other stories to make complete sense. When I was a kid, though, nobody I knew really cared if it … Continue reading
In closing
If someone ever asks you to write for a blog about the things you love, do it. Do it even if writing is already your work and you feel like a failure at it. Do it even if you worry that your opinions will be judged — that you’ll be deemed too nerdy or not … Continue reading
Surviving the crash
Last Sunday’s episode of Mad Men, “The Crash,” was packed with break ups, break ins, and breakdowns. Framed by the volatile relationship between the ad company and the Chevy account, the episode examines how things fall apart, both in and out of the office, through the tropes of collision, danger, safety and care. Herky-jerky and … Continue reading
Even marriages end when you die, Kaidan
“I understand why you cheated. But I still love you, Shepard. I want to understand what this is between us, and make it real. That’s what I want. What do you want?” I pause before answering. Not because I’m torn for choice, but because I don’t know quite what to say. I do know what … Continue reading
On endings, weak and strong
One thing that can ruin a really great book is a weak ending. But not all weak endings are created equal. Sometimes there is too much closure, things are tied in neat little bows and nothing is left to the imagination. A talented writer creates a world I want to inhabit, no matter how similar … Continue reading
The sport of youth and fashion of the age
In the twenty-four years I’ve been playing video games, I think I’ve become pretty well rounded. Platformers, RPGs, shooters, puzzlers, text-only, you name it — I’ve tried it. There is one chink in my armor, though, and it’s sports games. My cousin was the only one in the family with a Super Nintendo growing up. … Continue reading
The darkest of knights
I was recently at a party in which I met a gentleman who tried to convince me that the third Matrix film is the finest of the trilogy. Needless to say, I was aghast and spent the next several minutes arguing against this delusional notion until finally my wife wisely and diplomatically separated me from … Continue reading
The Nook is dead
My Nook is dead. It died in mid-March and I haven’t missed it at all. Except every now and then I thought about the book I was in the middle of reading. And once in a while I remembered how nice it was to buy new books from the comfort of my couch. Plus those … Continue reading
True crime
Very few things titillate us like a good serial killer story. Those who kill irrationally have become our new movie monster, as the horror of a Frankenstein’s Monster or Dracula has waned in our imagination over the decades. We see vampires and werewolves as teenage celebrities more often than not in today’s media, but serial … Continue reading
