Blog 15: Transformers, Twilight Zone, Black and White.

Hello True Believers, I'm back for yet another exciting blog!  This blog will contain more nudity, swearing and Michael Bay esque Explosions, than Predator(I saw so much Predator ass that movie).  However, we're not going to talk about the testosterone filled Predator movie.  This blog will contain discussion regarding the Transformers film series, the old 1960's Twilight Zone, The new Pokemon Black and White games, and Young the Giant.  Now let's get rockin'!

It took many years for the Transformers to feature a live action movie unlike other 1980's cartoons, IE The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles(My favorite was always Donatello by the way), and for obvious reasons.  How even were you going to make a giant Bumblebee? (I hope all my readers visually pictured a giant bee...Jerry Seinfeld will get all the royalties for that visualization.)  So, finally, fans were promised a Transformers movie and the hype was high.  And why not?  Peter Cullen, the voice actor whom originally played Optimus Prime in the 1980's cartoon was returning.  The core group of Autobots and Deceptions were returning!  Everything seemed promising.  Then the movie came out....And I'm fairly sure Megan Fox got more screen time than Optimus....There's something inherently wrong with that.(Which goes against the male grain)  The action scenes were great, but the human story was just the worst thing ever, and it's highlighted by one of my least favorite actors, Mr. Shia Labeouf.  He's just such a terrible actor(See: Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls, Indiana Jones).  This is highlighted more so in the sequel, Revenge of the Fallen.  Firstly, Michael Bay begins to just go against the Cybertronian grid all together, and starts making up stuff.  He adds a character who only exists in one very small continuity....the Fallen...It's so very lame.  They added the great former Decepticon now highly decorated Autobot scientist, Jetfire...But turned him into a geriatric ol' geezer.  Can robots even age?  Point is, the entire series has been a monumental disappointment since the getco, and I have no doubt that the third installment, which hits screen this summer, will also disappoint substantially.

There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area we call the Twilight Zone.  The series ran from 1959 to 1964 in an age of television when everything was heavily censored.  Rod Serling was an individual who lead the way into breaking the barriers of what was allowed and wasn't allowed on tv.  And we're not talking about nudity or of anything of the sorts, we're talking about rhetorical discussions used in the context of the "Twilight Zone."  Rod Serling himself wrote most of the episodes which varied from topic to topic whether making commentary on inner beauty or on the communist scare of the 1950's.  This was a brilliant program that stands the tests of time to this day, and cultivates the mind to think outside of the box.  I know that Mr. Serling is a creative inspiration for me to this day, because if there's anything I want my creative writing to be able to do, it's to cultivate other's minds.  The Twilight Zone usually airs for 24 straight hours on the 4th of July and New Years on the Scifi(Syfy) channel, and I recommend unfamilar viewers to watch.  Because you never know when you yourself will be making a stop into....the Twilight Zone.

Next topic, Gamefreak and Nintendo Studios released yet another installment into the wildly successful Pokemon franchise.  Pokemon Black and White. Pokemon is such a wildly successful franchise, it's Nintendo's second highest selling franchise behind that of Mario, their mascot.  This is considered the 5th generation(First being Red and Blue, Second being Gold and Silver, third being Ruby and Sapphire, and 4th being Diamond and Pearl) of Pokemon games and fans are left thinking, "Really?"  or, "Shit yeah!"  The game sold extremely well, becoming one of the most successful games released on the Nintendo DS, and reviews were exceedingly high.  All reviews for the games averaged around a 9.0 out of 10, which is phenomenal.  Long time players have said playing this game is like playing the original Red and Blue, and that series clearly went back to it's roots.  That in itself is pretty cool.  I bought White, played the crap out of it, and it was addicting, and cultivating as ever.  I hated the designs of the actual Pokemon at first, but I warmed up on them as I played the game.  And they're actually quite good.  I recommend these games to everyone.

And finally, I leave a question to the readers of the blog.  You don't have to answer it since it'll demonstrate how few readers I actually have.  BUT.  Who'd win in a fight?  Han Solo or Indiana Jones? (With no weapons.)

Just keep readin' the ol' Blog.

El Bloggo Numero 14: Sheetz Suckz, Taco Bell Muy Bueno.

Hey True Believers, it's me returning to blog yet again, however, unlike blogs past, I have a personal vendetta against the first topic, which pertains against Sheetz.  Sheetz is basically a gas station / convenient store that sells many items and basically tries to be Wawa.( Another widespread gas station / convenient store.)  This is a topic of monumental importance to the world at large.  We can ignore the riots throughout Northern Africa and the Middle east, ignore the rising inflation throughout the United States, Obama's proposed lowered budget for 2012, and even the revolutionary Watson who tore apart human competitors on Jeopardy not too long ago.  Today's topic about two convenient store chains.

Okay, so I went to my first Sheetz last week and I wasn't too wonderfully impressed.  They had a looming canopy over their Gas Station that loomed over that to the convenient store which was daunting.  Upon entering the business of humble origins I noticed what looked appeared to be a booming industry.  Having grown up on Wawa when I lived in Southern Jersey, and then again when I lived in eastern Pennsylvania, it was all too apparent for this college lad that I was no longer in Wawa country.  The people with whom I attended this foreign trading station knew where to go and what to do right away.  Whereas I was dumbfounded by the slight similarities between the two, but at the same time, the overwhelming differences.  I decided to investigate the refrigerated beverages first, and low and behold, there was a plethora of cold beverages to choose from.  Alas, despite the increase quantity, there was a surprising lack of quality.  Wawa is infamous for their wide array of store brand teas, juices, and milk.  These beverages were absent from the shelves of Sheetz.  Or, in more economic terms.  There wasn't a substitute.  Just inferior goods.  So, with that noted, i made my way to food section.  There were more options there than at Wawa.  You could get burgers and french fries for example.  Hell, if I recall correctly, you could even get a cheesesteak if you so pleased.  So, having had gone there twice, I tried a cold cut sandwich the first time(turkey), and a grilled chicken sandwich the second.  Both experiences left me feeling sick to my stomach.  A feeling that Wawa never leaves me with.  The reason I even decided on going the second time was because of the simple fact I was fooling myself into believing the first incident was merely isolated.  So to all you Sheetz lovers, I intend not to offend, I'm merely offering my two cents, and with that said, to all you people who have never been to Sheetz, I would avoid it if I can.  And finally, in conclusion, Sheetz offers a great variety of products, but it does not offer the same quality, as Wawa.

Pressing on into Spanish territory, the next "order" of business pertains to a more sizzling topic.  Talking about more food, the next topic is about Taco Bell.  Taco Bell is one of the most successful fast food businesses in North America, belonging to Yum Inc along with KFC, Long John Silvers, Pizza Hut, and others, it's truly one of the tastiest fast food restaurants around.  Now I know it's rather irrelevant to write a paragraph on a chain that literally everyone knows about.  So, what I'm going to write about are entrées that perhaps you, the consumer, have never had.  Everyone's probably had their hard and soft beef tacos and their beefy 5-layer burritos, or even their crunch wrap supremes.  If you're unimpressed by those meal options, may I suggest trying a Gordita or a Chalupa of the nacho cheese variety?  It's Scrumptious.  Or even a Quesadilla?  And for an appetizer try out their cheese roll ups.  They're freaken bangin'.  Anyway, enough of this promo, of which I'm not even being paid for.  Just do it.

Anyway, this was by far the most biased and opinionated blog I've ever written, and it's not even a political entry(what with being a government major and all).  But these are my opinions, and I just shoved them down your throat.  Accept my editorial bullshit readers.


Until next time, Ciao.