Bleach 607: The Master

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/607

The battle at the Soul Palace continues, and Ichibei has started to step up his attack, while Juha Bach starts to show some new abilities he has in his arsenal.  However, no matter what Juha Bach throws at Ichibei, "The Eccentric Monk" seems to be able to overpower or shrug off everything thrown at him.  He tells Juha Bach that he should "learn his place" as a "human," and that his attempt to cut Juha Bach's power in half was an attempt to help him "save face" with the Quincy for being defeated.  Then, Ichibei pulls the brush off his zanpakuto in the final panel, calling out its' name: Ichimonji.  His zanpakuto appears to be naginata-style spear, with the only visual change being the brush has been replaced with a blade.  It's abilities are, as of yet, unknown.  

Five Nights at Freddy's 2

By: Robert Murphy

As if the animatronic nightmare that was set forth in the first Five Nights at Freddy's wasn't enough, now the developer has released a sequel of the terrifying indie horror game onto us all. Five Nights at Freddy's 2 sounds like it would be a much more easier affair on your heart as now you have your own flash light and a Freddie mask to avoid some of the dangers but wait.....what the heck? Where are my safety doors, the little net under the trapeze wire that made me feel safe and happy. Those are gone and now you sit looking down a large hallway as doom approaches you and the doors to the left and right of you have been replaced with ventilation shafts into which the characters like to crawl through to tear your face off. The danger is now even more adrenaline provoking and Freddie and his new friends are out to get you like never before. 

Your questionable career choices seem to follow you into the sequel for Five Nights, even though the pay is a few dollars less too. A newly renovated pizza emporium awaits you here and Freddie and his pals have all been decommissioned and left half destroyed creations of terror and replaced by newer and sleeker models of their predecessors. This does not make the new Freddie and his friends any less terrifying though, technology may have made them look better but they're prettier painted faces of joy still inspired me to crap myself just as much. However, new robots also have come to this Chuck E. Cheese style nightmare, a balloon dispensing child and puppet themed creation and both bring new challenges to the game with them. The aptly named Balloon Boy doesn't really attack you in the way the other robots do, no this grinning, smiling and laughing pain in the butt will instead block the main hallway on you and not allow you to shine your flash light on his friends. This is a huge problem and makes me despise Balloon Boy more than any other as he laughs at the fact that you will soon meet your end. As for The Marionette, he is an enemy that sits in slumber in the new kiddie room for toddlers and will leave you alone as long as you keep him lulled to sleep with a music box. The box needs to be wound up every so often to avoid him from lunging out of the dark hallway right at your face, which is not easy considering everything else you have to deal with. 

Now with all the new features and enemies you might expect things to be more terrifying with it's jumpscares and you'd be right! The animatronics are now in your face in a very real way, before you never saw too much of your furry friends until they were knocking outside your door. Now though you see everything!! You shine your light down on your enemies as they come towards you, creating polarizing images of them as they slowly make there way towards you, disassembled arms stretched out and jaws wide open. What I learned though, your mask is your best friend and best line of defense you can have against all that you will face. Flipping it on at just the right time is crucial when Chica or Bonnie, really any of the nightmare gang get into your room. This fools the robots into thinking your one of their brethren, saving you from a gruesome death and allowing you to make it through another night. It however doesn't prevent you from getting scarred to death as you peer out through the eye holes at your enemies and deeply breathe in and out until they disappear like they were never even there. Why is nobody doing something to help me here?

That question brings up the fact that our friendly disembodied voice has return on your speaker phone to give you advice on surviving the five nights or week if you're feeling brave. Bravery is what is needed more than ever too as things are insanely more difficult this time around. Just like before, as the nights go on the difficulty is increased and that is to be expected but now the difficulty gets amped up quite fast, I spent hours just trying to get through night three as I switched from winding up the music box, shining my flashlight on incoming baddies and hiding for my life. The whole thing requires reflexes of steel and the gumpshun to keep trying and trying until you get through, a challenge fans I'm sure will take but new comers may find daunting. There are also some curiosities that come up in the story aspects to the game, there are still only theories as to what is happening in Five Nights like who are buddy on the phone is and why is he here in this game again. Also, there are some cut scenes between nights on the job that show you inside of a suit yourself or someone in a suit and you are looked on by Freddie and his friends, what did this mean? There are still many unanswered questions that I hope to be answered in some way but for now it's a confusing pile of information. 

Five Nights at Freddy's 2 serves as a great new challenge for returning fans of the game. The added features and dangers such as that cursed Balloon Boy, the lack of automatic doors and many more ways for you to be grabbed continues the fun and fear that you would expect for the game and makes it even better. However, the punishing level of difficulty will likely leave newcomers as well as some seasoned players to feel a drained after playing the much harder nights ahead of you and make you also think twice before trying the sixth or seventh night. This aside and my thoughts on the story elements, I still loved the sequel to Five Nights at Freddy's and wonder if there could be more in store or even more that I might have missed in this game. One way to find out, masks on everyone. 

Good:

- Still an insanely terrifying experience, if not more terrifying than before

- The new added challenges and features such as the mask and music box were all great aspects that added to the fun

- There could very well be more secrets to find in the gameplay, there always are and if you're brave enough to look, good for you

Bad:

- The difficulty level this time around can be jarring 

- Personally, I'd like some more details but I know it's hard to add into such a straight forward game to tell something of a story

Scully Rating: 9.0 out of 10

Dumb and Dumber To

By: Robert Murphy 

You know that moment where you sit down to watch a sequel to a movie and question whether or not it really needed to be made, well that is the feeling you feel constantly while watching the entirety of Dumb and Dumber To. It has been a decade since the first Dumb and Dumber graced our brains with a massive IQ drop and Harry (Jeff Daniels) and Lloyd (Jim Carrey) are off on another state to state adventure. This time around, they're off to find Harry's estranged daughter, Penny (Rachel Melvin), so she can give him a kidney that he desperately needs and Lloyd comes along to try and sweep her off her feet, presumably right after the surgery. The two once again prove to grace viewers with a whole manner of ill gotten adventures just like before and that's what you'll be saying the entire time as all the gags that were charming the first time around come back in their entirety.

I give any star to a movie sequel great credit in coming back to a film that may not have been their most shining moment but it was definitely a gem hidden away in their career that they look on fondly. This is perhaps the biggest reason I watched Dumb and Dumber To and that was for the simple fact that Jeff Daniels and Jim Carrey once again returned to be a part of it and hopefully they can bring some laughs out of the beaten horse but not even they could save the film. All of the "funnier" moments for the movie were conveniently placed for the ads leading up to the titles release and the rest just doesn't give you much to look forward to. Not only that but much of the humor that comes from the story revolves around many mean spirited humor and often cruel awkward moments that were pain staking to sit through. Sitting there while Harry and Lloyd bother the parents of an old friend who past away years ago at 3 AM comes immediately to mind as I struggled to try and see how any of it was suppose to be funny at all. The jokes were all poor or disgusting in nature and don't make you laugh but make you sigh and feel generally disappointed by the choice in writing. 

As for the rest of the screen time, the story is pretty much a carbon copy of what it was ten years ago. Harry and Lloyd are traveling together making there fart jokes and completely clueless as to what is going on around them, even the threat of looming death that surrounds them. After they meet the adoptive parents of Penny, they're given a package to deliver to her and this leads to the hot young wife, Adele (Laurie Holden) start plotting to kill them for whatever is inside. Later it turns out that Lloyd already looked inside at the end of film in perhaps one of the weakest twists for the entire thing. The one shining glimmer of a good story comes out at the very end of the movie that I will not spoil, needless to say it is the sweetest part of the whole story and that's why I liked it so much. It's also perhaps the one thing that doesn't feel recycled about Dumb and Dumber To as a whole. 

Needless to say, the charm is not at all back for this sequel, Carrey and Daniels do try their best to give fart jokes and stupidity another go and they might have pulled it off if the story was handled by the original writings of the Farelly Brothers. The jokes are reused and tired and the ones that weren't were just rude and disgusting garbage that tries to get stuffed down your throat. The way the overall movie ends may leave you with a smile as it did for me but as for the rest you're better off watching the commercials and thinking fond memories of the original. 

Good:

- The ending to the actual story was sweet and the only redeemable moment

Bad:

- Recycled humor and jokes are a plenty

- What aspects weren't reused were poor and overall upsetting

- The format to the story is a carbon copy of the original

Scully Rating: 2.0 out of 10 

Car Mechanic Simulator 2014

Zach Goodier

Have you always dreamed of rolling up your sleeves, grabbing a ratchet and socket, and working on cars like granddad used to? Well, now’s your big chance, in Car Mechanic Simulator 2014, a game that lets you work in your own garage, as you are issued repair orders by clients to diagnose/fix various issues that they have with their vehicles.  From brakes, to exhaust, to starters.  This game has you fixing or replacing just about all of the components that are ever likely to go wrong on you in real life.

Make yourself at home, comes complete with soda cans.

First off, this is a fairly decent game if you want to learn a thing or two about how a car works.  It won’t serve as well as mechanic’s school, I’m 100% sure of that, but this is great if you at least want to dip your toes in to find out some of the basics of what goes into fixing your car when you take it in for servicing.  This doesn’t quite cover all of the little issues that come with late-model cars, like rusted bolts and such, but this game has some interesting moments to share, where you might actually learn a few things that can benefit you in real life.

You can get an x-ray view of what's under the bodywork to be tinkered with.

That being said, this game can be rather boring after a while, so it’s definitely not a strong candidate for binge playing.  It’s fun in small sessions, but things can feel rather tedious after a while, you know, like having the actual job of being a mechanic.  Basically, it’s get an order, perform the steps to diagnose and/or fix the problem(s), then get paid and get the next job.  Also, there isn’t a lot of variety to the vehicles you can work on, with most cars never coming close to the hot rods and supercars that likely sit on walls in garages.  There are a few hotter cars than the typical family sedans, but there isn’t all that much to wow here in terms of fancy cars or engines, all the vehicles are made by fictional companies and look about as generic as most 15-20 year old cars do.

It's handy to learn the names of parts by going through all of the engine parts and inspecting them, even if they don't need fixing. 

Think of this as a simple exercise in learning the basics of cars and automotive mechanics and tuning.  There really isn’t a lot of depth here, but it can be neat to learn a little bit about how your car works and how to find and fix the problems you will likely have if you own a vehicle.  Don’t go into this thinking it’ll be all about the fun, because the fun value starts to diminish after a fairly short amount of time.  Coming from a car family, I know that most of this game is oversimplifying things, but that doesn’t make this game not worth picking up, especially for just a few bucks.

Good

-Learning to fix brakes, drive shafts, exhausts, and other things can really be handy to have some grasp of in real life.

-Fairly accurate process to fixing realistic problems.

Bad

-Can be tedious after a relatively short time due to a lack of significant variety in cars.

-Doesn't really have all the depth of knowledge and skill needed to actually be a mechanic.

Scully Rating: 6 out of 10

Far Cry 4

By: Robert Murphy

Screenshots and videos have egged me on for months in anticipation over the sequel to one of my favorite games Far Cry 3. Finally being able to return a jungle fraught with danger and chaos around every corner was something that I could not wait for in Far Cry 4 and I may have gotten a little bit more than I was asking for. Chaos and danger have always been ear marks for the open world game play of Far Cry but now more than ever I feared for what would kill me next, especially when I would hear the dreaded word, EAGLE!! This fear aside, I set out in my explorer outfit and a bag full of C4 to see just what the game had in store for me this time around. 

The lovely countryside of Kyrat is where you are destined for this time around and you play a young Ajay Ghale who has returned to this land after his mother left with him as a baby. Determined to fulfill her dying wish and spread her ashes over this troubled land but things go very wrong very quickly and your transportation gets ambushed by Pagan Min, the dictator and leader of the people of Kyrat and all around nut case. He swaggers about in his odd outfits for the first few scenes of the game and then you're rescued by the Golden Path, the rebel forces trying to free themselves of Pagan Min's tyranny but have been unsuccessful for many years. But now the prodigal son has returned as little did you know you're the son of their late leader and have destiny written all over your face or so the people continually tell you over and over again. It seems like that's all people want you to be and so you settle into the role, really given no other choice in the matter as Pagan Min won't let you leave without the odd family reunion he has planned. Pagan Min isn't an all star villain that you're hoping for but he is just crazy enough to make you laugh and smile at his craziness, somewhat of a Handsome Jack or Joker style bad guy but more in the background as you don't see him again till the end of the game. No, you just hear from him once and awhile over your walkie talkie as you run around, taking down propaganda fueled radio tours, Royal army bases and forts and so on. 

The lack of a solid story or viable characters aside, Far Cry 4 still offers you a gigantic world to experience. I'll be honest, for the longest time I let the story slip by me all together, I was to busy exploring, moving from tower to bases, tearing down propaganda posters, hunting for pelts and other side mission fun to be had. I was amazed by all there was to do, Far Cry always boasts a big world with a lot to do but I underestimated just how much there actually was as I got lost for hours roaming around the land of Kyrat. New vehicles and tools also add to the joy of traveling the land, gyrocopters were especially a favorite to my list, soaring over most of the land and dropping in on enemies was always a treat or raining down molotavs in a cluster bomb fashion was gleefully enjoyable. Things of course didn't always go my way as I dropped in a karma mission (a new form of XP collecting that unlock perks such as merchant discounts) taking out all the enemies but not realizing I was in a rhino habitat and getting my butt thoroughly trampled to death. Other features such as the grappling hook were welcomed additions to the game play as well, making treacherous climbs and worrying over how I might be attacked by a damed eagle was a great little adrenaline rush. Even more fun is the added in game co-op that I pleaded for last game, don't get me wrong I enjoyed the normal co-op campaign but having someone jump in on the action and chaos of my campaign was a solid experience. 

What doesn't go over the top or improve much though comes in the way of multiplayer which still doesn't seem to have the flare that single player or co-op offers it's players. Admittedly the experience can be fun especially the new playable class that you can get in multiplayer known as the Rakshasa, who can summon animals instead of getting the regular heavy weapon perks that normal classes get. The rest though doesn't carry much wait as all the stealth assets and play-ability don't transfer over and you end up running around shooting each other or blowing something up. There is though some fun to be had in the map editor that leaves promise for the future, once some hardcore map makers get around to making a few things, there could be some challenges that await in PVP matches, if it happens that is. 

Even though the plot for Far Cry 4 can be forgettable, the experience that you can have across the nation of Kyrat is something that I truly enjoyed even with the familiar feel of Far Cry 3 that is left around it. Smashing elephants through fortresses, flying over amazing sights and so much more can await players if they choose to before or after they play through the story. Chaos is more than plentiful and all the features you love are back and then some but if you were looking for a true successor to the franchise, I don't think Far Cry 4 fits the bill.

Good:

- Campaign co-op is finally here

- The large open world of Kyrat has so much to see and do

- Chaos is everywhere from firefights to animal attacks, you never know whats around the corner for you

Bad:

- The story is a forgettable affair 

- Multiplayer isn't an engaging experience and doesn't bring with it the fun of co-op and single player

- The Far Cry 3 feel is present and doesn't make the game feel like a new experience 

Scully Rating: 8.7 out of 10  

          

Akame ga Kill

Zach Goodier

Story:

Tatsumi, our protagonist in training

Akame ga Kill is an action series that centers around Tatsumi, who is travelling to the capital of his empire in order to try to gain wealth to send back to his village, which is suffering under high taxes.  However, despite his apparent natural skill at surviving the local monsters in the rural regions, he quickly finds himself unable to adapt to life in the big city, as he soon finds his money stolen, and on the streets.  However, things go from bad to worse, as he soon discovers a darker side of society, a high-class that is run by the corrupt and sadistic monsters in human skin that populate the capital, and have corrupted the ruler.

Our infamous band of assassins, Night Raid.

Tatsumi soon finds himself face-to-face with Night Raid, a group of assassins that is fighting to eliminate corruption within the capital, as the covert arm of the rebel forces that are building in the southern regions to overthrow the corrupt regime using their unique weapons, called “Imperial Arms.”  Tatsumi trains to become a killer, trading in his goal of saving his village to saving the entire kingdom from tyranny.  His allies are assassins ranging from a muscle-bound homosexual who prefers to be called “bro,” to the silent but deadly Akame, who’s relentlessness in battle is only matched by her relentless pursuit of food.  All of Tatsumi’s new allies have their quirks, and what seems to be a new band of friends pursuing justice soon evolves into a true war, where casualties on both sides cause Tatsumi to face the harsh realities of war.

Night Raid is as eccentric as they are dangerous

This show calls itself shōnen, but it does a lot of things that few shōnen shows are willing to do, and that’s a very good thing.  First off, the show doesn’t feel very shōnen, like the amount of bloody violence that transpires throughout the series.  Also, this show touches on more mature themes regularly, not feeling filtered for younger audiences.  Tatsumi does feel like a typical protagonist at first, but he does some developing as the show goes on, becoming a more competent fighter and teammate, but still holding onto some of those core traits he possessed at the beginning of the series.  Many of the characters have a duality to them, with comedic antics ensuing during the downtime and their serious side when the action starts up.




Characters:

As the series progresses, Tatsumi starts to toughen up.

One thing the show does well is eliminate the feeling that characters have plot armor, or at least most of Night Raid.  There are a couple core characters, like Tatsumi and Akame, that come off as central and above death.  However, you’ll find that a couple of the other members aren’t quite as immune to death, and that will have a major impact on the story, particularly with Tatsumi and his quest to get stronger.  That doesn’t mean that they start dropping like flies (at least not yet), but I do appreciate the ability to make me worry about which characters might drop for good, and the show does a good job of keeping you on edge as there are more than a few close calls after the initial deaths shatter the illusion that everyone is going to get out alive (kind of reminded me of Ned Stark in GoT). 

Esdeath is introduced as a sadistic, cold-hearted woman, but her quest to find love, and her kindness to her own subordinates makes her actually become rather likeable.

Another strong side involves the wide cast of characters, and the dispersal of likeable characters on both sides of the conflict.  As the series progresses, General Esdeath, a prominent Imperial commander, is called on to assemble a squad of Imperial Arm users to fight Night Raid.  Like Night Raid, the Jaegers consist of some eccentric characters, but some of them are consumed with sadistic urges, like Esdeath herself.  However, several become likeable (like Wave, Bols, and even Esdeath herself, to a point), which makes the conflict feel that much more suspenseful as you watch characters you like fight to the death. 

Tatsumi gets acquanted with the Jaegers (pictured with him above)

While General Esdeath isn’t the main villain (The Minister to the Emperor is), she's the militant arm, and the main foe that Night Raid has to face throughout most of the series after the first few episodes. One thing that interests me is her sudden interest in love, which even her closest aides find surprising in a woman who wields ice only have as cold as she is.  Without spoiling too much, she does fall in love with someone, and it leads to some comical moments, while also make you hope that Esdeath can find a way to change herself, as she believes only in survival of the fittest, and that her role is to prey on the weak to become stronger herself.  Despite her fearsome reputation, she does start to thaw a little, but only towards her newfound love.  This does a great job of keeping the story interesting, and making you both anticipate and dread the inevitable fight between them.

Imperial Arms come in virtually any form (like a weapon or equipment), and bind to specific users, and while they can swap users, they must be compatible with the arms, or they will die.

Death in the series is a common occurrence, and likeable characters start dropping within the first episode, but the series does try to throw in plenty of humor when the action has died down. This can make the tone of the series very heavy, and then shift back to humor relatively quickly.  It can seem like an inconsistent tone, but it actually feels appropriate when characters try to force themselves to move on.  It makes the characters feel more visceral and relatable, and shows that they’ve experienced loss before, and Tatsumi himself quickly learns that dwelling on loss is one of the quickest way to end up dead in his line of work. 


Action:

A reminder that General Esdeath is as ruthless as she is beautiful.

This series has plenty of stylish action, and all of the members of Night Raid look and move like true assassins.  However, their opponents eventually become just as dangerous, as they go from killing high-class sadists and corrupt guard captains to facing the full force of the military elite.  This transition allows you to get to know the characters, and allows Tatsumi to face opponents who he was relatively even with before moving up to the big leagues.  It all feels very natural and well-thought out, slowly dialing up the intensity as the series progresses with new and more dangerous enemies.

Tatsumi has the typical "close encounters" with women, and like all shōnen, he is completely unwilling to just live out our dreams and just go for it... Oh well, there's always rule 34.

Issues:
Tatsumi himself can be rather typical of a shōnen anime, with his cliché notion of honor and protecting everyone.  It’s not bad, but he can feel a little lame at times.  He does develop a bit more as the series progresses and he learns how to be a killer, but he feels like the only reason this show can be called shōnen at all, and that feel like a hindrance at times.  There is also a few characters and moments that seem to make little to no sense. They're not really plot holes, but poor judgement on the part of the characters.

Some Imperial Arms are actually living creatures that respond to a master's orders, and they, like all Imperial Arms often.

Conclusions:
Overall, I found this series, so far, to be very enjoyable.  I have watched up to episode 20, and the series is ongoing.  It seems to adapt the manga material almost to the letter, which is good for fans of the manga who want to get into this show.  There is a lot going on, and a lot to look ahead towards.  Tatsumi is presently starting to come into his own as a fighter, and several important characters on both sides have perished. 

Think of this show as primarily a dark fantasy/action series, with a dash of comedy to lighten the mood. 

The approach of killing off likeable characters really is what makes this show work for me.  It makes every fight feel significant, since there are frequently fights where you think Night Raid or Jaeger characters you like might die, and sometimes they do.  One of the themes is the tragedy of war, and the fact that good people die on both sides of the conflict.  The danger isn’t always there, since some characters feel protected above others, but the wide cast of lesser, likeable characters makes this show still keeps the tension up, and makes you both anticipate and dread the next awesome fight.  This, as well as good plot and characters, makes Akame ga Kill one of the best new shows I’ve watched so far this year.

Good:

-Awesome action that doesn’t shy away from the realities of deadly combat.

-Assortment of likeable and well-imagined characters on both sides makes for even more excitement and tension during battles.

-For a shōnen, this frequently makes you forget that it is one with its’ brutality and story.

Bad:

-Tatsumi can, at times, be the only real tell that this still hasn’t completely broken from being a shōnen anime.

-A couple of lesser characters fall short of their intended depth, and there are few moments of frustration that result from bad decisions on the part of some of the characters.

Scully Rating: 9.0 out of 10

RWBY Season 2

By: Robert Murphy

Ruby Rose and her team are about to start their second year at Beacon Academy again and boy do they make a mess of things right from the get go. I kid you not the first episode has an insane food fight in it and it destroys the entire meal hall with mustard attacks and turkey fists flying. This goes to show how far RWBY has already come from the start, things are more at peace for the characters this time around as Ruby, Weiss, Yang and Blake now start to unravel many of the secrets bubbling underneath the surface from the first season. There of course is bound to be some insane fights along the way with all four and their friends showing of their skills and weaponry for what lays in store. 

Much of what was done for the first season of RWBY was getting all the viewers comfortable with the characters they are introduced to during the show and making them engaging characters. This is what drove much of the plot for the story and we only saw brief glimpses of what was to come with people like Roman, our cigar smoking and bowler hat wearing bad guy and a mysterious huntress lurking in the shadows too. This time around things start to develop upon these aspects though in a big way, yes there was the epic food fight in the first episode and much goofing around to be had but bad guys start to come out of the wood work like ants all of a sudden in season two. We finally get a face to our evil huntress, Cinder Fall and her henchman, who make their presence known this time around and they start to move their plans into action. There still isn't much in the way of a big picture yet but it is a nice change up to be getting further engrossed into what is to come from hers and Roman's plans with the White Fang and all of Vale. Cinder isn't the only new face to come with a new story though, we're introduced to a General James Ironwood this season and he introduces more of the lore outside of Beacon Academy to the story. Things like there is a military structure to the world and Huntsmen and Huntresses are not the only line of defense, they're just the cooler ones.

The humor level returns to RWBY this time around as well, need I mention the gigantic food fight again? RWBY always has something funny or charming up it sleeves and it comes out much more this time around as the characters have established themselves more and more. Ruby is still as spunky and adorable as she always was but now even Weiss is a more fun loving character to watch as team RWBY has come out of there shell to fight the bad guys. This brings up the shows other greatest strength and that has to be hands down the fight scenes, expertly choreographed and insane, every fight scene has a free flowing motion to it and every kick, punch and bullet fired, leads to another form of attack or maneuver. As we see other characters gain more screen time this season, we gain more insight into who they're and there fighting styles. A one, Prof. Oobleck comes up at the end of season two as the girls Huntsmen troop leader for an end of the year mission and shows how even the most ridiculous character in the show is still a Huntsmen and can kick serious tail if it comes down to it.

One thing that also has changed unfortunately for RWBY though is some of the shows animation quality can still appear to be out of sorts. Many of the more lighter touches for characters in scenes are not handled with enough care such as handshakes or interactions with other characters. One point later on in the season, Roman puts his cane up to a henchman's neck and you can clearly see the cane clip and it doesn't look like it's touching his neck at all. These issues come up in many of the slower scenes and even with characters in the background of scenes throughout the show and it just shows that some of the animation levels are not up to the task still for RWBY. 

In the end though the latest season for RWBY has shown a big desire to move further with it's story. The ball finally starts to get rolling with the introduction of Cinder Fall and her accomplices and it gets me very eager to see what's around the corner, especially with the nice cliff hanger you're left with at the end. The amazing fights also make a big comeback this season as more characters enter the mix and show of their own impressive skills, bad guys and good guys alike. And of course, the text book laughs make a big comeback as well, Ruby and her friends continue to get into mischief and hilarious situations but also some tender moments come up too. My favorite being the big prom event that happens part way through, it's filled with laughs and lighter moments for all the main cast. My criticisms aside, I still love RWBY and cannot wait for the next season to start. 

Good:

- Story starts to unravel much more this time around

- Still has awesome action and humor to it

- Characters feel more adjusted and more relaxed in their roles

Bad:

- There are still animation flaws with the work that pop up and prevent me from complete enjoyment over the show

Scully Rating: 8.2 out of 10  

Interstellar

By: Robert Murphy 

Technology can be a wonderful and amazing thing and as we develop it further and more promisingly, we begin to think of the theories and devices in science fiction movies as less of a fantasy and more of a reality that we one day might achieve. Interstellar initially starts in a not too far off future and the world is not in a good place, think 1930's era Dust Bowl kind of conditions and setting. Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) is living with his family on the farm just getting by and living their lives by growing the only thing they can, corn. The reason for this is a virus that has blighted all other agricultural foods and growable forms of sustenance. Cooper though isn't very happy with the current situation he is in though as he use to be an engineer and one of NASA's best pilots and because of this he desperately wants more for himself and his family. So when his daughter, Murph (young: Mackenzie Foy, adult: Jessica Chastain) complains of a ghost that's haunting her dad's old books, he discovers that they're being sent a message from somebody. This leads the two to rediscover the remnants of NASA program which has been put back together in the hopes of finding a new home for the human race through an interstellar worm hole no less, right outside Jupiter. 

Save your criticisms for the oddly casted movie scientists all you want but Interstellar pulls something amazing with this science fiction film about space travel that I haven't enjoyed since movies like Event Horizon, granted that was somewhat of a horror film but the science behind it remains. Cooper joins up with the team of astronauts/scientists as the lead pilot for the mission to save the planet, hoping to find a new home in the galaxy through the worm hole. Leaving behind everything they know, their families, their culture and their very way of life in order to save everyone and the sad part is the rest of the world neither knows about it or believes it is even possible for them to do. Joining Cooper in his journey are some other egg heads that don't get much attention but an Amelia Brand (Anne Hathaway) comes along for the ride and pours in some emotional scenes. Her father, Prof. Brand (Michael Caine) is the one responsible for the theory and formula for getting them through the worm hole to the other side which is viewed as some sort of event sent from unknown sources. And later introduced on one of the planets is a surprise cast member that I did not expect to be a part of the film pops up as one of the scientist sent to find out whether any of the planets on the other side can support life. The whole affair is jam packed with enough A-listers and celebrities to make another Ocean's Eleven movie but they all deliver powerful performances through and through and are not put in just for Oscar bait or for you all to say "oooo it's that guy, I love him." 

Honestly, the amount of tears shed throughout the film could probably fill a pool as the outpouring of emotions gets cut deep and ingrained into you. Years and decades pass for the crew of the Endurance, the ship that the astronauts are piloting, and while they can communicate with home through video letters, the toll that it puts on both sides is immeasurable. After the first trip down to the first planet and hearing how hours on the first planet is years back home, Cooper comes back to a lifetime of messages from his family and seeing his son being proud of his work and seeing his first grandson, it all changes to his son giving up on talking to Cooper in an instant and it's gut wrenching. All of it almost eclipses the state of the art rocket they're in or the fact that they're in a whole other world and have traveled further than any other human before them. That isn't to say that it isn't all relevant or prevalent throughout the story but you can definitely tell that the story is more about the struggle of leaving behind everything and the ones who got left behind as well. All of the technology present in Interstellar is a delight, from the rocket to worm holes and all the little scientific details that just made me want to shout out "SCIENCE IS SO AWESOME!!" So don't get me wrong when I say that things get pretty emotional because everything else that is going on is just as dramatic and jaw dropping. 

Things are not entirely perfect though as some of the space flight scenes that are spliced throughout the story aren't as dramatic as the booming sounds would want you to believe. The odd camera angle at which most of the ships scenes are cut to are a bit underwhelming for the simple fact that it looks like somebody stuck a Go-Pro to the side of a weird car and put a space background behind it. Also Christopher Nolan tries to add some Gravity feel to the space party by making no sound shots of the ship traveling to Jupiter in the first half of the movie but later for dramatic effect he blares more music down your throat to an outer space shot of the ship racing back from a planet. Scenes like this and others were way to drawn out to try and add spunk to the film when there was any need for it to begin with especially with this style of story.

Interstellar's greatest moments come from its genuine adherence to the story being told, time moves differently for both sides and it provides for a deep emotional impact to the film. Due to this fact the tiniest things that Cooper and his team do can be viewed as a huge substantial event, even at one point where one of the members stayed behind on the Endurance and the others went down to a planet, they came back to an older team member and it only felt like a second for them. I can see now why the movie was so exceedingly long and at first I thought that it would be a criticism for me but once I was watching, I understood why. All the actors and actresses for Interstellar do an amazing job, Matthew McConaughey pours a very emotional performance at the end of the film that completely hit me hard and I loved it. If not for the puffed up scenes throughout the film, I would of viewed things as all around enjoyable but that isn't so, none the less, Interstellar exceeded my expectations in many ways.

Good:

- Performances by all the cast were well done, McConaughey being a big one

- The ascetics such as the Endurance and other technology were top notch

- Griping scenes and moments throughout

Bad:

- The puffed up moments with explosions and added dramatic music were unnecessary

Scully Rating: 8.8 out of 10  

"Good News Everyone!" Ghost in the Shell: First Connection

Zach Goodier

Link to Original Article: http://kotaku.com/this-might-be-the-ghost-in-the-shell-fps-youve-been-wai-1661040311?utm_campaign=Socialflow_Kotaku_Facebook&utm_source=Kotaku_Facebook&utm_medium=Socialflow

It has been shown on Kotaku that a South Korean studio is working on a Ghost in the Shell game (trailer above).  It appears unconfirmed if the game will be available outside of South Korea, but I would expect at least a Japanese/North American port would be well worth the effort for the studio.  The game itself appears to be an online game, focusing on FPS-style combat with squad roles like combat, speed, stealth, support, etc.

I have some mixed feelings about this.  Although a GitS game sounds fantastic, being a fan of the franchise,  I don't think an FPS would do it any justice, since the franchise is based on not only the action, but well-imagined characters and a sophisticated story-line with philosophical themes.  If this turns into a destiny-style shooting gallery, it wouldn't really focus on what made the mange/anime... stand alone (pun intended).

I hope to see more, and perhaps some more context as to what specifically the game will offer.  Until then, I'll be on the edge of my seat and continuing to scour the net for info.