Shmee.Me

April 28, 2014April 28, 2014

Hey Guess What? Warner Bros is Making a Justice League Movie!

Well it is about time that Warner Brothers told us all what we knew was happening anyway, they are making a Justice League Movie! If you can believe the Wall Street Journal anyway. This was one of Hollywood’s worst kept secrets, even by their loose lipped standards. It is supposed to come out by 2018 at the earliest after Batman Vs. Superman, and if people like it there will be all sorts of DC superhero moves.

It will be interesting to watch that film develop since they are approaching it the opposite way Marvel did, by making their “Avengers” first, and then having the solo films. I hope it works because DC has a lot of really good characters that are just waiting around for someone to use them. Who knows how long people’s appetite for superhero movies will last.

I will be curious to see which villain they use as the impetus for building the League. I am guessing it will be Brainiac. He is super smart and super strong, and you can use him in a myriad of ways. Though my hope is that they use Darkseid, so that in future movies they can have the whole planet of Apokolips attack. What is more fun than one crazy baddie? A ton of crazy Baddies!

We have about four years and two months to speculate on this film, and I can’t wait. Though it all hinges on Batman Vs. Superman being good. Here is hoping. Though a part of me just knows that Warner Brothers will find a way to screw this up.

April 25, 2014July 7, 2015

They Cast Cyborg For Batman Vs. Superman!

They cast a Cyborg for 2016’s upcoming Batman Vs. Superman, so I think it might be safe to start calling it The Justice League. The man they cast for Cyborg is a relatively unknown stage actor by the name of Ray Fisher. I am sure he will be fine, but the question is now what heroes are they going to use to fill out the rest of the Justice League. Since they haven’t announced an Arrow or a Flash, and the Flash is a founding Justice League member, it is starting to lend credence to the rumor that they are just going to use the actors and characters form the TV shows. Still I would like to throw a few more heroes in to this flick:

Green Lantern:

I love the Green Lantern, so this would be a perfect time to re-introduce him, and why not use John Stewart or Guy Gardner. They can forget all about the other Green Lantern, and start all over. It would be awesome.

Zatanna:

They say they are still working on the Justice League Dark movie, so it would make sense to have a crossover, and Zatanna is in both Leagues. As an added bonus she is one of Batman’s few true friends, and if he is going to fight Superman he would need someone powerful in his corner.

Stargirl:

While she is not super well known outside of comic book circles and Cosplay conventions, she knows how to kick butt and take names. I think people would understand an awesome girl with a cool stick without too much back story. Honestly she is like DC’s version of Captain America, but I see no problem with that.

Martian Manhunter:

While he is kind of a stretch, he does run the League, so I think he needs to be in this movie in some fashion. Heck he could even be the one to stop Superman and Batman from killing each other since he is pretty invincible himself.

Nightwing:

I have never really liked any of the Robin’s, but Dick Grayson as Nightwing has always been one of my favorites. He has Batman’s code, but he seems to actually care about the people he is saving. In other words he is not a cold and calculating jerk all the time. Plus something tells me Bats will need the backup.

Who would you like to see in the Justice Leauge movie? Any big Red Tornado fans out there? (Of course there isn’t) The nice thing about the JL is there are like six billion heroes to choose from, and while a lot of them are subpar it is always fun to see them show up from time to time.

April 24, 2014

Shmee Gets A New Computer Case: The Lian-Li PC-9F!

I have been on a very slow computer rebuild train, so recently I decided to get a new case to put all my new components in. After quite a bit of researching, I chose the Lian-Li PC-9F Black Aluminum Mid-Tower case (rolls right off the tongue). I love Lian-Li’s simple designs and quality manufacturing, but I was worried that their cases were too far out of my budget. Thankfully the PC-9F is under a hundred dollars at most retailers, so not super cheap, but still a third the price of their other offerings.

I was concerned that since this case is at the low end of Lian-Li’s price range that the quality wasn’t going to be as good as their more expensive models, but I was presently surprised. The case is lightweight yet sturdy, and all the edges are rolled, so you will not be spilling a lot of blood in this case. It also comes pre-equipped with three large fans, so unless you are running some serious hardware in this thing, your kit will stay cool. If still want your case cooler, there is an extra port on the top that you can open up for one more fan.

Like all good cases this one is completely aluminum (with the exception of some plastic snaps), and can be put together completely without tools. You will still want to have your screw drivers and a pair pliers handy when you build your PC. Some areas can be hard to reach once you get your stuff in the case, and sometimes things are too hard to untighten by hand.

If you are going to build a super PC with two or more video cards, water cooling, and all sorts of extra stuff you will probably want something else because I can see this case getting a little cramped with all that extra gear in it. Though if you are spending that kind of money on your components, you should really spend a bit more on your case. For most gamer computer builds though, this case should be more than adequate.

I really like this case. It has a simple clean look, and since the computer I am building isn’t anything extra special it suits my needs perfectly. I am very happy that Lian-li built a case for the everyday computer gamer with the PC-9F, and not just the ultra high end.

April 23, 2014April 23, 2014

Wear Out Your Mouse With Torchlight 2

I recently had a LAN party with a bunch of my friends, and the main game that we played was Torchlight II by Runic Games. Now I know what you are thinking: “Didn’t Torchlight II come out two years ago?” Well you would be right. It did, but that is why it was the perfect game to play because it was cheap, fun, runs on just about every computer out there, and most of my friends had it anyway.

Torchlight II is pretty much a straight up Diablo clone. If you don’t know what Diablo is you have been hiding under a rock, but I will tell you anyway. It is an action RPG, where you click on monsters to kill them. The monsters drop items and give you experience points, so you can arm yourself with cooler stuff and better abilities, and then click on the monsters to kill them better.

Every time I explain what a Diablo clone is, it always sounds awful, but they are quite fun and very addicting. Torchlight II does it best to streamline the process by adding pets that will shop and carry loot for you, and a skill tree that makes sense. But the big reason to get Torchlight II is that you can Mod it, and get Mods for it easily.

For instance we were using a Mod that allowed 25 people to play the game at the same time, we only had nine, but still that is not something Diablo lets you do. There are all sorts of cool changes to this game that people have made. It is almost better to play the game now then when it first came out because of all the extra cool stuff to play with.

If you want to play a fun action RPG then you probably already have Torchlight II. If you don’t then you should have no qualms about picking it up. It is always going on sale, so you should be able to find a copy under ten bucks, and it is well worth that meager investment.

April 22, 2014

Gravity Blu-Ray Update!

Gravity was one of my favorite films from last year, so I was thrilled to get the Blu-ray from my wife as a birthday present. My thoughts on the movie haven’t changed much since I saw it last year, but I am still going to give my review of the disk, and the difference between the small and big screens.

Sadly this movie isn’t quite as awe-inspiring on a TV as it is in the theaters. I have a fairly large TV (60″), but it just can’t compare to the feeling of having space seem to wrap around you like it did at the cinema. That being said, it is still a great movie, and exciting to watch. If you missed it in theaters, you still need to watch it now. Just know that you missed something special by skipping the theater last year.

The transfer on the disk is flawless, I didn’t see any grain or screen particles whatsoever. The sound is equally well done. While you should use Speed Racer to test the color of your TV, you will want to use Gravity to test your black levels. If the darkness seems gray to you, you need to adjust your set or get a new one because this movie has really deep and true blacks.

The Blu-ray set has a decent making of so you can see how Alfonso Cuarón made space come to life. It is worth watching at least once, but the movie is the true star here.

If you missed Gravity in theaters, I feel sorry for you, but you should still watch this excellent film at home, or at whoever’s house you know that has biggest TV. Just tell them that you will bring the movie and the pop-corn. I am sure that they will be glad you shared this wonderful movie with them.