Category: Reviews

Richard Stark’s Parker: Slayground Graphic Novel Review

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date December 23, 2013
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As anyone who saw the misfiring movie Parker can attest, adapting the crime novels Donald Westlake wrote under the pseudonym Richard Stark is no easy task. But as he showed with his previous graphic novel adaptations of Stark’s Parker books, writer / artist Darwyn Cooke has a real sense of what makes the character, and his misadventures, so unique and engaging. One that serves well for him in Richard Stark’s Parker: Book Four: Slayground (hardcover, paperback, Kindle), the latest illustrated take on Stark’s master thief.

Tags Books, Darwyn Cooke, Reviews, Richard Stark, Slayground

Reviews Video Games Xbox One

EXCLUSIVE GAME REVIEW: Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date December 20, 2013
1 Comment on EXCLUSIVE GAME REVIEW: Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood

If there’s one thing you can say about most next-gen games that’ve come out so far, it’s that they kind of feel last-gen. Sure, they look amazing, and are fun in their own ways, but when you play such games as Ryse: Son Of Rome (my review of which you can read here) or Forza Motorsport 5 on the Xbox One, or such PlayStation 4 games as Knack or Killzone: Shadow Fall (which I also reviewed), you quickly realize they’re nothing we haven’t seen before.

And the same can be said for Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood, a puzzling, side-scrolling platformer for the Xbox One that’s good looking and engaging, but doesn’t do anything on Microsoft’s new system that couldn’t be done on their previous machine.

Tags Reviews, Video Games, Xbox One

DVDs/Blu-rays Movies Reviews

Elysium Blu-ray, DVD Review

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date December 16, 2013
No Comments on Elysium Blu-ray, DVD Review

Now available on DVD and Blu-ray, Elysium was one of the more interesting sci-fi movies of 2013. But it was also one of the most obviously flawed, and pointlessly so (as I noted in my review of the film).

But if you were able to get past its issues, the Blu-ray of the movie has lots of fun extras for fans of the film.

The DVD however…

Tags Blu-rays, DVDs, Elysium, Elysium Blu-ray, Elysium Blu-ray Review, Elysium DVD, Elysium DVD Review, Movies, Reviews, Sci-Fi

DVDs/Blu-rays Reviews TV

EXCLUSIVE DVD/BLU-RAY REVIEW: The Simpsons: The Sixteenth Season

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date December 3, 2013
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Ever since The Simpsons: The Complete First Season came out in 2001, the people who put together The Simpsons DVDs, and now Blu-rays, have shown that they knew exactly what fans of that show — heck, every show — would want from a seasonal set. And, thankfully, they clearly didn’t lose sight of that when constructing the newest, The Simpsons: The Sixteenth Season.

Tags Blu-rays, DVDs, Reviews, The Simpsons, TV

PlayStation 4 Reviews Video Games

EXCLUSIVE GAME REVIEW: Tiny Brains

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date December 2, 2013
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Tiny Brains may have most misleading name of any game in recent memory. Sure, it’s catchy, and clearly made for sequel-izing (Tinier Brains, Tiny Brains II: More Brainier…), but the fact remains that this downloadable, physics-based puzzling platformer for the PlayStation 4 requires you to have something better than a tiny brain if you want any hope of succeeding.

Tags PlayStation 4, Reviews, Video Games

PlayStation Vita Reviews Video Games

Tearaway Review

As the latest game from LittleBigPlanet creators Media Molecule, you’d expect Tearaway — a puzzling platformer for the PlayStation Vita — to be as adorable as it is inventive.

Happily, Tearaway doesn’t disappoint in this regard. Or any other for that matter.

Tags games, gaming, Reviews, Tearaway, Tearaway PlayStation Vita, Tearaway PlaySTation Vita Review, Tearaway Review, Tearaway Vita, Tearaway Vita Review, Video Games, Vita

Music Reviews

John Coltrane: “Afro Blue Impressions” Review

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date November 27, 2013
1 Comment on John Coltrane: “Afro Blue Impressions” Review

Not to put too fine a point on it, but Afro Blue Impressions by John Coltrane’s classic quartet is one of the best live jazz albums ever made, by him or anyone else, and represents a high water mark in the career of a true artist.

Now this classic collection has remastered and augmented for a new expanded edition (CD, digital, vinyl). And while it does have some issues, it’s still an improved version of an already great album.

Tags Afro Blue Impressions, Afro Blue Impressions Review, Jazz, John Coltrane, John Coltrane Afro Blue Impressions, John Coltrane Afro Blue Impressions Review, music, Reviews

Reviews Video Games Xbox One

“Ryse: Son Of Rome” Review

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date November 27, 2013
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As one of the launch titles for the Xbox One, Ryse: Son Of Rome obviously carries a heavy burden. But if you’re able to put aside your expectations for what a next-gen game might be, you’ll find that Ryse overly simplistic but still fun action game.

Tags Reviews, Ryse: Son Of Rome, Ryse: Son Of Rome Review, Video Games, Xbox One

Music Reviews

Rush’s “Clockwork Angels Tour” Review

Post author By Paul Semel
Post date November 26, 2013
4 Comments on Rush’s “Clockwork Angels Tour” Review

With Clockwork Angels Tour (CD, digital), the iconic rock band have released their fifth live album in ten years. Which, even to longtime fans, might seem like overkill. But with the group trying something different this time around — something they’ve never done before, and may never do again — this concert collection is the most unique live album the band have released in ten years, perhaps ever.

Tags music, Reviews, Rush, Rush Clockwork Angels, Rush Clockwork Angels Tour, Rush Clockwork Angels Tour CD, Rush Clockwork Angels Tour Review