You know who it is....

• 17Apr 09

  Thinking about Taking Break from the WWE Forums

  Or cutting back my time there at least.

  I left the Wrestlesomnia Forums because the general attitude of the forum was too young and crude for me. Now ironically, I've seen my annoyance at some of the older posters from here spike recently, for various reasons. The 'know-it-all' mentality that comes with being older is starting to grate on me. I'm not saying that it's being done blatantly, but it is there. Maybe it's always been there, but it's just now started to affect me. Some of my recent posts in the forums have been more blunt and snappy and rude, so I think I'll cool off for a bit instead becoming a troll.

  And no, I'm not going to point out specific examples, or call out specific posters, becuase it's not a specific example. Well, there probably are specific examples I could point to, but it's more of a general cumulation. It's like small crack in a damn that is slowly been webbing out by water weathering.

  Yes, I know I shouldn't let other's personal opinions bug me, but there are times where it just can't be helped. This is coming from a guy who prides himself on not letting things on internet forums affect him in real life.

  • Posted Apr 17, 2009 10:48 am PT
  • Category: General
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• 14Apr 09

  Mirai Nikki/Hopeful Future Buys/2009-2010 NFL Schedule

  Yeah, I haven't posted a blog in while. Not that anyone should care.

  Anyway, I don't really read manga like that, but I came across this:

  

  Title: Mirai Nikki
  Author/Artist: Esuno Sakae
  Rating: M
  Genre: Action, Ecchi, Psychological, Romance, School Life, Shounen, Supernatural
  Summary: High school 2nd year, Amano Yukiteru, is a boy who has problem making friends. He thinks of himself as a bystander and will always write down everything he sees in a cell phone diary. Tormented by solitude, Yukiteru began to imagine things like a friend called Deus X Makina who is apparently the Lord of Time & Space. Seeing Yukiteru's miserable state, Deus gives him a new ability. His diary will now record events that will happen in the near future. Yukiteru is then forced to participate in a game which the winner will become Deus's successor.
  
  Link: http://www.onemanga.com/Mirai_Nikki/

  ^Very good stuff, and consists of gore and stalker girlfriends. I mean, with a first impression like that cover, how can I resist?

  ---

  I'm heading into my summer vacation in three weeks, and I'll be getting a summer job, likely at the place I had one last year. That's means that I will have an access of cash to spend, after putting some in the good ole bank account of course. Good thing too, I have some new DVDs that I want.

  1. Rumbling Hearts
  Rating: M
  Summary: Guy(Takayuki) dates girl(Haruka). Girl gets in a car accident and is left in a coma. Girl's best friend(Mitsuki) eventually gets guy to get over his misery and starts going out with him herself. Three years later, girl finally wakes up from coma with no idea how much time has passed. Drama ensues.
  Link(s): http://www.funimation.com/rumblinghearts/ Rating: 4.5/5
  
  I just finished this anime a couple of months ago, and I enjoyed it immensely. Probably one of the more realistic anime I've seen so far(other than the waking up from a coma after three years by Haruka), and I particular liked the flawed, nonidealistic final pairing over the fantasy, seemingly storybook pairing(and the more popular one). While the main male lead(Takayuki) annoyed me with his indecisiveness once Haruka woke up to the point of inadvertently coming off as a straight-up @ss, I found his actions understandable for the most part. In the end, I came to think that the overall theme in the end was making the choice of living in a fantasy vs. having to face reality. It was an enjoyable watch. I'll likely get this first.

  2. Rurouni Kenshin
  Rating: T
  Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rurouni_Kenshin
  Summary: The story of Rurouni Kenshin takes place during the early Meiji period in Japan. It tells the story of a peaceful wanderer named Himura Kenshin, formerly known as the assassin Hitokiri Battôsai. After participating during the Bakumatsu war, Kenshin wanders the countryside of Japan offering protection and aid to those in need, as atonement for the murders he once committed as an assassin. When arriving in Tokyo, he meets a young woman named Kamiya Kaoru, who was in the middle of a fight with a murderer who claims to be the Hitokiri Battôsai from her swordmanship school. Kenshin decides to help her and defeats the fake Battôsai. After discovering that Kenshin is the real Battôsai, she offers him a place stay at her dojo as she notes Kenshin is a gentle person instead. Kenshin accepts and begins to establish lifelong relationships with many people, including ex-enemies, while dealing with his fair share of enemies, new and old.
  
  
  
  Great cl@ssic anime, and I love the occasional samurai stories. The way Kenshin went out in Reflections upset me a bit, but it was strangely fitting. Too bad fillers killed the series. I'll probably get the 2nd Season first, since the Kyoto Arc was just excellent.

  3. Frisky Dingo
  Rating: T
  Link: http://www.adultswim.com/shows/friskydingo/indexpage.html#video
  Summary: The first season of Frisky Dingo follows the adversarial relationship between the villainous Killface, who aspires to strike fear into humankind before he drives the Earth into the Sun with his Annihilatrix, and Awesome X, the secret superhero identity of multi-billionaire Xander Crews who dreads retiring after having defeated the last known supervillain. The season ends with the activation of the Annihilatrix by Simon. At the beginning of the second season, Killface is taking credit for 'curing' global warming by the Annihilatrix having moved the earth a total of three feet further from the sun before malfunctioning, and has decided to run for President of the United States. Xander Crews follows suit, re-forming his company and launching his own Presidential campaign.

  Very funny and underrated series. Not much to say other than that.

  Honorable Mention in no particular order:

  1. Shuffle! Box Set(anime)
  2. Gurren Lagann DVD Sets(anime)
  3. Space Jam(Yes, I'm talking about Looney Tunes and Michael Jordan)(movie)
  4. The Boondocks Season 1 or 2 Box Sets(American animation)
  5. Psych Season 2(American TV)
  6. House M.D. Season 4(American TV)
  7. Burn Notice Season 2(American TV)
  8. Pootie Tang(movie)

  ---

  The 2009/2010 NFL schedule came out today, and damn, the Panthers have the second hardest schedule behind the Dolphins based off last year's records.

  Week 1 Vs Eagles
  Week 2 @ Falcons
  Week 3 @ Cowboys (Monday Night Football)
  Week 4 BYE
  Week 5 Vs Redskins
  Week 6 @ Buccaneers
  Week 7 Vs Bills
  Week 8 @ Cardinals
  Week 9 @ Saints
  Week 10 Vs Falcons*
  Week 11 Vs Dolphins (Thursday Night)
  Week 12 @ Jets
  Week 13 Vs Buccaneers
  Week 14 @ Pats
  Week 15 Vs Vikings (Sunday Night)
  Week 16 @ Giants
  Week 17 Vs Saints

  Well, at least we get three Primetime games, that's the most the Panthers have had since thier creation. I think we can be a solid 10-6.

  Guess who got the most primetime games? That's right, the Cowgirls with six. BBBBOOOOOOOO!!!!

  See you guys after the draft.

  • Posted Apr 14, 2009 11:11 pm PT
  • Category: TV
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• 25Apr 08

  Madden '09/Madden Curse

  Well, it's been announced that the new cover boy for Madden is.................

  

  Brett Farve. Congratulations, even though he is retired. So... does this mean that the Madden Curse took it's effect early because Farve retired or is it broken? Of course, Farve could come out of retirement and have a horrid season, but now I'm starting to doubt that will happen.

  ---

  Do anybody believe in the Madden Curse? I do, there is too much evidence to ignore:

  Garrison Hearst (1999)

  Garrison Hearst was the first player to ever be featured solo on a Madden cover, appearing on Madden NFL 99. Hearst's 1998 season was the best of his career, rushing for 1,570 yards and seven touchdowns. He led the San Francisco 49ers to the playoffs and a wild card win over the Green Bay Packers, but on the first play of the divisional game versus the Atlanta Falcons, he suffered a bad ankle break and his team would go on to lose the game. He did not play again until 2001.

  (It is worth noting that there are two versions of the Madden NFL '99 cover, one with an image of Hearst--primarily on European market PAL versions--and the more common one in North America with John Madden's image.)

  Dorsey Levens (2000)

  Dorsey Levens emerged as one of the premier running backs in football in 1997, rushing for over 1,400 yards and he also got into voted to the Pro Bowl. However, he injured his knee during the 1998 season and was never quite the same. He gained over 1,000 yards for the Green Bay Packers in the 1999 season, but was mostly used in a reserve role for the next two years. Levens was released by the team in 2001, used sparingly in a back-up role with the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants after that, and was essentially out of football by the end of 2004.

  (Levens was the cover athlete for the European PAL versions of Madden NFL 2000.)

  Eddie George (2001)

  Eddie George, then of the Tennessee Titans, who graced the Madden NFL 2001 box, is often said to be the first 'cursed' player, if only covers of North American releases with solo shots of a player "count". Running counter to a curse, for the year that he was on the cover, he had career highs in yardage and touchdowns. Curse advocates point to the 2001 season following his appearance on the cover, during which he averaged only 3 yards per carry and rushed for career lows of 939 yards and 5 touchdowns due to a nagging toe injury that bothered him the entire season. For the rest of his career, he never averaged more than 3.4 yards per carry.

  George's curse can be argued to have started the year he was on the cover because in the 2001 AFC Divisional Playoff game George had a costly fumble that lost the game for Tennessee. He also fumbled 8 times during the 2000 regular season, losing a career high 4 fumbles. In a playoff game against the Ravens, Eddie George bobbled a pass that was intercepted by Ray Lewis who ran it back for a touchdown for the eventual winning score.

  Daunte Culpepper (2002)

  Former Minnesota Vikings star quarterback Daunte Culpepper appeared on the Madden NFL 2002cover after throwing for nearly 4,000 yards and 33 touchdowns while rushing for 470 yards and 7 more scores in the 2000 season. However, Culpepper struggled with turnovers in the first 11 games of the 2001 season, throwing 13 interceptions and only 14 touchdown passes. A back injury ended his season in the 11th game.

  Marshall Faulk (2003)

  Running back Marshall Faulk of the St. Louis Rams, who was on the Madden NFL 2003 cover, suffered an ankle injury, missing five games. He did amass nearly 1,600 total yards (953 rushing) and 10 touchdowns in limited time in 2002; however, it was a steep decline from his 2,000 yard and 21 touchdown campaign of 2001. He never broke through the 1,000 yards rushing mark for the rest of his career. 2002 was also a dismal year for the Rams as a team as they finished with a 7-9 record, coming off of a strong 14-2 season that led to a Super Bowl appearance the year before.

  Michael Vick (2004)

  Five days after Madden NFL 2004was released, which featured Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick on the cover, he was injured during a preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens, suffering a fractured right fibula. Vick played in only the last 5 regular season games, finishing with just 585 yards passing and 4 touchdowns. The Atlanta Falcons missed the playoffs and were already out of contention by the time Vick returned from his injury. The Falcons finished the season with a record of 5-11, a drop from their 9-6-1 record the season prior.

  Ray Lewis (2005)

  Madden NFL 2005 featured Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens, the first defensive player ever to appear on the cover of a Madden game. It was Lewis' first season without a single interception, after posting a career-high 6 the previous year, although interceptions are a secondary statistic for linebackers. He recorded 147 tackles in 15 games played, breaking his arm in week 15 and missing week 17. The Baltimore Ravens also failed to make the playoffs that season after winning their division the year before.

  Donovan McNabb (2006)

  QB Donovan McNabb, who was featured on the cover of Madden NFL 06, led the Philadelphia Eagles to Super Bowl XXXIX with a 13-3 regular season record to face the New England Patriots. He ended 2004 throwing just shy of 4,000 yards and throwing for 31 passing touchdowns with only 8 interceptions. He also rushed for an additional 3 TDs. However, during the 2005-2006 season, in which he was on the Madden cover, McNabb suffered a sports hernia, but elected to play until after the November 14th game against the Dallas Cowboys. During this game, McNabb was knocked down after an interception return by Roy Williams, aggravating the injury. The same year after gracing the Madden cover he also lost his wide receivers Freddie Mitchell and Terrell Owens. He then elected to have a season-ending surgery that was required to repair the injury.

  Shaun Alexander (2007)

  Seahawks RB Shaun Alexander, who appeared on the cover of Madden NFL 07, had one of the best statistical seasons ever in the 2005-2006 season, as he rushed for 1,880 yards and scored what was a record 28 total touchdowns (27 rushing). Alexander, who had missed one start in his previous 64 contests, fractured the 4th metatarsal in his foot after he was on the cover. He missed six starts and failed to rush for 1,000 yards for the first time since 2000. Additionally, his touchdown record from the previous year was broken by LaDainian Tomlinson, who scored 31 touchdowns in 16 games. After his 2007 season, he was released from the Seahawks.

  Vince Young (2008 )

  Tennessee Titans QB Vince Young, who appeared on the cover of Madden 08, threw 2,456 yards with 9 passing touchdowns and 17 interceptions in the season of his cover appearance. Barring a drop in just two of his main statistical passing categories, Young improved on every other category from his rookie year, as well as being the spearhead in the achievement of the Titans' first playoff berth in four years. Despite making the playoffs for the first time since 2003, Young was injured just one game of the season at Houston due to a quadricep injury.

  Luis Castillo (2008 )

  San Diego Chargers DE Luis Castillo appeared on the cover of the first-ever Spanish language version of Madden NFL 08. Castillo, during the 2007 NFL season, suffered an ankle injury that forced him to miss six games. Likewise, his stats from the season before, where he also only played in ten games, showed a statistical drop in virtually every defensive category.

  Micheal Wilbon (2008 )

  In late December, Pardon the Interruption co-host Michael Wilbon put himself on the cover of Madden 08 to prove that the Madden Curse didn't exist. A month later, Wilbon suffered a heart attack, causing him to miss a week of shows.

  http://youtube.com/watch?v=VHhN77xf8AU&feature=related

  • Posted Apr 25, 2008 10:10 am PT
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