It is a time of jubilation, feasting, partying, and glory. March Madness is a spectacle, one that rivals the ancient Romans and their gladiators. Yet, we often forget the other side of the coin. What of the tears, condolences, hugs, and going to bed upset. What happens when your team loses?

Tears.

For me, it was a cause of March Sadness. My team was highly ranked. My team LOST. First round. The embarrassment I felt the next day. My friend Alex (his favorite team made it through the first round) mocked me and my woman for our teams fate.

I just want to remind everyone out there that March Madness inevitably leads to March Sadness

When someone mentions science fiction, most likely the first thing to come to your mind is space, aliens, Star Trek, Star Wars, etc. The problem for me, is this is the exact type of science fiction I don’t like. Before I go any further, I am just going to say that there is nothing inherently wrong with this type of science fiction (I’m going to call it space science fiction). My problem with space science fiction is two-fold, which I will mention both now and then go into more detail on both in a minute: the first the space aspect, and the second is repetition.

We will start with space. What draws me into a story is usually the characters and the world they live in. If a story has strong, well developed and relatable characters, I will probably like it. As far as the world those characters live in, I like to relate to the story I’m investing my time into and it is a lot easier for me to relate to a world that I know and understand. For me, the only world I know and understand is Earth, hence my problem with space science fiction; it takes place in space. Space, however, is more tied to our world than say any given sword and sorcery fantasy world that tries to mirror middle-age europe, but it’s still a setting that I can’t relate to because I am not likely to ever visit it. That is not to say I hate all space stories. There are plenty that I enjoy, but the ones I enjoy most tend to either take place on earth and involve something from beyond the stars or they revolve around an interesting take on space. Lost in Space is a good example. Space is an enormous local full of things that we as residents of Earth are likely never to fully know or understand, so a story about being lost in this world that you have no understanding of is very interesting to me. It takes what I don’t like about space, inability to relate, and turns that into its premise.

Moving on. A lot of space science fiction tends to feel very similar to each other. Technology often looks similar, the plot is usually humans fighting aliens (why all the alien hate?). Is something that keeps me away from fantasy as well, but I will save that for another blog.

As I said before, I don’t hate science fiction. I love things like Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, Resistance (video game). These are all various types of science fiction. But all of these, even  which you could call space science fiction as it involves aliens, all take place on earth and focus on everyday people reacting to scientific discoveries that seemed impossible before. It makes these stories relatable.

This isn’t meant to bash science fiction, space science fiction or anyone who likes science fiction. I just wanted to let people know why I am generally turned off when something is labeled as science fiction.

For many science fiction fans, those words bring back memories. For me, it was of the Next Generation and Picard. As I grew up, Star Trek: The Next Generation came on at 4pm, so right as my brothers and I got home from school it was on. We were faithful followers and avid fans. Truth be told, for the longest time I enjoyed it more than Star Wars. Still, both sets of my parents raised me on a steady diet of science fiction and fantasy. I grew to enjoy the intrepid explorers and innovative solutions to problems. Science fiction is a medium while gets the love of nerd crowds doesn’t get the respect in deserves for being a truly innovative genre that inspires.

This man saved that ship more times than humanly possible.

While science fiction not only is fun to read, watch, and explore, it has the added benefit of pushing the bounds of our thinking of what it possible. Without Star Trek, Star Wars, and the various other science fiction shows, people wouldn’t have been inspired to create things like our iPhones and all their wonderful apps. These stories create ideas that outside would have been laughted at but within the genre are expected. Yes, sometimes the physics are given a pass due to phlebotinum or some other technobabble. Sci fi tries to explain everything with actual science. Yes, sometimes it involves something more magic-like (we all would like to think the force is real, but until science gives us indication otherwise, we’ll just have to accept the force isn’t real). The point is, with everything able to be explain by science, it makes it feasible to actually create the item. So your cell phone is more than the people in the original star trek could have ever imagined.

Science fiction is just fun. Ok? It is just fun. Do you play Halo? Have you ever played Halo? Did you enjoy it? Good. It is science fiction. Yes, it is a first persons shooter but in terms of narrative and genre of story it is science fiction. Everything in the universe is described in terms of science. So yes, the hard science fiction out there can be pretty nerdy. But a lot of it is fun and actiony. So just enjoy it without worrying about how things are done if you need to.

The game and soundtrack are epic. And science based.

There isn’t much more to say. Science fiction is a good way to enjoy worlds that aren’t possible. They can confront issues in the current world by allowing some distance for the reader to examine them through a different lens. Equality in the original Star Trek was huge. Want to really stick to the man? Put a black woman in a place of power. Roddenberry did it (though he also shortened the skirts too so he wasn’t completely progressive.)

For me, sci fi is just a nice way to enjoy a different universe and see how someone can imagine the future

Image from Amazon.com

I don’t happen to be very big into board games, and games like Sorry just make me mad. They are far more frustrating than fun. Ruin, however, adds a strategic element to counteract the luck aspect from Sorry. In Ruin, the path of the game board can be changed by the players. When it’s your turn you have a 50% chance that you will be able to change a piece of the game board, effectively changing the path either for your own benefit or to hinder someone else’s progress. Along with that, there are colored locations on the game board that correspond with the colors of the game pieces. When a player is sent back they only have to go so far as the nearest location of their color. This means you don’t have to go all the way back to the beginning just because you were landed on. You can also change where those colored locations are when you change the game board.

I’m not really sure what I’m getting at here except for stating a random opinion. I don’t expect anyone to jump up and go by the game. If you are a fan of games like Sorry and Parcheesi you will most likely enjoy this game, but if you are like me and don’t like those games, the added strategy of Ruin may make it a more enjoyable game.

-Dax

There are two areas to look at when looking at whether or not punk is dead. The first is the musical genre of punk rock. Punk rock was a major underground force in the 80s and 90s mostly driven by a younger crowd often associated with anarchy or rebellion, something I will touch upon a little later. Punk rock as a genre of music during these times was usually characterized by fast, 3 or 4 chord rhythms with a lot of energy and often low production values due to the underground nature. The genre was heavily focused around an idea or persona more than the music itself. However, just as people grow and evolve, so does music; and so did punk rock. During the 90s and early 2000s, punk rock made its way into the mainstream, mostly through a sub-genre called pop punk. Pop Punk bands like Green Day and Blink 182 hit it big in the mainstream by taking the simple yet energetic music style of the underground punk bands and adding more catchy melodies and higher production values. Bands like this were often criticized for “selling out,” but over time the line between mainstream and underground punk began to blur. Many previously underground bands like Bad Religion and NOFX began getting noticed outside of the underground scene, sometimes unintentionally.

In recent years punk has fallen out of the mainstream view. Many of the bands that made the genre popular in the 90s and 2000s either disbanded, fell out of the spotlight or changed their genre all together. It’s easy to see why people would come to the conclusion that punk is dead. The truth is, punk is not dead, it’s just out of the public’s eye. There are still a lot of older punk bands that are still going strong. Bad Religion is a good example. Bad Religion is often seen as being at the forefront of the 80s and 90s punk rock scene. The band has been around for 30+ years and has been able to evolve their style without losing their unique sound.

Bad Religion in 1989

 Bad Religion in 2010

 Long lasting punk bands are often criticized by long-time fans (whether they be vocal minorities or not, I don’t know) who say their new music sucks in comparison to their old music. Sometimes, this is probably true, but I would mark most of these instances as cases of nostalgia.

But there are still new punk bands forming all of the time and pushing the genre into the future. Bands like Broadway Calls hearken back to the pop punk bands from the 90s early 2000s like Fenix TX that helped bring punk rock to the mainstream.

Broadway Calls in 2009

The band I feel best represents how punk rock is still alive, relevant, and evolving is a band formed in 2002 called The Swellers who were originally heavily inspired by melodic hardcore bands like No Use For a Name but have since developed their own more contemporary sound.

 The Swellers in 2009

Another common criticism I’ve heard of punk rock is that it is too simple. I’ve never understood this complaint. The majority of modern music is written around 3 or 4 chord progressions. That is a trait of modern rock music, not just punk rock. To you say you hate punk because it’s too simple is to say you hate the majority of modern music. If that happens to be the case that you hate almost all modern music because it is simple, than I guess that is fair, but to say you hate one genre of music for one thing, but like other genres that follow same patterns is a faulty argument. Plus, I don’t understand why simple equals bad.

As I said before, there were two areas to look at when discussing punk. The first was the genre of punk rock, the second is punk as an idea and a way of life. I said before that punk is often associated with anarchy and rebellion and while there are many punk bands and punks that professed this outlook, I always thought of it less as anti-establishment and more as pro-individuality. I never considered myself a punk but I have always considered myself as someone who promotes individuality even when it doesn’t necessarily coincide with the established norm. These ideas on both sides of the spectrum; anti-establishment and pro-individuality, both still exist whether they are by those who declare themselves as punk or under other names.

Tying this into punk music, once again I never related to punk music as a genre that attacks establishment and promotes anarchy. I believe laws and government and other forms of establishment are important for keeping the world balanced, but the world is not black and white which means that the established norm does not always work in every situation. Punk music, just like any other type of music, is about declaring what is important to the individuals, it just so happens that many individuals who have declared themselves as punk found fighting authority as something important to them.

Punk is still alive. It is still growing and evolving. It is not what it once was in it’s golden age during the 80s and 90s but nothing stays the same forever. Staying the same is what makes something grow stale. I hope people who were once followers of the genre take the time to search out some newer punk bands and give them a shot, or take the time to rediscover some of the many punk bands who have been around for years and evolved with the times. As for those who have not followed the genre, I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a band you currently listen to that is in fact a punk band and you didn’t even know it.

Punk Isn’t dead; It just is rather stale and repetitive.

Punks are a very driven people. Possessing that DIY spirit and drive, they toil to make a culture their own. Outside the culture, people struggle to understand their choices of fashion or music. That doesn’t pertain to this at all though. I just wanted to start out by establishing a common ground.

Punk music is why we’re here. My esteemed colleague, Mr. Daximum, says that punk is not dead. I agree with him on that issue. Objectively, there is no evidence to suggest that punks lying in the gutter are gone or that no one is writing three chord progressions played fast and raw. Yet, punk music must be examined through the paradigm of the music itself how it has or has not changed. Individual bands will be viewed but the genre as whole progression.

For myself, after reading Please Kill Me and We’ve Got the Neutron Bomb, I gained a new prespective on the origins and history of the musical genre. I recommend you read them as it recounts the history accurately by the people that lived during the time frame. I’ll go with the socially acceptable theory that punk hit its strides with the Sex Pistols, Ramones, and the Clash (I don’t give a flying flip if you want to argue on that point). In my own personal life, my descent into punk came from my brother and with pop-punk. And boy, did I descend. I listened to the likes of Bad Religion, Operation Ivy, and Anti Flag before graduating to The Unseen, The Causalities, and A Global Threat. I still listen to punk and enjoy the really truly great punk bands (and some of the more median ones).

The biggest reason I stop listening to punk is the fact you’ve heard one band you’ve heard most punk bands. Yes, there are those bands that stand above the rest, but most float in the middle. Bad Religion is a great band that start out as middle of the road punk band. Disagree? Listen to 80-85. Any of them stand out? For me, none did. But thank the Lord that they improved to what they are. To me their crowning album is Process of Belief. They improved by ditching the tired punk trappings of faster and harder equals better while retaining a somewhat punk edge in their music

Bad Religion then.

Bad Religion now.

Punks, especially street, gutter, or oi punks, love the 3 chords and the same drum beat. Listen to them. Yeah the guitars are different but seriously, the same drum beat. Within the frame of the musical genre, singing has taken a backstreet role, leading to the rise of what I dub “Drill Sergeant Singers.” These fearless men and women bark into the microphone lyrics (I want to discuss lyrics but that is a different realm; Punks do seem to fixate on the same issues however, leading to my personal belief you heard one street punk song on police, you’ve heard them all). Now while a genre has to follow a certain
prescribed style, punk, for being anti-establishment, has an established archetype. New innovations are pushed aside and outside of punk for being “un-punk.” New bands are built on the styles of older bands, but still follow the same prescription.

Despite the wide range of punk rock, we get the same tired trappings. Punk is old and stale.It is sad to see a genre refusing to grow up just like many of the participants. You can still be punk in your heart but don’t forget that being 40 and thinking studded leather jackets are cool doesn’t make it so. Watch SLC Punk. Steve-O’s realization at the end is one of the best parts of the entire film for me. My advice is treat punk rock as a nice genre to visit, but don’t expect a long and enjoyable stay.

1. Questionable Content

A daily webcomic by Jeph Jacques. Starting in 2003, it followed Martin Reed, a twenty-something year-old with a crappy job and a love of indie music. Over the past 9 years, a myriad of supporting characters have joined in the cast. Going over the entire cast would be exhausting, so to say the least, I recommend just going to wikipedia’s entry for it (Here, I’ll even link you). Although it started focusing on Martin, many of the supporting characters have had their own plot lines. The world of Questionable Content looks very similar to our own, but there are things Jeph has added to make it different than ours. I found those help you relate at times to the characters more and add to the humor of the comic.

Antiquated Cast Photo

It took me about two days to read from the first to the most current entry. When you do start on the first entry, don’t be so harsh on the art. His drawing and stories get better so persavere if at first you’re not sure. For my own experience, I’d say Martin, Steve, and some others (who aren’t introduced at the beginning) are my favorite characters

Oh, don’t go to Pintsize’s tumblr. I’m not providing a link to it for your safety. You’ve been warned.

2. The Internet is a Playground

How to phrase this? This book is a nice collection of a man’s journey on the internet. David Thorne while working for a design company in Adelie, AU, shared his experiences on his own site 27bslash6.com. The experiences range from dealing with his coworkers to over-due bills and more. I in no way mean any disrespect when I say David Throne is a brilliant jerk. The way he messes with people is a trait I wished I possess myself.

Absolutely brilliant

Some of Throne’s best work is the email exchanges. If all you read is the email exchanges, you have done yourself a favor. The pinnacle is “Missing Missy.” I’d love to tell you more but you should just click the picture of the Lost cat to read the story. Yeah, I linked you. I’m that chill of a bro to hook you up like that. The book is full of other little gems as well.

3. Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran and a cat

Introduced to me by my fiancée, Ed Sheeran initially didn’t work with me. But by her persistence and some of his catchy tunes, he is a very well-listened to artist on my iPod. From Britain, he mixes an acoustic pop with some hip-hop elements. Sheeran has the acoustic playing style of a folk singer but the chops to spit lyrics out fast like a rapper. A really nice guy (from what I’ve heard), he collaborates a lot with other artists, as well as sleeping on their couches. This past week, he won two Brits.

Yes, Virginia, that is Ron Weasley.

For some songs, I’d recommend “Homeless”, “A Team”, and “Drunk”. Those are some of my favorite. He’ll be touring with Snow Patrol in the US in April. Emmy and I already have our tickets to see him perform.

Check him out here.

4. Arrested Development

Ok. Seriously, I’m not going to say that much since if you don’t know Arrested Development you just need to get Netflix and watch it. Tobais, GOB, and Buster are hilarious.

Like I said up top, feel free to chill with us about the stuff you enjoy and think people need to pay attention to.

Chill.
-MadDog out

The original Metal Gear Solid: Rising trailer portrayed the player character, Raiden, a cyborg, fighting another larger cyborg, cutting the larger cyborg in half, pulling out its spine and crushing it in his hand. The trailer then moves to actual gameplay showing Raiden cutting through both environment objects and enemies by positioning a path for where the sword will cut (oh yeah, and he cuts melons).

The Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance trailer starts off by showing Raiden, still as a cyborg, fighting what seems to be a group of cyborg agents. The gameplay looks to be more based in heavy action, hack-and-slash and possibly linking combo attacks. The trailer than shows Raiden fighting a giant building-sized mech which he defeats by running up the mech’s sword and cutting through the mech with one slice.

The main criticisms I’ve heard of Revengeance have been toward the hack-and-slash gameplay as opposed to the stealth gameplay of previous Metal Gear titles and also toward the over-the-top presentation, i.e. the giant mech. Not to mention the title of the game is Revengeance, a fake word made by combining two words with the same meaning.

Personally, I think Revengeance looks like a lot of fun. Many people have said it’s not a real Metal Gear Solid game. I will admit, I have never played any of the Metal Gear games, though I am making my way through the original right now, so you don’t have to consider my opinion valid if you don’t want, but the name of the game is no longer Metal Gear Solid, it’s Metal Gear Rising. It’s clearly defining itself as a spinoff title. The original Metal gear titles have defined themselves as “tactical espionage action.” Even in the original Metal Gear Solid: Rising trailer you can see the game is defined as “lighting bolt action.” That sounds completely different than “tactical espionage action.” I don’t think the game was ever meant to be in the same gameplay department as other Metal Gear titles. The great thing about that; if you don’t want to play it or even consider its existence, you don’t have to. Just pretend it’s not there.

I think Revengeance looks like a great game and a great project for both fans and those unfamiliar with the series. It’s an opportunity to take a loved franchise and put it in a new light, one that is perhaps taken a little more light-heartedly. Many games take themselves very seriously. If you enjoy these types of games that is fine. I enjoy many games that take themselves seriously, but why not let yourself enjoy the opposite side of the spectrum as well? I don’t know about you but I think running up a giant mech and cutting through it in a single slice sounds awesome. And let’s be honest, the fight shown in the Metal Gear Solid: Rising trailer is pretty over-the-top. He crushes the other guy’s spine with his hand!

I hope those who were initially disappointed by Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance will give the game a chance when it’s released and let themselves enjoy the game for the over-the-top fun action that I’m sure it will deliver. Just remember that the game cannot ruin the other games you love. Those games will always be there, unchanged from their original design.

I will miss being able to cut those melons, however.

-Dax