#June2013
A Treatise on the Defense of J.J. Abrams and the World of Into Darkness: A Warrior’s Tale
[Caff Note: A good friend of Rendar and myself wrote this rather awesome defense of Star Trek Into Darkness. I imagine he saw dullards like me bashing it, and decided to wave a righteous saber. Despite not seeing eye to eye with him, I demanded that he allow me to share it here. Enjoy.]
Into Darkness. What’s in a title? Nothing (if you ask me). However, Into Darkness attempted to conjure into the minds of the would-be viewers a universe that was literally entering into a ‘darker’ world. Into Darkness is the post 9/11 Trek – a world in which, yes, you can die. Into Darkness has a body count that would rival the epic end of Commando. More humans (not Vulcans) die in this film than in any other Trek film. San Francisco is literally leveled to the ground at the end of the film. Is this a forward direction for Trek? Did Abrams destroy a franchise that deserved something more?
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FAN ART: ‘FINAL FANTASY VII’ TRAIN GRAVEYARD is gorgeous incarnate.
I say sweet goddamn! Here is a pretty stunning rendition of Final Fantasy VII‘s train graveyard. Ain’t nothing in this world quite like cyberpunk rot of the game’s Sector 7.
Friday Brew Review: Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale
Holy shit! Maine’s making beer now!
As a lifelong resident of Massachusetts, I’ve always been a bit weary of Maine. That’s not to say that the Pine Tree State doesn’t have anything to offer. It does. It’s the spot to go for quintessential New England seafood, the people are friendly, and it’s scenic as hell. I wouldn’t try to dissuade anyone from vacationing in Maine.
With that said, there’s something a bit discomfiting about Maine.
Maybe it’s the fact that the state is in a weird spot culturally. After all, Maine is wedged right next to the libertarian paradise that is New Hampshire, the hippie epicenter of Vermont, and the progressive-to-the-point-of-scrutiny Massachusetts. What does this leave Maine claiming? Rocky shores and some mountains.
Or maybe I find Maine distressing because it’s mostly uninhabited. Last year I drove to Nova Scotia by myself, and spent the better part of six hours weaving my way through the wilderness of Maine. And let me tell you, if I had hit a moose out there (as the signs so comfortingly warned that I might), I would’ve been dead meat. There’s no way that anyone with the abilities of resuscitating my mangled corpse would’ve found me in time.
Then, of course, there’s Stephen King.
So it was with a bit of trepidation that I picked up a sixer of Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale from the folks at the Atlantic Brewing Company. As I brought the beers to the register, grappling with a barrage of thoughts, some rational and most not. “Is this ale any good? How strong is the blueberry flavor going to be? Is it safe to drink? Is this nothing more than Maine-yokels fooling us by bottling their pee after eating blueberry pie? Should I call Sam Adams and tell him that there’re some wild Mainers tryin’ to cut in on his action?”
By the time I got home, I was driven to investigate this beer.
OMEGA-CAST #1 – Let It Begin
Behold! The first Transmission from The Omega Level. Produced by the inestimable Riff Simian and recorded aboard the Spaceship Omega, the podcast tries its damnedest to catch up on the Summer Happenings so far. Summer Movies. E3. Super Punch Out. We realize it’s a bit rough — and Caffeine Powered was clearly paid off by the producers of Fast 6 — but we hope you welcome it as a new addition to the website.
Leave any thoughts or segment ideas in the comments!
PAYPAL + SETI = creation of a SPACE BANK. No, srsly.
Ah, sometimes the future is so obviously emerging. Emergent. Both. PayPal and SETI have teamed up to create a nascent sort of space bank. They dare to dream of a world where us lead feet are off the Big Blue Marble. You know, spending Space Bux on hookers and spices on Ceres. They imagine this future, and whilst they do they also realize something. All of those transactions need a mechanism, and they want to provide it.
EINSTEIN-SIGNED BIBLE snags $68,500 at AUCTION.
Here is a Hell of a collector’s item. Alby Einstein and his wife once signed a Bible for their friend Harriett Hamilton. Signing a Bible? And you’re not God? Isn’t that some sort of False Idol stuff? Whatever — anyways. Now that same Bible has been sold at auction, and it went for a lot of money. Lots.
Cosplay: EDI from ‘MASS EFFET’ done as LATEX threatens to kill me.
Saints preserve me. Edi from Mass Effect 3 done up as latex? Parts of my body I didn’t even know I had are throbbing. Yes, yes please. And then a second helping.
MICROSOFT dropping charging DEVELOPERS for game updates. Competition GET.
Microsoft is dropping their policy of charging game developers for patches, and other updates. Pretty neat. The cost apparently was significant, and if I recall correctly drove away indie studios from patching their games and the such. Was it Fez that gave up being patched? I think? Anyways — neat.
FLAMING SKULL NEBULA is SPACE meets SWEET TOOTH
…or Scorpion, if he is your favorite video game character with a burning dome piece. Travis Rector has taken a hell of a photo of this particular planetary nebula, and a lot went into it that frankly fries my own skull. Setting it also ablaze. Some sort of circle of life type shit.
Hit the jump for a full look at the beautiful bitty, as well as for some more info.
‘BREAKING BAD’ FINAL SEASON POSTER wants you to REMEMBER.
It is with a mixture is glee and sadness that I anticipate the final season of one of my favorite shows. The least I can do in preparation then, is to yell Walter’s name as he requests. Hit the jump to check out the poster for the final season. Go ahead, too. Yell his name.
