CHERNOBOG'S BLOG

PRESENTS:
CHERNOBOG'S BLOG!
Updated: 11/21/2010
Email blog comments to chernabog@charter.net

11/20/10 - TOP 10 GREATEST HEAVY METAL ALBUMS!
I've been a huge Heavy Metal fan for years and 2010 has been a great year for Heavy Metal music! With great album releases from some of my favorite bands like Iron Maiden, Black Label Society, Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth and also the return of one of my favorite shows VH1 Classics' "That Metal Show" with it's sixth season now 1-hour long! With the holidays coming up I thought I'd present my list of the Top 10 Heavy Metal albums of all time! (This is my personal opinion and has nothing to do with hype or sales, just pure love of Metal!) Enjoy!

#10 Pantera, "Cowboys from Hell" (1990) - The Texas-born hardcore shredders begins a new age in heavy metal!

#9 Motörhead, "Ace of Spades" (1980) - Motörhead IS Lemmy Kilmister!

#8 Dio, "Holy Diver" (1983) - After Dio left Black Sabbath he started a solo career that

#7 Megadeth, "Peace Sells...But Who's Buying" (1986) - Dave Mustaine at his best!

#6 Slayer, "Reign In Blood" (1986) - "RAINING BLOOD and "Angel of Death"! 'nuff said!

#5 Judas Priest, "British Steel" (1980) - With Rob Halford's vocals, Judas Priest began the New Wave of British Heavy Metal!

#4 Iron Maiden, "Number of the Beast" (1982) - With their third album and new singer Brce Dickinson

#3 Ozzy Osbourne, "Blizzard of Oz" (1981) - After Ozzy was fired from Black Sabbath in 1979, he and his manager and soon to be wife Sharon started Ozzy's solo career which would not have succeeded if not for a virtuoso guitar player named Randy Rhodes! With hits like "I Don't Know", "Crazy Train" and "Mr. Crowley" Ozzy Osbourne rose again as the Godfather of Heavy Metal!

#2 Metallica, "Master of Puppets" (1986) - Kings of thrash, Metallica's third album broke new ground and improved on Metallica's speed and heaviness with songs like "Battery", "Master of Puppets" and "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)"!
#1 Black Sabbath, "Paranoid" (1970) - The originators of the genre! Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward and Geezer Butler formed THE greatest Heavy Metal band in the world! Their second album "Paranoid" changed the world forever with songs like "War Pigs", "Paranoid" and "Iron Man"!

10/31/10 - HAPPY HALLOWEEN! - TOP 10 "THE SIMPSON'S TREEHOUSE OF HORROR" (Sequences) -
I love Halloween and I love The Simpsons, even after all these years I still never miss an episode! So, the perfect combination is of course The Simpson's Halloween Special "Treehouse of Horror". Since it first aired on Oct. 24, 1990, I have always looked forward to every Simpsons Halloween Special (even though in recent years it has aired in November!) and here CHERNOBOG'S LAIR presents the Top 10 Simpson's Treehouse of Horror (Sequences, not episodes)!

#10 "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse," (Ep. XIX, 11/02/2008) In a homage to the Peanuts classic "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" except this time the great pumpkin comes and goes on a rampage!

#9 "Starship Poopers" (Ep. IX, 10/25/1998) Maggie is the illegitimate child between Marge and Kang, then they end up on the Jerry Springer Show!?

#8 "The Thing and I" (Ep. VII, 10/27/1996) Bart Simpson and his separated conjoined twin Hugo!

#7 "The Island Of Dr. Hibbert" (Ep. XIII, 11/03/2002) The Simpsons are turned into animals in a parody of the "Island of Dr. Moreau"!

#6 "Desperately Xeeking Xena" (Ep. X, 10/31/1999) Bart and Lisa become superheroes and Comic Book Guy becomes the villain The Collector and kidnaps Xena (Lucy Lawless)!

#5 "Hungry are the Damned" (Ep. I, 10/24/1991) This is the first appearance of alien invaders Kang and Kodos, who have appeared in every Halloween special since!

#4 "The Shinning" (Ep. V, 10/30/1994) A Simpsons parody of Stanley Kubrick/Jack Nicholson's version of Stephen King's "The Shining"! And no, I didn't spell it wrong!

#3 "The Devil and Homer Simpson" (Ep. IV, 10/30/1995) Homer sells his soul for a donut, classic!

#2 "Dial 'Z' for Zombie" (Ep. III, 10/29/1992) The Simpsons + Zombies = Awesome! Homer: "Take that Washington! Eat lead, Einstein! Show's over Shakespeare!"
#1 "The Raven" (Ep. I, 10/24/1991) This is and always will be my favorite sequence! As a Simpson's and Edgar Allan Poe fan, this was perfect, although they did shorten the poem it was portrayed beautifully and masterfully read by James Earl Jones!

9/5/10 - Anime Fest in Dallas!
I always look forward to Labor Day Weekend, it's like the last breath of summer before the fall starts along with school. Among the many comic/anime conventions around the Dallas area, one event has always been one of my favorites and that is Anime Fest Dallas! Held annually at the Hyatt Regency Dallas at Reunion Tower, Anime Fest is a non-profit organization for fans of Japanese Animation where many come from miles around to view new anime, buy & trade merchandise, "and just reveling in all that is anime." I've been a devoted fan and patron of Anime Fest since 1996 where it was held at a small Dallas Holiday Inn with only a small vendor room and one viewing room where we watched bootleg and fan(poorly)-dubbed anime on VHS! Since then it has grown into a huge annual event. Although it may not be as large as Dallas' A-Kon in June, it certainly brings a large number of fans with a huge vendor room, games, viewing, art show and costumes. (Oh, so many Cosplayers!) Anime Fest is always a satisfying convention and usually not as overcrowded as A-Kon, however with every year it seems to grow and grow, which is fine except it will eventually grow out of the venue and move to a less convenient location. Those of us who live within the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex know we don't have the biggest public transportation system in-between the cities and smaller suburbs but thankfully the TRE (Trinity Railway Express) is reliable and affordable enough and with the Anime Fest being located at Reunion Tower, the trains last stop comes to Union Station which drops you off right at the downstairs entrance to the hotel. This years Anime Fest, like always was a great hit and with special guests like director Kazuyoshi Katayama (Appleseed, Big O) and musical act Nirgilis, a Japanese Techno band, was definitely a success! I must admit that in recent years I have not been able to endure all 4 days of the convention to the fullest and usually the best days to come is Saturday or Sunday. Unfortunately, I find myself getting older lately and having been an Anime Fest patron for the last 14 years I find that the majority of patrons usually range from within the 15 to 24 year old crowd and feel I have grown out of a lot of the more popular recent anime titles. As I am mostly an old-school type of anime (Gundam, Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Evangelion) fan I can still find enough merchandise and I always enjoy the various panels and vendors Anime Fest has to offer and I still love seeing all the costumes and cosplayers. Over the years I have observed the changing trends of anime fans and cosplayers with many popular titles whereas a few years ago it was a very heavy Inu Yasha crowd, whereas in recent years fans of other more recent titles such as Full Metal Alchemist, Bleach and Deathnote (or whatever Cartoon Network is showing currently!) gain more popularity. Many of the vendors mostly specialize in toys and other anime knick-knacks along with cosplay (costuming) vendors along with the various sub-cultures for punk, goth and steam-punk varieties. One bizarre fad this year seemed to be the popularity of these curious Japanese pajama-like hoodies called kigurumi, everybody was wearing them! The best experience I had at this years Anime Fest was that I got to meet director Kazuyoshi Katayama and got his autograph and then later was able to view a very special screening of his new anime film King of Thorn, which was a real treat and many of he fans also seemed to like it. Well, I'm looking forward to next years Anime Fest and hope any fellow anime fans out there in the area will join me!
Official Site: http://www.animefest.org/

8/21/10 - TOP 10 80'S CARTOONS - With the resurgence of 80's toy properties in movies and TV I felt like I should acknowledge those cartoons which entertained millions of kids (like myself) during the 1980's! It was a great time to be a kid and I like many others spent countless Saturday mornings glued to some of the most groundbreaking and exciting cartoons ever! Here goes...

#10 "Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends" (1981) After several cartoons featuring the popular web-slinger, Marvel decided to team Spider-Man up with two other heroes: Iceman and Firestar! (and a dog named Miss Lion?)

#9 "Super-Friends: The Legendary Super Powers Show" (1984) Although technically a continuation from the 1973 "Super-Friends" cartoon but in a new format with new super-heroes like Firestorm and villains including Darkseid!

#8 "Voltron: Defender of the Universe" (1985) An American version of the Japanese anime series "Go-Lion".

#7 "Robotech" (1985) An American version of the Japanese anime series "Macross".

#6 "Defenders of the Earth" (1986) Flash Gordon: Savior of the Universe, The Phantom: The Ghost Who Walks, Mandrake: The Magician and Lothar? VS. Ming the Merciless!

#5 "Thundercats" (1986) This was one of the most popular series of the 80's and one of the longest running. "Thundercats Ho!"

#4 "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" (1983) One of the most defining cartoons of the 80's and one of the biggest toy lines also!

#3 "The Real Ghostbusters" (1986) (Not to be confused with Filmation's "Ghostbusters") After the successful "Ghostbusters" (1984) film Columbia created a spin-off cartoon series with the ghost Slimer as a "mascot"?

#2 "Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye" (1984) Probably THE most popular cartoon of the 1980's which have survived in numerous incarnations over the years and spawned the blockbuster movies by director Michael Bay!
#1 "G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero" (1983) After two successful mini-series G.I. Joe earned its own long running series which ran until 1989. This was ultimately my favorite cartoon and also toy series (for which I had VERY many of, even the aircraft carrier!)

8/1/10 - RIDE FOR DIME 2010

This Saturday, I got to participate in a yearly celebration of the life of one of my favorite musicians. Since the tragic death of Pantera/Damageplan guitarist Darrel "Dimebag" Abbott in 2004, local bands get together for a charitable music event to honor 'Dimebag' called "RIDE FOR DIME". This year it was held at the Dreamworld Music Complex in Arlington, Texas. The event started at 3:15pm at Longhorn Harley Davidson in Grand Prairie, Texas where hundreds of bikers rode their motorcycles down to the Dreamworld Music Complex hosting an all-night long concert starting at 4pm featuring: Cowboys from Hell Paso, Texas Hippie Coalition, Pumpjack, White Collar Ghetto, Sweettooth, Soulless Intent, Conviction, Threat Level, Whiskey Dick, and 100 Proof Hatred. The whole event was to benefit "Little Kids Rock" an organization which brings musical instruments to children, the event was hosted by local radio station 97.1 The Eagle. I had been a fan of Pantera and Damageplan for several years and was one of many who was deeply saddened by 'Dimebag's' untimely death at the hands of a crazy, gun-toting fan while performing in Columbus, Ohio in 2004. I had the privilege of seeing Pantera performing live several times in Dallas but was not able to see 'Dimebag' play live with Damageplan. Unfortunately this is the first time I had heard of "Ride for Dime" but was excited to be a part of it. Obviously, I didn't own a Harley so I did not take part in the actual "ride" for Dime but was able to attend the benefit concert held at Dreamworld Music Complex, which surprisingly was more like a converted barn turned into a club. Outside was a sweltering 100 degrees Texas heat and unfortunately almost as hot inside too. Around the complex was parked over hundreds of motorcycles, more than I've ever seen. There were several booths and tents outside, some selling various merchandise along with booths for The Eagle and also The Clubhouse, a local Dallas strip club once owned by Pantera. The experience was unique from other concerts I had been to recently, I was never much of a clubber and the environment of the place seemed more like a biker bar. There was lots of bikers, scantly clad girls and beer, lots and lots of beer! I never felt unwanted as the event attracted all kinds of people. The majority of attendees were mostly bikers and local musicians. I was impressed to see a lot of people donning Black Label Society vests and 'Dimebag' T-shirts and I felt like I was participating in something for charity, and that's good. Some of the bands weren't bad and I admit I had not heard of many of them since I have not been too much into the local music scene since college. One band in particular I was most impressed with instead of all the Pantera "wannabes" was a duo called Whiskey Dick, a duo of acoustic/electric guitar players with a country/metal theme, they were rough and with a raunchy sense of humor but I was really impressed when they performed a cover of Zakk Wylde's "In This River" a tribute to 'Dimebag'. Besides the heat, the whole event was quite an experience, I look forward to next year's "Ride for Dime".

6/22/10 - "THE BIG FOUR LIVE"!

    On June, 22 2010, I got to experience a unique concert/movie: "THE BIG FOUR" LIVE - METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER & ANTHRAX! Live from from the Sonisphere Festival in Sofia, Bulgaria, broadcasted via satellite to thousands of movie theaters in the world. Although being away from home at a convention in Kansas City, Missouri, I was able to get tickets online. This movie was only showing for one day, one time only! Even at $18 a ticket, it was well worth it to see this rare concert event rather than having to travel halfway across the globe to Bulgaria of all places to see this one time concert. Never in the last 30 years have all four of these bands (most of all my favorites) been on the same venue at once! Metallica (being THE biggest of the four) of course had top billing but having Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax together was truly a special treat. The movie began at 7:30pm in one of the smaller screens in the theater. More like watching a Pay-Per-View show at home, a Dish Network satellite menu popped up to play the movie on the big screen. Thankfully without any signal loss the movie played without interference for four and a half hours! I was surprised however that the turnout for this once-in-a-lifetime event was very sparse with only 20-25 attendees in the theater. The movie started somewhat slow as the cameras would show scenes of the crowd as they filled the stadium and even sitting through the sound check for almost thirty minutes but with a few candid interviews with Lars Ulrich (Metallica), Scott Ian (Anthrax) and Dave Mustaine (Megadeth) as a group and a single interview with Kerry King (Slayer) about the concert. Although some may be surprised to see that even a European audience at a metal concert is not all that different from an American metal concert. I feel like we we're part of one worldwide Metal family! The significance of "The Big Four" comes from these four bands being the originators of the Thrash genre of Heavy Metal Music from the Southern California, Los Angeles and San Francisco area with Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer. Although originally from New York Anthrax is also included in The Big Four with their own unique style of thrash which all derives from hard rock and punk/hardcore influences. Anthrax is also one of the few metal bands who collaborated with rap artists with their 1991 version of "Bring the Noise". Although several of these bands have toured together it is between Metallica and Megadeth who have had the biggest rivalry for years as lead singer/guitarist Dave Mustaine was originally a member of Metallica.
    Finally, the concert began as ANTHRAX first took the stage. Although the band has gone through several incarnations with different singers recently including John Bush but for this event, Anthrax reunited (again) with fan-favorite singer Joey Belladonna. As they began a backdrop featuring the cover of their 1987 album Among The Living. They opened with "Caught in a Mosh" the band put on an impressive set with popular songs like "Madhouse", "Metal Thrashing Mad", "I Am The Law", "Got The Time", "Antisocial" and "Indians" where Joey donned a long, colorful, Native American headdress and raced back and forth on the stage. During the set they also did a short tribute to Ronnie James Dio in playing an excerpt from "Heaven and Hell"! Although vocalist Joey Belladonna was noticeably unable to hit some of those high register notes that he was able to back in 1985 watching his natural energy and seeing Scott Ian's hyper style of playing it was clear that the definitive version of Anthrax is back and played a great set beginning the Big Four event!
    Following Anthrax was MEGADETH, beginning and ending with "Holy Wars...Punishment Due" in front of a backdrop depicting the cover to 1990's Rust In Peace album. This event is full of reunions as original bassist David Ellefson, who had returned after 8 years, rejoined Megadeth. With Dave Mustaine's signature vocal-styling and virtuoso playing Megadeth performed "Headcrusher", "Countdown To Extinction", "In My Darkest Hour", "Sweating Bullets" and of course "Peace Sells". Despite the clear weather during Anthrax's set as Megadeth came on ironically dark clouds formed and began raining down hard on the crowd. Although much of the stage was dry it was unclear whether the rain would ruin such a monumental event as many of the attendees put on many colorful rain ponchos. The rain also had an affect on the filming of the concert as the camera man who were very noticeable several of the cameras were flecked with water spots. Megadeth put on a great show with no signs of slowing down on their trademark speed and technical musical expertise. Although Dave Mustaine was not very responsive with the crowd until the end, it was definitely an impressive set. Finally as Megadeth finished up with "Peace Sells" the rain stopped but the dark clouds filled the sky in preparation for the next band.
    SLAYER appeared next in front of a dark red splotched background resembling the design of their newest album World Painted Blood (2009) Among thrash/heavy metal Slayer has to be the darkest and heaviest of the Big Four, having influenced many death metal bands. Also in this event marks singer Tom Araya's return to touring after his back surgery earlier this year. With the original lineup of Slayer together since 2001 with original drummer Dave Lombardo Slayer is just as powerful as ever. Starting with "World Painted Blood" and "Hate Worldwide" they also performed "South of Heaven", "War Ensemble", "Chemical Warfare", "Angel of Death" and of course "Raining Blood" following an ear-pounding onslaught of dissonant feedback as guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King stood against the amplifiers with their backs to the audience for at least a full 5 minutes, which got a huge response out of the crowd!
    Despite the slow beginning to the concert film, there were NO breaks between sets, only a brief animation of Sonisphere's logo accompanied by a excerpt from Metallica's "Broken, Beat & Scarred" from Death Magnetic. For such a long concert you'd think there would be at least an intermission halfway through! Thankfully there was a short 10 minute break before Metallica came on with interviews from the band on the passing of Ronnie James Dio. As night fell the stage was set up for Metallica's set, instead of a backdrop there was a large video screen behind the stage along with the other two smaller screens on either side of the stage throughout the whole concert.

METALLICA began their set with their signature theme music "The Ecstasy of Gold" by Ennio Morricone, borrowed from the soundtrack to the Clint Eastwood western film "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" with a scene from the film being played on the screens Metallica entered playing "Creeping Death" followed by "For Whom The Bell Tolls". Megadeth also performed "Cyanide", "Master of Puppets" along with "Fade to Black" featuring an acoustic intro by front man James Hetfield and also an impressive pyrotechnic display for the introduction of "One". After finishing with an energetic performance of "Seek and Destroy" with new bassist Robert Trujillo's now famous spinning bass act, Metallica soon returned for a monumental encore performance in what would be, as James described the "The Big Four" event as "history is happening right now!" The stage was filled with extra equipment as Metallica was joined by almost every member of both Anthrax, Megadeth, and Slayer to perform a cover of "Am I Evil" by Diamond Head! It was quite a site to see as there were at least 15 musicians on stage playing together, especially seeing both James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine side by side playing together after 27 years!
"The Big Four Live" was definitely not something to be missed by any heavy metal fan! Although such a rare performance, it was successfully broadcasted via satellite in movie theaters all around the world, it's a wonder why they chose such an obscure venue for the concert after all but it proved to be a phenomenal event. "The Big Four Live" was comparably the "Woodstock" of Heavy Metal and anyone who missed it should be kicking themselves with a steel-toed boot! http://www.thebigfourlive.com/

6/10/10 - IRON MAIDEN IN DALLAS!
    Last night was one of the greatest concerts I have ever seen! IRON MAIDEN with Dream Theater at the Superpages.com Center in Dallas, Texas! Starting at 7:30pm, I was really worried about the weather. The Superpages.com Center (formerly Smirnoff Music Center) is a partial open air amphitheater with the a covered stage and seating pavilion with a sloping lawn seating area. I have been to the music center before (Ozzfest) and I decided to get tickets for the Lawn seating since the price was cheaper but as the date for the show approached I started to reconsider my decision. This week had been very hot and humid with temperatures in the mid 90s but when thunderstorms came in Wednesday morning, I feared the worst. Although my tickets said "Rain or Shine" I was determined not to miss this concert, so I came prepared with a disposable rain poncho and a towel. Thankfully when I got to Fair Park the weather was clearing up, cloudy but not raining. As night fell, the weather was almost perfect, still very humid (Texas Summer!) but cloudy and with cool breezes and temperatures in the high 70s. The amphitheater was already mostly full and I was glad I got lawn seating because I was in view of a large suspended video screen. The opening band Dream Theater started about 5 minutes early, and played about an hour. I was familiar with Dream Theater and their progressive metal/synthesizer styling's as they performed several songs including "Pull Me Under". Dream Theater put on an impressive show and got the crowd going although there was a long, at least 30 minute break between shows while they were setting up for Iron Maiden.
    As it started to get dark, around 9pm, the lights went out and with a star-filled backdrop amongst a spaceship-like stage with flashing red lights they played a clip from the classical piece "Mars" from "The Planets" by Gustav Holst. As images of space-scenes came up on the screen "Mars" grew louder and Iron Maiden appeared on-stage playing "Wicker Man" from their 2000 album "Brave New World"! As most audiences are familiar with Iron Maiden's huge stage productionswith classic tours like "Somewhere In Time" and "Live After Death", with the release of their new album "The Final Frontier" in August, their stage setup reflects more of the spaceship/futuristic theme of the album. Most Iron Maiden shows usually start with a sound clip of Winston Churchill's beginning the song "Aces High" from 1982's "Powerslave" but this tour marks a whole new beginning! This tour also marks a change with Iron Maiden as most Maiden fans are used to hearing many older hits at their concerts such as "2 Minutes to Midnight" or "Run To The Hills", however most of this show featured songs from more recent albums like "Brave New World" and "Dance of Death" (2003) such as "No More Lies" and "A Matter of Life and Death" (2006) with "These Colours Don't Run" which may have been disappointing to some fans however I thought it was a welcome change and a treat to hear newer songs. As the 2-hour set went on, they also played a new song from the new album "El Dorado" which is available for free mp3 download on IRON MAIDEN.com.
Towards the end of the show they performed "Fear of the Dark" and of course their signature song "Iron Maiden" in the finale in which they brought out the bands mascot 'Eddie'! Eddie has always been a major part of Iron Maiden shows since the beginning and is usually featured in the shows finale as either a puppet or costumed/animatronic character dressed as either a zombie, a mummy, or a cyborg, but with the new album Eddie has been transformed into a giant alien creature! With an impressive encore they performed some older favorites starting with 'The Number of the Beast', featuring an impressive, ominous devil to the right of the stage and then finished off with "Hallowed Be Thy Name" and "Running Free"! As the concert came to an end and the road crew started their cleanup as the crowd dispersed, in true Maiden/British fashion they played 'Monty Python's' song "Always Look On The Bright Side of Life" from "The Life of Brian" over the sound system. The energy was high and Iron Maiden was definitely in top form, this was truly a great concert experience! IRON MAIDEN RULES!
    On a personal note: Anybody who considers themselves an Iron Maiden "FAN" and then curses and boo's the band for not playing enough of their older songs, is NOT really a fan. In the world of live music and especially heavy metal, any band or artist must evolve and grow and play new songs along with old favorites to stay alive and fresh, keeping both fans young and old cheering and raising their devil-horns! "You can't please all of the people all of the time." - Abraham Lincoln. Another thing, I was surprised at the number of people taking video and pictures with their phones and cameras, most concerts I've been too usually discourage this but as I could see hundreds of lights from phones and cameras in the audience I suppose the event staff and security didn't care, so I got a few videos and pics myself but from Lawn seating, you can't see very much!
(Picture of Alien Eddie from Twitter @IronMaidenFC)

5/21/2010 - 30th Anniversary of "The Empire Strikes Back"
On May 21, 1980, the most anticipated sequel to THE greatest Sci-Fi epic was released: "Star Wars: Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back"! Considered by most Star Wars fans to be the best episode in the Original Trilogy, Episode V remains one of the darkest and most revealing in all of the trilogy. When the first Star Wars movie was released in May 1977, no one, not even its creator George Lucas could imagine the impact on popular culture as well as the influence on modern filmmaking the Star Wars franchise made. If you have never seen the original trilogy and even if you have only seen the more recent prequel trilogy you are completely missing out. On a personal level Star Wars has made a significant impact on my life since I was very young. I admit truthfully that I was born 2 years after the original movie was released and too young to even enjoy the initial release of Episode V. However I was able to enjoy the earlier films on the newly emerging video market, and I thank my Dad who was working in the electronics industry who allowed me to see those movies in the comfort of our own home. Already a fan by the age of 3, I had amassed a collection of Vintage Star Wars Toys that would make the modern collector weep. I still have many of my original toys also. One of my first Star Wars memories is getting to see Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi in the theaters when I was about 4 and even at a one of the now extinct drive-ins. Ever since then I have been and always shall be a Star Wars fan. I would spend my childhood playing, acting out, wearing costumes, spending countless hours watching the videos. I am not as obsessive a fan (although I'd like to be!) No matter how much Star Wars stuff I have or how much I quote it on a day-to-day basis, BUT I am not a member of the 501st Legion, I do not own Stormtrooper armor or a Jedi costume, I don't even own one of those fancy lightsaber toys. I am very much a purist Star Wars fan. I have many issues with the re-released "Special Editions" from 1997 (i.e. Greedo shoots first!) as well as the 1999 release of the first prequel "Episode I: The Phantom Menace" (Don't even get me started) but that is not what this blog entry is about... It is hard to imagine it's been 30 years since the Empire Struck Back and even longer since the original Star Wars, I hope to post here in the next 3 years for the 30 year anniversary of "Return of the Jedi" which in my heart is still my favorite. I hope fellow fans are reading this and share my love of Star Wars! So to put it simply: Happy 30th Anniversary "Empire Strikes Back" and "May The Force Be With You"! Also be sure to check out Star Wars Weekends at Disney World this month, it is quite an event for any Star Wars fan young and old alike!
See Star Wars.com for more!

5/16/2010 - Farewell to Ronnie James Dio (1942-2010)
Ronnie James Dio was truly a Heavy Metal god! After a long battle with stomach cancer, Dio passed away today, he was 67. Born Ronald James Padavona on July 10, 1942 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire to an Italian-American family, he possessed a unique and powerful voice. Originally the singer for bands like Elf and Rainbow, Dio revolutionized 70's power metal with elements of Dungeons & Dragons-like sword and sorcery that would influence many 80's metal bands. In 1979 he replaced Ozzy Osbourne as the vocalist for Black Sabbath for a short time and helped to revitalize the band with albums such as "Heaven and Hell" and "The Mob Rules". In 1982 Dio started his solo career with great albums like "Holy Diver", "The Last in Line' and "Dream Evil". During the 1990's Dio would return to Black Sabbath briefly and back to his solo projects until in 2006 when he rejoined Black Sabbath and then began touring as "Heaven and Hell" with Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi and bassist Geezer Butler. Dio's greatest claim to fame is his alleged creation of the trademark "devil horns" hand sign used with most heavy metal bands and fans alike. While this fact may be under debate, Dio would claim that the sign came from his Italian grandmother, known as "the Malocchio" or the evil eye. Despite the controversy, Ronnie James Dio has been a widely popular figure in heavy metal music with a devoted following from many personalities in the heavy metal scene and even actor/comedian/musician Jack Black (Tenacious D). Metal has lost one of its most important figures but he leaves behind a legacy of followers (i.e. Killswitch Engage's cover of Holy Diver) and will have a special place in the pantheon of Metal Gods!
See NY Time article on Dio: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/17/arts/music/17dio.html?src=mv

"Between the velvet lies,
There's a truth that's hard as steel,
The vision never dies,
Life's a never ending wheel."
- Dio, Holy Diver

4/20/2010 - Why I HATE Remakes!
    I LOVE movies! I have always loved movies! I am a huge Fanboy and I admit it! I may not be Harry Knowles, but I still consider myself a big nerd. I am the epitome of Weird Al Yankovic's song "White & Nerdy", no kidding! Ask anybody, I'm a comic book collecting, "Star Wars" quoting, "Harry Potter" hating NERD! I have been reviewing movies on my own website since 2000 and I am a college graduate, so I can safely say I know a thing or two. And what I DO know is, I HATE remakes! Why does Hollywood consistently and persistently subject the movie going crowd with remakes, "re-imagining's" and pathetic adaptations of the films we know and love with remake after remake of those very movies we have watched for years! Nowhere do these remake atrocities happen more often than in the genre of horror and science-fiction. Aliens, Zombies, Vampires and Werewolves are prime targets for the remake. Heaven forbid Hollywood would even attempt to remake the real classics! Would they even dare to touch those timeless classics like "Citizen Kane", "Ben-Hur", "Gone with the Wind", "The Wizard of Oz", or even "The Godfather"? Don't put it past them, I bet they would try if given the chance! Unfortunately, that doesn't stop them from remaking those classic horror and sci-fi films, perfect examples being "The Day the Earth Stood Still", "War of the Worlds", "The Omen" and even "Psycho"!
    After several decades it seems like those classic movies are up for grabs as Hollywood runs out of original ideas and says "Hey, lets remake something!" I'm never surprised when some ambitious (or foolish) director or producer (i.e. Gus Van Sant) takes it upon themselves to remake a movie and thinks they can improve upon (if that's even possible). What gall, what arrogance, what an idiot! To think, that they can take a classic, loved and watched by millions for over 50 years can possibly remake a movie and try to outdo those moviemakers who without them, they wouldn't even exist. If there was no Akira Kurosawa or Alfred Hitchcock, there'd be no George Lucas or Steven Spielberg! Without John Ford or Victor Flemming, there would be no Francis Ford Coppola or Martin Scorsese! The filmmakers of today, now rolling around in their pile of millions of dollars, owe a lot to those original innovators who made the film industry what it is today and influenced countless others to pursue the motion picture! And now, even with all the fancy-ass computer (CGI) graphics and 3D technology (Thanks a lot James Cameron!) Has technology replaced plot and story, has the shaky-cam replaced the steady-cam? When was real acting replaced by motion-capture?!
    After all this ranting, I feel I must address the newest addition to the revolting remake, and this movie is "The Clash of the Titans" (2010)! What would Ray Harryhausen think about this latest disaster? (and yes, he's still alive!) The original "Clash of the Titans" (1981) was always one of my favorite movies, I grew up watching it along with the original "Star Wars" (NOT the screwed up "Special Editions", Greedo shoots first, my ass!) and many others! I loved "Clash of the Titans" because it included two of my favorite things: mythology and monsters! Just the classic image itself is enough to induce awe, Perseus, riding atop Pegasus with Medusa's head in his hand as he confronts the Kraken, awesome! The original was pure fantasy-adventure with a solid story, a logical quest with some classy talent with actors like Laurence Olivier as Zeus and Burgess Meredith as Ammon. With Harry Hamlin, a relatively unknown new star, playing Perseus, it didn't bring him much fame. But what really made the original truly amazing was the special visual effects works of Ray Harryhausen, which would be one of the last films he created effects for. Harryhausen was already famous for his work in stop-motion animation and creatures during the '50's, 60's and '70's with such films as "Jason and the Argonauts" (1963) and "The Golden Voyage of Sinbad" (1974) back then when special effects was truly art and took talent and painstaking work by hand, and NO computers! But really, the thing that sets it apart was that "Clash of the Titans" was FUN! Adventure! Excitement! ("a Jedi craves not these things"...lol) That's what it was all about. Nowadays we rationalize the special effects with they did the best they could with what they had or at that time that was state of the art but now...who cares! You can't base the lasting ability of movies like that or even the original Star Wars Trilogy (before the revamped edition!)
    The new REMAKE of "Clash..." leaves much to be desired. I admit when I first heard about it, I was excited, I thought maybe it could be good. I saw the trailer and knew without a doubt it was gonna be a huge special effects movie, that's fine. I'm guilty of occasionally liking the big special effects movies. Take "Avatar", I loved it, I plan on buying the Blu-ray/DVD! But, I had my doubts though. I was interested in the director: Louis Leterrier, who directed "The Incredible Hulk" (2008) and "The Transporter" (2002), Great! On the plus side, Liam Neeson is Zeus! Great! Ralph Fiennes is Hades, great, only one problem: Hades wasn't in the original. That was strike one! Strike Two: Sam Worthington, why is he in everything now! He was just in THE BIGGE$T movie of all time "Avatar" like three months ago, when did he find the time to do another big, 3D, CG special effects, action movie! Ok, Strike 3! The BIG problem: The Mythology. For those who didn't pay attention in school when we studied Greek Mythology, you failed! And apparently so did Louis Leterrier. The mythology is so screwed up that it completely destroys the story and Perseus' origin even. Sure the original didn't get everything right (namely Pegasus), but the biggest gripe being that they made Perseus' mother Danae the wife of Acrisius who originally was his daughter?! WTF? AND they have Acrisius turned into Calibos, one of the villains. Why? Are they even trying, do they even care? Does anybody care? Apparently not! I could go on forever so I'll just say why does Hollywood have to sacrifice a fun adventure with CG/3D BS!?

3/15/2010 - I Love All-Con
On March 12-14 my friend Russell and I procured a booth at this year's All-Con 2010 in Addison, Texas! All-Con is an independent convention for fans of several genres including Science Fiction, Fantasy, Renaissance, Anime, Costuming, Theater/Performing Arts, Mystery, Art, Crafts, Collecting, and Film Making! I have been a patron at All-Con since 2006 as a big fan of Sci-Fi/Fantasy, anime and an occasional costumer (guilty!). After blowing my money on the various collectibles and such for years, I thought it would be a change to become an actual vendor at the con to give a little back (and make some money because I'm broke!) So I teamed up with my best friend and writer Russell C. Connor to run a booth where he would sell his awesome novels for Dark Filament Books and I would sell a multitude of comic books, graphic novels, toys, action figures and collectibles I had been accumulating for years! For three days and a total of 17 hours we got to experience the con much differently than previous years. Since I'm not there as a customer I had to treat this like a job and was unfortunately not able to experience all the things the con had to offer except after the vendor's room was closed but there was plenty afterwards and long into the night! I love the costumes, all the crazy people you meet and even a few celebrities. I myself was able to meet Larry Hama the writer of the Marvel "G.I. Joe" comic books from the 1980's which I grew up collecting. I also got to see the local metal band Urizen awesome! I also got to experience a demo in Female Roller Derby with Assassination City DAMN those girls are hot! All in all I'd say this year was a great convention. I made a little money and had lots of fun, although I lost some sleep and also my health (I have been suffering from bronchitis for weeks now!) but we still managed to run a successful booth. Hope to see you at All-Con 2011 next year!

2/28/2010 - An Adventure in Disappointment!
    This Saturday, I had the chance to go a VERY special book signing! On Saturday, February 27, @ 3pm: OZZY (****ING!) OSBOURNE!!!! came to sign his new autobiography "I Am Ozzy" at the Barnes & Noble in Dallas, TX at Lincoln Park. I have been a huge Ozzy fan for years and to finally meet him face-to-face and get his autograph would be a dream come true! I had no idea how the whole day was going to play out and to think I should have called the store the night before to find the details BUT I didn't! I had planned on getting there early and when I say early for someone on a usual Saturday doesn't get up until at least noon, well you get the idea.
After close to an hour of driving I arrived at the store @ 10am. I expected absolute chaos with a massive line of hundreds around the block! But, to my amazement, there was nobody!?!? I walked up to the front doors where there was a small table with 2 employees sitting there. With my book in one hand and a fold-able chair in the other I was prepared for a lengthy wait. However, the employees informed me that many people had already arrived about 7:30 that morning! At first I was confused but then discovered that in order to attend the signing you had to first buy the book and then show your receipt to the people at the table in which you would receive an armband marked with a letter in the order you arrived. I had the bought the book on the day it was released at my own local store and thankfully still had the receipt inside as I had been using it as a bookmark. I got my armband (Letter "S") and was ready to wait. The particulars of the signing seemed to me very strict. They were handed on a lime green bookmark. They were as follows: (with commentary)
- "To ensure every one's safety, please be aware of the following rules.
- Failure to comply with these rules may result in removal from the event" (Wow!)
- The signing is on the 2nd floor
- The 2nd floor will be closed by security and closed off at 12:00 PM (Damn!)
- Your wristband is labeled with a Letter (Ok, I've figured out that much...)|
- 50 people are in each Letter Group (Yikes!)
- All Letter Groups will be asked to line up outside the store (At least it wasn't too cold.)
- Please do not line up prior to your Letter Group being called (Oh, man!)
- Each Letter Group will be led by event staff into the store to the escalator to be allowed upstairs (Achtung! Schnell, Schnell!)
- This is a Book signing ONLY- Please don not ask Ozzy to sign memorabilia or body parts (That one's my favorite!)
- Please do not stand on bookshelves or sit on tables (I have a funny story about that very thing, save it for later, lol!)
- Due to time constraints, no personalization will be allowed (crap!)
    Then they said to not come back until after 3pm! So now I had 5 hours to kill! Thankfully there is a really nice mall (Northpark Mall) across the street so, I got a matinee movie ticket to see "Cop Out" (pretty funny), got some lunch at Sonic and hung out at GameStop and bought a couple of cheap PS2 games (So I haven't upgraded to PS3 yet, so sue me!) I came back to the store around 2pm and found a circus! There was at least 1,000 people already lined up, the parking lot was FULL! Dallas cops EVERYWHERE! And there was even two vans from 97.1 The Eagle, the local rock station! Awesome! The line was only from letters A-D so I knew I had a long time to wait and the staff said Ozzy wouldn't even be there until 3:30. So I parked in a shady corner next to the UT store along with other fans set up my folding chair and waited...and waited...and waited...At least I had a book to read! LOL! (Oh and by the way, B&N closed the bathroom claiming it was "Out of Order" (Thankfully the restroom at the grocery store next door was still working!)
    Around 5pm my letter was finally called and I joined the line along with hundreds of others. The line wound around the cue for about an hour when I finally made it inside the store. The line progressed upstairs along the escalator and into another winding line through the bookshelves. After another half hour I finally reached the end of the line and could see Ozzy. He sat in the middle of the table surrounded by several B&N employees and I thought I could recognize Ozzy's tour manager behind him. The signing was very much like an assembly line. A B&N employee told me to place the book jacket onto the title page where he would sign it. As I was struggling to take a picture along with an annoying guy next to me Ozzy signed my book without even looking up and then the asshole manager rushed me along saying I was holding up the line. What a jerk! I didn't even get to speak to Ozzy or thank him! Still in shock starring at the signature (which didn't even look complete, more like "Ozzy Osb...") on my way down the escalator, exhausted and soaking with sweat. (I was still wearing my biker jacket after all.) I sat down at the Starbucks cafe downstairs got a frappachino and sat down to catch my breath and rest my feet, having just stood in line for over 2 hours. I didn't know whether to feel happy or disappointed, I did get to see him and he did sign my book for free so I guess...that's it then. See YouTube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXGsBhLJybE

2/6/2010 - Shen Yun in Dallas
I consider myself a reasonably cultured person. I have seen my share of art exhibits, museums, theater, opera, musicals as well as more multi-cultural performances. On the subject of religious tolerance I am very open, I respect most religious beliefs and practices, although I am not a religious person myself I can respect the wisdom of whether it be Jesus, Buddha or Mohamed. However, when someone tries to shove their religion in my face, we have a problem.
Tonight I went with my family to see The Shen Yun Performing Arts Group at the Dallas Fair Park Music Hall. I love most Asian cultures, especially Japanese and Ancient Chinese, but my knowledge of current events regarding the current state of Communist China, I must admit, is somewhat lacking. The Shen Yun group is a dance group from New York who perform traditional Chinese dances and tour all over the world. Although that is, until recently...The other day I read an article before seeing the show that Hong Kong had denied their travel Visas and cancelled their performances.
I did not think very much about this until I actually saw the show and realized that the show although featuring traditional Chinese dance does present a very religious and political message. I must commend the Shen Yun group for being bold enough to present their ideals as part of their art but I myself do have some issues in how they presented them.
The Shen Yun group did put on an amazing performance with very talented dancers, singers and musical performances. I myself love the sound of the traditional Chinese fiddle-like instrument called the erhu. There is a surprising amount of technical wizardry involved as there is a sophisticated theater sized video screen background featuring animated scenes of the heavens and breathtaking Chinese landscapes. There is a somewhat ulterior motive to this performance as it is a way for art to protest the oppression of the Chinese Communist Government. I had no idea just how authoritarian the Communists regime in China was, especially after Hong Kong was reclaimed from British Control in 1997 and gained sovereignty. As I do support the Shen Yun's defiance of Communist rule however their show also presents their strong religious beliefs in Falun Dafa a recent and growing, yet controversial Buddhist sect or even "cult" as some may call it.
While most of the show presents very traditional music and dances featuring lanterns, fans and drums. A few of their vignettes during the course of the show blatantly present their religious and political views. Two of their plays were very unusual, if not disturbing. One of their pieces entitled "Nothing Can Block the Divine Path" depicts a group of Chinese citizens engaging in Falun Dafa exercises, when a group of Communist "police" arrest a young mother, separating her from her child and beats her with clubs while the child watches. When the mother is then dragged to a detention center and killed, the father and child watch as Buddhas come down from the "heavens" and take her and destroy the detention center with lightning.
This episode depicting "divine intervention" is not the first as in a later segment titled "Astounding Conviction" depicts a solitary Chinese man standing in Tienanmen Square holding a banner which reads: "Falun Dafa is Good." Soon the police show up again and mercilessly beat and imprison him leaving him physically broken. Soon after, although he is healed and freed by a host of Buddha like figures who bestow him with superpowers and defeats the police.
The operatic musical performances are also not without less than subtle religious and political overtones especially from soprano Haolan Gong who continuously sings the lyrics "Centuries we have waited, Millenia have we longed, Divine beings now walk among men, Creation joyously follows along."
I went to the Shen Yun expecting the typical drums, fans and dragons but instead got more like "Buddha Christ: Superstar"! I enjoyed most of the music and dances with the more traditional Chinese mythological and Buddhism aspects but I question the use of Shen Yun to promote and publicize Falun Gong, which from what I have read is more like a Chinese version of Scientology. Do not misunderstand me, I appreciate art in all its forms and appreciate all cultures. Art is often political or religious in nature and I hope Shen Yun will continue to enlighten those who are unaware of the oppression of the Communist regime on the Chinese people. I only see fault in using it to "advertise".

12/30/2009 - TOP 10 VIDEO GAMES OF THE DECADE
For the most part I play mostly PS2 and PC games so I may be somewhat one sided but most of these were available on Xbox too...Amazingly 2001 was a great year for games!
#10 - Aliens VS. Predator 2 (2001) - A great shooter that came out even before the AVP movies. The game play was great incorporating the players ability to be either a Marine, Predator or Alien! Great!

#9 - Star Wars: Battlefront (2004) - Take any squad based war game and put it in the Star Wars universe and you have a great game. Battlefront 2 was even better by adding Jedi characters. Playing both rebel and Empire was great!

#8 - Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (2006) - This is a fun game especially for comic fans where you have a huge array of super-heroes to play with.

#7 - Spider-Man 2 (2002) - Even for a comic book movie tie-in game this was one of the best. The completely interactive New York City is fun by-itself as you web-sling your way through the Big Apple!

#6 - Grand Theft Auto III (2001) - This is probably THE most controversial game of the last decade, but it is still a fun experience, forget all the violence and the hookers, it's fun just to drive around in the city. Vice City goes hand in hand with this one too.

#5 - Resident Evil 4 (2005)- This redefined the Resident Evil series, which is still my favorite video game series ever since the first one! 2 is still my favorite but 4 brought Leon back and made him better.

#4 - Rock Band (2008)- Although I put "Guitar Hero" before this, it is still a fun music game and even better when you get friends together for the whole band!

#3 - Guitar Hero (2005)- This is still the best music rhythm game. I was a novice guitar player to begin with and I shamefully admit spending more hours playing this series than actually practicing my own electric guitar! The first was great, 2 was the best, 3 was good, but my favorite recently is Guitar Hero: Metallica! It rocks!

#2 - World of Warcraft (2004) - This is the best MMORPG of all time! I may not have been as engrossed in it as a lot of people and may have not leveled up as much, most of my playtime was spent just exploring the world! "For the Horde!"

#1 - HALO (2001) - This is the best first-person shooter ever! This changed everything. I spent a LOT of time playing multiplayer with friends and online. HALO 2 improved on the game play immensely and three was awesome. But I feel the first one deserves the #1 spot because it defined this decades gaming!

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