The Last Post

Well faithful readers, all things come to an end and this will be the last post for the Nerd Alert. I have enjoyed writing and keeping a nerd diary for the last 3 years but it is now time to move on to other things.
Thanks to all of my readers (apparently there have been 4000) over the years. I will be concentrating on writing for the website Comic Book Daily and I would encourage all to check out my column here.

Excelsior!

The List for 2011

With Marvel Vs Capcom 3 almost out, I will need a new game to look forward to, so here is a list of stuff that I am excited about for 2011.

• Mortal Kombat - what can I say? This looks great. 
• The 3rd Birthday - Parasite Eve 3. Need I say more. 
• Final Fantasy IV: Complete Collection - my favourite FF game suped-up for the PSP. 
• L.A. Noire - Rockstar showed us with Red Dead that all its games don't have to be GTA crap. 
• inFamous 2 - Was only lukewarm on the first one, but I have high hopes for this sequel. 
• Uncharted 3 - a can't fail franchise. 
• Elder Scrolls V - I hope that they will add some Fallout type mechanics to the gameplay. 
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword - yes, I know that this game will most likely not come out this year. And it will most likely end up on the Wii 2. 

Infestation #1

Zombies are everywhere these days, and so I had mixed feelings when I heard that IDW was doing a zombie related crossover with all its properties. The concept sounds ludicrous: zombies invade the worlds of Transformers, G.I. Joe, Ghosbusters, and Star Trek.

Yet this concept works. Mostly due to the deft pen of writers Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning (who many will remember have been writing all the great cosmic crossovers at Marvel). The concept may be bizzare, but the execution is flawless.

They manage to inject new life into zombie lore: zombies act as a single hive mind, and they come up with a plausible (by comic book standards anyway) reason for the infestation, and they even manage to explain how robots can become zombified.

I am quite excited for the remaining parts of the story. Mostly due to my fanboy anticipation of seeing Snake Eyes fight a horde of zombies.

Tale of the Tape

Cost: $4

Length: About 20 minutes. 

Is it worth it?: A resounding yes.  

Marvel Vs Capcom 3 Trophies

I got a chance to have a preliminary look at the trophy list (achievements for you XB360 nuts) for MVC 3 and I must say that nothing looks too crazy. I could be wrong, but this looks way, way easier than the trophies for Super Street Fighter IV (or Street Fighter IV for that matter).

Anyway, you can check out the list here.

Famous Monsters of Filmland

As any horror movie buff can tell you, Famous Monsters of Filmland was THE magazine for all things spooky for decades until it ended publication in 1983 (it was re-started again from 1993-2008). Recently there has been a reboot, and the magazine holds all of the behind the scenes magic and corny humour that made the original a sci-fi institution.

I picked up issue 254 which celebrates (what would have been) Vincent Price's 100th birthday. There are several articles devoted to the iconic performer, including an interview with his daughter. The magazine holds up to its reputation as you learn so much about the man and see just how much he contributed to Hollywood.

Other articles in the magazine take a look at special effect master Joel Harlow, the computer graphics tool the Zbrush, and IDW's Infestation comic book crossover. The articles are a mix of fanboy love and insider knowledge, and FM has re-established itself as a must have periodical for those who love horror.

Tale of the Tape

Cost: $13 

Length: There is at least 1.5 hours worth of material within these pages. 

Is it worth it?: Magazines are always a tough call. They are quite expensive, but if you have love of the material you will definitely get your money's worth. For anyone in the special effect industry or any horror movie fans the mag is worth it, but for others you should pass this one by. 

Kratos in Mortal Kombat

I know that this is old news, but I am pretty stoked about Kratos being in the PS3 version of the new MK game.

I love the crazy additional characters (Link, Vader, Spawn, etc) that fighters can throw into the fix. Mostly they are over-powered and broken, but always lots of fun to use.

Check out the trailer here.

Haggar is in Marvel VS Capcom 3!

Awesome news fight fans, Haggar from the Final Fight series will be in MVC 3.

For those who don't know Haggar is the Mayor of Metro City and also a professional wrestler. We can only hope that Zangief will also be in the game as well so we can finally have the Zangief, Hulk, Haggar fight we always have dreamed about.

You can check out the video here.

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holiday readers! The Nerd Alert is taking a break until the new year, when it will be back with a vengeance!

In the mean time here is a picture of the Hulk fighting Santa.

Gran Turismo 5

Readers should be reminded that the Gran Turismo series is not a racing game; it is a racing simulator. The distinction needs to made because those who pick up GT5 thinking that it will be like Mario Kart with Lambourginis will be disappointed.

The game is quite impressive. It has over 1000 cars, tonnes of customizable options, and track after track to test your racing mettle. However, the game has a very steep learning curve and the menus and options are difficult to navigate.

Other reviews have mentioned this, but it bears repeating; the new 'damage' feature is non-existent. So much so that a patch is coming soon, but that makes one wonder if the game was rushed out the door.

If you love cars, you will love this game. If you don't love cars this game will make you love them.

Tale of the Tape

Cost: $60

Length: The game is long. Very long. I will probably never be good enough to finish it. 

Is it worth it?: Yes. There is less than $1 per hour of entertainment here. Minor quibbles aside this is a new killer app for the PS3. 

Amazing Spider-Man #648

After the sub-par offerings of Brand New Day, I was pretty skeptical when Marvel announced a new direction for ASM. The title will now be published twice per month and super-sized. Every issue will be written by Dan Slott, which at least deals with some of the problems created by having a rotating creative team every month.

I'll get right to the point: issue 648 is the best Spider-Man story in years. It shows Spider-Man at his best and funniest and Slott and Ramos treat us to a action packed page-turner. The issue nicely explains Spidey's status as an avenger, shows the reader his supporting cast, and re-introduces the Sinister Six, The Enforcers, The Kingpin, and the Hobgoblin.

Truly a great place for new readers to start enjoying the arachnid's tales and a new must read for any Spidey fan.

Tale of the Tape

Cost: $4

Length: 20 minutes

Is it worth it?: A resounding yes. Issues like this are why I enjoy comic books. 

MODOK is in Marvel VS Capcom 3!

Some new fighters are shown in the latest MVC3 trailer. Included is MODOK, the Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing.

X-Men Arcade Game Coming to PSN

Pretty sweet news from the New York Comic Con. Konami has finally gotten their act together and will be porting the arcade classic X-Men game to the XBLA and PSN.

You can be all 6 characters (Wolverine, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Storm, Cyclops, and Dazzler) and 6 people can play at once with a combination of online/offline play.

This is one of the many arcade only games that fans have been waiting for. Now hopefully we will see a release of the Simpsons Arcade game as well.

Spidey's New Threads

Why do companies feel that they way to fix a book is to invent a new, crappy costume? This monstrosity is a cross between the black costume, the 2099 costume, and the Spider-Man Unlimited television show.

Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot.

Thor #615

The new creative team of Matt Fraction and Pasqual Ferry take over with issue 615. After a lackluster, 4-part (ugh) Mephisto stoyline, I was interested to see where the series is going. With the Thor movie coming out this summer this title will be one to watch.

Fraction does an pretty good job of setting up the next chapter in Thor's life; he asks the simple question of "if Asgard is here on earth, then what is in Asgard's place?" An interesting point, and since nature abhors a vacuum, we are treated to the invasion of whatever used to be Asgard by a mysterious new foe. However the book drags in places, and the overall story could have been told in half the pages.

The art works well and I am happy to see a lighter, brighter tone in a lot of the Marvel books since the Heroic age started. Ferry does a good Thor and I will be interested to see how he deals with large scale Ragnorok-type fights scenes.

The stuff with Volstagg is priceless, but all in all this was a pretty boring jump on point for new readers.

Tale of the Tape

Cost: $4

Length: 20 minutes

Is it worth it?: No, not really. Not enough happens for this to be a key issue in a new story arc. 

Collection Update: Fan Expo 2010

I made some choice acquisitions this past weekend at Fan Expo 2010. First off, I picked up a bunch of Marvel Team-Up issues for very cheap (about $1 each) so now I am half way to completing that series. I also grabbed a very nice Ray Harryhausen art book.

The big finds of the weekend were a copy of Strange Tales #89 (first appearance of Fin Fang Foom) and I traded my copies of X-Men #12 and #13 to Big B Comics for a very nice copy of Hulk #181.

In addition to completing Marvel Team-Up, I have also decided to search for Star Wars Tales (24 issue run) and Treehouse of Horror issues (15 issues so far).

Epic Mickey Opening

I am looking forward to checking out Epic Mickey. The opening cinematic can be seen here. The game has some very interesting and creepy visuals. And I need some reason to play my Wii. 

Superman #702

Well, it only took 2 issues for the Grounded storyline to get annoying and pretentious. Superman plays basketball with some kids, discovers hidden aliens, and meets with an old man who works in a closed down car factory.

Oh and he also blackmails the aliens to use their superior technology to created a booming medical industry in the depressed former auto-city. That right folks, Superman is all about meddling in the affairs of regular people now. I can only assume that he will fly back in time and stop WWII next. The concept of Grounded is okay, but I am not pleased with this issue’s heavy handed execution.

Batman shows up at the end, so maybe if we are lucky he will tell Superman to stop being so high and mighty. Hanging out with regular people might be fine once in a while, but he has real, world-saving problems to deal with. While he was playing basketball alien super-robots took over Canada (okay that last part didn't happen but you get my point).

Tale of The Tape

Cost: $3

Length: 20 minutes

Is it worth it?: Not really. This was a pretty lackluster outing for JMS and crew. Barrows draws a great Supes though. 

Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One Trailer

A pretty interesting trailer for the next title in the R&C series can be viewed here. 4 player simultaneous action can be fun, but also brutal and filled with many, unnecessary deaths. I will be interested to see if there is a good single player game or if it will be only online.

The Expendables

For any fan of 1980’s action movies purchasing a ticket to this testosterone-filled explosion-fest was a no-brainer. Action movie fans will not be disappointed. The plot is fine and actually unnecessary. The cast is the real draw and the audience is treated to find out who would win if Stone Cold Steve Austin and Rocky Balboa fought each other. Or maybe you always wondered how a Jet Li/Ivan Drago fight would end. You will find the answers within.

Stallone does a good job of directing this band of tough guys and kudos to Sly for not using camera work so fast that it creates motion sickness in the viewing public. The movie is not Citizen Kane, but you will have two hours of fun.

Tale of the Tape

Cost: $12

Length: 1 hour 44 minutes.

Is it worth it?: Yes, but only if you love action movies. Anyone else will find the movie "stupid", and they would be wrong. Dead wrong. 

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #156

G.I. Joe is back! And is written by Larry Hama! And it continues the story from the Marvel comics series! Needless to say I was pretty excited about this issue and fans of G.I. Joe will not be disappointed. We join the story in media res and the Joe team has gone into hiding as Cobra now works for the U.S. Government as mercenaries.

We see various members of the Joe team fend off (and kill) Cobra assassins while gathering to formulate a plan against Cobra. Hama does a great job with the characters he created and the art by Augustin Padilla fits the feel of the book well.

I did find it strange that the book abruptly ends. It seemed like there was a page missing. However, this did little to detract from a great read for a G.I. Joe fan.

Tale of The Tape

Cost: $4

Length: 20 minutes

Is it worth it?: Yes, but only if you are a G.I. Joe fan. New readers will find this issue a pretty strange starting point.