RBK Question III

As is generally the annual holiday trend for me, I went Christmas shopping this past weekend and ended up buying a little something for myself.



I'd been trying to get away from buying non-retro performance sneakers, but I really dig these Question IIIs. I love how Reebok kept the twin hexalite windows that the original Questions had for that whole honeycomb effect. Throw on the oversized strap for a more futuristic feel, and you've got a pretty nice looking sneaker. Maybe not nice enough to warrant the $90 retail, but totally worth it at the price I managed to land them at. Plus, now I have a pair of shoes to kick around with the powder blue UNDRCRWN tee that I had stocked away in my closet. The set will probably have me looking like a huge Iverson fan, but I guess that's ok.

AVPR > AVPG-13?

Alien Vs Predator -Requiem
(spoilers below)

For one reason or another, we decided that it would be a good idea to catch the newly released AVPR to top off our Christmas. I've always been the selectively squeamish type (I'll pass on any eyeball violence, thanks), but there really wasn't much to get grossed out over in AVPR. They certainly didn't skimp on the violence this time around - if nothing else, the R rating was a step in the right direction - but the deaths, though they come at a somewhat alarming rate as the film hits the stretch run, are neither creative nor particularly grisly. The Aliens themselves, while undeniably iconic in the monster genre, are actually somewhat difficult to root against in a movie where the human characters are simply inane and badly acted. Some of the shortcuts taken in an attempt to make the Aliens despicable "characters" are so blatant that they end up coming off as laughable instead (it's suggested that the main Predator-Alien enjoys dining on human infants, a face-hugger gets to impregnate its first 8-year-old, etc.). And unfortunately, the only things that the Predator consistently has going for him are his plethora of toys. It's almost James Bond-ish the way that he'll break out a new gadget once or twice every movie, but his mystique has arguably been gone since the halfway point of Predator 2. Oddly enough, the movie even has a teen slasher feel to it, with subplots revolving around a pizza delivery guy, the pretty blonde that he has a crush on, and her jealous boyfriend. The blonde eventually bites the dust when she gets impaled by one of those giant ninja stars that the Predators like to carelessly toss around, which is about as close to a ballsy move as we see in the film. Of course, as teen slasher flicks generally go, we're never really given a reason to care that the blonde is alive, so spectacular impaling or not, we don't really care much that she's dead either.

Utter trash? I wouldn't go that far. It's an improvement over the first AVP, though both movies are significantly less fun than their Alien predecessors because they're set in present day. A lot of the Alien/Predator fight scenes are kind of cool, and seeing (sorta) a pack of Aliens tear through a squadron of soldiers is somewhat reminiscent of the Aliens/Marines exchanges from the second Alien flick. The Predator does have some moments as well, as he hilariously transitions from the stealthy hunter who goes around setting traps and erasing evidence to the "fuck this shit" intergalactic warrior, heedlessly firing his energy cannons at unarmed tenants and blowing up the town's power generators. The movie clearly isn't high art by any stretch of the imagination, but AVPR is semi-fun, violent, nonsensical trash. Worth a gander if you're a fan.

Merry Christmas from Sheed and the gang

Rasheed Wallace, J-Max and co. with the Jingle Bells REMIX. Pretty much the most incredible thing ever.

whoops

Listening to:
Kylie Minogue
X








So I guess it's a good idea to ask the pre-K students if they need to use the bathroom before I start with the lesson. Had to learn that the hard way today.

鉄拳６

I was initially worried when Namco released the first Tekken 6 previews with the game looking like nothing more than a slightly-tweaked version of Tekken 5 DR. Thankfully, Tekken 6 is shaping up really nicely with the non-test versions slated to hit the Japanese arcades in early 2008.



The images sort of speak for themselves, but the game is looking beyond crisp in motion too - check out this video. The sheer impact from the striking is almost flagrant (read: good thing), and you can really see the bubble and flare effects ripple off when the big moves connect. Plus - and maybe it's just me - the awesome BGM playing during the fight gets me a smidge amped =) So it's all peachy aesthetically, but aside from the new "rage" system, the gameplay unfortunately looks nearly identical to that of Tekken 5. While I'm all for doing minor tweaks on the engine, I just hope that Tekken 6 isn't to Tekken 5 what Soul Calibur 3 was to Soul Calibur 2. While Tekken 4 was just silly with the absurd stages and balance issues, at least it took measurable steps away from Tekken 3 and TTT (which in hindsight, were the vastly superior fighters) and did things to warrant its title as a true numerical sequel. Of course, the DR engine was nearly perfect, and there's really not much that hasn't already been done with fighting games at this point...so perhaps it isn't particularly fair to clamor for innovation in this genre. Let's just enjoy the pretty pictures. Guess I can start saving up for that PS3 and HDTV w/ 5.1 set-up now :-/

Grant Hill, 35, still making posters

OH NO HE DIDN'T



We lost the game, but I don't really sweat the Mavs in the playoffs. The Spurs are another story. Oh, and Suns/Lakers on Christmas day? That could potentially make for one heck of a Christmas gift, but you know you're probably a little too emotionally vested in sports if Sasha Vujacic can ruin Christmas for you.

Jordan XX3

First images of the Jordan XX3 are out. It goes without saying that this year's release is significant because it's #23 in the series (duh). Every sneakerhead on the face of the earth seems to hate the XX3, but you know what? I actually like them a lot. And it's not like I've ever really been into Jordans either. Aside from the awesome XX2, I've hated almost every modern incarnation of the Air Jordan since the XV. Peppering the shoe with M's was apparently done in an attempt to stymie counterfeits, and the resulting quilt effect gives the shoe a really unique look. Can't say that I'd be willing to part with the $200 that it'd take to land a pair, but the XX3 does have that commemorative feel and a definite one-of-a-kind vibe.

Top Songs of 2007

As a little appetizer to this year's Top 25 albums list, here's a rundown of the top singles of 07 (in my not-so-humble opinion).

J-POP
5) 木村カエラ - Yellow
4) RIP SLYME -
スピードキング　
3) 島谷ひとみ - Neva Eva
2) YUI - CHE.R.RY
1) 安室奈美恵 -
Baby Don't Cry

This one was easy. Amuro dropped "Baby Don't Cry" way back in January, and I've been listening to the song probably every day since then, but incredibly, I've yet to get tired of the damn thing. "Baby Don't Cry" sounds like a mid-tempo 90's R&B joint with some serious bass, and though fans who like her dance stuff might argue otherwise, I honestly think that this is her best song ever, no question. I was always peculiarly attached to "Never End" for personal, nostalgic reasons, but everything about "Baby Don't Cry" is so, so slick and seamless. There were a ton of awesome J-pop songs this year, but everything comes in a distant second to this track. YUI's typically great "CHE.R.RY," Shimatani Hitomi's fun, ridiculously over the top "Neva Eva," RIP SLYME's dope, NES-ish "Speed King," and Kaela's rockin' "Yellow" round out the rest of the top 5.

US
5) Talib Kweli feat. will.i.am - Hot Thing
4) Feist - My Moon, My Man
3) Big D and the Kids Table - Shining On
2) Rilo Kiley - The Moneymaker
1) Kanye West - Stronger

Things stateside were a tad more tricky. Big D's "Shining On" effectively blew RBF's "Cheer Up" and TB's "No Good Very Bad Day" out of the water as my new no-frills, totally happy song. If you sit through "Shining On" and don't have a giant, shit-eating grin on your face by the end of the track, there's something seriously wrong with you. I really wanted to give Rilo Kiley's saucy "The Moneymaker" the nod, because that song is just stupid catchy - in a grimy, half-wanton way - but in the end, I went with Kanye West's "Stronger." Even ordinary Kanye fluff is better than good by today's standards, but "Stronger" is really the best thing he's put out since "Through the Wire" and "Jesus Walks." Some will inevitably point out that the Daft Punk sample is doing most of the heavy lifting on "Stronger," but honestly, would the song have worked with T.I. rapping? Ludacris? Jay-Z? Unlikely. Perhaps more importantly, would any of those guys have thought to do it in the first place? Love him or hate him, it's difficult to dispute that Kanye is one of the few (if not the last) creative artists left on mainstream radio today.

Early Christmas gift

Listening to:
Do As Infinity
Need Your Love

After being seemingly the only person I know to dodge the cold that's been going around for the past few weeks, I finally woke up with the bug this morning. I'd been munching on Airbornes and drinking orange juice like my life depended on it, but to no avail apparently. Still, I guess you're bound to get sick sooner or later when you work with kids almost every day. Taking inadvertent kicks to the shins and wiping up boogers has become part of my daily routine. For the most part though, I love my kids. Today I was working with one of the 4-year-olds, and I noticed that she was digging in her pockets for some reason. After letting her rummage around for a minute or so, I asked her if she was looking for something. She confirms this by pulling out what appears to be a worn-out piece of cardboard with flower designs on it. "For you," she says. Upon closer examination, it turned out to be just a tag from some sort of clothing (complete with "Children's SIZE: 6"), but it was still pretty much the sweetest thing ever. At the risk of sounding a tad corny, the most incredible thing is when someone with nothing material to offer tries to give you something anyway. It ain't an easy job, but there are brief instances when I feel like I'd be willing to do it for free.

「迷走宣言」

おいおい。半冗談で名前を入れたんだけど、けっこう合ってない？みんなもやってみ。http://maker.usoko.net/nounai/。フェチバージョンもあるぞ。ほれ：古本貴志の脳内フェチ。「尻」と「脚」がごっつ出てるんだけど、そこは男みんな一緒だろ？てゆうか、何で俺言い訳してんのかな？

四字熟語メーカーもやってみました。古本貴志を表す四字熟語。「迷走宣言」。。。メイソウセンゲン？ははは。やらない方が良かった。

FPW Returns

Playing:
Fire Pro Wrestling Returns
(PS2)

Ok, this game rules. Fire Pro is literally the first grappling title that I've bought in several years, but I like to think that I was just waiting for a wrestling game with an engine similar to the N64 Wrestlemania/No Mercy titles...which FPW delivers in spades. I was already well aware of the extensive roster of bootleg Japanese pro-wrestlers (since the only thing more ridiculous than playing as Curry Man is playing as a fake Curry Man), but I wasn't expecting a sizable roster of MMA fighters as well - meaning you can duke it out w/ Rampage Jackson, Ernesto Hoost, and Don Frye, among others. The kicker is that no pinfall, MMA-style matches in the octagon are also available for play. The octagon fights still feel decisively like wrestling matches since the bouts are so dependent on the somewhat strange proximity grappling system, but the overall package is a dream come true for pro-wrestling and MMA enthusiasts like myself. The graphics kind of stink if you're looking for anything beyond SNES-esque sprites, but the game is still inexplicably fun (and difficult) nonetheless.

Further proof that I still think like a college student: I bought the game with the intention of playing it all winter break, but then I realized that I have no winter break. Whoops.

Running the gamut of emotion at Aloha Stadium

1st quarter
J, less than enthused.

score:
Hawaii - 0
Washington - 21






4th quarter
J, losing his mind.

score:
Hawaii - 35
Washington - 28




LOL, good times. Sugar Bowl baby!

INFOBAR2

KDDI's INFOBAR2. The whole retro-futuristic design is pretty slick, but you kind of get the feeling that you'd be better off displaying the thing on a shelf next to your Kubrick figures than actually using it on the daily. My i425 has sort of served as a reminder of why I've made it a point to stay away from candy bar models, so I can't really say that I was particularly drawn to this phone initially. The INFOBAR2 does little (in terms of appearance) to sway pundits who may be partial to clamshells, but upon closer examination, it's clear that the INFOBAR2's design is truly several steps beyond marvelous. The phone actually isn't that impressive until you start to look at it from odd angles, which reveals the curvy surface of the phone that is some kind of crazy.



Pretty wild.

Now, I love phones, but you knew there had to be something else to warrant this entry right? ;-) Indeed, NIKEiD is putting out special edition Dunks to commemorate the release of the INFOBAR2.





Fresh. I can't honestly say that I'd make the effort to seek out just the INFOBAR2, even if I were in Japan, but I'd be willing to drop a hefty sum for the mobile + the Dunks. Which inevitably begs the question; do we really need kicks that match our cell phones?



Well, yeah.