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Hello chaps! With the whole comics world reeling after the announcement that Ben Affleck is the new Batman, why not take a look at my review of the inspiration behind this choice… Batman '66 #2!
Haha, no, but seriously, there's a review of that in there, as well as exciting new issues from the likes of Indestructible Hulk, Superman Unchained, X-Men, Animal Man and more! Plus, the big events of the summer continue in the pages of Avengers and Justice League Dark, so let's get our crossover on!
As usual, click the links to head to the forum discussions, which seem to mainly be about which of Bendis' or Brubaker's runs on Daredevil is the darkest. Here at the Outhouse, we are not afraid to get off topic!
Superior Spider-Man #16– The Hobgoblin storyline comes to an end here, but as is usual when it comes to Dan Slott's Spider-Man, it's not really over, and really, this is all just a prelude to the upcoming clash between Spidey and the Green Goblin.
The way this story actually wraps up was surprisingly simple, last issue ended with Spider-Man 'outing' Phil Urich as the Hobgoblin, and whilst there is initially some denial from Phil, he does eventually admit it, and Spider-Man brings him in with fairly little fuss. I suppose this efficiency shouldn't really come as a surprise, we are seeing the 'superior' Spider-Man after all, and this issue once again really showed how different this Spidey is to the original version. He's thinking outside the box, and it's effective. Of course, there are ethical complications to what Spidey did, and Joe Robertson may have a point when he says that outing Phil only made things worse.
What's more interesting is what comes after Phil is captured. It looks like SpOck is planning to execute him, but it's only a timely phone-call from Captain America, reminding him he's on Avengers-probation that stops Spider-Man from once again killing his enemy. I like this running plotline of the Avengers being suspicious of Spider-Man, and it's worth noting that Spider-Man wasn't in Infinity #1, I'm guessing he's going to be kicked out fairly sharpish.
In the end, Phil Urich is rescued from prison by none other than Menace, who, to be honest, I had actually forgotten about, but it makes sense that she would be involved in whatever it is 'The Goblin King' has going on. Phil is accepted into Gobby's fold, and takes a new name, Goblin Knight, which is pretty cool I suppose. Once again, the identity of the Green Goblin is left ambiguous, if it's not Norman Osborn, then who the hell is it?
I'm really digging this book right now, especially because there's so much going on, so many subplots and little ideas crammed into each issue. Added into the mix here was The Wraith and Carlie Cooper trying to find out the truth about Spidey, and that took a very interesting turn here, they interrogate one of the Spider-Henchmen and find out that he's clean, he's not ex-Hydra or anything like that, which surprised me. I love the fact that Carlie is going to 'follow the money', could SpOck be undone not by the Green Goblin or the Avengers, but by his banking? I would find that hilarious.
What else? Hmmm… Humberto Ramos' artwork was excellent as usual, I'm very interested in seeing what's next for Norah Winters, and I loved seeing mention of The Loners again, that was a fun mini-series. That's the good kind of continuity nod, stuff like that, and when Slott points out the ridiculous number of Daily Bugle staffers who are villains, that was fun. Basically, this was another great issue of a great series, and next issue, Spider-Man 2099 is getting involved, I am hyped.
Indestructible Hulk #12– The Hulk's jaunt through time continues to be a hell of a lot of fun. I find that often, time-travel stories can get way too complicated and into their own mechanics, but here, whilst Waid isn't just being dumb about it, he's making sure that in amongst the minutiae of 'time radiation' and 'chronarchists' we still get to see the Hulk punch some Dinosaurs in the Old West, which is, you know, pretty damn great. Time being 'broken' thanks to Age Of Ultron, basically means that Waid can do whatever he wants and break the established rules of time-travel, so really, anything goes, and that's a relief.
So yeah, this issue has Hulk team up with 3 of Marvel's classic Western heroes, The Two-Gun Kid, Kid Colt and The Rawhide Kid, to fight an evil time-travelr and his dinosaur minions. If you don't like the sound of that, you shouldn't be reading comics. I'm a big fan of those cheesy old 1950s Western comics, and it's always great to see these characters show up again, and Waid wrote them really well I feel, yes, they are silly, and yes, the word 'Kid' was over-used, but they are crack-shots, and they are fun. The villain, 'Tok Baltusar' was pretty good too, although from the initial silhoutte we saw, I thought it was Apocalypse, so his real identity was a bit of a disappointment, but his crazy-ass plan to turn silver into 'time-rocks' or something made up for it. This whole storyline is just Waid going for it with weird ideas for time-travel, and it all works for me.
I also really enjoy the new dynamic between Hulk and Banner, who is trapped inside a ROB robot, and who's main job is to keep Hulk angry and insult him. It must be a lot of fun for Banner to be able to call his alter-ego stupid to his face. In the end, Hulk and the Cowboys save the day, but Hulk is zapped back into the time-stream, where he comes face to face with King Arthur and the original Black Knight!
Oh yes, Waid has done Marvel Westerns, now he's doing Marvel Medieval, this story is awesome. I liked this book before, but these last 2 issues have really made me love this series, maybe I'm just a child who likes to see Hulk punch Dinosaurs and meet King Arthur, but this is a silly story being told in style, and Waid is taking it seriously, so the goofiness is not all that's going on, it's just a bonus!
Matteo Scalera once again impressed me with his pencils, he draws a mean Dinosaur, and his style makes all of the weird, incongruous elements of this story fit together.
Nova #7– This was an OK issue of Nova, nothing special really, but I feel like this title is doing a really good job of being an all-ages title that you could give to a teenage kid who has no idea about the Marvel Universe, and Sam Alexander could be their guide. Given that I'm not a newcomer, it does feel a little samey, but it's done with a good sense of humour and there are fresh moments in here too.
Sam has headed to New York to try and really be a superhero, but of course, he runs into problems, like the Police and then Spider-Man. I really enjoyed Sam's interactions with Spidey here, especially because it was a Spider-Man of the Superior variety, and he acted like such a hilarious dick. Teaming up with Spider-Man is kind of a rite of passage for new superheroes, so it was fun to see Zeb Wells subvert that and have Spider-Man refuse to help him. I also loved the cameo from Iron Man, as Spidey showed to Nova that NYC already has too many superheroes and they don't really need another one, which is not only a fun bit of meta-commentary, but true.
So Sam heads to somewhere without 500 superheroes, Los Angeles, only to once again screw up, as he interrupts a Movie-shoot, and comes face to face with a Director who looks a lot like Joss Whedon. This was more meta stuff, and it also worked for me, especially 'Joss' line about how maybe he could use Sam in a future movie, could that be Avengers 2? Heh.
Basically, this issue showed how it's actually quite difficult to be a superhero, as everything Sam tries to do backfires in some way, and he ends up doing what his mother suggested in the first place, fixing the Skate Park he destroyed. I like that this book is not just slotting the character right into traditional superhero stories, that it's trying to do something different, and my suspicion is that Nova is far more suited to outer-space adventures than stopping robberies in New York. Luckily (or unluckily), Infinity is just around the corner and Sam will probably end up in all kinds of cosmic mess, I'm excited to see what that's like.
One other interesting element of this series is the role of the New Warriors, as both Justice and Speedball show up in this issue, discussing whether or not to reform the band. It was a lot of fun seeing those two again, and I'm excited to see where they are going with this, it's obviously going to be sad when they find out that this new Nova isn't Richard Rider, but are we going to be getting a new New Warriors?
This is still a fun book, Wells' take on Sam is great, he does seem like a naïve kid, and Paco Medina's art is perfect, this just felt like a placeholder, let's hope the Infinity tie-ins get things moving faster.
Daredevil #30– Out of all of Marvel's vast array of characters, Daredevil is probably the most 'street-level' of them all. Even someone like The Punisher gets turned into a Frankenstein or becomes 'Space Punisher' every once in a while, but apart from the 5 minutes he became an Avenger, Matt Murdock stays pretty far away from the more cosmic side of the Marvel Universe. But not anymore! Mark Waid has slowly moved Daredevil more and more into the bright, superhero world, and this issue really takes things to the extreme as Daredevil comes face to face with the goddamn Silver Surfer. Even though these two characters exist in the same universe, they've never met before, and occupy completely different spheres, so it was a hell of a lot of fun to see them interact, and Waid, the master of looking at continuity and characters in new ways that he is, finds a way to really make it work.
The actual plot of Ru'Ach the evil alien is fairly unimportant here, what's important is getting to see Daredevil fly around on the Surfer's board, which is just a sheer fanboyish delight. I also loved how Waid and Samnee explored how Surfer saw the world, so much of this book has been about showing how Daredevil views things differently, and here, we got that for another character, which was very cool. It was also great how Surfer, even with 'The Power Cosmic' couldn't see Ru'Ach, but Daredevil could.
Speaking of Samnee, it was fantastic to have him back on art duties here, he's so damn good, he really deserves that Eisner, and more besides. He meshes perfectly with the tone that Waid uses here, and every panel looks great. He also draws an awesome Silver Surfer. If he ever leaves Daredevil (god forbid, but it will happen eventually), I'd love to see him do a Surfer book, he's great at the street-level stuff here, but imagine Samnee cutting loose in space? Wow.
I never thought I'd see a team-up between Daredevil and Silver Surfer, but I have now, and I'm glad I did, it's crazy that these two characters can interact, but that's what's so great about the Marvel Universe (and the DC one too I suppose), you've got all kinds of genres and settings all in one, you can do anything, and with upcoming issues set to feature the a load of Marvel's horror characters, it looks like Waid and Samnee are really doing that.
There's also some continuing subplot stuff here, with Kirsten McDuffie replacing Foggy, which should be interesting, but the main thing at play with this issue is seeing two completely different worlds collide, and two masterful creators making it work.
Avengers #18– This issue confirmed it, if you picked up Infinity #1 last week, you need to start getting Avengers and New Avengers too, these aren't just meaningless tie-ins, big things happen here!
This issue follows the Avengers out into space as they attempt to stop The Builders by teaming up with… the entire Galaxy. This issue focuses initially on a meeting of the Galactic Council, the same council that has been appearing in Guardians Of The Galaxy. You've got the Kree, the Spartax, the Shi'Ar, the Badoon, and now, even the Skrulls. Basically, any important alien race is here, preparing for war, and our heroes are just a small part of it. It's pretty interesting that the Avengers are not a big part of this war, because, on a cosmic scale, we are fairly unimportant. Other planets have thousands, millions of soldiers present, but Earth only has 18. It's certainly humbling, and it really gets across the scale of the threat Hickman has set up here.
In many ways, this issue reminded me of the likes of Annihilation and the other cosmic events. A lot of the major players from those stories by Giffen and DnA are present here, and this feels like the next step in that story, only now, it's not a small event off to the side, it's the main Marvel crossover for 2013, which is pretty great. Marvel said they wanted to make Marvel Cosmic into a bigger deal, and they've done so, first with the new Nova and Guardians titles, and now with secretly turning the Avengers into Marvel Cosmic. It's awesome to see, and I certainly hope that people who read Infinity will go back and read those other series, because they were just as good as this event.
This issue features the first big battle, and it's pretty crazy, especially as it's not the kind of fight you tend to see in superhero stories, this is an interstellar dogfight, with space-ships, and the scale of it is very impressive. Leinil Yu's art really adds to the epic feel of this story, as even though the fight only lasts a few pages, it feels huge. It was also great to see Yu draw some Skrulls again, he proved the master of drawing the green guys in Secret Invasion, and he's back at it again, only this time… Super-Skrull is involved.
The ending of this issue was pretty shocking, as The Builders reveal that their fleet was a distraction, only a small part, and start really laying waste, some of the Avengers escape thanks to Manifold, but the likes of Captain Marvel and Hawkeye are left stranded. It's looking bleak, and throughout this issue, I had Thanos in the back of my head, the Avengers are out there trying to save the world from one threat, but there's a bigger one back home.
This is such a good crossover already, after only 2 issues, I'm loving it, Hickman is at the top of his game here, and he's even doing proper characterisation! Cannonball and Sunspot are still hilarious, Spider-Woman's history with Skrulls is mentioned, as were Captain Marvel's piloting skills. Now that the Avengers are getting proactive, their personalities are coming to the fore, it's just a shame it could all end in tears.
X-Men #4– After being really disappointed by the last issue, this one was a big improvement and brought me back into the fold. I still think the concept of an all-female team of X-Men is a little strange, but these are all great characters, and Wood writes them really well. I think my issues with #3 were more to do with the Arkea character than anything else.
This issue is split into two separate stories. The first involves Jubilee and baby Shogo hanging around with Wolverine in California as she reminisces about her past, and wonders if she's made the right choice in bringing a baby into the mad world of the X-Men. These were fantastic scenes, I know some people don't like Wolverine's platonic relationships with teenage girls, but I think they are great, and being a 90s kid, it was Wolverine and Jubilee for me, so I got a twinge of nostalgia seeing them together again. This issue also served as a nice recap and reintroduction of the Jubilee character, who has been gone from the X-Books for far too long. We even got confirmation that she's still a vampire, which was weird, but necessary I suppose. I loved this whole story, it showed Wolverine at his best, and made Jubilee important again, really good character work from Wood.
The other story involved the rest of Storm's team trying to save an aeroplane from crashing. It was a fairly simple plan, and it was actually reminiscent of what Bane did at the start of Dark Knight Rises. What was interesting here was the character stuff, like Rachel Grey arguing with Storm about Storm's willingness to kill Arkea, and seeing how Psylocke is stretching her powers, here, she uses a psychic crossbow, which is pretty great. I also enjoyed Rogue's attitude in this issue, unlike a lot of others, I have no real problem with how Remender is writing her in Uncanny Avengers, but it was good to see her having fun here, she's been so emo in that book, and she's pretty emo already.
David Lopez's artwork was solid here, he's not as good as Coipel, but few people are, and he drew everything very well, and since this issue was very talky, his facial expressions were very important, and very good, Psylocke's eye-roll in particular.
This was a nice, cool-down issue in between the opening arc and 'Battle For The Atom' and it turned me around on this book, Wood does have a handle on these characters and I'm excited to see where he goes.
Cable And X-Force #13– Damn you Hopeless and Bunn! All I wanted was a one-issue story with Doctor Nemesis and Forge bickering with each other whilst saving the world, and what do I get? 2 pages of that glory until the rest of X-Force swoop in and do it for them! I swear vengeance! If you thought the Avengers Arena haters were bad, if you thought the irrational Annabelle Riggs fans were bad… You haven't seen nothing yet! I WILL DESTROY YOU! Ahem, sorry, got a little bit out of control there.
Apart from the disappointment over the lack of Forge/Nemesis buddy-cop fun, this was another strong issue of Cable And X-Force, and one which once more provided some very interesting answers.
We get a more detailed explanation as to how and why 'Future Hope' (don't call her Old Hope, that's mean) and Blaquesmith started giving Cable his premonitions. The 'how' is that they used a Deathlok, and the 'why' is because, in the original timeline, Cable retired after AvX, and the world went to shit without him, so Hope needed to change things. The 'real' Hope of course admonishes her future self for this, saying that it hasn't worked, and she may end up just killing their dad. I wonder if Age Of Ultron and the 'time-quake' is to blame for the complications here, I wouldn't be surprised if it was.
Speaking of Cable, he appears here in a psychic sequence, where he finally explains the truth behind his actions to his Uncle Havok. A lot of stuff in X-Men comics these days could probably be sorted out if the characters just sat down and had a conversation, so it was good to see that happening, but it may be too late, because the rest of X-Force are at the doors to the Avengers Mansion to rescue Cable.
It looks like we are going to get yet another round in the fight between these two teams, and I am excited. Now that Hopeless has revealed what's been going on behind the curtain, this book has moved onto the next stage, and it's getting bigger and better.
The only real problem with this issue is the artwork, Salvador Larrocca only draws the first half, and the rest is by Gerardo Sandoval, who has a completely different style, very cartoony and angular. I don't mind fill-ins, but I prefer more consistency.
Superman Unchained #3– Scott Snyder and Jim Lee's take on Superman continues to develop nicely, as this third issue contains a healthy dose of action, along with some interesting plot developments and take on Superman's morality that I'm sure will provoke some discussion.
Superman is deep underground, and faced with the US Government's 'other Superman', who we learn is called Wraith, which is a pretty clichéd name, but I did like the reasoning for it here. Wraith is an acronym for 'William Rudolph's Ace In The Hole', Rudolph being the Army general who first utilised him back in 1938. In this issue, we find out a lot more about Wraith's back-story, and also about the branch of government both he and General Lane are working for, 'The Machine', who are some kind of shadowy operation that has secretly policed the world for the last century or so. It's pretty fascinating to see this secret side of the DC Universe, and to see what other real world events Wraith got involved with. Wraith looks like being an interesting character, he's not really a villain, because he's been working for the US Government to save the world, and he clearly likes and respects Superman. But that last page, where he says he's going to have to kill him is very telling, he's not a free agent like Superman, he follows orders. And if the fight he and Supes have in this issue, he's a credible threat.
That fight was very well-done, Jim Lee's art really shone here, I'm not the biggest fan of his stuff, but nobody does big, superhero action like he does, you feel every punch, and of course, there's lots of rubble.
The part of this issue that will probably cause the most interest is when General Lane takes Superman to task and calls him a coward and a murderer. Lane says that because Superman isn't proactive and doesn't get involved in invading other countries and taking out evil dictators and things like that, he's culpable for all of those deaths. That by keeping things simple and just stopping disasters as they come along, he's not really helping the world like Wraith and The Machine are. This is an interesting take on the character, and one that makes sense coming from a soldier, but I don't really buy it, not least because I feel superhero comics are best staying away from solving real world issues, to have Superman just fly in and save the DCU Sudan is disrespectful to the real Sudan. It's interesting, and I'd be interested to hear what everyone else thinks, especially in the wake of Man Of Steel.
Snyder also keeps us up to date with his various subplots, including a gloriously insane escape from Lex Luthor, and the threat of 'The Ascension' and Lois Lane's plane crashing. I really enjoyed these scenes with Lois, as she managed to mostly save the day herself, not with Superman's help. But what's the deal with that weird dude who rescued her from the lake? There's a lot going on in this story and it's going to be interesting to see how Snyder ties The Ascension, Wraith and now this dude into one another.
It's just so refreshing to have a good Superman book on the shelves, those few months in between the end of Morrison's run and this book's launch were bleak times man. Throw in an epilogue that sets up Jimmy Olsen for an important role, and I'm a happy bunny.
Wonder Woman #23– Brian Azzarello's run on Wonder Woman has been a slow burn, each issue is good, but it's all building towards something bigger, and in this issue, we reached a crescendo point, as the battle between Wonder Woman and the First Born really kicked into gear and shit got fucked up and this title made some serious changes.
This issue was basically just one big fight between Diana's motley group, and the First Born's army of Jackal Men, and it was great, as everyone got a chance to shine, Orion and First Born had an awesome fight, War summoned an army of ghost soldiers, Hera got to demonstrate some actual character growth, and most importantly of all, Wonder Woman cut loose and took the fight to someone in a really hardcore manner. Has it been established before that Wonder Woman taking off her gauntlets means she gets more powerful? It rings a bell, but maybe it's new.
Cliff Chiang draws this entire epic fight, and man, it looks amazing, he's been so consistently great on this title since the beginning, but this action-heavy piece may be the best yet, because he's being asked to do more. In the end, just as the First Born is about to kill War and take his Godhood, Wonder Woman stabs both of them, killing War and leaving the First Born gravely wounded. This means that… Wonder Woman is the new God Of War, which is, wow, a pretty crazy development. Azzarello has not been shy about shaking up this character, first he completely changed her origin, and now this. I can't wait to see what becoming an actual God will do to Diana, and how this will change the story going forwards.
In many ways, this feels like the ending of the first act of Azzarello's story. Central characters like Lennox and War are now dead, and it looks like Apollo is stepping up his game and has something planned for First Born. Next month's break for Villain's month really does make this an ending, but I can't wait for the new beginning. This is one of the best issues so far of one of DC's best titles, and I never thought I'd be saying that about a Wonder Woman book. The God Of War is dead, long live the God Of War!
Animal Man #23– Another excellent issue of Animal Man, this book really has been on a hot-streak since Rotworld ended.
This issue continued the twin plotlines of Animal Man Vs the Splinterfolk and Maxine's hunt for Cliff inside The Red, but brilliantly combined them in the end for one hell of a cliffhanger (and that's not just because Cliff's soul is hanging on the edge). It doesn't look like Animal Man has a Villain's Month issue, so it's going to be a long two months wait to see what the heck is going to happen next.
We open once again with some fun satire of the media, Lemire really is using Buddy Baker's life as a celebrity to good effect, as the public seem to believe that the battle with the Splinterfolk may just have been a viral stunt for Buddy's Oscar campaign, which is pretty clever, and depressingly realistic. Lemire's version of Twitter is very close to how dickish real people can be. Thankfully, Maxine's journey into The Red is a bit more fun, as she and Shepherd team up with some awesome Animal Pirates to go sail into the Red Sea to try and rescue her brother's soul. It sounds ridiculous, and it is, but she's a 4 year-old kid, and these characters were imagined by her, so it makes sense. But come on, you have to love a Pirate Giraffe.
The x-factor in this story is Brother Blood, who, unbeknownst to Animal Man is just about to drink his blood and gain access to The Red, he does so, and immediately, everything goes to shit. Buddy starts freaking out, and so does Maxine, and Brother Blood enters the Red and starts killing cute Animal creatures. I loved the speed of the ending here, and the twist that one of the three Totem dudes was conspiring against the others was brilliant. Brother Blood was always one of the least interesting Teen Titans villains to me, but with this issue, Jeff Lemire has made me like him a lot, and has made him a true threat to Animal Man.
Steve Pugh and Francis Portela's artwork was once again excellent, they really do fit perfectly on a book that straddles two worlds. I will say though, I am extremely excited for Rafael Albuquerque to jump on board, he's going to make up for the 2 month wait.
Justice League Dark #23– Things are starting to become much clearer to me when it comes to the overall story of 'Trinity War'. At first, it was confusing, you had the threat of the Secret Society on one hand, and Pandora and her box on the other, and it was unclear how and if they were related, but I think the ending to this issue has the answer. The box is a doorway to somewhere, and I think that doorway is to Earth 3, the world of the Crime Society Of Amerika, and next issue, The Outsider is going to open the box, and out will come Ultraman and Owlman and all the rest of those guys and Forever Evil will begin. You can bet your life on it.
Most of this issue was focussed on Pandora's Box, and it possessing people and making them totally eeeeeeevil. Wonder Woman starts out with it, but Shazam soon comes in and grabs it, and something weird happens, it not only turns his costume black (is this how Black Adam comes back?) but it sends out some weird shockwaves that attack all of the other magical heroes in the DCU. I found it interesting that this shockwave managed to reach across into Earth 2 and Doctor Fate. Not only does this show how powerful this box is, but it reinforces my belief that Earth 3 is inside it.
The way the box managed to make all of the various heroes go crazy for it was a bit clichéd, but it was effective, and I liked seeing Zatanna really demonstrate her powers and kick a little ass, it was also great how John Constantine was able to pick it up and not be corrupted, because he's already corrupt, I loved that.
I find it interesting that Lemire and Johns have kept a lot of the characters in the various Justice Leagues away from Pandora and the Outsider, the likes of Superman, Green Arrow, Cyborg and more are trapped under the rubble of ARGUS and dealing with the slightly more mundane problem of Amanda Waller's treacherous nature. So even though I think I've got the mystery figured out, that strange dual nature of this story is still present. Perhaps it's just that there are way too many characters in the Justice Leagues, and not all of them can be central.
Once again, Mikel Janin's artwork was very good, these two issues are the first time I've seen his art, and I think he's destined for great things, I'm very interested in seeing what he does next, perhaps a stint on a Superman book?
This crossover has been surprisingly good so far, and if Johns can tie everything together at the end, then all the better. It's great to see someone like Jeff Lemire rise to do doing most of the heavy lifting on a big crossover like this, he and Jonathan Hickman are living the dream!
Green Lantern: New Guardians #23– Man, the Blue Lanterns have it rough don't they? First Odym gets destroyed by those Blue Beetle dudes, and now their new planet gets nuked by Relic. They, not the Red Lanterns, are ironically the Redshirts of the Green Lantern universe, which is kind of sad, especially because this issue killed off that awesome Elephant guy.
This issue opens with the Blue Lantern pokemon, Andara, fleeing from it's Lantern, and then Relic showing up to take down the Blues. The fight between our heroes and Relic was pretty interesting, because it was so one-sided, Relic was so much more powerful than even White Lantern Kyle. I'm finding Relic to be an interesting villain, especially as the little snippets about him come out into the open, the fact that he's doing this for a 'love for everything' is intriguing, and the conversation between him and one of the Guardians inside his brain was tantalising as well. It looks like he's a survivor from the Universe that existed before this one (OMG! He's Wally West!), one that was destroyed by people who wielded the emotional light, and he wants revenge. I know we're all hating on Villain's Month, but I'm actually kind of excited for his issue and to find out what his deal really is.
This issue ends in a pretty shocking way, Kyle, Carol and Saint Walker escape to Oa, but Relic basically destroys the rest of the Blue Lanterns, and the last page is a surprisingly graphic depiction of their skeletons. It was hardcore, and very well-drawn by Brad Walker. I'm really enjoying Walker's artwork on this book, he's very underrated I think, I particularly enjoyed his issues of Superman with Kurt Busiek, and here, he's reaching new heights. I mean, he's not experimenting like an Aja or JH Williams, but this is some of the best looking old-school superhero art out there. There's a reason he pinch-hit on Morrison's Action Comics.
Justin Jordan's writing is also solid, but I kind of feel he's suffering from jumping right into crossover mode, I don't think we've gotten a true sense of his style and personality, but still, this is an enjoyable book, and things are definitely happening in it. This is no ancillary title, if you're following Hal's book, you need to check out the Alley Rat's book too.
Batman '66 #2– After only 2 issues, Batman '66 has become one of the highlights of my comics reading month. This book is just so much fun, and it's a hilarious, loving tribute to the great TV show. I love the grim and gritty Batman we get in the modern DCU as much as the next guy, but this take is just as valid.
This second issue features 2 stories. The first features Batman and Robin going up against both The Penguin and Mister Freeze, who have the brilliantly over-the-top scheme of creating an Iceberg in the middle of Gotham City's harbour, declaring it a sovereign nation, and charging ships extortion to get into the city. It's a plan that's so crazy it just might work… and it does, until Batman and Robin get involved. I think the key to making this series work is that Jeff Parker is not treating everything as a joke, yes, the villains here are campy and silly, and their plan is ridiculous, but Batman and Robin take it seriously, and we see that they really are competent crime-fighters. It was especially cool to see Robin take centre-stage here, he can do more than say 'Holy BLANK Batman!'.
That said, this story was still funny, and Ty Templeton's artwork was excellent, he's got a great old-school style, and it really fits the unique tone of this series.
Regular artist Jonathan Case returns for the second story, which has Batman taking on Lorelei Circe, AKA The Siren, who is a villain who only ever appeared in the Batman TV show, and not in the comics, so it was good to see her show up here. This was another fun story, especially when we went inside Batman's hallucinations, and Chief O'Hara appeared as a literal Leprechaun! Also notable was that Bruce Wayne's date to this concert was Kathy Kane, the original Batwoman, are we set to see a Batwoman '66? I think it would be cool to see Parker introduce campy, 60s versions of other Batman characters, I'd particularly like to see Bane '66 or Azrael '66, that would insane. But I suppose for now it's enough for him to revisit the classics.
I know this book isn't for everyone, but I'm loving it, these are well-plotted Batman stories, just with the humour dials turned slightly higher. The art is fantastic, and, in a DC landscape where everything is so dark and violent, it's great to have a bit of Bat-fun. Really, this series is a testament to how great a character Bats is, that this title can come out at the same time as Snyder's take, or Tomasi's, is amazing. If you've stayed away from this title because you think the TV show was stupid, think again, it's not stupid, it's just different.
Not stupid, just different, that basically describes this column! My favourite book this week was the amazing Wonder Woman #23 which was an amazing way to end the first act of this story. If they ever actually do a Wonder Woman movie, they really should base it on Azzarello's run, even if they do get accused of ripping off Percy Jackson!
Next week is a pretty mega-sized one, with highlights that include Lazarus, FF, Batman/Superman, three books with the word 'Uncanny' in the title, more Infinity, more Trinity War and the penultimate issue of Gambit. Join me!
Follow me on Twitter @NiamSuggitt and visit my blog niamsuggitt.tumblr.com, there's loads of SummerSlam stuff on there this week if you like sweaty men punching each other in real life, and not just on paper.


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This tea was hand pick and processed on Jiri Mountain and it came from one of the first companies to start selling wild tea in Korea. The experience with this tea is as follows...
As one cuts open this pack of tea, the smell of the small spring dry leaves fill the air. Sweet roasted honey, mild spiciness, the smell of the wind in the pines. The aroma is deep and so that is the way ones takes it in.
As one mindfully pours warm water into the cooling bowl then from cooling bowl onto the dry leaves resting in the shallow of the tea pot, the sound of water softly streaming into the pot breaks the morning silence. Soft, natural, and calming the sound of water dripping on the leaves in the hallow of a tea pot imitates the water of a fresh mountain spring rushing over clay, rock, and earth. The sound is deep and so that is the way one takes it in.
As one lifts the tea cup towards one's lips and spills tea gently into ones mouth, the taste of this tea fills one's taste buds. It's roasted sweetness could easily be confused for a pre-qingmin long jin, yet it's more spicy, woody, and creamy than a Chinese tea. These characteristics truly define a good Jiri Mountain green tea. The taste of these flavours is deep and so that is the way one takes it in.
As the wet leaves are dumped out, the session over, the look of the wet leaves makes one smile. These leaves are bright, vibrant. Some still unraveled, the youngest stalks of spring. The sight of such young healthful leaves is deep and so that is the way one takes it in.

subset: commoncrawl


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Do you bring your camera with you wherever you go? The perfect picture is always around the next corner. The winners of the 5th Annual Beaufort County Tri-Club Competition were ready when that special moment occurred.
Each year the three Photography Clubs: Camera Club of Hilton Head, Photography Club of Beaufort and Photography Club of Sun City join together in friendly competition.
The winners were selected by a panel of three professional photographers: Bluffton photojournalist Greg Smith, Deanna Bowdish, owner of The Gallery in downtown Beaufort and Sarah Arkins, professor of photography at USCB. The judges evaluated a total of 89 entries, based on composition, technical quality and interest.
Winners included:
Novice: The Photography Club of Sun City swept all the awards in this skill level.
• First place was awarded to Lisa Hiles for "Teardrop Arch."
• Tie for second place to Paula Smith and Ann Sinclair.
• Third place to Carol Corbutt
• Tie for honorable mention to Wayne Sargent and Tom Mills.
• First place was Ellen Corbett for "Singin' The Blues" (Beaufort)
• Tie for second place: Bill Schmitt (Hilton Head); Jo Abrahamson (Beaufort) and Susan Thomas (Hilton Head).
• Third Place to Barry Wright (Beaufort) and Honorable Mention to Clyde Lohere (Hilton Head).
Advanced ribbons were awarded:
• First place: Tom Korbutt (Sun City) for "Soaring" and Donna Varner (Hilton Head) for "Premium Produce #47."
• Second Place: Benjamin Fry (Beaufort)
• Third place Jean-Marie Cote (Hilton Head)
• Tie for honorable mention to Jeannine Rowe (Sun City) and John Parsons (Hilton Head)
Ribbons in the Expert level were awarded to:
• First place: Paul Nurnberg (Beaufort) for "Old No. 30 in the Rain"
• Second place to Ron Selby (Beaufort)
• Third place to Lamar Nix (Beaufort)
• Tie for honorable mention: Karen M. Peluso (Beaufort) and Vicky Levy (Sun City).
The photography clubs of Beaufort and Sun City each took home nine ribbons and Hilton Head was awarded six ribbons.


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Contemporary acrylic painting on canvas
About this colorful abstract painting:
61.0 "w x 43.3"h x 1.5"d
Painted with professional grade acrylic paint on gallery back wrapped stretched canvas and ready to hang. All my paintings are exclusive, original, handmade and signed and dated on the front by myself...Peter Nottrott
You can also buy this painting unstretched, shipped rolled in a sturdy box
for a lower price.
FREE SHIPPING ! No shipping costs.
The shipping will usually be handled by UPS, TNT or DHL. (The shipment normally takes between 5-8 days)
Artist Peter Nottrott
Twedter Mark 77 | 24944 Flensburg | Germany
E-Mail: firstname.lastname@example.com


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14 Best Lip Balms for Dry Lips
You know how a great lip balm gets your lips smooth and soft instantly — find out which picks our readers loved for your softest lips ever
Why it's great: Readers love the "barely-there" look and feel of this lip balm, which they claim provides noticeable relief to dry lips. "It leaves a glossy finish on lips and no stickiness," one user shares. "It's a very thin formula, so you won't feel it on, but it's very hydrating and gets the job done." Reviewers are also impressed with the fast-acting formula, saying their lips feel soft and smooth immediately after applying this product. They swear it's a must-have for dry lips in extreme conditions. "This works on my severely dry, cracked lips," one user writes. "Blistex products work great for them."
Agree? Disagree? Write your review for Blistex DCT here.
Buy now
*At time of publication
SEE NEXT PAGE: Best Lip Balm No. 3: Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Dark Chocolate & Cherry Lip Butter, $3.95
Older comments
The very best lip balm is Cocoa Butter Lip Balm by "Cococare! The cost is only $1.99 at any beauty supply store. It is rich and creamy and repaired my slightly dry lips over night... and I've tried all those mentioned above.
by hotpick Saturday, April 20, 2013 at 07:19AM Report as inappropriate
hurraw lip balms are great too
by ellen_waiyan_kar Friday, April 12, 2013 at 01:56AM Report as inappropriate
Thinking about trying some of these.
by Monique3 Sunday, March 31, 2013 at 10:08AM Report as inappropriate
i try the one name "WoRa" its coconut blam but with orange flavor great smell and taste , BEST BALM I'VE EVER USED
by cuzidk_cuzidk Sunday, March 10, 2013 at 02:46PM Report as inappropriate
I've tried a bunch, most of them are awful.
by yestfl Monday, March 4, 2013 at 09:00PM Report as inappropriate
I might try the Rose Salve and Beecology based on this, but I'm very disappointed that Burt's Bees -- my staple -- isn't mentioned.
by purple9a Sunday, March 3, 2013 at 10:09AM Report as inappropriate
Wish I'd read this before ordering one of the balms on the worst list. I haven't received it yet. I'll have to let you know if I too think it's the worst
by Chica181 Tuesday, February 19, 2013 at 06:00PM Report as inappropriate
The Juice Beauty brand is a mixed bag: some things suck and others are great.
by Helmi Monday, February 11, 2013 at 08:31PM Report as inappropriate
Love Rose Salve! It's even helped my rosacea a bit...
by Amanda16 Thursday, February 7, 2013 at 12:05AM Report as inappropriate
All I can say is yummy!!!
by Backinaction86 Monday, February 4, 2013 at 10:50AM Report as inappropriate


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Survey Shows Majority of Polling Places are Acc
Contact: Kate Shepherd
Indianapolis, IN - Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita says the preliminary results of accessibility surveys conducted during the November election show that Indiana's counties have made many of the changes needed to make polling places accessible to all Hoosiers. The surveys of the final half of Indiana's polling places were conducted on behalf of Secretary Rokita's office through a partnership with Count Us IN, a project of the Governor's Planning Council for People with Disabilities. This common sense approach to determining the accessibility of our polling places has been heralded as a national model.
The surveys were taken as a first step to gauge how close Indiana is to meeting the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) mandate that all polling places and voting equipment be accessible to seniors and disabled voters by January 1, 2006. The results are encouraging. The majority of polling places surveyed in November are already at least 80% compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility guidelines. That is also true statewide once the results from the surveys conducted during the primary election are considered.
Governor's Planning Council for People with Disabilities Executive Director Suellen Jackson-Boner writes in a letter this month to the county commissioners that pick polling places, "Many of the needed changes are minor. In many cases, bringing a polling place into compliance with the Help America Vote Act can be as simple as posting appropriate signage or propping open a heavy door on Election Day."
"We understand through Count Us IN that the majority of problems found were extremely minor," Secretary Rokita said. "Counties have made significant strides toward 100% accessibility and should be on track to meet the 2006 federal mandate. "


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Diego Cash & Fat Joe - Return Of The Rican [Unsigned Hype]
"RETURN OF THE RICAN - DIEGO CASH X FAT JOE (PRODUCED BY MARK HENRY & DIRECTED BY MILLS MILLER).... FULL VERSION FEATURING JOELL ORTIZ ON "HONORABLE MENTION" AVAILABLE AT THISISDIEGOCASH.COM " [m]
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


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South Dakota Rivalry Resumes After 9-year Hiatus
BROOKINGS, S.D. (AP) - A 123-year-old quest for South Dakota football dominance resumes Saturday when South Dakota takes the field against South Dakota State for the first time in nine years.
A series that began when the schools played to a 6-6 tie during their first matchup in 1889 was interrupted when SDSU moved up to Division I in 2003.
The USD Coyotes have since gained the same classification and joined the Jackrabbits in the Missouri Valley Football Conference this season.
USD revived the rivalry last fall by erecting a billboard along Interstate 29 in Brookings showing a coyote running down a jackrabbit with the headline, "Have an old friend for dinner." Within a month, Brookings police had to remove a dead coyote found hanging from the billboard.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. Material may not be redistributed.


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Kauai Vacation Rentals® & Real Estate, Inc Rentals Search
Select your features below and click "Search Now" to display a list of accommodations that suit your preferences. If you already have an accommodation in mind, you may want to use Alphabetical Search
All accommodations can be searched by features and amenities. In addition, all condos and those accommodations showing "check availability" near the top of their web pages can be searched by dates.
Please note that during the holidays (Dec. 15-Jan. 6), most accommodations have a 7- to 14-night minimum stay. For the rest of the year, many accommodations have a 3- to 5-night minimum stay. Please check an accommodation's web page for its specific details and call or email us for more information.


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Even though the earlier Latin meters were stress-based, their language at least had the phonemic structure that would make either metrical scheme possible. (
So, for instance, the "short a" in "bag" is actually longer than the "long a" in "bake."
it still takes longer to pronounce "breed than bred"
I think the answer to the question is that syllable-length just doesn't "stick out" enough in English to have importance, at least not anymore.
vir litterarum wrote:why can it not even gain a foothold in English verse?
vir litterarum wrote:So are you arguing that the stress accent of Latin is qualitatively different from that of English?
Damoetas wrote:It's not so much that the stress accent of Latin was qualitatively different from that of English (although it may have been). The main point is that vowel length in Latin was fundamentally different from what we call length in English. In Latin, a long vowel was always pronounced twice as long as the corresponding short vowel, regardless of the position in the word or whether it was stressed or not. That was the only difference in the sound of the two vowels.
modus.irrealis wrote:It doesn't effect your point but there are many (Allen in Vox Latina e.g.) who reconstruct differences in quality between the long and short versions of all vowels but a, with the short vowels being more open and the long vowels more close.
modus.irrealis wrote:Another difference that may or may not be connected is that English does not have geminate consonants (except across morpheme boundaries). It seems to me that languages where quantitative verse is well-established do, and I can't find any counterexamples. This might be related to the issue of syllables that are long by position (which I can't imagine comes down to actual length -- how can et take longer to say than stre?). Since both have to do with syllabification, they might be related, and I do know that I have as much problems with double consonants as I do quantitative verse.
Whatever Latin stress sounded like, it must have been comparatively weak in the classical period; and that is why it was natural for them to base their meters on quantity instead of stress
vir litterarum wrote:So are you implying that the stress accent was originally more pronounced when Latin verse such as the Saturnian was stress-based but gradually became weaker with the introduction of Greek meters?
vir litterarum wrote:This idea that the Romans were somehow able to undergo a complete prosodic paradigm shift after already possessing an established tradition of verse based on stress accent...
vir litterarum wrote:although I agree that linguistically it is much more difficult to determine syllable length in English than in Latin...
vir litterarum wrote:...it seems to me that syllabic verse in Latin was an artificial imposition on the natural rhythm of the Latin language...


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Thank you for visiting our past auction result archives. If you have an item identical (or similar) to this auction lot, please call, write or contact us to discuss. We will be able to help you.
Lot # 1301 (of 1727) < Previous Lot | Next Lot >
1962 Safe At Home Complete Lobby Card Set (8)
Starting Bid - $200, Sold For - $1,528
Presented is an exceptionally high grade complete set of Safe at Home lobby cards, easily the finest set we have ever offered. Each card is in pristine Near Mint-to-Mint condition and appears exactly as it did when issued forty-six years ago. This set of eight cards was issued for display in movie theaters to advertise and promote the 1962 Columbia Pictures film Safe at Home, starring Yankee sluggers Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris. Released in the wake of their most glorious season, Safe at Home did not win any Academy Awards, nor was it a "home run" with the critics. But it did give Mantle and Maris an opportunity to shine on the big screen, which was a source of great amusement to both for the rest of their lives. The movie also left collectors with a selection of extremely attractive display materials, primarily in the form of one-sheet posters and lobby cards. Of the two, the lobby cards are somewhat scarcer and are rarely, if ever, found in such pristine condition. All eight cards are represented here, including the highly desirable title card. Five of the eight cards feature Mantle and Maris together, while the other three picture the principle characters in the movie. This is an extraordinary set of these highly desirable Mantle and Maris display pieces and one that has equally great appeal to collectors in the fields of both baseball and film memorabilia. Total: 8 lobby cards. Reserve $200. Estimate $400/$800. SOLD FOR $1,528
(Click the smaller thumbnails to the left and right (if any) to cycle through each photo in the gallery of images for this lot.)


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What's the world's most expensive city for a pint of beer? How about a pair of jeans? Or a date?
Sadly for French beer quaffers, Swiss fashionistas, and romantically-inclined Brits—the answers are Paris, Zurich, and London.
Deutsche BankDBK.XE -0.45% has compared the price of everything, everywhere (OK, not quite), so you don't have to. And for a third year in a row, the priciest country in the world is Australia (that's of the 19 countries included in the survey).
If you're looking for the lowest prices overall, head to India. A weaker rupee has helped it remain the least expensive major economy despite persistently high inflation. Among developed countries, the U.S. is easiest on the wallet. Brazil is costly by emerging-world standards.
But the overall rankings mask some sharp differences for individual products. A day's car rental in China costs $31.90, a mere 26% of the price in the U.S. But Levi's jeans, Adidas trainers, or an iPhone 5 are all cheaper in the States.
Moscow's five-star hotel rooms are ruinous—at $905.60 a night, more than double the New York equivalent—and it's the costliest city for a weekend getaway. But public transport in the Russian capital is a snip.
The survey also tracks the cost of living in major cities. Tokyo, by far the most expensive back in 2001, is now cheaper than a number of cities including Melbourne, Geneva, Oslo and Caracas.
Zurich deserves another mention for the eye-watering cost of its hairdressers—at $60.47, a haircut there is 15 times pricier than in Mumbai. Indian cities are also the cheapest for a date.
The widest disparities are in the cost of basic health insurance, with nowhere else on earth remotely close to U.S. prices. Australia is in second place at 34% of the U.S. figure. In the U.K. its 21%. India, Indonesia, and the Philippines are the cheapest at just 1%.
The price of a date in London includes cabs, burgers, drinks, and a trip to the movies. Cheapskates could plump for a long walk along the river instead. Just don't get too ambitious about buying a riverfront apartment.
The Corliss Group Voyage Hong Kong, Where to Drink Shop and Date According to Deutsche Bank, The Corliss


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FRITZ!DECT 210 Service - Knowledge Base
FRITZ!DECT 210 Service
AVM Content
FRITZ!Box reports "Authentication error occurred" when using Google calendar
In the profile of FRITZ!DECT in the FRITZ!Box user interface, the error message "Authentication error occurred." is displayed for the Google calendar on the tab "Switch Automatically".
- The FRITZ!Box's access rights to the calendar were revoked in the Google account.
1 Deleting a calendar
In order to request access rights for the calendar again, you must first delete all of the Google calendars in the FRITZ!Box:
- Click "Home Network" in the FRITZ!Box user interface.
- Click "Smart Home" in the "Home Network" menu.
- If available, select the option "All smart home devices" in the drop-down list "viewing" if you assigned the Google calendar to one single device; select "All groups" if you added the Google calendar to a group.
- If you want to delete the Google calendar that you assigned to an individual device, click the button (Edit) for the respective device or the button (Switch Automatically).
- If you want to delete the Google calendar that you assigned to a group, click the button (Edit) for the group or the button (Switch Automatically) for any smart home device that belongs to the group.
- If available, click on the "Switch automatically" tab.
- Click the link "Remove connections from Google calendar".
- Click the button "Reset Google Calendar".
- Confirm the question about whether you would like to delete all Google calendars from the FRITZ!Box with "OK".
Now all Google calendars are deleted and all smart home devices that use a Google calendar are set to manual switching.
2 Adding a calendar
- Add the Google calendar for the smart home device.


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|Unit Price:
|Payment Type:
|Min. Order:
|1000 Piece/Pieces
|Delivery Time:
|30 Days
Model No.: FGT-0242
Packaging: one pieces non stick oven liner rolls up in a polybag, 50 pieces in a box
Brand: Superbright
Transportation: Ocean
Place of Origin: Zhejiang, China (Mainland)
Supply Ability: 200000 Piece/Pieces / Month
Certificate: FDA, LFGB certified
Oven Liner
1. Product Specification
Oven Liner taking the advantage of the non stick and heat resistance of ptfe with the strength and dimensional stability of fiberglass, our liners is a timer saver, a drip blocker, a crumb cather, a spill protector. Just place our Oven liner on the bottom of the oven to protect it against splashes, messy drips, fat, burnt-on sugar, burnt-on juices and burnt-on oven messes, and on need to clean the bottom of oven again.Our Oven liner can be used in any electric ovens, gas ovens, toaster ovens and microwave ovens. No more toxic oven spray cleaners. the oven liner eliminates messy, caked on drips in the bottom of your oven and makes clean up a snap. This reusable, heavy weight non-stick coated sheet withstands up to 480-Degree. the oven protector measures 16-inch by 20-inch and fits most standard ovens. non-stick oven protector can be cut for better fit and for use in toaster oven or microwave. Remove liner when operating in self cleaning mode
2. Advantages of the Oven Liner
1.100% non-stick
2.Reusable for thousand times
3.Heat resistant up to 260 °C(500°F)
4.Quick and convenient
6.Suitable for all ovens (gas, electric, AGA, hot-air, microwave, grill )
7.Can be cut to size with scissors to fit any oven
8.Easy to clean in soapy water with a sponge, or kitchen paper
9.Dishwasher safe
10.Complies with food regulations, was approved by FDA, LFGB etc.
3. Product Use And Application
4.How to use the Oven liner :
Lay the oven liner on the bottom of ovens to protect the bottom from splash.
the non stick teflon sheet slides beneath your ovens bottom is used for catching all the messy drips from pies.
cakes and casseroles that bubble over then you can just wipe them right off the slick surface with this
reusable oven liner with a100%non-stick surface you days of scrubbing the oven floor are definitely over.
The Oven Liner can be used for years on either side.
5. Maintenance And Care:
1) Avoid using metal, sharp or pointed objects on the non stick oven liner, they might damage the liner.
2).Do not put the oven liner in direct contact with flames, burners, grill or heating elements. 3).Never put the Oven liner on the floor of the oven, but always on the bottom rack!
4).Do not cover ventilation holes of the oven (gas oven).
6. Certificate


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- Biography Reference Bank
Combined to bring in-depth, original profiles of Current Biography, World Authors series, plus other Wilson biographical resources with the thorough periodicals coverage of Biography Index, full-text articles, page images, and abstracts. Biography Reference Bank draws from articles from over 550,000 individuals and features articles, interviews, essays, book reviews, performance reviews, speeches, or obituaries.
- Ohio History Connection
Use this online portal to search several collections within the Ohio History Connection Archives Collection. Full text resources include African American Experience in Ohio 1850-1920, Civil War, Fundamental Documents, Military Rosters, and more. Additional online tools are available to help locate documents within the archives.
- Ohio History Journal
Ohio History was established in June 1887 as the Ohio Archaeological and Historical Quarterly. For more than one hundred years, the journal has published peer-reviewed articles and book reviews on topics spanning the political, military, social, economic, and cultural history of our region. Search through over 53,000 pages of scanned text spanning from 1887 to 2004.
- Ohio Memory Online Scrapbook
Check out this project bringing together digital versions of historical collections from more than 330 archives, historical societies, libraries, and museums. Search or browse more than 26,000 primary sources dating from prehistory to the present. Take the Ohio Memory Challenge. Read essays about Ohio topics. Create your own scrapbook.
- Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps
The Digital Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps provides a searchable interface for locating historical Maps of Ohio towns and cities. These maps were digitized from microfilm copies by Chadwyck-Healey, a Bell & Howell Information and Learning company.


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An update for many of you who have asked me about this...
There have been a number of reports of Tamagotchi v3 being sold out in stores and online... Bandai says this is the result of underestimating demand for the v3... They're more popula rthan they expected them to be! I am told there should be more coming to stores and online though... In the meantime there is always eBay!
Tamagotchi Sold Out?
Started by Admin , Apr 02 2006 04:24 PM


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New Delhi: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Virat Kohli takes the top spot as the most searched IPL player this season, closely followed by Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Yuvraj Singh from Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captured the third position. With one of the most stunning catches taken in cricket history against Royal Challengers Bangalore to his credit, IPL debutant Chris Lynn (KKR) takes the fourth spot as the most searched player.
Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) lead batsman Virendra Sehwag may not have scored big runs on the ground yet, but continues to attract a lot of queries from his fans on Google Search, thus puttting him up at the fifth spot.
Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir and Kings XI star performer Glenn Maxwell with three match-winning knocks in this edition of IPL, has also found place in top 10 IPL players on Google Search.
Royal Challengers big man Chris Gayle, Chennai Super Kings Suresh Raina, and Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper Shikhar Dhawan are also among the top 10 trending IPL players on Google Search.
Interestingly, Sanjay Bangar (KXIP) -- the only Indian coach in this season of IPL, was also highly searched on Google, attributed to the extraordinary performance by his team winning all of its five matches held in UAE.


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Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (US - BD)
Gabe takes another unnecessary trip to the Caribbean, doesn't entirely hate it...
Following a failed attempt to rescue his former first mate, Joshamee Gibbs, (Kevin McNally) in London, Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is brought before King George II (Richard Griffiths), who attempts to hire him as a guide in beating the Spanish to locating the mythological Fountain of Youth. Heading the expedition is Jack's old nemesis/comrade, Captain Hector Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), who is now a privateer in service to the British Navy after losing his leg and his ship, the Black Pearl. Jack escapes, and discovers that an ex-lover named Angelica (Penélope Cruz) is gathering a crew under his name. Jack tries to confront Angelica, and is captured…again…and forced to act as her father, the ruthless pirate Blackbeard's (Ian McShane) guide to the same mythological Fountain of Youth. Meanwhile, with Gibbs in hand, Barbossa starts his trip to the Fountain as well.
Despite not particularly liking the last two Pirates of the Caribbean films I vaguely respect them for their unique tone and style. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski created an unconventional multi-billion dollar movie universe, and my issues with the storytelling in their films can't take that away from them. There's also no way my disapproval can stop Bruckheimer and Disney studios from continuing to churn out these behemoth blockbusters, even when Verbinski has moved on, and star Johnny Depp has lost all interest. Apparently even the richest movie stars can still be bought. This fourth film in the franchise, On Stranger Tides was made under the promise of a focus on story over elaborate visuals. New director Rob Marshall, and writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio swore they understood the problems with sequels, which were put into production before scripts were finished. Elliott and Rossio pulled inspiration from a novel by Tim Powers (no relation) entitled 'On Stranger Tides' (also the inspiration for Ron Gilbert's Monkey Island video games) in hopes of creating a basis for new characters, only bringing Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow, Geoffrey Rush's Captain Hector Barbossa, and Kevin McNally's Joshamee Gibbs (along with a couple of incidentals) back from the original series.
The sentiment was nice, but the reality is almost exactly what most of us were expecting from the series. Let's be honest, no studio pays an actor $55.5 million dollars to be in a movie because they want to create something original and story driven. In true Pirates of the Caribbean tradition Elliott and Rossio's script meanders googly-eyed between elaborate set pieces with supernatural gimmicks, witty banter that drones beyond the point of comfort, and convoluted double crosses. There is a plot, and it's easy enough to follow, but the narrative is smothered in a superabundance of other stuff. There is just so very much stuff going on here. Following the apocalyptic excess that was At World's End there aren't many places for the set pieces and gimmicks to go, and the predictability of the backstabbing quickly flushes the whole thing down the drain into a parody of the original film, which is, assuming it isn't a comment on the original, the worst place for a sequel to end up. Director Rob Marshall, an Academy Award nominee, brings his choreographic expertise, and his good sense with actors, but little else to the table in his effort to take over the reigns for Gore Verbinski. On paper the action scenes are rousing, full of precise motion, impressive stunts, and well-placed visual effects, but I found myself continually unroused, and at times even tired at the prospect of further swashing and/or buckling. It's all expertly crafted, and especially dance-like, but things are so choreographed you can almost hear the steps as they're counted off, leaving us with a predictable and particularly uninventive viewing experience.
Among the things I will always grudgingly respect about these films is their ridiculous sense of humour. I don't always find it funny, in fact quite often find it obnoxious, but it's often based in very British banter and live action Looney Tunes slapstick, rather than fart and penis jokes. It's lowest common denominator, but a sort of anachronistic, 1970s friendly lowest common denominator. Clearly this sense of humour pays out better in foreign territories, as Stranger Tides cleaned up overseas, but it's always nice to see something that doesn't curtail to the base expectations of us unwashed 'Mericans. The best comedy comes out of character, and I must admit that I my only interest in Stranger Tides pertains to the possibility of the further adventures of Geoffrey Rush's Captain Barbossa, mixed with the promise of him interacting with Ian McShane as an evil pirate. Barbossa is bereft of most of his most charming character traits, and left a limp noodle for the bulk of the film, but Rush's ample abilities keep him at least nominally charming up to the turn. McShane is an expected blast of sardonic evil. It's obvious that the writers hired him specifically based on his Deadwood performance, as Blackbeard is basically a supernaturally endowed, less salacious version of Al Swearengen. I do regret, however, that the two actors have very few scenes together, and that Blackbeard is never actually as frightening as Davy Jones was when originally introduced. I'm even left enjoying Depp's shtick for the most part, following two films' worth of character dulling. I didn't $55.5 million enjoy it, but it was pleasant to enjoy the character again on any level. The production's choice to dump the dead weight of Orlando Bloom and Kira Knightly is much appreciated, but their attempts at filling the romantic subplot void are embarrassing. Sam Claflin and Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey certainly look the part (they are very pretty people), but their relationship is a shoehorned afterthought that could've saved the film a valuable 10 or 20 minutes. I can't imagine the teenage girls in the house were appropriately sated.
Director Rob Marshall doesn't have the same obsessive visual sense of Gore Verbinski, and Stranger Tides doesn't feature quite the same degree of ornate decoration of its prequels, but he does a decent impression. He and cinematographer Dariusz Wolski also have a secret weapon in their arsenal that Verbinski didn't – Red One and Red Epic camera systems, ensuring a highly detailed and smooth image, one clear of any of the even minor artefacts that go along with 35mm film. It was also shot mostly in 3D, but that's incidental, as this 1080p, 2.35:1 Blu-ray transfer is a 2D version. The short story here is that this disc looks entirely Mary Poppins, as in 'practically perfect in every way'. Marshall's cosmetic differences aside, this is still a Pirates of the Caribbean movie, and it's swimming (pun!) in detail, including layers of wardrobe, Baroque set design, production design knickknacks up the wazoo, and a whole lot of grimy and hairy faces. The Red cameras capture every element with almost impossible clarity, creating a clean, slick canvas for the dirty, fine textures to shine against. Marshall broadens the films colour palette further than the other films, which tended to feature relatively consistent colour themes. Marshall also embraces natural beauty a bit more than Verbinski did, and the lush foliage of the film's third act is high among the transfer's achievements. The sweeping helicopter shots of Hawaiian mountaintops are easily worthy of any number of BBC nature documentaries. The only 'complaint' I can muster in reference to this transfer pertains to the blends of some of the warm and dark elements, which thanks to the smoky ambience can be a little mushy, even slightly blocky, but only on occasion.
It is entirely unsurprising that I verify this DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack is overflowing with crisp, realistic, expressive stereo and surround sound. This is definitely reference level stuff. There's no such thing as a quiet sequence in this mix. Besides Hans Zimmer's endlessly cycling musical score, even the most plain dialogue heavy sequence is rocked with the grumble of the ocean, and the creak of various boat interiors. But there are some bigger moments, including Blackbeard's introduction, where he brings the ropes of his boat to life and flogs screaming crewmembers around the channels, the mermaid hunt and its boat sinking post-climax, and the scene in which Barbossa and Jack bicker aboard a badly balanced ghost ship that sways with their movements. Zimmer's music, with assistance from Rodrigo y Gabriela members Rodrigo Sánchez and Gabriela Quintero, continues its streak among the series' most enduring elements. This time out Zimmer opens himself up a bit more to new themes, which is nice following the homogenous elements of the first three films. The sweep and scope of the score is not lost in the heavy mix, and is often even given precedence over effects, likely thanks to both the power of the music, and Marshall's love of musical theater.
So I understand the theoretical value of Disney Second Screen, and all the other 'second screen' technologies that are taking the Blu-ray world by storm all of a sudden, but I cannot get any of them to work appropriately with my practically brand new Macbook Pro, and once again will not be reviewing this part of a disc's extras. But hypothetically, let's say this did work. Why would I prefer having only the option to watch extras on my computer or iPad? Not only does Disney run the risk of things not working, or not being compatible, but the viewer has to work for the extras. I'm willing to bet less than half the viewing audience cares about extras in the first place, and that half of those people are willing to put more than a second of effort into accessing extras. I've always had an issue with extras being limited only to PiP, but at least viewers with profile 2.0 players (which is likely the majority at this point) can simply hit a button to access those. With second screen, viewers need to download software onto another device, and ensure that they have that device and their player synced onto the same wireless network (assuming they have a wireless player, which isn't a sure thing). Again, this is a cool option, but it should be an option. There is no other place on this disc to access the extras included in the second screen, which means they're quite literally lost in the ether if, like me, you aren't able to get them to work.
So from here I move on to the disc's only other substantial extra, a commentary track featuring director Rob Marshall and executive producer/choreographer John Deluca. This is a low-key track, but a pleasant one, assuming the viewer can handle the wishy-washy anti-politics of its overall tone. Marshall and Deluca (who are incredibly hard to tell apart aurally) have almost nothing but nice things to say about everything involved in the production, and trip over themselves complimenting people. The track isn't a waste, as there are definitely informative technical bits, and plenty of behind the scenes anecdotes, but the most interesting thing I was able to glean was the impression that Marshall was not really all that in control of the production. He reacts to many of the on-screen action as a viewer rather than a director, and in giving credit where credit it is due reveals how much influence Johnny Depp had over the production. Other non-second screen extras include a blooper reel (3:30, HD), five Pirates of the Caribbean Lego short cartoons/ads (5:20, HD), and trailers for other Disney releases.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides isn't as bad as I thought it would be…but it's still a pretty lackluster effort. There are plenty of charming character interactions, and some laugh worthy moments, but the over-the-top action and special effects carry very little weight or thrill. This Blu-ray release features an eye-popping 2D transfer, and a consistently busy DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack, both of which qualify as reference level. The extras are mostly delegated to the second screen app, which I couldn't get to work. Hopefully Disney won't continue putting all their special features eggs in a second screen basket in the future.
* Note: The above images are taken from the Blu-ray and resized for the page. Full-resolution captures are available by clicking individual images, but due to .jpg compression they are not necessarily representative of the quality of the transfer. Thanks to Troy at Andersonvision.com for the Disney Blu-ray screen-caps.
Review by Gabriel Powers
I didn't like the first two sequels AT ALL, but I really enjoyed this film because whereas Dead Man's Chest and At World's End were overstuffed, incomprehensible piles, "On Stranger Tides" knew what it was and focused on being entertaining and nothing else.
The mermaid sequence was one of the best set pieces in the trilogy.
The mermaid sequence was one of the best set pieces in the trilogy.
Chris Gould Editor Join Date: May 2001 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 7,171
In the trilogy of four films?
Oop... Quadrilogy!
Matt Contributor Join Date: October 2004 Location: United States Posts: 2,113
Chris Gould Editor Join Date: May 2001 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 7,171
It's getting worse
Gabe Powers Editor Join Date: September 2004 Location: United States Posts: 4,721
Hey now guys, it's not his fault Fox made that a word.
stevepulaski Member Join Date: June 2009 Location: Niger Posts: 741
Lol at "quadrilogy." But anyway - this is a series that I knew from the first film I wouldn't like. They're all well made, well shot, and fantastically edited but they're simply not my kind of film.
Gabe Powers wrote: Hey now guys, it's not his fault Fox made that a word.If FOX says that word exists, then by God IT EXISTS
Intergalactic Ponce Member Join Date: April 2005 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 1,164
Although nice a clean, I found POTC 4's picture to be quite flat in comparison to the pop of the first 3 films. I think in general OST had more scenes shot in the dark than my memory of the others so that didn't help but in this instance, even in the bright daylight scenes, Pirates 1-3 look much crisper to me.
Never saw 4 in cinemas (or in 3D for that matter) but based on how much time the film spends in the dark, I can only imagine that the 3D looked terrible, even in the cinemas where they did manage to get the foot lamberts up.
Missing also was the sense of abserd fun that Verbinski brought to the first 3 films. This was a jaw cracking yawn of an entry into the series and I say that as a fan of the first three despite acknowledging that they ain't perfect in any way shape or form. Number 4 managed to neuter Barbossa, give us an unworthy villain in Blackbeard, and replace Bloom & Knightly with a couple "wetter than a fish's wet bits". What a shame.
Never saw 4 in cinemas (or in 3D for that matter) but based on how much time the film spends in the dark, I can only imagine that the 3D looked terrible, even in the cinemas where they did manage to get the foot lamberts up.
Missing also was the sense of abserd fun that Verbinski brought to the first 3 films. This was a jaw cracking yawn of an entry into the series and I say that as a fan of the first three despite acknowledging that they ain't perfect in any way shape or form. Number 4 managed to neuter Barbossa, give us an unworthy villain in Blackbeard, and replace Bloom & Knightly with a couple "wetter than a fish's wet bits". What a shame.
Vir Member Join Date: December 2011 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 1
Hi, Im in the UK and I recently purchased the Blu Ray release of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Its the BR disk and DVD copy from Amazon UK.
I was surprised to find no 'Making of' type features on the release at all. A friend has the 3 disc 3D release - and he says the same.
Does anyone know why there are no making of features etc? on the UK discs?
Quite disappointing as I do like to watch the extras at least once.
I was surprised to find no 'Making of' type features on the release at all. A friend has the 3 disc 3D release - and he says the same.
Does anyone know why there are no making of features etc? on the UK discs?
Quite disappointing as I do like to watch the extras at least once.
Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13
Disc Details
Release Date: 18th October 2011
Discs: 2
Disc Type: Blu-ray Disc
RCE: No
Video: 1080p
Aspect: 2.40:1
Anamorphic: No
Colour: Yes
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 English, Spanish and French, Dolby Digital 2.0 DVS
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Extras: Director and Producer Commentary, Disney Second Screen, Bloopers of the Caribbean, Lego Animated Series Shorts, Trailers, DVD Copy
Easter Egg: No
Feature Details
Director: Rob Marshall
Cast: Johnny Depp, Ian McShane, Geoffrey Rush, Penelope Cruz
Length: 136 minutes
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Style # 220138
Amp up your going-out summer look with this luxe bebe top, featuring rocker-chic studs, sexy open back and chic cowl neckline. Try yours with a mini skirt and a pair of strappy heels for an instant party-all-night-long look.
- 100% silk
- Center back to hem: 22" (56 cm)
- Dry clean
- Imported
- Model is 5'9" and is wearing a US size S
Studded Silk Cowl Top is rated out of 5 by 2.
Rated 4 out of 5 by MeMeEarls from Love this top but..... I purchased this in white, Wore it to an all white party and killed it! The only thing i didnt like was the way the it flared out on the sides underneath the arm area, I ordered online so I did not notice that....
Date published: 2013-08-12
Rated 3 out of 5 by bebefan101 from Both colors are stunning with a bandage skirt BUT. What really bothered me was that it runs soo large like i tried the xxs and it fit like an x-large for me and the open back is too open for ME. I would put a safety pin but i dont want to ruin this top. Love both colors though. Whoever this top works for im happy for you but im not sure it works that well for me.
Date published: 2013-08-03


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Hawks back again
Big second half lifts Hawks to fourth consecutive Super Bowl
It wasn't easy the first time the Bishop Hendricken football team played Cranston East this season, and it wasn't easy during the first half of Wednesday night's Division I semifinal game with the 'Bolts either.
But it sure looked easy in the second half.
The Hawks ran 35 plays after the break, and every single one of them was a run. The result was a dominant final two quarters in which Hendricken turned a 14-7 halftime deficit into a 35-21 victory and a place in the D-I Super Bowl for the fourth consecutive season.
Both teams came into the game with matching 6-2 regular season records. Hendricken was the No. 2 seed, while East was No. 3, and the Hawks had beaten the 'Bolts 21-14 in week five.
This time, it wasn't quite as close, as the second half made all the difference for the two-time defending champions.
"They are a great team and it was a great game," Hendricken junior running back Remmington Blue said. "My o-line, they just did a great job. We just came out, ran the ball in the second half and got it done."
Blue was the second-half catalyst on the ground, as he ran the ball 27 times for 189 yards, 180 of which came on 22 second-half carries.
He scored the game-tying touchdown on Hendricken's first drive of the second half on a 19-yard scamper up the middle, and he scored the final touchdown with 2:50 remaining to put the game on ice.
"[Offensive coordinator Frank] Pantaleo, he said to me a couple times at half, 'What do you want to do? You want to stay with Remmy, or Power [Kanga]?' I said, 'He smells the end zone right now, keep him in,'" Hendricken head coach Keith Croft said of Blue. "He's a junior, he's been a workhorse for us and I trust his ball security."
Hendricken rushed for only 69 yards in the first half, as the East defense held the Hawks in check for most of the time.
On the other side of the ball, the 'Bolts looked poised. They opened the scoring just 2:08 into the game when quarterback Alex Corvese hit Marquem Monroe on a fade pass up the left side that resulted in a 75-yard touchdown. Logan McConaghy's extra point made it 7-0 East.
Hendricken punted on its opening possession, regained the ball after East muffed the punt, but then turned the ball over on downs.
Armed with momentum, the 'Bolts went on a 13-play drive, but it stalled at Hendricken's 38, and they were forced to punt.
Quickly, the Hawks tied the score. Quarterback Patrick Gill found Jarrid Witherspoon for a 50-yard completion on second down, and then Gill ran the ball in from 34 yards out on the next play. Kicker Robert Campbell – filling in for the injured Bobby Lineberger – hit the extra point to tie the score.
East came back and took the lead at 14-7 on their next drive, as they seamlessly moved down the field before Corvese ran in from 16 yards out for the score and the lead at halftime.
Hendricken – which twice had the ball inside the East 30 and came away with no points on either trip – wasn't ready to panic.
"Like I told the kids at the half, they had us on the ropes, we didn't panic," Crfot said. "We made a few adjustments."
The Hawks were also the beneficiary of a few East injuries. Running back/safety E.J. Isom, the team's leading rusher and tackler, hurt his foot, while defensive end Michael Raspberry fractured his shoulder.
With those two out, Hendricken saw the opportunity to run the ball, and it did.
"We lost two starters – Michael Raspberry and E.J. Isom," East head coach Tom Centore said. "That's a lot of football players to lose when you only have so many guys. That certainly hurt us. They did go to a double tight end set and they were tough to stop, but when you lose arguably your two best defensive players, that changes a lot of things."
The Hawks got the ball to open the third and moved right down the field, with Blue's touchdown run from 19 yards tying the score at 14.
After the teams traded punts, Hendricken went back to work, pounding Blue, and mixing in Gill and Power Kanga to keep the chains moving.
The offensive line of Mario McClain, Dallas Sauer, Joe Vincent, Nick Mariano and Nick DeCiantis did their job, and the Hawks were in complete control.
"I think our offensive line did a great job against their defensive line in that second half," Croft said.
Nine plays into that drive, Kanga found the end zone on a 19-yard run, and the Hawks had their first lead at 21-14.
The 'Bolts weren't done just yet, though, as they picked up a first down on a completion from Corvese to Jimmy Saab and then scored on a 40-yard run by Monroe to tie the score at 21 with 10:39 remaining.
Yet, the Hawks' running game simply couldn't be stopped – and they knew it.
"I said to these guys, there's just no reason to panic," Croft said. "I said, 'We are running the ball right now.' It got to a point where if they were going to punt, because our returners had been a little shaky most of the season, we were going to just let them punt the ball. We felt that confident in our running game."
Hendricken immediately went right down the field, getting runs of 11 and 22 from Blue before Gill pounded the ball in from 1-yard away to make it a 28-21 game.
East got the ball back with plenty of time, but were dealt a costly unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on third-and-3. An incomplete pass and a sack led to a turnover on downs.
"We knew we weren't stopping them so we felt like we had no choice," Centore said. "That was a do-or-die situation there."
The Hawks then put the finishing touches on a near-perfect second half, as Blue scored on a 4-yard run on the third play of the drive to make it 35-21.
East went four-and-out again on the next series, and the Hawks took two knees and celebrated yet another playoff win – their fifth in a row.
"The flow was going their way, so we had to turn it around and get the flow going back our way," Blue said. "That's what we did."
East finished with 280 total yards, but only 60 in the second half. Isom – who didn't play a snap in the second half – was the team's leading rusher with 57 yards. Corvese threw for 143 yards.
For Hendricken, Gill added 75 yards to Blue's 189, and Kanga added 45. Witherspoon had two catches for 71 yards.
"It never is easy," Croft said. "They played their hearts out."
The Hawks will now try to win their third consecutive state championship this weekend. They'll take on unbeaten La Salle – which beat Portsmouth 42-14 in the other semifinal – on Sunday afternoon at Cranston Stadium at 12 p.m.


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Alabama's McCarron steers clear of Manziel topic
HOOVER, Ala. (AP) — Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron is steering clear of the Johnny Manziel questions.
McCarron fielded plenty of them Thursday at Southeastern Conference media day, where his Texas A&M counterpart faced the spotlight a day earlier.
McCarron and Manziel were roommates at the Manning Passing Academy, where Manziel left early and blamed missing activities on oversleeping.
Asked if he bought that explanation, McCarron said: "I can't answer on Johnny Manziel's part. My name's AJ."
"Everything that has to do with him, he's his own man," the Alabama quarterback said. "I'm not going to speak on another man's business. That's how I was raised — if it doesn't have anything to do with you, don't speak of it.
"I know how I handle myself in public, how I carry myself in front of people. That's what I'm worried about, trying to be the best player and best person off the field that I can be for my family and the university."
For his part, Manziel said McCarron didn't wake him up for the event but he took responsibility.
"I'm definitely not going to pin it on him," Manziel said. "It's my fault — 115, 120 percent."
LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger said the Manning camp can be hard to manage for a young player like Manziel.
"It's tough. There's social events at night that they have and there's definitely temptation to do something foolish," Mettenberger said. "He's still a 20-year-old kid. He's been put into a huge spotlight and limelight and it's tough to handle. Hopefully he'll learn from this and just become a better person."
Separate from the Manziel questions, McCarron said he wants to handle himself in a way that makes him a good role model for kids. He said the two didn't discuss life in the fishbowl as high-profile SEC quarterbacks.
McCarron made a statement of his own by his choice of attire. He wore a bowtie with pink ribbons to media days, saying it was in honor of a cousin who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.


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Julian's Cozy Corner of the World
Name: Julian (7)
Location: Toronto, Canada
Division: International
Room Size: 73 square feet
Tip for Living Small with Kids: Small is cozy. The more space you have, the more you tend to fill it up with belongings. Living small means paring down to what you really need and cherish. I encourage our kids to choose what objects have the most meaning to them whether for plain fun or sentimental reasons. I encourage Julian to keep stuff off the floor by giving him movable storage pieces to stash his treasures.
Biggest Design Challenge in this Room: Sloped ceilings and small low windows. Although sloped ceilings add character they also eat up valuable vertical space for storage. We have added a long shelf for display of treasures. I find it visually lengthens the room. Small low windows combined with a north facing room limit natural light. We have painted the room white. This keeps the space light and airy.
We have hung vintage replica airplanes handmade by my dad. These help draw the eye up. Bonus: family heirloom made by Grandpa! The floors are a light colored hardwood as well. Pops of color brighten the space with bedding, furniture and accessories.
Favorite Thing About This Room: I love all of the vintage furniture in the room. The dresser was made by my grandfather and used by my mother as a child. The spindle bed was a gift from a friend (his childhood bed) that we painted a cheerful red.
Although small it is a cozy place to cuddle and read bedtime stories!
Thanks for your entry Debra and good luck!


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The BIG List: 50 Albums Every 20 Something Should Own
"FML" might as well be the official slogan for twenty-somethings. Relinquishing astronomical rents on your own for the first time? Parents and peers wondering when you'll finally get it together? Call it growing pains. While stress strikes at every age, that pre-midlife angst—the span of time when everything feels muddled and epic fails are made (and conquered)—is a whole other beast. You're still learning, experiencing and settling on who "I" really is. With that in mind, VIBE compiled these 50 essential albums sure to soundtrack the passion, pleasure and pain of your 20s. If any of the following aren't currently scoring repeat spins in your music library, cue up your iTunes and Spotify right now and re-load.
Compiled by Carmen Shardae Jobson, Stacy Ann Ellis and Rachel Francois


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Don�t tell Natalie Johnson and Dominique Martinez that fall is the offseason for girls high school soccer.
Don�t tell Natalie Johnson and Dominique Martinez that fall is the offseason for girls high school soccer.
The two Havelock High players have been selected to participate in the Olympic Development Program. Both have made region III teams that include players from 12 states throughout the Southeast.
Johnson, a senior, was selected for the 1996 team, while Martinez, a sophomore, was selected for the 1998 team based on the years they were born.
Each team has 32 players, selected from an initial pool of about 400 players during a week-long camp. They are just two of eight players in the state selected for Olympic Development Program teams.
Of the group of 32 players, 18 are selected to play in particular tournaments throughout the United States, Europe and South America on a rotating basis.
Johnson has already been selected to participate in an upcoming tournament in Florida, while Martinez is still awaiting word on any possible tournaments.
�I didn�t know how to react,� Johnson said of her selection. �I was really surprised. I didn�t expect myself to get picked, but I was really excited though. It�s definitely something to get really excited about.�
Johnson led Havelock with 20 goals and nine assists last season. She said the experience of the selection process and tryout camp helped her skills.
�It definitely helped me improve my game,� she said. �I�m playing with a bunch of girls I�ve never met before in my life. They expect us to play together and work together. Learning all their different techniques and working with them, that�s definitely hard. It�s helped me become a more confident player.�
Martinez, who tallied 18 goals and 11 assists last season as a freshman for the Rams, said she didn�t know quite what to expect when she attended the tryout camp.
�It was hard, but with all my family and friends supporting me, I got through it,� she said. �That�s what kept me going.�
She thought it was neat that both she and Johnson were selected when other bigger cities failed to get a representative on the teams.
�It�s very cool,� Martinez said. �No one really knows where Havelock is. To be picked for that and to be from a small town is cool.�
Martinez said her selection has already gotten the attention of college coaches.
�I�ve already gotten a lot of emails from coaches, so hopefully it will help me get into schools,� she said.
Johnson expects to sign with a college this year and hopes her selection has an even bigger impact.
�At events, we get looked at by U.S. national coaches,� she said. �That�s crazy. I can�t believe that�s happening.�
Blair Pearce, from West Carteret High School, was also selected for the program.


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Car News
2013 Buick Encore: First Drive Review
The 2013 Buick Encore is a lot like the U.S. Olympics team's uniforms in London. After all, the Encore is built by one of America's most historic brands, and those uniforms were designed by Ralph Lauren, one of America's most popular fashion icons. And yet neither of them were actually assembled in America. The uniforms were made in China, and the Encore is built in South Korea. The real question is this: When a product is both stylish and good, does it matter where it's stitched together?
Not a Family Car
On the outside, the Encore is smaller than you'd expect. It's probably closest in size to a MINI Countryman, or it fits somewhere between the Nissan Juke and the Nissan Rogue. But small and tall are a popular combination, and this little crossover grants the driver enough space for a passenger and his stuff, as well as the ride height to survey the road ahead. The Encore wears Buick's signature waterfall grille, gratuitous chrome accents and even those blue headlight rings from the larger Enclave. With the addition of the metallic brown paint scheme and the available chrome 18-inch wheels, there's no question that this is a modern Buick. It's kind of like "cute" grew up and got a job, because the car looks like the slightly more professional, more mature vehicle for someone who thought that the Countryman was too silly and that the Juke was too economy. If the Juke is quirky and the Countryman is lively, we'd call the Encore the handsome one in the bunch.
The interior is nearly Cadillac quality, too. There was a time when size and luxury were the same ideal in the American mindset, but that's changing with cars like the BMW X1 and Audi A3 on the market. The Encore is another vehicle that makes it possible for someone who isn't married and doesn't have kids to keep a right-sized luxury car in the garage. While the seats come trimmed in cloth in the base 1SB model, anything above that comes with soft, supple leather. Depending on which of the four trims you choose, the Encore can be equipped with heated seats, navigation, forward collision warning, dual-zone climate control and many of the other technologies expected on modern luxury vehicles. The dash and door panels are covered in soft-touch plastics too, which should weather well as time goes by. And that's important, because GM has taken several strides to ensure that the Encore's interior is one of the quietest cabins on the road today. There are sound-deadening materials used abundantly throughout the car, and the Bose audio system uses three microphones to create counter-tones to hush engine and road noise.
But this car isn't intended for a family of five. The front seats are comfortable, but the rear seats are tight on legroom for adults, and the cargo space could hardly hold a stroller without folding one of the seats. The Encore's rear and front passenger seats all fold flat so you can haul large items in a pinch, but that's only if you're willing to ride alone. Inside, it feels more like a car for you, a friend and maybe a small child. Larger families will want to look at the fullsize Enclave instead.
Light on Power, Light on Fuel
The Encore is powered by the same 1.4-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder found in the Chevrolet Sonic and Cruze Eco. It's good for 138 horsepower and 148 lb-ft of torque, which feels a little weak for a car as heavy as this Buick. While there's enough power to get around town and cruise down the highway, it's not going to win any medals at the drag strip. There's a payoff that comes with the missing grunt though, and it can be found at the gas pump. The FWD Encore is rated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at 25 mpg city, 33 mpg highway and 28 mpg combined, but on flat stretches we actually saw highway numbers exceeding 35 mpg. The AWD model is rated at 23 mpg, 30 mpg and 26 mpg, respectively.
After spending an afternoon driving through mid-Georgia with the 2013 Buick Encore, we like this little package. It's attractive in a way that makes us feel good about leaving it with the valet, and it's one of the most comfortable cars we've spent any time with in a while. Although there's not much power to illicit feelings of joy behind the wheel, we're pretty sure that your wallet will thank you for choosing a car that isn't hungry at the fuel pump too. And wait, what about it being built in Korea? Well, after the day's drive, we had all but forgotten that little detail, which tells us that, much like the U.S. Olympic team's successful run in London, it probably doesn't matter where Buick dresses its cars either. This one is sure to win a few medals too.